"Hey, mister newcomer, would you like to try our clover cookies?"
A rabbit wearing a red vest hopped over, warmly inviting him to join the tea party. These anthropomorphic animals were enjoying their colorful snacks in the shade of a tree nearby.
But Su Ming didn't have time.
Moreover, it was hard to imagine anyone besides a rabbit wanting to eat clover-flavored cookies.
"No, I have business." Su Ming's voice, demonic under the mask, glanced at the castle and turned away.
Tears welled up in the rabbit's eyes, and its three-part mouth quivered as it wept and retreated. It only wanted to make friends, but this person scared it...
Everything here seemed particularly innocent and dreamlike, yet the massive rift above reminded Su Ming that time was running out.
The little animals didn't sense the approaching danger, but Su Ming knew that this attack from beyond the Origin Wall was all-encompassing.
The changes happening in Dream Country were unknown to the Justice League.
The cloak brought him directly to the castle's terrace, where a crow kept its eyes fixed on him.
"Stop staring at me, I'm just passing through."
"I know you came from Death's side, but the master isn't here," the crow replied. It was one of the Master of Dreams' servants, free to traverse between dreams and reality, though it didn't truly exist.
Su Ming grabbed it, pinching its beak: "That's why I need to find your master. I plan to hitch a ride through a familiar dream."
The crow nodded frantically, having a bit of trouble breathing.
"Very well, show me the dreams, the dreams of the superheroes of the Main World." Su Ming lifted a corner of his cloak, tying it to the crow's leg.
"If it's a command from Death, we certainly must comply. Follow me," the crow said anthropomorphically, gasping for breath, never having considered fleeing.
People's dreams gathered here, just like unwritten stories and unfinished poems belonged to 'non-existent' things.
The crow led him around the castle to a vast grassland, over a small hill, where countless bubbles floated before them.
Under the sunlight, they all shimmered with a rainbow of colors.
Su Ming flew around with the help of his cloak but didn't find any superhero dreams. The crow seemed to notice his confusion.
"It's still daytime in the Main World; these are all daydreams, caw caw!"
Alright, if that's the case, the heroes probably find it hard to fall asleep now. Yet, Su Ming did discover a familiar dream.
On a colorful bubble was her face, and he could see the scenes inside.
It was Harley's dream, and she was still asleep. In her dream, she was playing with Poison Ivy at an amusement park.
"Hee hee hee, Little Red, try to catch me!"
"Slow down, Harley, I can't keep up with you." Poison Ivy panted behind her.
A psychiatric patient's dream is incredibly unstable; one moment, they were playing hide-and-seek in an amusement park, and the next, they were sunbathing on a seaside beach.
The only constant was that Poison Ivy was still by her side. They were both in swimsuits, lying on deck chairs, drinking iced watermelon juice, and enjoying foot massages from handsome massage therapists.
Su Ming released the crow. While the dream was still stable, he plunged into it and appeared on the beach.
The sea breeze, the smell of the ocean, the soft sand underfoot—all felt incredibly real.
He removed his helmet and walked toward the two women under a sun umbrella.
"Ahem, Deathstroke, what brings you here?" Harley was sipping her cold drink when she noticed Su Ming appear beside her with a blank expression.
"You mean in your dream?" Su Ming looked at her helplessly, astonished she could enjoy herself so much while knowing she was dreaming.
"Of course, I'm always aware," Harley laughed, shaking her head like a doll. Her red and blue pigtails lay draped over her snow-white shoulders: "Isn't it great that everyone lives in a dream?"
"I need you to wake up, I need to return to reality," Su Ming said flatly.
"This is my dream; you have to listen to me... Actually, you're quite handsome. First, apply some sunscreen on Little Red and me, and then I'll consider your request."
Harley pouted, her eyes shifting as she turned over on the lounger and reached back to unfasten her swimsuit strap, her two white buns flattening against the chair.
In her dream, Harley had a bust at least two cup sizes larger than in reality, even more imposing than Diana's.
Su Ming rubbed his beard; it seemed Harley saw him as her fantasy creation. But he wasn't; he was someone who entered the dream.
Su Ming promptly drew his gun, aiming at the diligent, handsome masseurs attending to Harley and Poison Ivy: "Massage harder, attack their kidney reflex zones."
With Harley's scream, she woke up.
Su Ming successfully hitched a ride back to the Hall of Justice.
The only awkward part was that Harley and he were on a single bed, which was merely Diana's single bed.
Su Ming sat up as if nothing had happened, stepping out of the palace to look for Barry to check on the situation.
Meanwhile, Harley seemed a bit disoriented, struggling to comprehend what had just happened.
Why was Deathstroke sleeping next to her? What just happened in that dream? No, she needed to think back to last night after she fell asleep... Did something happen?
...........
The other members of the Suicide Squad weren't in Diana's quarters and must have been busy elsewhere. At this time, the barrier of the Hall of Justice had already been lifted; it seemed the issue with the Invisible Light was temporarily resolved.
Su Ming didn't see if the Eclipse Star was completely destroyed by him, but it had suffered severe damage and could no longer control the people on Earth.
However, due to the previous chaos, no one would visit the Hall of Justice for a while.
He found Barry in the command center, still holding his cigarette, which had barely burned down from when Su Ming left.
Su Ming took the cigarette back from him, placing it in his mouth, taking a long drag.
"Are you alright?" Barry looked worried; he hadn't seen much here but knew quite a few of those Invisible Lantern Heroes outside fell not long ago. Both he and Superman caught and turned them back into ordinary people, exhausting them.
And it all was Deathstroke's doing; he said he'd deal with the Eclipse Star and truly accomplished his goal.
"It seems I was quick enough; the Eclipse Star should be calm for now."
Su Ming exhaled a smoke ring; his task wasn't over yet. Sometimes one task could indeed have different clients, and this was one of those times now.
Batman, Olympus, and the Endless Clan, their commissions were all related to this major event.
"Actually, you've been gone quite a while..." Barry bashfully scratched his face with his fingers.
"Oh?"
The Flash grinned: "As you said, I can close the door from inside a room. I've mastered the Static Force, freezing the time flow of the cigarette."
Su Ming nodded; that was certainly good news: "Not bad, you can slowly handle enemies by trapping them in the future."
"Uh, I'm afraid not yet. This power conflicts somewhat with my bodily cells; my body wasn't meant for deceleration, so for now, the extent I can control is only about the size of a cigarette butt."
Barry sighed helplessly, showing a small gap with his thumb and forefinger.