Longzang

Chapter 652 Her Dream

Despite the desperate remonstrations of Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, the merciless mockery of Xu Henshui, Sun Yu's attempt to study his mind, and Bao Yun's silent yet trembling demeanor, Wei Yuan remained steadfast in his convictions, only wavering slightly.

But he then received high praise from Feng Tingyu.

Wei Yuan finally realized his mistake and silently removed the additional patterns from the dragon head on the front, the phoenix on the back, the qilin on the left arm, and the qiongqi on the right shoulder. The Pangu creation map that was originally planned to be added was thus aborted.

After several revisions, the final design for the military uniform was finally determined.

Normally, the main attire consists of a short trench coat, long trousers, and military boots. The color scheme is based on black, with ordinary officers using silver as an accent color, mid- to high-ranking officers using dark red, and generals using a combination of dark gold and dark red.

During wartime, armor was issued, mainly consisting of breastplates, waist armor, helmets, and combat boots. Ordinary officers' armor contained a small amount of Nether Iron, while mid- to high-ranking officers would have an additional amount of Nether Crystals added.

This is equivalent to officers at the Body Tempering Realm wearing magical armor only those at the Foundation Establishment Realm are issued, while officers at the Foundation Establishment Realm are uniformly issued armor equivalent to mid-grade magical artifacts. Even ordinary disciples from prestigious families like the Cui and Xiao families receive no more than this treatment.

The new military uniform design has been completed, and the first batch of military academy cadets, totaling about a thousand people, has been selected.

The principal of Qingming Military Academy is naturally Wei Yuan, the chief instructor is Cui Yu, and the deputy chief instructors are Bao Yun and Xu Yi.

As the principal, Wei Yuan originally planned to give a speech at the first student assembly. He had even prepared his speech and had it polished several times by Human Fireworks. But at this crucial moment, news came from Dream Eater that they had discovered the location of Ji Liuli's inner tribulation.

Therefore, Wei Yuan had no choice but to give up this long-awaited opportunity to speak and head to the Netherworld.

Upon reaching the entrance of the side hall, Wei Yuan saw Dream Eater and asked, "How is it now?"

The Dream Eater said, "I've discovered some clues. Her reaction is very strong whenever those things are mentioned, at least to the level of intense obsession. Those things seem to be related to some kind of luck, but what is luck? I've never even heard of it. Why don't you go in and play by yourself... and take a look?"

Wei Yuan knew that since it involved the fate of the human world, a demonic creature from beyond the realm like the Dream Eater would definitely not understand it. So he immediately said with a serious and righteous expression, "Alright! But how do I get in?"

"Find a comfortable place to lie down, relax, think about sleeping, and then I can send you into her dream."

Wei Yuan found a side room, sat cross-legged on the couch, and took deep breaths. Before he could compose himself, the scenery before him had already changed.

He was sitting in a side room, the furnishings of which were exceptionally simple. Suddenly, the sound of a group of children playing outside rose up, but it sounded somewhat tense.

Wei Yuan got up and went outside, only to see a group of children arguing in the front yard. A tall, burly boy pointed at a little girl and angrily said, "You only win by luck every time! You have no real skill at all!"

The little girl was on the verge of tears, crying out, "I'm not! I'm definitely better than you!"

"You are it! Last time, my sword suddenly broke. The time before that, Uncle Wu had an accident while refining a magic weapon, and a tile flew over and hit me on the head. That's why I couldn't defend against your attack. And the time before that... Once or twice could be considered a coincidence, but every time is a coincidence? Do you think we're stupid?"

"You're so lucky, why don't you go play by yourself? We should play with people who really have the skills!"

A group of children echoed this and left the yard, leaving only the little girl alone in the yard.

After everyone had left, her tears began to fall in large drops.

The scenery before Wei Yuan suddenly shifted, transforming into a training ground. The little girl now appeared to be ten years old, surrounded by children dressed in the robes of the Taichu Palace. At that moment, she and two other boys were competing in sword-wielding.

The three of them sped along on flying swords, trying to navigate around numerous obstacles and pass through an illusion. The first to reach the finish line would win. The little girl wasn't particularly fast, but she passed through the illusion without incident, while the other two boys never came out again.

"That's it again!"

"Comparing yourself to her will always lead to unexpected results."

"After all, they are the chosen ones, possessing a fortune of three feet tall. How can we compare?"

"From now on, we'll just concede defeat in any competition she participates in."

"There are plenty of chosen ones, she's not the only one, what's so great about her? If she's capable of taking down the other chosen ones, then I'll be impressed."

……

The girl listened to everything they said.

The competition ended in the blink of an eye, and all the boys and girls left, not one of them staying to keep her company. She looked around at the empty space with a blank expression, her face growing increasingly gloomy.

The scenery shifted again, and the girl knelt before True Lord Yanshi. True Lord Yanshi in the dream was exactly the same as Wei Yuan knew; it seemed his appearance hadn't changed in decades.

Yan Shi Zhenjun said calmly, "Are you sure? I can indeed change your fate, but only once. Your current physical attributes and fortune are each 13 feet, making you a perfect child of destiny. A path to heaven is right before your eyes, requiring no external seeking. I'll ask you one more time, are you truly determined to do this?"

The girl said firmly, "This disciple will forge a path to heaven on my own! Please, Ancestor, transform my fortune into my very essence!"

"This act is an interference with the secrets of heaven, and the price will be extremely high. You will surely regret it in the future, and suffer the pain of wanting but not getting. Have you thought it through?"

"I've made up my mind," the girl said resolutely.

Yan Shi Zhenjun sighed softly, picked up a small jade cauldron beside him, and slowly spun it. The girl's body suddenly began to tremble, and then blue and red energies emerged from the top of her head. The blue energy continued to rise, while the red energy rapidly descended, and the whole scene shook.

When the jade cauldron completed a full rotation, it suddenly exploded with a crisp crack in Yan Shi Zhenjun's hand, shattering into several wounds. At this moment, the green aura above the girl's head was more than twice as strong as the red aura.

Yan Shi Zhenjun said, "Your physical constitution is now eighteen feet tall, but your fortune is only seven feet. However, you have committed a sin against Heaven, and in many cases, these seven feet are probably not even as good as two feet for others. You must be careful."

The girl thanked Lord Yanshi and left with her head held high. Her entire demeanor was different as she departed.

At that moment, a dignified voice suddenly rang out from inside the room: "She's just a child, it's one thing for her to act up. But why are you acting up along with her?"

Yan Shi Zhenjun smiled slightly and said, "Anyway, the final result is the same. I also want to see what kind of path to heaven she can create."

The voice paused for a moment, then said, "...Just spoil her then."

"Isn't it the same for you?"

……

The scene shifts again, and the girl runs into another courtyard. In the courtyard, a young girl is sitting quietly reading; she is bright, sharp, clean, and clear, like a sword drawn from its sheath.

Wei Yuan almost lost his Dao heart. Isn't this Zhang Sheng in his teenage years?

As soon as the girl entered the courtyard, she said, "Zhang Sheng! I have circulated my Qi into my root bone, so we can cultivate together and have normal competitions from now on!"

Zhang Sheng, still a girl, looked up, slightly surprised, and asked, "You really changed your luck?"

"Yes! I only have seven feet of Qi left now." The girl's face was radiant with joy as she said, "From now on, I can rely on my own true abilities to forge my own path! Let's cultivate together from now on!"

Zhang Sheng was silent for a moment, then said, "I don't play with idiots."

……

It was time to test their swordsmanship again. The girl flew at high speed with several disciples. She rushed into the illusion array first, but while everyone else had exited the array and reached the finish line, the girl had not yet come out.

The examiner opened the illusion array and found the girl had accidentally wandered into its core, battling a magical beast that made up half of the array. Several other disciples escaped the array without even encountering a magical beast.

……

Another year of sword-wielding practice had passed, and the girl had grown into a young woman. She looked about thirteen or fourteen, in the bloom of youth, graceful and elegant, yet her expression always held a certain intensity. She was still the first to enter the illusion array and the last to emerge, still ranking at the bottom. But this time, she had defeated all the illusory beasts within the array.

Zhang Sheng still wouldn't play with her.

……

The scenery changed abruptly and rapidly, with countless images rushing in, a chaotic mess. The girl grew wildly amidst numerous unexpected setbacks, and after experiencing too much, her temperament gradually became strange and extreme.

Wei Yuan understood that this was the true nature of the dream; what he had just seen was what the Dream Eater had compiled for him.

Suddenly, several images flashed before Wei Yuan's eyes.

That was Xu Henshui's study. Ji Liuli was taking out packets of medicine, calculating the next prescription. There was a wooden tub in the room, and a fire suddenly appeared around it, bringing the medicinal soup inside to a near boil.

Lying in the tub was a naked boy. He was quite tall, and although his face was still somewhat immature, his body was already no different from that of an adult.

The boy was completely red, with wisps of faint flame constantly escaping from his mouth and nose. His eyes were tightly closed, and he seemed to be in great pain. The sound of blood rushing through his body was deafening, echoing throughout the room.

Lying in the bucket is Wei Yuan as a teenager. This is the first time he is examining his past self from an outsider's perspective, hence his slightly flushed face.

The boy in the bucket suddenly groaned in pain, and Ji Liuli instantly appeared beside the bucket. At this moment, the boy had already lost consciousness, and Ji Liuli's hands moved continuously over his body, smoothing out his blood circulation.

A moment later, the young Wei Yuan's blood circulation speed increased, but the roaring sound decreased significantly. Some blockages had been cleared, and his body's absorption of the medicinal power increased greatly. His expression gradually relaxed.

Wei Yuan felt a surge of emotion. Back then, his senior sister had truly gone to great lengths to cultivate him. A genius cultivator like her could have improved her cultivation by simply reading a few Daoist scriptures during that time, but she was willing to spend each day refining his foundation.

Just as Wei Yuan was feeling touched, he noticed a change in the scene. Ji Liuli suddenly exclaimed "Eh!" and turned her gaze away.

At this moment, Wei Yuan's body was burning with the medicinal power, his body felt like a furnace, and his blood flowed like a surging tide. Naturally, he exhibited some of the reactions that a mature man should have.

Ji Liuli acted recklessly and without any restraint. He clicked his tongue while reaching out to grab it, as if to check if there was any problem.

Just as she raised her hand, the screen suddenly went black and the video cut off.

(End of this chapter)