After the internet was disconnected, I connected to the magic world.

After pondering for two seconds, my inner chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur) instantly ignited.

He held the wooden sign up to his eyes, shone it against the lamp, lowered his voice, and said with a serious expression:

"What is this? It is so exquisite! Could it be... a rare innate treasure that I lost when I fell to the mortal realm?"

As he spoke, he even threw two punches at the air, striking a domineering pose, looking quite pleased with himself.

"Alright, since you're destined to be with me, you'll follow me from now on."

He placed the wooden plaque in the most conspicuous place on his desk, as if it were the Imperial Seal of the State, before starting his homework.

He finished his homework around 8 p.m., then immediately took out his phone, crawled into bed, and opened a novel he had saved.

When he saw something exciting, he would mutter to himself:

"Three prostrations on the path of reincarnation, a single glimpse of the Celestial Emperor, and a lifetime of regret..."

"I am the Heavenly Emperor, and I shall suppress all enemies in the world! That's fucking awesome!"

The more I looked at it, the more energetic I became, and I wasn't sleepy at all.

Little did he know that the wooden plaque in his schoolbag lit up twice before going dark again.

I watched until 10:50, and finally my eyelids started to droop.

I tossed my phone aside, and within two minutes of my head hitting the pillow, my breathing became even, and I fell into a deep sleep.

On the other side, Lin Ze was getting so impatient he was almost yawning.

I tried once around 9 o'clock, but there was still no response. I tried again around 10 o'clock, but still nothing.

He started to wonder if the wooden sign was broken, or if the kid had stayed up all night.

Around 11 o'clock, he activated the dream array again, just to give it a try.

This time, feedback finally came from the other end of the mental link.

A faint tremor of sleepiness emanated from the area, indicating that the dream-entering array had been successfully activated.

"Finally asleep."

Lin Ze breathed a sigh of relief. This kid was too good at staying up late; he worked even harder than Lin Ze used to.

He steadied himself and, following the mental connection, sent a wisp of his consciousness into it.

As soon as he entered the dream, Lin Ze was completely dumbfounded.

He originally thought that high school students' dreams were nothing more than playing video games, getting perfect scores, being praised by teachers, and at most fighting monsters.

But what is this in front of me?

A vast starry sky stretched overhead, countless enormous planets slowly rotated, and distant stars exploded, bursting out with blinding light.

Beneath my feet lay an endless mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood. The faces of the dead were obscured and piled higher than the mountains. Blood flowed into rivers, floating in the universe.

In mid-air, a young man dressed in a black and gold imperial robe stood with his hands behind his back, his long hair flying, and his eyes looking down arrogantly. It was Zhao Hao.

Several dark shadows stood opposite him, exuding a terrifying aura, and the surrounding space was distorted.

Then Zhao Hao shouted:

"You monstrous progenitors! How dare you offend my Heavenly Court! Today, I will make sure you never return!"

"I am the Heavenly Emperor, destined to suppress all enemies in this world! Behold my Six Paths Reincarnation Fist!"

With a single punch, golden energy exploded, shattering half the planet.

The dark figure opposite was blasted away, crashing into and shattering several stars.

Zhao Hao stood proudly in the void, looking down at those below, exuding an air of absolute dominance.

The next second, the scene changed.

The mountains of corpses and seas of blood disappeared, replaced by a heavenly court shrouded in mist, with its golden palace gleaming.

Zhao Hao sat on the highest throne of the Heavenly Emperor, below whom stood a vast expanse of immortals in celestial robes, kneeling in a dense mass.

"The Heavenly Emperor is mighty!"

"May the Heavenly Emperor live forever!"

The roar of the shouts was so loud it shook the clouds.

Zhao Hao waved his hand, and his voice resounded throughout the entire Heavenly Court:

"Rise, my subjects! Today I will open the path to immortality, ascend the Heavenly Court, and forever eradicate this strange calamity!"

Lin Ze: "..."

His lips twitched so much they were almost frozen.

Goodness, this is serious chuunibyou (middle school syndrome).

So this kid plays the Heavenly Emperor every night before going to sleep?

He tried to mobilize his magical power.

I thought my power would be limited in other people's dreams, but to my surprise, my magic was unimpeded and amplified countless times by the imagination of the dream.

Lin Ze had a sudden thought.

In the starry sky above, a gigantic hand that blots out the sun slowly materialized.

The palm was ridiculously large, with a single finger thicker than a planet. When it pressed down, the entire starry sky darkened.

This scene is somewhat reminiscent of the Mosquito Emperor from a meme I saw before; with one slap, any emperor would turn to ashes.

Zhao Hao was engrossed in his performance when he suddenly felt the sky darken.

He looked up and his face turned pale instantly.

His voice trembled as he looked at the enormous hand that covered the entire sky:

"This, this, this... could it be the progenitor of the eerie plateau?!"

Knowing of my extraordinary talent, you want to erase me from the timeline?!

"impossible!"

He clenched his fist tightly, his entire body bursting with golden light. "I am the Heavenly Emperor, destined to suppress all enemies in this world! Behold my Heavenly Emperor Fist!"

The golden fist slammed into the giant hand.

The result, as you can imagine, was predictable.

The fist struck the large hand like an egg hitting a rock, leaving not even a mark.

He gently pressed down with his large hand.

"Boom—"

The entire Heavenly Court, including Zhao Hao on the throne and all the gods kneeling below, was slapped to pieces.

In reality.

Zhao Hao jumped out of bed with a loud groan, his head covered in sweat, his pajamas soaked through.

He kept his eyes open and was still shouting:

"No! I am the Heavenly Emperor! I am the Heavenly Emperor!"

The door was pushed open with a bang, and his parents rushed in in a panic.

"What's wrong, baby? Did you have a nightmare?"

His mother quickly sat down on the edge of the bed, hugged him, and patted his back, saying, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, it's just a dream."

His father stood beside him, frowning: "Have you been under too much pressure from studying lately? I'll buy you some good food to help you recover tomorrow."

Zhao Hao leaned against his mother's chest, panting heavily, and didn't come to his senses for a long time.

The dream was so real; when that giant hand pressed down, he really felt like he was going to die.

On the other side, Lin Ze's consciousness had already withdrawn.

He leaned back in his chair, somewhat speechless.

This kid is too dramatic.

But the next second, he suddenly froze.

That's not right.

Logically speaking, when a person wakes up from a dream, the dream should end.

But when he followed the mental connection to perceive that direction, the scene in his dream had not completely disappeared.

Those gods and heavenly soldiers who had just been kneeling in worship now stood motionless on the ruins of the shattered Heavenly Court, their eyes glazed over, like soulless puppets.

The entire dream was quiet and still, without a trace of life, yet it maintained its form and did not dissipate.

Lin Ze's heart skipped a beat.

The dreams of ordinary people shatter upon waking; they cannot be held onto.

How come these dream-generated figures still exist?

He stared at the blank figures, and a bigger idea slowly emerged from the bottom of his heart.

If these things can be preserved, then can he fill them with rules, scenes, and techniques, turning this illusory dream into a fixed space that can be entered repeatedly?

If it really works...

Lin Ze's breathing gradually became a little more rapid.

That's more than just a tool for collecting magic.

That was a true, extraordinary world that belonged to him.