157: Chapter 156 Conversation in a Dream

Chapter 156: Conversation in a Dream

Li Tiance saw that Sun Po looked a bit tired and said, "Brother Sun makes a good point. Why don't you stay at Prince Qins Mansion for the next few days to rest up? I shall come to bother you again tomorrow."

Sun Po naturally agreed, and so the two parted ways.

That evening, Sun Po returned to his room and lay on the bed with a splitting headache, a classic symptom of severe spiritual exhaustion.

Up until now, his cards had always possessed high combat power with low spirituality consumption, making this a completely new feeling for Sun Po.

Although his trip to the Jinshan Temple Secret Realm had yielded immense rewards, the strain had been equally unprecedented.

Sun Po sank his mind into Tianhe Budu, only to find it looking utterly desolate.

The land on both banks was cracked, and the river in the middle had been replaced by a pitch-black chasm.

Within the chasm, the water level of the entire pitch-black Calamity Heavenly River had dropped by more than half, with parts of the river showing signs of vaporizing once again.

Beneath the chasm, the golden roofs of the Tianhe Water Mansion palace complex were faintly visible. With another shift of his mind, Sun Po moved his sight to the central nexus of the Tianhe Water Mansion.

The simple, ancient emperor yus ding still stood quietly in the center, but the patterns on its surface were slightly dimmed. Sun Po focused his attention and saw that the inside of the tripod was completely dry, without a single drop of calamity liquid left, though the cards themselves were largely unharmed.

Huang Chao and Zhong Kui were separated within Tianhe Budu, but both were sleeping with their eyes closed.

Wuzhiqi was currently feasting heartily. Next to it was a dish containing what looked like braised lion's head meatballs, steaming hot, while Paoding stood quietly off to the side.

Strangest of all was Overlord Xiang Yu, who was actually lifting the emperor yus ding with one hand, his eyes closed as if feeling something from it.

Sun Po suddenly felt that although his gold-quality field card was fully functional combat-wise, his cards lacked individual spaces for living, resting, and recovering. If this continued, as he acquired more cards, it would likely cause quite a few problems.

"The domain is still too single-purpose. Although the initial upper-and-lower structure tried to account for the compatibility with Overlord Xiang Yu and Wuzhiqi, the upper limit of the Yin Soldiers was too low, and the troop's functionality felt somewhat useless, so it was gradually swallowed up by the more powerful Damaged Tianhe Water Mansion section.

Because of this, Tianhe Budu is only suited to Wuzhiqi's fighting style, where the celestial flood can borrow starlight power. Huang Chao barely adapts to Tianhe Budu, while Zhong Kui is completely incompatible with its combat style. Overlord Xiang Yu isn't compatible either, though Overlord Xiang Yu seems very interested in the emperor yus ding."

Sun Po pondered in his heart. He now had two complete secret realm cores in his possession, which was practically unimaginable. Priceless treasures like these were something most people would never see even one of in their entire lives, let alone two.

Unfortunately, he already had Tianhe Budu, and a person could only possess one field card because there was only one spiritual space.

But earlier, when he held the secret realm core of Shanjun Temple, the system prompt read, "[Detected host already possesses a domain; can load new modules into the domain]," followed by, "[System level insufficient; domain module loading function is not yet unlocked]."

In Sun Po's mind, the word "module" roughly meant different parts or units. Thus, he had guessed from the beginning that if he wanted his Tianhe Budu to adapt to different cards and offer more possibilities, he would likely need more secret realm cores. This was also his main reason for coming to the Jinshan Temple Secret Realm to destroy it directly—although there were some twists and turns along the way, the outcome was fortunately good.

Sun Po felt a surge of excitement inside; he urgently wanted to increase his system level.

But today, he needed to rest first. His future deck construction was at stake, so he couldn't afford to be careless.

Thinking this, Sun Po withdrew from Tianhe Budu and fell into a deep sleep. He slept very soundly, yet strangely felt like he had entered a void.

He looked around him; the galaxy was brilliant and resplendent with light. Beneath his feet was a starry "land" that stretched beyond sight, which even seemed somewhat elastic.

He pinched his own flesh. Hmm, it didn't hurt. It seemed he was dreaming.

Suddenly, a searing pain shot through the skin he had just pinched, making him gasp out in shock:

"Holy crap, where did the needle sticking me come from?"

Suddenly, a sweet sensation emanated from that spot on Sun Po's skin.

Yes, sweetness.

It was a bizarre sensation. Sun Po couldn't imagine how the skin on his hand could convey the taste feedback of sweetness to his brain.

Yet his brain genuinely received this completely abnormal feedback from the action of pinching his skin. Strange, truly strange.

Just as he was marveling at this, he suddenly heard a familiar laugh from ahead: "Brat, we meet again."

The lazy, aged, yet slightly cynical voice belonged to none other than Zhuang Zhou, whom he had parted ways with just today.

Sun Po was still somewhat wary of the old man Zhuang Zhou. This wariness mainly stemmed from the old man's identity as a "Monster," as well as how Zhuang Zhou had pretended not to recognize which family Sun Po belonged to during their first meeting, leading Sun Po to feel that the old man was acting somewhat secretively.

Coupled with the fact that he was just a novice who knew nothing about the Outer Realm, he naturally harbored innate hostility toward the identity of a "Monster." Thus, he acted rather cold, merely cupping his fists and saying:

"Senior's talent is indeed extraordinary, but may I ask why you have summoned me to meet in a dream?"

Zhuang Zhou didn't seem to care about Sun Po's wariness. He simply said, "Aren't you afraid of me, kid? I remember telling you that my unique talent allows me to use the power of every Zhuang Zhou in my dreams, including all the powers every Zhuang Zhou has ever seen. Right now, we're in a dream. If I wanted to kill you, even Huo Wuji couldn't save you in time."

Sun Po naturally knew how powerful Zhuang Zhou was. It wasn't that he wasn't afraid—he simply had no options.

Although Zhong Kui and Huang Chao also had the ability to travel between the dream realm and reality, their meager proficiency in dream arts was...

...completely useless in front of Zhuang Zhou.

After all, he was a figure on the level of a sect ancestor. Even if he claimed he wasn't that Dao Ancestor Zhuang Zhou, according to his talent, any single Zhuang Zhou was the sum of all Zhuang Zhous, so whether he was a specific one didn't seem very important.

Moreover, whether as Card Maker Zhuang Zhou or Monster Zhuang Zhou, he was a powerhouse who had educated Titled Card Makers. He felt capable of beating up a hundred Sun Pos—and that was a conservative estimate.

Therefore, if this eccentric Zhuang Zhou—who was neither strictly good nor evil—wanted to move against Sun Po, Sun Po would have absolutely zero chance of survival.

Sun Po continued calmly, "If Senior wanted to act against me, there would be no need to go to such lengths in a dream. There were plenty of opportunities in the Jinshan Temple Secret Realm, and given Senior's cultivation, being afraid wouldn't help me anyway."

Zhuang Zhou laughed heartily and said, "You're quite sharp, kid. Then let me ask you, do you know why so many Titled Card Makers suddenly wanted to take you as their disciple overnight?"

This question struck right at the heart of Sun Po's curiosity, as it was something he hadn't been able to figure out all day. He had considered various possibilities, but felt it was hard to think from the perspective of a Titled Card Maker, so any guess would likely just be blind speculation.

After a moment of hesitation, Sun Po said, "This junior does not know. I ask Senior to enlighten me."

Zhuang Zhou chuckled with a smug expression, "Aha, that's more like it! Aside from me, probably no one else is willing to tell you the truth. Besides, I will also make you understand why only I can be your teacher."

The old man cleared his throat and said, "You saw the Red-White Conflict this time. Both the Red Emperor and the White Emperor are overlords ruling their own domains in the heavens of the Outer Realm. Their factions are immense, gathering countless powerhouses under them, and are universally recognized in the Outer Realm as two forces not to be provoked."

Sun Po nodded. Although the figures who acted from the void above didn't show their faces, Sun Po had already learned the identity of the person who acted on the Red Emperor's side from Liu Bang's words before his self-immolation: Fire Virtue Star Lord.

This was a orthodox deity of the Fire Ministry. Logically, this divine title belonged to the Near-Ancient Heavenly Court and shouldn't have much to do with the Red Emperor from the Primordial Era, but clearly that wasn't the case—he seemed to serve the Red Emperor as his master.

And someone who could fight against Fire Virtue Star Lord without falling behind must be a rival of the same level, most likely another deity familiar to Sun Po.

Since Zhuang Zhou said that both the Red Emperor and the White Emperor had immense power, it indicated that deities of this caliber were likely not limited to just one, and there might even be quite a few of them.

Back then, a mere Yang Guang—a wild god who stole Wuzhiqi's foundation for godhood—had almost destroyed S Province. Yet a god like that wouldn't even count as an expert within the Red or White factions.

Such factions were truly terrifying.

Zhuang Zhou continued, "And not long ago, a supreme power equal in strength to those two, the Azure Emperor, performed a divination: A great calamity draws near; only one who breaks the master-disciple bond can break the calamity.

"The Azure Emperor has mastered the art of Bagua divination and possesses the ability to foresee the future, never making an error. Therefore, his prophecies have always been taken seriously by many.

"Add to that the fact that you already have a bit of a reputation in the circle of Outer Realm powerhouses, some people jumped to the conclusion that whoever becomes your master will be able to resolve the great calamity. Hence, quite a few brats wanted to take you as a disciple."

Upon hearing this, Sun Po truly felt the helplessness of being caught in trouble through no fault of his own. But it also left him quite speechless—how could Titled Card Makers be so easily swayed by rumors?

However, this was Sun Po misunderstanding those Titled Card Makers. He simply didn't understand the true weight of Azure Emperor Fuxi's divination, nor did he grasp what "never making an error" meant in the circle of top Outer Realm powerhouses. It meant that over a span of tens of thousands of years, the Azure Emperor effectively possessed total foresight.

Such an ancient powerhouse didn't issue prophecies every day, so whenever one was revealed, it was enough to cause a massive upheaval.

But there was still one thing Sun Po didn't understand: "Senior, just when did I gain a bit of a reputation in the circle of Outer Realm powerhouses? As a beginner Card Maker who has barely started on the path of card making and hasn't even been to the Outer Realm, how could I have entered the radar of those Outer Realm powerhouses, let alone gain a reputation?"

Sun Po felt terrible right now. He felt like a tiny ant being studied under a magnifying glass by a group of giants, and then one of the giants pointed at him and said that eating this ant would grant immortality, though it needed to be fattened up for a few days first.

Sun Po utterly detested this feeling of being forcibly exposed, especially in front of a crowd of people who could crush him with a flick of a finger.

Zhuang Zhou replied, "Because your fate trajectory is completely blank, kid. In the eyes of those top Outer Realm powerhouses, that stands out like a lightbulb in the dead of night.

"You should know that there are many who have stepped outside the river of destiny. Take those two monkeys on you, for instance—they are beings who naturally stepped outside the river of destiny from birth.

"However, there has never been anyone who remains inside the river of destiny yet possesses no fate trajectory whatsoever. Such a person has never appeared before—you are the only one."

Sun Po felt a chill in his heart hearing this. If he hadn't been in a dream, he would probably be breaking out in a cold sweat.

"Could it be...? Because of...?"

Just as he began to think about it, he hurriedly pulled his thoughts back.

I can't think about it! This damn Zhuang Zhou across from me has countless tricks. He already demonstrated a mind-reading-like ability earlier. Who's to say he isn't deliberately telling me this news to trick me into exposing a weakness?

Sun Po tried his best to redirect his thoughts. He thought about the meatball-like food he saw Wuzhiqi eating earlier, wondering if it was a new dish created by Paoding.

And why was Overlord Xiang Yu closing his eyes while lifting the cauldron? Was he able to directly awaken his true name a second time because he was privately lifting the emperor yus ding to comprehend and train?

He even recalled the few servants he encountered in Prince Qins Mansion today one by one. After a moment, Zhuang Zhou remarked, "Not dumb. You even know how to guard against this old man's mind reading."

This old guy really can read minds!! That's way too underhanded!!

But just as Sun Po thought this, the "starry" ground beneath his feet violently shook. Sun Po was thrown high into the air, feeling himself fly up countless meters. After who knows how long—or perhaps just a split second—Sun Po crashed heavily back onto the soft starry "ground."

Despite the soft touch, Sun Po felt dizzy and battered, as if his tailbone had shattered, feeling as though he had slammed into the hardest steel plate.

He lay spread-eagled on the starry "ground," grimacing in pain, yet even with pain like this, he still didn't wake from the dream.

Zhuang Zhou's scruffy old face leaned into his view, the old man grinning so hard that wrinkles creased all over his face: "Forgot to tell you, beneath our feet is Little Kun. It's taken a liking to diving lately."

Saying that, Zhuang Zhou extended a hand to Sun Po. Although Sun Po gritted his teeth in hatred, he didn't dare curse in his heart anymore. He began forcefully controlling himself to think of random nonsense—anything, so long as it wasn't related to his secrets.

Seeing Sun Po sitting on the ground refusing to get up, Zhuang Zhou couldn't hold back his laughter any longer. After his laughter subsided, he finally spoke under Sun Po's livid expression.

What he said next was earth-shattering, almost scaring Sun Po into screaming out loud:

"Alright, stop playing dumb. You brat are a transmigrator, aren't you?"