My Dreams Connect to Ancient Times

A great city was set ablaze, its flames raging furiously. The old and young, women and children, became its kindling; a million living souls became its light, dyeing the entire city's Celestial Vault a crimson red.

The Drought Demon walked through the city and stood before the dying Earth Immortal City Lord. She spoke with a look of feigned pity:

"If you must blame someone, blame your Ruler of the State for not worshiping the magnificent West Pole Celestial Court. His sins are heavy, so very heavy."

The Earth Immortal City Lord struggled to lift his head. With every breath he took, waves of scorching flame flowed down his windpipe, burning his lungs to charcoal.

He looked around in a daze, seeing a child nearby burned to ashes, seeing the skeletons across the city set alight. Sorrow welled up from the depths of his heart.

"What have the common people done to deserve this... What have they done!"

The Drought Demon tilted her head curiously, gazing at the dying Earth Immortal. She flashed a brilliant smile.

"What do the common people have to do with me? If they revered the Celestial Court, respected the Immortal Gods, and worshiped the Emperor, they would be our subjects. But since they do none of those things, how are they any different from ants?"

As she spoke, the Drought Demon crouched down, watching with a playful grin as the middle-aged man before her was burned away, bit by bit.

"Tell me, where should I go next? Which city? I hear there's a great city to the East with seven or eight million people. How about I go there?"

The City Lord struggled to raise his hand and point at the Drought Demon, his eyes seeming to split with rage.

"How are you worthy of being an Immortal? How are you worthy of the people's reverence? How are you worthy..."

Before he could finish, the entire arm he was pointing with burned to charcoal. The Drought Demon giggled and tapped it. The charred limb shattered, scattering into the scorching flames.

The Drought Demon laughed.

"Even as I burn you, you should be kneeling in worship. For I am an Immortal, an emissary of the vast West Pole Celestial Court. But you cursed me, and that makes me very unhappy. So, as punishment..."

She thought for a moment, then let out a strange laugh.

"As punishment, I'll forbid you from even entering Reincarnation."

As she spoke, the great fire consuming the city suddenly flared, no longer burning physical things, but searing souls alone.

The City Lord watched as soul after soul was burned into nothingness, letting out inhuman wails. The Drought Demon, however, let out a tinkling, bell-like laugh, delighting in the scene.

"Are you sad? Are you heartbroken? Are you angry?"

After a pause, she spoke again with a smile.

"But there's not a single thing you can do about it, is there? I am an Immortal, and you are human. You are merely little pets we keep. When a pet dares to disrespect its master, it must, of course, be punished."

She was a Disaster Immortal, one who reveled in wails and suffering. The more pain this Earth Immortal before her felt, the more excited she became—so excited her eyes seemed to glisten with unshed tears.

"Alright, I'm off to the next city. I won't destroy your soul. I want you to enjoy this suffering and listen to this calamity with me."

As she spoke, the Drought Demon gently caressed the City Lord's head. The middle-aged man's entire body was instantly burned to charcoal, leaving only his Three Souls and Seven Spirits and a single point of True Spirit to drift out from the husk.

She snatched the sorrowful, furious, wailing, weeping True Spirit in her palm and slowly walked out of the city.

Behind her, the flames of the great city flared once more, incinerating the souls of its million inhabitants, denying them even Reincarnation.

"I always keep my promises!" The Drought Demon let out another bell-like laugh. Humming a little tune, she sauntered off toward the next city.

After she left, Black and White Impermanence emerged from the void. Gazing at the dead silence that filled the city, Black Impermanence shook his head and said with trepidation:

"Her killing intent is far too strong... We came all this way for nothing. Not a single soul is left."

White Impermanence looked up, gazing at the Drought Demon's receding figure, and spoke softly:

"There are Great Powers in the Human World as well. Isn't she afraid of incurring their wrath by acting like this?"

"I'm afraid she truly isn't." Black Impermanence shook his head again. "The Drought Demon comes bearing a Decree from the West Pole Celestial Court. Who would dare to make trouble for her?"

After a pause, he continued:

"The one in the West Pole commands Weapons, controls conflict, and wields calamity. Since the King of Qin does not pay court to, revere, or worship the West Pole Celestial Court, it was the perfect opportunity for that one to send the Drought Demon to spread disaster and misfortune. They will likely reap considerable benefits from a thousand leagues of calamity..."

"Watch your words!" White Impermanence warned. "Do not speak lightly of the Emperor, lest you invite a great disaster... Enough. Let's follow behind the Drought Demon and see if we can guide any souls back." He sighed.

Even as Ghost Gods of the Underworld, long accustomed to sorrow and suffering, Black and White Impermanence still felt a pang of empathy upon witnessing such a tragic scene.

All creatures grieve for their own kind, and humans are living beings too.

But what could they dare to say?

Never mind that the Drought Demon herself had come bearing a Decree from the West Pole Celestial Court...

After this trip through the Human World, spreading so much disaster, she would probably break through to the next realm upon her return to the Celestial Court. She would likely become Immortal, a Celestial Venerable, would she not?

'She's not someone we can afford to offend. Absolutely not.'

...

The Great Sun blazed, a guiding beacon. At the mighty pass, an army of thousands raised their blades. They raised their blades to form an honor guard, an honor guard to welcome Lu Zi.

Duke Mu of Qin looked at the aging old man seated atop the great Cyan Bull, and hot tears suddenly streamed down his face. He bent at the waist and bowed.

"Lu Zi... you have returned."

"Many years have passed since I left, and I lost track of my return. I did promise to bestow a blessing upon that child named Zheng." Lu Xuan smiled. "But I suppose I am not too late."

After a pause, he stroked the bamboo slips in his hand and spoke again in a gentle voice:

"I have come from Luoyang, both to fulfill a promise and to spread the Way. How about I deliver my first sermon here, in the capital of the Qin Kingdom?"

Duke Mu of Qin's expression brightened. In the eyes of the world, Lu Zi was an honored and revered figure. He had initiated the campaign of Invading Qi and was also the teacher of Kongzi. Although he had vanished without a trace for thirty years, his fame had not diminished, especially as Master Kong's own renown grew in recent years.

But he knew that what the world saw was, in the end, only a fraction of the truth.

On the day of the invasion of Qi, a single palm strike from Lu Zi had swatted down a Jade Void Immortal. An enraged Great Immortal God from the West Pole Celestial Court had seemingly retaliated, yet what followed was half of the West Pole Celestial Court itself falling into the Human World...