My Dreams Connect to Ancient Times

"Hey, you got any treasures?"

The skeleton was nailed to the cliff. As the woman spoke, a gale erupted, causing its shattered limbs to swing limply and its dry, shoulder-length hair to flutter. Aside from this, there was no other sound or movement.

Lu Xuan quickly moved forward, bowed, and said softly,

"Lady, he is already dead."

"I know."

Despite dragging an entire boundless firmament behind her, the stunningly beautiful woman’s posture remained perfectly straight. She smiled happily and said,

"He can still move and talk even though he’s dead. This guy is a real troublemaker, always scurrying about in the past."

"???"

Lu Xuan was dumbfounded. Just as he was about to ask, he saw the stunningly beautiful woman tilt her head back and yell,

"Hey, Haotian, I’m talking to you!"

’Hao... Haotian??’

Lu Xuan’s expression froze. He had heard and seen this name before, both in records from the Spring and Autumn Years and in texts from the Current World.

Haotian was none other than the Celestial Emperor.

He was also known by the countless people of the Human World as "Heaven" itself.

However, the skeleton on the cliff remained utterly unresponsive. The stunningly beautiful woman grew angry, pried a rock from the cliff face, raised it over her head, and tossed it out lightly.

A terrifying shockwave erupted, naturally swerving around Lu Xuan before ravaging the great world. The already silent world shattered, and Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water erupted in a violent frenzy!

The rock landed squarely on the skeleton’s skull, blowing half of its head apart. In the next instant, however, it reformed in the blink of an eye.

The stunningly beautiful woman frowned. Huffing, she pried off an even larger rock and held it high. The skeleton on the cliff suddenly snapped its eyes open:

"Stop, stop, stop! That’s quite enough!"

The woman dropped the rock, dusted off her hands, and grumbled,

"Haotian, you got anything good?"

She paused, then put her hands on her hips, tilted her chin up, and added,

"Give them to me. In the future, I’ll help you pull out that spear, and then you can come back to life."

The skeleton’s eye socket twitched. It spoke with resignation,

"You won’t even let me rest in peace..."

"But you’re always scurrying around in the past yourself! I saw you! You just changed history, secretly saving the Last Human King of the Shang Dynasty during the Yin Shang Dynasty, and then during the Qin Dynasty..."

"Stop, stop!"

The Emperor Corpse raised a hand and said,

"I do, I do!"

The stunningly beautiful woman was finally satisfied but still reminded him,

"They have to be good treasures!"

The Emperor Corpse ground its teeth. It opened its dead, hollow eyes and looked down at the stupefied Lu Xuan at its side. A profound glint flashed in its eyes as it said with a sigh,

"Ah, Profound Clarity..."

He chuckled and said approvingly,

"You did a fine job with that matter in the West Pole Celestial Court."

It took a moment for Lu Xuan to snap out of his stupor. He stared up at the corpse nailed to the cliff, his expression growing solemn.

"Are you... the Celestial Emperor?"

’My master once told me that the Celestial Emperor was dead, but for a Dao Fruit, death is just another state... Today has really been an eye-opener.’

’But... who could possibly kill a Dao Fruit?’

The Emperor Corpse coughed softly, thought for a moment, and said,

"I possess the [God-Beating Whip]. I can bestow it upon you. It can merge with that merit-stained branch of yours to become the true [God-Beating Whip]..."

"Not enough, not enough!" the stunningly beautiful woman chirped angrily. "You’re trying to fob me off with this piece of junk? This is my child! What’s wrong with giving a proper welcoming gift!"

The Emperor Corpse’s eyelids twitched violently.

"Goddess, the [God-Beating Whip] isn’t good enough? This is a Supreme Treasure at the pseudo-Daluo Level! It can..."

"I’m not a Goddess. I’m Nuwa."

The stunningly beautiful woman enunciated each word, her tone a clear threat:

"Are you really not going to give me something good? If you don’t, I’ll tie you up, ship you out, and hand you over to the Four Celestial Lords!"

The corner of the Emperor Corpse’s mouth twitched. ’In her eyes, I truly have no secrets at all...’

’But why is she so affectionate toward this Profound Clarity?’

’Is it just because Profound Clarity is one of her billions upon billions of children?’

’The Goddess perceives all. Could it be... that this Profound Clarity holds not a single shred of malice toward her?’

’But how is that possible? No one in this world is completely without malice toward another; there’s always at least a little.’

The Emperor Corpse couldn’t make sense of it. A look of resignation washed over its face. After a long silence, it finally spoke:

"Hmm... How about this. Lu Xuan gained merit by punishing Gouchen, and since you, Goddess, have also made a request, then We shall bestow..."

"...this Heaven and Earth Chessboard. How does that sound?"

The Emperor Corpse raised its hand. From the void, a chessboard woven from dark, ancient wood descended. Upon it, three hundred and sixty-one profound points of light shone with a soft, clear luminescence.

The stunningly beautiful woman took the chessboard and grumbled,

"It’s passable, I suppose... but I think that sword of yours is nice, and the Haotian Mirror would be even better..."

The Emperor Corpse felt a headache coming on.

"Goddess, that’s quite enough. Since you are omniscient, you must know what those two items mean to me."

"Alright, alright, you pass!"

The stunningly beautiful woman waved her hand nonchalantly, then turned her gaze to a scorched mountain not far away, her eyes landing on the Buddha Body that had entered nirvana upon it.

Then, she silently picked up the rock she had just tossed aside.

The Buddha in nirvana trembled and opened his eyes:

"Goddess, I’m no Dao Fruit. If you hit me with that, I’ll really die for good."

"I’m Nuwa!"

The stunningly beautiful woman shouted with displeasure, then said,

"Hey, you owe me a favor! If it weren’t for me, you would have been the one swallowed, not Maitreya. And instead of Maitreya Buddha Mother, it would be Lamp Buddha Mother!"

Lu Xuan, his expression dazed, blinked. ’Lamp?’

’Could this be the Ancient Lamp Buddha, one of the Three Historical Buddhas of Spirit Mountain?’

’What does he mean by "swallowed"? And Maitreya Buddha Mother, Lamp Buddha Mother...’

’And that conversation just now between Lady Nuwa and the Emperor Corpse... handing the Emperor Corpse over to the Four Celestial Lords... Is the Celestial Emperor’s fall connected to those four Emperors?’

A thousand thoughts raced through Lu Xuan’s mind. At the same time, atop the scorched mountain peak, the Buddha who had entered nirvana gave a bitter laugh: