The dream realm has took an unexpected turn after Bao Zhi eliminated the other gu immortals within the dream realm's first stage.
"There is much less freedom to my actions. The effect is similar to when the dream realm didn't let me fight the other gu masters in Silver Wind Valley to the death, but the strength is much greater now." Bao Zhi thought to himself.
"Spirit Affinity House and wood path are also non-existent this time. This is more in line with history."
There was no Fairy Lian Xiang either, Bao Zhi became Duke Tong instead this time.
"Did I cause this change, or is the dream realm changing on its own?"
Bao Zhi tried to leave the company on the other gu immortals to look for Qinyang, but he was held up with endless excuses and interruptions. He knew, even if the decided to force his way out, the resistance would just grow even stronger!
"Love gu is confirmed to be a key to the dream realm, it can't be far this time either. But where could it be?"
Love gu currently couldn't be in Spirit Affinity House's possession.
Using his authority as Duke Tong, Bao Zhi inquired and found out, Love gu was stored within Heavenly Court's treasury.
"Deliver it at once." He suggested right away. "It will make the perfect gift for the occasion."
The three dukes discussed the matter for a moment, Duke Mei and Duke Tong were in agreement, while Duke Long was hesitant to approve.
"This... Love gu is a rank nine gu. Each time it activates the effect is immense and unpredictable."
"The gift is merely symbolic. Once Hong Ting becomes a venerable and rises to the seat of the Immortal King of Heavenly Court, he will naturally hold Love gu too." Duke Mei argued.
"In my view, the occasion's grandness demands similarly grand presents. This is our Heavenly Court's grandness, we have to uphold our status as the leaders of humanity. What would the later generations think of us if we couldn't make this simple sacrifice."
Duke Long was silent for a moment, he didn't want to voice his doubts about Hong Ting's nature openly. Hong Ting's tutoring and upbringing was his responsibility, it weighed heavily on his mind.
"I am merely saying the result could be different from your expectations."
"All is within fate's decree, junior." Duke Tong's voice rang affectionately. "If the result is different, there is no other way it could have happened in the first place. We must accept it, because our duty demands we accept it."
The other Heavenly Court members agreed solemnly. Fate gu could not be questioned, as soon as it was mentioned, the discussion was decided.
They sent for rank nine Love gu, it would arrive not much later.
As the events proceeded and the time of the tea ceremony arrived, Bao Zhi met the bride, Liu Shu Xian.
It didn't take long for him to notice, something was amiss with her demeanor, yet nobody else within the dream has acknowledged this.
"Could it be?" Bao Zhi observed the people carefully. With his human path attainment, even minute clues could reveal important details.
* * * * *
Ancestral Grotto
"Hurry! Hurry!"
The official hastily activated his gu and a stone path grew out of the ground. The path continued into the air and arched over the sea of green flames, leading to safety on the other side.
"Quickly! Come!" He urged his family to follow after him.
On their way, they found a burnt man desperately trying to pull himself up. His upper body was already on the path, while his legs hung within the flames as he struggled.
"Save me, my lord!" The man pleaded for help.
The official's face twisted in contempt at the miserable sight.
"Stop blocking the way! Move if you want to live!" The official shouted with impatiently.
"My legs are burnt, you have to carry me."
The official's family members were already at his back.
"Father, why did we stop?"
"My dear, the flames have already spread to the foot of the stone bridge, hurry!"
The official had no time, yet there was this man, blocking his way and on top of that pleading to be carried even.
"My lord, you told us you would help those who were in need!"
"Aah!" The man cried out in pain, the flames have reached his waist. "You told us you wouldn't leave anyone on the side of the road!"
The official looked the man in the eye.
"Hmph!" He planted his foot on the man's face and kicked him into the raging flames. "Save yourself, you fool!"
The man screamed at the top of his lungs before his body disappeared within the green inferno below.
...
"Rank three stone pavement gu. Five hundred and twenty primeval stones. Clothing gu, sixty primeval stones. Various administrative gu, eight hundred primeval stones." The voice said in a plain tone and sighed. "Such a waste."
"Primeval stone this, primeval stone that. You already have half this city's worth of money. Besides, now that the beggar is out of the way, they are going to make it. The gu will be there for your picking."
"That is not the case." The first one pointed, shaking his head. "The flames from the beggar's waist have spread to the underside, the path is going to collapse any moment."
"Ha! Serves them right! Hypocrites! Bootlickers of the gu immortals. They deserve no better." The second voice laughed sardonically. "Still, the beggar had it coming as well. He was already dead, but he couldn't accept it. Too bad he got kicked down, I wanted to watch him burn for a while longer."
"Hehe, you and your twisted joys." The first voice scoffed.
"At least what I care about are humans! All you care about is some boring rocks."
"They are primeval stones, Lingxin. And what you care about is torturing people's minds, not the people, not in the slightest."
"I'm not ashamed to admit I like it! But you, you are more and more like that stone-faced Zhao Min, indifferent to anything."
"Anything but money. Wealth is the key to success. What else is there to care about?"
"I remember you used to care about other things."
"Other things?"
"Like me!"
"Oh, I used to be more naive. But even now I still care about you." The voice stopped momentarily. "For example, after you left me stranded in that strange ground for two months, I keep track of the gu worms you have and if you were to die, I will be the first to loot your corpse. But you know that."
"..."
At this moment a clump of roots emerged from the ground and formed a man's face. "Yu Lingxin, Jin Ju. Report." Zhao Min's voice spoke from the roots.
"As we expected. This is the same kind of green flame we saw before." Jin Ju spoke first.
"Even rank five gu masters are helpless. As soon as they catch fire, they become cute little human torches." Yu Lingxin said.
"Anything else in this strange ground indicating gu immortal presence?"
"Isn't this enough proof? They were here. Now they are gone." She added.
"I will get a closer look as soon as the flames have died down." Jin Ju said.
"Good. I'll wait for you at the next location. This one seems more promising than the rest." The face made of roots disappeared into the ground.
* * * * *
Time Fisher Grotto, Dream Realm
Qinyang, draped in the intricate red and gold qipao of Liu Shu Xian, felt the suffocating weight of the dream's power attempting to pull her into the role of the devoted bride.
As the tea ceremony reached its height, Qinyang offered the cup to the young Hong Ting, but as their fingers brushed, the future venerable leaned in, he questioned Liu Shu Xian in a low whisper that bypassed the ears of the surrounding gu immortals.
He was probing the dream realm for clues!
Red Lotus' gaze darted around the hall like a cornered beast searching for a loophole in a cage.
Qinyang's heart skipped a beat. She immediately utilized the shared connection of the Alive in Aspiration, Human in Perception killer move, letting Bao Zhi notice the discrepancy immediately.
"Red Lotus is still being embodied by another dreamer?" He thought with alarm.
Bao Zhi's human qi sensation flared, detecting the chaotic intentions within the young venerable's form. "I see it. His human qi is a turbulent mess, entirely disconnected from the historical role he should be playing. How is he here? Who is this?"
"If the dream realm really has a tendency to put people in roles most suited to them, and seeing as neither I nor Qinyang embodied the central character, their affinity has to be higher. Red Lotus is a time path gu immortal..." Bao Zhi's thought's collided at lightning speed as he deduced.
"Shi Ji, the rank seven gu immortal has somehow survived and now awakened."
"He must have been unaware in the previous scene and now is trapped in the role of Red Lotus without knowing how to proceed."
The ceremony reached its zenith.
Bao Zhi, acting as Duke Tong, stepped forward to present the small ornate wooden box he had secured from Heavenly Court's treasury.
"Hong Ting, Liu Shu Xian." Bao Zhi's voice boomed with the authority of a Heavenly Court Duke.
"Fate has brought you together, but the Heavens grant you this gift to safeguard your future. Behold, the rank nine Love gu."
The box within Qinyang's hands opened, and the dazzling, multicolored rays of the legendary immortal gu filled the hall, illuminating the faces of the assembled gu immortals.
According to the dream's logic, the activation of this gu was the key to progressing the dream realm.
However, the gu remained a lifeless piece of rock after its initial burst of light.
Red Lotus looked at the gu with genuine confusion and a hint of greed. "A rank nine gu this early in his life? Is this part of the inheritance?" He reached out and his hand closed over love gu, yet still nothing happened.
Rank nine Love gu required true love to activate.
But did this Red Lotus show an ouncen of this emotion? He was focused solely on his own survival and benefits, the required love, that he could not provide.
The atmosphere in the hall shifted.
Duke Long's golden-purple eyes narrowed, his spiral horns shimmering with a dangerous light.
The corrective force of the dream realm began to manifest as the surrounding gu immortals grew deathly still, their expressions twisted into silent judgment.
"We are so close now, but the dream is stalling. I have to do something or we will fail again." Bao Zhi had his human qi sensing the world beginning to wobble and distort.
"Love gu won't activate because the groom is a cheap fake. If we don't fix this, the dream will collapse and erode our souls." Qinyang transmitted with great difficulty.
Qinyang sensed the impending failure and took a desperate gamble. Drawing upon the grandmaster attainment of human path that she had glimpsed through Bao Zhi's connection, she reached out and grasped the Red Lotus' hand while he held the gu.
She didn't try to love this dream intruder. Instead, she reached into the depths of her mind, recalling the moments that had truly tethered her to this world.
The radiant image of Hao Meng appeared, full of joy, life and youthful lust.
She remembered him standing atop his icy cloud, his ponytailed hair billowing as he vowed to show her "how big the world really is".
Most vividly, she recalled the moment he chose to sacrifice his own life to save her. This love burned with the power of self-sacrificial fire. It was the conviction of someone choosing to "make their death count" just so she could draw another breath.
Bao Zhi immediately caught onto her plan and promptly assisted.
He channeled a different truth from his own recollection, one that was etched by centuries of gu immortal life, both joy and tragedy. He recalled his previous life with his wife, Wen Ming. He saw again the contorted lines of his own pale, malnourished face and the stream of tears flowing down her white skin as she sobbed for his injuries.
He remembered their shared helplessness against the rising demon Ming You, and how she had stood by him as he handed down his inheritance to a crumbling clan.
To Bao Zhi, love was the enduring companionship. It was the facet of humanity that found its greatest strength not in fervent passion, but in the shared centuries of commitment.
It was not just the good times that one must cherish before they are engulfed by the abyss of history.
As these two disparate facets, the blazing love of the youth and the bittersweet endurance of the old merged through the human path connection, they formed a qualitative change!
They used the human path killer move's connection to forcibly share her and Bao Zhi's sense of love.
The effect was instantaneous. The Red Lotus' eyes turned watery as the emotions flooded his mind. For a fleeting second, the dream realm's Red Lotus' and the gu immortal's mind aligned perfectly.
The power Love gu erupted!
A pillar of brilliant, multicolored light shot through the ceiling of the hall, shattering the illusory sky of Emperor City.
The world trembled and it began to dissolve into crystalline fragments.
The second scene was complete.
* * * * *