Chapter 3: The Grand Dream Academy

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The Great Ancestor asked his ministers, “I wish to enlighten the world, for every person to become like a dragon. What wise strategies do you propose, gentlemen?”

Minister Bi said, “We could build a divine temple, appoint gods of the underworld and generals of shadow armies, reward virtue and punish evil, covering the nineteen provinces.”

The Great Ancestor furrowed his brow slightly.

Minister Zhao then said, “We might compile a grand canon, gather myriad righteous teachings, and disseminate them throughout the realm.”

The Great Ancestor’s expression cleared somewhat.

Minister Zhou said, “The common folk suffer greatly; they rise with the sun and rest at dusk. We must not burden them further. While establishing temples and compiling canons, we should urge officials, not the common people. The ancient cult of Nightmares, known as the ‘Great Dream Chronicles,’ possesses a treasured artifact called ‘One Dream of Heaven and Earth,’ enabling disciples to kill within dreams.”

“The law itself is neither good nor evil; I can adapt its use. All subjects of our Zhou dynasty may open their minds within dreams without harm to their bodies.”

The Great Ancestor struck his hand and laughed heartily, “Excellent!”

He then commanded Minister Zhou to interpret the dreams and spread the knowledge throughout the realm.

...

Of course, the above tale is entirely fabricated.

Zhao Xing clearly remembered that the Yunmeng Academy had no connection whatsoever with the Great Ancestor or the founding hero Zhou Gong Dan.

The ancient sect of Nightmares was never a heretical cult but rather the state religion of the great Li dynasty, which preceded the Zhou.

The techniques of the ‘Great Dream Chronicles’ and the treasured artifact ‘One Dream of Heaven and Earth’ indeed existed.

The predecessor of Yunmeng Academy was called the ‘Great Dream Academy.’

It was established by the Li dynasty for elite education, recruiting geniuses, and it truly could be used to kill within dreams.

After the fall of Li, the treasure passed through several dynasties before coming into the hands of the Great Zhou.

The Zhou emperor sought to decipher and harness it but never succeeded.

Only during the reign of Emperor Wu was the treasure finally unlocked and transformed into the ‘Yunmeng Academy.’

Along with this transformation, the fabricated tale emerged.

Why did Emperor Wu attribute the credit to the Great Ancestor?

Because the treasure was not truly ‘unlocked’ by him, but rather a court official had inadvertently discovered the key in ancient texts.

It required only the simplest ‘Soul-Calming Talisman’ and ‘Guiding Talisman,’ combined with a single phrase to enter.

Moreover, its effects had already been largely developed by the Li dynasty, easily adapted for use.

After years of fruitless attempts, the breakthrough was found to be astonishingly simple.

The ancient emperors had already accomplished all they wished; only large-scale implementation and simplification remained.

Proud Emperor Wu felt embarrassed, as if the Li emperor mocked his incompetence. He had no desire to claim this ‘great merit’ in the eyes of the world.

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It wasn’t appropriate to credit earlier dynasties either, so the entire matter was assigned to the Great Ancestor.

...

The Soul-Calming Talisman and Guiding Talisman glowed faintly as a wave of drowsiness swept over Zhao Xing. His eyelids grew heavy, and soon soft snores began.

Within the dream, Zhao Xing suddenly sat up and looked around.

Endless clouds enveloped his surroundings, so dense he could hardly see.

Only a grand archway tower, dozens of meters high, appeared before him.

Four ancient characters were inscribed: Great Dream Academy.

“Did I really enter?” Zhao Xing’s first instinct was to check the interface panel, but it was inaccessible. So he truly had entered.

His second thought was, “Fortune smiles upon me!”

“An early version of the Yunmeng Academy dungeon—or rather, the Great Dream Academy! A completely undeveloped treasure trove!”

“This is incomparable to the later version, emptied by Emperor Wu and reduced to a routine player dungeon!”

Zhao Xing grew excited.

He had missed the prime opportunities in his past life; now things were different.

Collecting his thoughts and recalling certain precautions, Zhao Xing strode into the mist-wreathed gateway.

With a single step, the scene shifted abruptly.

Before him stood a series of magnificent palaces, each encased in semi-circular light domes, resplendent in gold and jade.

The Hall of Reincarnation, the Platform of Self-Reflection, the Martial God Tower, the Arcane Repository, the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, the Palace of Sacred Beasts, the Palace of Destiny...

Pavilions, towers, palace clusters, corridors, and sky bridges arranged harmoniously, surrounded by layers of mountains and swirling clouds—like a fairyland.

Zhao Xing’s eyes dazzled, and he salivated.

According to the background stories players had pieced together, Emperor Wu’s confidence to conquer the eight directions came from the treasure amassed by the Li dynasty.

Now, these treasures lay before Zhao Xing, one after another.

But before he could inspect them closely, most of the palaces vanished into the clouds.

Only a few small pavilions remained.

“Hm? What’s going on?” Zhao Xing was puzzled. “Why did they disappear?”

He hurried toward the direction of a vanished palace, but after only a few dozen meters, a gentle force pushed against him, making progress difficult and eventually impossible.

After several attempts, he stood still, frowning in thought.

Only then did realization dawn.

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This was the Great Dream Academy, not the Yunmeng Academy.

“The Great Dream Academy of the Li dynasty was designed to cultivate geniuses, while the Zhou’s Yunmeng Academy is inclusive, regardless of talent.”

“The former allowed study of advanced arcane arts and even brought back tangible treasures, each a precious artifact. But it imposed entry thresholds and challenging trials.”

“The latter primarily offers mid- to low-level secret texts, with minimal physical rewards. Yet it has no barriers; even children can roam freely without trials.”

Understanding this, Zhao Xing could only helplessly watch treasures vanish into the clouds.

Now he need not search for them himself.

Because as soon as he moved, a mechanism triggered, leaving only places where he could attempt to claim rewards.

“Let’s see what remains. No need to rush. It’s still centuries until Emperor Wu emptied the treasury,” Zhao Xing’s mind relaxed. He had plenty of time to clear this place out at leisure.

After a moment, all the palaces disappeared, leaving only a high platform floating in the sky.

Clouds billowed, and a spiral staircase extended from the platform down to Zhao Xing’s feet.

“The Platform of Self-Reflection?”

“Looks like my level is too low to access anything else. Only this ‘Platform of Self-Reflection,’ unrelated to cultivation level, offers a chance to pass trials and earn rewards.”

The platform’s challenges usually involved the seven emotions and six desires, tailored to each individual.

It followed a pattern: manifesting the deepest desires or fears of the moment.

Gazing at the platform, Zhao Xing recalled some unpleasant memories.

“Hopefully it’s not some unbearable horror right from the start...”

Taking a deep breath, he cautiously stepped onto the first stair.

“Hum~”

The surroundings shifted abruptly. Zhao Xing suddenly smelled an intoxicating fragrance.

Water rippled gently, petals floated on the surface, steam rose, and a beauty lay by the edge of a tub.

Her half-hidden curves—a rounded hip, bare back, fragrant shoulder, flowing hair...

“What? A desire trial?”

“Platform of Self-Reflection, have you made a mistake? My greatest desire is hardly such a lowly pleasure!”