Bankai Training, Dreamscape

The moment Liu Hao stepped onto the second flight of stairs, he felt the entire world go dark. It was not darkness before his eyes; rather, his consciousness itself seemed to be enveloped by a gentle yet powerful force, sinking into a boundless deep sea.

His body crumpled, but it did not strike the cold ground. Instead, he fell into a state somewhere between existence and nothingness.

Then he "woke up."

Sunlight streamed through the half-open curtains, casting warm patches of light across the floor. Liu Hao sat up in bed, rubbing his bleary eyes as he stared in confusion at his surroundings, which were both familiar and strange.

Was this... his bedroom?

A laptop lay tilted on the bed beside him, its screen still lit. The paused image showed Ichigo Kurosaki wielding two swords in a fierce battle against Yhwach.

"Oh, man, I fell asleep watching Bleach." Liu Hao yawned and pulled the laptop onto his lap. "What time is it?"

He looked at the time in the lower-right corner of the screen: Saturday, 9:47 a.m.

"Mm, it's the weekend. It's so nice not having to work." Liu Hao stretched, his gaze returning to the paused scene. "But Ichigo Kurosaki really does look cool with those two swords... The anime just can't keep up with the manga. Who knows when they'll release the rest?"

He set the laptop on the nightstand and got up to use the bathroom. He looked a little tired in the mirror, with prominent dark circles under his eyes and messy hair—the typical image of a guy staying home for the weekend.

But for some reason, as Liu Hao looked at himself in the mirror, he had the feeling... that he had forgotten something important.

The feeling was like an undercurrent beneath the surface of water, faintly present yet impossible to grasp. He shook his head, trying to put the inexplicable sense that something was wrong out of his mind.

After washing up, Liu Hao changed into a plain T-shirt and jeans, grabbed his phone and keys, and headed out. The early summer morning sun was pleasant, a breeze brushed his face, and the plane trees lining the street cast dappled shadows.

The familiar breakfast stall on the corner was still open. The woman who ran it was in her fifties, and she greeted Liu Hao warmly when she saw him. "Little Liu, you're here! The usual?"

"Yeah, a bowl of tofu pudding and two fried dough sticks." Liu Hao found a seat off to the side.

"Coming right up! Just a moment!"

While he waited, Liu Hao looked around. The street, the pedestrians, the cars, the distant high-rises... Everything was so familiar, familiar almost to the point of being formulaic.

Soon, the woman brought him a steaming bowl of tofu pudding and two golden, crispy fried dough sticks. Looking at the simple but familiar breakfast before him, Liu Hao was suddenly struck by a strange feeling—as though... he had not eaten these things in a long time.

But he distinctly remembered having breakfast here just yesterday morning.

He scooped up a spoonful of tofu pudding and put it in his mouth. Its warm, tender texture melted on his tongue, and together with the savory sauce, it tasted just as he remembered. Yet for some reason, an indescribable sense of unfamiliarity arose in his heart.

He ate breakfast distractedly. After paying, Liu Hao wandered aimlessly down the street. The warmth of the sun on his body, the music coming from the shops, the laughter and conversation of passersby... It was all so real, yet it felt as though an invisible film separated him from it.

His thoughts growing more and more tangled, Liu Hao simply turned around and went home. Rather than overthink things outside, he might as well curl up at home, watch videos, and play games.

Back in his room, he turned on his computer and began scrolling through short videos out of habit. Before long, however, he noticed that he was consciously or unconsciously avoiding everything related to Bleach. Whenever a related video appeared, his finger instinctively scrolled past it, as though the images would sting his eyes.

The day passed in a daze. Toward evening, the setting sun dyed the sky a warm orange-red. Liu Hao stood at the window, watching the lights gradually come on in homes outside, and suddenly felt like going for a walk.

The streets were livelier at night than during the day. Neon lights flashed, crowds bustled, and the aromas of all kinds of food drifted from roadside stalls. Liu Hao walked slowly along the sidewalk, watching the lively scene before him, but the feeling that he did not belong grew stronger and stronger.

It was as though... he should not have been here at all.

Just then, his phone rang. The caller ID read "Zhang Tao"—his best friend since childhood.

"Hey, Tao, what's up?" Liu Hao answered.

"What else? I was just wondering why you, Hao, haven't made a peep all day." Zhang Tao's hearty laughter came from the other end. "You usually stay home on weekends, but you at least show up in the group chat. How come there's been no sign of you today?"

Liu Hao gave a wry smile. "What is there to say? Unlike you, I don't have a girlfriend, so all I can do is stay home."

"Stop staying home!" Zhang Tao's voice suddenly grew excited. "My girlfriend has a friend visiting from out of town. Come join us! I'm telling you, this girl is gorgeous. I've seen her picture. And my girl says she's really nice, too. Come meet her! Aren't you afraid you'll rust if you stay cooped up at home all day?"

Liu Hao wanted to refuse, but he swallowed the words before they left his mouth. He glanced around at the lively yet unfamiliar street, and a sudden urge to grasp hold of something rose in his heart.

"All right," he said at last. "Send me the location. I'll come over now."

The taxi stopped outside a rather upscale-looking restaurant. Liu Hao paid the fare and got out, looking at the brilliantly lit building in surprise. It was not a cheap place, and given Zhang Tao's personality, he would not normally be willing to spend money somewhere like this.

As he was thinking that, a familiar voice called from the entrance. "Hao! Over here!"

Zhang Tao stood at the door, waving at him with his trademark brilliant smile. Liu Hao walked over and said half-jokingly, "So why were you willing to splash out today and come somewhere so expensive?"

"I'm not the one treating," Zhang Tao said, lowering his voice mysteriously. "My girlfriend's friend is."

"That's not like you, letting someone else treat." Liu Hao raised an eyebrow.

Zhang Tao's smile grew even more mysterious. "I've got you to thank for this one, heh heh."

"What's it got to do with me?"

"When my girlfriend introduced me to her friend, she mentioned you too, and showed her a photo of the two of us." Zhang Tao leaned closer, his voice full of teasing. "After the girl saw your picture, she kept coaxing my girlfriend, insisting she had to meet you. And this place... she picked it, too."

Liu Hao stared at him. "Huh? No way... Could I know her?"

"How would I know? I was going to ask you!" Zhang Tao patted him on the shoulder. "A girl that pretty can't get you out of her head after seeing your photo. When did you go out and get yourself into a romantic entanglement?"

"Oh, come on." Liu Hao rolled his eyes. "Maybe she thinks I'm handsome and wants to keep me."

"Yeah, right. I think she saw your face and figured you were a rare commodity worth investing in," Zhang Tao shot back, unwilling to be outdone.

The two kept teasing each other as they entered the restaurant. A server led them to an elegantly furnished private room.

They pushed open the door to find two people already seated inside. One was Zhang Tao's girlfriend, Jiang Yan. The other...

Liu Hao's gaze fell on the unfamiliar woman, and his heart suddenly gave a violent thump.

She looked to be in her early twenties, wearing a simple but high-quality dress, her long hair falling smoothly over her shoulders. Her features were as exquisite as a carefully sculpted work of art, but what stood out most were her eyes—deep as the night sky, yet seemingly holding countless stars.

More importantly, as Liu Hao looked at her face, a powerful sense of familiarity welled up inside him. It was as though... he had seen her somewhere, in many places, at many different times.

The woman raised her head as well, and her gaze met Liu Hao's. She did not look away or appear shy. She simply watched him calmly, the corners of her lips raised in the faintest hint of a smile.

Zhang Tao and Jiang Yan exchanged a glance, knowing smiles appearing on both their faces.

"Ahem." Zhang Tao deliberately cleared his throat, breaking the silence. "Come on, Hao, let me introduce you. You know my girlfriend, Jiang Yan. This is her good friend, Wang Ji."

Then he turned to Wang Ji. "This is the best friend I told you about, Liu Hao."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Liu Hao," Wang Ji said with a smile, her voice clear as spring water.

"I... am honored too." Liu Hao's response was somewhat stiff, and he still could not take his eyes off her.

The four sat down and chatted on and off. Zhang Tao and Jiang Yan were clearly trying to bring them together, skillfully steering the conversation toward interests Liu Hao and Wang Ji shared. Strangely, though, whenever Liu Hao tried to recall specific memories related to those interests, everything in his mind was a blur.

About half an hour later, Zhang Tao looked at his watch and suddenly slapped his thigh. "Oh, I almost forgot! Jiang Yan and I have a movie to catch. We have to go."

Jiang Yan immediately caught on. "Right, right, we're almost late. Wang Ji, Liu Hao, take your time and chat. Don't mind us."

The two hurried to their feet. Before leaving, Zhang Tao winked at Liu Hao and mouthed, "Good luck."

The private room suddenly fell quiet.

Liu Hao looked at Wang Ji across from him. The sense of familiarity grew stronger and stronger, so strong that he was almost certain he had seen her somewhere before, more than once.

"I..." He hesitated before asking, "Have I met you somewhere before?"

Wang Ji tilted her head slightly, a playful glint flashing through her eyes. "What do you think?"

The answer only confused Liu Hao further. He studied Wang Ji's face, trying to find a matching clue in his memories, but whenever he was close to grasping something, the clues scattered like a reflection in water at the slightest touch.

"Maybe... I'm remembering wrong," he could only say at last.

Wang Ji laughed softly. Her laughter was as pleasant as wind chimes, yet it carried an elusive meaning. "Then think it over carefully. But... there isn't much time."

"Not much time?" Liu Hao frowned. "What do you mean? Not much time for what?"

Wang Ji did not answer. She rose gracefully, picked up her handbag, and walked toward the door. When she reached it, she stopped and looked back at Liu Hao.

Her gaze was deep, as though she meant to look into the depths of his soul.

"You'll find out," she said. "I believe in you, just as you once believed in me without reservation. I'll be going now. Come find me when you've figured it out."

With that, she pushed open the door and left, leaving Liu Hao alone in the private room, filled with confusion and a certain... inexplicable sense of loss.

After that day, Liu Hao's life seemed to return to its "normal" course.

Work, home, meals, sleep. On weekends, he occasionally got together with friends, but spent most of his time at home. The unfamiliar and strange feelings in his heart gradually faded, as though his meeting with Wang Ji that night really had been nothing more than an inconsequential encounter.

Until one Friday evening.

Liu Hao had just gotten off work and was deciding whether to cook or order takeout when his phone suddenly rang. It was Zhang Tao.

"Hey, Tao, why are you calling at this hour? Shouldn't you be picking up your girlfriend?"

"Nothing much. My girlfriend asked me to ask you something." Zhang Tao sounded a little confused. "How are things between you and Wang Ji? Did you get in touch afterward?"

"Wang Ji?" Liu Hao paused. "Who?"

There was a full three seconds of silence on the other end.

"Seriously, man!" Zhang Tao's voice rose several degrees. "The girl I introduced you to before! My girlfriend's friend! At the restaurant that day, you two were practically staring your eyes out at each other, and now you don't even remember her?!"

At his words, some vague images suddenly flashed through Liu Hao's mind—the restaurant, the lights, a woman in a dress...

"Oh... oh, I remember." He sounded uncertain. "We haven't been in touch since that day, so I didn't remember her at first."

"You haven't been in touch?" Zhang Tao was even more confused. "Didn't you talk after we left that day? The way you two were acting, I thought you had a chance!"

"We talked a little, then went our separate ways," Liu Hao said truthfully. "After that... I forgot."

"Damn it, seriously?!" Zhang Tao nearly shouted. "You two were practically sticking your eyeballs onto each other! How could you forget that? Do you have her contact information?"

"No. I forgot to ask for it when she left that day."

"Forget it, forget it. I'll ask my girlfriend and send it to you in a bit." Zhang Tao sighed. "It's the weekend tomorrow. Try asking her out. My girlfriend said she's a really great girl, or I wouldn't have introduced her to you."

"Okay, thanks, brother."

Not long after he hung up, a text message arrived on Liu Hao's phone. It contained a local number labeled "Wang Ji."

Looking at the string of digits, Liu Hao suddenly felt an inexplicable resistance. It was as though... if he dialed the number, something would be changed completely.

Phone in hand, he paced back and forth around the room. Finally, he tossed it onto the nightstand and decided not to think about it for now.

He turned on his computer and began browsing a video site out of habit. An update notification in the recommendations on the homepage caught his attention: Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War had been updated.

Liu Hao hesitated, but clicked on it in the end. The video began to play, showing the ruins of the Seireitei, where Shunsui Kyōraku faced a powerful enemy. The moment the Eighth Division captain finally released his Bankai and Katen Kyōkotsu: Karamatsu Shinjū unfolded, something suddenly exploded in Liu Hao's mind.

The woman in the dress... Wang Ji...

No, that's not right. Not Wang Ji. Imperial Princess.

The sword spirit in a long gown of stars, holding the Imperial Sword in her arms. The one who had stood beneath the starry sky, beside the throne, quietly watching him embark on the path of the trial.

The two faces overlapped in his mind, merged, and finally became one. Though their hairstyles, clothing, and bearing were entirely different, those features, those eyes, that certain quality deep within their souls...

They were clearly the same person.

With a clatter, the mouse fell from Liu Hao's hand to the floor.

He snatched up the phone from his nightstand and dialed the number with trembling fingers. With every ring as he waited for the call to connect, his heart beat a little faster.

At last, the call connected.

"Is there something you want to confirm?" A familiar voice came from the other end—clear as spring water, yet seeming to hold countless stars.

"You..." Liu Hao's voice was so dry he could barely speak. "You're Imperial Princess... aren't you?"

There was a brief silence on the other end.

"Don't you already know the answer in your heart?" Imperial Princess replied softly.

"I..." Liu Hao managed only a single word before he could say no more. Countless words crowded his chest, but he could find no way to voice them.

"You must decide your own path." Imperial Princess's voice was calm and distant. "I am only a manifestation of part of your power. I cannot, and should not, decide your future path for you."

With that, the call ended.

The busy signal echoed in his ears, but Liu Hao seemed not to hear it. Holding the phone, he sat blankly on the edge of the bed, his mind in turmoil.

What... am I now?

Is this a dream? Am I sinking into a dream of my own making because I couldn't accept the life I once lived?

He did not know how much time passed before he slowly stood and walked to the window. Outside, the city's nightscape glittered like a river of stars, traffic flowed in dense streams, and neon lights flashed. This was the world he had known for more than twenty years, every corner bearing the traces of his memories.

But as he looked at it all now, his heart was unusually calm.

"I wove myself a dream," he murmured. "Based on a life I once grew tired of, yet missed terribly after losing it... Now I understand. A dream is only a dream in the end."

He raised his head, looking past the rows of high-rises toward the distant night sky. There, a particularly bright star twinkled, as though responding to his gaze.

"Am I right, Imperial Princess?" A relieved smile touched Liu Hao's lips. "Thank you... for helping me see myself clearly. Since this is a dream, I think it's time I woke up."

The moment the words left his mouth, the world around him began to break apart.

It was not a violent collapse. Like a fading painting, it began to peel away and dissipate bit by bit from the edges. The streets, the high-rises, the lights, the crowds... Everything turned into tiny points of light, slipping through his fingers like flowing sand.

The last things to disappear were the room he stood in, the window, and his own reflection in the mirror.

When the last point of light faded, Liu Hao found himself standing on a flight of stairs shimmering with multicolored light.

He looked down at his feet—the first step of the third flight.

Looking up again, he saw that the throne still stood high among the stars, and Imperial Princess still stood beside it, holding the Imperial Sword. Her expression remained solemn and calm, but in her eyes... there seemed to be an added glimmer of gratification.

Liu Hao took a deep breath, feeling the real Reiatsu flowing through his body and the resonance of the Imperial Sword through its sheath.

He turned and looked behind him. The first and second flights of stairs stretched quietly downward, representing the trials of the heart he had already crossed.

Then he turned back, looking resolutely toward the heights above.