Unraveling a Dream

Life is like mist and dream, love like morning dew, fleeting away.

To learn the Dream Weaving Technique, one must first embody the method, personally experiencing a grand dream of life and death, a fleeting change of seasons, before one can grasp its true essence.

In the morgue, Xu Qing felt his head grow heavy and his feet light. The flickering candlelight seemed to be veiled by a layer of mist, making everything unclear.

He stumbled to an empty slab and, unable to suppress his drowsiness any longer, collapsed into sleep.

Recently, a new performer had arrived at the Pear Garden, possessing both grace and vocal talent that were top-notch.

"My love is in your heart, my heart breaks in despair, only the moon knows my sorrow."

"My dear, you've seen through my long illness, yet you still worry for my every ache."

"Is this Sai Yuxian? Captain Zhao's family is truly wealthy, even in death, they still hire the best performers from the Pear Garden to sing ghost opera for him." From the audience, Xu Qing listened to Sai Yuxian's sorrowful and melodious voice. It sounded inexplicably familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before, but he couldn't recall where.

But none of that mattered. After all, today was a good day to send off his sworn enemy, and no other matter was more important!

After listening to a performance of "Lovers on the Tower," Xu Qing went backstage to discuss the ghost opera arrangements with Sai Yuxian, who was as delicate as a flower.

Two days later, after hearing the ghost opera, Zhao Zhonghe was laid to rest. With no one named Zhao left in Linhe Fang, Xu Qing's luck seemed to improve significantly.

As it turned out, Sai Yuxian, whom he had met at the funeral, began visiting the Corpse Driver's Shop every few days to sing and entertain him after their encounter. She claimed that the moment she saw him, she was completely captivated and lost her soul.

Xu Qing initially paid it no mind. He was an immortal zombie; would he really marry a mortal woman who would grow old and faded in twenty or thirty years?

Time flew by, and the world changed.

One day, the Tianxin Cult, which had long coveted the realm, suddenly raised an army. Sai Yuxian, who had spent her days singing and performing, transformed into a former dynasty's princess and the cult's saintess!

From that day on, sensing Xu Qing's "necrophilic" tendencies, Sai Yuxian began to openly transport various corpses to the Corpse Driver's Shop.

At this time, the Tianxin Cult was engaged in a war with the imperial court. As the saintess of the cult, what fear did she have of not being able to procure corpses for her lover?

After all, she, Sai Yuxian, was a woman of deep emotion and loyalty!

It had to be said that while the saintess's method of expressing her love was a bit extreme, it was indeed simple and effective!

When the Tianxin Cult stormed Luojing and broke into the imperial palace, beheading Emperor Longping, Sai Yuxian ascended the throne as empress. She then ordered the Ministry of Rites to invite Xu Qing to the capital for a wedding, following the protocols for imperial weddings of past dynasties.

Xu Qing feigned modesty and refused. Sai Yuxian then promised him corpses from the imperial prison, the dungeons, and various other places where death row inmates were held. She even offered the corpse of Emperor Longping as a token of their love, all for the sake of making him smile.

Xu Qing, a mere Corpse Driver from the Corpse Driver's Shop, had never seen so many corpses in his life. Faced with such immense wealth and favor, how could he resist such a temptation!

Under the allure of the great reward, Xu Qing completely forgot who he was. He closed his Corpse Driver's Shop overnight and went to the imperial city, where he spent his days and nights indulging in power, lust, and corpses.

Sai Yuxian, with her broad mind, was worried about neglecting Xu Qing due to her own busy affairs. She therefore ordered that all the female rebels from the former dynasty, who had been sent to the imperial brothel, be granted white silk and poisoned wine, so that Xu Qing could refine them into "corpse consorts" to serve him in her stead.

With such an understanding wife, why would he worry about not achieving the path of the Corpse Immortal?

Xu Qing's past adherence to the professional ethics of collecting unclaimed corpses, while living in seclusion in his shop, seemed like a joke. The number of corpses he collected in a year back then was probably less than what was delivered to him in a single day now!

Afterward, Xu Qing, who increasingly pursued and became obsessed with his cultivation progress, began to drastically alter the Feng Shui of the imperial city. He persuaded the empress to build the Moon Gazing Platform to draw in moonlight and earthly energy, hoping to ascend to immortality and become an ancestor soon.

During this time, the new dynasty's prime minister, formerly a white-robed protector of the Tianxin Cult, known for his loyalty and uprightness, denounced Xu Qing in court, listing over a hundred crimes. He argued that while he himself had a heart of pure loyalty, Xu Qing and his ilk harbored intentions to sow chaos throughout the land, deceiving the king and fooling the common people, making him a true harbinger of disaster, deserving of death!

Sai Yuxian heard this and became furious. She immediately berated him, "You claim to have a heart of pure loyalty. If that's the case, then cut open your chest and take out a piece for me to see if it's truly as red as blood!"

The prime minister, upon hearing this, said, "When the ruler is in distress, the subject shares the shame. We serve the country with utmost loyalty, how can we allow a demon to wreak havoc and triumph? If sacrificing my life can bring clarity to the imperial heart, what are a hundred deaths?"

With that, he took out his heart and presented it before the throne in front of Sai Yuxian. All the officials were filled with grief and indignation.

Subsequently, the high officials and ministers from various departments, bureaus, and ministries jointly submitted memorials impeaching him. Even the common people, who did not understand the situation, believed that the chaos in the world was related to a certain Xu-surnamed male favorite in the imperial harem.

In an instant, public outrage erupted, and the label of "demonic husband disrupting the nation and poisoning the people" was firmly placed upon Xu Qing's head.

A tall tree in the forest is bound to be destroyed by the wind.

Xu Qing, who unashamedly pursued his own path, completely became the target of public criticism.

The empress, unable to withstand the public outcry, reluctantly imprisoned Xu Qing in the cold palace. However, his daily provisions and necessities were not reduced in the slightest.

Xu Qing initially thought that this would be the end of the matter. He believed that once he achieved enlightenment and became a true immortal, no one would be able to restrain him.

But human calculations can never overcome fate.

One day, several streaks of rainbow light descended outside the imperial palace, accompanied by magnificent sounds.

One introduced himself as Ge Hongwen, a rogue cultivator from Mount Henglu, Songyun Temple.

Another introduced himself as Zhuang Tongsheng, a cultivator from Jade Pond Mountain in Lianhua County.

Following them, several others responded. Without exception, these individuals had sensed a summons and had come to the imperial palace to slay the imperial male favorite who was bringing disaster to the nation and its people.

Xu Qing's cultivation was not yet complete. Facing the combined assault of these individuals, he was ultimately unable to resist, and his promising path to immortality was cut short within the imperial palace.

As he lay dying, he suddenly realized. How could he have forgotten that there were still many reclusive and enlightened cultivators in the world? Wasn't Zhuang Tongsheng the immortal master he had seen when he helped Liu Yuanwai cross over?

And Ge Hongwen from Mount Henglu, this person's name was also exceptionally familiar. Wasn't he the adoptive father of Fourth Master Li and the esteemed teacher of the old physician Yang Chunfu!

Xu Qing's head was spinning. He regretted forgetting his original intention and becoming greedy for the progress in collecting corpses, which had led to his death. At the same time, he felt that his life had passed by in a haze, like a dream. It was as if he had blacked out, with many events being mistaken or distorted, making everything extremely illusory.

How did Sai Yuxian, who was originally a devoted actress, become a former dynasty's princess, the Tianxin Cult's saintess, and the current empress?

And how did that scoundrel Zhao Zhonghe, who was clearly alive and well, suddenly become a dead man?

In the silent morgue, the person lying on the slab suddenly opened his eyes, followed by a crisp snapping sound.

Slapping himself hard, Xu Qing finally woke up completely.

Upon seeing his surroundings and the corpse of Sai Yuxian laid out on the table, he fell silent once more.

He hadn't expected that the Dream Weaving Technique would actually forge a world of desire within his dream.

Looking at the lamp on the table, its flame still flickering erratically, it seemed as if the lifetime he'd just experienced in his dream had passed in mere moments.

Xu Qing had a sudden realization, understanding that the Dream Weaving Technique was a form of illusion. The people, events, and scenery within the dream all had counterparts in reality; it wasn't truly conjured from nothing.

Ancient texts, such as the Record of the Pillow, tell of a Taoist immortal named Elder Lü who once used his divine arts to grant the young Lu Sheng a grand dream.

In his dream, Lu Sheng lived a full lifetime. When he awoke, the millet rice before him hadn't even finished cooking.

Xu Qing didn't have millet rice as a reference and had no idea how much time had passed. However, he had another way to verify it.

At this moment, Wang Lingyuan, having just relieved himself, was returning from outside the morgue.

Seeing this, Xu Qing understood: that life, filled with fleeting clouds and evening snow, was merely a dream that ended with the loosening of a belt.