I'm a Good-for-Nothing

The moment he entered the dreamscape, Teacher Zhao felt as if he were truly there.

Dreamscapes had to be used through the Dream Network. The god who controlled dreamscapes was known as the Dream Spirit Star Lord. In truth, He controlled the entire Dream Network; all dreamscapes came only with usage rights, never ownership.

Without renewing the subscription, a dreamscape could no longer be used. This was why free dreamscapes were becoming fewer and fewer, while paid dreamscapes grew ever more common.

The dreamscape Chen Yu was currently working on was a medium-sized one. The rental fee alone cost five hundred a month, and that was merely the price of the basic version.

All kinds of additional functions had to be unlocked through further payments, with extra monthly fees after unlocking them. Everything together would cost at least two thousand.

Walking through the bamboo forest, Teacher Zhao could hear bamboo leaves swaying in the breeze and smell the earthy scent unique to the woods after a sudden rainstorm.

Stopping to listen, he could even hear the bamboo growing nonstop, playing in concert with the invisible calls of birds and making the place exceptionally tranquil.

"The environment is really well-made. As expected of Morning Light."

There was only one path through the forest. Following it, he saw the way suddenly open up at its end, where a small house stood amid the bamboo.

In the courtyard, an old man stood with his hands behind his back. Before him were four apprentices learning martial arts, their furious roars audible even from a distance.

Hearing Teacher Zhao's footsteps, the old man turned around and smiled faintly at him by the entrance. "You've come."

Though he looked nothing like the benefactor and teacher from Teacher Zhao's memories, the instant Teacher Zhao saw him, he felt something.

This man was his teacher!

The man's bearing was simply too teacher-like!

Cupping one fist in the other, he said respectfully, "Teacher, I'm here."

"You came at just the right time. How well have you learned the twenty fist techniques I taught you before? If there's anything you don't know, I'll guide you again."

Although he knew this was beginner guidance, Teacher Zhao still chose to accept, if only so he could hear his teacher's teachings one more time.

The twenty basic scoring points were displayed one by one, every movement explained with perfect clarity. Chen Yu had made no changes when creating this section. Simply incorporating Teacher Zhao's own insights had already made it excellent enough.

After reviewing all twenty points, Teacher Zhao nodded in satisfaction, thinking that Chen Yu had done a fine job.

His own martial arts experience was extensive, and he was already at Qi Refining Grand Completion. Making no changes at all was the best choice.

From this alone, it was clear that Chen Yu was not a stubbornly opinionated person, and that was one of the essential qualities of an outstanding dreamweaver.

But this was only the beginning. How to make players willing to keep playing was what mattered afterward.

After he had gone through all twenty points, the old man stroked his beard and smiled. "That will do. Since you've mastered them, go learn from your senior brothers and sisters. You four, stop for now. Your junior brother wishes to learn from you."

The earlier review had been the introductory tutorial. This was now an extension of that tutorial.

Through the introductory tutorial, players not only reviewed the twenty knowledge points, but also displayed what they had learned, allowing the dreamscape to evaluate them and determine their current level.

After testing his own level and continuously adjusting his score through controlled variables, Teacher Zhao was greatly satisfied with the accuracy of the grading.

Accurate grading helped students understand their current level. He had only mentioned it in passing, yet Chen Yu had truly implemented it.

By now, the dreamscape's quality had already been an immense surprise.

But he had not expected an even greater surprise to lie ahead.

The moment a senior brother with a bitter, melon-like face stepped out and casually assumed a stance, Teacher Zhao knew the man was no simple opponent.

Sure enough, when he attacked, though he used only simple foundational moves, his movements were as light as an ape's. His combat techniques were swift and cunning, and his arms, which reached to his knees, swayed endlessly like whips, lending his techniques countless variations and uncertainties.

He could easily see through the other man's changes and follow-up moves because he possessed extensive martial arts experience and practical combat skills.

But if it were a student, there would definitely be a hard battle. Still, it would also be an enormous improvement to their practical combat skills.

After the bitter-faced senior brother came a senior sister with extraordinarily developed leg muscles.

Her sturdy thighs showed that she possessed impressive leg techniques. Her series of whip kicks could actually produce sounds like exploding firecrackers, forcing Teacher Zhao to pay close attention to the distance between them.

The third, a fat man, stood a head taller than Teacher Zhao. His moves opened and closed broadly, relying entirely on brute strength in combat.

To deal with him, one needed a skilled grasp of Force Dissipation, using one's body as a medium to release the opponent's strength into the ground. He was an NPC designed to train students' defensive skills.

The last was the hall's eldest senior brother. He combined the strengths of the first three. Whether in technique or combat wisdom, he was flawless, and Teacher Zhao enjoyed the fight immensely.

After defeating the eldest senior brother, his master was also quite pleased. Smiling, he said, "I never expected that although you entered the hall last, your talent would be the greatest. You actually defeated all your senior brothers and sisters. Seven days from now, I will invite our fellow disciples to witness the ceremony and, while I'm at it, pass the position of sect leader to you."

"Thank you, Master!"

Though it was only a dreamscape, the man's figure overlapped with that of his own teacher. The feeling of being acknowledged by his teacher made Teacher Zhao feel as though he had returned to the past, and his spirits soared with it.

Chen Yu's dreamscape plot was truly not bad at all.

But just as he closed his eyes and prepared to experience the next day's storyline, a sudden blaze interrupted everything.

The instant he felt the scorching heat, Teacher Zhao had barely sprung up when someone struck him across the forehead with a club, sending the world spinning.

Covering the corner of his forehead, still bleeding, he raised his head and peered through the blood flowing into his eyes, making out the person who had attacked him.

"Third Senior Brother... why?"

A sound like firecrackers exploding rang out. A kick flew from his blind spot and sent him crashing to the ground, followed by his second senior brother's frenzied pounding.

Finally, someone hurled him out of the room, and he fell onto the ground outside.

Covered in injuries from the beating, Teacher Zhao could only watch as the Bamboo Forest Martial Arts Hall was burned to ashes, while his master's chest was punched through by the eldest senior brother.

Before dying, his master stared at his beloved disciple in equal disbelief, then happened to see Teacher Zhao lying beaten on the ground.

"Run... quickly..."

With great difficulty, he spoke his final words, only to be torn apart with brutal force and scattered into fragments.

Throwing aside his master's corpse, the eldest senior brother strolled over to Teacher Zhao. After crouching down, he forced Teacher Zhao's eyes open.

After staring for a moment, he suddenly smiled softly and said, "Why would Master pass the position of sect leader to a good-for-nothing like you?"

Tearing open Teacher Zhao's clothes, the eldest senior brother concentrated his strength into his index finger, then left one bloody hole after another in Teacher Zhao's abdomen.

Drawing back his hand, the eldest senior brother cast a cold glance at Teacher Zhao on the ground. Then, carrying the sect leader's token he had searched out from his master, he strode away.

The four senior brothers and sisters never looked back, as though the one who had died was not their own master, but some insignificant stray by the roadside.

Amid soaring flames and ash filling the sky, Teacher Zhao endured the agonizing pain and crawled toward his master, letting out a heart-rending howl beside the corpse.