Little White Dragon of the Waves, Meng Chuan

Splash!

The sound of surging water rang in Meng Chuan's ears, startling him out of seclusion.

Meng Chuan looked toward Jade Lake. Divine light flickered in his eyes as he saw the vast river invisible to all but Great Emperors.

"Someone's looking back through time?"

Meng Chuan saw the truth at a glance. A Great Emperor, or anyone with the combat power of a Heavenly Emperor, could do such a thing.

In the original story, Ye Fan had unleashed the mighty power of a Heavenly Emperor on Mount Tai, piercing the barriers of one era after another to glimpse the Heavenly Emperor Huang.

Of course, it was the Heavenly Emperor Huang who had only just awakened from Burial Soil.

Meng Chuan gazed at Jade Lake, deep in thought. "A Great Emperor from the future, looking toward Jade Lake... It can only be Wushi!"

Great Emperor Wushi!

Meng Chuan appeared above Jade Lake and looked at the figure downstream in the River of Time.

Wushi abruptly turned his gaze toward Meng Chuan. He had spotted him!

"A Great Emperor from the future," Meng Chuan said calmly. They were both emperors; he had nothing to fear.

Wushi looked at Meng Chuan, his expression shifting slightly. "There's something unusual about you, just as I thought. You've only been an emperor for nine hundred years, yet you're terrifyingly strong."

An enhanced Innate Dao Embryo, the lifting of the world's shackles, and everything I've gained over the years—how could I not be strong?

"You know me? By rights, I should have passed away by the time you became an emperor!" Meng Chuan said.

Great Emperor Wushi gave a rueful smile. "xxxxx..." When he found that the River of Time blurred whatever he tried to say, he fell silent.

Meng Chuan's expression stirred. Great Emperor Wushi's words must have touched on something that could not be revealed.

"So something happens in the future..." Meng Chuan looked at Great Emperor Wushi. "Why disturb the River of Time and travel upstream through the years? What are you trying to do?"

At Meng Chuan's question, Great Emperor Wushi looked down at Jade Lake, sadness in his eyes. "I only wanted to see the people and things of the past."

Meng Chuan watched Wushi and said no more. Separated by time, there was little they could say. After just those few exchanges, a powerful force had begun to repel Great Emperor Wushi. It was the River of Time striking back!

"Heaven... Great Emperor, stay alive." The moment Great Emperor Wushi spoke, the River of Time cast him out.

Meng Chuan's eyes lit up. From the look of it, he and Wushi would be on pretty good terms in the future! Meng Chuan could hear the hope in his words.

No one would urge someone they disliked—much less an enemy—to stay alive...

"Woof!"

"Great Emperor, did you succeed?" A Big Black Dog looked up at Great Emperor Wushi.

Wushi patted the dog's head. "Something unexpected happened this time. I only saw back a few tens of thousands of years."

"A few tens of thousands of years?" The dog caught on. "Wasn't that when the Heavenly Emperor was still called Great Emperor Dao Shi?"

"Did he stop you, Great Emperor?" The dog bared his teeth. "Given your relationship with him, he shouldn't have!"

Wushi smiled. "Why would he stop me? We exchanged a few words, and then the River of Time forced me out."

"Dao Shi could rank among the top three of all the supreme masters throughout history, even if we judged them only by their strength as Great Emperors!" Great Emperor Wushi sighed. Having seen him today, Wushi realized that Dao Shi had been extraordinarily powerful even shortly after becoming an emperor.

A trace of doubt appeared in the dog's eyes. That man was indeed extraordinarily powerful, a dazzling, invincible figure. But as Great Emperors, the man before him would never lose to anyone!

"Great Emperor, tell me about Great Emperor Dao Shi back then!"

At the dog's request, Wushi thought back. "The first time I met him, I was still a child..."

On the divine-jade teacups, true dragons played in water, divine phoenixes soared, and black tortoises bore up the heavens. Just a few small tea leaves conjured astonishing visions.

Meng Chuan sat opposite an incomparable woman. Staring at his jade cup, he sensed something awkward in the air and broke the silence.

"Immortal, you're as radiant as ever. You still take my breath away."

Qingyue looked at Meng Chuan and smiled, eclipsing heaven and earth. "Great Emperor, you're still such a smooth talker. I wonder how many divine maidens that mouth of yours lured in back then."

"Ha, not that many." Meng Chuan laughed awkwardly. He might have been a little flirtatious back then, but he had hardly acted on it!

Seeing his expression, Qingyue let the matter drop and looked at her jade cup.

"What brings you to my Jade Lake, Great Emperor?" Immortal Qingyue asked.

"Would you believe I came to see you..." Meng Chuan muttered. But to Qingyue, a Quasi-Emperor, it was no different from shouting through a megaphone.

Qingyue's expression remained unchanged. Meng Chuan sighed. "A Great Emperor from the future used Time Reversal to travel upstream through the River of Time. I came to see what he wanted."

Meng Chuan did not hide it. There was no reason to.

Shock crossed Qingyue's beautiful face. Once again, the might of a Great Emperor left her awestruck. Ancient records could only leave later generations to imagine it.

"Not even time can stop you..." Qingyue murmured.

Meng Chuan shook his head. "How could that be? Time Reversal through the River of Time only makes you a spectator. The past is past; you can't change it. There are plenty of restrictions, too. Location, for example: if I travel upstream through time at Jade Lake, I can't see the whole universe, only Jade Lake."

"Forget Great Emperors—even Immortals couldn't return to the past at will, let alone change it!"

Meng Chuan sounded utterly certain. Qingyue shot him a sidelong glance. "You talk as if you've met an Immortal!"

Meng Chuan froze. One glance, and a myriad years seemed to pass.

"What are you looking at?"

Meng Chuan grinned. "An Immortal maiden!" Ignoring Qingyue's disdainful look, he went on, "I haven't met an Immortal, but you have!" He pointed at himself.

"You?" Qingyue had nothing to say. She rolled her eyes at Meng Chuan.

"That's right, me. I'll become an Immortal!" Meng Chuan declared. If I can't even manage that, I won't qualify as a foot soldier in the future!

"Of all the Heavenly Venerables, Ancient Emperors, and Great Emperors throughout history, not one became an Immortal. And you think you will?"

Qingyue did not know why, but whenever she was with Meng Chuan, she could never maintain her cool, aloof poise as a divine maiden.

"How do you know no one became an immortal? Think of all the heroes across the ages! The founder of the Heavenly Venerables' era; the peerless Lord of the Heavenly Court at the end of the Age of Myth; the gods of the Primordial Myriad Races, who ended that age; and the Female Emperor, born with an ordinary body, standing proud above the nine heavens. With so many astonishing figures, I refuse to believe they couldn't find a path to immortality!"

"Even if everyone before me failed, I, Meng Chuan—Dao Shi—will become an Immortal!"

Meng Chuan brimmed with confidence. Chances to show off this spectacularly don't come often...

Qingyue looked at the man before her and lost herself for a moment. Then she smiled softly. "I hope I can see the moment you become an Immortal with my own eyes, Great Emperor."

"Then will you walk the path to immortality with me?" Meng Chuan pressed.

Qingyue smiled and shook her head, refusing almost without thought. "Your talent is extraordinary, Great Emperor, and your might unmatched. I could never catch up to you."

Meng Chuan stared at Qingyue for a while. He did not ask again.

At last, Meng Chuan picked up his jade cup and drained the tea brewed from leaves of the Enlightenment Tea Tree.

"You haven't changed a bit, Fairy."

"You, Great Emperor, have changed quite a lot."

"Hahahaha!" Meng Chuan burst out laughing, then vanished from Jade Lake. Only a few words remained, drifting into Qingyue's ears.

"I'm still not used to hearing you call me 'Great Emperor,' Fairy. I'd rather hear you call me..."

"Little White Dragon of the Waves! Hahahaha!"

Qingyue's face flushed bright red. Through gritted teeth, she muttered a curse.

"Shameless little scoundrel!"