Chapter 52: Lu Zhaoran's Dreamscape

After Gu Chen stepped through the misty gate, the scenery before his eyes shifted.

His body silently materialized upon a large tree in a courtyard, perfectly blending with the color of the foliage.

……

"Qi of the soul, stage three!"

Staring at the five dark gray characters gleaming on the soul-testing stone, the youth closed his eyes in despair.

"Chu Chen, Qi of the soul, stage three! Grade: Lowest of the low!" A thin, nearly elderly man proclaimed in an indifferent tone.

"Qi of the soul, stage three! Lowest of the low! Hahaha... Elder Qin, you're quite humorous!"

"Next time, will it be the lowest of the lowest low? Hahaha..."

"This good-for-nothing... truly a disgrace to our Chu family. A dog kept for three years would have a stronger Qi of the soul than stage three!"

"How does he even have the face to live in this world?"

"I heard he's about to marry the daughter of the City Lord of our Sea God City!"

"I wonder if a useless wretch like him can even perform in bed at night? Should we send someone to help him out?"

"Utterly pathetic! If it weren't for his grandfather, Chu Tiannan, being the head of our Chu family, I'm afraid he would have been chased out long ago!"

"So what if he was a monstrous genius three years ago? Now he lives worse than a stray dog!"

……

The surrounding jeers grew louder and louder, practically as if they were holding megaphones right in front of Chu Chen to shout, "You are trash... You are good-for-nothing!"

Hearing these cutting remarks, Chu Chen's gaze gradually grew icy, and he screamed in his heart: Whoever can kill this group of people for me, Chu Chen is willing to be their slave for life!

Hidden in the tree, Gu Chen was not far from the youth. Perhaps due to the Mysterious Heart Technique he practiced, he could hear the desperate plea echoing in the boy's mind.

Observing the youth closely, Gu Chen's pupils seemed gifted with X-ray vision, instantly piercing through to the root of the boy's problems.

His meridians were blocked, black Qi tainted his internal organs, and his dantian wall was riddled with holes like a honeycomb, entirely incapable of storing the Qi of the soul.

Looking at the youth, for some reason, Gu Chen felt as though he had seen him somewhere before, yet at the same time, he hadn't!

He decided to lend a hand, for no other reason than the fact that the boy's name also contained Chen, homophonous with his own. It was that simple!

However, he did not act immediately, because he discovered that the area was filled with various types of ambient energy, which would greatly benefit the elevation of his state of mind and strength.

Moreover, he was extremely curious as to why a string of white numbers had suddenly appeared before his eyes.

These numbers were constantly counting down.

Tick by tick from 23:59:59 downwards, Gu Chen had no idea what these numbers signified, nor why they had manifested in his field of vision.

"Miss Nalan, arriving!"

Just as Gu Chen was observing the strange numbers and sinking into contemplation, a servant's loud cry suddenly echoed from outside the Chu family gates.

Everyone in the courtyard turned their heads toward the entrance, and Gu Chen shifted his gaze as well.

Upon beholding the woman's appearance, even Gu Chen, who was accustomed to peerless beauties, could not help feeling astonished.

She was an exceptionally tall woman with waist-length light purple hair curled slightly at the tips. Her eyebrows were neither too thick nor too thin, perfectly shaped like willow leaves.

Her eyes resembled those of the most magnificent phoenix in the sky—bright and spirited, carrying a pride that belonged solely to her within their brown irises.

Her nose was equally exquisite, neither too large nor too small, yet delicately upturned. Paired with her snow-white skin, rosy lips, and classic oval face, she possessed a breathtaking beauty.

An iceberg beauty—that was Gu Chen's initial impression!

A dusky-purple, shoulder-bare, strap-suspended long dress gave her an air of elegance, nobility, and mystery.

She was Nalan Jie—Jie as in purity, a woman whose name differed from his mother's by only a single character!

Seeing the woman for the first time, the fierce aura surrounding Chu Chen instantly dissipated by more than half.

"Xiao Jie, why are you here?"

Nalan Jie did not answer him immediately. Instead, she swept her gaze across everyone present.

"None of you are allowed to bully him from now on!" she said coldly.

Only then did she drop her gaze back onto Chu Chen.

"Chu Chen, I am here today to say goodbye."

Goodbye?

Chu Chen felt as though he had been struck by lightning!

"Where are you going? Aren't we getting married soon?"

"I am going to the Ice God Valley."

"Then what about us..."

"We will never meet again. Find a good girl, settle down, and have children."

With that, she turned and walked away, showing not a single trace of reluctance from beginning to end!

Chu Chen stood dumbfounded, watching the woman's retreating figure as the very last shred of fantasy in his heart shattered into dust!

After a long while, he finally let out a helpless sigh and muttered to himself, "Right! It was just me being too naive! Who would ever take a fancy to a former genius who has now become good-for-nothing?"

"You need not belittle yourself. Eight or nine out of ten things in life do not go as planned. One must harbor hope so that life will not fill you with despair."

"Fine rain and slanting winds create the chill of dawn; faint mist and sparse willows charm the sunny shoals. The clear Luo River flows ever onward into the Huai, while foam like milk crests the ox-horn cup. Smartweed shoots and wild bamboo sprouts grace the spring platter; the truest flavor of a mortal home is simple joy."

"Is it true that once a dantian is ruined, one can truly no longer cultivate?"

A voice suddenly rang out in Chu Chen's mind.

"Take the sword before you and slaughter every last person who has ever humiliated you!"

Abruptly, a blood-red longsword materialized before Chu Chen.

He hesitated. Just moments ago, he had indeed wished to kill those who had insulted him, but that was merely a fleeting thought!

"What, are you afraid? Didn't you desperately want to kill them? I am giving you the chance now. Pick up the blood sword before you, and you shall possess supreme power, using slaughter to establish the righteous path!"

"What are you still hesitating for? Pick up the sword in front of you and prove you are not trash! Let everyone who has humiliated you rot in hell! Pick up the sword... pick it up!"

"No, it's not like that! They... they..."

"Coward! No wonder they all laugh at you, and even your fiancée couldn't be bothered to look at you before leaving!"

"You are nothing more than a hopeless, good-for-nothing piece of trash!"

"No, it's not what you say! No, you're wrong, I am not trash!"

"I am who I am, a different kind of spark. I don't need to prove anything to anyone; I will become strong through my own efforts!"

The blood sword vanished, and the voice in Chu Chen's mind disappeared as well.

"Congratulations on passing the test. Very pleased to meet you, my name is Gu Chen."

The voice just now was the result of Gu Chen utilizing the power of the Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Bead to stir the inner demons within Chu Chen's heart, forcing him to recognize his true self. It was also a test devised by Gu Chen.

Although he pitied Chu Chen deeply, Gu Chen would never casually bestow his benevolence upon someone incapable of introspection.

Fortunately, Chu Chen had succeeded.

Looking at Gu Chen, who had appeared out of thin air before him, Chu Chen was utterly shocked. He knew very well that there had been nothing in front of him a moment ago. How on earth had Gu Chen appeared?

"You needn't be astonished! I possess certain methods beyond your comprehension."

Seeming to see right through Chu Chen's thoughts, Gu Chen said leisurely, "Come with me."

Just moments before, Gu Chen had deployed the first layer of the Divine Weapon Tianluo Umbrella—Domain.

Combined with the Dark Nether Wolf soul bone skill, Nether Stealth, he had arrived at Chu Chen's side.

To any outsider watching at this moment, Chu Chen was still sitting entirely alone.