Liyue, Mount Aocang Summit.
Inside an exquisite pavilion.
"No... no, don't!"
"———No!!"
On a pinewood bed, a slender, white-haired woman jolted awake from her nightmare, letting out a heart-wrenching cry of grief.
Creak.
The room door opened, and a white crane walked in. After quietly observing her for a moment, it surprisingly spoke in human language:
"Another nightmare?"
The immortal disciple named Shenhe looked pale as she turned to the white crane. "Master..."
The crane shook its head. "This immortal has told you before, you must keep the red rope on even while sleeping. Do not be negligent."
"The red rope..."
As Shenhe uttered the words, she suddenly stiffened, as if pricked by a needle.
"No, Master, this dream... this dream was different."
"It was different... sobs"
The white crane frowned in a human-like manner. "Disciple, you... why are you crying?"
Her disciple's reaction was beyond the crane's comprehension. It understood that its disciple had been plagued by nightmares for years due to the fierce malevolence within her.
But it also knew that this disciple of hers possessed immense mental fortitude. Since she was 14 years old, it had hardly ever seen her shed a tear.
What in the world could she have dreamed of that would sadden her to such an extent?
Shenhe's forehead was still beaded with fine cold sweat, her face displaying an expression of extreme complexity.
Pain, remorse, self-blame, even despair—all were present.
"Master," Shenhe choked out, "I... I did something wrong in the dream, something I can never forgive myself for."
The white crane, also known as Cloud Retainer, fell silent for a moment. It didn't offer platitudes like 'don't take dreams seriously' or similar advice.
For ordinary mortals, dreams might merely be reflections of their thoughts.
But for those who cultivated the Dao like them, dreams could not be treated lightly.
Immortals rarely dreamed. If they did, it usually involved some karmic connection from the unseen realms.
Cloud Retainer sighed softly and said gently, "Disciple, what did you see in your dream? Can you tell your master?"
Shenhe curled her legs up, her nails almost digging into her palms. "I... I killed my own child..."
"I killed my beloved Ji An!"
Cloud Retainer: ???
...
Although Cloud Retainer didn't fully understand the real reason for her disciple's tears upon learning the truth, it still did its best to comfort her.
"Disciple, you are neither married nor... well, you are still a maiden. How could you have a child?"
"But... if I had one, then I had one."
"Doesn't that precisely prove the dream was false?"
"No, I remember everything in the dream clearly. That child was born from my wish, just like a Vision, a treasure bestowed upon me by heaven and earth."
"This... you cannot conflate the two. Visions are real and tangible, while the matter of a child lacks any basis."
Shenhe fell silent. Although her master's tone was gentle and didn't directly refute her or say she was wrong,
She could still tell that her master simply didn't believe she had truly ever had a child.
"...Yes, Master, I understand. It probably really was just a dream."
As Shenhe uttered these words, her heart felt as if being sliced by a knife.
Only she herself knew how utterly real everything in the dream felt. She even suspected it might be a forgotten segment of her own past experience.
Was it real or not?
Three days later.
Shenhe, having tidied her attire and packed her belongings, stood before Cloud Retainer.
Cloud Retainer said, "Disciple, have you decided?"
Shenhe bowed to her master. "Yes, Master. I plan to travel for a while."
She turned her head, gazing at the vast sea of clouds, her jade-like profile tinged with a trace of sorrow. "There are some things I cannot figure out, and even harder to let go of. So, I wish to search for an answer."
"Foolish child."
Cloud Retainer sighed. "Since that is your decision, then go."
After saying this, the white crane beat its wings and flew into the sky.
...
Liyue, Jueyun Karst.
A certain Hilichurl camp.
"Mosi, Mita? (Eat, meat?)"
Faced with the Hilichurl holding a bowl of dubious-looking meat,
Ji An, covered in dust and grime, made exaggerated gestures and nodded repeatedly: "Mosi Mita! (Thank you, I'm so happy!)"
The Hilichurl danced around: "La La La!"
Finally managing to shoo that Hilichurl away, Ji An wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and secretly hid the bowl.
His current state was utterly miserable. His handsome face was smeared with dirt, the yellow hoodie he wore when crossing over had turned black, covered in sticky, unidentifiable substances, and his jeans were full of holes.
If he encountered humans and didn't speak, he might be mistaken for a new type of monster and eliminated on the spot by adventurers.
In one word: Pathetic!
In two words: Absolutely pathetic!
How did things come to this?
We need to rewind time to three days ago.
After failing the simulation, the system immediately slapped him with a debuff, making him attract aggro across the entire map.
In less than five minutes, overwhelming sounds came from all directions—the footsteps of monsters rushing toward him.
Ji An, at the center, felt suffocated.
Then, boundless anger surged within him.
You want me dead?
If Heaven wills my destruction, then I shall defy Heaven!
Thus, in a state of extreme fury, Ji An grabbed a wooden stick from the corner and charged out.
Just outside the cave, he saw a group of Hilichurls rushing toward him.
He sneered coldly, unleashing the 'Hilichurl Storm Axe Technique', immediately cutting down three Hilichurls.
His spirits lifted, and as he prepared to press the advantage... he was promptly knocked flat by a Hilichurl Berserker charging in with its shield.
Behind, a Electro Hilichurl Samchurl was dancing, seemingly preparing to hit him with a powerful spell.
Ji An stared at the Electro ball. Would he survive a direct hit from that?
"Big bro, misunderstanding, misunderstanding! We're on the same side!"
At the critical moment, he shouted in Hilichurl language: "Take a closer look, I'm actually a Hilichurl too!"
Perhaps his 'Basic Hilichurl Language Proficiency' worked too well, because the Hilichurls actually stopped their actions upon hearing this. They then huddled together, seemingly arguing about something.
Finally, the Hilichurl Samchurl approached him, holding its staff, pointed at his face: "Ye (you, derogatory), Nye (negation)?"
"No choice, I landed face-first when I was born, so I don't look quite like other Hilichurls." Ji An put on an angry expression: "Is that my fault? Ugly Hilichurl lives matter too!"
The Hilichurl Samchurl was taken aback by his outburst. It turned back and chattered with the other Hilichurls for a while.
When it returned, its attitude was much better. It released the magical bindings on him and even sympathetically patted his shoulder.
By now, the other monsters had arrived, watching menacingly from the side—Geo Slimes, Geovishaps, Whopperflowers...
If it weren't for the Hilichurls beside him, these monsters would have pounced long ago.
But they didn't seem inclined to leave either.
Just as Ji An was watching with trepidation, the Hilichurl Samchurl tapped his foot with its staff, signaling him to follow them.
He breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, "Thank you, big bro."
Just as they were about to leave.
"ROAR!!"
The watching monsters moved, blocking the path of him and the Hilichurls.
Ji An inwardly cursed; this was bad. While this group of Hilichurls was sizable, there were only a few Berserkers and Samchurl.
The opposing side, aside from the Slimes, were all troublesome monsters. If a fight broke out, his side wasn't at an advantage.
But he noticed the Hilichurl Samchurl wasn't flustered at all; it even urged him to walk faster.
Initially, Ji An didn't understand where this confidence came from.
Until a terrifying roar echoed, reverberating through the mountains.
A massive brown figure descended from the sky, landing heavily and creating a deep crater in the solid mountain ground. The moment it landed, it felt as if the entire mountain range shook!
Under this overwhelming might,
The gathered monsters were thrown into disarray, scattering in all directions.
Ji An stared at the colossal figure amidst the billowing dust, his eyes widening gradually. This was...
The pinnacle combatant among the Hilichurl lineage, the king roaming the thousand peaks.
—The Stonehide Lawachurl!
Damn, so they had a big boss backing them up.
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A/n: Hey over on my patreon there are currently two for the time being exclusive books which are
Zenless Zone Zero: Loving Daily Life Starting in New Eridu
patreon.com/deadlygoober