After the Shanghai National Martial Arts Center, there was a quiet little courtyard where a gentle breeze rustled the fallen leaves over the courtyard wall.
Creak~
Pushing open the dusty courtyard door, Chu Fan saw Gu Changsheng sitting cross-legged beneath an old tree.
This once-famous, yet now-reclusive 'Little Mister Gu'.
He sat with his five centers towards the sky, a misty aura flowing around him, his substantial-looking hands brushing aside the falling leaves.
In the secluded courtyard, he sat alone, not for a day, but for nearly seven years.
Since the three-year Great Dream, this Little Mister Gu had not left this courtyard, and even in the Wang Quan dream realm, there was no news of him.
His former glory had long been forgotten by many, and only a few would occasionally seek him out.
Chu Fan was one of them.
He started learning martial arts very late, and it could even be said that he only truly began practicing internal martial arts after the Zombie King incident.
Gu Changsheng was one of the few who taught him boxing techniques.
"Hoo!"
It was only after Chu Fan had stepped into the courtyard for more than half an hour that he heard Gu Changsheng's extremely faint breathing.
"The more I cultivate, the more I see my own shallowness..."
Gu Changsheng sighed softly, "I am still not as good as my ancestor..."
"Little Mister's achievements now surpass those of Mister Gu back then."
Chu Fan responded.
He undoubtedly respected Gu Changsheng, and even greatly admired him.
In fact, this Little Mister Gu had not only opened a flower in the dream realm, but had also cultivated to the point of 'seeing the divine without corruption' in the real world, and had even advanced further on an unknown path.
"We can't compare like that; the environment is different after all."
Gu Changsheng glanced at Chu Fan, his eyes gentle and without any sharpness, "When my ancestor passed away, he was a little younger than I am now, but his pure boxing cultivation was still above my current level."
The words 'carrying on the past and opening up the future' were not something anyone could bear.
Stripping away all the halos that later generations had added to him, he was still incomparable to ordinary people.
"Whether it exists or not, it simply is or isn't. The level of achievement cannot possibly exclude all external factors; a person's achievement is inherently a convergence of various external factors."
Chu Fan didn't quite agree, "I also greatly respect Mister Gu, but the martial arts of the Wang Quan dream realm, with tens of thousands of years of inheritance, ultimately surpass any boxing style on Xuan Xing. This is the greatest advantage that Little Mister has over Mister Gu..."
The people of Da Xuan, and even the entire Xuan Xing, often added various halos to the deceased, and were unable to evaluate them objectively and truthfully.
Just like there were many mavericks among the dream entrants who insisted on not coming into contact with the martial arts of Jiu Fu Realm, not wanting to ruin the purity of their own boxing.
But the facts proved that taking the best of both worlds, like Gu Changsheng, Wang Zhi Xuan, Truman from across the ocean, and others, had achieved far more than those martial artists who were stuck in their ways, thinking themselves pure.
He never rejected external things, just like he had successively implanted Su Jie's 'Undying Bird' and 'Shen Nong' chips.
"Perhaps."
Gu Changsheng remained noncommittal, and changed the subject, "You came because of this change in the heavens, didn't you?"
"That's right."
Chu Fan's expression was somewhat solemn, "The emergence of 'spiritual energy particles' is an unimaginably huge change for dream entrants. Being able to release True Qi from the body or not are two completely different realms..."
No one understood the difference between the two worlds more than dream entrants like them.
On Xuan Xing, which lacked spiritual energy, even Celestial Realm experts who could move mountains and fill seas, chasing after stars and moons in the dream realm, could not ignore the 'new weapons' developed by various governments in response.
But with spiritual energy, even if it was thin, it was still different.
Dream entrants already had the ability to overturn the existing order.
Chu Fan spoke concisely, recounting the changes that had occurred over the past month one by one, without any concealment.
"Friction between dream entrants and non-dream entrants is inevitable, sooner or later."
Gu Changsheng's eyes were calm, and he wasn't too surprised, "It's just another class."
Forming cliques and attacking dissidents was human nature, and people couldn't tolerate what others had and they didn't, from beauty and ugliness, poverty and wealth, to classes.
And in the eyes of non-dream entrants, what were dream entrants?
They were new humans who controlled themselves, were handsome and tall, were not tormented by illness, didn't have to work nine-to-five, had ten times the lifespan of themselves, and possessed extraordinary power.
And in the eyes of dream entrants, they were physically strong, had profound martial arts skills, and could wipe out a county or city with a flick of their fingers. They were 'supermen' who had already transcended humanity.
They had already experienced freedom in the dream realm, and the length of that experience had exceeded their lifespan in the real world.
In other words, they no longer wanted to be bound by ordinary people.
"If this matter cannot be resolved, it will eventually lead to disaster."
Chu Fan sighed in his heart.
Was it just that dream entrants didn't want to be bound by ordinary people?
Ordinary people were also afraid of dream entrants' 'violations'!
In the past month or so, only a small part of the collisions and friction that had occurred worldwide were caused by dream entrants.
"Confucians use literature to establish laws, and martial artists use force to maintain prohibitions. You are already a qualified 'law enforcement martial artist'."
Gu Changsheng looked at Chu Fan and smiled slightly, "Your heart is a little chaotic. You came to me to calm your heart, not to ask for my opinion, right?"
Chu Fan was silent for a moment, and then nodded, "The old order may eventually be replaced one day, but it shouldn't be this radical..."
Without artificial intelligence deduction, Chu Fan already had a prediction.
If the differences between dream entrants and ordinary people reached a point where they could not be reconciled, then it would inevitably be a terrible disaster surpassing all wars in human history.
That was not what he wanted to see.
"Then what are you hesitating about?"
Gu Changsheng stood up, his body surrounded by swirling currents of air like dragons and snakes, stirring up the dust and leaves and tossing them out of the courtyard gate:
"After stillness comes movement. I happen to have some doubts I want to ask Mister An, why not go together!"
.......
Whoosh whoosh~
The pillar of clear light stood tall, reaching the heavens, growing more and more intense. After nearly two months of changes, it had become so strong that ordinary people could clearly see it from dozens or hundreds of miles away.
It attracted the attention of countless people.
But whether it was the Special Affairs Bureau, dream entrants, foreign martial artists, or reporters, no one dared to approach Tian Lian Mountain.
The sword strike that slayed the snake seven years ago was still the most-watched video on the internet, and there was no other.
The number one person in the world seven years ago, who had already surpassed all dream entrants at that time, what level of strength would he have reached now, after seven years in the real world and seventy years in the dream realm?
No one could predict.
But this scene before them had already told everyone that the one in Tian Lian Mountain's One Heart Temple no longer cared about anyone's prying eyes.
Only by being fearless could one be unbridled.
"This, this is Tian Lian Mountain that has caused a global sensation recently..."
In the midst of the fierce wind, Jia Mengmeng held up a special camera, seemingly broadcasting live, "The qi waves are very strong. With Tian Lian Mountain as the center, there is nothing left within hundreds of miles except the earth..."
No matter what their identity was in the dream, dream entrants still had to 'eat' in reality, and whether it was 'Bigu Pills' (pinyin), 'nutrient solutions', or 'Ganges holy water', the prices were extremely high.
The government's subsidies could only maintain their basic living. In order to make a living, the dream entrants of Da Xuan worked very hard, diligently working nine-to-five in various industries.
Jia Mengmeng had switched careers to become a streamer.
"The clear light is so beautiful, like a fairyland. I really want to go there in person, but unfortunately we can't."
"Is An Qi Sheng in One Heart Temple? Could all of this be related to him? What was the reason for the previous Wang Quan statue?"
"I'm so envious of the streamer, she's so beautiful and so powerful. With such a strong wind, even a whale would be blown away, right?"
"Envy +1"
"Ahhh, I can't take it anymore, I'm going to place an order right now, I want to order a takeaway and send it to Mister An..."
......
As one of the few streamers who could get close to Tian Lian Mountain, Jia Mengmeng's room naturally had a high popularity. The dense barrage almost covered the entire screen.
"An Qi Sheng..."
Jia Mengmeng didn't interact with the audience, and her eyes had a complex expression as she looked at Tian Lian Mountain.
A former classmate was now an unattainable 'world's number one'. Even though she had worked hard to cultivate over the years, she was still being pulled further and further away.
So far away that she couldn't even get within hundreds of miles of him.
Whoosh~
At a certain moment, many dream entrants, including Jia Mengmeng, had a thought in their hearts and looked back in unison.
In the midst of the fierce wind, figures were stepping out from the far distance, their shapes varying in height, but their speed was extremely fast.
By the time everyone noticed, they had already passed through the howling qi waves and gusts of wind, passed them, and headed straight for Tian Lian Mountain.
"Heavenly Ranking experts?!"
A dream entrant exclaimed, "I saw Azure Dragon!"
"Doctor Wang, Chu Fan, Feng Mingtao... Heavens, so many dream powerhouses, what do they want to do together at Tian Lian Mountain?"
Many dream entrants' hearts were pounding, and they recognized the identities of those people.
"Could it be that they want to..."
A dream entrant boldly predicted, but was interrupted before he could finish speaking, "How is that possible? Seven years ago, Mister An could already fly across the ocean and strike down enemies ten thousand miles away with a single sword. How dare they?"
None of the dream entrants present believed that anyone would dare to target Mister An, but watching the figures disappear into the clear light one by one, they couldn't help but feel their hearts pounding.
Whoosh whoosh~
In the pillar of clear light that permeated the heavens and earth here, Qing Long's expression was solemn. In the end, he stopped in front of Tian Lian Mountain.
He saw a familiar person, the former Big Head of the Beggar Dao Society, Porter.
Porter sat cross-legged in the clear light, his figure flickering uncertainly, "You have come after all."
"You really entered Mister An's sect?"
Qing Long's pupils shrank, sensing a familiar aura from Porter.
"What difference does it make whether I joined or not?"
Porter glanced at the people who had come, and finally fixed his gaze on Chu Fan and Gu Changsheng, "Mister An gave instructions to only let the two of you go up the mountain..."
Boom!
As he spoke, a loud noise suddenly exploded.
Porter leaped into the air, his blood qi burning and boiling like a furnace. He punched at a figure that was sweeping across the clear light:
"Dao is passed to the Three Friends, I am not among them, and neither are you!"