The Grand Ancestor asked his ministers, "I wish to enlighten the world, to make everyone like a Dragon. What good strategies do you gentlemen have?"
Duke Bi said, "We can build divine temples, enshrine Yin soldiers and divine generals, reward good and punish evil, and cover the nineteen provinces."
The Grand Ancestor frowned slightly.
Duke Shao said, "We can compile a grand canon, collecting thousands of good Cultivation Techniques, and spread them throughout the world."
The Grand Ancestor's expression softened a little.
Duke Zhou said, "The common people face many hardships; they work from sunrise to sunset and should not have their burdens increased. Building divine temples and compiling grand canons should be encouraged among officials, not among the common people. The ancient evil sect, the Nightmare Sect, had a method called 'Grand Dream of Spring and Autumn' and a Treasure called 'One Dream, One World,' which allowed its disciples to kill people in their dreams."
"Cultivation Techniques have no good or evil. Your servant can change its use. All citizens of our Zhou Dynasty can gain enlightenment in their dreams without harming themselves."
The Grand Ancestor clapped his hands and laughed, "Excellent!"
So, he ordered Duke Zhou to interpret dreams and spread them throughout the world.
This anecdote, of course, is fictional.
Zhao Xing clearly remembered that the Cloud Dream Academy had no connection whatsoever with the Grand Ancestor and the founding marshal, Duke Zhou Dan.
The ancient sect, the Nightmare Sect, was not an evil sect at all, but the state religion of another Luck Dynasty, Great Li, which existed before the Zhou Dynasty.
The Cultivation Technique 'Grand Dream of Spring and Autumn' and the supreme Treasure 'One Dream, One World' indeed existed.
The predecessor of the Cloud Dream Academy was called the 'Grand Dream Academy'.
It was used by the Great Li Dynasty for 'elite education' to recruit Geniuses, and it could indeed be used to kill people in dreams.
After the fall of Great Li, several Dynasties passed, and the Great Zhou Dynasty acquired the supreme Treasure.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou wanted to decipher it and make it his own, but he utterly failed.
It wasn't until the Martial God's era that the supreme Treasure, One Dream, One World, was finally deciphered and transformed into the 'Cloud Dream Academy' in the Martial God's hands.
At the same time, this anecdote also came into being.
Why did that Martial God attribute the credit to the Grand Ancestor?
Because this Treasure was not 'deciphered' in his hands, but rather its entry method was accidentally discovered by one of his ministers in ancient texts.
That is, by using the simplest 【Soul Calming Talisman】 and 【Guiding Talisman】, combined with a single phrase, one could enter.
And its functions had already been largely developed by Great Li, and could be used with minor modifications.
After many years of possessing the supreme Treasure without being able to decipher it, when a method was finally found, it turned out to be shockingly simple!
Furthermore, the ancient emperors had already completed what he wanted to do, only lacking the large-scale implementation and simplification of this step.
The arrogant Martial God felt humiliated. He seemed to see the emperor of Great Li mocking his incompetence, and it was even less likely that he would covet this 'great merit' and 'great Karma' in the eyes of the world.
Attributing it to the previous few Dynasties was also unsuitable, so he simply pushed it all the way back and attributed this matter to the Grand Ancestor.
The Soul Calming Talisman and Guiding Talisman glowed faintly, and a deep sleepiness washed over him. Zhao Xing immediately felt his eyelids grow heavy, and soon, soft snores began to rise.
Within the dream, Zhao Xing suddenly sat up and looked around.
Endless clouds enveloped his surroundings, so thick that he couldn't see clearly.
Only a gate tower, dozens of feet high, appeared before his eyes.
Four characters were carved in ancient script on it: Grand Dream Academy
"I really came in?"
Zhao Xing's first instinct was to check his panel, but he found he couldn't. So, he had truly entered.
His second instinct was:
"I'm rich!"
"An early version of the Cloud Dream Academy dungeon, oh no, it's still called the Grand Dream Academy now! It's a completely undeveloped goldmine!"
"Compared to the later stage, after the Martial God emptied its Treasure Trove and it became a daily dungeon for players, it's completely incomparable!"
Zhao Xing was a little excited.
In his previous life, he hadn't caught a good time, but now it was different.
After organizing his thoughts and recalling some important points, Zhao Xing stepped into the mist-shrouded gateway.
With one step, the scene suddenly changed.
Before his eyes appeared magnificent palaces, each enveloped in a semi-circular light cover.
【Reincarnation Hall】, 【Heart-Questioning Platform】, 【Martial God Tower】, 【Arcane Skill Repository】, 【Heavenly Secret Pavilion】, 【Sacred Beast Palace】, 【Life Palace】…
Pavilions, palace complexes, covered walkways, and sky bridges were all arranged in an orderly fashion, with layered peaks and swirling mists, as if one were in a celestial Realm.
Zhao Xing's eyes were immediately dazzled, and he drooled.
In the 'background story' summarized by players in his previous life, the Martial God only had enough confidence to conquer the eight directions because he obtained the Treasure Trove accumulated by Great Li.
Now, these Treasures were presented one by one before Zhao Xing, but before he could examine them closely, most of these palaces disappeared into the clouds.
Only a few small pavilions remained.
"Huh? What's going on?" Zhao Xing was stunned. "How did they disappear?"
He quickly chased in the direction a palace had disappeared, but after only a few dozen meters, he was blocked by a gentle pushing force, making it extremely difficult to move forward, until he could no longer advance an inch.
After several attempts, it was always the same. Zhao Xing stood in place, frowning and pondering for a long time before he finally realized.
This was the Grand Dream Academy, not the Cloud Dream Academy.
"Great Li's Grand Dream Academy was specifically for cultivating Geniuses, while Great Zhou's 'Cloud Dream Academy' taught everyone, regardless of Aptitude."
"The former not only allowed for the study of high-end secret methods but also enabled bringing back physical rewards, each of which was a precious Treasure. However, it had entry thresholds and high-difficulty tests."
"The latter, on the other hand, primarily focused on low to mid-level secret texts, with very few physical rewards. But it had no threshold; even young children could traverse all parts of the academy, and there were no tests."
After understanding, Zhao Xing could only helplessly watch as one Treasure Trove after another disappeared into the clouds.
Now he didn't need to search for them himself.
Because as soon as he moved, he triggered a mechanism, and what remained were the places where he could attempt to get rewards.
"Let's see what's left. There's no need to rush. There are still at least a few hundred years before the Martial God empties the Treasure Trove." Zhao Xing's mindset immediately relaxed. He had all the time in the world to slowly empty this place.
After waiting for a moment, all the myriad palaces and pavilions finally vanished, leaving only a high platform floating in the sky.
Clouds billowed, and a staircase spiraled down from the platform to Zhao Xing's feet.
"Heart-Questioning Platform?"
"It seems my Rank is too low. I'm not qualified to touch anything else. Only this 'Heart-Questioning Platform,' which has nothing to do with Cultivation Realm, offers a chance to pass the challenge and get a reward."
The challenges of the Heart-Questioning Platform are mostly related to the seven emotions and six desires, and the scenarios are tailored to different people.
It also has some patterns: creating the most desired or most feared situation at the moment.
Looking at that Heart-Questioning Platform, Zhao Xing seemed to recall some unpleasant memory.
"It won't be some terrifying, unbearable challenge right from the start, will it..."
Taking a deep breath, he carefully stepped onto the first stair.
"Om~"
The surrounding scene suddenly changed, and Zhao Xing suddenly smelled a refreshing fragrance.
Water rippled, flower petals floated on the surface, and steam rose. A beautiful woman was leaning on the edge of a tub.
Her partially revealed shapely buttocks, bare back, fragrant shoulders, and flowing hair...
"What? A lust trial?"
"Heart-Questioning Platform, did you make a mistake? Is this kind of low-level pleasure what this old man desires most right now?!"