Chapter 919: Strange Dream

“What sort of character are you in the martial world?”

Di Qi chuckled, remarking with interest, “This must be the martial world, then—where grudges are swiftly avenged. Have you come to seek revenge from me? Is your martial art comparable to the Demonic Desire Splitting Art?”

“How could it be revenge? That kind of great martial world demon who harms humanity is better off dead.” The little dog shook its head and sighed. “This old man is just an unknown nobody in the martial world. I’ve been muddled and wasted countless years. Recently, I nearly lost my memory, always dreaming, and I can hardly remember who I am anymore…”

“You don’t remember who you are?” Di Qi observed him carefully. It was too bizarre for a cosmic enlightened being of this level to suffer from amnesia.

“Your gaze, your expression—it’s clearly how one would look at a Demon Lord, yet you’re looking at this old man…” The little dog’s ancient, weathered voice conveyed, “But you won’t learn any martial arts from me. This old man has no intention of fighting you. Reality holds too many disappointments; it’s better to live freely in a dream…”

Di Qi continued to stare at him.

“Your life-and-death struggles have nothing to do with me…” The little dog lay on its back, constantly scratching its soft belly with its hind paws, looking utterly endearing. “Ah, the martial world… The so-called martial world, with its swift vengeance and grudges, isn’t it just a grand dream of life? Youthful heroes on spirited horses, old age spent guarding lonely tombs with a sword. What does one gain in life? What is it all for? Who am I, and who… am I, truly?”

“What is there to contend for? This old man stopped striving long ago…” The old man’s voice began to wail, suddenly shedding tears, conveying a profound sense of aged weariness.

If the Demon Lord evoked a sense of an evil martial world devil in him, then this old man gave off the bewildered feeling of a fading young hero, representing another kind of martial world destiny.

“Strange fellow.” Di Qi frowned slightly. Since the other party’s true form wasn’t present, he bothered no further and continued striding forward.

A faint voice drifted from behind him. “You must be careful. Our martial world’s Alliance Leader should be coming for you. He is extremely upright and fierce, grateful for your grace in suppressing a menace for the martial world… Perhaps he will invite you to a duel. He is a fanatic who follows the path of the king, truly honorable.”

“That’s good news.” Di Qi waved his hand and continued walking. “Your martial arts give me an extremely bizarre feeling. To think there’s even an anomaly who takes the path of fierce strength? He must be out of place.”

The little dog, however, followed behind. “I advise you to stay away. The Martial Arts Alliance Leader is a lunatic; he fights with no regard for anyone, even his own kin. None of us dare to cross him… Even the Demon Lord steers clear of him… He’ll beat you to death.”

“Even better.” Di Qi turned around, strangled the little dog, and continued walking.

A moment later, on the Seventh Planet, a small blade of grass rooted in the ground watched a flytrap plant capture an insect. The blade of grass seemed thoughtful. It carefully observed all the flytrap’s actions: the parabola, the speed of its strike, the frequency of its leaf movements. The blade of grass, as if with its hands behind its back, suddenly began to mimic the flytrap, capturing insects with surprising skill. Di Qi’s voice emanated from it: “I truly don’t understand these profound principles, but whatever you do… I’ll just follow along.” The blade of grass had actually learned to catch insects.

Meanwhile, an even stranger scene unfolded in the administrative district of another planet, Thiel. A stray dog intently watched a pauper sitting on a worn stone doorstep, smoking and exhaling plumes of smoke. After a while, the pauper discarded the cigarette butt and left. The stray dog picked up the still-burning cigarette butt, crossed its legs like a hooligan, and began to sit on the doorstep, smoking. Smoke curled from its dog nose, and Di Qi’s voice could be heard: “I truly don’t understand these profound principles, but whatever you do… I’ll just follow along.”

On another side of the planet, in a poor mountain village, a police officer on a motorcycle, siren blaring, chased a thief. A domestic black cat from a nearby house saw this. It mounted a child’s tricycle parked in the courtyard, transforming into a cycling “Black Cat Detective,” and rapidly began chasing a mouse. Di Qi’s voice also eerily emanated from it: “I truly don’t understand these profound principles, but whatever you do… I’ll just follow along.”

Such scenes were eerily occurring throughout the entire Thiel Empire, on Planet Bird, and even among the iron-based lifeforms of the Mechanical Pillar God, as if they were ubiquitous.

In the depths, a voice seemed to grow increasingly faint. “Who am I… who am I, really… I am just a designation… You can be me… I can also be you… Who is whose… It’s all just… A cosmic dream.”

On the Mechanical Pillar God’s central planet, in this Pillar God civilization, which was already under control, technology was highly advanced. A ghostly image of a small boy appeared in mid-air. “Super-spatial railgun, research complete. According to the Pillar God’s database, the new arcane generator is complete… Our civilization has officially entered the complete Ninth-Tier technological era, mastering celestial phenomena! Spatial shockwave targeting the Nine Revolutions Mystic Art has been developed to 87%. Iron-based high-pressure magnetic weapons have been developed to 45%.”

The technological accumulation of the civilization was progressing rapidly, changing with each passing day. The civilization’s technology tree, under the Thiel Empire’s control, was experiencing miracles of destiny every moment in the face of the Pillar God’s timeline. Countless geniuses were emerging, becoming protagonists of their era.

Suddenly, battle reports and images were transmitted from the neighboring planet’s surveillance equipment. “Has Di Qi descended? Faster than expected. And a Demon Lord from a higher-dimensional civilization also descended at the same time? Have the two collided?”

The battle in the footage was extremely fierce. “The opponent possesses martial arts similar to those used by Mansha against us. It’s suspected that Mansha and others learned from these civilizations! This civilization is located in the ‘Cosmic Garden’!”

“Di Qi has won.”

“The opponent’s civilization cultivates quantum mechanics! This is too bizarre. Is it a martial world? Immediately begin research and capture!”

The Mechanical Pillar God’s civilization entered a state of high alert upon witnessing this scene. The Mechanical Pillar God knew that it would eventually face the arrival of the Three Pillar Gods. What awaited it then was fusion and assimilation, for it was a separated sub-entity, but it naturally intended to offer strong resistance. Therefore, it began researching various targeted civilizations. It must be said that it possessed the knowledge of the Three Pillar Gods, along with vast amounts of information, and had begun developing celestial weapons specifically designed to deliver fatal blows against extraordinary cultivation techniques. It just hadn't expected them to arrive so quickly…

“Furthermore, misfortunes never come singly. Our iron-based citizens are showing abnormal life characteristics to varying degrees,” the Mechanical Pillar God stated, observing the circular table meeting where all high-ranking officials had gathered.

“What kind of abnormalities?” an iron-based lifeform inquired.

“They have all begun strange learning, mimicking nearby organisms, and a single phrase has appeared from their mouths: ‘I truly don’t understand these profound principles, but whatever you do… I’ll just follow along!’”

As these words fell, the entire council erupted in discussion; it was too bizarre. “According to brainwave readings, they are… dreaming.”

“Just dreaming? Nothing else? Like being controlled?”

“Yes, these beings are all dreaming, sleepwalking, like perfectly normal dreaming. No other abnormalities have been detected, no changes in any data, and no signs of control…”

“Just… simply dreaming?”

“Perhaps it’s not just our planet; nearby planets might also have different types of beings starting to dream, possibly in countless numbers…”

“Have you checked brainwaves, quantum waves, electromagnetic waves? All the data? You should know that biological dreams are influenced by magnetic fields and waves…”

“We are checking. It might be the work of some mysterious martial arts grandmaster who has begun to exert their power!”

“A new war?”

“We must accelerate our research. This entire region has fully entered an era of super-warfare. Various civilizations—the strange quantum martial world, the Cosmic Garden, the Thiel Empire, God-Demon Alchemists, Di Qi’s Heavenly Court… all forces are intermingling. A full-scale war might erupt… We don’t have much time!”

“To survive!”

“Yes! According to intelligence, Di Qi, the Three Pillar Gods, and Caroline are already at the weak Ninth Tier. Their four genes are undergoing final perfection, establishing a complete foundation for their Dao. They will likely choose this place as an opportunity for their final breakthrough, to become true complete Ninth-Tier beings!”

“At that time, their breakthrough will usher in an unprecedented peak of combat power!”

“Yes, we will face them in their complete Ninth-Tier state… Even if our technological physics reaches the level of complete Ninth Tier, we might still be annihilated!”

“Yes, these invincible beings, as true Ninth-Tier entities, are about to descend upon these heavens, suppressing everything and sweeping across the entire era!”

Countless council members were communicating, calculating the possibilities of a future great war. They foresaw an earth-shattering conflict and knew they had to survive.

At that moment, another strange image was suddenly transmitted. A tall, imposing man, clad in a white cloak inscribed with “Martial Arts Alliance Leader,” walked up to Di Qi. Everyone watching was stunned. The Mechanical Pillar God paled with shock.

“Is he insane? Hasn’t he seen the Demon Lord’s miserable state?”

“To dare challenge Di Qi like that? No matter how strong you are, you can’t win. You’ll only become a stepping stone for his growing power, utterly defeated!”

“This is bad! Encountering such a hothead, Di Qi’s combat power will likely advance even further, and he’ll gain a complete understanding of the quantum martial world… We are in danger!”

“We must accelerate!”

“Speed up the process!”

The iron-based lifeforms roared, watching the scene in disbelief.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, some players who were livestreaming also suddenly witnessed this scene. “My god, where did this lunatic come from?”

“He dares to go at him like that? Is he tired of living?”

“Is he… the Martial Arts Alliance Leader of the multiverse’s martial world?”

The player community exploded. Countless people were livestreaming, and the internet was abuzz. Innumerable viewers watched the scene, their hearts pounding with alarm.