Chapter 330: The Great Yan Empire in the Dream

"Qingyun Prefecture? Great Yan Empire?"

You don't know why you feel a special fondness for this name, but you trust your feeling.

"I choose it."

You chose this scroll of map without hesitation.

Gu Qing furrowed his brow, "Shu, are you sure? Qingyun Prefecture is a relatively low‑danger map, so attaining a high rating will become more difficult."

You glanced at the map's brief description.

According to current intelligence, Qingyun Prefecture has no shadow life of the Legend Four Realms, and Mortal Dust Eighth Realm shadow lives are also scarce.

Within the Great Yan Empire, there are two confirmed Mortal Dust Eighth Realm‑level shadow lives.

"That's the one I'll pick."

You still trust your choice.

You know that Jing Tu expects the 'seed's to slay Legend Realm shadow lives beyond their level.

In a normal cultivator duel, the Mortal Dust realm can hardly defeat the Legend Realm.

But the shadow lives' power has been weakened, and a seed prodigy, with the aid of a pure world spirit artifact, has hope to achieve it.

Regarding your choice, Gu Qing offered no further objection.

After all, this is an assessment.

Soon you both completed your selections.

Jing Tu assigned you a guardian deacon with Third Realm cultivation, sufficient to ensure your safety.

The passage to Qingyun Prefecture is numbered '1314'.

The assessment begins.

You entered the passage, and after a brief spatial travel, arrived at the shadow world's 'Qingyun Prefecture'.

Congratulations, you unlocked the rare achievement—Deja Vu.

Lin Chuan's subconscious also stirred.

"Qingyun Prefecture?"

"I eradicate my hometown?"

Perhaps when the war with Black Mist began, he and his wife had long left Qingyun Prefecture, yet he still feels nostalgic.

Stepping onto this land, you inexplicably feel sorrow, standing in the wind, motionless for a long while.

"Shu, are you alright?"

Behind you, the guardian deacon reminds you, "The assessment has begun; it lasts thirty days, time is tight, so don't space out if nothing's wrong."

"This is my first reminder to you, and also the last."

Having said that, the guardian deacon fell silent, standing far behind you, no longer speaking.

Lin Chuan was also drawn into a daze by the images in the dream‑reincarnation.

That is where the dream began.

He and his sister Lin Yangyang lived there, dependent on each other for decades, in the tiny county town called Youshui Xian.

The Youshui Xian of the dream‑reincarnation and the Youshui Xian of memory are not much different.

Familiar streets, familiar taverns.

Only the familiar people are gone.

The Lin Family ancestral house in Youshui Xian is also there, long fallen into ruin.

…

You stare at a dilapidated house and walk inside.

This area seems to be a mortal‑inhabited zone, with no shadow lives present.

Mortal life force is too weak; even if turned into a shadow life, it will quickly perish in the illusionary dream.

Lingering here will not aid your assessment rating at all.

But you just want to take a look.

You entered the ruined house, and upon touching some broken walls, a memory surged in your mind.

Even a stone, you can read its heart.

In its memory, a mischievous child and a stern woman lived here, leaving traces everywhere.

There is also a very clumsy girl, seemingly close in age to that mischievous child.

Later they left.

You couldn't help but smile.

At least they left this place; perhaps they weren't turned into shadow lives. You sincerely feel happy for them.

You sat in the house for a whole day.

"Shu, are you really okay?"

The guardian deacon couldn't help but speak again, "There are no shadow lives here, no exploratory value, so why are you staying here?"

"And you keep giggling; you haven't been contaminated by shadow power, have you?"

"I am seeing off the departed spirits," you replied earnestly.

"Sigh! As you wish, as you wish! I really won't speak anymore."

The guardian deacon closed his mouth again.

You began moving toward your objective, leaving the place called Youshui Xian, heading to the once‑most prosperous region of the Great Yan Empire.

Yan Capital!

Through the pure world spirit artifact's scan, the intelligence was confirmed correct: there are two Mortal Dust Eighth Realm shadow lives within Yan Capital.

The perception range of these two shadow lives happens to cover the entire Yan Du.

You will awaken them as soon as you enter.

The shadow lives throughout Yan Du will be awakened as a result.

You act alone; the Guardian Steward will not help you guard the four‑directional area, and that is the difficulty of the test.

You think it over and find no clever method that would let you slip into the Imperial Capital without disturbing the shadow lives while gathering cultivation resources.

"Can we only force our way in?"

"The number of shadow lives isn't large; at my speed I should be able to eliminate them all without affecting a larger area."

"Kill!"

After steeling yourself, you charge forward to kill.

The Mortal Dust Eighth Realm's shadow lives are startled, a gray circle expands, and another 'King' is awakened along with it.

The shadow lives throughout Yan Du have all revived.

Boom!

You wrap the Flag of Purifying the World with a protective Divine Power, hurl it forcefully; it transforms into a Long Rainbow, flies into the center of Yan Du, and draws the central shadow lives.

At the same time, you become a lingering afterimage and begin sweeping away the shadow lives that were not attracted by the Flag of Purifying the World and are dispersing outward.

You move like wind rolling up the remaining clouds.

Before those shadow lives can spread to a larger area, you eradicate them completely.

"Sorry for the trouble, battle flag!"

When you return to the battle flag, the Divine Power you set has just been broken, but you are back, and the shadow lives no longer have a chance.

At this moment, you seem to still hear the Guardian Steward's startled shout.

"Whoa! It can still do that? Such speed!"

"Is this the thinking of the peerless Heavenly Pride?"

Your gaze falls on the two strongest shadow lives inside Yan Du; your brows knit, and sorrow wells up inside you.

This makes your attack pause for an instant.

But it is only an instant; you then unleash a stronger combat stance, the sword arc slashes through, harvesting countless shadow lives.

After three breaths, aside from the two Mortal Dust Eighth Realm shadow lives, all other shadow lives have been cleared.

At this moment, you can feel their pain.

You grip your sword tighter, "Everyone, I will set you free."

Lin Chuan's primary consciousness is filled with a jumble of five tastes.

In the dream‑reincarnation Yan Du, the two strongest shadow lives are the Demon‑slayer Imperial Director Si Gong Zhu Zhengzhi, who once helped him in his early cultivation, and the Yan Emperor.

At this moment, he gradually perceives the cruelty of this dream‑reincarnation.