A discordant symphony of chimes shattered Meng Chuan's meditation. Groaning, he peeled open an eye, the mysteries of the Heavenly Heart Imprint still swirling in his mind. His soul had stretched across the Beidou, then arched outwards into the vast cosmos, a celestial tourist exploring star fields with nonchalant curiosity. But his cosmic tour yielded nothing more than dusty constellations and annoyed Supremes guarding forbidden zones.
A chuckle rumbled in his chest as he retracted his awareness, returning to the mundane confines of his chamber. "A chat group?" he scoffed, eyeing the luminescent panel that had materialized in the air. It was like a blast from his old life, back when the internet was simpler and memes ruled the day. A wave of nostalgia washed over him as he tapped the screen, expecting the usual pixelated handshake of online anonymity.
Instead, the display revealed a stark emptiness, devoid of messages but populated by five avatars glowing like holographic fireflies. A pang of self-consciousness gnawed at him, the Emperor bowing to an empty chatroom. But there was something captivating about those little online lights, five souls tethered together across the tapestry of existence. With a regal sigh, he decided to break the ice.
"Mengxin Sanlian.JPG (Who am I? Where am I? What do I do?)" he typed, wincing at the ridiculous nickname the system assigned him. He could practically hear the snickers echoing from unseen corners of the universe.
His message hung in the void, unanswered, for a pregnant moment. Then, the room exploded with replies, a cacophony of confusion and amusement.
"Walking Big Bone Soup: Ugh, not again! Can't this cosmic craziness just simmer down?"
"I am just a mage who wants to retire: Multiverse shenanigans? This timeline must've taken a wrong turn somewhere."
"This is not the nickname I want: Cheats do exist! Are writers secretly gods in disguise?"
"I am inexplicably cultivating immortals: Fellow Daoist! Greetings to Zhang Sanfeng!"
Meng Chuan's eyes widened at the last name. A legend from martial arts stories, right there in the chatroom! He swallowed his surprise and quickly changed his own alias, ditching the juvenile moniker for something more Emperor-worthy.
The chatroom buzzed with introductions and questions, each message peeling back layers from these unknown figures. There was Zhang Sanfeng, the ageless master, his words seasoned with millennia of wisdom. Gu Yi, the enigmatic sorcerer, her gaze fixed on the fabric of time itself. Yuandagu, a name echoing from childhood memories of giant blue warriors and cosmic battles. And then there was Meng Qi, the first member to join, whose very existence sent a tremor through Meng Chuan's soul. The protagonist of a legendary novel, brought to life in this bizarre tapestry of realities!
His heart hammered with a mixture of wonder and trepidation. Were these not just stories, but real people out there, sharing the cosmos with him? As the chatroom filled with questions and revelations, Meng Chuan knew this was just the beginning of an extraordinary, and undoubtedly chaotic, adventure.