Great Ming: Crafting Zombies, Old Zhu Gets a Terrifying Glimpse of the Future

In the twenty-third year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang unexpectedly binds himself to an auspicious sign of national destiny. By signing in every day, he accumulates destiny points that let him divine the fates of the royal descendants. The first person he simulates is Crown Prince Zhu Biao. In the vision, Zhu Biao dies of illness in his prime, and Zhu Yuanzhang breaks down in tears on the spot. He then simulates the Crown Prince's son, Zhu Yunwen, only to see the ungrateful grandson ascend the throne and abolish the fiefdoms, driving the Prince of Xiang to set himself and his entire family on fire and forcing the Prince of Yan to feign madness just to survive. Blood fills the screen.

Zhu Yuanzhang smashes his teacup, then suddenly remembers his ninth son, Zhu Li, who was enfeoffed in Hanzhong Prefecture. The court has piled up a mountain of impeachment memorials against him, accusing him of obsessing over Daoist arts, refining pills, practicing the Dao, and neglecting his duties. But when the simulation shifts to the Prince of Han, Zhu Yuanzhang's pupils contract: with Zhu Yunwen's army sent to abolish the fiefdoms closing in, Zhu Li raises a hand and releases a thousand invulnerable zombie soldiers. Then he summons thunder and fire from the heavens, displaying the full power of the Eight Secret Techniques.

The vision ends with Zhu Li seated on the dragon throne, with the phantom souls of emperors from every dynasty, including Ying Zheng and Li Shimin, standing behind him. Zhu Yuanzhang trembles all over, unable to tell whether he is terrified or overjoyed. He abruptly looks toward the hall entrance. "Deliver my decree: summon the Prince of Han, Zhu Li, to the capital at once!"

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.