https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-195-Tenth-Son-of-the-Li-Family-Li-Hao-/13450261/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-197-Liangzhou-s-Turn-for-the-Better/13450266/
Chapter 196: Strange Rules
Chapter 196: Strange Rules
Li Hao had previously entered the Fengshan Mourning River in the Tan Palace, but his body hadn't undergone any changes. That Mourning River was merely populated by seemingly ordinary villagers who were, in fact, long dead. All he needed to do was exorcise them to destroy the Mourning River.
But now, it was rejuvenating?
No wonder he had felt his power fading, as if it was being deprived.
Was this the special nature of the Yudu Grade Deceased River?
Li Hao felt a chill and his mind raced, but he soon felt drowsy and couldn't hold on, falling into a deep sleep.
...
When Li Hao woke up again, he found himself lying on a strange bed, his limbs soft and tender, covered by a soft blanket. He was wearing a belly wrap, and he didn't look like a newborn but rather a few months old.
It wasn't a dream... Li Hao finally confirmed that he was still in the Mourning River, but he was puzzled by his current body. He felt that he could crawl.
Soon, Li Hao put his thoughts into action and managed to flip and crawl on the bed.
This was definitely not something a newborn could do!
"I must be a few months old..."
Li Hao mumbled, but the words that came out were just babbling sounds. His vocal cords hadn't developed yet.
But there was no doubt that the time flow here was off.
He had only slept for a while, and although he enjoyed sleeping in, he certainly hadn't slept for months.
Li Hao stopped crawling and sat on the bed, his small hand touching his chin as he pondered.
Suddenly, golden words appeared before his eyes:
[Growth] Task Progress: 2.3%.
Li Hao was surprised. It had already progressed to 2.3%?
If he had to live to eighteen years old to complete the task, then he must be around five months old now?
In the blink of an eye, five months... Li Hao felt that a few more sleeps would probably take him to eighteen years old.
By then, the main mission would likely begin.
Defend Dragon City, this is the Dragon City Mourning River... Li Hao's eyes flickered. He felt he needed to be well-prepared before he turned eighteen.
This was a Yudu Grade Deceased River, far from simple. Even a Great Peace Dao Realm cultivator only had a chance of passing through, which showed how dangerous it was.
The door creaked open.
A tall, well-built young man in fine robes walked in, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, looking exceptionally handsome.
He saw Li Hao about to lie down from a sitting position and immediately relaxed, whispering, "Little Rat?"
Li Hao was about to pretend to be sleeping but froze when he heard the nickname. The only person who knew this nickname and had entered the Mourning River was Fourth Uncle.
He looked up at the man, recognizing the resemblance to the elderly Li Xiaoran he had seen before:
"R-r-r-r (Fourth Uncle)?"
"Can't speak clearly yet, I see. Well, I'll talk and you listen. If you're Little Rat, raise your hand."
The young Li Xiaoran whispered.
Li Hao immediately raised his hand.
Seeing this, Li Xiaoran was almost certain of Li Hao's identity. He chuckled softly and said:
"I was worried you might appear elsewhere, but you're here in the Divine General Manor, saving me the trouble of searching. I wondered why my brother suddenly had a Shi Lang, and now I know it's you..."
"It must be the Li Family bloodline in your body that made my brother's obsession bring you into his lineage."
Seeing Li Hao's helpless expression, Li Xiaoran laughed lightly, then his expression grew serious.
"I don't know if you've been in a Mourning River before, but it doesn't matter. This is a Yudu Grade Deceased River, and it's vastly different from the Mourning Rivers you know. There are special rules here!"
"For example, the deprivation of our original bodies and powers is one of the rules."
"The time flow here is another special rule. Don't lose consciousness easily. When you sleep or fall unconscious, time will pass much faster, but your body will only grow according to my brother's perception, with no other changes!"
"For instance, if you appear ordinary in my brother's eyes, a few more sleeps will take you to several years later. By then, your cultivation realm will only be as my brother perceives it, likely no more than the Tianren Realm!"
"In the upcoming battle at Dragon City, those in the Tianren Realm are no better than cannon fodder; they are almost certain to die!"
Li Xiaoran knew Li Hao couldn't speak, but his expression grew more serious as he continued:
"Once you die in this body, you will truly be dead. Your original body will vanish, becoming nourishment for the Mourning River, and even your soul will be imprisoned by this river, unable to reincarnate!"
Li Hao felt a chill. He was now in the form of an infant; if he died, would he really be dead?
No wonder the Yudu Grade Deceased River was so perilous. Such a drastic change in realms would be unbearable for any strong cultivator.
"Even those in the Fate Reversal Realm can't guarantee their survival here. Unless you cultivate to the Fate Reversal Realm within this place, but time is limited. Based on my age, you probably have about eighteen years."
"When you turn eighteen, the Dragon Gate will launch an attack on the city!"
Li Xiaoran took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "You must grow and strive to cultivate back to your original realm, and the higher, the better."
He thought about the power Li Hao had unleashed when breaking free from the Candlelight Deity Dao Domain and felt a bit of relief, but his expression didn't relax as he continued:
"This Dragon City was once one of the most glorious cities in Yanbei, defended by our Li Family for a thousand years. Hundreds of years ago, an ancestor of ours, enraged, slew a Dragon Clan Demon King and dismembered it within Dragon City. The dragon's head was hung and embedded into one of the city walls, and from then on, the city was renamed Dragon City!"
"But this act also enraged the Dragon Race. The Dragon Gate secretly plotted and accumulated power. A few decades ago, when my elder brother was defending the city, the Dragon Gate seized the opportunity and breached the gates."
"That battle was chaotic and bloody, with countless casualties. The Imperial Clan's reinforcements were mostly slaughtered!"
Li Xiaoran's gaze was deep and solemn as he said, "Therefore, when you turn eighteen, the battle you will face will be extremely dangerous. But this time, we can support each other, and if it comes to it, I have other means to ensure our survival!"
"However, it would be better if we can resolve it smoothly."
He defended the Mourning River to assist his elder brother in holding Dragon City, allowing his brother to gain some respite.
Li Hao nodded slightly. Although he had many questions, he couldn't speak at the moment and would have to wait until he could talk to ask them.
"Never underestimate the difficulty of cultivation."
Seeing Li Hao's calm expression, Li Xiaoran said seriously, "The special rules of the Mourning River will interfere with your original Dao Realm insights. Therefore, you will have to cultivate and comprehend everything anew. Try recalling your original cultivation techniques, and you'll see."
Li Hao was taken aback. He had thought cultivation wouldn't be difficult, especially for someone like Li Xiaoran, who was essentially a reincarnated strong cultivator. With his mastery of original cultivation techniques, he could quickly soar to new heights, making it seem like the Mourning River wouldn't be that challenging.
But after hearing Li Xiaoran's words, Li Hao immediately tried to recall his Sword Dao and Chess Dao insights.
At first, it seemed fine, but when he tried to focus on those aspects, he felt as if a barrier was blocking his thoughts, preventing him from truly remembering.
This feeling was too strange!
He knew he could use a sword, but when he tried to recall it, he forgot how to hold one!
And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember!
It was like after graduating from high school, knowing you had studied and done well on exams, but when you tried to recall the content of your textbooks, you found yourself completely forgetting!
Even the exam questions were a blur!
Wasn't this like becoming a college student?!
Li Hao was shocked.
So, he had to cultivate all over again?
Seeing the shock on Li Hao's small face, Li Xiaoran immediately knew Li Hao had tried and smiled slightly, saying softly:
"Don't panic. In the beginning, you will need to cultivate on your own, but as your realm grows higher, the special rules will have less of an effect on you. Eventually, you will gradually regain your original Dao Realm insights."
"In other words, the faster you Cultivate on your own, the more your previously sealed Cultivation memories will leak out, and your Cultivation speed will increase even further in the end!"
"Otherwise, if you truly start over, you'd be lucky to reach the Tianren Realm in just a few decades, not counting the accelerated time while sleeping. In that case, the Mourning River would be an unsolvable problem."
Li Hao felt a bit relieved upon hearing this. His mind raced, wondering if he could continue absorbing experience through his panel here.
He thought for a moment and called out the panel.
The text flickered before his eyes, and the panel really did appear.
Li Hao was pleasantly surprised, but his surprise quickly turned to confusion when he saw that the panel was as clean as his face, just like when he first arrived in this world.
"Could it be that my original panel is still in my original body, and now this new body doesn't have it?"
Li Hao pondered this. The Mourning River and the panel were both strange and inexplicable, and combining them only made it more impossible to figure out.
But the fact that the panel was still there gave him some peace of mind.
Without the panel, he wouldn't be a complete waste, but his Cultivation speed would certainly be much slower.
After all, reaching the peak of the Heavenly Human Realm was entirely due to his own insights, which showed that his understanding of the Martial Dao was quite good.
"Also, don't leave the Divine General Manor at night. Demons might attack at any time outside."
Li Xiaoran warned him again, "Although this is the Divine General Manor, it's within Dragon City. Most of the things in the Mourning River are manifestations of my brother's obsession, so you might see some strange things. Don't be too surprised."
"Dragon City isn't safe. I'll visit you often. You can sleep a lot to quickly progress to the Foundation Building stage before you start your Cultivation journey."
"You don't need to worry. While you sleep and time accelerates, time will pass normally for me. You'll just feel like months have gone by in the blink of an eye."
Li Hao nodded. This Fourth Uncle had explained many things in detail, showing his meticulous nature.
Li Xiaoran gave a few more instructions, then let Li Hao rest and left the room.
After he was gone, Li Hao thought for a moment. He wanted to find a chessboard, ink, and brush. Painting and poetry could help him quickly accumulate experience. This Mourning River wasn't as safe as the real-world courtyard, so he should start with painting and writing poetry.
But writing poetry required him to be able to speak first.
Soon, Li Hao realized he couldn't even walk.
With a bitter smile, Li Hao lay down, preparing to sleep until he could walk.
...
When Li Hao opened his eyes again, he immediately felt that his body had regained much of its vitality, and he felt much more energetic.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he heard a series of tapping sounds. He looked up to see warm, gentle sunlight shining down. He was in a courtyard.
The courtyard's construction matched that of Qinglian Courtyard, where his grandmother lived.
It was also in this courtyard that he had a falling out with his nominal father.
Li Hao's eyes flickered. Seeing this place again brought his thoughts back for a moment, but he quickly pulled himself together.
Compared to the real-world Qinglian Courtyard, the walls here seemed newer, and the tapping sounds continued.
Li Hao looked around and saw four boys practicing combat in the courtyard, using wooden weapons.
They were between three and seven years old.
He himself was lying in the arms of a noblewoman, his grandmother, Chen Hefang.
"Shi Lang, watch your brothers' Cultivation. You should become strong like them in the future, to protect your family and country."
Chen Hefang saw Li Hao wake up and smiled gently, her face filled with maternal warmth.
Li Hao was slightly stunned, and the image of his grandmother from outside the Mourning River flashed in his mind.
Six of the Li Family's nine sons had died in battle. She had become a vegetarian and devoted herself to Buddhism, her hair already silver. She only wished for her children to live in peace.
Li Hao fell silent for a moment, then looked at the four boys in the courtyard. The youngest was about three years old, but he walked and stood with great stability, wielding a wooden staff with lively and energetic movements.
The other three older boys were engaged in combat.
Clang!
A wooden sword was knocked away, and the older child winced in pain, pulling back his hand and complaining,
"Tian Gang, you cheated again!"
(End of Chapter)
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