The Name of Eternals

Chapter 196: Stabilizing Liangzhou

"Fifth Brother, you were the one who wasn't careful," teased a five-year-old child with a mischievous grin.

The scuffle between the three boys came to a halt as the older boy huffed, "If you sneak attack like that again, next time I'll fight for real!"

"Fifth Brother, if you fight for real, isn't that bullying?" the five-year-old child laughed.

"Hmph, you always sneak attack."

"Father said that in fighting and killing, there's no such thing as a sneak attack. It's called military strategy and trickery!"

"We're just sparring."

Watching the children quarrel, Li Hao's eyes flickered. From their conversation, he could roughly guess their identities.

As thoughts flashed through his mind, golden light appeared before his eyes.

Li Hao glanced at Chen Hefang and noticed she was oblivious to the golden light floating before him. The words formed by the golden light reflected on her face as he turned his head.

[Growth] quest progress: 5.6%.

Li Hao quickly calculated. It seemed he was already over a year old.

That meant he should be able to speak and walk now.

"Mother?" Li Hao cautiously tried speaking, his voice clear and childlike.

Chen Hefang was momentarily stunned by the childish call, then looked down at Li Hao with a surprised smile.

"Tenth Son, you can call me 'Mother' now? Say it again."

"Mother," Li Hao repeated, feeling awkward but relieved that his vocal cords had developed properly.

Seeing how bright and understanding Li Hao was, Chen Hefang's face bloomed with joy, repeating "good" several times.

The children in the courtyard, hearing the commotion, took the opportunity to stop their practice and gather around.

The three-year-old boy wielding the stick ran over but forgot to drop his stick, nearly hitting Li Hao on the head. Chen Hefang quickly intervened.

"Jun Ye, be careful not to hurt your brother," Chen Hefang chuckled, but she didn't scold the boy.

Little Li Jun Ye was startled, hurriedly dropping the stick and curiously looking at Li Hao.

"Brother can talk now?"

"Call me 'Brother'!" the older Li Xuan Li demanded in surprise.

Meanwhile, the sturdy little Li Tian Gang puffed his chest out and urged Li Hao to call him "Brother" with a grandiose attitude, teasing him.

Another child, likely Li Feng Hua, with fair skin and gentle eyes that seemed to have inherited more of Chen Hefang's temperament, simply smiled without saying a word, looking somewhat shy.

Li Hao understood that these were parts of his grandfather's obsession, essentially a fragment of his memory.

How accurate these memories were remained to be seen.

After all, even he was considered the "Tenth Son," showing that certain factors altered these memories.

Feeling these curious kids pinch his cheeks like he was a plaything, Li Hao sighed inwardly, closing his eyes. After about ten seconds, the voices around him gradually faded, as if being pulled away.

Minutes later, when Li Hao opened his eyes again, a wooden stick was whistling toward his forehead.

Startled, Li Hao rolled aside, narrowly dodging the stick. Feeling a wooden sword in his hand, he instinctively raised it to block the attack.

With a thud, he deflected the stick and saw that his attacker was the three-year-old Li Jun Ye.

He realized he was back in the courtyard training area with a wooden sword in hand.

Recalling what his fourth uncle said, he understood he had fast-forwarded through some time and was now part of the training.

Li Hao inspected his hands and feet, noting they hadn't changed much, indicating he had aged by only a few months.

Starting training at such a young age… Li Hao chuckled inwardly, realizing the past generation's training environment differed significantly from his solitary days in that courtyard.

As Li Jun Ye swung his stick again, Li Hao deftly turned his body. Though his memories of cultivation were blocked, his combat experience remained. With a swift strike, he knocked the stick from Jun Ye's hand.

The stick fell to the ground, but Li Hao was weak. Little Li Jun Ye merely rubbed his hand, picked up the stick again, and prepared to attack.

"Stop, I'm tired," Li Hao quickly said, knowing this practice was futile for him.

Seeing Li Hao surrender, Li Jun Ye stopped, looking a bit puzzled.

Li Hao glanced at Chen Hefang, who smiled and beckoned him over.

"Tired? Come rest and have something to eat."

Li Hao dropped his wooden sword, ran over, and climbed onto a chair. As he reached for some pastries, Chen Hefang caught his hand, carefully wiping the dirt from his fingers before gently tapping his forehead.

"Always thinking about eating."

Li Hao felt awkward but still enjoyed the food.

As the courtyard filled with the sound of wooden swords clashing again, Li Hao watched little Li Xuan Li for a moment. Suddenly, a prompt appeared before him: [Learned basics of swordsmanship, add to collection?] Here it is!

Li Hao felt a surge of joy and immediately chose "yes."

Soon, his panel displayed new information: Swordsmanship: Not initiated (can upgrade)

Sword Skill: Xuan Sword Record (not initiated) Skill Points: 0

Recalling the numerous sword techniques in Tingyu Tower, Li Hao found this Xuan Sword Record a suitable starting point for beginners.

Next, he needed to gather skill points.

Finishing his snack, Li Hao jumped off the chair. "Mother, I'm going to play."

"Hmm?"

Chen Hefang looked at Li Hao, surprised but not stopping him. She instructed a maid to watch over him.

Li Hao sighed in relief, finding this younger version of his grandmother quite lenient.

He started exploring the courtyard, intending to familiarize himself with the surroundings.

For now, he planned to gain skill points through poetry.

Drawing and chess weren't feasible yet, and even a lenient grandmother might question his constant focus on a chessboard.

With the maid following closely, Li Hao began murmuring famous poems from his past life.

Soon, experience prompts appeared: [Poetry experience +28, Poetry experience +32...]

Though Li Hao hadn't fully grasped the meaning of these poems, merely reciting them yielded substantial experience.

His panel automatically recorded poetry.

It only took 100 points to progress from level 0 to 1.

After reciting a few famous poems, Li Hao's poetry skill reached level 2, earning him two skill points.

He immediately invested one point into swordsmanship, upgrading it to level 1.

The remaining point he saved for when he started cultivating and collected a body-refining technique to upgrade.

With his swordsmanship at level 1, the Xuan Sword Record he had just collected instantly upgraded to mastery! A flood of swordsmanship insights filled Li Hao's mind, causing him to groan inwardly. Here we go again.

Digesting these insights had given him severe headaches before.

Now, in this young body, the influx of knowledge overwhelmed him.

Li Hao clutched his head, feeling sharp pains.

The maid panicked at his sudden distress, urgently calling for a physician and carrying Li Hao back for treatment.

In the bumpy journey, Li Hao's headache intensified until he finally managed to digest the information, feeling utterly exhausted.

It seemed his mental resilience had also reverted to infancy.

Li Hao, overcome with fatigue, soon fell asleep again.

As Li Hao and Li Xiaoran entered the Nether River of Death, the second line of defense in Liangzhou faced its fiercest battle.

With the Candlefire God and Lu Yuan absent, other demons from Taixu Realm, Sheng Palace, and Dragon Gate seized the opportunity. These demons had infiltrated Liangzhou from other borders, secretly sabotaging key cities and severing communication lines.

Upon hearing of the critical situation at the second line of defense, several demon kings rushed over.

Their appearance strained the previously advantageous position of the second line.

At this critical moment, reinforcements from the Xia family arrived.

Led by an elder in the Four Standings Realm, they, along with Thousand Machine Daoist, intercepted the approaching demon kings.

Not long after, another Four Standings Realm elder from the Chen family arrived.

With the Chen family having close ties to the Li family through Chen Hefang, they were quick to respond despite the great distance, crossing tens of thousands of miles and several large states to arrive.

As reinforcements continued to pour in, an earth-shattering battle erupted at the second line of defense.

Additionally, the twenty war banners Li Hao had sent were delivered to the second line by a Heavenly Human Master in Haotian Army armor.

The inclusion of the twenty war banners stabilized the situation further, severely injuring a demon king and nearly killing it.

Above the battlefield, a figure standing on auspicious clouds appeared.

Lin Wujing, eyes fixed on the battlefield below, wore a sullen expression. He had come to rescue the beleaguered, only to find he was merely adding to a victory.

Seeing the unified banners on the battlefield, Lin Wujing felt both shock and anger. He had witnessed the young man's prowess firsthand during the competition for the True Dragon in the Li family. In just over a year, the boy had grown to this extent.

"Did they head to the Nether River?"

Lin Wujing asked softly.

A young girl in a child's form respectfully replied, "Yes, they went that way. According to our latest information, they have entered the Nether River."

Lin Wujing's eyes flickered but remained silent.

After a moment, he said, "You go first."

The girl nodded, transforming into a green bird and flying off.

"Qingzhou didn't come…"

Lin Wujing observed the battlefield, where a figure fought fiercely against a demon king, radiating brilliant divine light. It was the Li family duke who had guarded Yanbei for over a decade.

His achievements and titles were comparable to the Li family's elders.

At that moment, his power reached the Four Standings Realm.

Lin Wujing's eyes glinted before he swiftly joined the battle.

Amid the chaotic battlefield, his auspicious clouds manifested. He waved a hand, releasing a lotus-like purple light that struck a Dragon Gate demon king, severely injuring it.

"Damn it!"

The Dragon Gate demon king roared, seeing the situation spiraling out of control.

Lin Wujing joined the fray without hesitation.

The battle intensified, with some demon kings fleeing, calling for their elders but receiving no response.

The remaining demon kings from Taixu Realm, realizing their leaders had chased after Haotian Young General and vanished, felt a mix of fury and despair.

Another day passed.

Royal forces swept across Liangzhou, driving out the opportunistic demons and igniting battles everywhere.

With the conclusion of the battle at the second line, Li Xuanli ordered the remaining troops to hoist Haotian's banners and sweep through the cities, driving out the remaining demons.

Li Hao's strategy to lure away the three supreme demons, along with timely reinforcements, had stabilized the dire situation in Liangzhou.

The demons' rapid assault had failed. Once Dayu's reinforcements arrived, they could no longer compete, especially with the high-level demons missing.

"We held the line!"

Li Xuanli, wiping blood from his face, looked at the blood-red sunset over the battlefield littered with demon corpses, feeling a surge of relief.

Li Hongzhuang, clad in blood-red armor, now bloodier from battle, smiled as well. But seeing the waving banners, her expression shifted.

As the battlefield calmed, survivors raised banners, cheering with joy.

Yet many were searching for the bodies of loved ones, their faces full of sorrow.

Some wept with joy, having survived.

Hardened border soldiers remained stoic, relieved to have survived, while young soldiers, experiencing their first major battle, wept and embraced, having matured overnight.

"Father! I survived!"

Veterans searched the battlefield for their kin, relieved to find them alive.

As the battle concluded, survivors, many clutching a banner, rejoiced.

These banners, with their intimidating presence, had kept the demons at bay.

This experience made the survivors deeply appreciate the protection of the Haotian banners.

Amidst the celebration and sorrow, the unified call of a single name echoed.

Millions shouted in unison.

The roaring sound reached the city walls, where Li Xuanli and others felt their joy of victory dissipate, replaced by solemn expressions.