Chapter 12: I Don't Discriminate Against Transmigrators, I Just Hate Li En Sudar

"Yo, Transmigrator Li En Sudar, you're here?"

The greeting that just entered the dream made Li En's fur stand on end.

Sliced? Executed? Countless possibilities of a transmigrator being discovered flashed through his mind, but then, he suddenly realized.

"This is just a dream, right."

Looking at the old knight not far away who was greeting him, Li En felt a bit resentful.

If I obtained his memories, then it seems reasonable that he obtained my memories too?

Perhaps this person is deliberately scaring me?

"This, is it really just a dream?" And then, he started to doubt.

What he saw, heard, and touched was incredibly real.

This was a wasteland without a starry sky, only moonlight illuminating his feet; his feet felt incredibly solid, and clenching his fist clearly made him feel his limbs.

Li En could not distinguish whether what was before his eyes was reality or a dream; he could even smell the scent of roasted meat in this wilderness.

Huh? Why is there a scent of roasted meat?

"Want some?" Saying this, this ancient heroic soul waved the skewer in his hand.

In front of him, there were fully four barbecue grills, over a hundred skewers, with vegetables, fruits, and meat; Li En even saw many fruits from his hometown.

"Mm." Since I'm here, I might as well settle in; Li En was craving it.

"Not giving it. Go roast it yourself." Alright, it seems his personality is indeed vicious.

Upon first meeting, having his "true name" called out, at that moment, Li En felt fear from the bottom of his heart.

But now, this slightly unreliable "uncle" before him made him feel much more relaxed; if it were truly the imagined heroic spirit iron-faced judge, Li En would have been even more restrained.

He carefully observed the other.

His tall body was wrapped in full-coverage heavy armor; the seemingly perfect body proportions were probably two times his height, and the arm playing with the meat skewer was really thicker than his own thigh.

The armor was not magnificent, even somewhat worn; the left and right shoulders bore the Cross of Judgment and the Scales of Justice respectively, but they were worn until the color faded; on the armor seemingly made of legendary metal, there were cracks and wounds everywhere.

He must be a Wolf Clan member; after all, those two gray wolf ears were too obvious; removing the faceless judge mask symbolizing "impartial judgment," it was a semi-covering mask with a bit of a Batman chin; but he did not have Batman's no-kill principle.

This was a naked killing machine.

The moment he saw him, Li En recalled the scene from the memory fragments where this fully armored tank took down evil spirits one by one with a single blade.

"... I believe this is a dream." Such a monster should not exist in the world.

"Yes, this is your dream, your world, so..."

Saying this, the middle-aged man's "ka-ha-ha" laughter echoed through the wasteland.

"... so no need to worry about anything like soul usurpation." The old man smiled proudly at the youth, the stubble on his chin trembling up and down.

In an instant, Li En's face turned iron green; he was seen through again.

"Relax, it's not some mind-reading technique." The middle-aged man touched his beard-covered chin, becoming even more proud. "It's just experience; what you're thinking is absolutely transparent in my eyes, little one."

Seemingly remembering something, the old fellow suddenly laughed very happily. "Instead of worrying about me, you might as well worry about those around you; ah, never mind, the dead should not interfere with the living world."

Then, don't say half of it!

This is probably the reason Li En hates "old things" the most; they always deliberately say half and hold back the rest.

If it goes right, it's because of your command; if it goes wrong, it's all your fault; if you force a question, you get nothing.

At this time, do not go along with the other's rhythm; according to Li En's experience, if the old fellow wanted to say it, he would have said it long ago; forcing a question just lets the other person play with you again.

"Ah, right, right, right."

Li En's lack of cooperation made the other laugh even more happily.

Could it be that not asking questions is also the other's trap?

"Tsk, old rascal." Li En directly launched a personal attack.

"Disappointed?"

Li En fell silent for a moment, but shook his head.

Even if it was just some memory fragments, he had seen Su Er's overly brilliant life; changing his view based solely on these external appearances would make him too shallow.

He, Su Er Dawon, is a true immortal hero.

And now, for Li En, being able to eat roasted lamb with cumin and chili from the memories has already made him very satisfied.

"You little brat, if you want to eat, roast it yourself, don't snatch what I've roasted!"

"Heh, not bad skills, self-taught?"

Even with his identity as a transmigrator seen through, Li En felt it was normal.

After calming down, he did not think he could hide a heroic spirit floating on his soul.

He was observing, observing the other's view of him; he was a bit worried about regional discrimination.

Although it was subtle, having a bit more hostility towards "aliens" was too normal, especially for a paladin as a guardian.

"Puh-ha-ha, Li En Sudar, indeed you are truly interesting. Relax, I will not be hostile towards transmigrators; you will know later, this is simply not an issue; this world has too many messy things, having one more or one less transmigrator makes no difference." And all of this was obviously seen through by the other again.

Just this sentence seemed to contain too much information.

Li En also smiled along; his mindset relaxed instead; the noble paladin in the memories would not deign to lie.

He felt a bit nervous again; things like transmigrators are everywhere? Is there something even more absurd?

In the boundless wilderness, the barbecue grills brought a bit of warmth; Li En calmly enjoyed a late-night snack that probably wouldn't fill him.

The two chatted on and off; perhaps due to soul resonance, they unexpectedly clicked.

But, even the longest dinner will end.

"Time is about up, come on." The gathering ended; it was time to work.

When the greasy middle-aged man brushed the dust off his hands and stood up, only a knight like an iron wall remained.

That was an unconquerable wall, an unbreakable sword of law.

He drew the ancient, two-handed longsword; in Li En's eyes, it was nothing short of a super-giant doorboard.

Since an invitation was received, there was no reason to refuse.

Li En took a deep breath, facing an opponent far too tall, gripped the silver-white Heroine's Sword, and raised it lightly to meet the blow.

His gaze focused, preparing his defense.

"Need a countdown?" the other party seemed quite at ease.

"No need, SIR!!! "

The flying head spun in the sky; only after a long while did the silver light become visible.

Seven meters away, in merely an instant, the blade's light had already ended.

His final memory was the hand sheathing the sword, and the scraggly beard's unmasked, vicious grin.

"I... I..." dozens of seconds later, Li En, having "revived," finally regained his senses.

"Calm down, you're still alive. How does it feel to die once?"

The same position, the same standoff posture; the two seemed not yet to have fought, yet Li En could feel the chill on his neck; he had indeed been beheaded, his head flying far away.

He looked at the vicious middle-aged man not far away, who seemed completely unconcerned.

No, the sword was raised again.

"Wait..."

"Calm down; die a few more times and you'll get used to it."

When Li En heard these words, he was face down, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth, with no sensation below his waist; facts proved that being cut in two indeed died slower than beheading, allowing a few more seconds to see.

"Click."

The bronze gears roared; the dream reset once more, to exactly the same position.

"Wait a moment! Let me adjust..." Even for an inherited training, at least some preparation was needed.

This time, Su Er did not rush to swing his sword; he patiently waited for Li En to recover his state.

Li En racked his brains, thinking how to respond.

"Ready? Anyway, there's no difference; I'm not in a hurry." Su Er wasn't in a hurry either, asking leisurely.

At this moment, Li En confirmed: this lord might truly be called a hero, but his character was absolutely not good; the image of the standard, unsmiling paladin shaped by memory fragments had collapsed.

The middle-aged him might have been a stiff, upright Temple Knight, but the old knight before him, having reached life's end, was a vicious old prankster!

"Ready... Damn! Ambush again!"

This time, once again, no blade light was seen; the heart was already pierced through.

"Aren't you an Heroic Soul?! A top-tier paladin; show some Wu De, will you?"

"Opponents on the battlefield won't observe Wu De. The more noble the paladin, the more they must know those despicable tactics."

This old comrade truly had no Wu De at all!

"Click." Time reset once more.

"Hah, again." Li En took a deep breath, activated the Dragon Eye, and stared at Su Er with full concentration.

This time, he must catch the opponent's movement.

"Clang." Then, he died.

"See?" Beneath the mask was still an unmasked, cheerful, wicked grin, nothing like a righteous paladin.

"... No." Li En touched his head; it was still here. This time, he had been smashed to death directly by the doorboard greatsword.

"Then let's do it a few more times." The Heroic Soul wasn't in a hurry; his time seemed abundant.

"Hmm." Dream cultivation should be this principle: accumulating combat experience through virtual deaths resembling real combat.

Thus, he died, and died again.

Cut at the waist, beheaded, smashed to death, heart pierced—this was only the beginning.

Next, split into two, two into four, blooming in the middle, instant sashimi; various horizontal and vertical cutting sword techniques displayed the chef's excessively superior knife skills.

Combat? Catching movements? What? Does the current situation have even half a penny's relation to combat?

Wasn't it all over with a single flash of blade light? In most cases, Li En couldn't even see the blade light before he was gone.

"... Wait, this isn't right; training like this has no effect."

Li En finally noticed: the huge gap in basic attributes and skills made such practice basically meaningless.

"At least, you're used to death. Next, what you want."

Speaking thus, the silver-armored knight tossed over a bag of equipment.

It was a black knight's gauntlet, a pair of silver-white riding boots, and a bright silver bracelet.

"Speed boots paired with Giant Strength Gauntlets count as standard gear for noob warriors and knights. The bracelet has a standard Holy Power Spell, one per day. Oh, here, it's unlimited."

The old knight seemed to finally remember his duty as a mentor, even teaching Li En how to use them: activate the Holy Power Spell first, then put on the gauntlets, to avoid being instantly cursed and deformed.

He also reminded Li En to get some "Remove Lesser Curse" scrolls and holy relics after leaving; once these cursed items are touched, in many cases they cannot be removed directly.

Li En took a deep breath, and according to the mentor's instructions, put on the bracelet, equipped the gauntlets, and wore the speed boots.

He felt power throughout his body; now he could fight any strong enemy; he was about to experience the full-strength state he had imagined...

"Pfft." Amidst a soft laugh, all three items turned to dust; only ash remained in Li En's hand.

Accompanying the laughter was that man's whisper.

"This is a dream; this is my creation. You need to create your own."

Li En fell silent for a moment; this old fellow was truly too much.

But taking a deep breath, he recalled the previous sensation, and piece by piece, they reappeared once more.

Su Er was right; this was Li En's dream; he could create anything he knew... and Su Er had already provided samples.

Dozens of seconds later, the set of equipment reappeared in his hand; Li En silently put them on.

Holy radiance shone upon him; the gauntlets brought immense strength, the boots granted speed and explosive power, and the holy force propelled a comprehensive leap forward.

At this moment, he finally possessed the combat power of a standard Paladin.

He looked at the Heroic Soul Knight who had been waiting, confirming a reality that had already become vaguely clear.

"You still say you don't discriminate against transmigrators? You really hate me, don't you?"

"I don't discriminate against transmigrators. But I really don't like you."

"Is it a compatibility issue?"

"No, I simply don't like Li En Sudar."

Fine, so this isn't discrimination?! I don't discriminate against orcs, but that orc buddy of yours absolutely must not enter my house!

An obviously discriminatory racial knight, or a just and righteous Oath Knight? Li En felt his nose about to be twisted by anger, and he was so angry he nearly laughed.

"As for the reason I hate you, you will sooner or later—no, you should know very soon." The knight still smiled, but those eyes seemed to have seen through everything.

Li En raised his longsword; this time, he would vent his anger upon it as well.

"Clang!"

A flash of silver light, and everything returned to zero.

Is there a difference? Probably, maybe, there should be...

Beheading, strangling, cleaving—Li En continued to enjoy the agony of being one-shot in various ways.

"Wait, let me rest for a bit..." Finally, when he was numb from dying, he called a halt himself.

He pondered for a moment; it wasn't that he truly feared death, but continuing to train like this...

"Does training like this really work? Although in many novels and stories, one can greatly improve oneself through death combat."

But if I keep dying like this, am I really improving?

"How could it possibly work? Read fewer messy novels. Strength is built through day-by-day accumulation; what can you train in a single night?"

Although it was sound reasoning, Li En at this moment was completely bewildered.

Then, why did I die all night? Was it meaningful?

"Yes, I had fun." The old knight was utterly malicious.

"You still say you don't discriminate against transmigrators!!"

"No, I just hate Li En Sudar."

The exact same words, the knight wearing a wicked grin, completely drained Li En's confidence.

At this moment, he had no dominance from the Heroic Soul's possession; instead, he seemed more like an ordinary person.

He lay down, gave up, and didn't want to move.

"Fine, then it's about time to begin tonight's Heroic Soul guidance."

Wait, what does that mean?

What? Starting only now? Was the entire session just for you to kill me for fun?

Where is your conscience? Where is your conscience as the most just Grand Knight of Judgment?!

Li En's mouth corner twitched with anger; he had never seen such a malicious personality.

"No, you have seen it."

Speaking thus, the legendary Grand Knight, foolishly righteous, removed his "Bat" mask.

That weather-beaten face, though a first meeting, felt very familiar, extremely familiar.

But before he could recall it, the dream suddenly overturned; falling endlessly, he sank into a deeper layer of the dream.

In that dream, however, were very familiar scenes and words.

This was a history, a past.

He was alone in a cramped bathroom, murmuring before a mirror.

The old knight's temples were streaked with white, his face covered in scars, and his gray wolf ears were missing half.

And this Paladin, who seemed to have fought a hundred battles all over his body, now appeared very uneasy, even neurotic.

The dizzying perspective gradually stabilized; only when Li En's spirit merged with it did he hear the whisper from "his" own lips.

"I am Su Er Dawon, and also... the transmigrator Li En Sudar?!"

The face in the mirror was, of course, familiar... Wasn't this just an elderly werewolf version of Li En Sudar himself!!

Hello, Transmigrator Li En Sudar. What a coincidence, I am also called Transmigrator Li En Sudar.

"I am Li En Sudar, and also the oath-breaking rebel knight Su Er Dawon." The old knight in the mirror continued to murmur to himself.

(End of this chapter)