Chapter 229: Wholeheartedly

The shameless hero has arrived, and the shameless hero has left again.

As always, he left behind a mess, widows and widowed women, and a mountain of bad debts.

"Hahaha, actually, you can call me father." Li En laughed heartily, pretending to be very happy.

"Go to hell!!" The girl opposite him instantly flew into a rage.

Li En, dragged into this mess, had been completely numb since yesterday.

But just as numb as him was Dai Niya; she had been kicked out of her own room last night.

"You, you and my mother, what did you do in my room?!"

"What? Me?! That was clearly your father! I just got my body back."

If you have a problem, go find Lex. What do you want with a unlucky fall guy like me?

"W-what did they do in the room?!"

"A night talk. There were many important things to discuss. Your father only had one day, and there was too much to explain."

Last night, Li En was a bit confused. Maryanna didn't even know about the Owl; she had always thought her sister was possessed by a demon.

As a result, after Griffin died suddenly or went missing, even the royal "Successor" was wiped out, and the royal family lost many secrets and inheritances.

"Heh, you expect me to believe that? A night talk requires driving away all the guards?! And kicking me out too!"

"... We were discussing very sensitive matters, secrets and scandals that no one could know. Afterwards, I will explain it to you slowly."

Li En sighed. Whether you believe it or not, I believe it! I truly believe it!

"Then, then why did mother return directly to the New Capital! She left as soon as she came out, she didn't even wait for me to arrive!"

Early this morning, Queen Maryanna mounted a griffin and urgently returned to the New Capital.

"Because the New Capital was attacked! Didn't you receive the magical alarm?! Your aunt is going mad."

"That still doesn't mean it had to be so urgent!"

Early this morning, Dai Niya blocked Li En, who was alone in his residence sighing to himself. Seeing his exhausted face, as if he had just pulled an all-nighter, startled Dai Niya, making her even more uneasy.

Finally, Dai Niya gritted her teeth and asked the question she had been preparing for a long time.

"You, you and my father, what exactly is your relationship?! Speak clearly, do not lie to me."

Sighing, knowing he couldn't hide it anymore (Dai Niya, who now knew the truth, had crossed the seal of the appearance curse), Li En spoke.

"Your mother told you, right? Your father was actually an immortal who reincarnated constantly. He is dead. He was my past life, or rather, I am his reincarnation. Oh, no."

Li En's words first made the girl nod subconsciously; this was something she had expected.

The next moment, hearing Li En deny it, she stood up in surprise.

Could there be some other change? Was there another third party, a fourth party in between? Could it be that I am truly not the hero's child?

Even knowing this was unlikely, the love-starved girl couldn't help but overthink.

She touched the ring on her chest. She had already confirmed that her "resurrection" was because it could send such things to her. So, besides father, was there any other possibility?

"Uh, it seems there was another reincarnation between us, seemingly a short-lived ghost who died in his teens. To be precise, your father should be my past life's past life, I am his reincarnation's reincarnation. Uh, why are you glaring at me with dragon eyes? I really didn't lie." Li En rubbed his chin, seeming a bit embarrassed by his inaccurate wording.

Dai Niya took a deep breath. Don't get angry, don't get angry. This thing is actually my father's reincarnation! This bastard thing!

But there was no way; thinking about it really made one furious.

"You, you knew this long ago, why did you..."

The question of "why didn't you tell me" hovered on Dai Niya's lips, but in the end, she didn't say it.

She knew herself that this was unreasonable; the other party had no reason to come looking for her.

Even if he had come looking, she wouldn't have believed it, but a child without a father, whose father was actually wandering around nearby, yet never acknowledged her...

"I'm sorry." Li En patted Dai Niya's head.

This time, unusually, Dai Niya neither resisted nor moved around.

The little girl who had lost sleep all night but couldn't see her "parents" finally silently shed tears. Li En sighed; it seemed Maryanna had some problems as a mother too; at least she should have looked at Dai Niya before leaving.

But considering Maryanna's state, rushing to leave seemed understandable.

Suddenly, Dai Niya asked another possibility.

"Then, Uncle Su Er, is he also a reincarnation?!" Last night, she had figured everything out.

Li En hadn't even had time to respond; this hesitation and thought process were enough. Dai Niya's sharp intuition had obtained this answer.

But in the end, she touched her ring and said nothing. Perhaps she was thinking, if only Uncle Su Er were dad.

Lex has already left. Some things haven't changed, but some things are destined never to return. Whether it was Li En or Dai Niya, neither could view the other as an irrelevant ordinary person as in the past.

But the mess Lex left behind, perhaps only Li En can solve.

"This guy, just leaving like this, it really makes one angry."

Li En somewhat understood why the snake was so disdainful of this guy. Lex becoming a Heroic Soul might have been solely due to power; in other aspects, he simply didn't meet the standard.

If he wasn't here...

"The Empire will rule all this? The Owl will revive? If Rosalind takes power, will the other beasts go completely out of control? Seems pretty bad. No, this is actually the better scenario. The truly dangerous thing should be the flooding knowledge of the Outer Gods, and the hidden danger that causes the Great Red Dragon to disinfect the plane."

The conclusion Li En and Maryanna derived was that the Old Capital on that day still had many troubles lurking in the shadows.

The final concentrated outbreak was not accidental, but various factions beginning to settle scores.

Precisely because this crisis had too many possibilities, it was hard to sort out. The Whisperers had obtained too much knowledge, much of which had already become actual products; no one knew how many Outer God sects might exist.

Maryanna had said that both the New Capital and the Old Capital had many strange religions. They were neither Evil Gods nor Orthodox God Churches, yet they possessed power that even deities could not ignore.

"Knowledge of the Outer Gods" might be the most dangerous thing in this world. The knowledge and systems handed over by the Whisperers certainly involved other Outer Gods, and these things had generated new troubles.

"The Old Capital, huh? Once things stabilize here, perhaps I should go there."

At this moment, Li En had already entered a normal possession state. Although it felt strangely relaxing, having had previous experience with Heroic Soul possession, it was relatively stable.

"... Uh, I can't read the book."

Li En sighed; his first feeling was that Heroic Soul possession was a negative state.

After flipping through the book slightly, Li En experienced for the first time what it felt like to be completely unable to absorb anything from a book. His various abilities had not worsened, yet inexplicably he had become a poor student.

In fact, many people misunderstand poor students; many of them do not fail to understand the books, but simply cannot absorb them—after glancing for a moment, their attention naturally shifts away.

"No! I don't want to become the second idiot hero; that guy has already demonstrated the consequences of being uneducated and single-celled." Li En checked the remaining time of possession; it was less than ten days. This idiot state did not seem to last long, which relieved him a bit.

But very soon, he discovered the special nature of this state.

"Phew! When practicing swordsmanship, the efficiency is incredibly high!"

When Li En put down the sword, he didn't know when the sun had passed its peak and begun to descend. He had simply touched the sword and unconsciously practiced until the afternoon; the surroundings were now completely empty.

He was drenched in sweat, yet when he put down the sword, he felt thoroughly refreshed.

The "Sundering Technique (Su Er's Third Sublime Art)," which he originally thought would take half a year, had already been touched upon at its edge.

This sword instinct and learning progress were terrifying; this was not even the complete Lex.

"I won't speak ill of you for now."

Li En looked at the panel; he had finally experienced the absurdity of that "Single-Mindedness," though its side effects were equally terrifying.

【Soul: Single-Mindedness (Gold/Actually Diamond): Amidst myriad disturbances, my heart remains one. The holder can merge all physical and mental aspects into one, including stamina, mental energy, attention, five senses, and intuition, channeling numerous resources into a single focus. In a state of full concentration, there is no thought other than the current one.】

The explanation seemed incomprehensible, yet its usage was extremely simple.

When Li En practiced swordsmanship, he felt nothing; it was as if everything around him ceased to exist. If his body had not reached its limit and his stomach had not been growling constantly, he would have practiced until he collapsed from exhaustion.

But the effect was truly immediate; Li En suspected that one morning of practice had easily surpassed several months of previous effort!

This was not a numerical addition like one plus one equals two; it was a purity achieved by throwing everything into the sword and discarding all else. In that state, he could mobilize everything (body, mind, perception) to serve the sword, with inspiration constantly surging, where every moment was the best within the best state.

Of course, there were consequences; Li En's current state, where he lacked the strength even to climb, was one of them.

And if applied correctly, this power, used solely for cultivation, would be a cheat-like accelerator.

"It's just this side effect..."

【Note: Since this soul ability instinctively reserves mental energy and focus, the holder, in an unactivated state, will appear mentally scattered and unable to concentrate, and will easily fixate on one thing (obsess over trivialities), ignoring everything else.】

【Note 2: This ability can only be used on items the user focuses on and loves; it cannot be forcibly activated at present (Lex's Hero Soul activation state locks the range to what the Hero Soul loves).】

This side effect is actually terrifying; it could even ruin a person. What are the consequences of a person who cannot read books or listen to words?

But it seems Li En can simply turn it off after fully possessing it (not linked to the activation of the Thousand-Faced Dragon's soul ability).

He discovered for the first time the advantage of the Thousand-Faced Dragon's soul: for these hero soul abilities with extremely strong side effects, he can keep them disabled during the day and activate them only when needed.

It's just that for these recent days, this power, which he has not yet mastered, cannot be turned off.

Li En would have to experience the ice and fire of being both a poor student and a sword tyrant for a while.

But merely as an acceleration ability for growth, Li En could not refuse it.

"I need power, but I cannot be too obsessed with power... I absolutely cannot end up as miserably as this fool."

(End of Chapter)