[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity":3,"chapter-the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-chapter-22":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Name That Echoes Through Eternity",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2282571,4466,"Chapter 22: Freedom","the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-chapter-22",22,"\u003Cp>The golden-backed, red-bellied fish from the basket were released—and indeed, they were demons; as they leapt out of the basket, they soared into the air, transforming into a body tens of zhang long, their scales like a blade array, their fins like sharp banners, and their mouths speaking human words in a pitiful, feminine plea:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Elder, I swear I will never take another human life—please spare me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The massive, fearsome fish head bobbed up and down, as if mimicking a human bowing in empty space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao was hit by a wave of foul stench and instinctively pinched his nose, nearly vomiting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This fish… really stinks!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If I spare you, won’t I truly become an empty army?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu’s words plunged the fish demon into despair, making it tremble with rage but dare not retaliate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Into the pot!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu raised a finger and pointed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the fish demon had pleaded, it had already shifted into its true form and taken to the air with escape planned; now seeing the old man refused to let it go, it immediately writhed its body, treating the air as water, aiming to flee far away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before it could twist, it shuddered violently, as if struck by lightning—then blood erupted violently from its gills and mouth, its fearsome body splitting apart in midair, as if countless invisible blades had turned the void into a chopping block and diced it to pieces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet strangely, the spraying blood had not yet touched the ground when a gentle breeze swept it away, making it vanish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The same fate befell the severed remains of the fish demon—only a fist-sized, smooth, dark-purple demon core and several snow-white slivers of fish flesh remained in the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu waved his hand, and the demon core fell into the boiling pot; the snow-white fish flesh was sliced by invisible blades into paper-thin sheets, which then slowly sank into the pot as the water boiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, the old man pulled out a salt jar from nowhere, lightly scooped two spoonfuls, tossed them into the pot, and covered it to simmer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao watched the entire process in awe, gaining a concrete understanding of the power of martial cultivators in this world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is a demon. This is a powerful martial practitioner! “Old man, that purple orb is the demon core, right? Shouldn’t you eat it raw?” Li Hao asked curiously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where did you hear that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu glanced at him sideways and said coolly: “Aren’t you afraid of being suffocated by the stench? Demon cores require numerous herbs to be refined before they’re effective, and you can’t mix them haphazardly—each type of demon differs, and only professional alchemists can distinguish them properly. Eat it raw? Hah. It’s like an ordinary person hunting a tiger and boiling its bones for soup to strengthen the body—can you digest it raw?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what are you doing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eating it as food. Though most of its potency is wasted, I have no real use for it—I’m just tasting the flavor. You? Drink some broth and eat a few slices of fish to fill your stomach. This level of demon core is beyond your capacity.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I see.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao nodded, feeling no regret or loss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the Divine General’s mansion held countless spiritual pills and treasures; even this raw demon core was nothing compared to the finished pills they distributed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after failing Foundation Establishment, he had tested them—and found that for him, these spiritual pills and treasures could only serve as food, filling his belly; their extraordinary effects were completely blocked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet despite the abundance of spiritual herbs, the mansion strictly rationed them among its various courtyards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, even ordinary herbs carry three parts poison; while pills can accelerate cultivation, reaching the highest realms still relies mostly on one’s own strength, avoiding backlash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The water in the pot boiled again, steam lifting the lid slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man simply used his iron hand to lift the clay lid open; the hot steam dispersed, but a faint breeze gently carried it away, leaving not a trace on the pavilion’s beams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A scent of fish meat rose, mingled with a hint of stench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao frowned slightly; though he hadn’t tasted it yet, his instincts told him it wouldn’t be delicious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Come, try some.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu pulled out a pair of chopsticks from nowhere—black and dull—and wiped them on his clothes before plunging them into the demon core, which resembled braised lion’s head, and took a big bite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, he waved his palm, and a swaying branch outside the pavilion snapped off and flew into his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He handed it to Li Hao: “Peel off the bark, and it’s ready to use.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao had no objection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he was no rigid man; right then, sitting cross-legged beside the old man on the very top of the Rain-Listening Pavilion—where martial cultivators regarded the ground as sacred—he casually peeled the green bark from the branch in his hand, snapped it, and plunged it into the pot to pick up a sliver of glistening fish flesh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Li Hao’s surprise, the fish flesh, despite being boiled under the lid, had not fallen apart; when lifted, it was tender and slippery like chilled jelly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He held the lid to catch any dripping broth, then slurped it up with a hiss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How’s the taste?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not bad. Very good. Just a bit fishy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fishy? I don’t taste it.” “You reek of fish yourself—you wouldn’t notice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, brat, how dare you talk to me like that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m just stating facts—I didn’t say anything wrong.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmph. You’re lucky you met me. You little brat, no manners at all. If anyone else heard you, they’d have beaten your ass into eight pieces.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I wouldn’t even talk to others like that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? Big talker.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man and the boy ate together—the elder showed no air of seniority, the boy showed no fear; after finishing the fish and drinking the broth, both leaned back, legs spread wide, and sighed in unison: “Ah, so comfortable!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their postures were nearly identical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You little brat…” Li Muxiu glanced at Li Hao, then burst into loud laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao smiled faintly, propping his head on his hand, gazing ahead—beyond the eaves, night had fallen, and faint starlight was beginning to emerge from the horizon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A gentle breeze blew up from below the pavilion and the surrounding hills, carrying a surprising sense of ease and relief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly felt that all the splendor of the mortal world, all the servants surrounding him—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Were nothing compared to this moment of freedom, this comfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he lay quietly resting for a while, Li Hao suddenly thought of something and turned his head: “Old man, when you fish, you must have some special technique, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So now you want to learn?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu looked at him with interest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tomorrow I’ll try too—let’s see who catches more?” Li Hao grinned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu chuckled at this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He never expected that among the rigid Li family, such a lively, amusing child would be raised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Very well. From now on, you’ll learn fishing from me. Fishing is a form of cultivation too. Just like me—I cast my hook, and even the Three Imperishables get yanked into crooked smiles!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu said with a light laugh, his eyes brimming with pride—not in his cultivation, but in his fishing skill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao couldn’t help but laugh, imagining the scene vividly, and burst out laughing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mighty cultivator standing atop countless martial practitioners, the Three Imperishables, being yanked into a crooked smile… so vivid! “What are you laughing at? Don’t believe me?” Li Muxiu raised an eyebrow, feigning sternness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao grinned: “I believe you, I believe you—just think the scene’s too funny.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He laughed again, clutching his stomach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu thought about it, and found the image genuinely amusing; he chuckled softly and said: “Tomorrow, when we get there, I’ll teach you how to fish. First, practice a bit—right now, words won’t mean anything to you. Go to bed early tonight. I’ll go get you a fishing rod.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, he sat up, patted his backside, swept the remaining embers and iron pot from the pavilion floor into his sleeve—and they vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he stepped forward and disappeared into the night sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early in the morning, as the sky just began to lighten, Li Muxiu woke Li Hao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Li Hao had slept early and wasn’t sleepy; he asked: “Are we going so early?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course. Morning fishing must be done early—this is when they bite easiest.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Muxiu smiled; normally he fished alone with one rod and one basket, but today with this kid beside him, his fishing enthusiasm had grown even stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here’s your fishing rod. Take it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man pulled out a black fishing rod from nowhere and handed it to Li Hao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao took it—it was surprisingly heavy, but for his fully cultivated Tongli realm strength, it was nothing; besides, his strength was ten times greater than a normal Tongli cultivator’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, Li Hao estimated that only a Tongli cultivator of the fourth or fifth level could wield it freely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Li Hao take it effortlessly, Li Muxiu’s eyes flickered with surprise: “Looks like Li Fu wasn’t lying—you do have a talent for body refinement. Which technique did you fully master?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Hao finally realized the old man had chosen this rod based on his cultivation level—putting real thought into it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ox Strength Method is a low-grade body refinement technique; fully mastered, it grants strength around Tongli Level Six.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1609,"2026-06-20T02:15:40.176Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5482ea7ceaeeee6a49bcbbdd296acafead2ef8db865683c6645316327bd035c7","the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-chapter-23","the-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-chapter-21",929,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-name-that-echoes-through-eternity-cover.jpg"]