Cultivation Begins from Infancy - Chapter 270

Volume 3 - Chapter 26: Don't Let Me Die with Regrets - Part 2

Li Tiangang stood frozen, staring at Li Tianzong in a daze, unable to move.

He wasn’t foolish. That single sentence, paired with Li Xiaoran’s reaction and the faint, dissipating form of Li Tianzong’s soul, immediately filled him with an overwhelming sense of dread.

“Elder Brother was confined in the River of Death for far too many years. The corrosion has seeped too deep. Even though he managed to escape, he can only barely return to catch one last glimpse of home.”

Li Xiaoran spoke with deep sorrow. “But now, Elder Brother... he can’t go back!”

The years of unwavering resolve in the River of Death were now about to fade away here. His chest tightened painfully, leaving him unable to breathe.

Li Muxiu and Li Tiangang, upon hearing his words, stood as if struck by lightning, motionless.

They had thought that with Li Tianzong’s liberation, he would return to the ancestral shrine, to be enshrined and nourished at the family memorial tablet, where they could still feel his presence.

But now, was this truly the last time they’d see him?!

“Elder Brother...” Li Muxiu trembled all over, staring blankly at Li Tianzong, his body feeling as though all the blood and warmth had been drained, leaving him cold from head to toe.

“Father!”

Li Tiangang’s pupils contracted, his mind buzzing as if the world were spinning. At the funeral, he had cried his eyes out in front of half of his father’s remains. Now, must he watch with his own eyes as his father faded before him?!

Was it because of the attack earlier?

His heart pounded erratically, each beat tearing painfully as if it were being ripped apart.

“Don’t grieve anymore.”

Seeing their sorrowful expressions, Li Tianzong appeared calm, though a trace of bitterness still lingered on his face.

“I didn’t expect things to turn out this way. Well... Second Brother, remember to pass on my regards to your sister-in-law. Tell her I’ve gone ahead and wish her well. If she misses me, she can go to that mountain we used to sit on. The sound of the cicadas will be my greeting to her...”

Li Tianzong’s eyes were weary as he began to give his final instructions.

His words caused Li Muxiu to tremble uncontrollably, grief consuming him, leaving him unable to utter a single word.

“Father, it’s all my fault. I angered you. I’m to blame. It’s all my fault...”

Li Tiangang suddenly knelt before him, raising his hand and fiercely slapping his own face.

Each strike was infused with his flame power, causing his face to bleed.

After a few slaps, he looked at Li Tianzong, tears streaming from his reddened eyes.

“Tell me, what can I do to bring you back?”

Li Tianzong sighed at his appearance and said, “What you need to bring back is not me, but your son. Don’t grieve. With my current strength, I can still make it home, but... there’s no need.”

Taking a deep breath, he continued, “I originally intended to pass my power to Hao’er. He didn’t take it. Now, I’ll give this power to you. Go bring Hao’er back, no matter what it takes. At any cost, bring him back!”

“If anything happens to him, I will die... with regrets!”

He placed his hand on Li Tiangang, his gaze turning serious and unwavering. “Did you hear me?”

Li Tiangang trembled, his eyes reddening. “I can’t take your power. Please, go back for one last look. Mother misses you too...”

“As a son, stop being so sentimental.”

Li Tianzong interrupted him with a wave of his hand. “Don’t cling to your rules anymore. Back then, for Qingqing, you defied the entire family, broke military regulations, and violated the family law. Now, for Hao’er—your own son—you should fulfill your duty as a father!”

“Remember, you are a son first, then a husband, and only then a father. After that, you can be a subject, a general, and a citizen!”

Li Tiangang’s heart trembled as he looked at Li Tianzong’s solemn expression. He realized he might truly have been wrong.

Father’s words had never been wrong. Suppressing his sorrow, he said, “Father, I understand now. Please, say no more. I don’t want your power. Just go back for one last look, I beg you!”

“If you can bring Hao’er back, our Li family will surely flourish, and the Great Yu Divine Dynasty will once again rise to its former glory. That era of prosperity—I’ve seen it...”

Li Tianzong’s eyes glimmered faintly with golden light, filled with nostalgia, as if he were witnessing a far-off scene. “If you want me to truly see home once more, find Hao’er. Even if you must apologize, bow your head as a father. Even if you were wrong, what’s there to fear? He’s your child.”

Li Tiangang’s sorrow welled up uncontrollably. He nodded repeatedly. “I’ve heard everything, Father. Please, don’t say any more. Just go back for one last look!”

Li Tianzong reached out, wiped away his tears, and smiled faintly. Then, he said,

“Live well, my child...”

At that moment, he wasn’t just a grandfather but also a father.

As he spoke, his body began to emit a radiant light, a blazing white glow that enveloped Li Tiangang.

“Father!”

Li Tiangang cried out in panic.

But Li Tianzong’s figure had already disappeared into the light, leaving him unseen.

Li Muxiu and Li Xiaoran rushed forward, shouting his name, but only Li Tianzong’s voice echoed in the void.

“Second Brother, Fourth Brother, the family depends on you now. Let’s be brothers again in the next life... Haha, though I suppose I won’t have a next life. You must live well. Live for me.”

“Tiangang, open your heart. Don’t waste my power!”

Li Tiangang was consumed by grief but gritted his teeth and opened his heart to accept it.

A vast and majestic power surged into him, enveloping his entire being.

“Bring back Hao’er...”

“Or I will die... with regrets...”

Li Tianzong’s voice faded in Tiangang’s ears.

The immense power radiated outward, forming a towering golden pillar of light that enveloped Li Tiangang completely.

The pillar remained for a long time before slowly shrinking and condensing into a golden streak of light, which finally vanished.

“Elder Brother!!”

Li Xiaoran roared in anguish, his voice like a wounded beast’s, hoarse and echoing through heaven and earth.

Li Muxiu tried to cry out but found his voice caught in his throat. He could only watch blankly, his tear-filled eyes blurring as they overflowed.

Only the whistling wind remained, howling unceasingly.

...

After a long time, Li Tiangang’s body trembled slightly as he awoke from the inheritance.

He immediately looked around but saw no trace of Li Tianzong. Gripping his chest in agony, the pain reminded him of that day in Yanbei, when his wife Ji Qingqing had left his side.

Just like that funeral, witnessing his other brothers lowered into their graves.

Pain so intense it was suffocating.

“Father, I was wrong... Come out! Come out and punish me!”

Li Tiangang shouted in anguish.

But the surroundings remained empty, silent.

Li Xiaoran, however, seemed to be provoked by Tiangang’s words. Turning suddenly, he rushed at Tiangang and delivered a fierce kick to his chest.

With a resounding crash, Tiangang was sent hurtling into a distant mountain.

Before he could climb out of the debris, Xiaoran descended on him like a madman, delivering a punch to his face that smashed his head into the shattered rocks.

“It’s all your fault! Why did you treat Hao’er this way? Why did you let Elder Brother die here? Why?!”

He kept punching, each blow filled with rage, landing on Tiangang’s face and nose, staining his fists with blood.

“Do you know how much Elder Brother wanted to go home? Do you?! Do you?!”

“That was his deepest wish! Do you understand what a wish is? It’s the one thing someone wants most before death!”

“Elder Brother had already made it out. He was already out! Why, why?!”

Li Xiaoran’s roar was almost feral as he rained blows upon Tiangang.

Tiangang’s indestructible body began to crack, blood flowing freely. Though he initially considered fighting back, the words Xiaoran shouted pierced his heart like daggers.

He stopped resisting and simply let Xiaoran’s fists and kicks fall on him.

...

The mountain crumbled, the ground caved in, and Xiaoran pounded Tiangang into a pit dozens of meters deep, leaving fractures in the earth.

“Enough, Fourth Brother.”

Suddenly, Li Muxiu appeared, grabbing Xiaoran’s raised arm.

Xiaoran, disheveled and wild-eyed, looked up at him with tears streaming down his face. He rasped, “Second Brother, Elder Brother’s soul has vanished completely...”

“He doesn’t even have the chance to reincarnate...”

His voice broke, no longer a roar but a mournful cry filled with despair.

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