In addition, as his swordsmanship advanced, Li Hao had perfected his "Endless Sea·Tide" technique, progressing from (Perfect) proficiency to (Flawless)!
Rich memories of swordsmanship made Li Hao feel as though he had been wielding a sword for decades.
Flaws started to appear in the Tidal Sword Skill, which he had originally mastered to the pinnacle of perfection—in his eyes.
These were the inherent flaws of the sword skill itself.
In other words, they were the limits of what the sword move could achieve.
After all, no sword technique could cover every aspect perfectly.
Like an extremely perfect stick, it could be used for slashing and smashing, but it couldn't cut others.
Now, the shortcomings in that sword skill Li Hao had compensated for through his own understanding of swordsmanship.
Li Hao thought of the swordsmanship instructor from the military who taught Li Qianfeng and said that beyond the three realms of technique, there existed a fourth layer.
Today, Li Hao had reached that fourth realm, Flawless!
But.
Although his swordsmanship had improved and the Tidal Sword Skill had attained flawlessness, Li Hao had not executed it even once.
He had only pushed it to the limit in his mind.
Yet, Li Hao had a feeling that as long as he had a sword in his hand, he could execute it exactly as envisioned.
However, he couldn't predict what kind of toll it would take on his body when the time came.
His current child's body was far too fragile, and even if he were to grow up, he feared that a normal body wouldn't be able to withstand such a dazzling technique.
An extremely strong physique was required.
"No matter how exquisite the sword technique is, if it can't be executed, it ultimately remains a moon reflected on the water."
"Perhaps, I should find a Body Refinement Cultivation Technique; I wonder if I could include one..."
The Li Family's martial arts secret archives were countless and varied in nature.
All of these were housed in the Listening Rain Tower within the Divine General Mansion.
In Qingzhou City, there are three renowned holy places, where multitudes of martial artists long to visit in their dreams.
One is the Black and White Hall of Tan Palace Academy, one is the Hundred Birds Garden of Rouge Pavilion, and the last is the Listening Rain Tower owned by the Li Family of the Divine General Mansion.
Li Hao planned to look for an opportunity to visit there.
But before that, the special blood prepared for him within the mansion had already been concocted.
This year, like Bian Ruxue, he would undergo the Blood Melting with the same age group.
The blood used for Blood Melting was still of the highest quality, a master-level potion refined from the bones of a millennium Great Demon.
Furthermore, it was said that the Martial Lord of the Northern Yan's frontline had, especially for his adopted father, slain a Great Demon with three thousand years of cultivation and sent it back to the Divine General Mansion, elevating the grade of this Blood Melting potion to another extreme.
A Great Demon of three thousand years was nearly as old as the age of the Great Yu Dynasty.
Beyond awe, Li Hao also had a new understanding of that man's strength.
With Lin Haixia's assistance, Blood Melting commenced.
The crimson liquid exuding an exotic fragrance covered Li Hao's body.
Li Hao was tense.
Before long, the familiar text appeared before his eyes again.
{Unknown substance detected, beginning analysis...}
{Analysis failed; automatically isolated.}
"..."
Li Hao was completely speechless.
But this time, he felt some heartache.
After all, this was something the man had prepared for him at great risk, and now it was wasted.
Lin Haixia shared in that heartbreak.
When he saw that Li Hao's body had no abnormal reactions and that he was trembling slightly more than Li Hao himself, it looked like Lin was even more excited.
But everything seemed to have a trace to follow. Having experienced the failure of Foundation Establishment before, this time he didn't lose his composure but silently closed his eyes for a moment, restraining his feelings of loss and sadness.
"Uncle Lin, did it fail?"
"Hmm..."
Lin Haixia gently opened his eyes, his gaze slightly weary. He looked at Li Hao's young face, inwardly bitter-smiling, as despite being reborn into the golden cradle of the Divine General Mansion, the countless top resources prepared for Li Hao by the Divine General Mansion were something this boy couldn't enjoy.
It was hard to tell if his fate was good or bad.
"Uncle Lin, do you think I can give this special blood to that little girl?"
Li Hao asked.
Lin Haixia nodded slightly. At this point, since Li Hao was not blessed to benefit from it, the next best thing was to make it available for the little girl.
"That's great." Seeing that nothing was wasted, Li Hao smiled.
Lin Haixia also revealed a slight smile, telling Li Hao, "Young Master, I'll scrape it off for you, then you go rest."
His smile was feigned, carrying a touch of sorrow in his eyes.
"Okay."
Li Hao nodded, not pointing out what went unsaid.
...
The news of Li Hao's failed Blood Melting quickly spread to the ears of the various ladies of the courtyards.
In Shuihua Courtyard, Liu Yue Rong slightly raised her eyebrows upon hearing the quiet report from a maidservant by her side, though her face showed little joy, just a faint shake of her head.
She had secretly inquired on Mount Wuliang, and knew the medicine wouldn't cause such side effects, which meant this boy was naturally defective. It was only his luck to have been born into the Li Family and in Ji Qingqing's belly.
Had she known earlier, she wouldn't have even needed that medicine.
A defective being, even with Divine Blood, what could he amount to?
On the contrary, it would only serve to highlight her own son Qianfeng's superiority.
After all, when the time came, both were third-generation of the Li Family, both possessing Divine Blood, but one would be useless while the other a True Dragon among men. Everyone knew how the old matriarch would choose.
After Li Hao's Blood Melting failure, the little girl's fusion was outstanding.
Having absorbed the foreign blood prepared for Li Hao, Bian Ruxue's martial talent was further enhanced.
In the coming days, all she needed was to be nurtured slowly, and at the age of five, the bone-measurement would reveal the specific outcomes.
Li Hao, upon hearing the news, was happy for the little girl, but he himself had encountered a troublesome issue. No longer could he gain experience from Chess Tao through self-play, so he had to find the maids around him to accompany him in his chess games.
Though these maids didn't dare contradict their young master's daily commands, they were all hesitant and afraid to agree to this request.
These servants knew Li Hao had failed his Blood Melting and possessed no talent for martial arts, yet now he still wanted to play chess...
They were aware that the young master had been plopped before a chessboard since childhood, seemingly born with a natural talent for Chess Tao.
But in a military family of such standing, such talent was trivial...
It was even seen as indulging in frivolities that could lead to ruin!
If the ladies found out they were accompanying Li Hao in such an "irresponsible" activity, they wouldn't be able to guarantee that the wrath derived from Li Hao's inability to practice martial arts wouldn't be taken out on them.
Smart as they were, these servants in the Divine General Mansion dared not touch such bad luck.
Thus, having no other choice, Li Hao had to find Lin Haixia.
Knowing he wanted her to play chess with him, Lin Haixia was speechless, unfamiliar with such things and somewhat helpless towards the young master's optimistic ignorance.
However, she did not outright refuse.
"Perhaps, this last year before the bone-measurement ceremony is this child's final period of happiness..." Lin Haixia thought to herself.
She agreed to Li Hao's request, and after sorting out Bian Ruxue's situation, she started accompanying Li Hao in his chess games.
From then on, a common scene in the courtyard was the two figures, one tall, one short, playing opposite each other in the pavilion, with a little maid standing on tiptoes nearby, peering over.
Now and then, the voice of the child bent over the chessboard could be heard shouting:
"That's not right, you have to place it at the intersection of the lines, not inside the squares!"
"That's not cheating, that's called capturing!"
"This has already been surrounded and is dead, you can't place anymore inside!"
"You're so silly, I've already told you three times."
After one game of chess, Li Hao would be exhausted, having gained just 1 point of experience.
This was far more tiring than playing against himself.
Whenever the opponent broke a rule, the game would be invalidated, so he had to teach while playing, explaining the rules to his opponent.
Lin Haixia, who had thought she was merely humoring a child, did not expect there to be so many rules and regulations, and her face showed signs of strain.
After several days, Lin Haixia disappeared, leaving Li Hao stamping his little feet in frustration. Having no choice, he decided to first pay a visit to Listening Rain Tower.
...
Listening Rain Tower stood north of Divine General Mansion, leaning against the mountain.
The Divine General Mansion covered an extensive area, so vast that one could even ride a horse carriage within it.
Apart from the ladies' courtyards, there were also sceneries like mountains, lakes, and gardens.
Weathered through the years, Listening Rain Tower appeared to be nothing more than an old building midway up the mountain, quite unremarkable.
Yet in the world, countless eyes yearned to glimpse its true face.
However, all those gazes dared not cross that golden wall towering above.
Accompanied by the old steward Zhao from Mountain and River Courtyard, Li Hao arrived in front of the tower. Zhao put Li Hao down and, with a tone of earnest caution, advised, "Young master, this place is a crucial site for the Li Family. Even if the ladies of the courtyards come, they must seek permission from the senior madam. Let's go back, shall we?"
Aside from the direct second-generation descendants of the Li Family, only two ladies could freely enter Listening Rain Tower—one being the senior madam.
"Didn't I ask you to send someone to notify them? I just came to look around, should be fine, right?" Li Hao said nonchalantly, hands clasped behind his back.
Zhao had long grown accustomed to the young master's precociously stern demeanor, baffled about whom he might have picked it up from, replying with a pained expression, "But no reply has come yet, and the senior madam might not give her consent. Although you are entitled to enter, young master, you are still very young after all..."
"So what if I'm young, you look down on me?" Li Hao said, keeping a straight face.
"I wouldn't dare, young master," Zhao hastily replied.
Li Hao, bored by the exchange, quietly surveyed the Listening Rain Tower before him. The ancient tower, aged and seven stories high, had been the place where, after his bone-measurement, Li Qianfeng reached the Ninth-Rank War Body, and that night, the woman sought permission from the senior madam to choose a martial art for her child. She found the "Endless Sea" at the top of the tower.
There were a total of four styles within "Endless Sea."
Each style was tremendously difficult, with rumors suggesting only the third uncle had mastered the final style, almost cleaving half of Jingzhou with a single sword stroke.
...