Accompanying an immense sense of weakness came intermittent memories belonging to Tianyang himself.
Master is a good person.
Eldest Senior Brother is handsome, and he is a good person.
Second Senior Brother is a bit strange, but he is also a good person.
Third Senior Brother never speaks, but he is the best person of all.
...
What kind of mess is this?
It took Li Fan a long time to roughly sort through Tianyang's jumbled, chaotic memories.
He had been found in the wild by Master and raised by him.
Frail and sickly since childhood, he required medicine every day just to stay healthy.
Fortunately, though the sect had few people, his senior brothers were all exceptionally kind.
They doted on him and looked after him thoroughly.
...
Lifting his head with difficulty, Li Fan looked at his current body, which was no bigger than a five- or six-year-old child's, and finally understood what was going on.
Children had simple minds.
Because of his extreme physical frailty, Tianyang's range of activity had been confined to their tiny mountain gate.
Furthermore, more than half of his time had been spent asleep.
It was only natural that his memories were filled entirely with the people closest to him.
"He doesn't even know his master's or senior brothers' names."
"At least he knows the sect's name: the Path of Bodily Transformation..."
Having figured out the general situation, Li Fan was just about to prop himself up to survey his surroundings when a wave of drowsiness suddenly washed over him.
*This little guy's constitution is ridiculously weak,* Li Fan had time only to let the thought flash across his mind before he drifted back into a heavy sleep.
In his daze, he did not know how much time had passed.
Li Fan seemed to hear a rapid, continuous tolling of bells.
He wanted to open his eyes, but found it impossible.
He sank back into slumber.
Next, Li Fan was awoken by voices conversing nearby.
"What kind of dogshit Immortal Conscription Order is that? Why pay it any heed! Those large sects have thousands, tens of thousands of members—sending a few naturally wouldn't hurt them."
"Our Path of Bodily Transformation barely has anyone, yet they want us on the front line? What kind of sense does that make?"
From the sound of it, the speaker was Second Senior Brother—eccentric and blunt, always speaking his mind, a man of hot temper.
"Nonsense! The Immortal Conscription Order was issued jointly by the Ten Great Immortal Sects—how could you simply ignore it just because you feel like it?"
"Haven't you heard that the nearby Spark Dao was wiped out in the blink of an eye precisely because they refused to comply?!"
"Truth be told, Spark Dao was far stronger than our Path of Bodily Transformation!"
"Brat, you don't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth, spouting wild words all day!"
"In the peaceful days of the past, that might have been fine. But today is not like yesterday, Ling Xiao. You must watch your words and deeds and not bring disaster upon the sect!"
An aged voice, sounding rather helpless, reprimanded him in a low, stern tone.
It was identical to the voice of the person who had fed him medicine earlier—their master, the sect master of the Path of Bodily Transformation.
Second Senior Brother Ling Xiao responded with silence.
An awkward hush descended upon the room.
It was a somewhat cynical, flippant voice that finally broke the silence.
"I'll go. After all, I'm the eldest senior brother."
"It works out anyway—I'll let those barbarians see whether my sword is sharp or not."
"Sixing..." Master sighed, seemingly patting the eldest brother on the shoulder.
Eldest Senior Brother walked over to the bed, seemingly looking at Tianyang, whom Li Fan now possessed.
Only after a long while did he speak: "Ah, what a pity I won't get to wait until Little Junior Brother wakes up to say goodbye to him."
Stirred, Li Fan wanted to open his eyes and speak, but a wave of exhaustion suddenly assailed his body once more.
Unable to resist, he fell into a heavy slumber again.
He did not know how much time passed before Li Fan woke again.
This time, his spirits were much better; at the very least, he could get out of bed and walk around a bit.
"Master! Master!"
All around was quiet, with no one in sight.
Li Fan called out softly.
"Junior Brother Tianyang, you're awake?" Hearing the call, a man in white rushed over.
His hair was disheveled, and his eyes were bloodshot.
"Second Senior Brother, what's wrong with you?"
"Where are Master, Eldest Senior Brother, and Third Senior Brother? Why is everyone gone?" Li Fan could not help but ask.
Ling Xiao forced a smile. "Nothing, they're just discussing matters in the main hall."
"Here, look, this is the mechanism puppet I promised to give you. I went through a lot of trouble to trade for it." He took out a small humanoid puppet and handed it over.
Li Fan took the puppet and examined it closely, finding that its shape and appearance were eighty to ninety percent similar to the Tianyang puppet he had seen in later eras.
"With this puppet, whenever you get tired and can't walk, you can have it carry you on its back wherever you go. That way, you won't have to ride on Eldest Senior Brother's back every time..." As Ling Xiao spoke, his voice gradually faded.
Li Fan looked up and saw that Second Senior Brother's eyes had turned completely red.
"Second Senior Brother..."
"Heh, it's fine. Play with the puppet here for a while. I still have matters to discuss with Master and the others." With that, Ling Xiao patted Li Fan's head and turned to leave.
After a moment, Li Fan quietly followed him.
However, the doors to the main hall were tightly shut, and there seemed to be restrictive wards protecting them, making it impossible to see what was happening inside.
Helpless, Li Fan decided to look around elsewhere in the sect first.
Suddenly struck by an idea, Li Fan maneuvered Tianyang's young body, struggling until he reached the ancestral hall of the Path of Bodily Transformation.
Exerting every ounce of strength he could muster, Li Fan finally pushed open the heavy doors.
At the very bottom of the not-so-numerous spirit tablets, Li Fan indeed found the one belonging to Eldest Senior Brother Sixing.
After pondering for a moment, Li Fan bowed, then slowly backed out.
He closed the doors once more and wanted to wander around other places.
Yet exhaustion assailed his body once again.
As if he had been starved for days and nights, Li Fan began to tremble uncontrollably all over.
*Tianyang's body seems to have some hidden ailment; this doesn't feel like ordinary weakness.*
With even walking becoming difficult, Li Fan had a sudden flash of inspiration and attempted to control the tiny mechanism puppet in his hand.
In an instant, the mechanism puppet grew from the size of a toy to that of a normal adult.
Under Li Fan's direction, it carried him back to his room on its back.
*This puppet seems to merely possess strength greater than an ordinary person's; it doesn't have any cultivation.*
Lying in bed, Li Fan let this thought float through his mind before he could no longer hold out, slowly drifting off to sleep.
After this, Li Fan was jolted awake by a thunderous voice.
"Esteemed Envoy, please, spare our Path of Bodily Transformation!"
"Including this humble old man, our Path of Bodily Transformation has only five people in total."
"In just a few short years, two of my disciples have already died tragic deaths on the front line."
"If this goes on, our lineage will be severed before the enemy even makes it here!"
Master's desolate voice pleaded repeatedly.
Yet the other party seemed completely indifferent. "Save your grievances. I've seen sects in far worse straits than yours, and what of it?"
"Within seven days, you must dispatch another person to march with the army."
"Otherwise..."
"Lose one person, or lose everyone—choose for yourself!"
Chapter 228