OL CH1 [Arc 1]

Arc 1: Counterattack of the Disabled General

The current month in Xiling was the prime season for admiring autumn scenery: the sky was clear and bright, not a cloud drifted across the horizon, and the landscape outside the capital was painted in splendid hues.

Located south of Dayan and the Northern Lands, Xiling was originally a bountiful and fertile realm. However, a major war against Dayan six years prior had drained more than half of the national treasury.

The old emperor favored civil scholars while scorning martial officers, indulging in romantic pursuits and poetry. For years, he had suppressed military commanders, believing that scholarship alone could revitalize the realm. It wasn’t until the eleventh hour that he discovered the armed forces held virtually no competent personnel left, forcing Old Marquis Bai of the Marquis of Zhongyong’s estate to don armor and march to the front at the advanced age of over sixty.

In his youth, Old Marquis Bai had been the renowned God of War of Xiling. Yet with advancing years, his physique was no longer what it once was. Although his personal presence on the front lines secured temporary peace, he suffered grievous wounds on the battlefield and passed away less than a year later.

What a pity that the glory of the Marquis estate, built over a lifetime, could only be handed down to the old marquis’s mediocre sole son, Bai Heguang. Fortunately, the legitimate grandson, Bai Su, appeared to be someone who could stand tall. At a young age, he had already followed his grandfather into battle to slay the enemy; possessing the mettle of Old Marquis Bai’s younger days, he was a true youthful hero.

Yet who could have foreseen that not long after Old Marquis Bai’s passing, an “accident” befell Heir Apparent Bai Su—he fell from his horse during a royal hunt.

Both his right foot and his right hand, the very hand trained to wield a blade, were trampled beneath galloping hooves. Although subsequent medical treatment saved him from becoming completely crippled, he was reduced to a lame man who walked with a dragging limp, his right hand rendered limp and powerless. Worse, his handsome cheek had been deeply gouged by a sharp jagged stone, leaving behind an unsightly scar.

The favored pride of heaven was thus reduced to an ordinary, broken figure. Outsiders, upon hearing of it, merely sighed a passing word of pity. The agonizing bitterness of it all could only truly be known by the man himself.

Xiling nowadays was nothing like its former glory. Leaving aside the hardships of the border outposts, even the commoners of the capital were far from prosperous. Yet the princes and high nobility remained steeped in hedonism, throwing an extravagant, lavish gala for nothing more than a simple autumn banquet.

The flowerbeds flanking both sides of the Lan Garden had long been arranged on the orders of Empress Yan, brimming with all manner of prized autumn blooms—the two pots of black chrysanthemums alone were worth an astronomical sum.

Offspring of prominent clans gathered together, chanting verses and composing poems, putting on airs of lofty elegance.

Bai Su stood alone in a quiet corner, as though all the bustling gaiety in the garden had nothing to do with him. The occasional glances that fell upon him—some filled with pity, others with contempt—failed to stir the slightest ripple in his demeanor.

To such gazes, he had long grown accustomed.

Out of nowhere, a massive dragon of lightning ripped across the cloudless blue sky, startling everyone and throwing their minds into disarray.

In an instant, the world seemed to lose all color. Every sound fell dead silent, as if time and space had frozen still at this very moment.

Yet merely a second later, everything returned to normal.

Eerily enough, not a single person could recall what had just occurred, as though that sudden celestial phenomenon had been nothing more than an optical illusion.

[Mini-world host vessel being replaced and reshaped…]

[…Soul infusion complete.]

No one realized that inside the carriage of the Prince of Ning’s estate, their prince had been completely swapped from flesh to core.

The man’s narrow, phoenix eyes opened, a golden gleam flashing through the depths of his gaze.

Dressed in a lavish white robe, the tall, imposing man swept aside the carriage curtain and leapt down. Ignoring the attendants scrambling to support him, he strode directly toward the Lan Garden.

The entire way, his brow was tightly knit, his handsome face frost-cold, radiating an aura of complete unapproachability.

A long-tailed tit, taking full advantage of being invisible to the world, fluttered its round, fluffy body through the air, keeping pace right beside the man with an utterly endearing, clumsy grace. Yet the moment it opened its beak, out came the deep, gravelly voice of a middle-aged uncle:

“Boss, don’t worry! We arrived right on time—Mr. Bai should be safe and sound right now!”

Hearing that voice, the corner of Chen Tian’s eye twitched violently. Picking up his pace, he asked within his consciousness, Why is it you? Didn’t I explicitly tell 555 to come?

The little chubby bird’s eyes darted guiltily for a fraction of a second. Recalling the injured young man whom he had forcibly tucked into bed at home before his wounds had even healed, he replied steadily, “Boss, whether it’s Xiao Wu or me, it’s all the same. I can assist you just as well.”

Chen Tian offered no comment and dropped the subject.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand 009’s concern for his own partner. 555 had been injured while assisting in sealing the dark filth, so it wasn’t strictly necessary to drag him along this time anyway. He had only initially considered 555 because 555 had accompanied Bai Su through numerous worlds and was far more familiar with his lover’s habits.

Still, having System 009 take over was perfectly fine. 009 was exceptionally capable and dependable; Chen Tian trusted him completely.

Reaching the entrance of the garden, Chen Tian’s footsteps abruptly halted the moment his eyes caught a figure standing in the corner.

A familiar soul resonance caused his breath to catch. Even just a side profile was enough to send a profound tremor through his very spirit.

I finally found him!

Not far away, the youth clad in black robes was tall, yet noticeably gaunt. His sharp, defined features were exceptionally handsome. His pitch-black hair was simply gathered in a white jade crown, entirely devoid of ornamental jewelry—clean and plain to the extreme.

With downcast eyes, the youth seemed completely oblivious to the burning gaze locked onto him from behind and soon turned his back.

Standing in the shadows, Chen Tian greedily traced the silhouette of that back with his eyes.

Clenching his teeth, he took several deep, measured breaths to calm the stinging sourness in his eyes.

This was his eternal companion—the soulbound lover who had weathered countless trials alongside him!

Suppressing the fierce urge to sprint over and sweep the man into his arms, Chen Tian knew he couldn’t. Not yet. Having plunged into this mortal plane, Bai Su had lost all his memories; to him right now, Chen Tian was merely a complete stranger!

Reminding himself of this, Chen Tian quickly looked down, smoothing the folds of his collar to force his composure back into place.

His mind raced, calculating how best to strike up a conversation with his beloved—at the very least, he needed to showcase his charms and leave a stellar first impression.

Yet before he could finish planning how to spread his peacock feathers, an uninvited crowd beat him to it.

“Elder Brother, why are you standing here all by yourself?”

A young man in green scholar’s robes with delicate features approached Bai Su’s side, feigning surprise and speaking in an overtly intimate tone.

Chen Tian raised an eyebrow. He could see that this man shared a three-tenths resemblance to Bai Su. However, in his eyes, the other man’s demeanor fell pathetically short.

His frame was nowhere near as tall as his Xiao Bai’s, his features nowhere near as refined as his treasure’s, and even his voice was irritatingly weak and grating.

Most offensive of all, though his words sounded gentle on the surface, the gaze he leveled at Bai Su was laced with deep, venomous calculation—thoroughly repulsive.

“Elder Brother, why not join us for the poetry competition? The Fifth Prince just promised a splendid prize for the top scholar.”

Seeing Bai Su ignore him, Bai Feizhang was far from discouraged and pressed on.

Sure enough, the man opposite him remained cold and silent as always, appearing as if he were deliberately giving him the cold shoulder.

Bai Feizhang had anticipated this. Feigning a hurt expression, he magnanimously turned to soothe the people around him, suggesting that perhaps his elder brother simply had no fondness for composing poetry. Only then did he turn back to Bai Su with a mock apology: “Forgive me, Elder Brother. Feizhang was overstepping.”

Bai Feizhang’s display naturally stirred resentment toward Bai Su among the onlookers. In this scenario, even a fool could tell these people were here to stir up trouble. Having zero patience to engage in superficial pleasantries with them, Bai Su turned on his heel, limping away to take his leave.

Only then did Chen Tian notice that Bai Su’s gait was uneven and faltering.

Having rushed straight to find Bai Su the second he arrived, he had only absorbed the host’s basic memories and hadn’t yet combed through the world’s primary plotline. He had no idea what kind of tragedy had befallen Bai Su.

Seeing his beloved in this state, he assumed the boy had injured his leg, and a knot of worry tightened in his chest. Just as he stepped forward to intervene, an arrogant youthful voice rang out abruptly:

“To think the esteemed Heir Apparent of the Marquis of Zhongyong’s estate is so utterly devoid of courtesy! In this Prince’s eyes, the Old Marquis’s discernment was mediocre at best; this so-called ‘God of War of Xiling’ was likely an empty, exaggerated rumor.”

The moment the words fell, Bai Su, who had already walked a few paces away, froze in his tracks.

The figures in front parted, revealing the youth they were fawning over. Chen Tian flicked through the host’s memories and recognized him: the Fifth Prince of the current court, the youngest son of Empress Yan.

The Fifth Prince was young, backed by the twin titans of the Empress and the Prime Minister’s estate, raised with silver spoons and showered with adulation from birth. Compounded by the current Emperor having few heirs and doting excessively upon this youngest prince, he had grown into an overbearing and utterly arrogant tyrant.

Sure enough, as soon as his remark landed, the sycophants around him chimed in with competitive flattery.

In the past, of course, no one would have dared slander Old Marquis Bai like this. But now, the Old Marquis had been dead for years, and the Marquis estate was a shadow of its former self.

Bai Su’s limbs were ruined. Many believed that the title of Heir Apparent of the Marquis of Zhongyong would inevitably fall to Bai Feizhang sooner or later. Rather than walking on eggshells around Bai Su, it was far better to curry favor with Bai Feizhang.

Bai Su clenched his fists, the emotionless depths of his eyes finally sparking with wrath.

He could endure being insulted, he could stomach being mocked, but he would never tolerate anyone speaking a single disparaging word against the grandfather he revered above all else.

Not even if the speaker was the exalted Fifth Prince.

Turning back, he walked steadily toward the crowd. No matter how much his crippled leg robbed him of grace, his spine remained unbending and straight as an iron lance.

Stepping forward, he clasped his fists in salute: “Your Fifth Highness, mind your words! My grandfather guarded the nation’s borders and fought across battlefields for decades—his glorious merit is by no means an empty exaggeration!”

Pampered and indulged all his life, the Fifth Prince—despite growing up with royal scheming—was still merely an arrogant brat who couldn’t stand being contradicted. He sneered coldly on the spot:

“The Heir Apparent truly has guts, daring to commit insubordination! Today, I shall discipline you on behalf of Old Marquis Bai!”

Hearing the Fifth Prince’s declaration, a lapdog beside him immediately joined in to flaunt borrowed authority: “Precisely! A helpless cripple who can’t even truss a chicken dares howl before the Fifth Prince? Do you truly believe you’re still the glorious young general of years past?”

Noticing the dripping disdain on that lapdog’s face, Chen Tian felt the man couldn’t look more like cannon fodder if he tried.

His spirits surged instantly.

Just when he was fretting over finding a way to make an entrance, hadn’t the perfect stage for a hero to save the beauty fallen right into his lap!