Gu Hao woke up with the uneasy feeling that he had been awake for years.
His eyes opened slowly.
The ceiling above him was wooden, old, darkened by time and smoke. The air smelled of dried herbs, dust, and something faintly metallic. Not antiseptic. Not modern.
He inhaled.
Pain answered.
Not sharp. Not new.
The dull, familiar ache of a body that had been pushed beyond its limits too many times and never properly healed.
Gu Hao sat up.
His movements were slow, cautious, as if his instincts already knew this body could not afford sudden motions. His hands were rough, calloused in places he didn't remember earning. When he swung his legs off the bed, they felt heavy, rooted, as though gravity itself had increased.
This body was… stronger than his old one.
But also older.
Weaker in ways that mattered.
He stood, steadying himself against the table, and caught sight of his reflection in a bronze mirror. The man staring back had sharp features worn down by responsibility. His eyes were calm, but not peaceful.
Then the memories arrived.
Not all at once.
Not gently.
A lifetime pressed itself into his mind.
The Gu Clan.
Outer Fringe.
A small cultivation family clinging to relevance.
And at its center—
Patriarch Gu Hao.
Gu Hao exhaled slowly.
He did not panic.
After dying alone in a police room because no one wanted trouble, panic felt… inefficient.
Instead, he reached inward.
The body responded.
A warm current stirred within his dantian, faint but real, flowing through meridians that felt like narrow, overused paths.
Qi.
Not abundant.
Not refined.
But present.
He understood instinctively what this meant.
Qi Condensation Realm.
Mid-stage at best.
Strong enough to intimidate mortals.
Strong enough to command respect in a small clan.
Nowhere near strong enough to protect one.
A knock came at the door.
"Patriarch," a man's voice said. "The elders are assembled."
Gu Hao closed his eyes for a brief moment.
The word patriarch settled on him like a mantle.
On Earth, kindness had been lonely.
Here, authority would be lonelier still.
The council hall was too large for its occupants.
Five elders sat around a long stone table meant for twelve. The empty seats had not been removed. Their presence was a quiet reminder of decline.
Gu Hao walked to the head of the table.
As he did, he felt it clearly now.
The elders were stronger than him.
One was at late Qi Condensation.
Two hovered at peak Qi Condensation.
One had once touched Foundation Establishment, only to fall back after an injury.
They rose when he entered.
Not because he was the strongest.
Because he was the last thread holding the name together.
"What is our current strength?" Gu Hao asked calmly, taking his seat.
The elders exchanged glances.
Elder Gu Yuan spoke first. "Three elders at Qi Condensation. One injured former Foundation Establishment. Twelve active cultivators in total. The rest… are mortals."
"And me?"
Gu Yuan hesitated, then answered honestly. "Mid Qi Condensation, Patriarch."
No flattery.
No comfort.
Gu Hao nodded.
"What about resources?"
"Two hundred low-grade spirit stones," another elder said. "Grain for four months. Less if winter comes early."
"And external threats?"
"Two neighboring clans could wipe us out if they wished," Gu Yuan said quietly. "They simply haven't decided we're worth the effort."
That sentence lingered.
Gu Hao understood it too well.
That was when the pressure arrived.
Not as a voice.
Not as light.
As knowledge that did not belong to him.
[Legacy Simulation Available]
Cost per activation:
50 low-grade spirit stones
Consent required.
Gu Hao froze.
The words did not demand attention.
They waited.
His heartbeat slowed.
This was not a gift given freely.
This was an exchange.
He felt instinctively that once he agreed, once he paid the cost, whatever he saw could not be unseen.
And that the price would not stop at stones.
Gu Hao dismissed the presence without activating it.
The words faded.
The elders were still watching him.
He raised his head.
"We are not dissolving the clan," he said.
A ripple of relief passed through the hall.
"But understand this," he continued evenly. "We are standing at the edge of extinction. Comfort will not save us. Tradition will not save us. Strength alone will not save us."
Silence.
"I need one night," Gu Hao said. "After that, we move."
They agreed.
They had already waited too long.