New Account, Don't Do This

"You damn scoundrel, give me your life!"

A crisp, furious shout exploded beside Li Nuo's ear, jolting him awake the instant he had just fallen asleep.

Still groggy with sleep, he saw a figure standing in front of him.

The girl wore a long white traditional dress and looked about sixteen or seventeen. Her figure was slender and shapely, her skin as white as snow, and her features delicate and beautiful. She was every bit as stunning as the actresses in the entertainment industry, though her expression was not very pleasant.

Not just unpleasant: her furious eyes held a bone-deep hatred, and she clutched a gleaming dagger in her hand, as if Li Nuo had done something unforgivable to her.

What was going on? Cosplay?

There were only two hours left before court began. As a judge's assistant, Li Nuo had stayed up all night and had just finished organizing the case files. He had stretched out on the cramped folding bed in the corner of his office to catch a brief nap and recover his energy, only to be woken the moment he fell asleep.

Wait, this wasn't the assistant's office. Li Nuo looked around and found himself lying on a luxurious bed. The furnishings in the room were all antique in style, and looked extravagantly opulent.

So this was a dream?

What kind of bizarre dream was this? He'd been so busy lately, he hadn't even had time to watch a period drama...

Whoosh!

Before Li Nuo could react, the girl attacked.

The dagger sliced through the air, thrusting toward his neck.

Even though he knew it was a dream, Li Nuo still dodged instinctively.

He dodged, but not quite enough.

The dagger had been aimed at Li Nuo's neck, but his evasive movement shifted its trajectory slightly, and it cut a gash across his shoulder.

The shoulder of his silk nightshirt, embroidered with delicate patterns, was instantly stained red with blood.

Pain!

It hurt so much!

Li Nuo's fairly handsome face twisted violently with pain, and beads of sweat the size of beans sprang across his forehead. He hadn't expected the pain in a dream to feel so real!

Her first strike had missed a vital spot, so the girl thrust the dagger toward his heart again.

Two attacks, and both times she'd gone for Li Nuo's life!

Having handled plenty of cases, Li Nuo knew better than to fight a knife-wielding assailant head-on. He scrambled toward the corner of the bed, and the girl leapt onto it after him, her dagger hot on his heels.

This time, driven into the corner, Li Nuo had nowhere left to dodge.

Leaning against the corner of the bed, Li Nuo gave up resisting completely.

Generally speaking, when you died in a dream, the dream ended.

Better to die sooner and wake up sooner. He still had to go to work later.

Li Nuo had already resigned himself to his fate, but the dagger in the girl's hand didn't pierce his heart.

The razor-sharp dagger stopped less than half an inch from Li Nuo's chest.

Li Nuo thought she'd had a change of heart and decided not to hurt an innocent bystander. But when he looked up, he saw that something was wrong with the girl.

Her face was flushed, and her forehead was slick with sweat. She seemed to be putting all her strength into plunging the dagger into Li Nuo's heart, yet her body was held fast by something and couldn't move at all.

Li Nuo seized the chance to run off the bed. At the same time, the door was kicked open with tremendous force, and an elderly man with gray hair rushed inside. Seeing that Li Nuo had only suffered a minor injury, the man visibly relaxed. He hurried over, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "This old servant came too late. Please forgive me, young master!"

Li Nuo had no idea what was going on, but he knew his dream should be ending soon.

He didn't know how long he'd been asleep. He'd missed court, and would get his pay docked again.

How were you supposed to wake up from a dream?

Death, falling, or a violent impact...

That seemed to be what Inception said. Suicide was out of the question; even in a dream, pain still hurt. As for falling... he couldn't find anywhere high enough at such short notice. In the end, Li Nuo looked at a thick pillar in the room.

Ignoring the old man and not sparing the girl another glance, Li Nuo took a running start. To everyone's bewilderment and shock, he charged headfirst into the pillar.

Bang!

Before he could feel the pain in his forehead, Li Nuo's consciousness began to sink into an endless abyss.

"Ha..."

Daylight streamed in. Li Nuo yawned and climbed out of bed.

"Ugh..."

His forehead and shoulder throbbed with pain. Frowning, Li Nuo touched his forehead, then froze.

Why was there such a huge bump?

He lowered his head and looked at his shoulder. A bloodstained bandage stood out starkly.

Li Nuo finally realized something was wrong. He looked around and found himself still in the room from his dream: the luxurious bed, the antique furniture, and the exquisite carvings on the headboard all had an old-fashioned elegance and an air of extravagance.

Why hadn't he woken up yet?

No, no, no. Court was about to begin. If he didn't wake up soon, there'd be serious trouble.

Maybe smashing into the pillar hadn't worked. Li Nuo climbed out of bed and went into the courtyard, where he immediately spotted a ladder leaning against the wall.

The old man with gray hair had just stepped through the courtyard gate when he saw his young master standing on the roof, looking solemn, arms spread wide, and leaping down.

There was no time to react. He immediately raised a hand and pointed toward Li Nuo from a distance.

Li Nuo leapt off the roof and stared in shock as he drifted down at the speed of a falling leaf. The old man had already hurried over and grabbed his arm, anxiously saying, "Young master, whatever's troubling you, just tell me. This old servant will help you figure something out. Please, don't try to take your own life!"

Great Xia.

Chang'an.

Dali Temple Minister's Mansion.

"Young master, you really can't remember anything?"

"You don't remember who this old servant is?"

"Then you at least remember who you are, don't you?"

Li Nuo sat on the bed and blankly shook his head at the man before him, whose face was full of concern and worry and who kept calling himself "this old servant."

Looking at the dazed Li Nuo, the old man sighed. "It's over. Looks like you hit your head and damaged your brain..."

Li Nuo gazed out the window, his thoughts churning.

Of course he remembered who he was.

Li Nuo, male, Han Chinese, twenty-one years old, a graduate of Xijing University's Law Department. He had just passed the Bar Exam and the Civil Service Exam and become a proud People's Judge... assistant.

He was still only an assistant, but he'd already landed an Iron Rice Bowl at a young age, becoming the most impressive guy among his peers.

The work at a grassroots court was hectic. After two consecutive all-nighters, he'd just finished all the preparations for trial and planned to lie down for a short rest. But the moment he closed his eyes and opened them again, he'd appeared in another place.

A beautiful young girl, holding a knife and trying to kill him.

An old man he'd never seen before, repeatedly referring to himself as "this old servant."

If this was supposed to be a dream, then everything he'd experienced was so vivid and real.

Li Nuo had realized what was happening.

No way. He'd only stayed up two nights in a row. Had he actually died?

Okay, as a modern person who'd been steeped in countless novels and movies, Li Nuo wasn't incapable of accepting the idea of transmigration.

But transmigration was one thing. What was this book floating in front of him?

The book seemed both real and unreal, floating about half a meter in front of Li Nuo.

Li Nuo reached out and waved his hand in front of him. His palm passed straight through the middle of the book without resistance, proving that it had no physical form.

Soon, Li Nuo realized the book looked familiar.

Half a year ago, he'd found an ancient book at a secondhand book market. Its contents were written in small seal script, and as a law student, Li Nuo happened to recognize the two characters on the cover: the seal-script forms of "law" and "code."

After some haggling, Li Nuo had paid the stall owner eighty yuan for the book, planning to use it as a reference for studying ancient laws.

He hadn't ended up using the book for his research, but it made a decent pillow for naps. Before transmigrating, he'd fallen asleep with his head resting on it. Who would've thought the book would cross two worlds with him and appear before him in this form?

Li Nuo glanced at the worried old man. The man didn't seem able to see it.

His gaze returned to the book. The two familiar seal-script characters on its cover, "Code of Law," looked strangely comforting.

Unlike before, there were now two additional lines of small text beneath the title on the cover.

"Name: Li Nuo."

"Lifespan: three days."

Staring at the two new lines on the Code of Law's cover, Li Nuo froze completely.

What was going on? He'd only just transmigrated, and he had only three days left to live?

Hey, new account, don't do this to me...