Night.
The 'illusory sun' at the zenith has already extinguished.
Underneath a massive stone pillar, a stone wall surrounds a courtyard of seven to eight acres in size. A black fortress stands closely against the stone pillar, with patches of luminescent moss and vines clinging to the fortress's outer walls, casting a dim blue and pale green glow that illuminates the entire courtyard. It adds a touch of ancient and desolate atmosphere to this small stone fortress.
Behind the main gate of the courtyard, two oxen clansmen responsible for night duty are sprawled on the ground, snoring heavily. Two roughly-made iron-wheeled war axes are carelessly thrown by their side.
Two grey rock lizards leisurely circled around the wall, their amber eyes glaring at the clansmen each time they passed, impatiently hissing and spitting out long strands of saliva.
The main gate of the stone fortress silently opened.
A slender figure, Wu Tie, walked out. Upon seeing him, the two grey rock lizards quickly crawled over, affectionately licking Wu Tie's palms and the soles of his feet with their tongues. They continued to circle around the wall.
Glancing at the two sleeping oxen clansmen, Wu Tie grinned mischievously and quickly walked around to the back of the stone fortress.
There was a training ground the size of an acre, with all sorts of bulky and heavy equipment scattered across the sandy ground. There were stone locks, stone cauldrons, and large stone balls with long chains. The largest stone ball was much taller than Wu Tie.
Carefully taking off his finely-made linen undergarments, Wu Tie stood in the middle of the training ground, bare-chested. He clenched his teeth and slowly moved his arms and legs, a bit awkwardly, as he faintly and sluggishly executed a set of punches and kicks.
After a short fifteen minutes, Wu Tie, drenched in sweat, gasping for breath, collapsed onto the ground. Veins protruded under his fair skin, with many of them convulsing violently. His muscles spasmed, but he clenched his teeth tightly without making a sound.
The spasms went on for quite a while, and several times Wu Tie almost fainted from the intense pain. However, he gritted his teeth and endured.
When the spasms finally subsided, Wu Tie struggled to stand up, selected the smallest stone lock on the training ground, and tightly hugged it.
Closing his eyes, gritting his teeth, and tensing his muscles, Wu Tie squeezed out his last bit of strength. His body trembled violently, but the stone lock, which was nearly half of his own size, remained motionless.
After exerting himself for a while and exhausting his final bit of strength, Wu Tie abruptly sat down on the ground, both hands hanging uselessly by his sides, and his forehead bumped against the stone lock.
"Some things aren't guaranteed to yield results no matter how much effort you put in," a voice with a slightly hoarse, unusually gentle tone came from the edge of the training ground.
Standing at about five feet tall, with the head of a wolf and the body of a human, dressed in a loose linen robe, with neat grey fur covering his body, Grey Master, carrying a scroll made of animal skin in his hand, slowly walked to Wu Tie's side.
Wise and profound light flickered in his deep eyes. Grey Master gently stroked Wu Tie's sweaty head and spoke in a low voice, "Tai Ping... I remember telling you before. In this world, every person has their unique and irreplaceable value."
Wu Tie raised his head and muttered under his breath, "But... we need to find the right path to realize our value!"
"Yes, the right path!" Grey Master smiled. "However, every time I see you, you're wasting your energy on the wrong path."
"I..." Wu Tie opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but then bit his lip and angrily lowered his head, striking the stone lock with a punch.
His fist hurt, and Wu Tie gritted his teeth, desperately trying not to show any signs of pain.
"Believe me, strength is not the only power," Grey Master looked up. Hundreds of meters above their heads, the black dome pressed down heavily. There was still a long, long time before the 'illusory sun' would light up.
"Since your spirit is so good," Grey Master smiled and sat beside Wu Tie, using his finger to write a long string of characters on the sandy ground. "The long night is sleepless, solving a few arithmetic problems is also good."
He continued, "And this poem, I think it's extremely beautiful. After solving the problems, memorize it with me!"
In the blue and green glow, a furry wolf head wagged from side to side, lightly swaying the scroll in its hand as a handsome young boy recited softly, "A small house hears the spring rain all night long, deep alley, the morning shines to sell apricot blossoms!"
"But, Master... what is an apricot blossom? I have never seen one! No one has ever seen one!" In the quiet night, a frustrated complaint from the young boy sounded.
"But, Tai Ping... apricot blossoms, they definitely exist!" Grey Master spoke gently, with a hint of hoarseness in his voice. He murmured with a look of longing, "Such a beautiful imagery... apricot blossoms, they must exist!"
Click, click. Several sounds came from the dome.
The 'illusory sun,' with a diameter of about thirty meters, emitted a faint red light from the center. Gradually, the red light spread outwards. An hour later, the entire 'illusory sun' was completely lit up, and its warm red light illuminated the Wu Valley for several li.
The dampness brought by the winds from the surrounding mines and tunnels infiltrated the ground during the previous night.
The red light from the 'illusory sun' heated up the Wu Valley quickly. The water vapor evaporated, and a thick white mist rose from the ground, reaching several meters high.
Wu Tie held a cooked mushroom and stood on the watchtower at the entrance of the courtyard, scanning the surroundings.
Inside the Wu Valley, sharp shouts could be heard amidst the cluster of disorderly stone houses. The sound of whips lashing also echoed through the air.
Groups of grey dwarves loudly yelled as they brandished their whips, driving masses of rock dwarves out of their stone houses. Led by two oxen clansmen, accompanied by seven or eight grey wolf warriors, they escorted a group of rock dwarves, delivering baskets of cooked white mushrooms outside the courtyard.
The rock dwarves lined up, each one receiving a mushroom. Expressionless, they quickly swallowed the bitter-tasting mushrooms.
After a short moment, more than a thousand rock dwarves belonging to the Wu family carried various tools and, under the escort of dozens of grey dwarves, formed a column and headed towards a mine outside the Wu Valley.
Not long after, the sound of clanging came with the wind.
A grey rock lizard joyfully leapt out from afar and looked up at the large mushroom in Wu Tie's hand. Observing the direction of the mine, Wu Tie sneered and hummed to himself, "How many of those poor slave dwarves will die today?"
The two oxen clansmen grinned, revealing a mixture of reverence for their young master and a strange bloodthirsty aura. "Meat," one of the oxen clansmen raised his fist and muttered indistinctly.
Wu Tie felt sick to his stomach.
He stuffed the large mushroom in the wide-open mouth of the grey rock lizard three times his own size. The lizard wagged its tail happily, carrying the mushroom and quickly leaping over the courtyard wall.
Grey Master held the scroll and slowly walked up, swaying with each step.
Seeing the grey rock lizard disappear into the distance, Grey Master sighed and shook his head. "That's why cultivation doesn't suit you! Your father and your three older brothers... they would never waste a bit of food!"
"But what about those poor slave dwarves?" Wu Tie sneered, feeling a sourness rising in his throat.
"At least your father and brothers never touched them..." Grey Master spread out his hands and spoke in a serious tone as he looked at Wu Tie. He shook his head vigorously and said, "Tai Ping... your father gave you this name, hoping for a peaceful life for you... but that doesn't mean..."
Wu Tie turned his head, looked in the direction of the mine, and stubbornly said, "Are you saying I'm weak? I am not..."
"This world is cruel, and everyone must adapt to its brutal laws!" Wu Tie mumbled like a tongue twister. "So, I want to cultivate, but you say I'm on the wrong path! Can acquiring knowledge alone kill enemies?"
Facing the courtyard gate, at a distance of over three li and about a hundred meters above the ground, on a vertical rock wall, a cave with a diameter of more than ten meters opened. A grey rock lizard almost the size of four or five Wu Ties suddenly darted out.
A Qinglang warrior, nearly two meters tall, sat on the back of the grey rock lizard, holding a thick iron spear high in his right hand.
A head was impaled on the spear, and when the Qinglang warrior swung his spear, the messy long hair on the decapitated head fluttered, revealing a rough face full of a bushy beard.
"Victory!" The grey rock lizard calmly stopped on the vertical rock wall at a ninety-degree angle, and the Qinglang warrior stood on the lizard's back, emitting a loud howl.
Three more enormous grey rock lizards sprang out of the cave, and three Qinglang warriors laughed heartily, baring their teeth.
In a hurried pace, more than twenty venomous hunting spiders surged out from the cave like a wave. Each hunting spider had a muscular grey dwarf warrior on its back, excitedly swinging their sledgehammers and producing sparks on the surrounding rock walls.
Four cow clan warriors, nearly ten zhang tall, walked out of the cave at a leisurely pace, each carrying a large battle axe.
When they saw the Wu family stone fortress from the distance, the four cow clan warriors let out a loud snort, their large golden nose rings swinging joyfully.
Behind the four cow clan warriors, a twenty-meter-long rock python slithered out lazily. Wu Tie's father, Wu Zhan, crossed his arms while sitting on top of the python, displaying an air of arrogance.
Wu Jin, Wu Yin, Wu Tong, Wu Tie's three older brothers, towering men almost as tall as Wu Zhan, stood on the back of the python. Even from a long distance away, they boisterously laughed out loud.
"Hahaha!" Wu Jin leapt down, causing gusts of wind as he descended from the cave mouth. He forcefully landed on the ground, taking big strides as he ran towards Wu Tie.
Covering a distance of over three li in just a few breaths, Wu Jin bounded onto a five-meter-high wall, spread his arms wide, and embraced Wu Tie fiercely.
"Haha, Tai Ping! Our Wu family has been at odds with the Xiong family for so many years, and now we've finally wiped them out!" Wu Jin laughed heartily, untying a large bag from behind his back and taking out several damaged and ancient animal skin scrolls.
"Who would have thought that the Xiong family also had a book inheritance!" Wu Jin's eyes widened as he handed Wu Tie several scrolls. "Can you believe it? We don't know many characters, and all of these are filled with strange and twisted characters. Take a look, do you like them?"
Grey Master, who was visibly delighted, stood by, his eyes shining. A bit of drool even leaked out of the corner of his mouth.
Wu Tie stared at the scrolls silently.
This wasn't the gift he had been expecting.
This was definitely not the gift he had been expecting.
In his mind, he still saw the image of the head on the spear of the Qinglang warrior.
He remembered three years ago, when this burly man with a bushy beard, Xiong Hu, the head of the Xiong family, had led a group of warriors to raid the Wu family. At that time, Wu Zhan, accompanied by Wu Jin and Wu Yin, had gone out hunting, while Wu Tong, who had stayed behind to guard the house, was critically injured and nearly killed.
"You only brought back this few people?" Wu Tie didn't even look at the scrolls, but instead at the family warriors brought back by Wu Zhan and the rest.
He remembered clearly that when they set out half a month ago, Wu Zhan and the others had taken many more warriors than were currently present. The Wu family had made a concerted effort.
"The Xiong family had over a thousand slave miners, as well as several surrendered warriors and many mines, farms..." Wu Jin handed the scrolls to a delighted Grey Master and said in a carefree manner, "That's why we left some hands on that side. There are a lot of things to take care of over there!"
Wu Zhan and his group arrived at the entrance of the courtyard, waving at Wu Tie. "Tai Ping, bring out all the good food and drinks from the storeroom!"
Wu Zhan laughed heartily, "After swalloing the Xiong family, it took some effort to integrate their power into ours. Heh, Black Wind Valley has been a tempting target for quite a few years... It's such a fertile and oil-rich land!"
"Let's celebrate!" Wu Zhan vigorously raised his fist and burst into laughter.
All the returning Wu family warriors laughed joyfully, and several of the cow clan warriors' muscles trembled from laughter. Some wounds that had just scabbed over burst open, and blood flowed out, but they acted as if nothing had happened.
The light from the 'illusory sun' gradually dimmed.
Several beasts' oil torches were inserted into the courtyard walls. Their grapefruit-sized flames emitted a bright light that overpowered the glow of the night light moss and vines, illuminating the entire courtyard.
Bitter starch liquor made from potato roots was poured bowl after bowl, and large pieces of fatty grilled meat were continually brought over. Large pieces of high-starch root crops were cooked and cut into chunks, haphazardly piled on stone tables.
The Wu family warriors were enjoying themselves, while the lurking rock dwarves secretively scavenged the meat scraps and root crops that the warriors dropped on the ground, quickly cramming them into their mouths.
Bolder dwarves even approached the warriors, eager to take advantage of any spilled alcohol on the stone slabs. They hurriedly lay on the ground, licking up every last drop.
The entire Wu family stone fortress was filled with joyous atmosphere.
Only Wu Tie was at the back courtyard, next to a large water tank, washing the blood-stained head of Xiong Hu carefully with water.
Every strand of hair was brushed neatly. Wu Tie had spent a lot of effort, finally cleaning up this grim trophy.
Heavy footsteps sounded, and Wu Zhan slowly walked over, standing silently behind Wu Tie and observing.
After a long while, Wu Zhan said in a deep voice, "This is our ancestral tradition... cutting off the enemy leader's head and offering it as a sacrifice to our ancestors, in order to bring better luck and prosperity to the family!"
Wu Tie sat cross-legged in front of Xiong Hu's head, his chin supported by his hands, quietly looking at the closed eyes on the head.
"Dad, will there be a day when our heads will be chopped off and become trophies for others to show off their martial skills?" Wu Tie asked seriously.
Wu Zhan was dumbfounded, and then he shook his head and burst into laughter, "How is that possible?"
Proudly patting his chest, Wu Zhan took off a sinew necklace from around his neck, feeling the white fang that was more than a foot long hanging from the necklace. He put it on Wu Tie's neck.
"Hmph, hmph, our Wu family is not to be trifled with." Wu Zhan patted Wu Tie's head, almost slapping Wu Tie to the ground.
"This thing here is called 'Chi You's Fang.' It is a treasure of the Xiong family!"
"When you come of age, I'll take you to visit our family elders!" Wu Zhan raised his head and said, "Right... Your elder brothers have already met their mother... You and your third brother haven't seen your biological mother and younger sister... In a few years, save up some good stuff, and I'll take you to meet her!"
Wu Zhan pointed to the 'Chi You's Fang' hanging from Wu Tie's neck and murmured, "You should play with it for a couple of years. Then, eventually, it won't be surprising if your biological mother confiscates it!"
A strange smile flickered across his face, and Wu Zhan rubbed his waist vigorously. "At that time, we definitely have to bring another brother for you... A little sister would be nice too!"
Wu Tie looked up at Wu Zhan in astonishment.
(End of Chapter 2)