Dangerous World

"At the end of this year, we'll be switching to the night shift. Evil forces are running rampant now, appearing even in daylight. What are we supposed to do at night?!"

Tie Dun's worries made Lu Chen's thoughts pause as well.

Barbarians never raised idle mouths, not even orphans.

Before the age of thirteen, the village might support them for a while, but once they turned thirteen, barbarians had to stand on their own.

The Village Guard, the Hunting Team, or some other work—male barbarians had to choose one.

Like the young barbarians A'Chen and Tie Dun before, the two had been automatically assigned to the Village Guard because they were orphans.

At thirteen, they began following the team on daily patrols around the village in exchange for food.

Of course, in the Barbarian Wastes, people—especially male villagers—were among a village's most precious assets and could not be squandered casually.

The village also had some protective measures for barbarian youths who were still relatively weak.

For barbarian youths like A'Chen and Tie Dun, the Patrol Team arranged their patrols during the daytime, making things much safer for them.

After all, beasts, even crazed Barbarian Beasts, were easy enough to guard against. The strange things that emerged at night, however, were difficult to handle. In this world, nighttime was dozens of times more dangerous than daytime.

But likewise, because it was safer, the rewards were far fewer.

"Daytime patrols are basically never dangerous. From thirteen until now, when I'm nearly sixteen, I've only encountered trouble once. If I keep patrolling during the day, the food assigned to me won't even be enough to fill my stomach."

"Besides, I need to fight to gain experience points. For the sake of the future, it looks like I can only patrol at night from now on."

Lu Chen wanted to patrol at night, but his teammate and best friend, Tie Dun, was worried sick.

"Chen, what do you think we should do? Most of the Village Guard's casualties happen at night!"

Listening to Tie Dun's lament, then considering his own plans, Lu Chen clearly felt the difference strength could bring.

"His thoughts are completely different from mine. I want to go out at night, while he fears the night. But I can't blame him. I have strength; he doesn't. That is why he can only be afraid."

"Still, even if I understand him, I don't want to become like him. I have to grow stronger. In this world, the weak die."

Just as Lu Chen continued pondering, Tie Dun spoke again.

"Did you know? Yesterday, someone else was possessed by an Evil Soul in broad daylight. He didn't pull through. He's dead now."

"You're sure it was during the day?"

Even Lu Chen could not ignore news like that.

"Yeah, during the day. He wasn't from our squad, but it happened while he was on daytime patrol too."

After receiving confirmation, Lu Chen's face darkened somewhat.

"Not one incident, but two—and both within such a short time. It seems my attack wasn't an accident. Something has changed in this world. I hope it's only a regional change. If the entire world has changed, then we're in danger."

At the thought that Evil Souls, once active only at night, might begin appearing during the day as well, a chill ran through Lu Chen. Still, despite sensing the crisis, he understood that there was nothing he could change right now.

"Whether it's a regional change or a change to the whole world, neither is something I can solve. All I can do now is raise my strength as quickly as possible. As long as I'm strong enough, I can survive anywhere."

Lu Chen was troubled, and so was Tie Dun beside him.

After worrying for a long while, Tie Dun let out a sigh.

"Ah, if only we could become Barbarian Blood Warriors. A Barbarian Blood Warrior's essence blood can harm Evil Souls."

"And after becoming Barbarian Blood Warriors, we'd automatically be assigned a big house. The village would send people to look after us, and we could even become squad captains in the Patrol Team."

Thinking of the benefits of becoming a Barbarian Blood Warrior, Tie Dun's expression turned excited.

Lu Chen smiled at that as well.

Unlike the Central Plains, where people cultivated inner force, the barbarians of the Barbarian Wastes had very simple cultivation methods apart from the strange witches.

From childhood to adulthood, barbarians tempered their bodies. Once their bodies had been tempered to a certain degree, they would make the blood and vitality throughout their bodies boil and refine, causing a qualitative transformation and thereby increasing their strength.

Barbarians fought with their bodies, with their blood and vitality.

"I have my own path to walk. But the urgent matter is to display the strength of a Barbarian Blood Warrior. That way, I can not only obtain resources, but also gain a certain status."

"Three days from now, I must win. After winning, I'll advance directly to Swordsman, then patrol at night, join battles, and earn experience points."

As Lu Chen chatted with Tie Dun while considering his own way forward, the village's leader and witch had gathered elsewhere.

Judging by their tightly furrowed brows, however, it was clear that nothing good had brought them together for discussion.

"Old Bai, was Hei Zi really killed by an Evil Soul? That happened in broad daylight!"

"Ah."

With a sigh, the Witch Doctor said nothing. Yet the leader of Barbarian Bull Village had already understood Old Bai's meaning, and his brows drew together even more tightly.

Only after a long while did he speak.

"Old Bai, do you think it's possible that some powerful strange entity has come here, causing the other evil forces to riot and become more active?"

Those words made the Witch Doctor Master's expression turn ugly.

"Stop entertaining wishful thoughts. I've already used the Totem Pillar to contact the other villages and the Ancestral Land. This isn't happening only in our area. Turmoil has broken out in many places."

"The evil forces have grown stronger, and there are more of them."

Though he had long expected this result, Da Shi's face still turned ashen when it was confirmed.

If only one region had changed, they could have sought aid from the Ancestral Land. But unrest had erupted everywhere; even if they begged for help, no support would come.

The Ancestral Land did not have enough people. They would certainly prioritize protecting the large villages.

"Then what should we do?"

"Strengthen our defenses and reduce trips outside."

"Our village won't last long like this. People from the Patrol Team keep dying, and the Hunting Team is being attacked more often whenever they go out. But if we don't let the Hunting Team go hunting, we won't have enough food."

The Witch Doctor knew of these difficulties too, but he had no solution. If only one area were dangerous, aside from seeking aid, they could choose to relocate the village.

But now every place was changing. Even if they moved, where could they go?

After thinking for a moment, the Witch Doctor said, "The Ancestral Land is searching for a solution. As for us, we actually have one method as well. We can't hold on, and neither can the other tribes. This winter's market will very likely see some changes."

The Witch Doctor did not say much, but Da Shi, as the Clan Chief, already understood.

Yet hearing this solution brought no joy to his face. Clearly, the changes at the gathering might solve the village's survival problem, but the method would not be a good one.

Looking at the silent Clan Chief, the Witch Doctor suddenly thought of something and smiled.

"Though things are difficult, it's not as if we haven't encountered good news. A'Chen may very well give us a surprise."

At the mention of Lu Chen, even the Clan Chief had a trace of a smile on his face.

"Old Bai, do you think A'Chen has truly awakened his bloodline?"