Learning a 'Foreign Language' Was Important

It was already night here, but Bai Yang had only been up for a short while. Even though he was a heavy sleeper, he wasn't the least bit sleepy now.

They said long nights made for sleepless hours. He felt that if he didn't do something, he'd be wasting time and wasting his life. That would be shameful!

Then he looked at the gorgeous girl, who wore a shy expression, and smiled. It was the sort of smile that showed he had real potential as a bad guy...

He walked over to the bed and sat down, then lifted the thick, furry hide—he had no idea what animal it came from—and patted the space beside him, beckoning the girl over.

A sense of shame was the true mark of humanity's entry into civilization. Faced with Bai Yang's blatant "hint," the gorgeous girl blushed, despite having already prepared herself. They couldn't understand each other's language, but surely her watery eyes and shy, flushed face couldn't be an expression of anger, right?

She swayed over on her long legs, her hips rocking as she sat beside Bai Yang. She didn't dare look at him and lowered her head slightly, seeming to tremble all over. At any rate, Bai Yang could hear that her breathing had grown irregular.

"I just didn't want to waste time while it's dark. I want you to teach me how to speak your language. What are you so nervous about?"

Bai Yang looked at her from inches away, speechless inside...

The girl noticed he wasn't trying to pounce on her like she'd imagined. She glanced at Bai Yang in surprise, only to find him staring back at her with a baffled expression...

The atmosphere grew awkward in an instant.

Bai Yang wasn't an idiot, of course. The girl was acting like, "You can do whatever you want to me." If he couldn't understand that, he really would be a ****.

But the problem was, he just couldn't bring himself to do it. There was no denying that she was gorgeous: long legs, a slender waist, a curvy backside, a full chest, and a beautiful, completely natural face. She was about a meter seventy tall, but from her looks, she seemed no older than fifteen or sixteen. Could he really bring himself to touch her?

Besides, he couldn't communicate with her at all. He didn't even know her name. What would it mean if he did something with her? Even if you went to a brothel to take care of your needs, you'd at least have to exchange a few words with the woman. The two of them had only met twice, and hadn't said a single word to each other. Bai Yang just couldn't bring himself to do anything with her...

After babbling away and gesturing like a madman for nearly an hour, Bai Yang finally got the girl to understand that he wanted her to teach him to speak the local language.

His heart was exhausted. It was incredibly difficult to express anything complicated when they couldn't understand each other and there was no interpreter...

Once she understood what Bai Yang meant, the girl seemed relieved—but, to his surprise, she looked even more disappointed, with a hint of reproach!

"What kind of customs do they have here? Why are the girls so direct and bold? Don't their families do anything about it?"

Looking at her expression, Bai Yang was utterly at a loss for words.

What followed was a painful learning experience. Bai Yang felt as though he'd gone back to being a baby. He couldn't understand what she said or what she was trying to express, and the local language's pronunciation was incredibly strange and tongue-twisting. The whole process was pure agony.

"Back in the day, I managed to pass the college entrance exam under my mom's stick. There's no way learning a 'foreign language' will beat me!"

Grimly resolved, Bai Yang studied with absolute seriousness.

After all, he was an adult. His self-control was nothing like that of a restless child. And language was crucial to exploring this world, so he couldn't afford to be careless. Once he applied himself, his efficiency was still pretty good.

In one night, he memorized more than a dozen words—or perhaps just sounds—and managed to pronounce them with difficulty. He had no idea what they meant, though. Clearly, she wasn't much of a teacher...

When the sky outside began to brighten, Bai Yang secretly took out his phone and glanced at it. Sixteen or seventeen hours had already passed.

"I spent all that time and only memorized a dozen sounds whose meanings I don't even know? I remember learning English vocabulary back then—I could memorize over a hundred words in one night."

Well, it wasn't quite fair to compare. This was an entirely new civilization, and his "teacher" had no formal teaching experience. They couldn't even communicate. Memorizing a dozen sounds was already pretty good—if he didn't forget them afterward...

What Bai Yang didn't know was that more than ten people had spent the entire night waiting in the trees outside his room. Not a single sound they'd hoped to hear came from inside, and after daybreak, they all left in disappointment...

Despite the long, tedious hours of study, Bai Yang found that he wasn't sleepy at all.

Instead, after a night of "communication," the girl had become much more at ease around him. Still, every so often she'd shoot him a reproachful look that left Bai Yang crying out for mercy...

After daybreak, the girl left. She returned not long afterward, carrying a small wooden tray with roast meat, a wooden bowl, chopsticks, and a little knife.

"Why is it roast meat again? Can't we eat something else?"

Though he was speechless inside, faced with the girl's pitiful expression—as if she'd burst into tears if he didn't let her serve him—Bai Yang could only enjoy another meal where the food was brought right to his mouth, like some grand lord...

After the meal, a chorus of shouts caught Bai Yang's attention. He pushed open the window and looked outside, studying the scene with curiosity.

On a flat patch of ground, several dozen boys stood in a crooked formation, following the movements of a burly man at the front. Each time they moved, they let out a shout.

"Are they practicing martial arts?"

Bai Yang found the thought strange as he watched. It seemed all the more likely when he saw the boys' muscular bodies and the force behind their punches and kicks.

Bai Yang noticed that while the boys practiced their punches, dozens of burly men were busy nearby. Some wielded stone weights as big as millstones with fancy flourishes. Others punched a tree trunk, making it thud loudly. Some swung broadswords and long staffs with a fierce whoosh, while others drew bows and fired arrows that let out piercing whistles...

"Have I landed in a martial arts world? Is everyone here a martial artist?"

Bai Yang felt his brain couldn't keep up. Then he realized that he absolutely had to learn about life here in more detail.

About two hours later, the people on the open ground scattered in every direction. Not long after, the burly men left the village in groups of two or three, each carrying a weapon and heading into the forest. Bai Yang guessed they were going hunting.

He turned to the girl, who had stayed behind him the whole time, and spent ages talking and gesturing like a madman. At last, she understood that he wanted her to show him around the village.

The girl happily led Bai Yang downstairs, chattering away and pointing things out as she introduced them. Her voice was lovely, but Bai Yang had no idea what she was saying.

It was a simple, busy village. Hunters returning from expeditions brought back their prey, then hurried off again. The boys were led by some rough-handed women in processing the animals.

They handled the hides simply: they scraped off the fur, rubbed ash from the firewood onto it, and left it in the sun to dry. Well, the place they dried the hides was up in the branches above the village...

Their way of preparing the meat was even more primitive. They didn't salt it at all, but smoked it directly over a fire made from some wood Bai Yang didn't recognize. The meat turned black and oily, then hung in the trees to dry, carrying a peculiar fragrance. It looked as if the trees were growing chunks of meat instead of branches and leaves.

Some women went to the forest not far from the village to gather fruit that Bai Yang didn't recognize. It was only after watching closely that Bai Yang realized they added some unknown plants to the fruit in a fixed proportion, sealed everything in black clay jars, and left them in the sun. It reminded Bai Yang of the liquor that had knocked him flat with a single bowl...

Some little kids, looking like mud monkeys, worked with the old folks by the river, pounding some unfamiliar plants while naked as the day they were born. Bai Yang actually guessed that they were extracting plant fibers to make cloth!

And so on. The place was simple and natural. Every time Bai Yang passed by, the villagers greeted him with friendly smiles before babbling away at him. Bai Yang always smiled and nodded.

In truth, he had no idea what they were trying to say...

After making a full circuit, Bai Yang had a general understanding of their way of life.

All in all, it was a simple village that relied mainly on hunting and did almost no farming, with a relatively primitive lifestyle. Their productivity in other areas was extremely low. Bai Yang hadn't seen any industry at all, and most of their utensils were rough earthenware or wooden goods. He suspected they hadn't even made those themselves!

Still, Bai Yang was certain this wasn't some primitive, uncivilized society. The weapons carried by the hunters who went out to hunt made that perfectly clear.

"What kind of world is this? Individual combat strength is off the charts, but productivity is low. They're simple and honest, but 'savage' would be a more accurate description. Until I've learned the local language, I'd better not recklessly leave this village to explore the wider world beyond..."