Barbarian Tribe?

Walking between three men who looked like monsters, Bai Yang felt like he was falling apart inside. He had the constant feeling that they might tear him to pieces at any moment, like scraps of paper. Every step left him trembling with fear.

Because they didn't speak the same language, he couldn't figure out who these three men were. Bai Yang could only tell them apart by their builds. In his mind, the strongest young man was labeled "Number One Barbarian." The next was the older, burly man, whom he labeled "Number Two Barbarian." The last one was "Number Three Barbarian."

Much later, after Bai Yang learned the local language, he found out that Number One was called Zhu Zi, Number Two was called Zhao Shi, and Number Three was called Hu Zi...

These three men who looked like monsters taught Bai Yang what it meant to be a thing of violent beauty.

Take the helmet Bai Yang had removed from his head. It was made of metal. He didn't know if it was bulletproof, but if he wanted to break it himself, he'd probably have to put some effort into smashing it with a hammer. Yet while Number Three Barbarian was curiously inspecting it, he accidentally squeezed it into a lump...

Bai Yang's mouth twitched uncontrollably. Faced with the other man's slightly embarrassed glance, he could only put on an expression that said, "Go ahead. I really don't mind"...

Then there was the metal entrenching shovel in Number Two Barbarian's hands. Being a little older, he was quite curious about this multi-purpose tool that could chop, dig, and saw. First he swung it at some old vines and branches, then dug a hole in the ground, and finally took a full swing at a big tree. The shovel's handle snapped, and the blade went flying—who knew where...

"Go ahead. I really don't mind," Bai Yang said, doing his best to force a casual smile. He didn't even know whether the other man understood him.

Number One Barbarian kept eyeing the electric rod in Bai Yang's hand and the pockets on his clothes. First, he wanted to play with Bai Yang's electric rod. Second, he wanted to know if Bai Yang had any more tasty food in his pockets. Somehow, Bai Yang read both desires in his eyes.

There was no way he could hand over the electric rod. He hadn't used it yet, but walking alongside these three human monsters, it was the only thing that gave him even the tiniest bit of security. As for food, he didn't have any on him. Although he could go back and get some whenever he wanted, doing that with three Barbarians watching him was clearly out of the question. So he could only pretend not to notice that hopeful gaze.

Number One Barbarian's weapon was a huge staff—the one he'd used to knock the wild boar over the head. Number Two Barbarian used a great bow. Number Three Barbarian had a weapon, too. He'd been the one riding the wild boar earlier, but he'd apparently lost it somewhere. Bai Yang only saw what he used when the man went back and retrieved it: a huge saber taller than Bai Yang himself...

"Too barbaric! What kind of people are these? I don't know what that bow's limbs are made of, but they're nearly as thick as my arm. How can he draw it so easily? And that staff—he pokes it into the ground and leaves a crater. Does it weigh a hundred pounds? Two hundred? And that saber—are we sure it isn't a door?"

Bai Yang felt completely hopeless. He seriously doubted he'd survive even a minute with these guys...

But the most shocking part was still to come. The giant wild boar was over two meters tall and nearly five meters long. It had to weigh more than a ton, right? Number One Barbarian let out a shout, grabbed one of its legs, and hoisted it onto his shoulder. He wedged his staff beneath the boar to keep it balanced, then walked freely through the forest...

Bai Yang didn't know what to make of these monster-like men anymore. And they were only the first three people he'd met in this world. Who knew what other terrifying creatures might be out there!

"What kind of world is this? Did these three brothers just wander out of some savage tribe from the dawn of time?"

Whoosh... A sharp sound passed by Bai Yang's ear. A gust of wind followed, then a muffled thump came from more than ten meters to his left.

Number Two Barbarian walked past Bai Yang as if nothing had happened, then dragged a python as thick as a man's thigh out from behind some bushes. Its head was gone. He casually draped the nearly six-meter-long snake over his shoulder and kept walking.

Bai Yang swallowed. He couldn't figure out how Number Two Barbarian had spotted the snake...

Perhaps they'd already realized Bai Yang couldn't understand them. The three Barbarians didn't try to talk to him; instead, they chatted among themselves while sizing him up.

"That black stuff was so good. Fragrant, sweet... I wish I could have another piece..." Number Three Barbarian reminisced with a blissful expression, the door-sized saber slung over his shoulder.

"Hu Zi, do you think the delicious stuff we picked up off the ground yesterday, when we found that bowl, was something he'd thrown away? It was so good, and he just tossed it. I want to slap him dead," Number Two Barbarian said. Number One Barbarian was carrying the wild boar. Sweat beaded on his forehead, yet he could still talk normally. It was simply incredible.

"I don't know. Brother Zhao said he was going to take that bowl to town and sell it for a good price, but we accidentally dropped it into the fire and burned it up," Hu Zi said, scratching his head.

"You two, stop thinking about food all the time. Tell me, what kind of person do you think this is? Is it really okay to take him back to the village?" Number Two Barbarian, Zhao Shi, said.

He'd been watching Bai Yang the whole way. Other than his strange clothes and appearance, there wasn't anything special about him. Bai Yang was so pale and baby-faced that Zhao Shi thought he was no stronger than a chicken. Back in their village, a weakling like Bai Yang wouldn't even be able to find a wife.

"Maybe he's the young master of some family in town or the city. A pampered parasite, making no effort to improve himself and without an ounce of strength. I don't know how he even survived in the forest, but the food he carries is pretty good," Number Three Barbarian, Hu Zi, said indifferently.

"Maybe he cultivates the Divine Path and doesn't focus on his physique," Number One Barbarian, Zhu Zi, said with a grunt, the wild boar still on his shoulder.

Number Two Barbarian, Zhao Shi, shook his head. "Doesn't look like it. The Martial Path tempers the body; the Divine Path refines the soul. Even though you can temper your body through the Martial Path without a manual, the Divine Path requires mysterious techniques. Either way, there are always some outward signs. We've never seen anyone cultivate the Divine Path, but he doesn't look like he's cultivated at all."

"Who knows? Let's take him back and see what the village chief decides. I just wonder if this guy's an idiot. He can't even talk—he just babbles nonsense," Number Three Barbarian, Hu Zi, said, scratching his head.

As he spoke, Hu Zi tilted his head and noticed Bai Yang panting as he walked. He couldn't stand watching anymore, so he grabbed Bai Yang by the shoulder, tossed him onto his broad shoulder, and quickened his pace...

Bai Yang nearly wanted to cry. He'd thought the man carrying the wild boar was slowing them down. Turns out Bai Yang himself was the one who couldn't keep up...

They walked through the forest for an hour or two. Bai Yang had no way of calculating how far they'd gone. Along the way, the three Barbarians kept overturning everything he thought he knew. They sprinted up cliffs four or five meters high and easily leaped across ravines seven or eight meters wide...

As far as Bai Yang could tell, nothing could stop them!

Jostled until his head spun, Bai Yang felt woozy. He didn't even know when they'd put him down. When he finally made sense of his surroundings, his eyes went wide.

They were still in the dense forest. Ahead of them was a village built right into the woods. Its outer wall, made of thick logs driven into the ground, stood at least ten meters high!

Standing at the village gate, Bai Yang looked ahead. There were no houses on the ground. Every house was built in the trees at least twenty meters above the ground, and the crisscrossing branches served as paths between them. A clear river more than thirty meters wide flowed through the middle of the village. A massive waterwheel stood in the river, lifting water into a huge tank at least fifty meters above the ground. Bamboo pipes ran through the air from the tank to every treehouse. A pipe from each house led down to a much larger bamboo pipe. That big pipe, studded with small ones, ran across the entire village before slanting down into the river downstream. It was probably for draining wastewater...

On the ground, a hundred or so young boys were grunting and shouting as they trained their bodies. Up in the trees, some monkey-like children leaped from branch to branch. Bai Yang watched in terror. Would they survive if they fell?

"What the hell is this place?" That was the only thought flashing through Bai Yang's mind.

The three Barbarians who'd brought him here shouted something at the top of their lungs. In an instant, a whole crowd appeared from all directions and hurried over, pointing at Bai Yang and muttering among themselves.

Only then did Bai Yang realize that the three Barbarians who'd brought him here were actually within the realm of normal builds. In the crowd, he saw at least twenty men even burlier than the three brothers beside him.

"Heavens, what kind of insane world is this?"

Bai Yang's mind couldn't keep up. He seriously suspected that he'd ended up in a savage tribe from the dawn of time. Were these beast-like people going to cook him in a giant pot next?