Bear Hug Tribe Clan Leader Xiong Han and Wave Tribe leader Lang Hou Tian were carried back together by their tribesmen.
When they had first been brought back, their bodies had been charred black, their hair burned into curls, and their clothes covered in soot. Yet they still clutched their weapons so tightly that no one could pry them free.
They looked like two war gods returning from scooping ashes out of a furnace.
Wu Wang led a group of priests and old generals rushing forward to greet them, opening his mouth to call out, "Fa—"
"HAHAHA! What happened to you, Dad? Did you get roasted? Hahaha!"
A sturdy youth draped in a snow-white cloak suddenly bounced out from the side. He stood beside the Wave Tribe leader with his arms folded and threw back his head in laughter.
"You always say I'm dumb, but you're the real dumb one! Something that huge definitely can't be hit in the back—you should've smashed its head!"
Before he could finish, the two charred figures on the wooden frames both trembled a few times, then sat upright with two low growls.
Soot rustled down from their bodies, revealing unscathed bronze skin beneath. Their surging vitality had barely emerged before they drew it back into their bodies, like two ten-thousand-year Fierce Beasts that had taken human form.
Wave Tribe leader Lang Hou Tian glared at the sturdy youth and cursed:
"What are you shouting for? Aren't you afraid of being laughed at? Your dad got beaten up—does that make you proud?"
"True enough." The broad-browed, big-eyed, wide-foreheaded youth thought it over, then turned to charge out of the crowd. "I'll go settle the score for Dad! I'll chop that Fierce Beast to death!"
"Get back here!"
Lang Hou Tian grabbed the youth by the neck and hurled him straight toward more than ten burly men wrapped in white cloaks.
"Keep an eye on him. Don't let him cause trouble!
He shouts all day and acts without a plan. I, Lang Hou Tian, have been wise and brilliant for half my life—how did I end up fathering such a one-track-minded son?!"
Wu Wang: Most likely biological.
He strode forward to the burly man gazing at the Old Chief Priest's mourning hall and called out:
"Father."
"Mm," Xiong Han answered softly, his eyes fixed on the mourning hall, unable to look away.
Look at this Clan Leader...
His sinewy muscles resembled the roots of ancient trees, while his massive frame was like a vicious bear standing upright;
His loose hair was thick, his face square, his brows heavy and eyes bright as stars. A little ash still dusted his thick lips, and at his neck—made to seem short by his excessive bulk—his Adam's apple trembled faintly.
"Did your grandmother say anything at the end?"
Wu Wang turned and called, "Suqing!"
Lin Suqing stepped forward stiffly and said in a low voice, "Senior Old Chief Priest said that the young master was excellent, that the sky was too narrow for him to fly in, and that it was good that there were no gods in the Human Domain."
Xiong Han stood there for a long while without moving.
At the side, Lang Hou Tian, whose build was nearly the same as Xiong Han's, came over and patted Xiong Han's shoulder, consoling him. "Auntie was still smiling when she left. She lived over six hundred years without regrets."
Xiong Han took a breath, raised his hand, and pulled Wu Wang into an embrace, squeezing him hard.
"Don't be afraid. Dad's here.
Dad already heard what happened. You stood up to cover everyone's escape, and you had to face all that when you were only thirteen... Ba'er, if you're scared, just cry.
Dad promises you, I'll avenge the tribesmen who died!"
Lang Hou Tian praised, "This child truly has admirable courage. Cry it out. It's nothing shameful."
The priests and elders around them were all looking at Wu Wang with loving eyes, waiting for the young master to shed the strength he had forced himself to maintain and burst into loud sobs here.
Wu Wang: ...
There was no way he could whimper a few times. Did he still want his dignity? What decent person went around whimpering for no reason?
Lin Suqing whispered from the side, "The young master actually... wasn't that scared."
The two clan leaders turned their heads toward her at once. Their savage auras spread out, frightening Lin Suqing into stumbling several steps backward.
An expert—a terrifyingly powerful Body Cultivation expert!
Lang Hou Tian clicked his tongue in wonder. "Xiong Han, is this your daughter-in-law? Not bad. Did you dare to break tradition and snatch her back from the Human Domain?"
"Who are you?" Xiong Han asked in puzzlement.
"She is!"
Wu Wang seized the chance to wriggle free from his father's arms, let out a long breath, and gestured for Lin Suqing to come closer.
"Father, she is a Human Domain cultivator I happened to save. I hired her as my household tutor to teach me Human Domain poetry, songs, music, and the arts."
Lin Suqing clasped her hands and gave the Daoist salute of a Human Domain cultivator, replying with poised composure:
"Greetings, Clan Leader Xiong!"
This was much less stressful than facing Lord Cangxue.
Xiong Han withdrew his assessing gaze from Lin Suqing and said:
"Remember to eat more meat. Since you're my son's teacher, why are you so skinny from hunger?
If word gets back to the Human Domain and their people think we Northern Wilds humans can't get enough to eat or enough to wear, we'll be humiliated beyond measure."
Lin Suqing could only give an awkward smile.
"A teacher from the Human Domain?"
Lang Hou Tian clicked his tongue in amazement. Turning his head, he shouted, "We should hire a few later too, to teach my son!"
The dozen or so burly men who had followed him answered in unison, while the youth who had just been thrown over looked faintly disdainful.
"What are you competing over? Can you even compete with that?"
Xiong Han snorted and raised his chin. "My son is already a Great Star Sacrifice. He can face a blessed Fierce Beast head-on."
Lang Hou Tian shook out his beast-hide robe. "My son chopped down a thousand-year-old lümi just yesterday. See this robe? Made yesterday. Thousand-year beast hide can even ward off fire."
Xiong Han said, "My son made light crossbows when he was five, so the tribesmen could save their strength while hunting."
Lang Hou Tian snorted. "My son chopped through a pack of Mengji beasts when he was five. He went in and out seven times and killed them all by himself."
"When my son was seven, he made granaries to store food, so the tribesmen would have no worries behind them."
"Xiong Dummy! Are you determined to compete with me?!"
"You're the one insisting on competing with me. Were you always unhappy that Cang Xue married me?"
With a bang, the two clan leaders slammed their foreheads together. Both wore ferocious expressions as they rapidly rattled off their sons' glorious accomplishments.
It was as though two oxen floated behind them, their bellies swelling larger and larger.
Wu Wang looked helplessly toward the other person involved, only to find that the latter had his chest puffed out and chin raised, seeming... rather pleased with himself.
That was the proper bearing of a Northern Wilds young master.
Lin Suqing could not help raising a hand to her forehead. She suddenly felt that her own young master was entirely a clear stream amid the Northern Wilds.
Seeing that the two big shots had only singed some hair and were not injured, Wu Wang finally relaxed and began considering what he would say later.
How could he persuade his own father to listen to him?
Sure enough, he would have to make appropriate use of the "dream visitation" method...
Then he suddenly heard:
"My son Xiong Ba will one day soar to heaven and burrow into earth! He'll dare drink with the Star Gods!"
"My son Xing Tian will one day fight his way to Zhongshan and chop down Zhongshan's Heavenly Emperor!"
Wu Wang suddenly felt powerless to mock them.
Zhongshan, the central region of the Great Wilderness world, was said to stretch for countless tens of thousands of miles. It held innumerable famous mountains and great rivers, along with many immensely powerful races.
The Heavenly Emperor was Zhongshan's ruler and the most renowned Primordial Deity of the Great Wilderness's Nine Wilds. According to legend, his name was Di Jun. He controlled everything in Zhongshan and was acknowledged as the strongest of all Primordial Deities.
That bragging was going too far. Their Northern Wilds tribes found it difficult even to go to sea, yet the Wave Tribe's young master would someday go chop... chop...
Wait, Xing!
Wu Wang nearly blurted out, "Which Xing Tian?"
"Me!"
The Wave Tribe's young master stepped out from the side, arms folded and chin lifted. His broad brows slanted upward, his nose bridge stood high, and his already sturdy figure radiated intense masculine vigor.
With his hands on his hips, he laughed twice for no reason:
"I'm Xing Tian! Hahaha! You're my little brother Xiong Ba, right? Follow your big brother from now on—your brother's got your back!"
Xing Tian?
Wu Wang had not known much about myths and legends in his past life, but he had heard that great name more than once.
Xing Tian danced with shield and axe; his fierce will endured forever.
But Xing Tian seemed to have been a fierce man who contended against the Yellow Emperor. In the current Human Domain, the two Human Emperors praised by the world were "Fire Emperor Suiren Shi" and "Heavenly Emperor Fuxi Shi," while the current Human Emperor was "Shennong Shi."
Since Shennong Shi was still alive, there was no "Emperor" prefix before his name.
According to news circulating in the Human Domain, Shennong Shi had not appeared for more than eight hundred years. Perhaps when he next showed himself, a new Human Emperor would take the throne.
Shennong was the Flame Emperor, so would the Human Emperor who succeeded him be the Yellow Emperor?
Although Wu Wang could not determine what connection existed between the Great Wilderness world and the mythological tales passed down in his homeland;
The information he had gathered already proved that the two were definitely linked.
If he reasoned from that angle, Xing Tian was the young master of the Northern Wilds' largest tribe and would one day contend against the future Human Emperor of the Human Domain...
Hiss. Would the two great northern and southern forces of humanity meet in Zhongshan?
Could the mythological era he was now living in be the transition from Flame Emperor to Yellow Emperor, the rise of the Human Domain?
Would he perhaps even witness the Yellow Emperor's battle against Chi You later?
He had spent twelve or thirteen years here, so why had he never asked what the young masters of other tribes were called?
Could this Xing Tian truly be that fierce man who contended with the Yellow Emperor, had his head blown off by the Yellow Emperor yet did not die, and used his navel as a mouth and his breasts as eyes?
"Hehe~"
A head slowly poked out from the side and filled Wu Wang's vision, its owner constantly waggling his brows.
"What do you think, little brother Xiong Ba? I'm two years older than you, so I'm perfectly suited to be your big brother, right? Look, my neck can stretch this long. Impressive, isn't it?"
Black lines covered Wu Wang's forehead. He nearly slapped the head down.
He was overthinking it. He was overthinking it.
The Xing Tian of myth was so mighty—how could he possibly be this idiot?
It was already morning.
Xiong Han and Lang Hou Tian sat in the seats of honor drinking. The two young masters were arranged at a side table, drinking together to deepen their bond.
The Quanrong Tribe's Clan Leader and ten experts had just arrived. They had human bodies and dog heads, excelled at using long blades and slender edges, and were now seated among the guests, drinking alongside the human experts of the Bear Hug and Wave Tribes.
The other four tribes were still on the road. By noon, everyone would be assembled to begin the battle.
Naturally, Lin Suqing had no place in such a grand occasion. She was still keeping vigil for Wu Wang and burning paper offerings for his great-grandmother.
Behind Wu Wang and Xing Tian sat another low table. A sturdy little girl with two braids sticking straight upward sat there. Though she had built a body full of knotted muscles at such a young age, her little face remained quite delicate.
She was Lang Xing Tian's younger sister, the Wave Tribe's second heir, Lang Gudu.
"Hey, little brother."
Xing Tian rested one hand on Wu Wang's shoulder and said earnestly, "In the Northern Wilds, only our two tribes are human tribes. If we aren't brothers, then who will be brothers?
Even though we're far apart, when something happened to you, weren't we the first ones to rush over?"
Wu Wang nodded solemnly and declared, "Our two tribes have watched over and aided one another since ancient times. We must continue to support each other in the future. May I ask what your ambition is, big brother?"
The experts of both tribes who saw this immediately revealed gratified expressions.
"HAHAHAHA!"
Xing Tian slapped Wu Wang's back as he laughed heartily. Wu Wang felt his blood and vitality churn, and he nearly coughed up blood.
That strength in his hand was truly lethal.
"That's more like it! Hahaha!
From now on, you're my little brother, and I'm your big brother. If anyone bullies you, come find me!
As for ambition, have you heard the story of Kuafu Chasing the Sun?"
"Cough, cough cough. Of course I have."
"Kuafu was a mighty man of our Northern Wilds. He went to Zhongshan to make his mark and even raced the sun. Though he was eventually ambushed and killed by the Heavenly Emperor's son, he left behind a legend, and his tribe was renamed the Kuafu Tribe because of it."
Light Wu Wang could not comprehend gleamed in Xing Tian's eyes.
He said, "One day, your big brother will do something earthshaking too, so that our Wave Tribe will be renamed after me!"
Understanding instantly dawned in Wu Wang's heart...
Brother, you would accomplish that—only your head would be gone.
"Come, I'll toast big brother!"
"Drink! In a while, big brother will go chop down that Zhuhuai and vent little brother's anger!"
Wu Wang raised his large bowl and clinked it against Xing Tian's. He casually found a topic that required little thought and began chatting with this big brother of his.
"Young master diplomacy."
After three rounds of wine, General Xiong San called Wu Wang away, and the pre-battle bustle began.
Wu Wang needed to command the Giant Wolf Riders to assemble several small contraptions, then divide the priests who would join the battle into different teams according to the Star Invocation Techniques they excelled in.
Start the raid, form the teams!
Wu Wang also wanted to wave his hand and make the giant beast vanish in smoke, then pull up his pants—ptui—let out a satisfied burp and say it was nothing much;
But to eliminate a giant beast of this level without paying a grievous price was already the limit of what they could strive for.
Amid the busy work, Wu Wang also drew the attention of experts from the other tribes.
They watched him continuously issue orders to a group of priests and arrange their formations;
They watched him light the ancient runes on iron frames one by one;
Then they watched him arrange for priests to pray and chant blessings over wooden arrows as thick as a person...
"Clan Leader, will the Bear Hug Tribe's priests also attack the blessed Fierce Beast?"
"Why is this different from what our own priests believe in?"
"Don't pry into other people's business," the Quanrong Tribe Clan Leader snapped at one of his generals. "Do we have such handsome heads and such soft fur to keep out the cold? Do these humans have that?"
The Quanrong Tribe experts immediately felt much more balanced inside and revealed the smiles of Northern Wilds Shiba dogs.
At noon, drums thundered over the grasslands.
Horns sounded without cease as four more waves of powerful reinforcements arrived in succession. Nearly a hundred experts from the Seven Great Northern Tribes gathered together, half men and half women, every one of them built like a mountain.
When this group sat together, the surging blood vitality nearly overturned the great tent.
Outside the tent, Wu Wang stuffed a sheepskin into his father's hand. Xiong Han focused his eyes and looked...
"What was that? 'Today, our tribe faces such a challenge; thank you to all the heroes of the Northern Wilds for coming to lend us a hand'? Why bother with that? Just go in and say it!"
"Father, I'm the young chief. You're the leader."
"Won't you be the leader someday too? Isn't it only a matter of time?"
Xiong Han shot Wu Wang a glare. Before Wu Wang could argue, he flung open the tent flap and strode inside.
"Today's battle will be commanded by my son!"
The gathered experts frowned as they looked at Wu Wang, who still clearly carried a hint of boyishness, and hesitated somewhat.
Xiong Han added, "The giant crossbows I promised you are ready. Once the battle is over, they're yours!"
"Yeah—"
A thunderous roar erupted from within the tent.
Done.
Wu Wang drew a soft breath. The hesitation vanished from his eyes, replaced by a firm expression as he stepped into the main tent.
"Everyone, let's first understand this giant beast's physical structure. We need to find the weaknesses we can strike, as well as the vital areas that might allow us to kill it in a single blow."
And so, an hour later.
War drums boomed deafeningly, and the horn calls joined into one unbroken sweep.
Countless Giant Wolf Riders galloped back and forth across the grasslands, while the trembling rumble of the earth gradually fell still.
Burly men carried several-zhang-long ballistae on their shoulders, drawing as close as possible to where the giant beast's back lay and entering the designated fire-support zones.
Priests rode atop flying bats or sat in wooden chairs carried by four men, moving in groups toward their predetermined positions.
Nearly a hundred experts from the seven great clans of the Northern Wilds received the priests' blessings, lighting up the weapons in their hands and stirring their blood and vitality.
Streams of blood and vitality rose like wolf-smoke into the sky, nearly dyeing the heavens red!
Wu Wang put on his young chief's helmet. Ice wings unfolded from his back as he hovered directly above the giant beast with a group of priests.
He raised a hand, and his voice carried across a hundred li.
"Gather ice, summon wind!"
The priests formed hand seals and chanted in unison. Waves of bone-chilling cold gathered beneath them, and a majestic iceberg took shape at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Everyone knew this giant beast could not possibly be brought down easily. The first wave of attacks had to inflict as much damage upon it as possible.
What Wu Wang did not notice was that, in one of the few shining moments of his thirteen years of life, a young girl was looking up at him, imprinting his somewhat slender figure in her heart.
"Second Brother looks so impressive. What's so good about the Star Invocation Technique?"
Unable to join the battle, Lang Xing Tian picked up a Human Domain specialty, a citrus fruit, and took a bite. He failed to notice the light shining in his little sister's wide eyes.
Before you continue