The Wind of the Northern Wilderness

The Bear Hug Tribe had been the last to learn that their young chief was the one destined to seek the scriptures.

For a time, the elders of the tribe sighed long and hard, burly men teared up, and young maidens wept themselves unconscious;

While everyone expressed their reluctance to see the young chief leave on an adventure, they also anxiously kept asking when he would set out.

They were not afraid of the calamities to come; they simply wanted to know what the Star God True Scripture looked like.

It was not that Wu Wang had not considered slipping away in secret, but upon a little thought, he realized that if people discovered the young chief had been absent from the tribe for years, it would inevitably spark all sorts of speculation.

Using "going abroad to study" as an excuse would also make it easy for other clans to attack him, claiming he had turned his back on the Star God's embrace.

This current method had the smallest impact, made it convenient for him to return whenever he wished, and gave the entire tribe a reason to feel at ease.

The Star God had sent him out to seek the true scripture—would the god not protect him along the way?

Wu Wang had not told any tribespeople other than his parents that he was heading to the southern Human Domain. He had also tried his utmost to downplay the matter, lest people think the Bear Hug Tribe had joined forces with the humans of the Human Domain...

Every aspect had to be considered. Though this young chief seemed incomparably glorious, he actually bore many responsibilities and restrictions.

But it felt great.

That day, General Xiong San came to ask Wu Wang when he would leave the Northern Wilderness, and Wu Wang set his departure for one month later.

Over the next month, Wu Wang wanted to spend more time with his parents. After all, before he became a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator and obtained a magic artifact capable of sustained Skyward Flight, it would be difficult for him to return to the Northern Wilderness.

Though Wu Wang was confident he was second to none among his peers, no one could predict the path of cultivation, so he could not set an exact date of return.

To the outside world, they would declare, "The road to seeking the true scripture is fraught with hardship. None can say what year or month he will return."

Tsk, it had a little of that Imperial Brother Monk flavor.

The experiences of Ji Mo, Ling Xiaolan, and their group had also affected Wu Wang deeply.

Clearly, Ji Mo's teacher—the middle-aged scholar who had appeared aboard the ship for only a brief while—had been nearby. According to his mother, that man's cultivation was at least at the True Immortal Realm, though he carried hidden injuries.

Yet the other party had simply stood by and watched them die, allowing more than ten promising cultivators to be slaughtered.

The crux of that trial had actually lain with Ling Xiaolan and Ji Mo. Ling Xiaolan had failed to react in time, and despite her Leaping God Realm cultivation, she had failed to display its proper effect. That was the most important reason the trial had failed.

Why had he not saved them?

Was a so-called trial truly more important than human lives?

Wu Wang found that somewhat unacceptable. Thus, he had no favorable impression whatsoever of the force Ji Mo represented or those "Pavilion Elders," and became even more determined that once he reached the Human Domain, he would change his identity and cultivate quietly in pursuit of the Dao.

Of course, Brother Ji Mo himself was decent enough. Aside from concealing the fact that he carried an "old grandpa" around with him, he had been fairly sincere in all other respects.

The key was that he knew how to conduct himself.

According to Lin Suqing, the Human Domain was peaceful, harmonious, and incomparably prosperous. As long as ordinary cultivators did not court death, they could steadily reach their own cultivation bottlenecks. By then, they could either dedicate themselves at the borderlands or find a place to slowly grow old and live carefree.

But the Human Domain Ji Mo and the others had shown Wu Wang was cruel, and it carried an oppressive air of anxiety.

That was right—anxiety.

Wu Wang pondered for a day and night. Combining the information he knew, he finally arrived at a reasonable guess.

The reason the Human Domain's trials were so brutal was that they urgently wanted to nurture "great generals" capable of standing on their own.

In other words, the decision-makers of the Human Domain were under immense pressure, while ordinary cultivators who could not reach that circle still lived in the false golden age woven by the former.

Then, considering the rumors even the Northern Wilderness had heard—that the current Human Emperor of the Human Domain had not shown himself for more than eight hundred years, while a new Human Emperor had yet to rise...

Wu Wang secretly shook his head.

—This was the chain of problems caused by an unclear successor to a major power in an environment like the Great Wilderness.

He went alone to live on the Great Snow Mountain for half a month, listening to Mother nag him for half a month.

Wu Wang discovered that he and his mother still had endless things to discuss, such as restructuring the Star God Cult, how to balance the clans of the Northern Wilderness, and how to diminish the differences between humans and other races so that humans would not come to be revered above all in the Northern Wilderness.

That would invite endless trouble.

Cang Xue's eyes always held inexhaustible tenderness, but behind that tenderness lay a sea of stars, concealing too much that could not be seen through.

Before leaving the snowy mountain, Wu Wang solemnly handed his mother the ideas he had written down regarding how to break the Star God's Blessing.

Cang Xue said nothing more. She merely raised a hand and rubbed the Ice Crystal Film... outside Wu Wang's head.

Wu Wang smiled. "Mother, I'm not a child anymore."

"No matter how old you are, you are still Mother's child," Cang Xue said softly. "Take good care of yourself outside. Mother will not see you off that day. If things do not go your way out there, come back to the Northern Wilderness."

"Mm." Wu Wang agreed, "Mother, take care of yourself too."

Cang Xue nodded with a smile. Wu Wang lowered his head in a bow, turned and left through the wooden door, then leaped onto the Snow Eagle's back.

On the night Wu Wang returned to the Royal Court, the chief's procession arrived there as well, yet Xiong Han refused to see his only son. Father and son remained locked in a standoff for half a month.

Tomorrow was the day of departure. Just after darkness fell, General Xiong San came hurrying over again.

"Young Chief, how many people are you planning to bring along on this journey to seek the scriptures?"

Wu Wang said, "Lin Suqing, Senior Daoist Zuo Dong, and I will be enough."

"Not bringing a single one?"

Old Third Xiong's eyes nearly popped out. "At the very least, you ought to bring me! If you bring nobody and run into a powerful enemy, two fists can't beat four arms—how can that do!"

Wu Wang smiled. "If I meet a powerful enemy, I'll spread my wings and flee at once."

"Then who'll pour you wine and bring you water?"

"No one."

"What about people to play music, sing, dance, and bounce around?"

"No one either."

"You still have that strange illness!"

General Xiong San was so anxious he nearly whistled. "What if some woman harbors improper designs toward you? If I were at your side, I could punch her flying!

If you faint, it'll all be over!"

Wu Wang said seriously, "I carry an arduous mission and cannot betray the Star God's trust. Besides, General San, look."

As he spoke, Wu Wang took two masks from his robes and laid them flat before Old Third Xiong. He then demonstrated his protective measures with the Ice Crystal Film.

The two masks were identical in style, both half-masks that covered the upper half of the face. Yet they were made of some special material; they looked exceptionally smooth, but felt frosted to the touch.

Wu Wang put on the mask, and his face actually "swelled" by thirty percent. Then, before General Xiong San's eyes, he made his body thirty percent more robust and tied his long hair into the shape of a Daoist headband.

His aura, features, and physique became entirely different from before.

"How is it?"

Wu Wang smiled. "As long as I keep a low profile and do not join in any excitement, who could recognize me?

Besides, only a handful of people in the Human Domain have seen me. Once I leave our tribal lands, even without a mask, few people would recognize me.

General San, there is no need to worry. I value my life dearly."

The main reason for not bringing guards was that cultivation was the loneliest of paths, particular about the saying, "In the mountains, one knows not the passing of years; in immortal cultivation, one knows not the passing of time."

He himself could run two cards on dual standby, using the Star Invocation Technique while cultivating immortal arts. His lifespan would continuously increase, so spending a hundred or eighty years on cultivation would not be a problem.

But the guards who followed him only had so much lifespan. If their finest years were wasted in the Human Domain, it would be too unfair to those attendants and too cruel to their partners.

"This..."

General Xiong San frowned and scratched his head. In the end, he could only sigh and lower his head as he withdrew.

Wu Wang told him not to leak the news, and General Xiong San repeatedly agreed.

What else needed preparing?

Wu Wang sat behind his desk and looked around the wooden hut. The bookcases and wardrobes had mostly been moved away already.

In the blink of an eye, so many years had passed. It truly felt rather strange.

It was time for another farewell.

A few images spread through Wu Wang's heart. In an utterly ordinary low-roofed house, he was picking at the specially prepared meal box before him, looking at the two photographs placed in front of him.

The reason he had stood out among all the volunteers, aside from ranking near the top in every training category, was another important factor: he had little to leave behind.

Everyone knew this had originally been a mission with ten deaths and no life, and no one knew what sort of situation they would face.

But there was no choice. Their technological strength was insufficient, so they could only use their limited resources for a comparatively risky exploration.

What gave Wu Wang a little peace of mind was that the final feedback he received after entering the wormhole was that it had stopped approaching Blue Star and rapidly collapsed.

"Young Chief?"

Lin Suqing poked her head in and asked, "Is there anything else to pack? I still have two empty Storage Treasures here."

"No need."

Wu Wang let out a breath, blinked hard, then lifted a hand to rub his nose. "Go get some rest."

"All right." Lin Suqing blinked, slowly closed the wooden door, and quietly returned to the neighboring hut.

Yet before long...

"How can you not bring guards! How can you go without guards!"

Xiong Han's booming voice came from outside the wooden door. Wu Wang hurriedly went out to wait, welcoming his father, whose face was written all over with I'm damn angry, into the wooden hut.

Xiong Han still strongly opposed Wu Wang going to the Human Domain, but the head of the household had already spoken, so he had no way to stop him.

Moreover, all of the Northern Wilderness was now full of rumors about "Xiong Ba, the scripture seeker." Xiong Han could no longer stop his son.

The moment he entered, Xiong Han slapped the table, sat down, and said not a word. Only father and son remained in the room.

Naturally, Wu Wang served tea and water, kneaded his father's shoulders and pounded his legs, coaxing him with a smiling face.

Xiong Han remained silent for a long while. Several times he tried to speak, only to swallow his words back. Finally, he said in a low voice:

"Is the Human Domain really that good?"

"Father, calm down." Wu Wang knocked on the wall. Next door, Lin Suqing immediately activated the Soundproof Array, enveloping this wooden hut within it as well.

He leaned over and kneaded his father's shoulders, hard as stone, smiling as he said, "Isn't your son going to find a way to live longer? Perhaps I can let both you and Mother live for thousands more years."

"What use is that? Wouldn't that make us old immortals who refuse to die?" Xiong Han muttered.

Wu Wang hurriedly said, "Once my cultivation is high enough, returning will become easy. I'll secretly come back to see you and Mother. Father, rest assured—you know your son's talent. Something like the Nascent Soul Realm is beneath my notice."

"Pah! Do you think your father doesn't know how hard it is to cultivate a Nascent Soul?"

"I know a friend named Ji Mo. It took him decades just to reach the Nascent Soul Realm."

Xiong Han cursed, "Then you still can't go without guards!"

"Father, bringing guards would make it hard to hide my tracks," Wu Wang said. "Before I reach the Human Domain, I intend to part ways with Lin Suqing and her master, then sneak off to find a great sect and obtain their cultivation techniques.

And Father, have you read the plan I wrote for you?"

"I read some of it. What kind of nonsense did you write!"

Xiong Han grumbled, "Why must we select some young men and women from the tribe and send them to the Human Domain?

Cultivation takes so long, and the power they gain is not much stronger than the Star Invocation Technique gained through praying to the Star God."

"But the nature of that power is different," Wu Wang said. "A powerhouse like Father, with vigorous blood and qi and strength enough to lift mountains, was also shaped by the Star God's baptism. At its root, it is still an extension of the Star Invocation Technique.

But Father, have you considered this? If one day the Star Invocation Technique stops working, how will we fight Fierce Beasts?"

Xiong Han shook his head. "In the Northern Wilderness, failing to follow the Star God's will would cause a great disaster."

"That is why Father must secretly send people, and they must be trustworthy," Wu Wang said. "Those sent need not return. Treat it as a long-term investment."

"I'll think about it."

Xiong Han sighed. "You just... forget it. Go, then. Your mother has already agreed. What else can I say?"

With that, Xiong Han stood.

"Leave quietly by yourself, so no one discovers your whereabouts and ambushes you on the road."

"Mm."

Wu Wang answered, his voice trembling slightly. "Your son has been unfilial..."

"If you can return when your mother and I are old, then you are not unfilial. Take this."

Xiong Han drew a longsword from his robes and tossed it onto Wu Wang's desk.

"Picked it up by the roadside. People over in the Human Domain use swords more often. If you use hammers and axes, it'll be easy for people to tell you came from the Northern Wilderness.

Don't meddle in other people's business when there's nothing to do. On their turf, fight less with them. Whatever happens, endure it.

Fine, fine. I still need to inspect the border."

With that, Xiong Han lowered his head and hurried away. That towering body swiftly melted into the night, leaving only a long sigh behind.

Wu Wang pressed his lips together and stood quietly outside the hut for a while. Then he walked forward, turned, and looked at the two wooden huts.

With a raised hand, the sheathed longsword flew into his palm. He drew it three inches, and a crisp sword cry rang around his ears. The blade bore the character for snow, its body like silver-white crystal glass, streams of starlight flowing across it...

One could pick up a treasured sword forged from Star Ore by the roadside?

Clang.

The sword returned to its sheath. Wu Wang called to Lin Suqing, who stood at the entrance of the neighboring hut:

"Let's go."

Shortly after, the two wooden huts beside the river burst into flames, serving as a farewell to those who knew.

Wu Wang and Lin Suqing sat at the rear of the wooden boat controlled by Daoist Zuo Dong, swiftly vanishing into the night sky.

At daybreak, aboard the southbound ship.

Wu Wang stood on the rear deck and gazed north. As the night faded, his heart gradually settled into calm.

Suddenly, he saw a carriage racing along the shore. The four Frost Wolves pulling it rushed to a cliff overlooking the sea, their howls rising and falling one after another, as though calling for him to return.

From afar, he could still see his mother standing amid the clouds. But the wind of the Northern Wilderness gently blew through, and that figure quietly faded away.

The first half of Volume One, "The Wind of the Northern Wilderness," had ended. To be continued.

Preview of the second half:

One: "I am Wuwangzi, a mere minor cultivator. As for why I am sitting in your bathing tub, young lady, I believe you can give me a moment to think of a respectable excuse."

"You are... a man?"

"Hahaha! Brother Xiong, why are you here? Does this Women's Country have connections too?"

Two: "Thank you, Wu Wang. Thank you for staying with me these past few years..."

"Wait for me. I, Wu Wang, swear that I will find you! Across a thousand mountains and ten thousand waters, I will find you! I will introduce you to several of my friends, and I will take you to meet my father and mother! Wherever you were born, wait for me there!"