"Among the hills today, aside from those lowly ones born with congenital defects, every hillfolk possessed innate power and received the hills' favor. This power could grow stronger and give rise to all manner of divine marvels, forming the five great stages known as 'Golden Core,' 'Nascent Soul,' 'Dividing the Spirit,' 'Body Integration,' and 'Mahayana.'"
"Golden Core Cultivators could naturally be called 'extraordinary' compared to ordinary creatures. But viewed across all the hills, they were merely one among the teeming masses, hardly worth counting. No one would bother remembering their names."
"Beyond the Golden Core came the Nascent Soul. Nascent Soul Cultivators had already risen above the rest and could be considered material for the bone beams..."
Kuili Gu had been speaking eloquently when, without warning, a muffled voice sounded.
"'Material for the bone beams.'"
It was a terrifying monster. Countless hard substances jutted in all directions from its flesh, propping up a sheet of dry skin. Its vacant eyes, set into that skin, stared at Kuili Gu. From this distance, Kuili Gu could even see the bizarre organ inside its mouthpart, resembling the corpse of a hillfolk. That organ replaced mucus and allowed the monster to manipulate sound. Kuili Gu had once suspected that the organ might truly have been some living creature, refined into the monster's mouthpart to help it speak.
Even after having grown accustomed to it for so long, Kuili Gu could not help trembling. Carefully, he said, "What did you say? Could you repeat that?"
"'Material for the bone beams.'" The monster lowered its voice. "This... explanation, why?"
"You mean... 'What does this term mean?'"
"What mean? Vocabulary."
"Material for the bone beams, bone beams, bone beams..." Kuili Gu scratched at his nonexistent ears and cheeks, yet could not think of how to explain any