Chen Jinyang watched the crocodile-headed fish monster thrash and struggle on the ground, his heart still pounding with fear. If he had reacted just a second or two later, a tragedy he would regret for the rest of his life might have occurred.
But the two little ones he had just tossed ashore had gone quiet. Something felt wrong. He turned around and saw Alos and Mishaer either sprawled or kneeling on the ground, staring blankly at the monster, utterly terrified.
Chen Jinyang's heart clenched. Oh no! The two children had been frightened. If he didn't find a way to deal with this, they might be left with a serious emotional scar. He couldn't help smacking his forehead. What a hassle! Guess it was my bad luck!
There were probably plenty of ways to get rid of the fear in the two little ones' hearts. Unfortunately, Chen Jinyang wasn't a psychologist, so he chose the simplest, most direct method—one that was also the most brutal and rousing.
Chen Jinyang threw back his head and let out a long roar. He casually tore off his shirt, revealing an exceptionally muscular upper body, then beat his chest with both fists like an enraged African gorilla. Believe it or not, his "gorilla man" routine really worked. It immediately drew the two little ones' spirits back from wherever fear had sent them fleeing.
Under the fearful gazes of Alos and Mishaer, Chen Jinyang transformed into a passionate, violent man. "Thud, thud, thud"—he strode toward the fish monster with slow, heavy steps, then threw himself at it and grappled with it. He used every move he knew: the Withered Tree Fall, the Mountain-Moving Fall, the Leaning Mountain Fall, the Lanshan Block, the Back Carry, the Shoulder Throw, and the Great Stele Smash. With no leverage on land, the monster was like a torn sack in Chen Jinyang's hands. Grabbing it by the tail, he slammed it down again and again until it let out miserable croaks. Finally, Chen Jinyang pinned the dazed monster's lower jaw under his foot, gripped its upper jaw with both hands, and summoned all his strength to wrench it apart. The unfortunate crocodile-headed fish monster's already enormous mouth split open, leaving two bloody flaps of flesh hanging down. It gave one last croak, thrashed on the ground a few times, then fell silent. Covered in fishy blood and grime, Chen Jinyang planted his foot on the monster's corpse and roared, as if proclaiming his victory.
In the future, this scene would become one of the most embarrassing moments of Chen Jinyang's life. But at least for now, it had been very effective. The two little ones, completely captivated by the fierce, savage battle, had long since forgotten their fear. They watched Chen Jinyang pummel the terrifying monster, their expressions shifting between nervousness and worry. When Chen Jinyang ripped the monster's mouth apart and roared with one foot on its corpse, they were both so excited they could hardly contain themselves.
The little girl burst into tears and threw herself into Chen Jinyang's arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Little Alos, meanwhile, ran over to the crocodile-headed fish monster's corpse, poked and prodded it, and grinned foolishly with his mouth hanging open. Holding the weeping Mishaer, Chen Jinyang felt slightly exhausted, but finally let out a sigh of relief. Good, she's crying! Oh, thank goodness! At least all that effort hadn't been wasted. This shirtless performance had worked out pretty well.
Gut it! Scrape off the scales and clean it! Of course, not the fish monster. Chen Jinyang prepared the fish he had speared earlier, lit a bonfire, and threaded the fish onto skewers to roast. The three siblings had been through such emotional ups and downs because of the fish monster that they were ravenous. They devoured more than a dozen river fish. Chen Jinyang washed the fishy blood and grime off himself in the cold river water. Seeing that it was getting late, he packed everything up, called over the two little ones who were arguing about the fish monster, and dragged the four- to five-hundred-pound beast home.
All the way back, Alos and Mishaer chattered nonstop, debating exactly how many times William had thrown the fish monster.
In truth, Chen Jinyang wasn't worried about food in the long run, because the grain caravan from Longsaddle in the south would arrive in a few days. He just couldn't be sure exactly which day it would come, so the food supply until then was what he had to worry about. This fish monster would feed their family of four for three or four days. The Habel Family's wagons might even arrive in the next few days.
As they walked, Mishaer, worn out from all the fright, gradually ran out of energy. Chen Jinyang had to drag the monster while carrying the little girl, who kept nodding off. Alos watched enviously as his younger sister fell asleep in their big brother's arms. He could only pout helplessly and keep trudging along on his tired legs.
Sigh! Why did I have to be the second-born?
When they were almost home, Chen Jinyang spotted several heavy wagons loaded with goods parked at the village entrance. A few strangers were watching over them. A caravan shouldn't have so few people, so most of them must have gone into the village. As he approached the entrance, he heard the female giant's shouts and the clashing of weapons from inside the walls. Oh no! Phinia was fighting someone! Chen Jinyang's heart skipped a beat. He dropped the fish monster's body, scooped up the little girl, and ran inside.
The men guarding the wagons spotted the Chen siblings too. One of them stepped forward to block their way and demanded, "Who are you?"
Chen Jinyang didn't answer. He lifted a leg and kicked the man square in the chest, sending him flying backward. The man rolled across the ground a few times and passed out. Seeing their companion knocked down, the other four guards hurriedly drew the short swords at their sides and surrounded him. Chen Jinyang set down the now-awake little girl, lunged forward, and quickly took all four of them down in a few movements. Apart from the swords in their hands, they were no more skilled than ordinary people.
From the moment they clashed to the moment Chen Jinyang knocked out the five guards, no more than ten seconds had passed. Alos hadn't even had time to say a word. Only after the fight was over could he speak. He said in shock:
"William! You got it wrong! You got it wrong! These people are from the grain caravan, not bad guys!"
"I know! Mishaer! You and Alos wait outside!" Chen Jinyang glanced at the wagons. There were no large burlap sacks for grain, only a few neatly arranged, exquisite little bags. His face clouded with suspicion. "I'm going in to take a look!"
The little girl had just woken up and still didn't understand what was going on. She yawned, looked at the unconscious men on the ground, and silently waved a little fist at her brother. She almost seemed ready to shout, "Big brother, you're amazing!"
Chen Jinyang ignored his anxious younger brother and hurried into the village. In the open space in front of the stables, more than a dozen people stood in a large ring with weapons in hand, watching the fight. Inside the circle, four men wielding swords, shields, spears, and other weapons took turns attacking and baiting the female giant, who was struggling to keep up. No one had noticed what had happened outside.
Several arrowheads were stuck in Phinia's legs, greatly affecting her agility and making it hard to keep up with her attackers' pace. She could only roar and swing her enormous battle-axe to block their blows.
"Never thought we'd run into an underage Frost Giant here. Talk about bad luck for her."
"Giant woman! You cruelly killed the fool siblings here! We're going to kill you today!"
"Yeah, yeah! This woman's actually pretty good-looking. Too bad she's a giant."
"Gosa! Have you lot not eaten? You can't even take down a giant kid! Need us to help?"
The caravan's leader watched his subordinates fight the female giant with a smile. They had managed to keep a Frost Giant, famed for her fighting ability, trapped without a single casualty, thanks to their well-practiced teamwork. Even if she wasn't fully grown yet, his men's strength was certainly impressive. Once they wore her out and captured her alive, sending her back to Longsaddle would cause quite a stir. In any case, a female Frost Giant prisoner was a rare prize.
Chen Jinyang didn't charge straight in. These people had swords and shields, as well as bows and crossbows; they were equipped for both close and ranged combat. He wasn't foolish enough to rush in unarmed and risk getting hurt. But going on a killing spree with javelins from a distance didn't seem quite right either. He hurried over to where the training equipment was stored and picked up the enormous homemade pole. At first, the spectators thought Chen Jinyang was one of their companions who had been guarding the wagons outside, so they paid him no mind. Only when he walked closer and grabbed the huge wooden club did they realize something was wrong. They finally saw that he wasn't one of their people.
"Hey! Who are you?"
"William the Fool? How are you still alive?"
Phinia, who was struggling desperately to hold back the enemy's attacks, spotted Chen Jinyang too. Her face lit up as she shouted, "William! Come help me! You bastards are dead!"
Chen Jinyang didn't answer. Gripping the giant pole with both hands as lightly as if it were a blade of grass, he swung his arms with a twist of his waist and hips. The pole whooshed toward the crowd. The people scattered with a clamor, but several of those closest to Chen Jinyang couldn't dodge in time. "Crack! Thump! Aah!" Bones snapped as they flew backward, spitting blood and screaming. They crashed into a number of their companions behind them. Chen Jinyang didn't stop. He strode forward, swinging and smashing with the pole. Aside from a few who ran fast, almost everyone in the circle was knocked to the ground. Those carrying bows and crossbows were especially bad off, lying there and wailing miserably. The caravan leader had been about to approach Chen Jinyang and speak, but he too was knocked down like a bowling pin by his companions. He wasn't hurt, but seeing William's ferocious appearance, he didn't dare get back up.
Phinia, who had been brutally surrounded and was seething with anger, limped forward, wanting to chop a few people to death with her axe. Chen Jinyang hurriedly stopped her. He had beaten the men badly, but at least he had controlled his strength enough to avoid killing anyone. If this hotheaded girl killed a few of them, they'd have a much bigger feud on their hands.
Hearing the screams from inside the village, Alos and Mishaer couldn't help running in to see what had happened. Instead, they found the ground strewn with groaning victims. Chen Jinyang was in the middle of the wailing, writhing wounded, flirting with the half-giantess as if no one else were around. The two little ones stared with their mouths hanging open, then crowded over with absolutely no sense of timing to play the part of unwanted chaperones.
Alos pointed a trembling finger at the wounded men on the ground and asked, "William? Did you—?"
Before Chen Jinyang could answer, one of the wounded men suddenly sprang up and lunged at little Alos. Chen Jinyang reacted with lightning speed, kicking the "deceitful pretender" several yards away. But as he kicked, he sensed a mysterious force on the man's body that dispersed the power of his blow. Otherwise, that nearly full-strength kick would have turned the pretender's upper body into a lump of mangled flesh.
Chen Jinyang had intended to keep after the man, but he flopped on the ground and burst into tears. Chen Jinyang froze. No way! Did one kick really make him cry? Had he hit the legendary "crying point"? Was my kicking really that good?
Alos recognized the man who had been kicked to tears. He was the leader of the grain caravan. Alos hurried over and helped the poor fellow up. "Mr. Elrago, are you all right?"
"Crying Man" Elrago wiped away his tears, threw his arms around Alos, and said excitedly, "Little Alos! It's you, little Alos! That's wonderful! I thought the giants had already killed you all!" Then he turned to the little girl. "Mishaer! Hehe! It's you, Mishaer! Where's your big brother? Where's William?"
The little girl pointed behind him. Elrago mechanically turned his head and looked in terror at Chen Jinyang, who wore the ferocious expression of a fiend. Trembling a little, he asked in shock, "That's William? William the Fool?"
The little girl wasn't having it. "You're the fool! Your whole family's full of fools!"
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