The Ancestral Artifact's Might

"What's going on? What's gotten into that Green-Scaled Eagle? Why is it making a fuss near our village?"

Someone in Stone Village noticed something was wrong and looked suspicious. They quickly sent someone to inform the elders, then a group of people climbed onto a high platform at the village entrance to survey the area. "Chief, I saw Er Meng, Da Zhuang, Shi Lin, and Little One sneaking around together today. Could they have left the village and gotten themselves into trouble?" A fourteen- or fifteen-year-old boy reported that more than a dozen younger children were missing.

"You little brats!" Shi Linhu slapped his thigh, suddenly remembering that when they had been discussing the Green-Scaled Eagle, Pi Hou and several other children had been lurking nearby, poking their heads around.

After hearing the news, Chief Shi Yunfeng understood the situation was urgent and acted decisively. "Quick, bring the two ancestral artifacts! We'll go together!"

The village's strongest men all rushed out. For the sake of the children, their eyes were bloodshot. Descendants of a Primordial Demonic Bird or not, they would fight it all the same! Some carried spiked clubs weighing hundreds of pounds, others bore enormous bows taller than a man, and still others gripped broad black-iron swords nearly half their height. They seethed with killing intent.

"Don't worry, the children will be fine. If that featherless eagle dares to run wild, we'll chop it to bits and feed it to the Tree Pig!" The men reassured the women and children with loud shouts, then roared and charged into the forest.

The young men swept forward like a herd of beasts, fierce and imposing. They began shooting arrows from far away; their thick shafts were like spears, and every one was iron-tipped. Their power was astonishing!

"Thud!" "Thud!"

A rain of giant arrows flew out, punching through and snapping countless trees. They were savagely forceful, like a band of towering wild men charging in with roars as they cursed the vicious bird.

The Green-Scaled Eagle had already retreated from the cave entrance. Its eyes were cold as it watched the battle-hardened men. It felt no fear; it was the apex predator in this region. As long as it stayed out of the deepest parts of the mountains, it could do as it pleased.

It spread its wings, and a gale howled. Many of the heavy arrows and iron spears flying toward it were knocked aside, clanging as sparks burst everywhere. Then it raised its head and cried out. Its eyes blazed with ferocity as it beat its wings and swooped toward the group.

Its body was seven or eight meters long, and its wings spanned fifteen meters. As this colossal creature plunged toward them, the force of it was astounding. Broken branches and dead leaves exploded, and before it even drew near, the terrible air currents stung their faces.

"Everyone, group together and defend! Lin Hu, bring out the ancestral artifact!" Chief Shi Yunfeng ordered.

Clashing head-on with such a terrifying descendant of a demonic bird would surely result in heavy casualties. Their only chance of driving it off was to use the ancient treasure passed down through the village.

"Come on, you featherless eagle! Charge right at me!" Shi Linhu shouted, taking the front line. He tilted his head to watch the vicious bird dive toward him, and at the same time pulled a piece of beast bone from his clothes. It appeared to be a ferocious beast's arm bone.

The Green-Scaled Eagle's pupils narrowed, as if it sensed something. It stopped its charge and stared fixedly at the dull, lusterless bone, wary. Its black beak, more than half a meter long, suddenly glimmered as a Bone Text appeared, radiating terrifying pressure.

"What a beast! This Green-Scaled Eagle really is extraordinary. It has an inherited Bone Text stamped within it, a sign of immense power," the old chief exclaimed.

"Roar!" At the same time, Shi Linhu let out a great shout. Knowing the situation was urgent, he poured all his strength into activating the artifact. His left arm lit up, several Bone Texts appearing and shining brilliantly. Then he slammed the beast's arm bone against it.

"Boom!"

A powerful aura shot skyward, like a raging hurricane. It seemed as though the king of all beasts had come back to life. The vicious bird in the sky shuddered in alarm and quickly soared upward, putting a great distance between itself and the men.

Light blazed from Shi Linhu's left arm. The ferocious beast's arm bone had actually fused with it, becoming part of his body, flesh and bone blending as one. It was incredibly mysterious.

The light from his left arm grew ever brighter, finally congealing into an ancient symbol. It looked as if a ferocious beast were about to leap out of the Bone Text!

This was a precious relic left behind by a powerful ancient beast, one that had condensed its Bone Text. The Bone Texts mastered by humanity had developed through the study of rare Treasure Bones like this. They were the source of mysterious power. The beast's arm bone merged with Shi Linhu's own, shining brilliantly!

His strength surged. His entire frame, which had stood two meters tall, impossibly stretched to three, growing much more robust. Lightning-like beams of light coiled around him, and his blood qi surged.

The Green-Scaled Eagle cried out. Although the aura emanating from the beast bone had shaken it, it was still unwilling to back down. A glimmer gathered around its curved, scimitar-like black beak, and the Bone Text grew stronger. It was preparing to attack.

A mysterious power was building, gathering around its beak. The light there grew ever more brilliant, terrifying the birds and beasts in the mountains. They trembled, then fled in every direction.

"Feijiao, you too!" Chief Shi Yunfeng ordered, calling on another powerful man in the village to activate the second ancestral artifact.

Shi Feijiao was powerfully built. He dropped the spiked club in his hands and circulated his mysterious power. Bone Texts immediately lit up across his chest, twinkling like stars. He quickly pulled a bloodstained, ancient Beast Skin from his clothes and pressed it hard against his chest.

"Boom!"

A fierce aura spread in every direction, terrifying the creatures in the forest. It was as though a Primordial Remnant had appeared there. Even the Green-Scaled Eagle in the sky shuddered, once again halting its dive. Its eagle eyes were cold and tense.

Light blazed across Shi Feijiao's chest. The old Beast Skin fused with it, becoming his own flesh and skin. It radiated powerful vitality and began to shine brilliantly, finally forming a mysterious symbol.

The faint outline of a beast's head appeared, as though it were trying to break free from the Bone Text.

Shi Feijiao seemed to have grown a second face, right on his chest. The Bone Text formed when the ancient Beast Skin fused with his flesh blazed with light, gradually taking shape as the hazy, terrifying silhouette of a ferocious beast emerged.

Vast, overwhelming pressure swept through the forest, shaking everyone to their core!

This was Stone Village's other ancestral artifact: an ancient Beast Skin, passed down from an unknown era. It had evidently been shed by an ancient ferocious beast, and it too had formed a rare and precious Bone Text of immense power.

Most of the Bone Texts mastered by humanity had been copied from the Treasure Bones of ferocious beasts. But that didn't mean every beast condensed its mysterious power in its bones. Some manifested it in their flesh, or even their hearts.

The light around Shi Feijiao grew ever stronger, dancing like flames. His whole body shone brilliantly. A beast's roar thundered from his chest, making the forest tremble and rocks tumble down the mountainside.

This wasn't an ordinary Bone Text copied by humans and then developed and refined. These were the most primitive sources of power: bone and Treasure Skin. They were extraordinarily powerful.

Ordinary villages and tribes certainly wouldn't possess such artifacts, let alone two ancestral artifacts at once. Clearly, many years ago, Stone Village had experienced an extraordinary era.

Shi Linhu and Shi Feijiao stood shoulder to shoulder, gazing up at the vicious bird as they unleashed the power of their ancestral artifacts. Their violent auras surged skyward like a flood.

It was easy to see that the nearby thorns, vines, and trees had all been blasted apart.

Wariness appeared in the Green-Scaled Eagle's cold eyes. It didn't dare draw close, as though it had been thoroughly intimidated. The two sides faced off in a brief lull.

"Ah! The chief is here! Uncle Lin Hu and the others came to rescue us!" At the cave entrance, several children peeked out. Seeing the group of burly men in the distance, they cheered.

"Let's go! The chief and the uncles are here to take us home!"

The children poured out of the cave and ran toward the adults. Shi Linhu, Shi Feijiao, and the others used the two ancestral artifacts to cover their approach, and the two groups quickly reunited.

"Are you all right, kids?" A group of burly men rushed over and picked up their children, turning them this way and that as they checked for injuries. "We're fine. A few of us just got some scrapes," the children replied.

"Good, as long as you're safe." The men relaxed, then one by one raised their huge fan-like hands and smacked the children's bottoms as hard as they could.

"Ow! That hurts! Why are you hitting us? Weren't you just worried about us? Why the sudden change?" the children wailed.

One of the men said, "One thing at a time. Since you're all right, now we can settle the score. You haven't even finished growing your first hairs, and you already dare to provoke a demonic bird? If I don't smack your bottoms raw, I'm not your father!"

In the air, the Green-Scaled Eagle watched them with open hostility, its eyes blazing with ferocity. Yet it never swooped down, facing them cautiously instead of attacking at once.

Chief Shi Yunfeng shouted, "We need to leave at once. Lin Hu and Feijiao's mastery of Bone Texts isn't profound enough for them to bring out the full power of the ancestral artifacts. Let's get back to the village while we can." He had an old injury and wasn't suited to a major battle.

They had found all the children, and nobody had come to harm. That was the best possible news. Armed with clubs and massive bows, the men advanced carefully toward Stone Village, keeping the children protected in the middle.

"Wow, Uncle Lin Hu, you're amazing! All these years, Grandpa Chief has been experimenting on you, and you've made such incredible progress. You're both geniuses!"

"Dad, you're amazing!" Shi Lin flattered his father.

"Yeah! And Uncle Feijiao, what kind of weapons were those? We've never seen them before. Do you have to know Bone Texts to activate them? You were so strong and mighty!"

On the way back, the children ignored the vicious bird in the sky and worked hard to flatter the adults, afraid they'd be in for a harsh beating when they got home.

"Stop buttering us up. We'll deal with you later!" Shi Linhu glared at his son, Shi Lin.

The Green-Scaled Eagle followed them all the way. It only stopped when they neared the village and it saw the Old Willow Tree. It didn't dare enter the village, circling overhead as it cried out angrily.

Everyone breathed a long sigh of relief. The entire time they'd been followed by such a powerful descendant of a Primordial Demonic Bird, they'd been on edge. One wrong move could have left many of them dead.

"We used the ancestral artifacts this time. I hope it won't bring us any trouble," the chief murmured.

"Don't worry, Chief. Who would pass through this remote wilderness? No one could have seen us," Shi Linhu said.

"I hope so. The things our ancestors passed down have gathered dust for a long time. I hope this incident won't bring any changes," Shi Yunfeng said softly.

The anticipated bloody battle never came. They returned to the village unharmed, while the descendant of the demonic bird cried out high above them, its piercing voice able to split metal and shatter stone.

Once they entered the village, chaos broke out. The women rushed over and threw their arms around their children. They'd been terrified when the news first reached them. Meanwhile, the men went looking for boards, preparing to beat the little "brats" who had caused trouble.

"You little brat, I told you not to make trouble! Get back here!"

"Dad, stop hitting me! I know I was wrong!"

The children sprinted off in every direction, but in the end they all escaped to the chief's courtyard, hoping he'd plead on their behalf and stop their fathers from laying hands on them.

Once inside the stone courtyard, the children were consumed with jealousy and envy. Little One hadn't been beaten at all. Instead, he was holding a little porcelain bowl and scooping up milk with a small wooden spoon.

"Wow, Little One, you're drinking milk again? You're already three and a half!" one child cried.

"Yi-ya!" Little One was mortified. He clutched the bowl and covered it with his tender white hands so the older children couldn't see. His little face flushed, and his long eyelashes fluttered. He weakly protested, "You saw wrong. I'm... actually... drinking water."

"Hahaha..." The children burst into laughter.

"We all got beaten. Why are you getting beast milk instead?" Pi Hou asked curiously. "Because I told Grandpa Chief a story. He liked it, so he didn't blame me," Little One said, his big eyes rolling around.

"What story?"

"Little Red's story."

"What's Little Red?"

"Little Red is that bright-red bird. I told you about it, too." Little One, Shi Hao, looked very displeased.

The children all rolled their eyes and jeered, "The chief would have to be crazy to believe that. The Vermilion Bird was only a legend in the Primordial Era. How could it really exist now, let alone have you chase after it?"

"Hmm, two years ago, something happened deep in the mountains. A Mountain Treasure appeared, drawing many powerful Primordial Remnants. An unimaginable battle broke out. There was a flash of red fire that burned the sky apart, and for dozens of days, we could faintly see the flames still burning from our village," the chief said as he approached.

"Obviously, there was a fire beast deep in the mountains. But it couldn't have been the legendary divine bird. That's just too far-fetched." Shi Linhu and the others had arrived as well.

"That battle two years ago was truly terrifying. I still don't know what kind of vicious birds and giant beasts came. One night, I saw a towering humanoid creature holding a black-iron staff stride across several mountain ridges, but I couldn't make out its true appearance." Shi Feijiao sighed. Even now, remembering it made his hair stand on end.

The adults had arrived, and the children's faces immediately fell. They were going to get a beating after all, and their fathers had chased them all the way to the chief's place.

"Chief, we took every one of the Green-Scaled Eagle's eggs! We can hatch the descendants of a Primordial Demonic Bird. One day, they might rival the Sacrificial Spirit and protect our village!"

"That's right! Stone Village will have flying warbirds in the future. These are three eggs from the descendants of a Primordial Demonic Bird!"

The children tried to take credit, hoping they'd be forgiven.

"Do you know how much meat it takes to feed a vicious bird like that for one day? We already barely have enough food for ourselves. Where would we find extra to raise three colossal beasts?"

"Ah!" The children looked crestfallen.

"And you think that's all? Take a look outside the village," one of the elders sighed.

The children climbed the high platform and looked outside. They were immediately startled. The terrifying Green-Scaled Eagle was perched on a boulder, its eyes cold and its scales gleaming ominously. It had stayed outside the village and hadn't left.

"Vicious birds like this never forget a grudge. You stole its eggs. How could it just let that go? It'll be hard to leave the village to hunt from now on," Shi Feijiao said anxiously.

The children's faces went pale. They knew they'd caused a disaster.

"Yi-ya, let's give the eggs back. The Green-Scaled Eagle must be sad without its children," Little One said softly, fluttering his big eyes.

"That featherless eagle is terrifying. If we don't return its eggs, it might keep making trouble and the village will never know peace. Even with the ancestral artifacts, it'll be hard to deal with. No one can bring out their true power."

The villagers decided to try returning the eggs. If that didn't work, they would think of another solution.

Three jade-green eggs, each as large as a washbasin, lay crystal-clear and speckled, with beautiful glimmers of light flowing across their shells. The mysterious power of Bone Texts spread from them, and divine radiance sparkled.

The group had only just stepped out of the courtyard and taken a few steps when, beside the altar next to Chief Shi Yunfeng's stone house, the charred Old Willow Tree suddenly moved. Its only willow branch, wreathed in green light, descended like a radiant divine chain and gently brushed against one of the eggs, causing it to blaze with light!