Ma Hongjun stood up.
His knees bent slightly.
His center of gravity sank.
His arms hung naturally in front of him.
Big Black Ox had just woken up and lifted his head for a look.
"Moo?" (That stance... looks like a chicken about to lay an egg?)
Xiao Wu rubbed her eyes and sat up, just in time to see this.
"What's he doing?"
Tang San lifted his head and took a look.
"...Looks like he's channeling his energy?"
The next second—
Ma Hongjun suddenly leaned forward!
"BOOM—!"
A boulder three meters away was covered in cracks, then shattered with a crash!
Dust billowed everywhere.
Everyone was stunned.
Ma Hongjun looked down at his hands, his lips trembling.
"Iron... Iron Mountain Lean?"
Su Mo was stunned too.
He'd only written it down on a whim.
And you really learned it?
Ma Hongjun turned around, and tears "whooshed" down his face.
"Boss Su! I learned it!"
He rushed over, threw his arms around Su Mo, and sobbed uncontrollably.
"I've gotten so strong! I'm not just a horny chicken anymore!"
Ma Hongjun squeezed the breath out of him. Su Mo managed to say with difficulty:
"Th... there's no need... to put it like that..."
Ma Hongjun let go, wiped his face, and took a deep breath.
Then he struck the starting pose.
His knees bent slightly.
His center of gravity sank.
His arms stretched forward.
His expression was solemn.
"Chicken You Are Too Beautiful—"
Su Mo's face darkened.
"Stop."
Ma Hongjun immediately stopped and stood there grinning foolishly.
Xiao Wu's eyes widened. She ran over and circled Ma Hongjun twice.
"That move you just did was amazing! I want to learn it too! I want to learn Chicken You Are Too Beautiful!"
Ma Hongjun scratched his head. "Well... I think I'm the only one who can learn it..."
Xiao Wu pouted. "Stingy."
Tang San came over and crouched in front of the shattered boulder, studying it for ages before looking up to ask Ma Hongjun:
"How do you generate force for that move?"
Ma Hongjun thought it over. "You just... lean in with your shoulder..."
Tang San nodded, deep in thought.
Big Black Ox came over too. He looked at the shattered boulder, then at his own hooves.
His expression was complicated.
"Moo." (I could break it with a charge too, but his stance was cooler.)
Ma Hongjun suddenly burst into tears again.
Su Mo sighed and put another piece of meat in his bowl.
At last, Ma Hongjun stopped crying.
He ran up to Xiao Wu.
He emptied his pockets—several Silver Spirit Coins, a protective charm, and a piece of candy that had gone sticky from being clenched in his fist.
He shoved it all into Xiao Wu's hands.
"I'm sorry about yesterday."
He lowered his head, not daring to look at her.
"I... I didn't mean to. I couldn't control myself back then..."
Xiao Wu stared at the half-piece of candy in her hand and fell silent for three seconds.
"This wouldn't happen to be the deoxyribose Master mentioned, would it?"
Pfft—!
Su Mo nearly choked on his own spit.
What deoxyribose?
When had he ever said that?
Xiao Wu tilted her head and thought for a moment, then waved her hand.
"Whatever. I forgive you."
She put away the Silver Spirit Coins and the protective charm, then slapped the candy back into Ma Hongjun's palm.
"I'll keep the money. You can have the candy back. It's all sticky, so you might as well keep it."
Ma Hongjun stared blankly at the candy in his hand.
Back in the village, when the children took things from him, they'd say, "Get lost, monster," then throw them on the ground.
Xiao Wu had said, "I forgive you."
And she'd given the candy back to him.
Ma Hongjun suddenly smiled.
As he smiled, his eyes turned red again.
He popped the candy into his mouth.
Sweet.
So sweet.
He took off after the group ahead.
"Boss Su! Wait for me!"
The group continued on their way.
Ma Hongjun followed behind, sneaking glances at the Kun Fist manual from time to time.
Tang San walked beside him, having finally finished absorbing his Soul Ring. Excitedly, he summoned Blue Silver Grass.
A jade-green sword condensed in his hand, its blade long and slender, its edge sharp.
"Master! Look!"
Su Mo glanced back and nodded. "Not bad."
Tang San grew even more excited. He waved the sword through the air, muttering to himself.
Su Mo could vaguely hear things like "My sword qi stretches thirty thousand miles across..."
Xiao Wu rolled her eyes beside him. "There he goes again."
Big Black Ox leisurely swished his tail.
Ma Hongjun edged over and looked at Tang San's sword, asking enviously, "Can I touch it?"
Tang San warily put the sword away. "No. Master made it for me."
Ma Hongjun pouted. "Stingy."
Tang San said, "What did you say?"
Ma Hongjun replied, "Nothing, nothing."
After bickering for a few lines, the two soon started discussing their signature moves together.
Ma Hongjun demonstrated the Iron Mountain Lean stance, and Tang San studied it seriously, asking a question now and then.
Tang San even graciously let Ma Hongjun touch the Blue Silver Sword.
Xiao Wu bounced along at the front, picking wild fruit and chasing butterflies.
Big Black Ox walked in the middle, occasionally mooing to remind them he was there.
Su Mo walked at the rear, watching them.
He suddenly felt that this group was kind of interesting.
He opened the Book of Dao.
[Deep Resonance] Reader: Ma Hongjun Book Read: Nezha Reward Obtained: Demon Child True Fire—flame power increased by 100% Feedback Reward: True Fire Body—80% immunity to fire [Deep Resonance] Reader: Ma Hongjun Book Read: Kun Fist Skill Obtained: Kun Fist, Beginner (Iron Mountain Lean) Feedback Skill: Kun Fist, Mastery (All)
Su Mo closed the book.
Not bad.
Under that same stretch of sky.
At that same moment.
Yu Xiaogang huddled in a cave, hugging his knees and trembling.
Dawn had come, but he was still cold.
He hadn't slept at all last night.
It was too cold.
He shuffled farther outside, letting the sunlight fall on him.
He warmed up a tiny bit.
Dead twigs stuck in his hair, mud smeared his face, and his clothes were so ragged he looked like a beggar.
His lips were blue with cold, and he was still shivering.
But his gaze remained resolute.
"Soon..."
He muttered to himself.
"Soon..."
"Tang San will definitely come..."
"In my previous life, it was today... He'll definitely come to hunt the Datura Snake..."
"All I have to do is wait..."
"When he's in danger... I'll rush out and save him..."
"He'll be grateful to me... and take me as his master..."
"Then I'll lead him... to the pinnacle..."
"Titled Douluo... godhood..."
"It'll all be mine..."
"Su Mo... just you wait..."
A cold gust blew past, and he sneezed.
His nose ran. He wiped it with the back of his hand and smeared it on his clothes.
He kept waiting.
He kept muttering.
He didn't know—
The person he was waiting for was at that very moment beside a campfire in the Star Dou Forest, teasing Big Black Ox with a carrot Xiao Wu had left over.
Big Black Ox turned his head away in disdain.
Tang San poked him in the nose with the carrot.
Big Black Ox finally lost patience and kicked him away with a hoof.
Tang San rolled twice, got back up, and burst out laughing.
Xiao Wu clapped beside him. "Again! Do it again!"
Su Mo watched them, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
The sun shone bright.
The wind was gentle.
Some people had found where they belonged.
Some were still waiting for a tomorrow that would never come.
Night deepened.
The campfire's glow flickered across everyone's faces.
Ma Hongjun held the Kun Fist manual, still flipping through it again and again. Every so often, he tried out a couple of moves, murmuring to himself.
Tang San sat beside him, holding a long sword formed from Blue Silver Grass. He gently swung it at the air, its blade slicing through the night with a faint hiss.
Xiao Wu held a heap of wild fruit, eating until her face was covered in juice.
Big Black Ox lay beside the fire, swishing his tail at leisure.
Su Mo leaned against a tree trunk, resting with his eyes closed.
The atmosphere was quiet and peaceful.
Suddenly, Xiao Wu looked up.
"Master, have you ever heard of the 'Benevolent Heart Sacred Tree'?"