Bei Ling

The morning wind carried a thread of chill. In the depths of winter, it was like a knife.

Yet the bonfires flickering throughout the tribe seemed to drive away the cold, spreading warmth across the whole place.

For Barbarian Warriors, the flow of blood and qi within their bodies was enough to fend off the cold. But ordinary tribespeople made up the majority, and every winter they tended to venture outside less often.

Even when they did go out, they usually wrapped themselves in thick animal hides to keep warm. The tribe's ordinary healers were busiest this time of year, preparing large quantities of medicinal broth for the people to drink and strengthen their resistance to the cold.

Even Grandpa would personally lend a hand during the coldest stretch, circulating the blood and qi in his body to help the entire tribe withstand the winter winds.

Stepping through the snow with a crunch, Su Ming walked through the tribe in an animal-hide coat wrapped around him. He looked at the familiar homes and at the tribespeople who smiled and nodded to him. The warmth he felt seemed enough to drive away the winter chill.

Most of the tribe's homes were simple structures. They were adequate in ordinary times, but in winter they did little to block the wind. That meant covering their outer walls with lots of animal hides to keep the cold from blowing inside.

But sometimes the hides wouldn't stay in place for long, and they had to be secured again. The bonfires inside the homes also needed fresh branches from time to time. As a result, winter was a trial for most of the tribe.

At least no one froze to death. It was just a little troublesome.

As Su Ming walked, he reached the wooden fence around a hut guarded at all times by the tribespeople. This was where the Wu Mountain Tribe stored its herbs. Thick animal hides covered the hut's exterior, and several bonfires blazed nearby. As he approached, a wave of warmth mingled with the cold wind and brushed against him.

Su Ming knew this place well. For years, almost every time he returned from gathering herbs, he brought them here. So when the guards saw him, they smiled and let him pass without stopping him.

Su Ming smiled back and greeted them. He stepped through the fence and was about to push open the door when a delighted voice called out behind him.

"Su Ming, when did you get back?"

It was a woman's voice, pleasant as a lark's song.

Su Ming stopped and turned around. His gaze softened. The woman was rather tall, bundled in thick animal hides. Her long hair was tied with a grass cord, and two delicate white bone rings hung from her ears. Her skin was a little rough, but it did nothing to hide her beauty.

Her eyes were large and clear as a deep pool, shining with innocence. Joy filled them now as she hurried over to Su Ming.

"I got back yesterday." Su Ming smiled. The woman was Chen Xin, who often tidied his home while he was away. Suddenly, his smile froze, and his gaze shifted slightly.

She wasn't alone. A young man in his late teens followed behind her. He was powerfully built, even more rugged than Lei Chen, and wore only a thin animal-hide garment despite the winter cold. His hair was tousled but clean. Along with his sharply chiseled face, it gave him an air of fierce pride.

His eyes especially stood out, bright as stars. A strange totem seemed to flicker faintly in his pupils, pressing down on those around him with an invisible weight. He made people instinctively wary, like they were looking at a wild beast.

He stood there with a great bow on his back, his gaze fixed on Su Ming like an arrow.

"Su Ming!"

"B-Big Brother Bei Ling." Su Ming addressed the young man respectfully, a complicated look passing through his eyes.

This young man was the strongest of the younger generation in the Wu Mountain Tribe. Even Grandpa had admitted that his Barbarian Body surpassed his own. Only after Lei Chen was discovered to possess a Barbarian Body had anyone seemed capable of matching him.

As the strongest of the tribe's younger generation, he had advanced at an astonishing pace. Su Ming had once overheard Grandpa say that he was the one most likely in the tribe to break through the Blood Condensation Realm and become one of those legendary figures in the Dust Opening Realm.

His name was renowned among the nearby tribes. Even in the Fengzhen Tribe, people had heard of him. They had sent someone to take him away, and he had received training there. Su Ming hadn't expected to see him today.

The complicated look in his eyes came from the fact that, when he was young, Bei Ling had looked after him like a true big brother. Bei Ling had even taught him a little archery back then. As the child of the Wu Mountain Tribe's Scout Leader, Bei Ling was naturally skilled with a bow.

But everything changed when Chen Xin turned twelve. Perhaps because she and Su Ming had grown so close, Bei Ling gradually began to look at Su Ming with uncertainty and suspicion. Then he grew cold, until at last he distanced himself completely and ignored Su Ming whenever they met.

Later, Su Ming learned that the tribe leader and Bei Ling's father had arranged a betrothal between their children...

Su Ming had tried to explain, but all his words ever brought him was that same cold stare. Eventually, all he could do was sigh. He also began, intentionally or otherwise, to keep his distance from Chen Xin.

He knew his place. He was only an ordinary tribesman, and he knew that without Grandpa, the tribe might never have accepted him.

It was all because Su Ming was an abandoned baby Grandpa had found more than ten years ago while traveling. Though most of the tribe had treated him kindly as he grew up, that couldn't change the unspoken difference between him and the tribe.

"Why didn't you tell me you were back? I went to look for you several times, but you were never there." Chen Xin wrinkled her nose and chided him.

Su Ming rubbed his nose and avoided Chen Xin's gaze. He felt only the affection one had for family toward her, nothing more. He didn't want Big Brother Bei Ling, who had been so kind to him as a child, to misunderstand again.

"Big Brother Bei Ling, when did you get back?" Su Ming looked at the imposing Bei Ling. Standing so close, he could clearly sense the surging blood and qi within him. Apart from Grandpa, the tribe leader, and a few others, Bei Ling was the strongest person Su Ming had ever encountered in the tribe.

But the fierce pride radiating from Bei Ling was as powerful as his blood and qi. Standing before him, Su Ming felt as if he could hardly breathe.

"Yesterday." Bei Ling's expression remained unchanged, his usual coldness in place. His curt reply sounded perfunctory. He turned to Chen Xin.

"Xin'er, weren't you here to get some herbs for your mother? Let's go in." As he spoke, Bei Ling took Chen Xin's hand, passed Su Ming, and pushed open the door to the herb-storage hut.

Chen Xin seemed to want to say something, but after a moment's hesitation, she said nothing. She nodded to Su Ming, then followed Bei Ling into the hut.

Su Ming stood there in silence for a long while, then sighed softly and went inside as well.