Anger

"Dad!" Little Monkey burst into tears and charged out from the village. He threw himself forward, clutched one of Shi Shoushan's arms, and sobbed as tears streamed down his face. "What happened to you? Who hurt you like this?" His mother also ran over, her eyes brimming with tears. She seized one of Shi Shoushan's hands, stayed by his side, and wept softly.

"Why are you crying? It's just an arrow wound. I get torn up by fierce beasts all the time when hunting. What's a little blood?" Shi Shoushan glared, refusing to let them cry. He was a truly unyielding man.

His upper body was drenched in blood. An iron arrow had pierced through his protective steel armor, punched through his right lung, and emerged from his back. The four-foot-long arrow shaft gleamed with cold metallic light, smeared with blood—a horrifying sight.

"Big Sister-in-law, Nephew, don't cry. Brother Shoushan's life isn't in danger. After resting for a while, he'll be as strong as a wild bull again. He'll recover soon," Shi Feijiao consoled them.

The wound was indeed severe. Even with Shi Shoushan's robust body, it could not be taken lightly. Otherwise, it might leave behind a serious lasting ailment, making him weak and asthmatic for the rest of his life.

Fortunately, Shi Linhu and the others had already treated his wound for the time being. They chewed up old medicinal herbs from the mountains and applied them to it, while also feeding him medicinal powder refined by several clan elders from the true blood of fierce beasts and other ingredients.

"Don't cry. It's enough that he came back alive." Clan Chief Shi Yunfeng stepped forward and abruptly pulled out the iron arrow. Blood immediately spurted from the wound. His movements were swift. Light flashed in his palm, runes shining like stars as they quickly pressed down. The bleeding rapidly stopped, and the wound closed as well.

Shi Yunfeng took out a jade jar from his robes and poured out two fragrant purple pills. He crushed one and spread it over the wound, while the other was given to Shi Shoushan to swallow.

Shi Shoushan was carried back home. A great crowd of men and women, young and old, came to visit him, bringing all kinds of old restorative medicines and dried meat. It was lively; the villagers were simple and warmhearted.

"Uncle will definitely get better soon!" Little Dot also offered his own gift, bringing a basket of his favorite red berries.

"What exactly happened?" In the clan chief's courtyard, a group of important figures had gathered. Shi Yunfeng frowned as he questioned them.

"Clan Chief, it truly was Bei Village causing trouble. They crossed into our territory and snatched the Six-Legged Camel Shoushan had killed. They even tried to murder him. If Shoushan hadn't dodged in time, that arrow would have gone straight through his heart and killed him," Shi Linhu said bitterly.

Everyone's expressions changed at those words. They had truly meant to kill.

"They were so ruthless—there are no rules in them at all. Though our two villages are dozens of miles apart and each keeps to its own territory, we still live in the same mountain range. We should show each other some consideration. It wasn't like this in the past," an elder sighed.

Shi Feijiao said, "The one who attacked was a boy, around fourteen or fifteen. He looked quite presentable—fair-skinned and handsome. But his heart was truly vicious. He shot that arrow at Shoushan as if he were hunting a wild beast. There wasn't the slightest ripple in his eyes. They were terrifyingly cold."

The Stone Village men had immediately flown into a rage and rushed forward together, but the other side showed no weakness. Dozens of them quickly gathered, standing hard and unyielding, needle against awl.

If not for a Suanni in the depths of the mountain range suddenly going mad, its roar shaking the mountains and sending rocks tumbling down, both sides would have feared for their safety and swiftly withdrawn. Otherwise, a serious bloody clash might have erupted.

"Why were they pressing us so relentlessly? Do they think they're so powerful that they can ignore our feelings? How else could they bully us like this?!" Several elders were angered as well. In the mountains, strong adult men were extremely important to a village, yet the other side had acted so recklessly, killing whenever they pleased.

Someone added, "That boy is no simple figure. He gave off a very bad feeling. Looking at him felt like facing an adult Pixiu—powerful, savage, and cold-blooded."

"So Bei Village has produced an extraordinary youth. It seems this clan has grown much stronger. They are flourishing now, and their ambitions have grown with them." The clan chief spoke softly, narrowing his eyes toward Bei Village.

Then,

He turned to Shi Linhu and the others. "We do not provoke trouble, but neither do we fear it. Be on guard from now on. If they push their luck and take a yard after being given an inch, do not hesitate over what must be done!" "I understand." Shi Linhu nodded.

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed. The people of Bei Village often crossed the boundary, even digging many beast pits throughout the area. Stone Village people accidentally fell into them and nearly had their bodies pierced through by the sharp iron spears at the bottom.

This nearly led to a bloody battle, but at the final moment, the people of Bei Village withdrew.

"Why are they hunting fierce beasts so frantically? Even if their population had greatly increased, they should not be doing this. Something has most likely happened in their village." Clan Chief Shi Yunfeng made his judgment.

After several clashes, the people of Bei Village restrained themselves considerably. But the people of Stone Village remained uneasy and sent someone over at night to investigate. From afar, they heard waves of terrifying roars coming from the village.

"Leave them alone for now. So long as they do not go too far, it is best not to fight to the death. It is not easy for anyone living in this mountain range," an elder said.

And so, everything returned to peace once more.

Several days later, Stone Village had good fortune and a bountiful hunt. In the mountains, they came across corpses scattered everywhere after a beast rampage. Powerful strange beasts had fought, bringing disaster across dozens of miles of forest, and many wild animals had suffered.

From time to time, ancient relic species clashed and slaughtered one another deep in the mountain range, possibly causing terrifying calamities. This time had been one such incident. Fortunately, it had not spread to the village.

"Clan Chief, there are eight dead Light Dragon Horned Elephants alone, along with several snow-white Moon Rhinoceroses and many other giant beasts. If we make them into dried meat, it will be enough to feed our village for a long time."

Shi Linhu led people back with part of the haul, then gathered more hands to transport the remaining fierce beasts.

"Good, good, good!" The elders were all delighted.

Most of the villagers set out together to meet them in the mountains.

"Roar, so many giant beasts! We're going too—we'll definitely gather lots of true blood!" A group of children howled excitedly.

In recent years, seeing Little Dot's abilities grow greater and greater, the children could no longer sit still. They no longer resisted medicinal baths and cooperated every time they were cleansed in the bronze cauldron. Now that they learned a great deal of precious treasure blood was coming, they were naturally thrilled.

"I'm going too. Roc, Little Green, Purple Cloud, wait in the village for me. Be good." Little Dot, Shi Hao, wanted to go along as well.

However, the great group of men, women, young, and old had only gotten halfway there when they saw Shi Feijiao, covered in blood, fleeing back with a group of clansmen. Their hair was disheveled, and they looked utterly miserable.

"Feijiao, what happened?" Shi Linhu shouted.

"Brother Hu, it was Bei Village again. They ambushed us and stole all the remaining prey!" Shi Feijiao said through gritted teeth.

"What? They have gone too far! We have tolerated them again and again—have they taken our good temper for cowardice?!" Shi Linhu roared.

The people of Stone Village could no longer endure it. Time and again, Bei Village had acted arrogantly and aggressively. This was not their first attack.

"Did any brothers lose their lives?"

"No, but several suffered severe wounds. Their spleens and other organs were pierced through by iron arrows. We don't know whether lasting ailments will remain."

"What? They were so vicious? Fight them to the death!"

The villagers immediately erupted. Having been humiliated time and again, even a clay Buddha had three parts anger.

"That fourteen- or fifteen-year-old brat is truly vicious. He fired all those arrows. If not for an elder from their village shaking his head, he would definitely have killed several more of us." Er Meng's blood-covered father spoke.

"He's just a brat whose hair hasn't even grown in properly. How capable could he be? Don't tell me you let him bully you?" A lame man from the village who had come to meet them said in dissatisfaction.

"Of course we weren't afraid. It was only because they outnumbered us several times over."

"That brat is very powerful. He looks fair-skinned and handsome, but his heart is vicious to the extreme. Do not underestimate him. Several brothers had three layers of thick refined-steel armor padded over their chests, yet every layer was shot through by him. In the village, only Brother Hu and I can do that," Shi Feijiao added.

"Take back the prey that belongs to us! We absolutely cannot swallow this insult!" Every villager's fury boiled over, their five viscera seething as if fried in oil.

The group surged mightily toward the depths of the forest. This time, Bei Village had gone far beyond the limits of what could be endured.

"Uncle A-Fu, you're hurt too. You'll definitely be all right. You'll get better soon." Seeing Shi Fu covered in blood—the man who often picked berries for him—Little Dot clenched his small fists. After offering a few words of comfort, he chased after the large group ahead.