Baptism

Black Flood Dragon Wood was hard and heavy, nearly comparable to refined iron. Its trunk resembled a coiling chi dragon, winding and vigorous, black as ink, even its leaves like jade-dark inkstone. It was an extraordinary wood, tough and weighty enough to be made into weapons. Yet it had another unusual property: once lit, its flames burned fiercely. Even a palm-sized piece could cook two pots of meat. In ordinary times, whether smelting ore or forging weapons, it was the finest source of fire.

"Heh, break!"

Before an open space in Stone Village, Shi Linhu and a group of strong young men swung huge axes, hacking away with all their might. Ordinary people simply could not chop through this Black Flood Dragon Wood.

Cracking sounds rang out from time to time, occasionally accompanied by metallic clangs and showers of sparks. The wood was simply too hard.

To baptize Shi Hao, the village had made every kind of preparation: old medicinal herbs, venomous insects, spring water, an ancient cauldron—even the wood for refining True Blood had been chosen from the finest Black Flood Dragon Wood.

Little Dot was bathing atop a large piece of jade. The villagers continuously rinsed his body with sweet mountain spring water, intending to seal the purest fleshly body within the cauldron.

Everyone was solemn. Little Dot, too, was utterly serious. He said nothing, silently making his preparations.

The Suanni had long since been carried over. Its entire body was golden, its radiance dazzling, its fur shining like golden silk. Under the glow of the morning sun, it appeared all the more magnificent, glittering brilliantly.

Beside it lay a several-meter-long crimson bull horn, clear as red agate and flickering with scarlet glow. Also a descendant of an ancient species, it contained the most precious spiritual True Blood of the Fire Bull.

The Demon Ape's arm was about as long as an adult's arm, not especially huge, yet it gave off towering ferocity. It contained ancient True Blood and was exceptionally rare and precious.

A large black cauldron exuded an ancient, unsophisticated aura. Upon it were carved the sun, moon, mountains, rivers, birds, beasts, fish, insects, and scenes of ancient forefathers offering sacrifices. It looked unfathomably mysterious. The cauldron had already been filled with a considerable amount of water. Black Flood Dragon Wood burned beneath it, rapidly bringing the water to a boil. They meant to use the fiercest flames to brew the most tyrannical precious medicine.

The clan chief wore a solemn expression as he stood personally before the cauldron, tossing in one ancient herb after another. All were treasures that had grown for many years. Guarding the Great Wilderness, they did not lack medicinal plants.

Before long, all manner of medicinal fragrances rose from the boiling water, refreshing the heart and clearing the mind. The water changed color.

Shi Yunfeng then brought over several dozen clay jars. Moving with great care, he opened them one by one. From the first jar, a large purple centipede shot out with a hiss. It was over half a meter long and terrifying to behold.

With a snap, runes flickered between the clan chief's fingers. He lightly struck it with a small purple-gold hammer, shattering the purple centipede's head before tossing it into the boiling water.

Next, the second clay jar, wrapped in thick iron sheeting, was opened. Silver light flashed as a pangolin burst out. It was only a foot long, its whole body silver-white and gleaming brightly. Its head was likewise smashed open and it was thrown into the boiling water. After struggling violently, it finally fell silent, becoming one of the supplementary ingredients.

All several dozen clay jars were opened. There were strange little beasts and venomous insects, all highly unusual—golden snakes as long as chopsticks, flying silver spiders, and more.

The water in the cauldron immediately turned a riot of colors, releasing all kinds of bizarre smells.

The faces of the children turned green at once. It was simply too frightening—so many densely packed poisonous insects, along with so many ancient herbs, all mixed together. No matter how they looked at it, it gave them an ominous feeling.

Fortunately, this cauldron had been prepared for Little Dot, not for brewing them.

As the water gradually boiled, less and less remained in the cauldron until it was nearly dry. The herbs and strange insects had all been boiled into a paste. These were the supplementary ingredients, which would lessen Little Dot's pain and help him refine the True Blood.

"Dismember the Suanni! Prepare to pour the precious blood into the cauldron!" Shi Yunfeng shouted.

The Suanni's entire body seemed forged from gold, its radiance blinding like burning flames. Though dead, it still emitted an aura of supreme majesty. Its fur was incomparably tough; ordinary iron axes could not cut it at all, only throwing out strings of sparks with metallic clangs, as if striking iron.

Fortunately, when the old Suanni's lifespan had reached its end, it had fought one final battle and then attempted to destroy itself. Though it had failed, its body was already covered in cracks, with bloody marks running through its golden divine radiance.

Following these split wounds, the villagers wielded their cleansed giant axes and laboriously chopped it apart.

Everyone was deeply shaken. Shi Linhu and Shi Feijiao possessed divine strength of five to six thousand jin with a swing of their arms, already extraordinarily powerful and rare in this wilderness forest. Yet now, merely chopping along the cracked flesh left them panting and drenched in sweat.

It was plain to see just how resilient the Suanni's precious body was—far beyond imagination!

Once it had been completely split open, several elders personally extracted its precious blood. The True Blood actually contained portions of golden liquid, so brilliant it dazzled the eyes.

That was where its value lay. It was the divine power of the ancient descendant Suanni. The small amount of golden blood hidden within its blood was worth a fortune, enough to make even great tribes green with envy!

Though the Suanni was dead, its blood had coagulated without solidifying, making it easy to handle. They used silver vessels to collect the True Blood. The ground was covered with enormous, gleaming silver jars, all of which were eventually filled.

The clan chief personally took action as well. Wielding a jade blade covered in runes, which burst forth with hundreds upon thousands of rays of light, he dug out its most precious heart. It was as large as a washbasin, pale gold throughout, and contained incomparably powerful divine essence. As it was moved, sheets of golden light-rain actually scattered down.

The old clan chief did not dare delay. He immediately placed that supreme treasure of a heart into the black cauldron, afraid of wasting the Suanni's divine radiance. At the same time, he shouted, "Pour in the precious blood!"

Several strong young men carried over huge silver vessels and poured them into the black cauldron with loud glugging sounds, replacing the spring water. Precious blood became the broth, mixing with the medicinal paste and the rest.

The Black Flood Dragon Wood beneath the cauldron burned fiercely, making this inherited ancestral cauldron rumble. The prehistoric savage beasts on its walls seemed about to come alive, as though waves of roars were echoing out. Within the cauldron, the pale golden liquid boiled. That precious heart shone even more fiercely, erupting with golden light-rain and making the entire cauldron radiant. The liquid within transformed into golden light, and an especially rich fragrance rushed forth.

This was the ancient descendant Suanni. Its body itself was a supreme treasure!

"Boil it, brew it into great medicine. Little Dot, get ready. It will soon be time to enter the cauldron." Clan Chief Shi Yunfeng said sternly.

"Understood!" Shi Hao answered loudly.

Fierce flames brewed the great medicine. The fire raged, the fragrance was rich, and the contents of the cauldron became pale golden pulp. From time to time, the roars of ancient descendants sounded from within, striking terror into the soul.

Vaguely, a golden Suanni could be seen emerging. Its terror reached the heavens, swallowing sun and moon until even the stars trembled!

The crowd was horrified. Everyone sucked in a cold breath, and many could not help trembling.

"This is a fragment of the imprint left in the pale golden precious blood by the ancient Suanni ancestor. It became the source of divine essence for this descendant before us." After steadying himself, an elder sighed.

That was not all. The clansmen drew out several tendons and placed them into the cauldron. They also took a considerable amount of pale golden divine marrow from its precious bones and put that into the black cauldron, making the great medicine even more dazzling and its fragrance even more luxuriant.

"Clan Chief, there are runes on this bone! Mysterious power is flowing through it!" Shi Feijiao suddenly cried out.

"What?!" The clan chief and the other elders rushed over at once, no longer able to remain calm.

After the Suanni's flesh was cut open, a symbol appeared upon its forehead bone. It was intricate and profound, glittering brightly and constantly shifting, like countless stars moving across the heavens.

"It was actually preserved!" Shi Yunfeng trembled with excitement, then threw back his head and laughed loudly. Tears nearly fell from his eyes.

Before dying, the Suanni had tried to destroy itself, leaving its body cracked all over. According to the villagers' expectations, it should have destroyed its own primal runes. Whenever ancient descendants neared death, they would do everything possible to erase the inherited marks of their race, lest they fall into the hands of another race. There could be no mistake.

That was also why primal savage bones were so rare and precious, and why precious techniques were of immeasurable value!

A true great clan generally possessed only one exceptionally powerful precious technique, supplemented by several weaker divine abilities. That was already the limit.

The people of Stone Village had never imagined that an accident would occur this time. The ancient variant Suanni had battled fiercely against the Li-Fire Bull Demon and the Demon Ape King, and in the end had failed to destroy the precious bone bearing that imprint.

"Hide it well. No one must let a word slip!" Shi Yunfeng quickly came to his senses, his expression grave. "Heaven has taken pity on our clan and granted us another extraordinarily powerful precious technique. This is a matter of great importance—we must keep it secret."

Then the clan chief turned and urged, "Little Dot, enter the cauldron quickly. The baptism can begin. Once you emerge from seclusion, you may comprehend the supreme precious technique of the ancient descendant Suanni!"

"Grandpa Clan Chief, I've been ready for ages!"

Fresh from his bath, Little Dot's entire body was crystal-clear, runes flickering over him. He looked lovely and adorable. With a leap, he plunged into the boiling cauldron, and the radiant golden liquid immediately submerged him.

"Seal the cauldron!" Shi Yunfeng shouted. The villagers brought over the huge blackened lid, and several people worked together to cover it tightly, without the slightest gap.

The other children all felt dizzy, their faces turning pale. They had sealed it up just like that? Could anyone endure water boiling that fiercely? And how was he supposed to breathe?

The old clan chief glanced at them and said, "Once you refine Bone Script into every inch of your flesh and blood, transforming it into rosy light and divine dawn, you will no longer need to worry about such things. You will be able to draw upon the divine essence between heaven and earth to nourish yourselves. Then you may enter water and fire, and it will not matter even if you do not breathe for a long time."

The scarlet-glowing precious horn and the Demon Ape King's arm had not yet been refined. Shi Yunfeng was worried that Little Dot might not be able to withstand them. After all, he was still too young. They would wait and see before deciding.