Beside the bonfire, more than a dozen sharpened wooden sticks had been thrust at an angle around the fire, each strung with freshly butchered strips of Savage Bull meat.
Fat dripped onto the coals with a sizzling crackle, and the aroma mingled with the smoky scent of fire, making stomachs growl.
No one knew who started it, but several young tribespeople began dancing rough, powerful steps to the beat beside the fire. Some clapped along, while others hummed an ancient, lingering tune, their voices deep and hoarse, as though they had surged up from beneath the earth.
Lin Yi sat at the edge beyond the reach of the firelight, holding a meat-laden stick as he watched the faces leaping in the glow.
Xiao Hu charged past the bonfire with several playmates, with Little Flame following behind him.
The Red Fox still looked lazy and unhurried, its tail sweeping leisurely across the ground. But as it passed Lin Yi, those amber eyes slanted toward him for a glance before it continued on as if nothing had happened.
He could not help but smile.
Firelight illuminated the village chief in the distance. The old man did not join the singing and dancing, merely sitting on a low stool with a pottery bowl in hand, slowly sipping something.
His gaze gently enveloped the entire area lit by the bonfire, like an old tree sheltering the creatures resting in its shade.
Lin Yi swallowed the last bite of slightly charred Savage Bull meat, rose to his feet, passed through the lively crowd, and sat down beside the village chief.
He did not beat around the bush. He asked directly, "Village Chief, I want to ask about the bloodline talents of Ferocious Beasts."
The village chief paused with the rim of the bowl at his lips. A trace of surprise appeared in his gaze as he looked at Lin Yi, but it swiftly became a look of understanding. He set down the bowl, pondered for a moment, and slowly began to speak.
"The source of a Ferocious Beast's bloodline talent lies in its ancestors."
The old man's voice was low and steady, as if recounting an old tale carved into bone. "Those true Ancient Exotic Beasts of the Great Wilderness possessed power that reached the heavens and shook the earth. Some of their strength and traits were passed down through their bloodlines.
"If a descendant's bloodline is sufficiently pure, then when the opportunity arrives, they may awaken the power their ancestors left behind in their blood. That is a Bloodline Divine Ability."
He paused and extended a finger toward the distant skeleton of the already-skinned Savage Bull King.
"Once a Bloodline Divine Ability is activated, Divine Markings will generally appear across the body's surface. Those patterns are the outward traces of the Divine Ability's operation within the flesh. They may also be called the 'form' of power."
Lin Yi nodded inwardly. It matched his own speculation. He pressed on with another question.
"I heard Brother Biao say that many of humanity's martial techniques and Divine Abilities were created by comprehending the Bloodline Divine Abilities of Ferocious Beasts?"
The village chief nodded, and a distant look entered his eyes.
"That is right. The various martial techniques, battle methods, and even the more profound secret arts of Divine Ability passed down among the humans of the Great Wilderness all trace their origins back to those ancient great figures' comprehension of Ferocious Beast Divine Markings.
"They observed Ferocious Beasts in battle, copied their Divine Markings, deduced the principles behind their inner workings, and ultimately transformed beastly forms into something humans could use, creating methods of battle that belonged to our human race."
As he said this, his tone shifted, and he gave a bitter smile.
"However, most of those things are held by great tribes and powerful clans.
"For a small fringe tribe like our Bluestone Tribe, having even a basic method for cultivating qi and blood passed down through the generations is already a blessing from our ancestors.
"Martial techniques and Divine Abilities... those are things we would not even dare dream of."
After saying that, the village chief suddenly sensed something. His gaze abruptly fixed on Lin Yi's face.
His withered hand tightened slightly around the rim of the bowl, and an intensely restrained hesitation entered his voice. "You... couldn't possibly..."
He did not finish, but what flashed through his eyes in that instant was far too blazing, bright as a flame springing up from the heart of the bonfire.
Lin Yi met his gaze without avoiding it.
"I still cannot be certain," Lin Yi said steadily, yet every word carried the weight of conviction. "I need a few days."
The village chief understood almost immediately.
He did not ask questions such as "How much did you memorize?" or "How confident are you?" Instead, he quietly watched Lin Yi for a long time.
The firelight danced across his deeply lined face. In those eyes that had watched people for a lifetime were scrutiny, consideration, and anticipation, all of which finally gathered into a deep, warm glow.
"If you truly succeed..." The village chief's voice was very low, yet heavy as a stone smashing into the ground. "Could you pass it on to the tribespeople?"
He did not mention any terms of exchange. He did not say, "You have been eating our food and living under our roof." Nor did he use gratitude as a rope to bind him.
He was only asking. Only pleading.
"Since the Bluestone Tribe was founded, we have never possessed a martial technique of our own.
"If we could truly have one... the tribespeople's strength would rise greatly, and the tribe's safety would rise with the tide.
"Perhaps even becoming a true great tribe of the Great Wilderness would not be impossible."
The old man's voice trembled slightly at the end. It was the irrepressible excitement of someone who had carried the tribe on his shoulders for a lifetime, suddenly seeing a light he had never dared hope for rising over the horizon.
Lin Yi looked into those unusually bright eyes and remembered how, on his first day in the tribe, this man had taken him in without asking about his background, voluntarily taught him a cultivation method, and protected him, an outsider of unknown origin.
He fell silent for a moment, then raised a hand and lightly pressed it over his chest.
"Rest assured, Village Chief." His voice was not loud, but it reached the old man's ears with perfect clarity.
"The tribe has shown me great kindness. Though I, Lin Yi, am an outsider, I know very well the principle of repaying kindness. Once I succeed in creating it, I will certainly pass it on to the tribe."
The village chief opened his mouth, but it seemed something caught in his throat. He lowered his head and brushed the corner of his eye with the back of his hand. When he looked up again, he had already returned to his usual cheerful old self.
He said "Good" three times in a row, then firmly clasped Lin Yi's hand and shook it.
"If you need any help, just speak. So long as the tribe can provide it, I will spare no effort!"
Lin Yi's wrist ached from the grip. Smiling, he shook his head.
"From here on, it is only a matter of time. No other conditions are needed."
After saying that, he looked beyond the bonfire.
Little Flame was sitting atop a stone, its tail gathered between its paws, its amber eyes fixed on the firelight.
When it saw Lin Yi's gaze turn toward it, it slowly blinked once, then turned its head and licked its paw.
The bonfire crackled, sparks rising into the night sky like a flock of golden fireflies melting into the stars filling the heavens.
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