Little Flame, Insight Spirit Fox

The stone house was far more spacious than Lin Yi had imagined.

The walls had been built from whole blocks of bluish-gray mountain stone, their gaps filled with some grayish-white binding material that looked smooth and hard.

A low stone table stood in the middle of the room, its surface polished flat and smooth. Several stone stools of the same material stood beside it, each padded with thick beast-hide cushions.

The old man gestured for Lin Yi to sit on one of the stone stools, then took a seat opposite him.

A faint rustling came from beside him.

Turning his head, Lin Yi saw that the little boy had already climbed onto another, smaller stone chair while hugging Little Flame. His two little legs dangled in the air, swinging back and forth.

Little Flame lay curled in his arms, its head resting in the crook of the boy's arm. Its amber eyes were half-closed, and it looked so comfortable that it was nearly asleep.

That leisurely, carefree appearance was utterly unlike the capable composure it had displayed while leading the way through the forest earlier—like two entirely different foxes.

Lin Yi withdrew his gaze. The old man across from him was looking at him, quiet and mild, yet carrying a penetrating force that left nowhere to hide.

The stone house fell silent for roughly two breaths.

Then the old man suddenly spoke, his tone as calm as if he were discussing the day's weather.

"Are you curious why, although I knew you weren't telling the truth, I still led you into the tribe?"

Lin Yi's heart abruptly tightened.

In an instant, all kinds of guesses and responses surged through his mind. The muscles around his mouth tensed instinctively, refusing to reveal even a trace of panic.

Yet he also knew that before those eyes, any deliberate concealment would likely be futile.

He remained silent and did not reply.

The old man smiled instead. The wrinkles on his face relaxed, and his tone softened somewhat.

"There is no need to be nervous. This old man has lived in the Great Wilderness for nearly seventy years. I have seen more people than the amount of fierce beast meat I have eaten. Whether you spoke the truth or not, I could tell at a glance. But that is no important matter."

He paused and gently stroked the sparse gray-white beard on his chin.

"What matters is that Little Flame brought you here."

Hearing that, Lin Yi could not help glancing again at the drowsy Red Fox on the chair beside him.

As if sensing his gaze, one of Little Flame's ears twitched slightly. It did not open its eyes, though, and merely swept the tip of its tail lazily once.

The old man continued, "Little Flame is a spirit beast our Bluestone Tribe has raised since it was young. It has lived alongside us day and night for eight years.

"Its clan possesses an innate gift—Mind-and-Nature Discernment, the power to perceive good and evil. Any living being that comes within three zhang of it will have the most fundamental layer of their thoughts sensed by it: whether they bear goodwill, malice, or nothing but a purely self-serving heart."

Lin Yi's heart skipped a beat.

It could sense good and evil? Then after Little Flame had stared at him for so long in the forest, had it already seen through every last one of his little schemes?

As if he had seen through Lin Yi's thoughts, the old man waved his hand with a cheerful smile.

"Rest assured. It only senses goodwill and malice; it cannot read minds. It cannot see through the twists and turns of your specific thoughts."

Lin Yi let out a breath of relief, but another question immediately arose. If it could not see his exact thoughts, then how could it determine that he was safe?

"If you held malice in your heart," the old man said slowly, "even if you harbored only the slightest thought of harming others or taking lives, Little Flame would not be willing to touch you, much less approach you and guide you.

"The fact that you were able to follow it safely to the entrance of the tribe is itself the best proof."

After saying this, the old man leaned back against the stone stool, tucked both hands into his sleeves, and looked at Lin Yi with narrowed, smiling eyes.

"So perhaps you have reasons you cannot speak of, and it is inconvenient for you to reveal your origins. That does not matter.

"Though my Bluestone Tribe is no great tribe, we would never do something like digging into your roots and pressing you step by step.

"If you come, we shall treat you with courtesy. If you leave, we shall never stop you."

An indescribable feeling rose in Lin Yi's heart. The old man clearly knew he was lying, yet he had generously chosen not to press the matter and had even given him a dignified way down.

In modern society, such understanding of human affairs was already rare, much less toward a stranger one had only just met.

After a moment of silence, he rose to his feet and solemnly cupped his hands toward the old man.

"Thank you for your generosity, Elder. I truly do have origins that are inconvenient to explain, but please rest assured that I harbor not the slightest malice toward the tribe. I will remember this trust in my heart."

The old man smiled and nodded, seemingly quite pleased by Lin Yi's words.

"May I ask how I should address you, Elder?" Lin Yi asked smoothly.

"Everyone in the tribe calls me Village Chief," the old man said with a hearty smile. "You may call me the same."

"Village Chief." Lin Yi sat back down, considered for a moment, and decided to strike while the iron was hot.

"May I stay in the tribe for some time? Of course, I will not stay for nothing. If there is any work within my abilities, Village Chief may order me to do it at any time."

The Village Chief looked Lin Yi up and down, his gaze landing on the grass skirt that was already hanging on by a thread. The corner of his mouth twitched again despite himself.

"Staying is naturally no problem. In a while, I'll have Xiao Hu take you to the empty stone house in the west. It is not large, but it will be enough for you alone."

As he spoke, he pointed at the little boy on the chair nearby.

Upon hearing his own name, the little boy immediately puffed out his small chest and put on an expression that said, "Leave it to me."

Little Flame was awakened by his movement. It yawned, revealing a mouthful of tiny pointed teeth, then lazily drooped its head again.

After thanking the Village Chief, Lin Yi thought for a moment and asked, "Village Chief, could you explain where exactly this place is?"

At that question, the Village Chief's eyes deepened again, like a still pool disturbed by a thrown stone, sending out a ring of barely perceptible ripples.

He did not answer immediately. Instead, he fell silent for two breaths, seeming to consider where to begin.

"The land beneath our feet is called the Great Wilderness."

The Village Chief's voice became much steadier, carrying the gravity of someone recounting an ancient tale.

"The Great Wilderness is vast and boundless, with fierce beasts running rampant and danger lurking on every side. Most people who live here gather by clan and dwell in tribes.

"Like our Bluestone Tribe, we have put down roots in this valley generation after generation. We hunt fierce beasts for food and grow some drought-resistant grains to fill our bellies."

Lin Yi listened attentively, quietly recording this information in his rapidly turning mind.

"Fierce beasts come in strong and weak varieties," the Village Chief continued. "The weaker ones are like ordinary wild beasts; sturdy adults can handle them.

"But those powerful fierce beasts... a single one can destroy a small or medium-sized tribe. Every year, tribes in the Great Wilderness are wiped out after encountering a Beast Tide or accidentally provoking a high-ranked fierce beast, leaving neither corpses nor bones behind."

His tone was calm, but the cruelty seeping from his words made Lin Yi's back tighten slightly.

After a moment of silence, Lin Yi still asked the most crucial question, the one that had been itching at his heart.

"Village Chief, does the tribe... possess some cultivation method that can make one stronger?"

The Village Chief looked at him upon hearing that. There was no surprise in his gaze; instead, there was an understanding that said, "So you have finally asked."

"That is correct. My Bluestone Tribe does indeed possess a cultivation method passed down through generations."

The Village Chief's words confirmed Lin Yi's guess, and his heartbeat quietly quickened.

"But not everyone can cultivate." The Village Chief shifted the subject, his calm tone carrying a trace of gravity. "Every person has different aptitude.

"Some are born with unobstructed meridians and open spirit apertures, advancing a thousand miles in a day when they cultivate. Others have blocked meridians and unopened spirit apertures; even after exhausting an entire lifetime, they cannot sense the slightest trace of spiritual energy and cannot even cross the threshold of cultivation."

Lin Yi's heart rose into his throat again. He was an outsider, after all. Though this body had been tempered once by spiritual energy, he had no idea whether he could cultivate or what his aptitude might be.

He opened his mouth, greatly wanting to ask the Village Chief for that cultivation method.

But the words reached his lips and were forcibly swallowed back down. They had only just met. The man had kindly taken him in, given him a place to stay, and answered his questions—was he supposed to turn around and demand the foundation of the tribe's existence, the secret of its inheritance?

That would be far too rash. If he angered the Village Chief and got thrown out of the tribe, where would he find another place willing to take him in?

Lin Yi lowered his eyes and lightly tapped his knee twice with his fingertips, suppressing that impulse.

But as if he had seen through Lin Yi's thoughts, the Village Chief suddenly spoke with a cheerful smile.

"I can teach you the cultivation method."

Lin Yi abruptly raised his head, nearly thinking he had misheard. "...What?"

He had not even asked, yet the Village Chief had offered it himself?

Seeing his stunned, speechless expression, the Village Chief's smile deepened. The creases at the corners of his eyes piled up like a chrysanthemum.

"You need not be surprised. The reason I am willing to trust you is indeed because of Little Flame's judgment.

"But there is another reason I have decided to teach you the method."

Lin Yi held his breath and waited for what came next.

The Village Chief slowly raised three fingers. "In eight years, you are the first living person Little Flame has led into the tribe. Do you know what that means?"

Lin Yi shook his head.

"The Insight Spirit Fox can not only perceive good and evil; it can also sense the depth of a person's talent."

The Village Chief's gaze fell upon Lin Yi with scrutiny—but there was no malice in it. Instead, it was like a craftsman examining a piece of uncut jade freshly unearthed from the earth.

"Little Flame's willingness to guide you means it has judged your heart to be pure and kind, or at least harmless.

"And its willingness to take the initiative to touch you, even remaining by your side when you were unconscious, means..."

The Village Chief paused, lowering his voice somewhat.

"It sensed that your talent far surpasses that of ordinary people."

At that instant, Lin Yi's heartbeat abruptly accelerated, and a rush of heat surged from his chest to his mind.

The Village Chief looked at him, his tone calm yet solemn. "Teaching you the cultivation method is both an expression of trust in you and a way of forging a good bond. To speak more frankly—"

The old man leaned forward slightly. A faint sharpness, belonging to one who survived in the wilds, flashed through his ancient-well-like eyes.

"The Great Wilderness is perilous. Though the Bluestone Tribe has taken root here for generations, no one knows what tomorrow may bring.

"If you achieve success in cultivation and become powerful in the future, I hope you will remember today's kindness. When the tribe faces a crisis of life and death, I hope you can lend us a hand."

His voice was not loud, yet it weighed heavily upon Lin Yi's heart.

After hearing this, the wild joy that had struck Lin Yi at the mention of the cultivation method immediately settled somewhat.

He rapidly weighed the pros and cons in his mind. He had to agree first and get the method into his hands. As for whether he could fulfill this promise in the future—who could know whether tomorrow or disaster would arrive first?

Perhaps before he even made anything of his cultivation, some fierce beast would carry him off in its jaws. When it came to debts, one had to be alive to be qualified to repay them.

Yet outwardly, he showed no hesitation. Rising to his feet, he cupped his hands and spoke with a voice that landed like iron.

"If the tribe encounters a crisis in the future, I, Lin Yi, will certainly give my utmost aid. I will never break my word."

The Village Chief looked at him and slowly nodded.

Meanwhile, Little Flame in Xiao Hu's arms quietly opened one eye. Lin Yi's figure was reflected in its amber pupil, before the eye quickly closed again.

Its tail gently swayed once over the edge of the chair, soundlessly.

Outside the stone house, the wind suddenly grew stronger. It poured through the crack in the door with a mournful howl.

The Village Chief rose to his feet and walked to a low wooden rack in the corner of the stone house.

The rack looked quite old. Its edges and corners had been worn smooth and bright, and only two things rested upon it: a palm-sized rough pottery jar and a yellowed, weathered beast-hide scroll.

The Village Chief reached out and took down the hide scroll, moving as gently as if he were holding a fragile treasure.

He turned around and held the scroll out to Lin Yi.