Arrival

To be honest, Lin Yi did not really want to leave Bluestone Tribe just like that.

There were many reasons. The bonds he had formed with the people of the tribe were one of them. Mang, Biao, Xiao Hu, the village chief—every one of them had treated him with genuine kindness. He could not simply pretend none of it mattered.

On the other hand, after turning it over in his mind several times, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that joining Flamewaste Tribe might not necessarily be a good thing.

Living under another's roof meant being constrained at every turn. If there were missions, he would have to follow arrangements; if there were rules, he would have to obey them. How could that compare to the freedom he had now?

With his Dragonlike Blood-Qi Realm strength, he would have little trouble swaggering through the edge of the Great Wilderness alone.

Lacking cultivation arts and martial skills? He could just enter the forest and record them from Ferocious Beasts. Besides, they would be tailored specifically to him, making them more suitable than any inherited cultivation art.

What truly held him back was the fundamental knowledge of cultivation.

But Lin Yi figured that cultivation knowledge and cultivation arts or martial skills were different in nature. The latter were core secrets, while the former were, at most, basic introductory knowledge. They should not be guarded as tightly as a clan-defining cultivation art.

During the Tribal Exchange Gathering, people would be coming and going. Perhaps he could pick up something useful.

"Besides..." Lin Yi leaned against the stone wall as Little Flame nestled in his arms, purring evenly.

"It's not like this is my only path. Flamewaste Tribe is a powerful backer, but it's not like I absolutely have to cling to it."

He rubbed his temples and threw all the tangled thoughts out of his mind in one go.

"Enough. I'll study the Lava Divine Marking first."

He closed his eyes. That incomplete dark-red scroll slowly unfurled in his mind, its hair-thin patterns crisscrossing one another.

Though his progress was slow, every pattern he understood deepened his understanding of the essence of blood qi. Lin Yi immersed himself in comprehension throughout the night, only ending his cultivation when morning light streamed through the cave entrance.

Before dawn had fully broken the next day, the people of Bluestone Tribe had already set out.

The Bluemane Horses truly had astonishing speed. More than twenty horses galloped along the gentle slopes at the edge of the Great Wilderness. Their journey was smooth and unobstructed, without even a decent setback.

As evening neared, the terrain ahead suddenly opened up.

With his sharp eyes, Lin Yi spotted a sprawling cluster of wooden houses from afar. Its scale was more than ten times that of Bluestone Tribe.

The houses were arranged in an orderly yet scattered pattern. A thick wooden fence over twice a man's height surrounded the outside, with a watchtower every so often. Armed guards patrolled back and forth atop the towers.

Through the gaps in the fence, he could see broad stone-paved roads, furnaces taller than a person, and figures constantly moving about.

The edge of the Great Wilderness had never possessed such dense signs of human habitation.

"We're here ahead—Flamewaste Tribe."

The village chief slowed his horse, his voice carrying a hint of emotion. He only came here once every few years, yet the sight still left him awestruck every time.

After the cavalry traveled a little farther, the village chief turned to Lin Yi. "Boy Lin, have you thought it over? Do you want to join Flamewaste Tribe?"

Lin Yi shook his head. "Not yet. I want to wait until after the Trade Gathering before deciding."

The village chief pondered for a moment, then nodded. "That works. It's better to make a decision after seeing the world than to choose muddleheadedly now." He paused before adding, "But there's one thing. To avoid trouble, suppress your aura for now. Don't let the Flamewaste people see that you're in the Dragonlike Realm."

Lin Yi understood what the village chief meant.

If a young Dragonlike Realm cultivator suddenly appeared in a small tribe, it would be impossible not to draw attention.

He immediately circulated the Breath-Concealing Art. The fluctuations of blood qi within him contracted layer upon layer, dropping from the Dragonlike Realm to the Tidal Surge Realm. He now looked like nothing more than an ordinary young hunter with some talent, utterly unremarkable.

The people of Flamewaste Tribe soon noticed them.

More than twenty Bluemane Horses approached in grand procession. The commotion was impossible to ignore.

A group of people quickly emerged from inside the fenced gate, around a dozen in total. Each had abundant blood qi, a hardy physique, and the aura of the Mountain-Sinking Realm.

At their head stood a brawny middle-aged man with a square face and sharp eyes. The thickness of the blood qi surrounding him clearly surpassed everyone behind him.

Dragonlike Realm.

Lin Yi gave him an inconspicuous glance and secretly measured him up.

The man's blood qi was still less solid than Lin Yi's, but at the edge of the Great Wilderness, he was already enough to reign supreme.

"Which tribe are you from? Here for the Trade Gathering?" the middle-aged leader asked. His voice was loud, carrying a businesslike tone.

The village chief cupped his hands. "We are from Bluestone Tribe, here to attend this year's Trade Gathering."

The man's gaze swept over the village chief, then across the row of Bluemane Horses behind him. His brows twitched slightly. "Bluestone Tribe? A small tribe." He paused.

"But you have some skill, getting your hands on so many Bluemane Horses."

Lin Yi's heart tightened slightly.

Countless webnovel plots flashed through his mind in an instant: powerful figures from a large tribe coveting wealth, forced purchases and sales, courtesy on the surface and a knife in the back... But upon further thought, he felt he was simply being overly suspicious.

It was currently the Tribal Exchange Gathering. As the hosts, Flamewaste Tribe wanted reputation and talent. If they even laid hands on their guests' belongings, who would dare come in the future once word spread? Wouldn't that be like lifting a stone only to smash their own feet?

Sure enough, he had read too many trashy novels before crossing over.

He silently mocked himself, though his expression remained unchanged.

The middle-aged man did not ask further questions. He merely stepped aside and made a gesture that said, "Follow me," before turning toward the fence.

Lin Yi and the others led their Bluemane Horses after him. As they passed through the heavy wooden gate, they could feel the gazes from the watchtowers on both sides following them the entire time.

The interior of Flamewaste Tribe was far larger than it had appeared from outside.

After walking along the main road for the time it took an incense stick to burn, the middle-aged man led them into a separate area on the outskirts of the tribe.

Several rows of neat wooden houses stood here. They were far more orderly than the stone houses of Bluestone Tribe, and each had a door and windows, with crushed stone spread across the ground in front.

This area was already occupied.

With his sharp eyes, Lin Yi saw seven or eight small groups dressed differently scattered around the wooden houses. Some were cooking over fires, while others were counting supplies.

Judging by their clothing and auras, they were likely all fringe tribes attending the Trade Gathering. When they saw Lin Yi's group leading more than twenty Bluemane Horses inside, surprise clearly appeared on every face, and they whispered among themselves for quite a while.

But they soon withdrew their gazes and went back to their own business.

Having so many Bluemane Horses was proof enough that this group was not to be provoked. The fringe tribes all shared an unspoken understanding not to pry blindly into such matters.

The middle-aged man stopped before a row of empty wooden houses and pointed. "These rooms are assigned to your tribe for temporary lodging. There are still two days until the Trade Gathering officially begins. You may move about freely during those two days,

but certain areas within Flamewaste Tribe are forbidden. Someone will explain them clearly to you later."

After saying that, he gave the village chief a slight nod and left, crisp and decisive, without a single unnecessary word.

"Put the supplies away first, then come out and gather," the village chief instructed quietly. Everyone led their horses into the assigned wooden houses. Lin Yi chose one at the edge, unloaded and stored his supplies, then found a wooden post outside for Xiao Qing, tying her there and feeding her a handful of hay.

By the time everyone had settled in, the sky had completely darkened.

Specks of firelight lit up throughout Flamewaste Tribe, and the air carried the scents of roasted meat and medicinal herbs.

The village chief gathered everyone before the wooden houses and gave them a few brief instructions, telling them to return to their rooms and rest well to conserve their energy.

"Boy Lin," the village chief called out before leaving, "tomorrow, you can take a look around inside Flamewaste Tribe. Though the Trade Gathering has not officially started, some people have already begun setting up stalls in the tribe. It wouldn't hurt to try your luck."

Lin Yi's eyes lit up. "Alright, I'll go take a look tomorrow."

He turned and returned to his wooden house, shut the door, and placed Little Flame on the animal-hide mat beside the bed.

"I hope my luck is good tomorrow," Lin Yi muttered. Then he once again sank into his mind to study the Lava Divine Marking.