The sun sank slowly, and the mountain chill deepened bit by bit.
Iron Pillar and Wang Qi carried bamboo baskets on their backs, packed with all kinds of freshwater fish native to the Great Wilderness.
Sifu hugged a fish bigger than himself and followed behind them, giggling.
His soft, sweet laughter melted the two men's hardened hearts.
Wang Qi was the Cow Demon. He had learned only a handful of characters, and Qi was one of them. Iron Pillar had talked him into taking Wang as his surname, since Iron Pillar's surname was Wang too.
"Uncle Cow, this fish is so big!"
Sifu tightened his grip on the huge fish struggling in his arms.
"Such a strong little tyke! When I was your age, I couldn't have held a fish that big."
Wang Qi gave Sifu a thumbs-up, speaking as though it were true.
In fact, he had been over ten feet tall when he was born.
"Say, boss, I'm mighty fond of your boy. How about letting him call me Dad too?"
The notion of parents had long existed in the Primordial World. But the Human Race had come into being later, born ignorant, and did not understand it.
Put kindly, Wang Qi had been born of heaven and earth. Put bluntly, he was an orphan.
He had spent all these years walking a lonely road, until following Iron Pillar let him gradually experience a different kind of bond. After Sifu was born, the warmth of Iron Pillar's family drew him in even more.
"Not a chance! You dare set your sights on my wife? You're asking for a beating!"
Iron Pillar hammered Wang Qi's face with his fists.
"I don't have my eye on your wife! I just want the boy to call me Dad."
"You're still saying