Shi Hou reached back toward the Black Pot, plunged his hand into its space, and pulled out two huge slabs of dark red jerky.
He flicked his wrist.
The slabs, each half a person tall, tore through the air toward Shi Hao.
Shi Hao raised his hands and caught them securely, then opened his mouth wide and bit down hard.
Crunch!
His sharp teeth shredded tough meat fibers and cartilage alike. Vast blood qi erupted in his stomach, rampaging through his meridians. His shriveled belly sprang outward as though inflated.
Shi Hou leaned against the scorching stone wall, tore off a strip of meat, and tossed it into his mouth.
"One hundred seventy thousand jin of strength. You won't find another like you in the Great Wilderness."
Shi Hao swallowed the meat and haphazardly wiped the mud and dust from his face.
"I still can't beat you." His voice was muffled, full of defiance.
Shi Hou swallowed his chewed jerky. "You're only six. Keep training."
Shi Hao finished the jerky in a few bites and sprang to his feet.
He spread his legs slightly and flung his arms wide.
Every bone in his body gave off a string of sharp cracks like firecrackers.
"Come on. Back to the village."
Shi Hou shouldered the Black Pot and drove power through his legs.
Mud and stone shattered. Two dark figures, one large and one small, shot upward, leaped out of the pit dozens of meters deep, and raced back along their original path.
The night wind rushed against them, sweeping fallen leaves off the ground.
Bonfires blazed in Stone Village's square.
Two skinned One-Horned Wild Boars hung over the fires, golden fat dripping down with a sizzle.
Shi Linhu and Shi Feijiao were carving meat with their knives.
Heavy footsteps drew closer,