"Shitou, you really shouldn't go..."
A woman followed up, her voice trembling.
"You're still so young. There's no need to go and throw your life away! If the Lord God wanted to save them, he could do it himself with far less trouble. Why would he need you..."
"Shut your damn mouth!"
Before the woman could finish, Widow Li's voice practically took the roof off. She stood with her hands on her hips, her spit nearly flying into the woman's face.
"What the hell do you know?! The Lord God thinks highly of my Shitou, which is why he entrusted him with such a big task!
"If it were you going, would you even be worthy? When that snake demon was chasing you last time, you ran faster than a rabbit, and now you have the nerve to stand here and talk trash?"
The woman’s face turned bright red as she shrunk back, not daring to make a sound.
Widow Li wasn't finished. She glared at the cowering people around her.
"Every single one of you! You eat the meat provided by the Lord God and drink the water from the well he dug, yet you turn into gutless cowards the moment you see a hint of danger?
"If it weren't for the Lord God, you all would have been turned into snake shit a long time ago!"
Having finished her tirade, she turned around and grabbed Shitou’s arm.
Her grip was so tight it almost crushed his bones, but her voice softened slightly.
"Son, I know you know what you're doing.
"You have the skills the Lord God gave you. I... I'm not worried...
"But remember, once you’re there, kill those demons properly. Don’t lose face for the Lord God, and don’t lose face for me! I’ll be home boiling dried meat for you. If you dare come back missing even a single hair, I’ll skin you alive!"
Shitou’s eyes grew warm as he nodded vigorously. "Mother, I understand."
"Good that you understand!"
Widow Li let go of his arm and put her hands back on her hips, shouting at the crowd.
"What are you all standing around for? Didn’t you hear that Shitou is going to kill demons? Hurry up and bring out all the rations from your houses! Get that jerky dried through and through!
"And you strong ones, tie up two bundles of sturdy firewood for Shitou so he can stay warm on the road! If anyone dares to slack off, I’m not finished with you!"
Li Dazhu was the first to respond. He shouldered his axe and shouted, "I’ll chop the wood! Shitou, I’m coming with you. I can lend you a hand on the road!"
"I’m going too!" the black-faced man shouted along. "I can carry things and help you block those demons!"
The villagers, who had been trembling with fear just moments ago, were spurred into action by Widow Li’s sharp-tongued lashing.
Some went to rummage through grain bags, some out to dry meat, and others helped check the joints of the bone armor. The chaotic scene was instantly pulled together by Widow Li’s fierce energy.
...
Shideng Village wasn't far from Daliang Village. In the past, before the demon disaster, the two villages frequently interacted.
It took three days for Shitou to travel from Dead Man’s Forest to Shideng Village.
The journey wasn't entirely peaceful. Midway, they encountered a wolf as large as an ox, its eyes glowing with green light as it pounced.
Shitou simply drew his bone blade and gave a light swing. The edge carried a frigid blade qi; before the giant wolf could even let out a whimper, its head fell to the ground, blood splashing everywhere.
This single strike boosted Shitou’s confidence immensely.
With the strength and weapons bestowed by the Lord God, dealing with ordinary demons didn't seem so difficult after all.
Shitou wore his bone armor with the bone blade at his waist, an aura of baleful slaughter radiating from him.
Li Dazhu shouldered his axe on the left, and the black-faced man carried a heavy bag of rations on the right, looking like two guardian protectors.
The sand and soil crunched beneath their feet.
Many other villagers had wanted to follow after being scolded awake by Widow Li, but she had ultimately cursed and grumbled them into staying at Dead Man’s Forest.
"What are you useless things going for? Just to get in the way?
"Are you not going to do the work the Lord God arranged?"
After so many years as neighbors, everyone knew Widow Li was sharp-tongued but soft-hearted. She wouldn't let them follow for their own safety.
At the entrance of Shideng Village, several villagers on lookout spotted them from afar.
Looking at the figure clad in white bone armor and exuding a ferocious aura, someone couldn't help but grip their hoe tighter, their voice trembling.
"Who... who is that? Why do they look so terrifying..."
In this world, those who dared to walk the wilderness were either demons or cultivators from the White Jade Sword Sect.
This figure clearly didn't look like the latter.
As the three reached the entrance, seven or eight men rushed out from under an old locust tree, brandishing hoes and firewood knives. Their faces were tense, and their eyes were filled with wariness as they stared at Shitou.
That suit of bone armor gleaming with a cold light was too eye-catching. Combined with Shitou’s lingering baleful aura, anyone would mistake him for a malevolent evil spirit seeking trouble.
"Halt! Who are you people? What are you doing in our Shideng Village!"
The lead man’s voice was dry and raspy, but he forced himself to put on a fierce front. However, his chest was so thin his ribs could be counted, offering very little intimidation.
Li Dazhu quickly lowered his axe and stepped forward, waving his hand with a smile. "Don't misunderstand! We're from Daliang Village. This is our Shitou. We aren't bad people!"
"From Daliang Village?"
The leader squinted for a long time. His gaze froze on the bulging muscles of Li Dazhu's arms, and he suddenly stumbled back half a step in shock.
"You... you're Li Dazhu? That’s not right! Two years ago when you traded grain with us, you were thinner than me! Your arms were like matchsticks, how are they now..."
Not just him, but the surrounding villagers of Shideng Village also stared with wide eyes, their gazes fixed on Li Dazhu, the black-faced man, and Shitou.
Li Dazhu and the black-faced man were travel-worn and weary after three days on the road.
However, their muscles were full, and their skin had a healthy, sun-bronzed glow.
Shitou, in particular, stood there in his bone armor with a straight back and a firm core. Compared to the half-grown children in the village who were too thin to walk, he looked like he belonged to a different species entirely.
"Is... is this really someone from Daliang Village? How did they grow so sturdy?"
The villagers hiding behind the large banyan tree also emerged. An old woman reached out with trembling hands, wanting to touch Li Dazhu’s arm, but afraid of offending a noble, her hand hovered in mid-air for a long time.
"Shitou?" Someone else shifted their gaze to Shitou, staring at his face, which was no longer sallow but instead filled with a heroic spirit. They couldn't snap out of it for a long time.
"Are you that little Shitou who used to follow his mother to pick wild vegetables and always hid behind the trees? How... how did you change so much? Your build is even sturdier than the merchants from the city!"
The surrounding villagers chimed in, their voices filled with disbelief.
"Isn't that the truth! I used to see him and he looked like a withered blade of grass. How is he so energetic now? And this armor, it's so bright it's blinding. Have you been chosen by the immortals of the White Jade Sword Sect?"
As they talked, a villager looked at the dried meat hanging from Li Dazhu’s waist, swallowed hard, and asked in a low voice, "You guys... can you eat your fill now?"
Li Dazhu sighed and pulled out a piece of jerky, handing it over.
"We couldn't eat our fill before either. Then the snake demon attacked, and only a dozen of us were left in the village. It’s all thanks to the Lord God in Dead Man’s Forest. He gave us meat and pills, which is why we could grow so strong."
He recounted the night the snake demon slaughtered the village and how the Lord God appeared, not leaving out the miracles of the pills and the digging of the well.
Rate on N.U.
