Volume 1,Chapter 11: Coming of Age

The battle with the Yi Wolves had ended over five months ago. In that battle, the Chihu tribe achieved a major victory, killing nearly three thousand Yi Wolf warriors and capturing two thousand of their women and children, who were naturally all enslaved according to forest customs. The remaining Yi Wolves were driven out of the forest and were never seen again; even the merchants couldn't say where they had gone. The Chihu tribe made a substantial profit, seizing a large number of livestock, furs, and weapons from the Yi Wolves, which brought great joy to the tribe members.

No one questioned the sudden appearance of Xiahou's mount, the Dafeng Sword, or the longbow. The tribe had clearly seen Xiahou's remarkable performance that day: an underage boy killing dozens of enemy warriors—a rare feat in tribal battles. The tribe assumed that his unexpected gains were spoils taken from the Yi Wolves, and no one suggested sharing them with a child; everything went to Xiahou.

In over five months, Xiahou made significant progress, astonishingly breaking through to the mid-level of the seventh transformation in his Black Tortoise True Art, greatly enhancing his strength. Xiahou pondered this surprising advancement, realizing that his earth-based elemental energy seemed particularly easy to gather, accumulating at a rate at least ten times faster than in his past life. This planet's heavy earth element was especially suitable for his cultivation. Additionally, being in a youthful body in this life naturally accelerated his progress.

Within five months, Xiahou went from a novice archer to a skilled one. The Dragon Tendon Bow was a genuine quality weapon made from real T-Rex tendons, requiring three to four thousand pounds of force to draw. In the entire village, only Chihu Xiu could fully draw it a few times, while other tribe members could only draw it halfway before exhausting their strength. Xiahou, however, could use it with ease. The power of arrows shot from a bow requiring such force was unimaginable.

However, Xiahou was extremely dissatisfied with the Dafeng Sword. Despite its sharpness, durability, and unparalleled cutting ability, it was infused with fire elemental energy and a bit of wind elemental energy. Weighing only a dozen pounds, it didn't suit Xiahou's preferences. But given its sharpness, capable of splitting a Great Horned Beast's skull with one strike, Xiahou grudgingly used it.

Sitting on the roof of his own house, looking at the starry sky, Xiahou absorbed the last bit of earth elemental power for the day. His body, tempered by witchcraft, became even stronger, and the earth elemental true energy in his dantian was exceptionally lively, faintly forming a thumb-sized elemental pellet. Throughout his body, the elemental power in his meridians circulated endlessly like mercury, gaining even more power out of thin air.

With his hands supporting his chin, Xiahou contemplated, "The Xingtian Ao Long can see the level of my witchcraft, but it didn't see the profoundness in my dantian. As long as my inner pellet is formed, I can achieve a fundamental leap, with my strength increasing by more than tenfold. I should then have the ability to protect myself and rush to Anyi."

Pointing his finger at the slender and incomparably sharp Great Wind Sword, the sword edge tinged with a hint of green light and a touch of red glow, Xiahou flipped over. Without disturbing Bai, who was lying on the ground sleeping on all fours, he quietly descended to the first floor of the main house. Seeing Chihuoxiu still vigorously moving his body there, Xiahou called out softly, "Dad, come out, I have something to tell you."

Chihuoxiu responded vaguely, "Ah Yi, wait a moment, let Dad finish off this Yilang woman first." After speaking, he hummed even more vigorously.

In the battle five months ago, Chihuoxiu performed extremely well, even killing the Yilang people's tribe shaman, so he received generous rewards, such as two fairly good-looking Yilang women, who became Chihuoxiu's spoils of war. Now Chihuoxiu was busy all night, according to him, Xiahou had grown up, so he wanted to work hard to make all three women pregnant in one night, contributing to the tribe's growth.

Xiahou walked helplessly into the yard and sat on the wooden stump used to chop firewood during the day. The black horse walked gently over and leaned its big head against Xiahou's shoulder. Xiahou lightly patted the horse's head, stroked its two horns. The black horse enjoyed it very much, snorted loudly, bent its four legs, and lay down beside Xiahou. Its pair of dark eyes looked left and right, closed its eyes, and started snoring.

After a while, there were a few muffled hums from inside the wooden house, followed by the sound of Chihuoxiu's heavy footsteps. He had a beast skin loosely wrapped around his waist as he walked out, chuckling. "Ah Yi, what do you want to tell Dad? That horned horse of yours is really something, how come it even has scales on its body? It's rare to see a horned horse so in tune with humans."

Xiahou chuckled and patted the neck of the black horse. He couldn't really say what this black horse was all about. Traveling thousands of miles in a day? Come on, is there such a fast animal?

Seeing Chihuxiu's satisfied expression, Xiahou said in a low voice, "Dad, after the coming-of-age ceremony, I want to go to Anyi."

Scratching his messy hair, Chihuxiu yawned and said, "Go to Anyi? Alright, go ahead. Wait, where's Anyi? Why haven't I heard of it?"

Xiahou smiled faintly, "It's a faraway place. I made an appointment with someone to meet in Anyi. It should be much bigger than our forest here. I want to go out and explore."

Chihuxiu sat down beside Xiahou, wrapped his big hand around Xiahou's shoulder, and frowned. "Going out to explore is not a bad idea. A tiger cub cannot grow under its mother's wings. But you're only twelve after the coming-of-age ceremony." Chihuoxiu looked at Xiahou, who was as strong as himself, even more so, and nodded. "It's good to go out and see the world. But, who did you make an appointment with?"

Xiahou handed over the Great Wind Sword in his hand. "The person who gave me this sword."

Chihuxiu's face almost scrunched up into a ball. "This sword was given to you by that person? I thought you stole it from the Yilang people. No, no." Chihuoxiu jumped up suddenly, shouting loudly, "This won't do. The tribe thinks these things are your spoils of war, so they've counted them towards our share. If they knew someone else gave it to you, then, this time, our family should at least get one more slave. Even if it's not an extra slave, having a little child to help with things would be good."

Xiahou was speechless, looking at Chihuoxiu, who was full of anger. After a long while, he asked, "So, what about my trip to Anyi?"

Scratching his head, Chihuoxiu frowned. "Go to Anyi? You figure it out. Ah Yi, your brain is better than Dad's, make your own decisions."

Smacking his lips, Chihuxiu walked back into the house, saying as he walked, "Dad is going to have a sibling for you. After the coming-of-age ceremony, you can leave if you want. Originally, I wanted to find you a wife first before letting you go out. When you're out, remember to come back in a couple of years. You're the first boy in the family, so you should start having babies early to carry on the family line."

Xiahou nodded gently and muttered, "Dad, what if I bring back a wife from outside the mountains?"

Xiu grinned and turned back, "Bringing a wife back from outside the mountains? What a great idea! I've heard there are very beautiful women outside the mountains. If you find some at a good price, get a few hides for Dad and a few uncles in exchange." He chuckled a few times, rubbing his chin, "I won't meddle in these matters, but if you're not ranked first in the coming-of-age ceremony, I'll beat you to death."

After a month's time, all the Chihu tribe members participating in the coming-of-age ceremony gathered in their home village, totaling more than three hundred youths. Their fathers proudly brought their tribe members to cheer and boast that their sons were the most outstanding men in the tribe.

Among them, Xiahou, who was two heads taller than his peers, stood out particularly. With the white beast by his side, he exuded a fierce aura. While there were other tall young men, they seemed dim in comparison to Xiahou. Some youths brought their childhood companions, fierce beasts they grew up with, but the most formidable ones were only striped tigers, fire leopards, cloud leopards, etc. Compared to a white pixiu, they appeared inferior.

The coming-of-age ceremony was presided over by Chihuoxiu Heihe.

Covered from head to toe in various sizes of skulls and wearing a hat made from a giant mountain demon skull, Heihe said in a grim voice, "Future warriors of the Chihu tribe, you must know that we, the Chihu tribe, are the strongest warriors in the forest."

The Chihu tribe cheered simultaneously, along with the wild beasts they had tamed, roaring loudly. A faint smile appeared on Heihe's pitch-black face, as he said weakly, "Only those who can live in the forest and kill all the fierce beasts in the forest can be considered heroes of our Chihu tribe. Every year during the coming-of-age ceremony, every child of the tribe must live in the deepest forest for a month, hunt and kill the most powerful beast they can defeat to name and tattoo themselves."

Thunderbull roared loudly beside him, "I hope your names all carry powerful names like tiger, leopard, and dragon. Do you, boys, want your names to carry the name of a little bird? Haha, Chihu sparrow, Chihu skylark. Ha, if anyone wants such a name, the tribe chief, I, will personally strangle him."

The adult tribe members burst into laughter, whistling loudly. Chihuoxiu's voice stood out even more, "If anyone brings back a little sparrow, just cut off his sparrow."

'Oooooo—', another earth-shattering ghostly cry, the Chihu tribe's clamor grew louder.

Heihe chuckled a few times, waved his bone staff, and a circle of black mist enveloped the children participating in the coming-of-age ceremony, "This is the blessing of our ancestors' souls to you, so you won't be hindered by mountain gods or mountain ghosts. Now, children, enter the forest, for one month. After one month, come out with your most powerful prey. Let's see who is the strongest young person this year. Hehe!"

Smirking a few times, Heihe stared at Xiahou and said each word, "Of course, there's an exception. Xiahou from the Xiu family, you're going to the Yunmeng Marsh! If you go to the forest, I'm afraid you alone will kill all the beasts in a forest. Other children don't even think about passing the coming-of-age ceremony. Go around Yunmeng Marsh for a month, it's just enough for you to make a round trip."

Xiahou patted Bai's head and exclaimed loudly, "So, Shaman, can I bring Bai along?"

Heihe replied indifferently, "You can all bring your own companions. But, Xiahou from the Xiu family, you're bringing a Pixiu, which isn't very fair, is it?" Even a mature Pixiu, before attaining certain special abilities through enlightenment, possessed the strength to single-handedly fight several half-dragon tyrant lizards. Xiahou bringing a Pixiu to the coming-of-age ceremony seemed a bit too easy. Heihe, Thunderbull, and all the adult tribe members looked at each other and could only shake their heads.

The other children were even more furious, their eyes filled with anger as they looked at Xiahou. With such a powerful peer, especially one accompanied by a Pixiu, participating in the coming-of-age ceremony, was there any hope for the other children to become first? It was simply impossible.

Chihuxiu stood by, desperately picking his nose and cleaning his ears, while wearing a embarrassed smile with Chihuhuohu and other brothers towards other tribe members, "Haha, haha, our Xiahou is a bit luckier. He's grown up with a Pixiu since childhood. In fact, Xiahou's strength is not as strong as you think."

Chihuoxiu was so proud. According to the Shaman of their tribe, Xiahou's strength had surpassed that of Heihe. Wouldn't it be easy to take down a dragon? Chihuolong? This name was simply too powerful and domineering, truly worthy of being my son. Thinking of this, Chihuoxiu burst into a mad laughter, infuriating the other tribe members who cursed him secretly.

There was no difficulty at all. Xiahou and Bai rushed through the night and arrived at Yunmeng Marsh in just ten days. Afterwards, they carefully ambushed and killed several solitary half-dragon tyrant lizards. They selected one particularly massive lizard and prepared to transport it back to their home village.

However, just as they were about to set off, Xiahou noticed a mutated half-dragon tyrant lizard with a particularly imposing black scale armor, similar to the one killed by Xingtian Dafeng and the others last time. Although it was just a youngling less than four meters tall and clearly not fully grown, this youngling had managed to hunt and kill several adult half-dragon tyrant lizards taller than itself. Immediately, Xiahou changed his target to this unfortunate little fellow.

Releasing his Shamanic power, several massive rocks emerged from the ground, enveloped in Shamanic energy, and slammed down on the youngling's head. Bai, like a gust of wind, pounced on the youngling, its sharp claws flashing with white light as it ferociously gouged out the youngling's two eyes. Xiahou's sword heavily struck the youngling's body, but the Great Wind Sword was snapped in half at the waist, and the youngling's scales only emitted a few sparks.

Shocked, Xiahou suddenly noticed that Bai had successfully dug out the youngling's eyes. It seemed that the eyes were the youngling's only weakness. He immediately grabbed his longbow, and a thumb-thick arrow accurately pierced into the bloody eye socket, deeply penetrating the youngling's brain.

This half-dragon tyrant lizard, which could almost walk sideways in Yunmeng Marsh, was first stunned by several large rocks, then had its eyes gouged out by Bai, and finally had an arrow pierced through its head. Before it could even react to what had happened, it unwillingly collapsed to the ground.

Xiahou gripped the Dafeng Sword and fiercely struck the armored tyrant lizard several times, only to produce sparks on its scales without leaving a scratch. He couldn't help but marvel at the incredible defense of this creature. He thought about how Xingtian Dafeng and the others peeled off the skin of this tyrant lizard, presumably to make armor out of it. The defensive capability of this skin was much stronger than steel armor.

When Xiahou returned to his home village with the four-meter-tall prey, the adults in the tribe were not only astonished but also numb.

The armored tyrant lizard was a ferocious beast that required dozens of fourth-tier Shaman-Warriors or Shamans working together to inflict serious injuries.

Although it was just a youngling, it was unbelievable that a child who hadn't reached adulthood could kill it.

Chihulong, this was the name Xiahou officially possessed. A large, vivid image of a tyrant lizard was also tattooed on his chest.

Chihuoxiu was so ecstatic that he almost laughed his jaw off. Apart from laughing and drinking heavily, he didn't know what else to do. Sitting around the fire pit outside Heihe's stone house, Chihuoxiu boasted with saliva flying everywhere, "My son, Chihuolong! In a radius of two thousand miles, who else has a tyrant lizard as a name? Steel-armored tyrant lizard! How many children can kill it?"

He yelled ecstatically, "I killed a Pixiu, and my son killed a tyrant lizard. This creature is three times more formidable than a Pixiu. I am a hero, and my son is a warrior. Hahaha."

The tribe members were furious and began to clamor. After a few rounds of drinking, they intoxicated Chihuoxiu, who fell unconscious on the ground.

Xiahou, numb with shock, sat on the steps outside the stone house, shivering, "Chihuolong? My God, if I had known this thing was called a tyrant lizard, I would never have killed it. I would rather kill a beast with a nicer name. White, don't you agree?" Turning his head, he was startled to find that Bai was no longer by his side. Xiahou quickly stood up and shouted, "Bai, Bai?"

In the distance, angry curses from the tribe members could be heard. Then, a flash of white light appeared, and Bai proudly ran over with a pig leg in its mouth, still attached to the tail.

Furious, Xiahou quickly snatched the pig leg from White's mouth and threw it aside, then dragged Bai into the stone house.

Seeing his father completely drunk, Xiahou forced White to sit obediently by the fire pit and grabbed a jar of wine, drinking heavily with White. As he listened to the curses of the tribe members outside for stealing and killing the pig, Xiahou pondered, "Should I go to Anyi? Of course, I should check if Master Xuanwu can further enhance my strength before leaving the mountains for better safety."

"Anyi, Anyi! The capital of the Great Xia Dynasty, what kind of place is it after all?"

"Chihulong, dear God, strike me with lightning. After leaving the mountains, I'll stick to my original name."