Chapter 2

The howling sound in the forest was like that of a sow being butchered, unbearably unpleasant yet piercingly loud.

In the quiet early morning, the sound traveled even further.

The pigsty was right behind the Gao family’s house. Lin Nizi, the butcher, immediately heard her son’s piercing howls and became tense.

This spring, a wolf tribe had migrated to the nearby area.

In half a year, the wolf tribe had already clashed with the Iron Forest Tribe multiple times. Everyone knew that both sides could not coexist.

Though the wolf tribe was small in number, their combat strength was formidable. Over the months, the Iron Forest Tribe had been forced to retreat continuously.

The trade routes to and from the Iron Forest Tribe were also sealed off by the wolf tribe. No one from the Iron Forest Tribe dared to go hunting in the mountains anymore.

Without external food supplies and insufficient game, the already impoverished Iron Forest Tribe faced even greater food shortages.

When people are hungry, they can do anything. This was the most dangerous time.

Lin Ye, her only son, was Lin Nizi’s precious treasure. She was afraid something might happen, so she quickly grabbed a butcher’s knife and ran to the backyard.

Upon entering the pigsty, Lin Nizi found no outsiders, only the fool and her son.

"Just when did the fool dare to look at me?" Lin Nizi sized up Gao Zhengyang, instinctively feeling something was off.

"Mom, Mom, the fool hit me and kicked my privates! Waa... Mom, you must take revenge for me..." Seeing his mother, Lin Ye hurriedly reported, and then started crying, feeling wronged.

Being hit wasn’t the main issue, but being kicked in the abdomen by Gao Zhengyang had terrified Lin Ye.

Since childhood, Lin Nizi had told him that his privates were his most important and precious part.

Thinking that his most precious part might be damaged, Lin Ye felt extremely sad and scared.

Lin Nizi was furious. She glared fiercely at Gao Zhengyang and shouted, "You little dog, you dare to touch my son? I’ll chop you into mincemeat!"

Lin Nizi had large eyes, but the pupils were only the size of soybeans. Even when looking at someone normally, it was terrifying. When she deliberately glared, with her face full of coarse, black muscles, she looked even more ferocious.

Especially the butcher’s knife in her hand, over a foot long, sharp and dangerous.

Gao Zhengyang remained calm, but he raised his alertness. This woman was much stronger than her son.

Not to mention other things, just her strong and sturdy body gave Gao Zhengyang a headache.

Lin Nizi was about the same height as Gao Zhengyang, but her waist was four times his. Her body was almost square, and the muscles were extremely firm. Standing there, she looked like a large square stone.

Moreover, her grip on the knife was extremely steady. Even as she shouted at Gao Zhengyang, the blade didn’t move at all. This was highly abnormal.

Gao Zhengyang inherited all the memories of this body. He knew that martial arts were prevalent in this world, with various martial techniques possessing wondrous powers. Although he didn’t fully believe in it, he wasn’t blindly arrogant either.

Now it seemed that although Lin Nizi was a fierce woman, she wasn’t just an ordinary woman who only knew how to curse and fight.

From her breathing to her muscle control, she showed strong control. This was real power, not something that could be faked.

Gao Zhengyang wasn’t afraid, but he needed time to grow, not to fight to the death with a hooligan.

The robust and fierce Lin Nizi had an extremely bad temper. While cursing, she had already rushed to Gao Zhengyang, her left hand swinging to slap his face.

Lin Nizi didn’t take Gao Zhengyang seriously at all. The slap looked impressive, but the movement was too large, exposing her chest and abdomen.

She was used to cursing and hitting, never thinking that Gao Zhengyang had changed.

As soon as Lin Nizi moved, Gao Zhengyang had already guessed what she would do.

This woman’s body was very strong, and his strength was hard to harm her. Killing her would be easy.

After weighing his options, Gao Zhengyang chose to retreat. He walked in the Bagua step, circling around Lin Nizi, not only avoiding the slap but also reaching the pigsty door.

The Bagua step was slippery. Bagua was a martial art that emphasized footwork. A true Bagua master’s feet moved like they were on roller skates. A slight movement of the feet, and the person would slide away.

In his previous life, Gao Zhengyang practiced Tai Chi, reaching a highly refined state. He also practiced Bagua, Xingyi, and Bajiquan, all reaching very high levels.

This body was weak but flexible, making it easy to walk in the Bagua step, though he couldn’t use high-level techniques.

After missing, Lin Nizi slowly turned around, her face showing surprise. Gao Zhengyang’s evasive steps were strange and slippery, like a fish in water, clearly a sophisticated footwork, not something he could fake.

"Aunt, you should calm down," Gao Zhengyang smiled slightly, "Don’t curse at people. If my father comes back and hears this, it won’t be good."

Gao Zhengyang’s father, Gao Xiang, was a true expert. If he hadn’t disappeared five years ago, she wouldn’t dare treat Gao Zhengyang like this.

"Could he really have come back?" Lin Nizi’s face turned even uglier at the thought.

What made Lin Nizi even more uncomfortable was that this fool’s eyes were lively, his speech clear and logical, and his demeanor calm and confident. Clearly, he had regained his senses and was no longer the submissive, foolish fool he used to be.

"What if your father comes back? We’ve raised you for five years, is that wrong?!"

Lin Nizi’s face was dark, and she shouted, full of委屈 and dissatisfaction, "If your father comes back, you can bully my son! We are not your family’s slaves..."

Being unreasonable was Lin Nizi’s strong point. Even if Gao Xiang really came back, would he lower himself to argue with her? Lin Nizi didn’t believe it.

Gao Zhengyang was so angry he laughed. This woman, unreasonable or not, would always try to stir things up.

Arguing with a hooligan was undoubtedly foolish.

He simply crossed his arms and stood silently at the door, listening.

"You ungrateful little brat, tell me, where have we wronged you? We fed you, clothed you, and raised you, and now you treat us like enemies..."

Gao Zhengyang looked down at his tattered dogskin vest, the knee-length hemp pants full of holes, and his bare, black feet, and was speechless.

The woman was right; they did provide food, clothing, and shelter!

Lin Nizi helped her son up, her face full of concern, "My darling, did that little brat kick your privates? Quickly, take off your pants and let Mom see."

"Mom, I’m fine..." Lin Ye’s dark face turned red with embarrassment, awkwardly grabbing his pants, afraid his mother would pull them down.

"Your hair hasn’t even grown in yet, what’s there to be afraid of?" Lin Nizi grumbled.

Gao Zhengyang couldn’t help but laugh. This mother and son were truly a pair of oddballs.

Lin Ye was even more embarrassed but didn’t dare to contradict. He could only glare at Gao Zhengyang, vowing to kill the fool to vent his anger.

"You kicked my son’s privates, which he needs to pass on the family line. How are you going to make up for this?"

Lin Nizi raised the butcher’s knife, pointing it at Gao Zhengyang with a murderous look.

"Aunt, you don’t need to say these things."

Gao Zhengyang said calmly, "These past few years, you treated me like a pig or a dog, but you did raise me. The armor and longbow left by my father can offset the food and shelter you provided. Just give me the saber, and we’ll be even. No debts, no favors."

"You ungrateful wolf cub, we raised you for so many years, and you think a few words can make it even!"

Lin Nizi’s face was full of resentment as she cursed.

The armor, longbow, and saber left by Gao Xiang were things she considered her own. Gao Zhengyang using her own things to repay her kindness made her particularly angry.

"Ha ha..." Gao Zhengyang laughed, "Aunt, you raised me because you wanted me to replace Lin Ye as a warrior."

The Iron Forest Tribe had an Iron Blood Army, responsible for combat, hunting, and security.

The casualty rate in the Iron Blood Army was high. Every year, the tribe would select eligible young men from each family for training and to join the Iron Blood Army.

According to the rules of the Iron Forest Tribe, each family could only keep one child. The others had to follow the tribe’s arrangements.

Lin Nizi had specifically raised Gao Zhengyang, so she could keep Lin Ye safe.

The previous Gao Zhengyang, due to a severe illness, had become foolish.

Now, it was completely different. With the wisdom and experience from his previous life, Gao Zhengyang saw through Lin Nizi’s intentions at a glance.

Being exposed, Lin Nizi was not embarrassed but even more furious.

Her face turned red, and she shouted, "We raised you for years, and it’s right for you to replace Lin Ye in the army. That’s what you should do. Do you want to rebel? This family doesn’t need your input..."

In his previous life, Gao Zhengyang was also a sharp-tongued person, but he had no interest in arguing with a hooligan or cursing back.

He turned and quickly left, walking a short distance to the main house.

The main house was made of a wooden frame, with yellow mud plastered on the outside and a thick thatched roof.

It looked rough and ugly, but compared to the pigsty, it was undoubtedly a real house.

"Uncle, I need to talk to you," Gao Zhengyang stood at the low wooden door and called out.

A middle-aged man slowly walked out of the house. He was thin and bony, with small eyes and a pair of drooping mustaches. He wore a coarse hemp robe and new hemp shoes.

This attire gave him a scholarly air. This man was Lin He, Gao Zhengyang’s distant uncle.

When Lin He saw Gao Zhengyang, he also sized him up, his small eyes full of scrutiny and doubt. Clearly, Gao Zhengyang’s current appearance puzzled him.

"Zhengyang, you’ve regained your senses?" Lin He asked tentatively.

Gao Zhengyang nodded solemnly, "Yes, the thunder last night woke me up."

Lin He was half-believing, half-doubting, and didn’t speak. Last evening, there was indeed a thunderstorm, with lightning that covered the sky, extremely powerful. He had never seen such terrifying lightning in his life.

However, while such terrifying lightning could easily scare someone, it was hard to believe that it could wake a fool.

Gao Zhengyang didn’t care whether he believed it or not and said directly, "Uncle, I need to talk to you about something."

Before Gao Zhengyang could finish, Lin Nizi had already dragged Lin Ye over, shouting, "Little brat, if you don’t give me an explanation today, this won’t be over!"

Saying this, Lin Nizi let go of her son and pounced at Gao Zhengyang.