Chapter 2

The next morning, Yi Tian got up early and started exercising in front of the courtyard. He repeatedly lifted a stone tool as large as a millstone, sweat streaming down his body.

When he had lifted the three-stone tripod fifty times, he already felt physically drained.

After a brief rest, he began archery practice.

A target stood thirty yards away. He drew his bow and shot arrows, which flew through the air like lightning, one by one, embedding themselves in the target.

In the Yi tribe, where Yi Tian lived, the mastery of archery surpassed that of ordinary people. Yi Tian's archery was still at the initial stage of sonic boom, but even so, his skill was almost on par with the best archers among ordinary people.

After half an hour of exercise, Yi Tian stopped.

For a thirteen-year-old, exercising in moderation was important; otherwise, excessive exercise could be very harmful to the body.

Mother Su Yue'e was already busy in the kitchen, smoke curling up, and the aroma of cooked meat filled the air.

"Yi Tian!"

"Brother Tian!"

At that moment, several figures rushed down from the mountain.

In the next moment, three robust boys arrived at Yi Tian's courtyard. Each was very tall, half a head taller than Yi Tian, wearing clothes made of animal hides, and built like savages from a primitive land. However, their faces were still somewhat youthful, and they were not very old.

"Yi Feng, Yi Shan, Yi Li, how did you come back?"

Yi Tian was somewhat surprised.

Yi Feng, Yi Shan were the sons of Aunt Hua and Aunt Tian, and Yi Li was the son of Yi Hong. They had been very close to Yi Tian since childhood and had a strong bond. However, they should have been in class at the ancestral temple on the mountaintop. How did they have time to come down?

Yi Feng, with a clear and bright voice, said proudly, "I passed the elders' exam and don't have to go to class anymore."

"Me too!" Yi Li said with a somewhat cold expression.

Yi Tian didn't mind his coldness; he was naturally like that, but he had a warm heart, which Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and others knew well.

When Yi Tian's gaze fell on Yi Shan, Yi Shan's honest face immediately turned red, and he said in a deep voice, "I was chased out by the elders."

Yi Feng couldn't help but laugh loudly.

He said to Yi Tian, "Shan is as stubborn as a wooden head. No matter how much he studies, he never passes. He always ranks last, and the elders have no choice but to kick him out."

"But compared to you, a prodigy, we are far behind!"

Yi Feng was genuinely convinced of Yi Tian's abilities.

Yi Shan and Yi Li nodded in agreement.

Yi Tian had passed the elders' exam after only four years at the ancestral temple, allowing him to finish his studies early, which made the other young people in the Yi tribe extremely envious.

After all, since the age of six, they had to attend classes at the ancestral temple for three weeks each month, and this continued until they were fourteen or until they passed the elders' exam early.

In the Yi tribe's history, very few had passed the exam one or two years early, and each of them was considered a genius. Yi Tian had passed four years early, surpassing all previous records.

Yi Tian didn't pay much attention to this.

If his father hadn't died in a hunting accident a few years ago, he wouldn't have passed the exam and left the ancestral temple so quickly. It was too conspicuous.

At that time, with his father's death, only his mother, Su Yue'e, was left to manage the household and take care of Xiao Long and Xiao Ting. Although the tribe helped them, providing a share of the hunt each time they went into the mountains, and his mother did some work in the tribe to earn an income, maintaining a living was not a problem. However, his mother had to work and take care of two children, which was very exhausting.

Therefore, Yi Tian resolutely passed the elders' exam, finished his studies early, and returned home to ease his mother's burden.

Since two years ago, when Yi Tian's strength broke through to two hundred pounds, enough to draw his father's iron bow, he had hunted small animals or beasts near the tribe, significantly improving their living conditions.

"What's that smell? It's so fragrant!"

Yi Shan sniffed the air and couldn't help but swallow his saliva.

"Come on, I hunted a blood deer yesterday. You're in for a treat today!"

Yi Tian led Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and Yi Li into the house.

Yi Feng sighed as they walked, "I didn't expect your luck to be so good, hunting a blood deer. You know, the meat of a blood deer is extremely delicious and nourishing, second only to the meat of fierce beasts, comparable to the meat of some extremely dangerous beasts in the deep mountains!"

The usually cold and silent Yi Li also nodded.

Even they couldn't eat blood deer meat or the meat of extremely dangerous beasts every day. Only the warriors in the tribe could regularly consume such meat.

They could only have it once every ten to fifteen days.

This was because their fathers were warriors and could get a share of the best game. As for Yi Tian's family, they could only have such meat once a year during the ancestral sacrifice.

On a regular basis, the ordinary people in the tribe ate only ordinary wild game, which contained less energy.

This was why Yi Tian was slightly shorter than Yi Feng and the others.

Yi Feng and Yi Shan's arrival made Su Yue'e very happy.

Soon, Xiao Long and Xiao Ting, the two little ones, rubbed their sleepy eyes and came out.

The two little ones had been noisy for most of the night before, finally falling asleep from exhaustion. However, the commotion caused by Yi Feng's arrival, combined with the irresistible aroma of the blood deer meat, woke them up.

"Brother Feng, Brother Shan, Brother Li!"

Xiao Long and Xiao Ting called out sweetly to Yi Feng and the others, who they were very familiar with.

"Xiao Long, Xiao Ting, it's been a while. How about we go play in the water later?"

"Great!"

Xiao Long and Xiao Ting were excited.

For them, leaving the tribe was not an easy thing; they hadn't done it in years. They were eager to go out, especially to swim in the river.

Soon, Xiao Long and Xiao Ting happily went to wash up.

Next, Su Yue'e prepared eight dishes with the blood deer meat, all of which were beautifully colored and fragrant, causing Yi Shan, Yi Feng, and the others to devour them with enthusiasm.

When all eight dishes were finished, Yi Tian and the others were all sweating and their bellies were full, feeling more satisfied than ever.

After his morning exercise, Yi Tian absorbed the nutrients from the blood deer meat much more efficiently. His entire body felt as if it was being refined, making his bones and muscles stronger and his strength noticeably increased.

That day, Yi Tian, Yi Feng, and the others took Xiao Long, Xiao Ting, and the younger siblings of Yi Feng and the others, a group of over ten people, out of the tribe. They played in a nearby river for the whole day before returning, satisfied.

They didn't go to more distant places, which were dangerous no-go zones for Yi Tian and the others, where fierce beasts could appear at any time.

In the following days, Yi Tian collected a large amount of medicinal herbs from the tribe and the nearby mountains.

He planned to use the blood deer antlers as the main ingredient, along with other herbs, to make a medicinal soup to refine his body.

It took three days to prepare everything.

Of course, the blood deer antlers could be used to make the medicinal soup three times; otherwise, adding more blood deer antler powder would be a waste.

That night, Yi Tian and Su Yue'e prepared the medicinal soup.

When Yi Tian first submerged himself in the soup, the pain, like being torn apart, made him cry out despite his mental preparation.

The increasingly hot medicinal power surged into his body, feeling like being cut by a thousand knives, almost unbearable.

Yi Tian gritted his teeth and silently endured.

Time passed slowly.

When Yi Tian felt the excruciating pain gradually lessen, the medicinal soup began to cool down.

Yi Tian emerged from the wooden tub, his body red as if boiled, steam rising from his skin.

However, Yi Tian also began to feel some changes in his body, as if he had undergone a rebirth, with his bones and muscles becoming significantly stronger after the refinement.

The next day, when Yi Tian tested his strength, his single-arm strength had increased to nearly two stones, and his double-arm strength was four stones, allowing him to easily lift the three-stone tripod.

In the following months, Yi Tian did not go hunting again. Although he had given away a lot of the blood deer, it was still enough for his family of four.

Moreover, Xiao Long and Xiao Ting's bodies had become noticeably stronger, and Mother Su Yue'e's complexion had also improved significantly.

After the next two sessions of the medicinal soup, Yi Tian's body was refined further, and his strength increased to three stones in a single arm. However, this strength was only average among the young people in the Yi tribe. Yi Feng and Yi Shan's single-arm strength had already exceeded four stones, and Yi Shan, with his innate strength, had reached five stones in a single arm.

One stone was equal to 120 pounds. After the refinement by the medicinal soup, Yi Tian's strength had surged, and he now had over 300 pounds of strength in a single arm. In his previous world, this would have made him a strongman, but in the tribe, it was only average.

During this period, Yi Tian exercised intensely under the refinement of the medicinal soup, his body gradually becoming stronger, and his strength continuously growing.

For Yi Tian, such strength was still far from enough.

In the tribe, an ordinary warrior was at the second or third stage, capable of exerting a force of five to six thousand pounds with a single punch. Not to mention the mid-stage warriors, each of whom could stand alone and defeat extremely dangerous beasts, matching the fierce beasts in the deep mountains.

This was an incredibly dangerous world!

Once, Yi Tian had experienced a battle that shook the heavens and the earth.

Four years ago, a shocking battle erupted deep in the Fulong Mountains. The roars were deafening, like thunder in the sky, and the mountains trembled and shook. Countless fierce and dangerous beasts rushed out of the mountains, causing significant casualties around the mountains.

The Yi tribe was also severely affected. Many warriors died in the battle against the beasts that had escaped the mountains.

His father had died in that battle.