Chapter 10

Ruosui said again, "Huwawa has been in Lucun for less than four years, right? It's the age when he is opening his eyes to the world, gradually learning to think. Everything is new and unknown to him, and he hopes to find explanations. The preciousness of a child's heart lies in the lack of prejudice, not yet obscured by too much known, so he can see problems that people no longer think about or even no longer notice.

"For example, when he sees someone flying in the sky, he is only curious about how that person can fly without wings, feeling it is novel and surprising rather than unbelievable. That's why he asked those questions today. In his eyes, your ability to light a lamp he has never seen is actually more magical than that bird that can move objects from a distance."

Ruoshan frowned and said, "A demonic bird actually intruded into this place and attacked the tribal village. In my memory, this has never happened before."

Ruosui said, "The place our ancestors chose to build the village has both water sources and prey, and they also tried to avoid natural disasters and various threats. Of course, it would not be a place where demonic birds and beasts often appear. Today's incident is just a coincidence, but it can happen. If it had never happened in all these years, that would be truly unexpected."

Ruoshan sighed, "But it has been over a hundred years since I can remember, and this has never happened. Today is the first time! This might be an omen, a beginning, and it will happen again in the future, but the people of the tribe have never experienced these things."

Ruosui said in a deep voice, "They experienced it today, and our ancestors also experienced it. The tribe today is much stronger and more prosperous than in the time of our ancestors, so we can certainly handle it. We don't need to worry too much."

Ruoshan countered, "If you weren't worried, why didn't you say anything when everyone was present?"

Ruosui replied, "Didn't you also say nothing? But Huwawa noticed, though the child doesn't understand what's going on. ... From today on, we should not leave the village at the same time. One of us should always stay here."

The incident that occurred in the early hours of today has not been seen in the village for a hundred years. That white-feathered Gu bird was not the usual prey of the primitive tribe, nor was it something ordinary people could deal with. It was a demonic bird that had already awakened its intelligence and cultivated powerful magical abilities. Such demonic birds have learned to think and judge, and they rarely attack human settlements without reason.

There is plenty of prey in the wild, and with their abilities, they can easily obtain it. Why risk injury or even death by attacking human settlements, where all kinds of situations can arise? However, there are exceptions. Some spirits may not understand what human settlements are and are still learning and accumulating experience and lessons. Some demons have specific goals and want things they cannot get elsewhere.

So, although such incidents are rare, they can occasionally happen. When they do, they often cause serious casualties among the people. Sometimes, when encountering powerful and difficult-to-deal-with demonic creatures, the tribe may choose to retreat to protect themselves and minimize unnecessary deaths, but the cost is inevitable. The environment in the wilderness is dangerous, and various trials are inevitable.

Today, the demonic bird might have just flown over and been attracted by the rooster's call, spontaneously deciding to catch a couple of hens as prey. It might not have understood the human village or cared. It was still dark, and the people should have been asleep. It swooped down from a great height, grabbed two hens, and flew away, as if it were a game. No one would risk their life for two hens against such a powerful demonic bird.

But it never expected that this village would be so special. As soon as the rooster crowed, everyone was ready, with bows strung and spears in hand, waiting for the predatory bird to swoop down. It was like the villagers never expected such a powerful creature to attack from the sky! And the demonic bird never expected that there would be an expert like Ruoshan in the village!

Today, Ruoshan did not reveal the origin of the white-feathered Gu bird. Why let the people live in fear, which represents an almost incomprehensible and uncontrollable unknown? But he let the people witness the terrifying nature of the strange bird, so they would be more vigilant in the future. In the end, he subdued the demonic bird, giving the people courage and hope.

Only Ruoshui in the village understood everything. She did not say anything in front of the people, and Ruoshan knew that Ruoshui would come to discuss it with him. So, on the night of the first demonic bird attack in a hundred years, he lit the first lamp in the village. In the ancient and simple tribe, there were no secrets among the people, but these two people shared a secret that only they could communicate.

After a moment of silence, Ruoshui looked at the lamp and suddenly asked, "Has the mountain god really gone into seclusion?"

Ruoshan nodded, "It has been almost four years since I last heard the voice of the mountain god. If the mountain god were still here, this would not have happened. After slaying the demonic bird today, I led the people in the ancient ritual to offer sacrifices to the mountain god. The people's beliefs were pure and sincere, but I received no response, as if the mountain god had long left us."

Although today's incident is rare, it is normal to encounter it once every few years. It has not happened in a hundred years because there has always been a mountain god protecting this place. In the past, when such demonic birds entered this area, they would receive warnings and guidance from the mountain god. The mountain god did this not only to protect the tribes that worshiped him but also to protect these demonic creatures.

The difficulty of achieving spiritual awakening is comparable to a person entering the realm of transformation. Awakening intelligence and embarking on the path of cultivation is a great fortune. If it leads to unnecessary casualties and harm, it is very regrettable. The mountain god clearly did not want to see this happen.

Ruosui also sighed, "The mountain god once told you that he would fall into a deep sleep and might never appear again, and that you could seek help from the Qing Shui clan if something happened. But two months later, the Qing Shui clan was destroyed. You never told the people this news. Now, what has happened to the mountain god?"

Ruoshan answered, "There are three possibilities..."

The first possibility is that his lifespan has ended. Although the mountain god is a deity in the eyes of the tribes, he cannot exist forever and will eventually leave. The second possibility is that he has truly fallen into a deep sleep and will need a long time to wake up, or he might be in seclusion to cultivate some powerful techniques. The third possibility is the most elusive, that the mountain god has ascended to heaven and achieved immortality.

Ruoshan concluded, "I once hoped it was the second possibility, but that thought was too selfish. For the mountain god himself, I hope it is the third situation, as he has protected the tribes for at least a hundred years."

Ruosui frowned slightly and said, "If that's the case, everything will depend on us. Both of us received guidance from the mountain god and cultivated the techniques he passed down, allowing us to retain vitality and youth. But even the mountain god himself will eventually leave, and we cannot stay here forever. ... According to you, what realm was that demonic bird today?"

Ruoshan replied, "It could move objects from a distance, so it was a third-realm demonic bird. Among the people, only you and I, along with Bozhuang and Zhongzhuang, have the fortune to enter the initial realm and cultivate. They have now entered the second realm but have not yet completed the nine transformations. After so many years, it will be difficult for them to break through to the third realm. We need to see who among the children of the tribe has the potential to achieve higher realms in the future."

Legend has it that the path to ascension has eight layers, nine transformations, and seventy-two steps. Throughout history, people have explored different paths, some successful and some not, using different methods and describing the realms in various ways. However, from the techniques they mastered, there are certain common characteristics, usually referred to as the initial realm, second realm, third realm, fourth realm, fifth realm, sixth realm, seventh realm, and the realm of transformation.

This is not just a simple count but a convenient way to refer to the realms. In fact, different traditions and explorations have their own names for the realms, often unknown to outsiders. Moreover, some traditions are incomplete, only exploring up to a certain point, making it impossible to describe higher realms, which can only be summarized and imagined using numbers.

Ruosui added, "Entering the third realm grants the ability to move objects from a distance. But that demonic bird probably only had the initial transformation of the third realm. When it tried to grab Luluo, it accidentally lifted Huwawa's stick into the sky; later, when it tried to grab Huwawa, it stirred up dust on the ground. The ability to move objects should not be used this way."

A true practitioner of the ability to move objects can lock onto something with their divine sense, and even if they cannot move it, they will not mistakenly take something else. A practitioner who truly masters this ability would not make such a mistake.

Ruoshan shook his head, "That's not necessarily true. The so-called nine transformations of each realm are just a summary by the world. In the wild, spirits have no one to teach them, so they don't know these nuances. It has awakened and cultivated on its own, possibly already entering the third realm, but it is still exploring and summarizing its techniques. This process is very long, and if no one enlightens it, it must slowly understand on its own."

Ruosui said, "We were fortunate to enter the initial realm during the worship ceremony and received guidance from the mountain god. Now that the mountain god has gone into seclusion, we must guide the people ourselves. We don't know if we will succeed."

Ruoshan said, "Regardless, we must try our best. No one in the tribe has done this in a hundred years. We hope that someone can enter the initial realm under our guidance and achieve higher realms in the future. ... It's a pity that we have not entered the sixth realm in all these years and cannot leave a complete tradition. We can only take one step at a time and hope for the best for future generations."

After discussing for a while, they decided how to guide the people to enter the initial realm, something they had never tried before. After a long time, they made a decision. Then Ruoshui took something out of her sleeve, "This is the wing bone of the third-realm demonic bird. It clearly has the ability to strengthen the body and is as tough as iron. Look closely, Panhu actually left tooth marks on it!"