Chapter 2, Malice

Surrounding the fire pit, there sat dozens of emaciated old men and a roughly equal number of burly men. Everyone wore a stern expression as they devoured meat and drank from large bowls. Aside from the sound of stone knives cutting through meat and the clinking of fine wine being poured into stone bowls, the entire wooden cabin was filled only with the crackling sound of the burning bonfire.

"You little bastard, who are you cursing at?" Ji Hao shouted angrily, forming hand seals and spitting forward, as a burst of flames erupted from the campfire, enveloping the young man.

Squinting his eyes, Ji Hao took a deep look at the imposing and robust man who stood up to provoke him.

Ji Hao let out a hearty laugh, his anger surging to his head. He disregarded that this wooden house was a solemn place for the Fire Crow tribe to discuss important matters, and jumped up to kick the heavy door open.

"Jia Xia, you are no longer the most powerful warrior of our generation as you were ten years ago! Just look at your emaciated appearance. Ever since your witch's den was destroyed ten years ago, you are no longer a great witch; you are merely an ordinary tribesman!"

old useless person? disaster-bringing woman

The two large doors slammed heavily against the wall, and with a thunderous sound, Ji Hao stepped into the wooden cabin.

"Having eaten and drunk enough, let us speak of serious matters!" The strong man slowly stood up, a wave of heat radiating from his robust body, as if he filled the entire wooden cabin, making the space within it seem considerably smaller.

Dozens of large clay wine jars are lined up by the fire pit for anyone to use, with occasional emaciated old men or tall, robust men grabbing a jar and filling a stone-carved wine bowl with strong liquor

In the crowd, a boy, significantly shorter than the burly man beside him and still bearing a hint of youthful innocence, suddenly sprang out, pointing at Ji Xia's nose and shouting angrily: "Old fool! Is there any need to say more? Just obediently take your disaster-bringing woman from the Qingyi tribe and that little bastard and get lost, allowing my father to become the warrior chief of the Huoya tribe and secure our clan's sacred ground!"

Waving to the countless small fire crows around, Ji Hao walked forward along a narrow path in the mulberry forest that was no more than three feet wide

Slowing his pace, Ji Hao walked lightly to the front of the enormous wooden house, tiptoeing to the more than six-zhang high wooden door, and peered inside through the crack of the door.

At the end of the valley, there is a vast mulberry forest spanning over ten miles, where countless bird nests are built among the branches. Large flocks of fire crows, about two feet in length, circle and dance in the air above the forest, yet they do not make a sound

At the edge of the dense forest, several logs of varying thickness have been used to construct a massive arched wooden house. At the top of the house, a wooden post over three zhang in diameter rises to a height of several dozen zhang, upon which a wooden platform of one hundred zhang in size has been built. A skeleton of a golden fire crow, with a wingspan of approximately one hundred zhang, stands proudly on the platform.

The floor of the wooden cabin is paved with thick stone slabs, leaving a fire pit in the center measuring two zhang in length and width. A large bonfire blazes fiercely, roasting a giant beast that has been thoroughly cleaned. The meat has been grilled to a golden brown and is dripping with oil, with a significant amount of fat falling into the bonfire, filling the cabin with a rich aroma of meat

When Ji Hao rode the giant raven to the mulberry grove, all the fire ravens circling in the sky descended onto the trees, silently staring at Ji Hao and the giant raven. They slowly spread their wings, pressing their chests against the branches in a manner akin to prostration, paying homage to the giant raven in their unique way

With a light leap, Ji Hao whistled, and the giant crow flapped its wings, transforming into a streak of fire that shot straight into the sky. After soaring several miles above the ground, it circled once before flying towards the summit of Jinwu Ridge.

The fire crow transformed into a stream of light, sweeping past from a low altitude, while Ji Hao stood atop the fire crow, looking down below.

Countless pairs of crimson eyes from the small fire crows were all fixated on Ji Hao, and the mulberry forest was filled with an extremely strange and solemn atmosphere

The blazing fire roared, and in an instant, the boy's hair and eyebrows transformed into a wisp of blue smoke.

Two towering green mulberry trees stood about seventy to eighty feet apart, their numerous massive branches intertwining to form an archway that emitted a faint glow. Ji Hao walked through the archway, and a rolling wave of heat surrounded him, revealing an expanse of dense forest that stretched endlessly before his eyes

Ji Xia, the biological father of Ji Hao, was once the most powerful warrior of the Fire Crow tribe

Ji Hao gazed in a daze at the giant raven's skeleton, which still emanated an unparalleled pride and boundless fighting spirit, refusing to collapse even in death. He bowed deeply to it three times and murmured a few solemn prayers.

The deafening sound shattered the deathly stillness of the wooden cabin

By the time Ji Hao arrived, a large portion of the giant beast roasting over the bonfire had already been consumed. Within less than a quarter of an hour of Ji Hao's arrival, the beast was reduced to mere bones, all the marrow extracted and devoured by the burly men. Every drop of liquor in the wine jars had been completely drained, not a single drop remained.

A gentle breeze blew, causing the leaves of the mulberry trees to sway and produce a rustling sound. From a distance, the mulberry forest, which spanned only a few dozen miles, suddenly appeared exceptionally deep and vast. Ji Hao hurriedly ran along the path for nearly half a quarter of an hour, his body leaving behind large shadows, having almost covered a distance of fifty miles. Ahead, two towering giant mulberry trees emerged, their trunks nearly as thick as a hundred people could embrace, yet completely invisible from outside the dense forest.

However, when Ji Hao was born, he was ambushed in the ancestral temple of the Sacred Land, Jinwu Ridge. In order to protect Ji Hao and his wife, Ji Xia fought fiercely without retreat, but was severely injured by the assassination troops of his arch-enemy, the Black Water Xuan Snake tribe. Over the years, Ji Xia's body has gradually withered day by day, and many people have concluded that he has lost the strength he once had.

The towering peak beside us is Jinwu Ridge, the sacred site of the Fire Crow tribe. The Fire Crows that nest among the towering blue mulberry trees on Jinwu Ridge are said to possess the ancient and sacred bloodline of the three-legged golden crow, just like the members of the Fire Crow tribe, making them the most powerful war beasts of the tribe

The man who was called to the stand slowly stood up; his frame was exceptionally robust, even towering a head above the provocateur. However, there was little muscle on his imposing body, with skin tightly adhering to his bones, making him appear almost like a skeletal structure, easily toppled by the wind

The strong man pointed at another robust man sitting by the campfire, whose face was directed towards the main entrance, and shouted: "What qualifications do you have to be the leader of the Fire Crow tribe's warriors? What qualifications do you have to command the guardian warriors of the Fire Crow tribe? What qualifications do you have to preside over the sacred ground of our clan?"

Ji Hao still clearly remembers that Ji Xia's blood splattered on him, and it was so hot

With a sharp cry, the fire crow folded its wings and swept through a gap of over ten zhang between two steep, towering peaks. Ahead, the view opened up suddenly, revealing a valley that stretched over a hundred li in length and was over thirty li wide at its widest point, surrounded by towering mountains.

Ji Hao clenched his fists as he looked at Ji Xia, memories of that day flashing before his eyes when Ji Xia fought valiantly to protect him. Ji Xia's strong physique stood resolutely against the enemy's shameless ambush and wild attacks, fiercely safeguarding his tender life.

Although only a skeleton remains, the bones of this fire crow exude an immensely powerful primordial aura, vast and boundless, as if an ocean envelops the entire dense forest. At first glance, this skeleton appears like a blazing sun suspended several dozen zhang above the ground

The young man shouted arrogantly, "In just a few days, it will be the ancestral worship ceremony. All the leaders of the Fire Crow tribe will come to the sacred place to pay their respects to our ancestors. In front of so many clansmen, you should just obediently roll away!"

A towering figure over three meters tall, with long hair tied into a thick braid the size of an arm at the back of his head, and eyes elongated like those of a snake, suddenly seized a wine jar beside him. With a single slap, he smashed the jar and the stone slab beneath it into pieces.

Standing steadily there, Ji Xia smiled warmly and said, "So, Brother Ji Hong, what do you think we should do?"

The space within the wooden house is extremely spacious, capable of accommodating over a thousand people for gatherings

Surprisingly, the skeleton of this fire crow has three leg bones, indicating that it is the remains of a three-legged giant crow