Chapter Eight: The Foreign Race

The strength of serpents is often immense, and the Pale-Spotted Kuo Python is a rare breed among them. At the peak of the Shaman Realm, a Pale-Spotted Kuo Python possesses several times the strength of a warrior at the tenth layer of the same realm. After devouring an entire python, Ji Hao stood in his own courtyard and stretched, then let out a wild, thunderous howl toward the sky.

His muscles and bones felt like steel, his flesh as lustrous as jade; as his blood surged with heat, a tremendous power welled up from every part of his body. Just last night he had broken through to the fourth layer of the Shaman Realm, and now, with a single python, Ji Hao had gained nearly four thousand stone of additional strength.

“A single Pale-Spotted Kuo Python has a strength of about four hundred thousand stone!” Ji Hao unleashed a flurry of fists and kicks in the courtyard, moving with the swiftness of a whirlwind. Satisfied, he grinned broadly. If, over these next few days, he could consume ten such beasts, the absolute disparity in strength between himself and Ji Wu would no longer concern him.

Finishing his routine, Ji Hao laughed heartily and blew a sharp whistle toward the direction of Golden Crow Ridge. The vital essence cultivated from the Nine-Word Mantra Elixir flowed long and unbroken; the whistle, carried by the wind, lingered in the air. From atop a towering green mulberry on Golden Crow Ridge, a raven’s cry rang out. A giant crow, flames flickering around its body, soared into the sky and, after one circling sweep, headed straight toward Ji Hao.

With a beat of its wings, the giant crow became a streak of light, arriving above the courtyard within moments. Ji Xia stood at the door of the wooden house, bowing respectfully to the bird. “Master Crow, Hao is always wandering hither and thither, troubling you so much.”

The giant crow hovered overhead, tilting its head to squint at Ji Xia, letting out a few raucous caws. With a cheerful laugh, Ji Hao leapt atop the bird’s head. “Master Crow, today let’s go somewhere far! Ha, do you still remember that nest of Golden-Winged Bees we found a few days ago?”

A cry answered him, and the giant crow shot straight up, its wings unfurling into a blaze a hundred yards wide, vanishing into the clouds above.

Qing Fu slowly walked to the doorway, watching the direction where the crow disappeared, her long brows knitted tightly together. “For Jiang Yao to set aside her pride and personally make a move against Hao… Xia, they truly mean to see this through to the bitter end.”

Ji Xia nodded, mounted the plump bear, and rode out of the yard in silence, a flicker of firelight glowing above his head. The bear bared its teeth and let out a thunderous roar, drool hanging from its mouth, then bolted ahead. Ji Xia whistled sharply, and from every nearby wooden house, groups of burly warriors emerged, each astride their own battle beasts, following closely behind.

Qing Fu leaned against the doorframe, brows furrowed as she watched the cloud tunnel pierced by the giant crow. Suddenly, a wisp of dark green smoke flickered between her brows. “Jiang Yao… is it?”

High above, the giant crow cawed as it flew southwest. Ji Hao suddenly patted its head, and the crow halted midair, wings spread wide as it hovered. Turning, its crimson gaze fixed on Ji Hao, uttering a questioning caw.

“Master Crow! You know the rules of the ancestral spirits—you can’t help me deal with Ji Shu and his kin. But if I act on my own, whatever you see, you’ll keep silent, won’t you?” Ji Hao grinned, stroking the crow’s head.

The crow blinked, then let out a sly, crafty caw.

“Good, good! We go back a long way. You’ve watched over me since I was a child. If someone bullies me in my own home, I can’t just wait for them to trample all over me, can I?” Ji Hao straightened, glancing back toward Golden Crow Ridge. “I have a reputation for swift and certain vengeance—never do I let a grudge last the night. That’s a ‘good name’ I absolutely must uphold.”

With a long howl, Ji Hao pointed into the distance. The giant crow spread its wings, traced a great arc in the sky, withdrew its flames, and silently flew where Ji Hao indicated.

A quarter of an hour later, hundreds of miles from Golden Crow Ridge, the giant crow landed lightly atop a mountain peak. Ji Hao jumped down, pulled aside a curtain of ancient vines covering a cliff-face, and slipped into the darkness behind.

Behind the vines was a cave, dozens of yards wide, neatly lined with great earthen jars. Each jar was tightly sealed with clay. Ji Hao rummaged through them, finally choosing one, which he carefully hefted onto his shoulder.

He carried the jar out of the cave, replaced the vines to hide the entrance, and leapt back atop the giant crow’s head. The bird beat its wings, lifting off in silence, and after a few circles, glided down into a small valley several peaks away.

The valley was spotless, the ground dotted with smooth, white, egg-shaped stones of all sizes. Ji Hao strode confidently to the largest boulder at the center, and kicked it hard.

The ground shuddered, and with a deep, rumbling sound, the massive stone—more than three yards across—rose slowly into the air. All the other egg-shaped stones in the valley rolled toward it, and within moments, a towering stone giant, pure white and nearly thirty feet tall, stood before Ji Hao.

A constant clatter echoed as the rocks composing the giant’s body flowed like water, compressing and shrinking until he stood about level with Ji Hao, his shape and features now almost human.

“Hao… boy! You looking… for me?” The stone giant’s face was rough but clearly defined, eyes wide as he stared at Ji Hao—then, suddenly, his gaze locked onto the jar in Ji Hao’s hands.

“Wine… ah! Good… wine! So, what do you want? You want me… to be your shield again?” The stone giant smacked his lips, shaking his head vigorously. “Last time… old tree spirit nearly killed me! Two jars… or I won’t be your shield!”

“Well now? Old Stone, you’ve learned to bargain? Who taught you that?” Ji Hao looked at him in surprise, handing over the jar. “Two jars, then. One now—help me out, and you’ll get the second next time.”

With practiced ease, the stone giant smashed the clay seal, revealing golden liquor thick with fruit pulp. He opened his mouth wide, drained the jar in one gulp, then shattered it with a slap and yawned contentedly.

“Alright… what’s the job?” The stone giant thumped his chest, twin white flames blazing in his eyes. “Steal… old tree spirit’s branches? Snatch… that fierce woman’s eggs? Or something else?”

Ji Hao’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he smiled. “No childish games this time. Someone’s come to bully me, and even wants to drag my father and mother into it. I want to kill them. You just need to keep me safe from harm—it’s that simple.”

He paused, patting the giant’s shoulder. “Old Stone, we’ll need a couple more old friends. That fierce woman—she’s still holed up in her lair these days?”

The giant crow, preening its feathers nearby, shuddered and let out a series of nervous caws.