Su Ming was feeling nervous. He was filled with anxiety not just because the person talking to him was the Elder of Dark Dragon Tribe but, also because she was Bai Ling’s grandmother.
Some of it was also due to the theories and a.n.a.lysis the elder told him on their way to Wind Stream Tribe.
"I am Su Ming. Greetings, Elder of Dark Dragon Tribe." Su Ming took a deep breath and bowed before the old woman reverentially.
The old woman’s face was dark as she stared at Su Ming. No one knew what she was thinking. Still, the people around them became quiet because of this. Their guides from Wind Stream Tribe also turned their gazes towards Su Ming. Even s.h.i.+ Hai, who was about to leave burdened by his thoughts, stopped and looked towards them feeling slightly surprised.
Su Ming was only a normal child to him. There was not an ounce of Qi from him. After he took a look at Su Ming, he averted his gaze and no longer thought about the conflict between the two small tribes. Instead, his heart was filled with worry. He had been searching for the Fallen Berserker who created the strange medicine for a long time but found no clues whatsoever. A few days ago, the Elder had asked him about it, making s.h.i.+ Hai even more troubled because he had no idea where to start.
‘Could the Fallen Berserker have left this place…? Ah, if that’s the case where should I even start looking?!’
Lei Chen stood beside Su Ming. He glared at the old woman who was looking at Su Ming. He was respectful towards the Elder of Wind Stream Tribe but there was not an ounce of respect from him towards the old woman.
Bei Ling frowned as he looked at Su Ming. A hint of displeasure appeared briefly in his eyes. He could not understand how Su Ming could have possibly offended Dark Dragon Tribe.
"So many years have pa.s.sed, you’ve grown up…" The old woman stared at Su Ming for a long time before she spoke slowly. There was no hint of happiness or anger in her tone of voice.
Su Ming became even more nervous. He stood there, not knowing what to say. As of then, he could feel everyone’s gaze falling upon him. It was something he seldom experienced and he was incredibly unaccustomed to it.
Bai Ling, who was standing behind the old woman looked pale. She unconsciously held onto the corner of her s.h.i.+rt tightly with both of her hands. As for Si Kong, who was standing beside her, he glared at Su Ming and looked at him mockingly.
"It’s a pity…" The old woman stared at Su Ming and continued speaking slowly. "The elder only brought you up but he did not teach you how to be civilized. You should at least think about your status!" The old woman did not speak much but there was a hint of mockery in her voice. It was a huge clash against her status as the Elder.
Su Ming’s face immediately grew pale. It was his biggest weakness and he had it hidden within his heart but the woman had revealed it before so many people. Su Ming bit his lip and kept his silence.
"Elder!" When Bai Ling saw the pale look on Su Ming’s face, her heart clenched painfully. She immediately spoke up and she looked at the old woman angrily.
Lei Chen, who was standing beside Su Ming, immediately glared at the old woman. He did not care who she was. When he saw that Su Ming was being humiliated, he burned with anger and was about to march forward.
However the moment he took a step forward, a strange light appeared in the old woman’s eyes. Lei Chen’s body suddenly convulsed. That moment, the Head of the Guards of Dark Mountain Tribe, who had been standing quietly by the side frowned. He immediately took a step forward.
Right after, his demeanor changed. A sharp presence erupted from his body and surrounded the area. When it stopped outside Lei Chen’s body, a m.u.f.fled sound echoed in the air. Lei Chen’s face was pale as he took a few steps back.
"Lord Elder, there’s no need to do this to the children from my tribe," The face of the Head of the Guards was dark as he spoke slowly.
Just as he was about to take another step forward, the man standing behind the old woman lifted his head abruptly and stepped forward as well. A slightly stronger presence of power than the Head of the Guards’ presented itself.
Immediately Shan Hen, who had been keeping his silence, narrowed his eyes and a cold glint flashed across his eyes like a poisonous serpent. He glared coldly at the man from Dark Dragon Tribe.
The air crackled with tension!
s.h.i.+ Hai watched the scene not far away. A mocking smile appeared on his lips. In his eyes, the two small tribes were originally one but they had become enemies. He fell silent but did not stop them. Instead, he stood by the side and watched as the scene unfolded.
Su Ming lowered his head and still remained silent. Lei Chen’s anger had yet to disappear. He was afraid but just as he was about to speak, Su Ming raised his right hand and grabbed Lei Chen’s arm.
Lei Chen was stunned. Su Ming lifted his head slowly. His face was still pale. His frail body made him look like a La Su who would never grow up. There was still a hint of youthfulness on his face which had not disappeared. This was due to a lack of experiences in life that would eventually come in time. Without experiencing the difficulties and trials of life, he was still a child.
His eyes were clear. They were very clean and clear, only tainted by a little bit of impurity. He bit his lower lip. As he looked at the old woman from Dark Dragon Tribe, he let go of his grip on Lei Chen’s arm and walked forward.
The gazes of all those around were still on him but he did not mind. Instead, he took one step at a time, walking past Lei Chen and the Head of the Guards until he was 10 feet away from the old woman.
He stood there and looked quietly at the old woman who was still staring at him.
"I don’t have any sense of propriety. I don’t have parents. In your eyes, I have neither any right nor status… But, my elder once told me that you only see one part of the rain in the world. You will never know how much rain there is when it stops…"
"You can only see the surface of the muddy water on the ground and never the bottom… This year, I am only 16 years old…" Su Ming lowered his head and spoke softly. Once he finished speaking, he turned around and walked away slowly.
Lei Chen followed Su Ming and turned around to glare at the old woman as he let out a light huff.
When the Head of the Guards and Shan Hen saw that the old woman no longer spoke, they retreated slowly. They left under the guidance of the escorts from Wind Stream Tribe with Bei Ling and Wu La.
The old woman watched Su Ming’s retreating back and frowned. There was an unreadable glint in her eyes as she turned around and walked to the back.
"Bai Ling, come with me." Bai Ling stood there and watched Su Ming’s retreating figure. Her heart was in a mess. When she heard her grandmother’s words, she left silently with her.
Every time each tribe came to pay their respects, they were invited into the mudstone city and brought to their designated lodgings. There, they stayed until everyone finished paying their respects. Dark Mountain Tribe was allocated to the south of the mudstone city. It was a giant house made of nine connecting houses. There were some fences around the house, making it look as if it was isolated from the other parts of the tribe.
At that moment, all the members of Dark Mountain Tribe were gathered in one of the house. All of them sat down with their legs crossed as they listened to the Head of the Guards, who was sitting before them.
"The amount of people in Wind Stream Tribe far surpa.s.ses the amount of people in Dark Mountain Tribe. As such, the number of Berserkers they have also surpa.s.ses ours. Besides, with Wind Stream Tribe as the leader around the area, the tributes they receive when all the other tribes pay homage to them once every few years also allow them to obtain all sorts of herbs."
"They even have several statues of the G.o.d of Berserkers!" The Head of the Guards spoke slowly as he swept his gaze across the people around him.
"Our tribe cannot hope to compare with a middle sized tribe. I don’t know just how many Berserkers there are in Wind Stream Tribe but there must be at least hundreds of them!"
"These Berserkers have enough herbs and all sorts of inheritances from the different statues of the G.o.d of Berserkers here. Their might is not something a small tribe can compare with. The speed of their training is much faster than ours, their resources are much better than ours, even the possibilities of talented people appearing among them is far higher than our tribe."
"During this time, Shan Hen and I will not limit your movements. We brought you here so that you can experience the might of a medium sized tribe and the power of a strong peer from Wind Stream Tribe!"
"I want all of you to make some friends while you are here. It does not matter whether they are from Wind Stream Tribe or from other tribes. Except for our enemy, Black Mountain Tribe you can get to know the members from any other tribe." As the Head of the Guards spoke, his gaze fell upon Su Ming, who remained silent.
"At the same time, I also want you to meet other outstanding people from the other tribes. Find out just how much different you are from them and also set your own target… But remember this, you are not allowed to fight within Wind Stream Tribe!"
"Don’t worry. We are not the only ones who came here for this purpose. The other tribes also came with similar purposes. Additionally, you might be staying for quite some time in Wind Stream Tribe. When we come to pay homage and offer tributes once every few years, Wind Stream Tribe will also organize a test. If you can obtain a good place in the test, it will do you good individually."
"Bei Ling, you have been visiting Wind Stream Tribe for a couple of years. You know this place well. Come and introduce us to the strong peers in Wind Stream Tribe."
Bei Ling who was sitting by the side, nodded once he heard those words.
"There are a lot of strong Berserkers in Wind Stream Tribe. Among those of the same age, there are seven people we have to pay attention to… especially the first one, Ye w.a.n.g. He is…"
As Bei Ling made the introductions, Su Ming sat by the side. He still remained silent. The words spoken by the old woman made him feel miserable. Even on his way to the place, her words still echoed in his head. Su Ming closed his eyes and clenched his fists.
"Su Ming!" A cold voice suddenly made its way into Su Ming’s ears. He turned around and saw the chief of the hunters, Shan Hen sitting behind him with his legs crossed.
"Why did the Elder from Dark Dragon Tribe speak to you in such a way?" Shan Hen looked at Su Ming calmly and spoke in a low tone.
"It’s nothing," Su Ming was silent for a moment before he shook his head and spoke.
Shan Hen frowned slightly. A strange glimmer appeared briefly in his eyes. Just as he was about to speak, he lifted his head abruptly and peered outside the house. At the same time, the Head of the Guards also looked towards the same direction intently.
There was a guide from Wind Stream Tribe, who looked to be in his 30s walking towards their house quickly.
"Who is Su Ming? The Elder has summoned you. Please, come with me!"
Su Ming was stunned. He stood up and looked at the Head of the Guards sitting in front to seek his permission. When he gave a small nod, Su Ming walked out of the house and stood before the Wind Stream Tribe member.
"I am Su Ming," he said calmly.
The Wind Stream Tribe member scrutinized Su Ming for a few moments and turned around to leave. Su Ming hesitated for a moment before following him. Just as he was about to walk out of the house, he heard Bei Ling’s voice from behind.
"In the past, the number of people who took the test usually numbered at nearly 100. The ones who usually took the top 50 spots almost entirely belonged to Wind Stream Tribe… It is especially so for the top 10 places. From my knowledge, there has not been a single outsider who has managed to get into the top 10 ranks for the past 50 years… It should be the same for the test this year. Remember this, cooperate with me to get into one of the top 50!"
"As long I can get into one of the places in the top 50, even if I’m in the last few ranks, it’ll still be a huge accomplishment for Dark Mountain Tribe!"