17: Chapter 17 Learning the Whispers of the Ancients

A dense swarm of rats poured out from all directions—gray, black, and mottled—their eyes gleaming with an eerie light in the darkness.

They did not squeak; they simply surrounded him in silence, their claws making faint scratching sounds on the fallen leaves, like a tightening net.

The swarm parted to form a path.

A hunched figure slowly walked out.

It was a Mimei Rat so old it was beyond recognition, its fur sparse, revealing the grayish-blue skin underneath, its eye sockets sunken but terrifyingly bright.

It leaned on a cane, with a shriveled eyeball embedded at the top.

"Gray Fur." The Council Speaker's voice sounded like two stones rubbing against each other.

Gray Fur's tail instantly stiffened into a straight line, pointing rigidly behind him.

He took half a step forward, claws splayed, shielding the unconscious Wu Xi behind him.

"Council Speaker."

"What are you doing here?" The Council Speaker's eyes rotated, and the eyeball embedded at the top of the cane followed suit, its gaze passing over Gray Fur and pinning onto Wu Xi.

"This Human Race member deserves to die."

Gray Fur swallowed, his throat dry.

"You cannot kill him."

"Oh?" The Council Speaker stopped, tilted its head, its wrinkled face betraying no expression, but the air suddenly turned cold.

"Reason."

Gray Fur's claws dug into the mud.

He felt the Council Speaker's gaze pressing on his back like a physical weight, heavy enough to make him want to hunch over.

But he did not.

"He saved me." Gray Fur's voice trembled, but his spine remained straight.

"If it weren't for him in the Snake Cave, I would have died long ago."

"Tomorrow." The Council Speaker spoke, its tone as flat as if discussing the weather.

"At this critical time, the tribe cannot be in chaos.

We don't have the energy to keep an eye on a Human Race member of unknown origin."

"Council Speaker, he is different."

"How is he different?"

"His aura," Gray Fur's eyes darted quickly, his brain working even faster.

"The aura on him... is not that of an ordinary Human Race Cultivator.

And..."

Just then, Wu Xi's fingers twitched.

A light, very weak, like the head of a match about to burn out, shone from his chest.

Gray Fur and the Council Speaker turned their heads simultaneously.

The book of eibon had a black cover, with twisted symbols painted on it in some dark red pigment.

Wu Xi's hand pressed against the book, his fingers spasming as they tightened, his knuckles making a faint cracking sound.

Wu Xi was reading the book—or rather, the book was reading him; his consciousness had already sunk into it.

Before his eyes was not darkness, but countless writhing characters.

Those words were not written with a pen, but carved in some more ancient way, like insects or tadpoles, crawling around in his field of vision, then suddenly accelerating, turning into streams of light, and crashing directly into his forehead.

The first page: "Authored by the Archmage Eibon..." A voice echoed in his mind, old and weary, as if coming from deep underground, every word carrying an echo.

"This book contains the arts of summoning, protective incantations, gates of teleportation, knowledge of other worlds... and forbidden methods."

Wu Xi's Sanyuan Art true Qi was like being doused with a ladle of boiling oil; it roared into flames.

The originally gentle, flowing Qi had now turned into a raging beast, crashing wildly through his Meridians.

Even stranger, this true Qi actually became entangled with the cold, sinister power brought by that book.

Ice and fire—the two forces tore at each other in his chest, as if two hands were pulling his internal organs in opposite directions.

Wu Xi's skin began to turn red, not a healthy red, but the red of congested blood.

The blood vessels under his skin bulged one by one, purple-black, as if they were about to burst out of his body.

"Ugh, ahhh—!" He couldn't help but roar.

The sound was hoarse, broken, like a skinned wolf.

This roar startled Gray Fur.

He whipped his head around, and upon seeing Wu Xi's state, his pupils shrank to pinpricks.

Wu Xi was glowing, not with the faint phosphorescence from before, but with a tangible halo of light seeping from his pores, carrying a weird, grayish-white hue.

His face was twisted, his jaws clenched so tightly that blood was already seeping from the corners of his mouth.

The Council Speaker lowered its claws, squinting its eyes.

That scarlet eyeball stared fixedly at Wu Xi, its nose twitching incessantly, sniffing the scent in the air.

"Ancient God..." The Council Speaker's voice was so low it was almost inaudible.

"This is the aura of an Ancient God..."

Gray Fur didn't hear clearly: "What?"

Kill? Or not kill?

If that aura was real... to kill someone watched by an Ancient God would mean the entire Mimei Rat tribe would be buried with him.

It had lived for over a hundred years and had seen too many Geniuses rise and fall.

There were Geniuses, there were trash, there were those who suddenly achieved Epiphany, and those who suffered Qi Deviation.

But it had never seen anything like this.

How could a Human Race member bear such a thing?

In that instant of the Council Speaker's hesitation, the changes within Wu Xi reached their peak.

The two forces no longer resisted each other and began Fusion.

The circulation trajectory of Wu Xi's Sanyuan Art was forcibly altered; those familiar Meridian routes were smashed to pieces, then reorganized, becoming more complex and profound.

The originally incomplete chapters were now completed in a barbaric manner.

[Sanyuan Art (Incomplete)]: Affected by high-risk contamination... Neutralizing... Neutralization successful, Cultivation Technique upgraded, upgraded to Bone Forging Realm!

[Three-Turn Heavy Origin Technique]: An ancient Human Race Body Refining secret technique, Three-Turn Perfection, physical strength is three times that of a Cultivator of the same rank.

Three times!

Wu Xi's breathing quickened.

This meant that in future battles against those of the same rank, he could snap the opponent's sword with one punch; it meant greater stamina, and the ability to learn fierce techniques that his original physical constitution couldn't handle.

Before he could think it through, the excruciating pain arrived.

Not a metaphor, but real pain.

He felt his bones melting, like iron blocks thrown into a furnace.

Bone Forging Realm!

Thread Twining is for training tendons and fascia, Bone Forging is for training bones.

Crack, crack, the joints all over his body were popping.

Wu Xi opened his eyes.

His vision was still a bit blurry, but he could already see things clearly.

He first saw Gray Fur's nervous face, and then the Council Speaker's inscrutable old face.

He stood up.

Gray Fur took the opportunity to interject: "Council Speaker, I think... we should discuss this at length!"

The Council Speaker remained silent for a long time; it was thinking.

Gray Fur's words had some merit.

This human was indeed mysterious, hiding too many secrets on him.

If it could keep him under control, it might be able to dig out more valuable intelligence.

But the risk also existed.

If this human really had some connection with the god, then keeping him by its side would be no different from inviting a wolf into the house.

A battle between heaven and man raged in the Council Speaker's heart, and it was hard to decide for a moment.

It looked at Wu Xi, then at Gray Fur, and finally looked up at the night sky.

It was said that the book of eibon was one of the keys to awakening the Toad God.

If it killed him, would it trigger serious consequences and bring harm to the Mimei Rat tribe?

It withdrew its gaze and looked at Wu Xi, its eyes complex.

"Human," its voice was low and slow, "I can choose not to kill you.

But you must remember, if you dare to do anything detrimental to the tribe..."

It did not finish, but the threat was self-evident.

The Council Speaker gave him one last deep look, then turned and disappeared into the darkness.

Gray Fur let out a long breath, his whole body seemingly collapsed, and he sat slumped on the ground.

Wu Xi walked to his side, looking down at him: "Why did you help me?"

Gray Fur looked up and grinned: "Didn't I say? You saved my life.

Although I, Gray Fur, am not a big shot, I still understand the principle of repaying kindness."

"Thanks."

Wu Xi felt the surging power within him, Three-Turn Heavy Origin Technique, Bone Forging Realm initial stage, and at the same time felt that another Tentacles had grown under his left chest; he now had a total of four Tentacles all over his body.

And...

He closed his eyes, and a new piece of information emerged in his mind.

[Sacrificial Art]: Using sacrifices as a token to invoke the gaze of the Indescribable God.

[Whispers of the Ancient God]: Awakening the deepest emotions in a creature's heart—fear, desire, secrets...

This skill was very dangerous; he could feel that using it would require a price—perhaps sanity, perhaps lifespan, or perhaps something else.

Gray Fur patted the dirt off his body, his eyes darting around, and suddenly said: "By the way, Wu Xi, what are your plans for tonight?"

Wu Xi was stunned for a moment: "Plans?"

"Yeah," Gray Fur nodded, "This Mimei Forest is not a safe place.

Especially at night; there are often cases of mysterious disappearances of creatures spending the night in the wild."

"Mysterious disappearances?"

"Yeah," Gray Fur's expression became grave, "Sometimes it's travelers who get lost, sometimes it's beasts out foraging.

In short, they spend a night in the forest and then can never be found again.

Not even a corpse is left."

Wu Xi frowned: "What is the reason?"

"I don't know," Gray Fur shook his head, "Some say it's because there is some kind of monster in the forest, others say it's because of an ancient curse.

Anyway... it's very eerie."

As he spoke, he looked up at the sky.

"Look, it's already so dark.

If you spend the night in the forest alone, I'm afraid..."

Wu Xi understood his meaning.

"You want me to go with you?"

Gray Fur nodded, a sincere smile on his face: "Come to our tribe.

Although the Mimei Rat tribe is not big, at least we have the Council of Elders presiding, so safety is guaranteed.

And..."

He paused and lowered his voice: "And you just made such a big commotion, I'm afraid you've already attracted the attention of other things.

Being alone in the wild is too dangerous."

Wu Xi was silent.

Going to the Mimei Rat tribe meant entering a strange environment and facing more unknown dangers.

But at the same time, it could also allow him to obtain more intelligence and learn more secrets about this forest.

"Fine."

Wu Xi finally nodded.

Gray Fur's eyes lit up, and a look of joy appeared on his face: "Great! Follow me, the tribe is not far ahead."

As he said this, he turned and walked towards the depths of the forest.

"By the way, there is one thing I must tell you in advance."

"What is it?"

"Our tribe is ruled by the Council of Elders," Gray Fur's expression became serious, "Those old guys... their tempers are not very good.

Especially the Grand Elder, who hates humans the most.

After you go, it's best to speak less, do more, and don't provoke them."