Chapter 27: A Temporary Farewell
Chapter 27: A Temporary Farewell
Two days later.
Today was the day Gao Jing left the Shan Yue Tribe.
Seeing him off were the Elder Shaman, Shan Guoer, and a bunch of unruly village kids.
They were ecstatic, jumping and cheering wildly behind the little girl, almost like they wanted to beat gongs and drums in celebration.
Gao Jing, sitting inside the Back Basket, was very puzzled.
This Back Basket had been specially woven for Shan Guoer by the village craftsman, the elder giant Shan Teng, to carry Gao Jing.
It was both safe and comfortable.
The first time Gao Jing rode in it, he felt something was off, but he got used to it later.
Curious, he asked Shan Guoer why these guys were so thrilled and excited about his departure?
The answer left Gao Jing utterly speechless.
Apparently, once he was gone, these troublemakers wouldn’t feel so much pressure in their lessons anymore.
Everyone used to be about the same level, but ever since Gao Jing, the ‘monster’ top student, had joined their “class,” they had been getting a lot of criticism from the Elder Shaman for not measuring up.
Gao Jing thought about it and realized it was true indeed.
Bunch of slackers!
Down along the mountain path, through the whole village, Shan Guoer carried Gao Jing on her back all the way to the valley entrance.
The village fort’s large gate stood wide open. The Elder Shaman and several Shan Yue Giants were already waiting outside.
“Grandfather.”
Shan Guoer quickened her steps and ran over.
The Elder Shaman ruffled the little girl’s head and said to Gao Jing, “The Pack Beast is ready.”
These past two days, Gao Jing had been busy in the village selecting Red Sandalwood.
The Elder Shaman had said he could pick whichever piece he wanted, even if it was being used as a main roof beam in someone’s house – they’d take it out for him.
Picking the stuff was easy, but without revealing his Bronze Anchor storage space, the major problem was how to transport it.
Again, it was the Elder Shaman who came up with a solution for Gao Jing.
That was to use a Pack Beast.
Pack Beasts were a type of livestock raised by the Great Wilderness tribes, specifically used for carrying heavy loads.
Facing famine, they were slaughtered for their meat.
Gao Jing knew the village had animal pens, but had never visited them, so today was his first time seeing a Pack Beast.
He almost laughed out loud.
A bulky, stout body, limbs like short pillars, thick grey hide like armor covering it all, two horns – one long, one short – sticking up from its head, and two tiny eyes blinking constantly…
It was practically a giant rhinoceros!
More accurately, it shared at least 90% similarity with a rhinoceros.
This Pack Beast stood about fourteen or fifteen meters tall. Across its wide back hung two large Vine Baskets.
All the Red Sandalwood Gao Jing had selected was packed inside them.
Around sixty or seventy cubic units of it.
Moooo~
Seeing Shan Guoer approach, the Giant Rhinoceros Beast let out a low, muffled roar.
But the little girl showed no fear at all. Instead, she reached out to touch its short horn.
The Pack Beast lowered its head, looking very docile.
“Little Ash is only one year old,” Shan Guoer said to Gao Jing. “You mustn’t bully it.”
The many-ton Pack Beast shook its huge head slightly, as if to say: I’m still just a baby!
Gao Jing: “…”
“This is the Beast Control Talisman.”
The Elder Shaman handed him a dark brown wooden placard. “My apologies, this is the smallest I could make it. I could not shrink it further.”
The Beast Control Talisman was about half a meter wide and nearly a meter long.
Its function was to control this Pack Beast. Complex patterns were carved onto both sides, as if etched by flame.
For Gao Jing, the size of this Beast Control Talisman was still manageable.
He didn’t need to hold it with both hands.
But the Elder Shaman instructed him to drip some of his own blood onto the talisman.
This was a necessary step to activate the Beast Control Talisman.
Gao Jing couldn’t help asking, “Just how much blood do I need to drip?”
The Elder Shaman replied, “We only need four or five drops.”
Orz!
Gao Jing felt like kneeling in despair right there.
You guys are twenty-meter-tall giants!!!
He instantly felt like he’d fallen into a trap.
Still, there was no other way. At this point, he couldn’t back down. He could only draw the dagger he carried with him.
He cut the ring finger of his right hand.
Bright red blood immediately flowed from the wound. Two drops fell onto the Beast Control Talisman.
To Gao Jing’s surprise, the wound on his finger actually seemed to shrink closed on its own.
The cut was still there, but it stopped bleeding.
Huh?
Gao Jing was momentarily stunned– did he need to cut it again?
But before he could use the dagger on his finger again, the Beast Control Talisman resting on his lap suddenly flashed with a crimson light!
Instantly, Gao Jing felt something new within his consciousness.
“Oh?”
Witnessing this, the Elder Shaman looked surprised.
“That should suffice,” he told Gao Jing. “The Pack Beast will obey your commands, but not overly complex ones.”
That’s it?
Gao Jing was very confused; he had only dripped two drops of blood!
Still, not needing to bleed a lot was good.
He didn’t think too much about it, grabbed the Beast Control Talisman, and leaped up.
He jumped from the Back Basket onto the Pack Beast’s head, then quickly scrambled up onto its back.
Moooo~
The Pack Beast lifted its head and gave a low roar.
The Elder Shaman asked, “Are you certain you don’t need some of our warriors to escort you?”
The Great Wilderness was vast and boundless, filled with infinite dangers. Across the Wilderness, meat-eating Wild Beasts roamed.
And there were Man-eating Monster Beasts too!
“Really not necessary,” Gao Jing answered seriously. “I can protect myself.”
He knew that the areas surrounding Shan Yue Village Fort were relatively safe. Wild Beasts had long been cleared out by the tribe’s hunters.
And Gao Jing wasn’t planning to travel far.
Of course, absolute safety didn’t exist.
But to avoid revealing the Bronze Anchor’s secret, taking a little risk was necessary.
“Hmm.”
The Elder Shaman nodded, offering no further persuasion.
He had once told Shan Guoer that everyone has their own secrets.
Since Gao Jing insisted, he would be given that respect.
“Goodbye.”
Gao Jing sat steadily on the Pack Beast’s back and waved at the little girl: “Shan Guoer, wait for me to come back!”
After spending this time together, he had become quite familiar with Shan Guoer.
Shan Guoer could be mischievous and wild, but also sweet and sensible.
It all depended on who she was with.
Her thoughts were very simple. Whether happy or angry, she showed it plainly on her face for everyone to see.
Gao Jing liked this little girl very much.
He often thought that if he ever had a daughter in the future, he hoped she’d be like Shan Guoer.
However, Shan Guoer’s expression at Gao Jing’s farewell looked rather odd.
She bit her finger, seeming like she wanted to say something but hesitated.
Gao Jing smiled. “Relax, I’ll definitely bring back sugar lumps, a big portion!”
This was the reward he had promised the little girl two days earlier.
Payment for carrying him around the village while he picked out wood!
Shan Guoer’s face lit up with a joyful smile.
“Off I go!”
Bidding farewell to the Elder Shaman, Shan Guoer, and the others, Gao Jing urged the Giant Rhinoceros Pack Beast forward, heading into the wide plains ahead.
With the Beast Control Talisman in hand, controlling the Pack Beast was incredibly simple and easy.
After getting familiar with it, Gao Jing commanded it to move faster.
The Pack Beast immediately stretched out its four thick legs. Like a massive tank revving at full power, it rumbled noisily across the grasslands!
The wind from the open field rushed against Gao Jing’s face, making him want to burst into song.
Going home!
No matter how great the Great World was, in his heart, that cramped, dim rental room back in the Primary World…
was the place truly his own.