This was a point of contemplation for Zhang Chen in his heart.

The sound of collecting firewood resounded beside him. Zhang Chen turned his head to look and saw the young man called 'Earth' was cautiously gathering firewood, afraid of disturbing him. Before long, the fire roared to life, and the boy took the unconsumed rabbit meat to smoke and reheat it.

Seeing Zhang Chen glance over, the boy said with a flattering smile, "Honorable deity, please wait, the rabbit meat will be reheated soon."

Zhang Chen nodded at his words, feeling a bit hungry; rabbit meat, though, doesn't quite satiate hunger and only makes one grow thinner.

Soon the boy finished roasting the rabbit meat, carefully wiped the dust from his hands, then cautiously wrapped a rabbit leg in leaves, pulled it off the rabbit's body, and handed it to Zhang Chen, "Divine one, please enjoy."

Zhang Chen took the rabbit leg, noticed the boy's cautious gaze, then smiled and said, "I am not a deity, nor do I like being called one. I am a living person, just a few years older than you—just call me big brother."

He found the boy quite likable, with a shrewdness reminiscent of his own youth.

"This…" The boy hesitated lightly, then promptly corrected himself, "This little brother greets you, Brother Zhang."

"That's the way. Eat up." Zhang Chen said.

The boy started gnawing on the rabbit head while cautiously watching Zhang Chen, "Brother Zhang, where do you come from? Which tribe are you from?"

"My tribe is in a very distant place, the name… it's called Xuanyuan." Zhang Chen, uncertain how to respond, thought of his homeland tribe, and the term 'Xuanyuan', from being a descendant of the Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan, popped into his head.

"Xuanyuan, what's that?" The boy was puzzled.

"Xuanyuan is a kind of vehicle frame." Zhang Chen explained the structure of the vehicle frame to the boy 'Earth', whose eyes were full of wonder, "Such a sophisticated mechanism, truly an incredible invention, surely your tribe must be one governed by a ninth-tier deity."

"Of course, it's a large tribe." Zhang Chen said.

"Must have a hundred thousand people." The boy dreamily said.

"Wrong, it's 1.3 billion!"

Zhang Chen recalled his homeland and corrected the boy.

"Billion? What unit of measurement is that?" The boy was puzzled; in this primitive tribe, there wasn't even a record of the term 'billion'.

Zhang Chen patiently explained the unit of measurement to the boy 'Earth'. When the boy understood, he exclaimed, "So many people, probably all the tribes in the Celestial South combined don't even reach that number."

"Celestial South, huh?" Zhang Chen mused, looking at the boy, "Can you tell me about the Celestial South? I come from afar and know nothing about this land and its affairs."

The boy 'Earth' smiled and said, "If Brother wants to hear, let me tell you. I can make sure you thoroughly understand everything about the Celestial South."

"This realm has a nameless great mountain that connects heaven and earth, dividing it into five domains: east, south, west, north, and center. Beyond lies a mysterious land, with uncharted seas and realms where no one has ever emerged. Where we stand is the Celestial South Domain, also known as South Mountain. The South Mountain region is comprised of thirty-eight mountains, with countless tribes of varying sizes surrounding each large mountain. Our area is a small tribe on Zhaoyao Mountain."

"Zhaoyao Mountain?" Zhang Chen was taken aback; the name was so familiar, sharing the same name as Zhaoyao Mountain in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

"The tribe I'm from is a small tribe on Zhaoyao Mountain, with about three thousand people, and less than five hundred young adults." The boy 'Earth' continued to explain to Zhang Chen, even sharing his past.

He was once the son of the 'Ape' tribe leader, but was framed, causing him to fail the adulthood ceremony, leading to his wandering away from the tribe, following the classic failure protagonist trope.

"So, you'll be wandering outside from now on?" Zhang Chen asked.

The boy pointed at his chest, "My ribs are broken, and I can no longer hunt Teeth Beasts. Without using the blood of the Teeth Beasts for baptism, I can't activate Qi Blood, unless given time to recover from my injuries. Once healed, I can hunt ferocious beasts, utilize their blood for bathing, activate Qi Blood, and return to the tribe."

With that, a look of sorrow appeared in the boy's eyes, "I'm the junior clan leader and the only son; if I die outside, the right to inherit the tribe will certainly be taken away by that damned fellow."

"Even if I die, I can't let the tribe's future fall into the hands of a despicable person!" Tears glistened in the boy 'Earth's' eyes; his voice was filled with uncontainable anger and fury.

Zhang Chen offered no comment, continuing to eat his roasted meat, "How did you end up in the desert?" Zhang Chen asked.

"I... I couldn't bring shame to my father. If I die in the desert, at least my father won't see my body and can keep some hope. If I die in the jungle, my father will be heartbroken seeing my corpse." The boy 'Earth' lowered his voice.

Hearing this, Zhang Chen fell silent, his eating slowed, yet he said nothing.

As the sun set, moonlight streamed like water. Zhang Chen looked at the moon, towering like a ten-story building. Although it was night, it felt no different from day. Having finished the last bite of rabbit meat, Zhang Chen glanced at the boy and slowly stood up: "You keep eating, I'm leaving."

Everyone has their fate. He and the boy were nothing more than brief passersby, and he couldn't offer much help.

Having said this, Zhang Chen stepped toward the depths of the jungle. Now, with the coolness of the air, he could transform into a Vampire Bat, absorb moonlight, and explore this world.

However, a hundred meters away, he halted and looked back, only to see the boy carrying the unfinished rabbit meat, grimacing yet following thirty meters behind him.

In the moonlight, Zhang Chen could clearly see the boy grimacing due to his fractured rib but uttering not a sound.

Zhang Chen watched the boy, and the boy gazed back, offering a bashful smile, meekly saying, "I just want to follow behind you, I won't affect you. I know I'm a burden, but I'll follow as far as I can. You don't have to mind me, just pretend I'm air."

His voice was full of plea, "Please, I don't want to die!"

In the scorching daylight, all life hid to rest, while nighttime was ideal for beasts to hunt.

The boy knew, wandering alone in the dark, he likely wouldn't make it through the night.

Zhang Chen beckoned to the boy, who looked familiar, as if he'd seen him somewhere before, but couldn't recall specifically.

His mind scanned through everyone he'd met, finding none with a similar face.

"You called me, is there something you need?"

The boy noticed Zhang Chen's gesture and immediately approached, amicably inquiring.

"Didn't I tell you? Call me big brother. If you want to follow me, just say so, no need for all this." Zhang Chen patted the boy's head, removed the rabbit meat from his shoulder and tossed it aside: "It's just bones now, what's the use of carrying it?"

"Come with me, let's take a tour of the jungle." Zhang Chen said.

"Big brother, you're willing to take me in? You don't mind that I'm a burden?" The boy 'Earth's' eyes sparkled with disbelief and tears flowed down.

Pain never brought tears, nor did being abandoned, but now he couldn't hold it in—tears were streaming down.

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