I am the sacred tree, evergreen for eternity.

Hongzheng was preparing to arrange for his clansmen to carry the two injured people aside and take care of them.

Before the words could even be uttered, an unexpected turn of events occurred.

Thick roots burst from the soil, grabbed the two blood-soaked hunters, and flung them toward a clearing in the distance.

The Xia clansmen stood frozen in place, their gazes all fixed on the towering tree that blotted out the sky, and on their tree god.

No one questioned it, and no one even showed a hint of fear or dissatisfaction.

This is faith.

A devout, pure, and deeply ingrained faith.

Yu Su did not respond, but simply retracted the roots that had stretched out.

Before the two "people" who had been thrown into the air even landed, their bodies began to convulse violently.

A strange bluish-purple hue appeared on their skin, as if something was seeping out from the inside, with blood vessels bulging out and writhing wildly under the skin like earthworms.

Then, they exploded.

There was no bloodshed, no flying bones and flesh.

The two corpses seemed to be burst open from the inside by some force, silently shattering into countless tiny fragments.

The fragments hovered in the air for a moment before transforming into a dense, deep purple poisonous mist that spread in all directions.

Wherever the poisonous fog passed, the air distorted, the grass withered, and even the soil hissed and corroded, rising to a layer of grayish-white foam.

Hong stood at the very front of the crowd, only a few feet away from the poisonous fog. He could even smell the nauseating, sweet-smelling, rotten odor.

Yu Su moved.

Several thicker roots emerged from the ground and plunged into the deep purple poisonous fog without hesitation.

The moment the roots touched the poisonous fog, they hissed, and the bark on the surface turned black, cracked, and peeled off at a speed visible to the naked eye, revealing the tender woody layer underneath.

Yu Su did not retract its roots, which is an advantage of being a tree: it feels no pain.

Therefore, he could calmly sense the poisonous fog and detect the special power hidden within it—somewhat similar to his spiritual energy.

But compared to the spiritual energy generated by the fusion of the earth's veins and the sun, the poisonous fog appears cold, sharp, yet very shallow.

"Stronger than ordinary beasts, but far inferior to that two-winged fire tiger."

Yu Su made an objective assessment in her mind: he was unlikely to pose a threat to his safety.

He noted down the fluctuations of that chilling power, then swung his roots to shatter the poisonous mist, revealing a patch of purplish-black earth.

Hong looked at the withered grass, a fine layer of cold sweat seeping from his forehead.

The tribe had only been at peace for a few years, and I had completely overlooked the terrors hidden between the mountains and the sea...

However, what Yu Su saw was far more profound than what Hong saw.

These two people were deliberately released back by that being from the north side of the valley.

Or rather, it's "sent back".

Three days ago, when that being buried the poisonous fog into their bodies, they were already two walking zombies.

They did not return.

They came to guide us.

In Yu Su's perception, the "route" extending from the depths of the northern forest was so clear it was unsettling.

The traces of that eerie aura remained where the two people had walked, like an invisible thread extending from the lair of that being all the way to the Xia clan.

"It's coming soon."

Yu Su's voice echoed in Hong's mind, as calm as a stagnant pool.

There was not a trace of emotional fluctuation; it was simply stating a fact, as calmly as saying "It's getting dark" or "It's going to rain."

Hong's body stiffened abruptly.

He raised his head and looked at the tribe's guardian deity, a complex expression flashing in his eyes.

In an instant, he understood the tree spirit's meaning—

The creature that attacked the hunting party already knew the tribe's location.

It can easily wipe out a twelve-person hunting party, and thus can easily inflict devastating damage on a tribe...

It could even be enough to make the Xia clan disappear completely from the wilderness.

and so.

Should we run away?

Just like our ancestors who were once homeless?

That night, the Xia clan was completely silent.

There was no bonfire, no noise. The tribespeople gathered in twos and threes in the simple huts. Only the occasional suppressed cough and the faint cry of a baby could be heard, which sounded particularly jarring in the darkness.

Hong knelt alone beside the tree roots of Yu Su, his forehead pressed against the soil, motionless.

Yu Su gave no instructions; he simply stood quietly in the night, the night wind still rustling the leaves.

He is the tree god of the Xia clan, but he can also be just an ordinary tree.

If these humans choose to leave, he will not try to stop them, will not blame them, and will not even show much emotion.

He spent a century alone in this valley, and he didn't care about another century.

He waited quietly, waiting for these mortals to make their own choices.

Just as dawn was breaking and the first hint of white appeared in the east...

Hong stood up.

His knees were numb from kneeling, and when he stood up, he staggered and almost fell.

He steadied himself by holding onto the tree trunk, then turned around to face the tribesmen who were walking out of the sheds in twos and threes.

His gaze swept across the faces of every tribesman—the young, the old, the resolute, the fearful, the faces etched with deep furrows by the harsh winds of the wilderness, and the faces that, for the first time, shone with brilliance because of the names bestowed upon them by the tree god.

"Come to the foot of the tree god."

The clansmen quickly gathered around, men, women, and children, standing in a dense, dark mass.

Hong stood beside the roots of Yu Su's tree, leaning against the thick trunk, like a child nestled against his father.

He glanced around, his gaze calm and resolute.

"As you all know, those two people who came back yesterday are dead."

Hong's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear and distinct.

"They came back from the north. There was something there... that killed Amu, killed Shi, and killed twelve of our people."

"Now, it's coming to kill us."

Suppressed sobs rose from the crowd; several women's eyes reddened, but no one cried out. The children stared wide-eyed at their leader, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Hong paused for a moment, as if organizing his thoughts or encouraging himself.

His voice suddenly became loud and clear.

"Do you remember what we were before? Before the Tree God existed?"

No one answered, but everyone's eyes dimmed slightly.

"We are savages," Hong answered for them.

"We have nothing. Today we're on this mountain, tomorrow we'll be chased to another mountain by ferocious beasts."

"We hid like rabbits, and scrambled for food in the mud like mice."

"If you get sick, you just wait to die; if you get old, you'll be abandoned. You'll live like grass and die like dust."

His voice echoed in the morning breeze, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying a power that had been suppressed for too long, almost obsessive.

"Later we found the tree spirit, we had names, we had knowledge, we had... a home."

Hong's voice began to tremble, but his back remained ramrod straight.

"We are the Xia family!"

"This is our home!"

"We're not running away anymore!"

The last three words seemed to be ignited by something, exploding in the morning breeze and making the leaves rustle.

The tribesmen paused for a moment, then one by one straightened their backs.

Those dim eyes lit up again, and those hunched backs straightened up again.

The young man gripped his wooden spear tightly, the old man pressed the leaf with inscriptions to his chest, and the woman held her child in her arms, yet no one retreated.

Yu Su silently observed everything, watching the choice made by the Xia clan.

He thought his tree heart was already as still as the ocean, but at this moment, feeling the powerful will gathered and solidified by these weak mortals in front of him, he was still moved.

In the wild mountains and seas, the strong must strive to become strong.

A leaf drifted down from a branch, swaying gently in the morning breeze, and landed perfectly in Hong's outstretched palm.

At the same time, a warm thought resounded in the hearts of the Xia clan members:

"Lead it here... I'm here!"