In a perfect world, you start by relying on your own strength.

The crowd followed and rushed over, where they saw the black cauldron firmly planted on the ground, ancient and heavy, its very appearance making one feel heavy-hearted.

Shi Linhu crossed his arms and laughed, "Kid, just give it a try, don't push yourself too hard, or you'll hurt your back."

Shi Geng didn't respond. He took a deep breath, and his blood and qi surged. His bones and muscles tensed up instantly, as if a lurking beast was hiding in his small body.

He gripped one of the tripod legs with both hands, his waist and stance perfectly aligned, and he exhaled sharply:

"rise--!"

With a loud bang!

He steadily lifted the 8,000-pound cauldron above his head!

The entire venue fell into a deathly silence.

The children's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, Shi Linhu's smile froze, and his mouth opened wide enough to fit an egg.

Shi Geng held the cauldron and walked steadily around the crowd once, without losing his composure, before gently putting it down.

bang——

Dust rose lightly.

He clapped his hands and looked at the dumbfounded Shi Linhu: "Uncle Linhu, now... can you take me hunting?"

The group of people were completely stunned and stood there speechless.

At such a young age, to possess such terrifying divine power is something that has never been heard of in the entire Stone Village from ancient times to the present!

Shi Yunfeng's hand gripping his beard tightened suddenly, and his body trembled slightly.

He had already noticed that Shi Geng had changed a lot in the past month, but he never expected that the child would be so extraordinary. At only four and a half years old, he lifted a giant cauldron weighing a full eight thousand catties!

Such talent far surpasses the realm of ordinary geniuses; it is practically the terrifying innate talent of an ancient ferocious beast cub.

Shi Linhu stood frozen in place, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

He had initially planned to use the giant cauldron to make things difficult for this kid and make him back down, but now reality slapped him hard in the face, leaving him both shocked and ashamed.

The children around were so frightened that they fell silent, and their eyes looked at Shi Geng with a hint of admiration.

Shi Geng patted the dust off his hands, looked at Shi Linhu, and chuckled softly, "Uncle Linhu, now it should stand, right?"

"Plop—"

Shi Linhu swallowed hard, his voice trembling.

"It's a deal, it's a deal! You'll come with us next time we hunt!" He had no intention of making things difficult for anyone at this moment, and he looked at Shi Geng as if he were a monster.

At four and a half years old, he lifted an 8,000-pound cauldron. This was no ordinary village child; he was clearly the cub of an ancient ferocious beast.

Shi Yunfeng, standing to the side, let out a long breath, his beard trembling slightly, his eyes gleaming as if he were pondering a deeper question.

The surrounding children went wild, their eyes filled with admiration as they surrounded Shi Geng, waving their hands around him.

"Shi Geng, you're amazing! An 8,000-jin cauldron!"

"How did you do that? Teach us!"

"No wonder you were able to beat Uncle Lin Hu just now..."

Shi Linhu scratched his head, feeling both embarrassed and relieved. Luckily, he hadn't said anything too definitive, or he would have been utterly humiliated. He stepped forward and solemnly patted Shi Geng on the shoulder: "Kid, I underestimated you. Don't worry, next time the hunting team sets off, I'll call you first. But when we get to the Great Wilderness, you can't be reckless; you have to follow orders."

Shi Yunfeng walked forward slowly, looking at Shi Geng with gentle eyes, his tone filled with undisguised satisfaction: "Good, good... My Shi Village has actually produced such a prodigy as you."

He paused, then looked at the crowd and said in a deep voice:

"Don't publicize what happened today. You all understand the principle of 'the tallest tree in the forest stands out.'"

Everyone nodded in agreement. Such extraordinary talent might not be entirely a good thing if it were to spread.

Looking at the excited crowd, Shi Geng felt a warmth rise in his heart.

This display of strength by lifting the cauldron was not only to enable him to hunt in the Great Wilderness, but also to let the people of Stone Village know that he had the ability to protect this place and to become the pillar of Stone Village.

Not far away, the willow tree's branches swayed gently, as if a faint green light was falling, seemingly watching over this extraordinary young man.

The crowd surrounded Shi Geng, chattering excitedly.

In this vast wilderness, the emergence of such a young prodigy is tantamount to giving Stone Village a pillar of strength for the future. How could they not be excited?

"Ah-Gen, let's go to my uncle's for barbecue tonight, all you can eat! And while you're at it, please give my kid some pointers on his cultivation!"

"Son, you're four years old now, it's time to arrange a marriage for you! Look at my Tiger Girl, she's strong and capable, a perfect match for you!"

As soon as he said that, everyone around burst into laughter.

Shi Geng froze on the spot, his small face turning bright red. He had never been so embarrassed in his past and present lives.

He hurriedly pushed his way out of the crowd, waving his hands repeatedly: "No, no... forget about the marriage. I can give you pointers, but I'll go for the barbecue later!"

Seeing him flee in disarray, Shi Yunfeng and Shi Linhu exchanged a glance and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

The Blue-scaled Eagle's egg finally hatched.

The two eaglets were covered in blue scales, and their newly sprouted wings exuded a fierce aura, just like their mother.

The third one, the egg that had been gently touched by the willow god's branch, hatched into a completely different creature—its body covered in fine, shimmering purple scales, and when it moved, it resembled a dancing purple flame. Its eyes were clear and bright, and it possessed a spirituality far surpassing that of the other two.

The villagers of Shicun gathered around, all marveling at the sight.

"Why is this little eagle purple?"

"Look at these scales, they're even more beautiful than jade!"

The little purple eagle seemed to understand human nature. It tilted its head and scanned the area, then walked straight towards Shi Geng, rubbing its little claws against his trouser leg and letting out a gentle chirp.

Shi Hao, standing to the side, exclaimed with shining eyes, "Shi Geng, this little eagle is extraordinary!"

Shi Geng reached out and gently placed his fingertips on the top of the purple eagle's head.

In an instant, he sensed an extremely pure life essence, mixed with a faint trace of Daoist charm.

This is no longer an ordinary blue-scaled eagle.

After being touched by the Willow God, it has already undergone a complete transformation, and now possesses the appearance of an ancient demonic bird.

Suddenly, the clouds churned violently!

A massive black shadow descended from the sky, obscuring the sunlight. The Azure-Scaled Eagle, which had disappeared for half a month, had returned and suddenly appeared above Stone Village.

Everyone's expression tightened, and they instantly became alert, gripping their weapons tightly.

But before anyone could make a move, a muffled, loud bang exploded out!

A huge dragon with horns fell from the sky and crashed heavily to the ground, raising dust and causing the earth to tremble.

Everyone was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized what was going on.

The Blue-scaled Eagle has been missing for half a month; it seems it has gone out hunting.

Her return was not to provoke anyone, but to feed her three newly hatched babies.

After doing all this, the Azure Scaled Eagle's eyes no longer held their usual ferocity, but only a rare tenderness.

He glanced at his own child, then swept his gaze over the villagers of Shicun, seemingly reassured that he could leave the young eagle here.

The next instant, it spread its wings, a gale arose, and its blue figure soared into the sky, quickly disappearing into the depths of the clouds.

The two little green-scaled eagles immediately let out tender cries, while the little purple-scaled eagle simply raised its head and looked in the direction where the green-scaled eagles had left, its purple scales glowing slightly.

In the days that followed, the Azure-scaled Eagle returned from time to time, each time leaving behind ferocious prey: flying pythons, giant elephants, colorful beasts... all the powerful and fierce beasts in the mountains and forests became food for the three eaglets.

The children chattered around the little ones and quickly came up with names.

The eldest is called Dapeng, the second is called Xiaoqing, and the third is the one with purple scales, named Ziyun.

It must be said that it is indeed worthy of being a descendant of an ancient demonic bird; it has already shown amazing spirituality at just one month old.

Especially Ziyun, which is ridiculously strong. It has grown to be more than half a person tall, and its purple scales shine brightly. Ordinary tigers and leopards will have their bones broken on the spot when it strikes them with one claw. Even adult ferocious beasts dare not provoke it easily.

What particularly annoyed the three little guys was that there was always a little brat trying to steal the food that the Azure-scaled Eagle brought them.

That little brat can run like the wind, his belly is round and chubby, his eyes are sharp, he can snatch meat faster than anyone else, and he can eat a lot!

It was Shi Gen.

Dapeng and Xiaoqing flapped their wings in anger and cried out, but they could only helplessly watch him feast, since they were no match for Shigen.

Ziyun merely glanced at it coldly, flapped its wings, and used one claw to pin down the corpse of another ferocious beast, then began to gnaw on it, looking as if it disdained to compete.