Otherworldly Desert Dust

Du Mao saw Wu Hen return, and tears welled up in his eyes.

If he lost his brother-in-arms, who knew what hardships lay ahead.

After all, the Ancient Clan was incredibly formidable. Without Wu Hen's comfort, Du Mao felt his self-esteem would be shattered and he would become someone who had no idea how to cultivate.

"Du Mao, pluck the feathers of this roc, then roast it over the fire. Tonight, everyone will have roast chicken!"

"Roast the whole thing? Not saving any for the Cold Era?"

"Ah, everyone's happy today. Plus, we're celebrating Wu Hen finally becoming an adult who can help with hunting. With an extra hunter in the village, there's no worrying about getting through the winter. Eat to your heart's content! And prepare more wine!" the old village chief chimed in.

With a burst of joy, the memorial service turned into Wu Hen's coming-of-age celebration. Many Ancient Clan maidens gathered around, holding hands, dancing barefoot. Their lithe forms moved like willow sprites, adorable and charming.

The Ancient Clan seemed to know exactly how to cheer up Wu Hen. Before long, a smile appeared on his face, even with the dirt still on it. He was pulled to the fire to dance with them.

"Brother Hen, what are you dancing? It feels full of life, yet relaxed and free. Is there a secret technique in these moves?" Du Mao asked, watching Wu Hen's Thomas pirouette, lost in thought.

Wu Hen, of course, was breakdancing. After all, Chong Hua was there rapping. Nothing suited breakdancing better than rap.

The Ancient Clan maidens' dances were graceful, but seeing Wu Hen's cool, flashy moves intrigued them, their eyes wide with curiosity.

"Want to learn? I'll teach you," Wu Hen said.

Singing, dancing, rapping—none could be left out. The Ancient Clan must grasp the true sources of joy!

Evidently, they were a group who understood the essence of joy. Only such a group would appreciate these human arts and naturally be moved by them.

Thus, an ancient bonfire feast unintentionally turned into a grand music festival. Wu Hen forgot his earlier troubles. He stood in the center of the bonfire, singing loudly, "Come, draw a dragon on the left, then a rainbow on the right…"

With this song, the young Chong Hua was astonished. Never had he heard such light-hearted and perfectly rhymed music. Looking at the Ancient Clan, dressed in animal skins, shaking their heads, and waving their fingers like firecrackers, he felt the starry sky paled in comparison. Chong Hua had a premonition that this outsider might become the spiritual leader of their Ancient Clan—his spirit was so ahead of its time!

...

On typical rest days, everyone would gather for a feast.

They didn't need to hunt early the next day, and there would be group activities organized.

Things like exchanges with other ancient villages, wrestling, taming beasts, bullfighting, eating contests, archery, matchmaking, and so on.

The morning after the celebration, everyone slept in.

By midday, everyone tidied up and prepared to head to Qingcao Creek Village to meet people from other villages.

These rest-day gatherings were like market festivals, where people from nearby villages and towns brought their goods to trade. There would naturally be some cultural exchanges, like boy dance-offs.

This year, Chong Hua was confident. Having learned the ultimate joy of singing and dancing from Wu Hen, he felt he could win the ancient clan's boy dance-off championship and be written into the Ancient Clan's history!

"Wu Hen, you celestial prodigies have special events too. Don't miss out," said Chongli Mountain.

Wu Hen scratched his head, wondering what kind of activities they might have.

As they entered Qingcao Creek Village, which was a larger plains village, the Ancient Clan from mountains, valleys, forests, creeks, and caves all gathered here.

The place was crowded with robust individuals, some resembling mythological beasts standing upright. Bathing in glory, they seemed like descendants of the sun god.

Wu Hen and Du Mao realized that these Ancient Clan people were like living immortals. Even those who dominated the outside world could only sit at the kids' table.

At the center of Qingcao Creek Village, there was a stage built entirely of wood.

It resembled an ancient arena, where the Ancient Clan could sit on the stone steps piled up around it.

Wu Hen and Du Mao initially wanted to explore the Ancient Clan Market and look for treasures, but Chongli Mountain insisted on bringing them here, warning them not to disgrace Red Snow Village.

When the two were pushed onto the wooden stage, others from different villages were also pushed up, with the most eye-catching being a maiden in snow-white clothing with an ethereal aura.

She held a Moon Cold Sword, her long hair fluttering in the wind. Standing in the ancient wooden arena, she looked like a fairy from the heavens, attracting envious gazes from the men.

However, soon after the maiden struck her pose, an older woman in animal fur walked up and rudely took the elegant Moon Cold Sword from her, replacing it with a blackened fire stick.

The maiden didn't want to hold the fire stick, finding it filthy.

But the no-nonsense woman glared at her, and the celestial maiden had no choice but to hold the cleaner end of the stick... yet her grace remained intact!

"Hmm, why does she seem so familiar? I remember seeing her in some city... Oh! I remember! Isn't she Fairy Gong Qin? A top talent from the Sword Immortal Clan. How did she also end up in the Scroll Realm?" Du Mao exclaimed after watching for a while.

"Gong Qin?" Wu Hen had never heard of the name.

"Brother, you're young and already the Human Emperor, so you might not pay much attention to other divine realm prodigies. They don't belong to our Human Clan but are true descendants of immortals. It's said they are born with Heavenly Light. Once they reach adulthood, they become the strongest in the universe. I once had the chance to meet an immortal in the divine realm and saw this Fairy Gong Qin in an Immortal Tower," Du Mao explained.

"So, she's a true immortal?" Wu Hen asked.

"Yes, and they can't have offspring with us humans," Du Mao added.

"???" Wu Hen seriously doubted Du Mao's sincerity.

In the biological world, if two beings can't produce offspring, they are considered different species.

Wu Hen didn't expect Desert Dust to draw such lines.

"Go on!" Chongli Mountain pushed Wu Hen, urging him to confront her.

"Even if they can't have children, why do it in public? Do your Ancient Clan people play that wild?" Wu Hen asked.

"Nonsense! Fight her! If you win, the chief will give you Ganoderma Wine for your body. Don't you want to develop your physique?" Chongli Mountain retorted.

"Yes, every so often, our villages send prodigies here for a friendly competition to uphold our hospitality traditions. The fiercer the prodigy, the more respect we earn. Brother Hen, you are the pride of Red Snow Village! You can definitely take down this heavenly girl!" Xiao Jiang from the Ancient Clan encouraged.

As Wu Hen stepped forward, the trouble-making Red Snow Villagers cheered loudly, as if rallying their war leader to battle against other tribes.

Honestly, Wu Hen didn't feel honored. Instead, he felt like a well-trained hunting dog being sent to compete against other villages' dogs, providing entertainment for these boisterous Ancient Clansfolk.

"State your name," Fairy Gong Qin coldly demanded, scrutinizing Wu Hen.

"Wu Hen. Is your name Gong Qin? Nice to meet you," Wu Hen replied.

"You must call me by my immortal name!" Fairy Gong Qin's tone remained cold. Her insistence on how to be addressed seemed less about arrogance and more about natural entitlement.

"Smack!"

A melon rind suddenly flew through the air, landing perfectly on Fairy Gong Qin's head.

Despite her immense strength and almost supernatural perception, she couldn't avoid the melon rind.

"Here, everyone is equal. Don't bring outside hierarchies and arrogance here!" scolded the formidable Ancient Clan woman from before.

The dignified fairy looked deeply aggrieved. It was clear she was inherently proud and lofty, but since arriving here, she felt like nothing more than a firewood girl!

Chopping wood, gathering fruit, cleaning cow lice, and washing clothes!

Since birth, Gong Qin had never touched dirty water.

"Gong Qin. I am Gong Qin," she finally corrected herself, biting her silver teeth, still deeply disgruntled.

"My cultivation is low, I'm probably not your match. Can I just surrender?" Wu Hen asked.

"Absolutely not!" Gong Qin, full of frustration, saw this as a rare chance to vent on someone from the outside world and wouldn't let it slip.

The people of the Scroll Realm might not be her match, but could she not handle another prodigy fallen into this realm?

"Wu Hen, you're the pride of Red Snow Village. You single-handedly hunted Thunder Crossing Tai Peng. Don't belittle yourself. You're the best. Plus, according to our customs, if you win a public duel, you can take the losing opposite sex back home to encourage population growth among the tribes. They are from the Immortal Clan, strong physique, big hips, perfect for childbearing!" Chongli Mountain incited.

Wu Hen's face darkened upon hearing this.

Isn't this just asking for trouble!

"Du Mao already said humans and immortals can't have offspring," Wu Hen retorted.

"Oh, it's just for fun! Isn't that even better? Youngsters nowadays don't even want kids!" Chongli Mountain shouted back.