The Boy from Nüwa Village

The little boy seemed greatly startled by Xiao Chen's sudden movement. He couldn't help but take a few steps back, his voice timid. "Skeleton sir... what are you doing?"

With his tender, soft appearance, he seemed frail and mild. Yet the way he had silently appeared behind Xiao Chen was clearly extraordinary. Now he asked with such fear, which was rather amusing.

"Little one, who are you?" Xiao Chen communicated through a mental fluctuation. Facing this five- or six-year-old child, he truly could not discern its origins—it had flesh and blood, it breathed, but its body radiated a cold aura unlike ordinary children.

"My name is Tian Ya." The child's long black hair fell to his shoulders, soft and lustrous, his eyelashes long. Yet a hint of fear lingered on his face, giving him a fragile air.

"How did you silently arrive behind me?" Xiao Chen regarded the child's ability with caution.

"I'm lost... I can't find my way home, and I ended up here by accident... I'm sorry, Skeleton sir." The boy named Tian Ya lowered his head like a child caught doing wrong.

In the distance, two powerful beings were locked in fierce combat. Xiao Chen pointed at the living being of flesh and blood. "Do you know him?"

"No." Tian Ya shook his head.

"How old are you?" Xiao Chen felt the child was timid, which fit the nature of a lost child, but the little one seemed to possess unusual abilities.

Tian Ya earnestly counted on his fingers, then said, "I... I'm about a hundred years old."

Over a hundred years old? Xiao Chen almost wanted to rap his forehead—he could really make up stories. He took two steps forward, intending to touch the boy's head, but Tian Ya moved like the wind, leaving a blur in his original spot and appearing ten meters away in an instant.

Such speed was astonishing. Xiao Chen instinctively suspected the little one was playing the fool while hiding his true strength.

"Skeleton sir... what are you going to do?" The boy looked at him fearfully.

Xiao Chen stared at him for a long time, eventually convinced that the little one was not putting on an act. But such movement was truly too fast for a child.

"You're sure... you're over a hundred?"

Tian Ya explained earnestly, his voice soft and timid. "It's true, I'm not lying to you. But I slept for over a hundred years; the time I've actually woken up is only five years."

"Are you... human?" Xiao Chen looked at him uncertainly.

"I'm not human."

"Then what are you?" Xiao Chen asked in surprise.

"I am a god." Tian Ya spoke with childish seriousness.

Xiao Chen truly did not know what to say. This little one was getting more absurd by the moment.

"Boom!"

In the distance, the two strong fighters sent rocks flying into the air with tremendous noise. Their speed was like lightning; each step covered over twenty meters, as if they were tearing through space—both speed and power were terrifying.

"Do you know what they're fighting over?" Xiao Chen pointed at the two locked in combat.

Tian Ya hesitated, then said, "Probably fighting over the Life Source Liquid. Bad skeletons often scheme after gods, but most skeletons are friendly to gods."

"Are you really a god?" Xiao Chen wanted to pinch the boy's soft cheek to get him to admit he was lying.

"Of course, I'm a god! See, I have flesh and blood." The little boy shook his fair, delicate hand, then as if remembering something, said, "Skeleton sir, can you take me home?"

"You want me to take you home?" Xiao Chen was stunned. This little one seemed quite powerful, but his heart was truly like a lost child's.

"Our village is called Nüwa Village. I got lost while playing and wandered farther and farther away. It's been over ten days since I last saw my family. Skeleton sir, have you heard of that village?" The boy looked at him hopefully. "Can you take me back? My grandmother will definitely thank you and give you Life Source Liquid."

Nüwa Village?!

Xiao Chen was deeply shaken. Everything this little one said—was it all true? He was a god...

For a long time, Xiao Chen finally spoke. "You could ask that person to take you back." He pointed at the living being of flesh and blood who was still fighting.

"I feel he can't beat that Crimson Diamond Skeleton. He has his own troubles." Tian Ya analyzed with certainty.

Xiao Chen had already seen as much, but he hadn't expected this little one to have such sharp eyes. He now believed the child was a god who had once slept for over a hundred years.

"Why ask me to take you?"

"Because you are a kind Skeleton sir." Tian Ya said earnestly.

Xiao Chen did not know whether to laugh or cry. The little one was indeed childish—how could he distinguish kindness from evil? Was this a child's judgment, or intuition?

"How do you know?"

"Because I am a god."

Such strange logic left Xiao Chen speechless.

In the distance, the battle between the two strong fighters finally ended. The living being of flesh and blood was defeated and fled in defeat. The translucent, crystalline Crimson Diamond Skeleton pursued closely, both vanishing like bolts of lightning at the edge of the earth.

Xiao Chen did not continue following. He was clearly one or two stages below those two; continuing would bring no gain and could even mean death.

In the end, Xiao Chen himself did not know why he agreed to escort the boy home. Perhaps it was to see for himself what kind of village it was. Otherwise, he could not possibly learn the truth from this little one—he was too childish.

Where was Nüwa Village?

Xiao Chen traveled with the boy for eight hundred li before again spotting an ancient castle. Now he too possessed castle-lord-level strength, so he was no longer afraid and charged straight inside.

The gloomy castle held several dozen fire-seed creatures, but under Xiao Chen's powerful attacks, they were quickly shattered. He fought his way deep into the castle. The master of this castle was a giant white-boned ape, its divine fire flickering in its skull as it sat on a throne, staring coldly at Xiao Chen. "Do you want to challenge me and claim this castle?"

"We are of the same rank, and I could harvest your fire seed. But that is not my purpose today. I want to ask if you have heard of a place called Nüwa Village?"

"A god village..." The giant ape's divine fire bobbed a few times. "Why do you ask?"

"Tell me the way, and I will leave immediately without disturbing you further."

"Go forward another two thousand li."

Xiao Chen was surprised. The little boy had strayed several thousand li from home—what a wild child.

After another thousand li, Xiao Chen was astonished to find a city of modest size, wreathed in eerie mist.

Without a doubt, this was the domain of a powerful fire-seed creature. The fact that it reached city scale showed the master's strength. From far away, he saw more than a dozen skeletal angels flying above the city walls, patrolling the ground below.

Xiao Chen noticed that the fire-seed creatures nearby were not fighting, and regardless of strength, they could all enter the city. It seemed this powerful city lord had established a certain order in his territory.

To avoid trouble, Xiao Chen did not approach the city but circled far around it.

The surrounding thousand li seemed to be under this city's rule. He passed more ancient castles and fire-seed villages, which increasingly resembled human society's structure.

Xiao Chen had to dodge some powerful fire-seed creatures on the road, so the next thousand li took a full five days.

Following the castle lord's directions, he had already taken the boy two thousand li deeper into the continent, yet still found no Nüwa Village.

"I feel more and more familiar. Our village is close now."

These days, they had been walking through desolate deathlands, but ahead, oases gradually appeared—lush vegetation. Xiao Chen saw living animals for the first time.

"Is this not a world of death? There are rabbits and deer..."

Xiao Chen was very surprised.

"Roar..."

Faint roars came from deep within the continent. The boy's expression changed. "Those are powerful fire-seed creatures that could grow into kings. Deep in the continent, competition is fierce. There might be great chaos."

Xiao Chen said nothing, but the divine fire in his skull flickered restlessly. The depths of the continent seemed to hold unimaginable existences.

"Grandmother says there are cities deep in the continent—huge, huge cities—but they are so terrifying..." Tian Ya said fearfully.

They passed another ancient castle. After traveling several hundred li, the little boy finally cried out joyfully—he recognized this region.

Through a stretch of forest, an oasis appeared ahead with a small village.

They had finally brought the five- or six-year-old child to his destination. Xiao Chen sighed inwardly. The little one was truly outrageous—straying three thousand li from home after getting lost.

"I'm back..." Tian Ya called out happily, turning into a beam of light that shot into the village.

The village had already sensed him. Over a dozen people rushed out. Among them, an old woman was especially excited. Though she looked ancient and frail, she moved like the wind, scooping Tian Ya into her arms.

"You little troublemaker, you've worried us to death. Thank heavens you're safely back."

Others around scolded Tian Ya, making the little boy very embarrassed. Then, as if remembering something, he waved at Xiao Chen.

The villagers had long noticed this blue-diamond skeleton. They harbored no hostility but were not exactly friendly.

"It was the Skeleton sir who brought me back," Tian Ya introduced.

"Truly grateful!" the old woman said sincerely.

Xiao Chen was startled. The child had claimed to be over a hundred years old; his grandmother had to be several centuries old at least—certainly no ordinary person.

Indeed, through a brief introduction, Xiao Chen learned that the old woman was the leader of this village.

When invited into the village, Xiao Chen did not refuse. He had come here to learn the origins of the flesh-and-blood race, and even more to know why this village was named Nüwa Village.

"Are you really gods?" Xiao Chen asked even as they walked into the village.

"Of course," Tian Ya blinked mischievously.

The villagers looked at Xiao Chen with strange expressions, seeming puzzled that this blue-diamond skeleton of no mean strength did not even know such basic things.

"I awakened in recent years at the remotest border, so I am not very familiar with many matters."

When the people of Nüwa Village heard this, they were somewhat surprised. They knew well how difficult it was for fire-seed creatures to evolve, and for Xiao Chen to achieve so much in a short time was no easy feat.

"We... can be considered gods," the old woman said with a smile.

Grateful that Xiao Chen had returned Tian Ya, she patiently explained on the way, "In this world, death is the dominant force. But when one reaches the extreme of power, death can be reversed..."

"What?" Xiao Chen stared at these people in shock. "You are..."

"We are not that powerful. We rely on the lingering grace of our ancestors. We are the descendants of those who did."

Hearing this news, Xiao Chen was truly stunned. To reverse death, to be born again from death—that was a realm of unimaginable power!

"Where are your ancestors now?" This was what Xiao Chen urgently wanted to know.

"Roar..."

the roars from deep within the continent, though faint due to distance, were still soul-shaking.

"Do you hear that? Deep within the continent are unimaginable existences. The further in you go, the more mysterious and terrifying it becomes. Our ancestors have long since entered the deepest reaches."

"The depths of the continent are unfathomable. Huge cities, terrifying warriors—they make one tremble," other villagers sighed.

"This place is called Nüwa Village. Could it be that your ancestors are Nüwa?"

"The holy ancestor Nüwa once enlightened our ancestors, guiding them from death to life."

Upon hearing this news, Xiao Chen's heart quaked. Could Nüwa be in this world, having reversed death and been reborn?

When the villagers gave a positive answer, Xiao Chen was deeply shaken.

By then, they had already entered the village.

The village was not large, only about twenty households. Small wooden houses were scattered without any apparent order, each covered in climbing vines blooming with purple and red flowers. Wooden fences surrounded them, making the place feel close to nature.

Though these villagers seemed ordinary, Xiao Chen did not dare underestimate them. Not a single person here was common. Even without their ancestors' experience of reversing death, they surely inherited many mysterious talents.

A child of five or six had such extraordinary speed—needless to say about the others.

The old woman said to a young man beside her, "Go out and find an ancient castle. Harvest a Crimson Diamond-grade fire seed and bring it back."

Without a doubt, this was to be a gift for Xiao Chen. The young man said nothing, turned, and with a single step covered twenty or thirty meters, vanishing in an instant.

Seeing Xiao Chen's surprised expression, the old woman said, "Don't think of him as an ordinary young man. He is at least over fifty years old."

Xiao Chen glanced oddly in the direction the young man had vanished, then at the five- or six-year-old Tian Ya. He really was astonished by their ages.

"Your ancestors all entered the deepest part of the continent. Did they leave any message? Why did they do so?"

"Let's not rush these matters. Please, come in..."

Xiao Chen was settled in. When night fell, the old woman invited him again.

In the evening, lantern light swayed in the small village.

The moment Xiao Chen stepped into the hall, he sensed a powerful fire-seed fluctuation. The young man he had seen during the day had already returned. At his feet lay a Crimson Diamond skeleton, its entire body as crystalline as red gemstone, its skull shattered, but the fire seed had not been lost.

Though this surprised and tempted Xiao Chen, it did not shock him completely. But when he saw the old woman sitting cross-legged before a precious mirror, he was instantly stunned.

The old woman's hands traced patterns, and images kept appearing on the mirror's surface. Over a dozen young people surrounded her, all watching the mirror intently.

The scene on the mirror... was the Nine Provinces.