After the voice on the radio went silent.
Lawyer Frank paused for a moment, then his voice came, low and slow. "I'm sorry, everyone. Feng has passed away and returned to the arms of the Lord."
"God!"
"May God bless that poor old man."
"To Feng!" GULP, GULP!
Lawyer Frank continued, holding the handset, "Everyone, I'm contacting you today because Feng's grandson has arrived at the Crown Territory. He'll be staying for a while. If he needs anything, I hope you'll be able to help him out."
"Have the kid remember my name. Hank's Tavern in Kobek Town. If he needs me, I'll fly my plane over, even in a blizzard."
"I'm the closest to the Crown Territory. If the boy needs help, just call for Kevik Susan on the radio."
"If he needs help, just say the word on the radio. The winters in the Far North Tundra are no joke."
...
After shutting off the radio, Lawyer Frank turned to see Feng Shan's baffled expression and spread his hands helplessly.
"Friend, you'd better learn some English. Otherwise, things are going to be tough for you. There's no one for hundreds of kilometers. Chatting on the radio will be your only form of entertainment."
Then, Lawyer Frank walked to the bookshelf, pulled out two thick books, and handed them to Feng Shan. "This Chinese-English dictionary is something I gave to Mr. Feng ten years ago. I hope it's useful to you. The other one is Mr. Feng's diary. I hope you'll take a look at it."
After handing over the books, Lawyer Frank glanced at his watch and took a grayish-white bone ring from his pocket.
"This is Mr. Feng's last belonging. He said I was only to give it to you if you came to the Crown Territory in person. Now, it's yours."
"I have to go now. I hope you have a pleasant stay. I'll be back in ten days. By then, I hope you'll have made your decision."
"Okay!"
Taking the bone ring, Feng Shan nodded firmly and personally saw Lawyer Frank to his plane.
He watched as the plane wobbled its way into the sky, disappearing into the low-hanging clouds.
Feng Shan stood there quietly. As the plane departed, it felt as though the entire world had been muted, and everything became utterly silent.
The only sound was the howling wind, carrying snowflakes that gently brushed against his face.
...
「Back at the bus camp.」
The sky was gradually darkening. The camp had no electricity and no sense of time. Feng Shan pulled out his phone, which could only serve as a clock.
'It gets dark so late.'
'It only starts getting dark at 9 PM.'
MEOW!!
Coca-Cola crawled out from the fluffy deerskin blanket and started circling Feng Shan's legs.
"I know you're hungry."
Feng Shan picked out two cans of fish and a bag of bread from a supply crate. Since it was just him and the cat eating, there was no need to use the kitchen. He selected some dry wood from the pile outside the bus and lit it in the stove.
Soon, a roaring fire blazed in the stove. The temperature inside the bus rose by several degrees, making it so warm that Feng Shan took off his down jacket.
Once the fire stabilized, he opened the canned fish and placed it on the stove to heat up. He also put a few slices of bread on the stove's edge to toast.
Before long, the oil in the can melted, and an enticing fishy aroma wafted out, filling the entire bus.
MEOW!
Smelling the fish, Coca-Cola anxiously circled the stove.
Feng Shan found a pair of chopsticks in the kitchen, stirred the contents of the can, and scooped up a glob of mashed fish paste to taste.
'Hmm, it's cooked.'
'It smells alright, but the taste is a bit strange. It's very fishy and pasty. Not as good as the canned fish back home.'
'If I weren't just trying to fill my stomach, this stuff would only be fit for cat food.'
He poured the fish paste onto a plate, tore up the bread slices, and placed it in front of Coca-Cola.
After the long journey, Coca-Cola was famished. It buried its head straight into the plate and began gobbling down the food.
After feeding Coca-Cola, Feng Shan picked up the fish can directly. Frowning, he dipped his bread into the fish paste and sat by the window. In just that short time, the sky had turned completely dark.
Suddenly, as he glanced up, bands of light from the aurora appeared in the night sky.
The aurora unfolded like a dreamlike scroll. Wisps of colorful light danced and shifted in the night sky. There was a green glow, like nimble elves leaping about, and a purple radiance that flickered in and out of view, like a mysterious veil.
The chopsticks in Feng Shan's hand paused in mid-air. His eyes were glued to the magical scene outside the window, his mouth slightly agape, his face filled with awe.
The splendid aurora freely splashed its beauty and mystery across the night sky, a stark contrast against the deep darkness.
Feng Shan was completely immersed in this breathtaking picture, forgetting everything around him, as if the whole world consisted of only him and the dancing aurora in the night sky.
MEOW!!
Full and satisfied, Coca-Cola waddled over to Feng Shan with its round belly, leaped lightly onto his lap, curled into a furball, and fell fast asleep.
Startled back to his senses by Coca-Cola's movement, Feng Shan took one last, lingering look at the magnificent aurora outside before finishing his dinner in a few quick bites.
After more than twenty consecutive hours on a plane, even a man of iron would be exhausted.
No internet, no signal, no electricity.
Feng Shan yawned several times as drowsiness began to creep in.
He stuffed the stove full of wood, closed the damper, and carried Coca-Cola to the bedroom at the back of the bus. Lying on the soft bed, the softness and warmth of the deerskin blanket enveloped him, completely sealing out the cold.
Feng Shan gradually relaxed in the warmth, and the fatigue in his body slowly dissipated.
He suddenly remembered the ring Lawyer Frank had given him. He curiously took it out, played with it for a moment, and then tried it on each of his fingers one by one.
'Strange. No matter the finger, thick or thin, it won't fit on any of my ten fingers. Only the sixth finger fits.'
'Wouldn't you know it.'
'Once it's on, it doesn't feel out of place at all. It's like it was custom-made.'
Soon, Feng Shan closed his eyes, savoring this long-awaited peace and comfort. His thoughts gradually drifted away, and before long, he fell into a deep sleep.
...
'Where is this?'
Feng Shan suddenly awoke within his dream to find himself in a strange environment, surrounded by a primeval forest.
He reached out to touch the leaves of a nearby tree, only to find his hand passing right through them.
'A dream?'
'It feels so real.'
Just then, the sound of arguing reached his ears.
"Heng'e, hand over the Elixir of Immortality."
"No! The Elixir of Immortality belongs to me and my Yi! I can't give it to you."
"Don't make me use force."
'What's going on?'
'Is someone getting robbed?'
Just as Feng Shan was wondering, his perspective suddenly shifted. He was now hovering above a valley, looking down at a dense cluster of thatched huts.
Men and women wearing antlers, horns, and feathers on their heads and clad in animal skins walked barefoot between the huts like primitive people.
The sounds of the robbery came from one particular hut, which was more refined than the others and even had its own fenced-in yard.
Feng Shan passed through the roof and entered the hut.
He saw a woman in a long animal-skin dress cowering in a corner. She was exceptionally beautiful, a hundred times more so than any movie star.
The beautiful woman in the corner clutched a small bottle tightly. Facing her was a burly man with a longbow on his back. His powerful body was covered in scars, and his animal-skin clothes couldn't hide his bulging muscles.
The burly man advanced on the beautiful woman step by step, his face contorted in a ferocious snarl. He extended his six-fingered hand and growled.
"Give me the Elixir of Immortality! It should have been mine, Feng Meng's!"
The beautiful woman named Heng'e quickly poured a glowing pill from the bottle and, under the burly man's furious gaze, stuffed it into her mouth.
A white light then erupted from the beautiful woman's body, pushing the burly man away. Her body slowly levitated, passed through the roof of the hut, and flew straight into the sky.
"No!!" The burly man fell to his knees, raising his hands to the sky and shouting in regret.
The scene shifted again.
Feng Shan saw the burly man, with his bow drawn, hiding behind a wooden door.
"Heng'e!"
Soon, a fair-faced man, also carrying a bow and arrows, rushed into the hut shouting her name. The instant he appeared, the burly man hiding by the door released his grip. The arrow shot out like a meteor and struck the fair-faced man squarely in the back.
After a sharp cry of pain.
The fair-faced man collapsed, struggling to lift his head to look at his ambusher as he coughed up blood.
"Feng Meng... you..."
"That's right, it was me. Why is it that only you and your wife get to have the Elixir of Immortality? I was the one who accompanied you to West Kunlun! We went through hell and back to get it, so why can't I have any?"
"Feng Meng just wanted to take what was his! What's wrong with that?!"
The burly man roared, his face twisted with rage.
'His name is Feng Meng. He has the same surname as me, and he also has six fingers. Could there be some connection between us? Is that why he's appearing in my dream?'
Just as Feng Shan was lost in thought, the scene changed again.
It was a clearing in the middle of the valley, similar to a modern-day town square.
A fire pit in the center of the square blazed fiercely. Standing within the flames was a statue with a human head and a snake's body. It held a spirit snake in each hand and had seven arms. It looked like some kind of totem.
The clearing was surrounded by primitive people in animal skins, while Feng Meng knelt on the ground, tightly bound.
An old man wearing animal horns and skins, leaning on a wooden staff, stood on a stone platform in front of the fire pit. Standing beside him, surprisingly, was the fair-faced man who had been pierced through the heart by an arrow.
The old man shuffled forward, tapped his staff on the ground, and looked at Feng Meng.
"Feng Meng, you learned archery from Yi and mastered his skills. You coveted the Elixir of Immortality, killed Yi, and forced away his wife. Your crimes are punishable by death. Do you submit?"
Kneeling on the ground, Feng Meng held his head high. "I do not submit!"
"When Yi went to West Kunlun to seek the elixir, I guarded him the whole way! I slew demons and beasts to protect Yi and Heng'e, nearly losing my own life in the jaws of monsters several times! Why is it that when we finally obtained the Elixir of Immortality, there was no share for me?"
"When Yi avenged Kuafu by shooting down the nine Golden Crows, it was I who shielded him from the monstrous demon!"
"When we killed the Yayu, it was I who protected Yi from being devoured by the Fierce Beast!"
"When we executed Chisel Teeth, it was I who pushed Yi aside and took the blow from its tusks!"
"The tribe only knows Yi as the great hero, but who knows of me?!"
The burly man kowtowed heavily toward the statue in the fire pit and let out a desolate roar.
"Lady Houtu, I do not submit! I do not submit! I DO NOT SUBMIT!!"
Just then, the flames in the fire pit began to leap and churn. With no one adding fuel, the fire surged higher and higher until it completely engulfed the statue.
The next moment, the fire in the statue's hands transformed into a fiery scythe that swept across the ropes binding Feng Meng.
The ropes burned away.
The old man in animal skins suddenly widened his eyes. He raised his staff again and shouted to the crowd below the platform.
"By the decree of the Witch Ancestor, Feng Meng is spared from death! He is to be branded and exiled from the Houtu Tribe!"
Several large men in animal skins emerged from the crowd, pulled a red-hot branding iron from the fire pit, and pressed it against Feng Meng's cheek.
SIZZLE!
A puff of acrid black smoke rose, leaving two deep brands on Feng Meng's cheek. Then, one of the large men placed a bow and a gourd in front of him.
Feng Meng picked up the bow, arrows, and gourd. He walked to the fire pit, kowtowed to the statue once more, then held up the gourd. A single spark flew from the roaring fire and fell into the gourd. Feng Meng then rose, held his head high, and strode out of the tribe.
In the time that followed, Feng Meng displayed inhuman strength.
Amidst the high mountains, he used his unerring archery to hunt fierce demonic beasts. He gathered scattered humans to form his own tribe. He used knotted grass ropes to divine the weather for hunts, used Witchcraft to heal his people's wounds, and domesticated animals and cultivated crops.
Throughout this time, Feng Shan remained an observer, silently following by Feng Meng's side.
One year, five years, ten years, twenty years, forty years...
...until Feng Meng had built a great kingdom-tribe.
「On his deathbed.」
Lying on his bed, the white-haired Feng Meng stared blankly at the ceiling.
At that moment, Feng Shan felt as if Feng Meng could see him.
Suddenly, Feng Meng spoke. He tremblingly raised his right hand, revealing his six-fingered palm. On the sixth finger was a bone ring that Feng Shan found familiar.
"I know you are here."
"Lady Houtu said that you are my descendant."
"The path of the Witch, the Witchcraft Artifact, the Fire Seed... I have passed them all to you. Remember, the seeds of the future are buried in the soil of the past."
"Thank you... for staying with me."
As Feng Meng's voice grew fainter, he closed his eyes as if in a whisper.
The dream ended.
...