Chapter 33: Gentle Homeland

The woman on the other end of the communicator fell silent after hearing these words.

A moment later, she exploded.

“Do you have a massive pit at your doorstep, where everyone who goes there falls, ending up either crippled or severely injured?!” Her voice was incredibly loud, making the listener’s ears buzz, as if she were unleashing a torrent of emotions.

Chu Feng held the communicator away from his ear, listening intently before calmly responding, “Yes, there is indeed a large pit. It used to be a pond, but after it dried up, I sowed rapeseed and planted vegetables. Of course, I also planted some fruit trees there. If you look closely, the pit is quite noticeable.”

On the other end of the communicator, the woman’s breathing grew heavy and coarse; one could almost visualize her chest heaving violently.

Chu Feng quickly moved the communicator away from his ear once more.

Just as he expected, an outburst came from her end.

“I don’t have time to discuss ponds or pits with you, nor do I care if you plant vegetables or trees. Listen carefully: those people must not be harmed, or you will face consequences you cannot bear!”

The woman’s voice turned cold as she shouted. She felt she was losing composure but couldn’t help it; her voice automatically rose when she spoke into the communicator.

This was entirely unlike her usual demeanor. Her customary nobility, grace, calm, and elegance had vanished, replaced by a burning rage within her.

“But they inexplicably suffered severe injuries, fell into the pit, and appear to be dying. What can I do?” Chu Feng asked.

“Find someone to treat them!” the woman demanded.

“Why should I?”

That mere brat from Mount Taihang dared to speak to her in such a manner?

Click!

The woman quickly hung up the communicator. She realized that losing her composure was wrong, as it would expose weakness, and that was not her style.

She needed to calm down. Even though he was just a lowly, useless boy from Mount Taihang, she did not want to reveal any more of her true feelings to him.

Clearly, the woman was furious, but she managed to restrain herself, quickly regaining control of her emotions.

She quieted down, her agitation gone, and her anger subsiding. A cold glint flickered in her eyes as she began to analyze the situation.

To her knowledge, because Lin Nuoyi had been close to Chu Feng, personnel from Heavenly God Biotech had previously monitored him. They had secretly collected some of his hair for covert testing, which confirmed that it would be very difficult for him to become an evolved human.

“A lowly boy with no abilities—who is helping him?” the woman murmured to herself. Her thoughts turned to Lin Nuoyi, wondering if she had noticed something. This realization startled her.

But how could that be? Lin Nuoyi and Chu Feng’s interactions had always been unremarkable, and lately, she had been entirely preoccupied. She was at a critical juncture, awaiting her transformation, with no time for other concerns.

“Is Bodhi Gene hindering us?” She frowned, realizing she was overthinking.

She pondered extensively, thinking about Chu Feng, considering internal affairs at Heavenly God Biotech, and then even suspecting Bodhi Gene, the super consortium.

She took out her communicator, opened her contact list, and selected a name: Mu. However, she hesitated, then closed it.

Just as she was feeling frustrated, Lin Nuoyi’s communicator rang.

Upon seeing the name, her expression immediately stiffened. It was Chu Feng calling, and she now intensely disliked him, as recent misfortunes seemed to be connected to him.

“Is there anything else you need?” she asked coldly.

“No, *you* have a problem,” Chu Feng countered. “That bat and that large spider are almost dead. How long do you intend to leave them here?”

“I’ll speak with them myself!” the woman stated in a low, dismissive, and commanding tone, instructing Chu Feng to hand the communicator to the two individuals.

“I already told you, they’re both unconscious and too severely injured to likely survive. They nearly scared me to death! Hurry up and get someone to remove them,” Chu Feng urged.

The woman fell silent for a moment, then told Chu Feng that someone would arrive within a day or two. She emphasized that he must take good care of them, or he would face unbearable consequences.

After the call ended, Chu Feng happily went to sleep.

The woman, however, could not sleep. She was annoyed, feeling she had handled the situation too emotionally instead of with a detached demeanor.

“Regardless of whether the problem lies with you or with someone else, you must be eliminated!” the woman thought fiercely, her eyes growing cold as she made her decision.

In the early morning, Chu Feng sat facing the sunrise. Every morning and evening, he practiced a special breathing technique, knowing it might be more crucial than the Ox Demon Fist.

The yellow ox offered a clue: no matter how lazy it was, it consistently practiced this technique every day without fail.

It had never even practiced its clan’s Mighty Ox Demon Fist with such diligence.

After breakfast, Chu Feng called to the yellow ox, “Come on, let’s go into the mountains.”

“Moo!”

The yellow ox carved words on the ground, asking him what they would do if more people arrived.

“Their target is me and the missing evolved humans, and none of us are here, so what can they do?” Chu Feng smiled, completely unconcerned.

Those people operated in the shadows; even if they wanted to kill him, they would need to stage an accident. If he wasn’t there, nothing would happen.

“Never mind, to save them the trouble, I’ll just leave a note.”

Chu Feng took a piece of paper, wrote in large letters, and then taped it to the door. Those individuals were always reckless, treating his home as nothing, so he assumed they would certainly break in.

The message was brief and simple: “Too scared recently, touring the mountains and forests to clear my mind.”

Finally, he even added a note, pointing out the correct path to the primordial mountains he intended to visit. If there was an urgent matter, they could enter the mountains to find him.

If anyone truly came, none of them would be leaving!

This was Chu Feng’s plan: those who sought to harm him would have to face the consequences.

Chu Feng harbored deep disgust for the woman and was waiting for her to dispatch more evolved humans. He planned to capture every one who arrived, dismantle her inner circle, sever her reach, and make her or the people behind her suffer.

However, he wouldn’t waste time waiting specifically for them.

If they wanted to find him, they could come to him! If he went into the mountains to hone his boxing skills, those evolved humans would do well to quickly follow him.

Halfway there, Chu Feng thought of Zhou Quan.

“Recently, I’ve been training in the mountains, and I feel that all aspects of my abilities are improving rapidly. While it’s dangerous, it truly is an excellent place.”

He decided to call Zhou Fatty and bring him along for training.

Zhou Quan was an evolved human, far superior to ordinary people. If he underwent tempering in the primordial mountains, he should be able to advance further.

“Let’s go find that fatty first.”

Now, having achieved proficiency in his boxing, his physical conditioning had greatly improved. With astonishing speed and strength, traversing a hundred *li* was no issue at all.

In the past, only a dozen *li* separated the county town and Qingyang Town. Now, the distance stretched to an astonishing hundred *li*, with mysterious giant mountains appearing along the way.

“Fatty, I’ve come for you. Hurry to the outskirts of the county town; I’ll take you somewhere fun,” Chu Feng told Zhou Quan over the phone.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fatty let out a delighted shout, seemingly overjoyed. “I’ve been so bored lately! When you get to the county town, Big Brother Fatty will treat you to a grand feast and drinks. Afterward, we can go to the bathhouse. As for that ‘fairy street’—if you’re interested, I’ll certainly accompany you to the ends of the earth!”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Chu Feng chuckled. “I’ll take you to a really good place, much more exciting than anything you’ve described. I guarantee you’ll be so thrilled your heart, liver, and lungs will tremble!”

“What?! There’s such a great place, and I don’t know about it?” Zhou Quan cried out in disbelief. “I know every inch of this county town like the back of my hand. I’m practically the local big shot!”

“You’ll find out soon enough. Just wait and see!” Chu Feng chuckled.

“Alright, I’ll pick you up outside the county town!” Zhou Fatty exclaimed excitedly.

Outside the county town.

A silver-gray sedan sped into view. Zhou Quan arrived in a flurry, slamming on the brakes when he saw Chu Feng, then flung open the car door and leaped out.

“Brother, long time no see, I’ve missed you so much!” Zhou Quan greeted him with immense enthusiasm, immediately pulling him into a bear hug.

Chu Feng was somewhat taken aback. Was this still Zhou Fatty?

He was now lean, not even remotely resembling a fatty.

The most striking feature, however, was his exaggerated slicked-back hairstyle. His thick, dense hair was combed straight back, looking almost like a winnowing basket perched on his head if not observed closely.

Chu Feng couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

He could see two ox horns hidden within the slicked-back hair.

No wonder Zhou Fatty’s parents had scolded him, saying his current appearance made him look like a ruffian, not a decent person. If this didn’t fit the description, nothing would.

Zhou Fatty wore a troubled expression, sighing as he ran a hand over his slicked-back hair. He was indignant; the inexplicable growth of two ox horns was practically infuriating him to death.

“Just look on the bright side,” Chu Feng said, laughing heartily. “At least you successfully lost weight.”

In the past, Zhou Quan had a round belly, a chubby face, and large ears. When he smiled, he looked benevolent, much like a Maitreya Buddha. Now, he was surprisingly slender.

“Where’s the Ox Demon King?” Zhou Fatty asked. “Oh, right,” he added, “I brought two cousins along. They heard you say the place was so good and insisted on tagging along.”

Chu Feng heard this and frowned slightly.

He was currently in trouble and hadn’t wanted anyone to see him with Zhou Quan, which was why he had asked him to meet outside the city. He would have to instruct Zhou Fatty later to tell his cousins to keep quiet about things.

“Ox Demon King!” Zhou Quan finally spotted the yellow ox.

The creature was sitting on a large bluestone some distance away, cross-legged like a human, holding wild fruits with its front hooves and munching happily.

Upon seeing Zhou Quan greet it, the ox strolled over, standing upright on its hind legs.

“Mama mia!”

In the distance, the two young men who had already exited the car screamed in fright, their faces turning ghost-white. They nearly scrambled back into the car to flee instantly.

“What are you panicking for? Come here!”

At that critical moment, Zhou Quan remained composed. He called his two cousins over and introduced the ox with a serious expression: “You know evolved humans exist now, don’t you? Haven’t you seen the horns growing on my head? This one is similar, but he’s a failure—something went wrong during his evolution, causing him to resemble an ox!”

“Is that so?” the two young men asked, still half-skeptical.

White smoke billowed from the yellow ox’s nostrils, but it eventually held back. It then extended a front hoof, lifted Zhou Quan’s slicked-back hair, peered at it repeatedly, and finally clutched its belly, grinning widely and laughing uncontrollably.

Zhou Quan’s face cycled between green and white as he angrily retorted, “What are you laughing at? It’s just two more horns! It’s still better than you!”

The yellow ox carved words on the ground: “Minotaur – incompletely evolved form.” Then, it pointed at Zhou Fatty.

“Damn it, who are you calling a minotaur?! I’ll fight you!” Zhou Quan exploded, lunging forward.

Chu Feng rubbed his forehead. These two were naturally at odds; they’d start bickering the moment they were together. There was no helping them.

“You’re the minotaur! Your whole family is minotaurs!” Zhou Fatty continued to shout even after they were separated.

The yellow ox snorted disdainfully.

“Stupid ox! Go look up what ‘minotaur’ means later, and don’t you dare call me that again!” Zhou Quan glared.

The yellow ox decisively pulled out its communicator from the large cloth bag wrapped around its body, quickly searched something, then burst into even more exaggerated laughter, utterly unable to stop.

Zhou Quan stared wide-eyed at the ox. Although he had heard Chu Feng mention that the creature was addicted to the communicator and often bothered people, seeing it operate the device so skillfully firsthand left him somewhat dumbfounded.

“It’s an ox spirit!” he shrieked.

Finally, Zhou Quan gave his two cousins strict instructions before sending them off. He then set out with Chu Feng, heading towards the mountains.

“Tell me, brother, where exactly is this fun place you’re talking about? Why are we heading into the mountains?” Zhou Quan asked, puzzled.

“The path is correct; we’re almost there.”

“That’s good. By the way, is it really exciting?” Zhou Quan asked, quite expectant.

“Don’t worry, I guarantee it’ll be an unprecedented thrill! I told you, it’ll make your heart, liver, and lungs tremble with excitement. Come on!” Chu Feng led the way.

“Hmm, I’ve heard about manors built by wealthy consortiums in the Taihang Mountains. You don’t happen to have connections to one of those, do you? Yes, I like that kind of place; I hear they’re where people can truly indulge themselves. Oh, by the way, with all the changes in the world, has it remained unaffected? Is it still operating?”

“Don’t worry, no impact at all,” Chu Feng replied.

“Fantastic! That’s exactly the kind of excitement I love. Here I come, den of pleasures!” Zhou Quan shouted excitedly.