Chapter 16 - Bloodline
Ji Hao crooked his finger provokingly towards Ji Shu.
“Haha! This is my son! Hey, this is my boy!” Ji Xia proudly laughed out loud, took two steps back and said to some other people.
Ji Shu’s face twitched. He also took few steps back then shook his head with a sneer on his face.
“Xia, my brother. Do you understand why I have challenged you in front of our ancestors? That’s because I’m stronger than you, in every aspect. Even my son is stronger than you. I shall become the next leader.”
He then turned around, and faced the crowd. He raised his arms again and said loudly: “This is the rule of the Southern Wasteland! People with enough strength gets to lead! Do we need another word here...”
The thousands of Fire Crow Clan’s people who were standing there remained silent. The Fire Crow Clan’s people were honest and simple, you could see what was going on in their minds just by taking a look at their faces.
Some people their face was filled with anger. Those were Ji Xia’s people or those who had been very close to him.
Some people were nodding and whispering to each other. These people didn't seem to know Ji Xia well, but had not bad relationship with Ji Shu and his branch clan. Simply judging from the natural rule of the Southern Wasteland, Ji Shu’s words didn’t seem to be wrong.
Some people seemed indifferent towards this fight. They were neutral, neither related to Ji Shu or Ji Xia. Their own branch clans were neither too powerful nor too weak. This power struggle had nothing to do with them.
And there were another group of people, who seemed too nervous to even take a breath. Obviously, they were Ji Shu’s people.
Ji Hao glanced at all these people, laughed aloud and interrupted Ji Shu’s talk. He said: “Ji Shu, my dear uncle. If my Abba’s Magus Acupoints hadn't been broken, I doubt you even would dare to think like that. Cut the crap! Ji Wu! Come out!”
Ji Shu’s facial expression changed, subconsciously he had shut his mouth.
Ji Wu held his shield and axe, walked out along with a metal striking sound.
He seemed well prepared for this fight. Beside his shield and axe, he was wearing a steel armour. The same totem had been carved on the surface of the armour - A tower with a blood-red eye floating on top of it.
Additionally, he was also wearing a pair of long steel boots, which were even covering his knees. The heavy steel boots clashed the rocks and ignited sparks when he walked.
This pair of boots was weirdly shaped. Two of heliciform metal spearheads were welded on the kneecaps, which seemed capable of leaving puncture wounds anywhere on a human body.
“Haha! Ji Hao, today is the day! Prepare to die!” Ji Wu yelled at Ji Hao. “Have you seen my armour and boots? How do you plan to fight against me with the crap you’re wearing?”
Meanwhile, Ji Wu’s armour and boots had started to emit a faint light. Ji Hao sensed a great power coming from his body.
A hubbub was started in the crowd. Some people whistled sharply to express their attitude.
Compared with Ji Wu, who was armed to the teeth, Ji Hao was only wearing a simple leather armour. This leather armour was made of lion skin, hunted by Ji Hao himself in the jungle. Qing Fu had sewed this armour and she had also attached a few spell symbols on it.
This kind of leather armour was the standard equipment of the Fire Crow Clan Warriors. For thousands of years, they fought and showered blood with their leather armours, after which they had finally built a homeland in this jungle.
The steel armour which was being worn by Ji Wu was too good to be made by a Fire Crow Clan’s craftsman. To fight against one of their own at the worship ceremony with an armour made by some outsiders, had enraged the simple-minded Fire Crow Clan’s warriors. A couple of of them had even started to yell at Ji Wu.
“Hey, son of Ji Shu! Don't humiliate your old man! Take off that iron shell!”
“Son of Ji Shu! Show us what you really got, the iron shell doesn't count!”
“Ji Wu is his name, right? Such a good name, but such a coward! Hao’s few years younger than him...Why on earth does he needs those to fight against Hao...What a coward...”
Ji Wu was ashamed into anger. His face had turned red and he couldn't let a word out.
Ji Shu was utterly embarrassed, he turned his head around and angrily glanced at his people. Jiang Yao was standing amongst those people and was glaring at Ji Hao. It was Jiang Yao who had given the armour and the boots to her son to ensure his victory.
However, she had never thought that the good equipment could make Ji Wu being despised by others. She thought Ji Wu had the bloodline of the Bi Fang Clan, which was much nobler than the Fire Crow Clan’s bloodline. And her husband, Ji Wu’s father, Ji Shu was going to become the leader of the Holy Land warriors. Ji Wu deserved a better equipment. Such things were quite normal in the Bi Fang Clan.
Jiang Yao was just going to say something for Ji Wu. Ji Wu uttered a growl and waved the axe then dashed towards Ji Hao. Ji Hao gazed at Ji Wu and couldn’t help but exclaim silently.
Ji Wu had been badly injured only two weeks ago, but he didn't show even a trace of that at present. Ji Wu seemed to have recovered perfectly. Only Jiang Bo could cure Ji Wu in such a short time.
Not only that, Ji Hao has been sensing a great power coming from Ji Wu’s body. The bright fiery light emitted from Ji Wu’s body clearly showed that Ji Wu had upgraded to the Eleventh-Level of Novice Magus and had triggered his internal power. A Tenth-Level Novice Magus had the strength of a hundred-thousand ‘stones’. Once he or she triggered the internal power, at least fifty-thousand ‘stones’ of strength would be added to him or her.
The first time when Jiang Yao had been trying to upgrade Ji Wu, they were interrupted and injured again by Ji Hao and his friends. Now, Ji Wu had successfully upgraded, which couldn't be Jiang Yao’s work. It had to be Jiang Bo.
“Ji Wu, my brother. You surprised me! I see you have triggered the internal power contained in your bloodline[1].”
Ji Hao gazed at the fiery light wrapped around Ji Wu’s body. That was a pure blood-red fiery light. But, how could this happen? Ji Shu, what’s wrong with you and your family?
“Little guy, get away! Or you’ll be killed!” A voice came from Ji Hao’s spiritual space. It was the mysterious man who had made a deal with him.
Ji Hao turned around, faced the crowd and said aloud: “This is the Ancestral Worship Ceremony of our Fire Crow Clan. How could an outsider, who has triggered the internal power of the Bi Fang Clan bloodline fight me here, at the ceremony?”
Ji Hao’s words brought waves of angry shouts from out the crowd. Thousands of Maguspriests popped up their eyes and glared at Ji Wu.
Ji Wu suddenly froze just when his axe was about to reach Ji Hao’s head.
Ji Hao laughed aloud and suddenly moved, punched Ji Wu’s face with all his strength. Ji Wu felt like his skull had been smashed by Ji Hao's punch. Few teeth flew out from Ji Wu’s mouth. Ji Wu fell heavily on the ground, spat out blood and couldn't move an inch.
---------------------------------------------------------
[1] The internal power of a Magus has been passed on along with his/her bloodlines. A magus needs to practice and upgrade to a certain level to trigger his/her internal power. With different bloodlines, the internal power turns out somehow different.