Chapter 7 – Black Wood Nest
Originally, the lush mountain forests were permeated with in an overcast aura. Poisonous insects roamed about, and the roaring beasts were oppressive like thunder. There were vicious tigers, poisonous snakes, as well as other creatures that left behind distinct smells that attacked one’s nostrils, making people’s skin and bones tremble.
Roar…
From within the mountain range, a thunder-like roar could be heard, causing the mountain stones to tumble. The rumbles echoed, the forest violently swayed, and leaves madly flew about. In the distance, large and ferocious beasts roamed about.
A group of kids’ faces were turning pale. There was already some distance between them and Stone Village as they were hiding from the adults. They entered the old forest, but luckily they didn’t enter the vicious beasts’ true dwelling areas.
“Brother Dazhuang, the mountain forest is too dangerous. We are still too young. We shouldn’t go forward anymore.” A small child said with a trembling voice.
They grew up near this mountain forest and naturally knew the dangers associated with it. There were many types of vicious beasts, and even their parents had to be extremely careful when venturing inside this mountain forest, as even they could easily lose their lives.
The children in this group were still young, and there were a total of around ten kids. The leader of that group was precisely that Shi Dazhuang who lifted up that 1,000 jin copper cauldron. He had thick eyebrows, big eyes as well as thick and bulky arms, moreover, his height almost overtook those of some adults. He looked towards another person and asked, “Pi Hou1, how much farther is it?”
Pi Hou’s birth name was Shi Zhonghou and he was born dry and skinny. However, he had great strength as well as being clever and quick-witted. He replied, “I heard from Uncle Linghu that Cliff Village is not very far and is in this direction, so we should be there soon.”
“Shi Hao, what’s your opinion?” Shi Dazhuang asked.
In the past, Shi Hao was only the group of kids’ bum beetle and simple tagged along wherever they went. Ever since he lifted up that copper cauldron and made all the adults look at him like he was a little freak, there was no need to describe the reactions of the kids. He immediately became one of their group’s ‘backbone members’.
“It will be very dangerous if we keep walking.” Little Shi Hao’s voice was sharp and clear, and his clear black and white eyes were darting back and forth as he realistically spoke.
“But the distance from here really isn’t that far.” Shi Dazhuang said.
More than half the children moved and wanted to keep going.
“If you guys want to go, then I am going too.” Little Shi Hao said in a young and immature voice.
Just like this, the group of children once again continued their journey and traveled roughly one li. The big trees began to thin out, and the vegetation became more and more scarce. Vicious beasts appeared more and more frequently, and waves of ominous energy permeated the air.
Within the rugged stone mountains was the large Stone Forest. It was quiet and noiseless, and scattered on the floor were a few large beast’s dead remains, snow white and astonishing.
Pi Hou looked around and said in a soft voice, “It’s right here, I heard Uncle Linghu talk about it before. Their hideout is located on a cliff in the abyss of Stone Forest.”
Shi Dazhuang also lowered his voice and reminded all of the children, “These beast bones are most likely the remains of a beast’s meal. Although at this moment it should not be inside of its nest, we still need to be careful. You absolutely cannot be discovered, otherwise, it’s highly likely that you will lose your lives!”
The ten or so children all grew up within the great desolate area. Their vigilance was extremely high, similar to those of small mountain beasts. They quickly and nimbly hid within the cracks of Stone Forest to cover their bodies. They briefly surveyed their surroundings and utilized the wind to scout out odors. Afterwards, they mutually nodded their heads, and with the vigor of apes and monkeys, they charged into the Stone Forests’ deepest parts.
Along the way, they encountered many skeletal remains. There were ordinary bones that were snow white and enormous, covering roughly five to six meters in length, as well as large millstone-sized beast skulls. They all came from the various vicious beasts and birds that were feasted upon, causing the place to develop a dead atmosphere.
“It needs to rest here for a bit after all. If it reproduces and produces descendants, when our Stone Village’s residents enter the mountain range, they will definitely be faced with this deadly threat!”
“Uncle Linghu and the others have already discussed this for a few days and observed its characteristics and habits.”
These children were mumbling while speeding along. Their speed was extremely fast, and they were like ten little tornadoes as they charged into the Stone Forest abyss.
In front of them was a stone cliff. The area was barren and it became increasingly more silent. There was a huge nest built at the top of the cliff out of strips of black wood, and it emanated a gloomy feeling.
The children, all distantly separated, were hidden between the cracks of the mountain rocks. The black nest was gigantic, and its diameter stretched 10 meters long. Anyone could see that the nest belonged to a vicious bird.
“So it was here!”
“This Green Scaled Eagle wandered for a long time before finally building this gigantic nest. So what Linghu uncle said was true, and its going to have babies?”
The eyes of the group of children sparkled. This was their main goal!
These were all types of really aggressive and powerful birds, and their bodies possessed magical blood. They were extremely difficult to deal with, and if the bird decided to prey on any beast or vicious being, they would be dead … it would be difficult for them to escape alive.
“Under Uncle Linghu and the others’ observations, that male Green Scaled Eagle had not shown itself lately and there was a chance that some unexpected accident happened within the mountain range that caused it to perish. Every day during noontime, a female bird would appear to hunt prey. If we want to get any closer, now is the best opportunity.” Pi Hou said.
The group of kids clenched their fists tightly and it was obvious that they were quite nervous. At the same time, however, there was a look of anticipation and excitement. These kids who all grew up within the mountain forest were all bold and daring, otherwise, they would not have acted on their own and traveled to a dangerous place like this.
“Everyone, hide inside these stone cracks. I’ll throw a stone to test things out!” A dark skinned child spoke. His name was Shi Meng, and the villagers all called him Er Meng. During Stone Village’s martial arts practice, he directly knocked down a fat cow and almost lifted up that thousand jin copper cauldron. Within this group of kids, he was second only to Shi Hao and Shi Dazhuang.
With a hu sound, a large piece of rock took flight and charged into the distance before a dong sound finally rang out. It dropped in front of the stone cliff, and it fell onto a pile of rubble, making a large noise.
All of them were startled, but luckily, there weren’t any signs of activity on the mountain cliff.
“Er Meng, don’t be so reckless. Be a bit more careful.”
“I wanted to test to see if it was currently inside of its nest. Now that we know that there’s no problem, let’s hurry and check it out!” Er Meng said while hinting his intent to rush forwards.
“Brother Er Meng, let’s first wait a bit.” Little Shi Hao spoke as he grabbed a decently sized rock and threw it with force. With a sou sound, it flew towards the stone cliff and landed near the nest with a loud echoing noise.
After a short period of time, the mountain cliff became very peaceful again, and the Green Scaled Eagle did not actually appear.
“Let’s go!”
The group of children were like a group of beasts, and with loud shouts, they charged at lightning speed towards the rocky cliff.
“Brother Dazhuang and the others wait here. Let me go up there and take a look first,” said Shi Hao.
“You’re a little baby that hasn’t even stopped drinking milk yet. It’s enough if you just stand on the side and watch. We’ll go.” Shi Dazhuang spoke, and the group of children laughed. Even now, the little guy still drank milk, and was constantly being teased.
“I started eating meat a long time ago. I only drink it sometimes as water!” The little guy was acting upset and wrinkling his nose. He stared with his big eyes that were like large black gems while trying to defend himself.
Of course, the little guy was very smart and knew that the bigger kids were not really mocking him but were rather looking after him. They were not willing to let him be the first one to take the risk of going up.
“I am faster than you guys so if there is danger, I will also be able to quickly escape.” The little guy did not wait for their response, and like a little monkey, he rushed over with a sou sound and began climbing the stone cliff cleverly and nimbly.
“Don’t let it notice us. We are going as well!” Shi Dazhuang, Er Meng and Pi Hou all followed closely behind and similarly chased like monkeys.
The cliff had many cracks, and the children borrowed them to quickly climb up. They grew up within the great mountains alongside the jungles. Naturally, their climbing abilities were formidable and were not inferior to the mountain range’s fiendish apes by much.
“Hu… I finally climbed all the way to the top!”
The stone cliff was three hundred meters high. After the little guy arrived, the other three individuals arrived shortly after. Only when all of them stuck out their heads did they walk towards that huge nest.
“What an enormous nest!” Pi Hou gasped in admiration.
Standing a bit closer while watching, they all felt that it was shocking. The nest was ten meters wide and was made out of a black wood. It occupied the majority of the cliff’s apex and it was even bigger than one of Stone Village’s houses.
Outside of the bird’s residence, there were also some large, sticky blood covered bones on top of the cliff. Each one was taller than an adult, and was absolutely horrifying.
In particular, on top of that millstone sized beast bone, there were still some terrifying claw marks. There were still some bloodstains left on them, making them appear extremely sinister.
“These are the skeletal remains of the Dragon Fanged Elephant! It really is scary. A single winged beast could actually feast on such a huge elephant!” Er Meng cried out in alarm.
“Let’s not worry about these things for now.” Shi Dazhuang said, and began to climb the black bird nest.
Arriving on top of the nest, they immediately felt waves of dense odor as well as a bloody odor. The edges of the nest were a dark red color, and it was evident that the Green Scaled Eagle ate its meals at the edge of its nest. After being contaminated with all types of beast blood for such a long time, this place developed an extremely deep baleful aura.
“That ferocious bird is not here!”
“Come look, there are several bird eggs!”
Several children cried out in alarm and were extremely reckless. From what they eavesdropped in the village, the flying beasts all came from eggs.
“Perfect, let’s quickly carry them out and raise them within the village. In the future, we will have giant ferocious birds to help us hunt! Bring back the prey!” Pi Hou excitedly yelled.
The inside of the nest was layered with soft golden silk grass. It looked really comfortable, and the sparkling and translucent jade-like eggs peacefully emerged from inside that area. On the outside of the egg were net like patterns as well as scattered dots, and its luster flickered in the light.
These ferocious bird eggs were all as big as water basins. Beneath the flickering glare, they were dark green like cornelian, and under the sunlight, the stripes were bright and dazzling.
1. Pi Hou literally means skin monkey