Chapter 191: Wild Man — Rogue Savage
Little Eight let out a surprised sound. “Didn’t you want to live with food served to you and clothes handed to you? This is great now—look, everyone’s even picking fruit and bringing it to you!”
Nan Xun really wanted to snort in its face. “You think I didn’t see the disdain in those women’s eyes just now? This place worships labor. Useless people get looked down on.”
Little Eight coughed lightly. “Suit yourself. Anyway, you’re the boss in this world. Do whatever you want—fly free.”
So after resting briefly, Nan Xun walked out of the cave. At this hour, the men had all gone out hunting, and the women were out gathering wild fruits. Only some elderly people and children remained in the tribe.
When Nan Xun came out, she received several looks with unclear meanings.
Seeing her head toward the forest, aside from an old woman who asked where she was going and warned her not to wander off, no one paid her any attention—proof of just how bad Axi’s reputation usually was in the tribe.
Nan Xun gave the old woman a small smile and walked alone into the forest beyond the tribe.
The old woman froze, then chattered away to a few people nearby. Nan Xun vaguely caught words like “Axi” and “not stupid.”
She kept heading south into the forest for a long time. Although she had seen some images from Axi’s memories, witnessing it in person still left Nan Xun stunned.
Holy crap—what she used to call towering trees absolutely did not count. These were the real deal!
Branches soared into the clouds, densely interwoven. Looking up, you couldn’t see wide stretches of blue sky at all.
It was peak sunlight now, but because of the tightly knit canopy, only a weakened portion of the intense light filtered down through layer after layer of leaves, warming her skin pleasantly.
The branches twisted and knotted together. The trunks were so thick it would take four or five people to hug them. Their root systems were massive, many arching up out of the ground—any single root was as thick as Nan Xun’s waist.
There were also many ferns as tall as her shoulders. This body was around 1.7 meters tall; if she were any shorter, she’d be able to see nothing at all at a glance.
The soil carried a faint mix of rotting grass and decomposing animal remains, easily overpowered by the floral scents drifting through the greenery.
The flowers had thick petals and large blooms, vivid and multicolored. Some grew amid the ferns, others climbed vines that wound up tree trunks, quickly claiming vast territory.
Thus, lush branches often had long vines dangling down. In this season, those vines were covered in red and purple blossoms, like colorful ribbons hanging from the trees—beautiful to behold.
Nan Xun stared at the colorful flowers. After a while, she felt as if they were glowing.
She moved closer to examine one. Afraid it might be poisonous, she didn’t dare pick it. There were tiny crystalline specks on the petals, shifting in brightness—creating the illusion of light.
“Darling, isn’t this place amazing? Such beautiful scenery! Such fresh air! And most importantly—the spiritual energy here is so dense!” Little Eight was ecstatic.
Nan Xun agreed it was truly beautiful, but it also felt dangerous—so much here was unknown.
“Little Eight, this is fascinating. I’ve never seen any of these life forms. Do you think these flowers are poisonous? If not, can we secretly pick a couple and put them in your Star Space?”
Little Eight said, “There’s no soil or spirit spring in my space. They wouldn’t survive anyway.”
Nan Xun replied, “Then why not add some soil and a spirit spring? It’d be great to grow spirit herbs or medicinal plants.”
“Growing spirit plants would consume the spiritual energy stored in my space. No way I’m doing that. I don’t even have enough for myself—why would I raise plants?” Little Eight grumbled.
Hearing that, Nan Xun dropped the subject.
Little Eight was a meticulous little beast—and a stingy one.
Feeling she’d gone far enough, Nan Xun didn’t dare go any farther. She’d ventured this far because it wasn’t far from the tribe, and the areas near the tribe—frequented by hunters year-round—no longer had any ferocious beasts.
Just as Nan Xun was about to turn back, Little Eight suddenly warned her, “Someone’s coming! Quick—aren’t you supposed to say goodbye to dumb Axi? Hurry, climb a tree and jump down, pretend you hit your head, pass out, then wake up smart.”
Nan Xun: …
She’d only been joking at first—Little Eight was actually telling her to knock her head.
But seeing the ground covered in thick layers of decayed leaves, she figured falling onto it probably wouldn’t hurt much.
Nan Xun found a gnarled, twisting trunk and climbed up, gripping the branches with all four limbs.
This body was far more agile than she’d expected, and quite strong. She thought perhaps the ancient humans of this world generally possessed exceptional climbing abilities.
Before she realized it, she’d climbed nearly ten meters. Just as she was about to climb back down a bit—
A loud shout suddenly rang out from below.
Startled, Nan Xun’s foot slipped, and she fell from the tree.
Although she’d planned to fall anyway, she hadn’t controlled the height properly. Falling from here could really turn her into an idiot—only it wouldn’t be Axi, it’d be her true self.
A human body can generally withstand pressure about five times its own weight. Nan Xun could only reduce the impact by increasing the time of contact with the ground.
In those few seconds, many thoughts flashed through her mind. Moving with lightning speed, she yanked off the animal hide wrapped around her chest, planning to spread it behind her back at the moment of impact—since the back and head are most vulnerable. She even figured out what posture she’d use to land.
However, none of those plans came to pass—
Because Nan Xun was caught.
In that instant, her mind went completely blank.
Holy crap—she was actually caught!
This made no sense. She’d been in free fall from a height of at least three stories. The momentum just before hitting the ground would have been terrifying. If an ordinary person caught her bare-handed, the force would at least knock them flat—worst case, break arms or legs.
Yet she was caught steadily—extremely steadily. When the arms caught her, they sank slightly, then stabilized.
What astonishing arm strength and leg power did this person have?
Nan Xun’s eyes, which she’d instinctively shut during the fall, flew open—and she immediately met a man’s face.
It was a very young face, with sharp, well-defined features and a full forehead. Years under the sun had given his skin a captivating bronze tone. Even by modern standards, this ancient human was exceptionally handsome.
The man’s attention wasn’t on Nan Xun’s face.
He lowered his head slightly, eyes unblinking, staring straight at Nan Xun’s full… chest.
