Chapter 157 - The Mystic Stone
“Could it be the handiwork of the barbarian ancestors?” Staring enchanted at this blackish fragment, Shi Mu murmured to himself. He let his eyes run over the adjacent bushes, and then something glittering caught his attention. He strode forward to the left, and then brushed his way through the thistles and thorns until a larger part of the statue showed itself before his very eyes.
This was the bust of the artwork, lying slanted and submerged in the grass leaves. Judging from the two pieces he had seen, this statue appeared to be a strange monster that was half-human and half-animal with two ears atop its head and canine teeth jutting out of its mouth. This look resembled a werewolf.
Shi Mu knitted his brow. This statue resembled totem warriors in their animal form. Thus, the assumption that this statue was made by the barbarian ancestors may have some truth in it.
Following his line of sight through the forest ahead, Shi Mu was surprised to discover more of the broken parts scattered along the way. He followed the path where the fragments were and the deeper he explored into the forest, the more stone works he saw. Among them were further parts of the same statue, but also stone columns and dilapidated walls and curbs.
The mysterious fog clouding his mind deepened. He hastened his steps, and found that the trees grew increasingly scatty as he approached the other end of the forest, where the next scene shocked his body into a jerk.
His eyes were overwhelmed by the sudden presence of a vast open space. In the center stood a series of crumbled stone buildings built against the mountainside; this should be some ancient remains.
Shi Mu carefully walked up to the buildings, and then found the relics of some altars, temples, etc. In the middle of the remains stood a stone temple with a dome. It was relatively more in its integrity through the long passage of time. Its adjacent buildings had long collapsed, turning into crumbs that cluttered around it like stars around the moon.
Shi Mu had a quick glance of the site and eventually set his eyes upon the dome. Half of the building had crumbled, exposing a towering statue that was at least thirty meters in height standing erect inside it. Shi Mu’s eyes shone as he detected some similarity between this statue and the broken one he had seen. Both were half human and half animal.
This one had a face roughly of human, but was rather fierce and contorted. Those angry eyes stared hard at some point in the air with its tusks sticking out. Two curved horns like that of a goat’s thrusted skyward from its forehead, and the ears bore much resemblance to goat ears. The animal-human had its bust bare, and powerful muscles protruded to the extent of as if it was about to burst. The hands were human hands, but the feet were once again goat hooves. The pair of arms was different in posture: one was raised high, while the other drooped. The former was clutching a flute-like thing which had three holes on it. It was quite puzzling.
The most admirable thing about this statue was its completeness, which made a striking contrast to the uniform fragmentation of the environment. Shi Mu could not help but shift his eyes between the statue and the surroundings before once again keeping them riveted to the statue.
Suddenly and without warning, Shi Mu was grasped by a fit of extreme fear, as if something invisible had just attacked him that he could barely breathe. By reflex, he averted his eyes from the statue, and then his body slowly returned to normal mysteriously. He could not explain the sudden visit of that terror, but simultaneously a hope stirred in his heart. Since this statue had the ability to manipulate one’s mind, this site should bear some monumental significance to the barbarians even in ancient times. Shi Mu kept his eyes out of the sweep of the statue, walked into the remains, and then began rummaging in the relics.
Soon he had finish checking the place out, and was rather disappointed by his fruitless research. Things were old and useless here: either ruins of the buildings or rotten wood. There was nothing of value.
Shi Mu would not admit defeat yet. He went over the remains again, but the result was the same.
He smiled wryly at his avarice. How greedy human beings are! He turned about, and was ready to leave. But at the last moment, his eyes caught sight of a red glimmer which came from the drooping hand of the statue.
He followed the dim light without hesitation, and soon discovered that the red light was a ruby stone the size of a fist; it would have easily escaped his attention if it weren’t for his excellent eyesight.
All kinds of thoughts tossed about on the stormy sea of his consciousness until he finally gritted his teeth, resolved, and then sprang up to take the stone. Without once looking back, he ran madly back along the road he had come.
After several minutes, he paused to gasp for breath and get a feel for the stone in his hand. Nothing unusual. Then he heaved a sigh of relief and took the stone to his eyes to have a careful study.
The ruby stone had a texture of red, fine lines on its surface that were shining as if they were alive. It had a warmness to the touch. By no means should it be an ordinary decoration. A brief examination could at best prove this, with no certain answer of its origin. Shi Mu carefully stored it into his bag and did not linger any longer. In a great haste, he returned to the valley.
......
At the same time, near the entrance to this same valley, a group of five barbarians showed up. These are exactly the totem warriors of Fiery Snake Tribe and Brutal Bull Tribe. The bare-headed one was still holding the bone plate. The pointer on it was pointing to the depth of the valley.
“Seems he’s entered the valley.” The bare-headed barbarian claimed after a brief consideration with his eyes closed.
“Ain’t look like a nice place. No mark on the map. Should be a dead end. Hehe, catch a turtle in the jar - the old guys used to say. Will Save us a lot of time. No way he can flee out of this valley.” The thinner guy of the Fiery Snake tribe took out a map and let out some dry giggles.
“Then what are we waiting for? Hurry up!” Mang Kun snorted coldly, being rather unsatisfied with the low efficiency of his team members.
“Hold a moment!” The dark-complexioned Brutal Bull guy called out, scuttling to a pond nearby. There, a huge body of a blood-red wild boar lay with its head split open by a blade-like weapon. The boar was almost cut into halves by this cold-blooded killer.
“The Red-Flame Warrior Boar!” The man was shocked, and blurted out the name of the dead boar.
The others also gathered to have a look of the horrible scene. All of them changed their countenance to varying extent.
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