Once Shi Yunfeng went inside the house, Shi Heng collected his thoughts and temporarily set other matters aside to assess his own condition.
He looked himself over and found that he was still wearing the same outfit he had on before crossing over—nothing else besides his clothes.
Thinking back to the miraculous purple light inside his body earlier, he felt no great astonishment. After all, the very fact that he had transmigrated was already absurd enough.
Shi Heng closed his eyes and quietly pondered, using his mind to sense Ziyun, but he received no response. It seemed the power had not yet been triggered to take effect.
He rubbed his chin, remembering that when he first crossed over, he had also heard the sound of a program running. If it wasn't a hallucination, it should be a system!
Wondering what kind it might be, he murmured in his heart:
System!
"Ding! Welcome to the (We Are Family) chat group."
An artificial intelligence voice rang out, neither clearly male nor female.
What the hell? He could actually see such a familiar chat group interface, and was this group name for real?
Absurd!
This and the miraculous purple light were two completely different styles—entirely unrelated things.
Unsure why two different cheats had appeared, he thought about it for a moment: this was a good thing!
Joy showed on Shi Heng's face.
You can never have too many!
The chat group displayed only a single, lonely name:
Chief Culprit — (Shi Heng)
— Region (Perfect World)
"What is this supposed to mean? Why am I the chief culprit?"
He studied the page for a moment.
There were not many functions: Shake, Invite Members, Red Packets, Send Image/Video, Upload, Send Files, and Video Chat.
Aside from "Shake" and the camera function, none of the other features were activated.
As a veteran internet keyboard warrior, Shi Heng had read plenty of chat group novels, so he felt completely calm inside.
He was just puzzled as to why his own chat group nickname was "Chief Culprit." What had he even done?
He hadn't managed to do any good deeds, and instead ended up transmigrated—who could possibly blame him for that?
Pushing the nickname aside for the moment, he needed to consider his next steps.
Since he had arrived in this world, accepting his circumstances as they were was a mandatory skill for any shut-in. As long as he had a roof over his head, he could hole up until the end of time.
On second thought, he felt immense gratitude toward Old Chief Shi Yunfeng. It was clear from the original story that this was a truly kind old man, all the more so now that he had agreed to take Shi Heng in for the time being.
...
Before he knew it, the sun began to rise.
The morning sunlight draped over the stone houses of Shi Village, casting the entire settlement in a glow like crushed gold. The willow branches on the charred trunk of the willow stump, struck by lightning, swayed back and forth in the morning breeze.
Unlike the towering, dense modern architecture that inspired awe at the power of science, standing in Shi Village felt like witnessing antiquity itself.
If the contrast hadn't been so stark, Shi Heng wouldn't have felt such deep emotion.
Witnessing a scene so utterly different from the modern world stirred his heart intensely.
Back when he was reading the serialized novel, he had felt that Perfect World was exceptionally well-written, with a gripping plot that made him wish he could fight side by side with Emperor Huang and spare him so much sorrow. And now, he was actually able to share an era with Emperor Huang!
Of course, Willow Deity was also extremely pretty!
Hehehe! Marrying an older woman brings gold bricks. I wonder what marrying someone older by a whole era brings!
Shi Heng stole a glance at the wooden stump and willow branches nearby, then quickly looked away.
Just as he was letting his imagination run wild, a childish voice rang out from beside him.
Oh!
It was a toddler a little over a year old, who had just learned to walk and was currently tugging on a big yellow dog's tail. Unlike when he used to tease dogs in the countryside during his childhood and get bitten in return, this big yellow dog merely fled in panicked confusion without the slightest intention of fighting back.
Could this child be the future Emperor Huang?
Shi Hao was still very small at this time, dressed in an animal-skin garment. His hair was a bit dry—likely due to the depletion of his body from having his supreme bone excavated—yet his skin was white and tender, his large eyes full of spiritual vitality, and his eyelashes very long. He probably took more after his mother, Qin Yining, and truly looked like a porcelain doll.
Hmm.
With that, he pulled out the chat group's camera function and tested it by snapping a few photos. Such a memorable moment absolutely deserved to be captured on camera!
Hoo. Hah.
After tugging the big yellow dog around in a circle, Shi Hao grew tired of playing and sat down to rest on the ground not far from the tables and chairs.
Shi Heng walked over, squatted down, and reached out to pat Shi Hao's head, the corners of his mouth curling up as he felt immensely pleased.
Then he said, "Little one, what's your name? The ground is cold, shall we go sit on the chair?"
As he spoke, he reached down to pick up Shi Hao and head for the chair, but unexpectedly, Shi Hao gave a little push with his small hand, and Shi Heng flipped backward onto the ground.
"You're not even as strong as a three-year-old toddler in the village." The words Shi Yunfeng had spoken earlier echoed in his mind. Shi Heng had thought it was just a figure of speech, but now he realized it was the literal truth.
Lying on the ground, Shi Heng drew in a sharp breath. Was this the strength of a one-and-a-half-year-old Emperor Huang?
Terrifying!
Shi Hao wobbled as he ran toward the house, calling out as he went, "Grandpa Chief! There's an uncle outside who tried to pick me up!"
At that moment, Shi Yunfeng also walked out of the house, carrying a pottery jar as he headed toward the stove. He reached out and patted the head of the running Shi Hao.
"Little Tot, this is a new uncle who arrived today to visit our village. Don't be afraid, he won't hurt you. Grandpa will boil some beast milk for you; go wash your face first—you still have milk stains from the middle of the night on it, or else Xiaomeng and the others will make fun of you again."
Shi Hao touched his little face with both hands, blinked his big eyes, and upon seeing that there was an outsider present, his face turned rosy red before he scampered into the house.
Shi Yunfeng turned to Shi Heng and said, "Young man, I'll call you Xiao Heng from now on! This child is my grandson—Shi Hao, and you can call him Little Tot."
"Yes. Elder Shi, your grandson is truly strong. With just a gentle push, he knocked me to the ground. When he grows up, he will surely be extraordinary!" Shi Heng patted the dust off his clothes and said to Shi Yunfeng.
"It's not that Little Tot is strong, it's that your body is far too weak; you need to exercise much more! I've been wondering this whole time how you ever managed to reach the depths of this Great Wilderness."
"Elder Shi is right. How I got here is something I really don't know. Elder Shi, let me help you make the fire!" With that, he made to walk over toward the stove.
Shi Yunfeng said, "There's no need to trouble yourself, I'm only boiling some beast milk for Little Tot."
"Alright then!" Remembering that this otherworld tribe undoubtedly used a different method of making fire than lighters and matches in the modern world, Shi Heng dismissed the thought of helping with the fire.
He turned his head and saw that out on the distant lawn, as the sun rose, the villagers had already gathered for their morning exercise. A strong sense of curiosity arose within him, but knowing that haste makes waste, he temporarily put aside the idea of going over to take a closer look.
Shi Heng walked over to the courtyard fence and examined this legendary Shi Village.
The original text did not describe it in great detail: Shi Village was not large, and the environment was less than ideal. Bordered by mountain ranges on three sides and situated at the foot of the hills, the village was enclosed by stacked stone walls. The villagers' stone houses were built quite closely together, making heavy use of the surrounding boulders, though they had also left some open space that likely served as a training ground, complete with a deeply dug well. The courtyard of the chief, where Shi Heng now stood, directly adjoined the charred willow wood stump—the location of the Willow Deity—and right beside that was the stone sacrificial altar, both situated near the front of the village.
There were two village gates, located at the front and back respectively.
At the front entrance stood a tall wooden watchtower used for scouting and defense. At the end of the road lay mountains with towering trees, even more exaggerated than any primeval forest one could imagine. Because of the differing nature of the heavens and earth, the trees were extraordinarily large; trees wide enough for a dozen people to embrace were everywhere. Exposed rock jutted out of the ground all over, leaving the soil little chance to be fertile.
As morning arrived, the low roars of exotic beasts and the cries of fierce raptors could be faintly heard from the forest, offering a glimpse of the wondrous and dangerous nature of this world.
Beyond the rear exit of the village lay a stretch of wheat fields and medicinal plots. The wheat was slightly yellowing, indicating it was harvest season in autumn. Because the village only had a population of around three hundred and wasn't very large, the flat land in the distance had not yet been fully developed, with some weeds and shrubs growing there, though it had already been enclosed by fences. The village fences were made from locally sourced materials, appearing quite broad and tall. Having stood for many years without suffering destruction, they bore witness to the extraordinary deterrent power the Willow Deity held over the exotic beasts and fierce birds of the Great Wilderness.
During the time Shi Heng was inspecting Shi Village, Shi Yunfeng had already finished boiling the beast milk, placed it on the table in the courtyard, and called Little Tot out to drink. Then he turned back to Shi Heng and said:
"Come! I'll take you to meet the villagers."
"Yes, Elder Shi."
With that, he led Shi Heng toward the villagers gathered for morning exercise.
...
"Ouch!"
Shi Heng lay flat on the wooden bed inside the room, feeling utterly demoralized.
The reason for his demoralization was a pat on the shoulder. That's right—a simple pat on the shoulder!
And it had knocked him right out cold!
Slap! And just like that, Shi Heng was flat on the floor!
Right after Shi Heng had finished introducing himself, some muscular fellow from the original story—over two meters tall and built just like a grizzly bear—had come over and given him a single pat, and down he went.
What a disaster!
He was a meter and eighty centimeters tall, which counted as quite tall back on Earth.
Shi Heng covered his face with both hands and thought:
It seemed he really needed to step up his physical training, given these slender arms and weak legs of his.
He was truly an almighty powerhouse of Shi Village: undefeated among infants under ten months old, and undisputed number one among those over ten months!
Amidst his wandering thoughts, the Ziyun within his body gave a slight tremor.
Hum!
A streak of purple divine radiance spread across the entire territory of Shi Village at a speed difficult for the naked eye to catch, and then vanished into the bodies of the villagers.
Shi Heng suddenly felt the world become just a fraction different.
Meanwhile, at the village entrance, the branches on the willow trunk swayed as wisps of divine splendor diffused outward, then faded away.
"I wonder what kind of changes you will bring to this world."
The soft and gentle voice of that peerlessly graceful figure within the willow wood murmured quietly, though unfortunately, no one else was around to hear it.