Chapter 8: Stone Bead

His face was pale. He gritted his teeth and stood up, surveying his surroundings. He found himself in a small, natural cave. Sunlight streamed in through the entrance, illuminating bird and beast skeletons scattered everywhere.

On the wall behind him was a black, fist-sized hole. It was pitch black inside, making it impossible to tell how deep it was. After a brief analysis, he vaguely came to a conclusion: the sudden suction force must have originated from this small hole, and the avian skeletons on the ground were likely sucked in and killed, just like he almost was.

This suction force must appear irregularly. It had surged forth just as he was falling, saving his life. Wang Lin suppressed the pain in his right arm and was about to walk out of the cave when the skeletons on the ground suddenly moved without wind, surging backward. Without hesitation, Wang Lin immediately rolled into a corner.

At that instant, an unimaginably vast suction force emerged from the small hole in the wall. The bird and beast skeletons on the ground rattled loudly as they were continuously sucked into the small hole. Some of the larger bones seemed to be forcefully plastered against the wall, plugging the opening.

Despite this, the suction remained fierce. Just then, a flying bird was sucked in from the cave entrance, hitting the wall with a loud smack at extremely high speed, splattering blood everywhere.

After approximately two hours, the suction disappeared. Wang Lin stared in horror at the dead bird on the ground. He didn't move his body but sat quietly in place, calculating the time in his mind.

Half an hour later, the suction reappeared. After several such cycles, Wang Lin grasped the pattern: this strange suction lasted for two hours, and after it stopped, it would reappear half an hour later.

Taking advantage of a moment when the suction disappeared, Wang Lin quickly endured the pain and went to the cave entrance. Looking down, he couldn't help but smile bitterly. Below was a stretch of jungle, where strangely shaped rocks were vaguely visible. The cliff was extremely steep. With his arm injured, he couldn't climb at all. The distance to the bottom of the cliff was about several dozen Zhang deep; if he jumped, he would surely die.

The package containing his food had also been left on the mountaintop and wasn't brought down. Now, food was the only issue he needed to solve. Wang Lin pondered for a moment, calculated the imminent return of the suction, and quickly retreated back into the cave, sitting down against the corner of the wall.

A day flew by quickly. As the sky darkened, Wang Lin clearly felt his body slowly weakening. His arm was completely numb and senseless. After thinking it over, he smiled bitterly and muttered to himself, "Being trapped here is a dead end, but jumping off the cliff guarantees death. Alas."

He looked at the bloody, mangled corpse of the bird near the corner of the wall. He hesitated, then gritted his teeth, walked over, picked it up, and brought it to his mouth. A rank, gamey smell assaulted his nostrils. Wang Lin sighed softly, and without another word, put it in his mouth and vigorously gnawed on the raw meat.

He swallowed it almost without chewing. His stomach contracted and churned, sending waves of warmth through him. He devoured half of the bird in a frenzy, but waves of nausea relentlessly surged upward. Wang Lin quickly stood up and took deep breaths, finally managing to suppress the urge to vomit.

He casually tossed the remains of the bird carcass aside and sat down leaning against the wall, his mind filled with countless thoughts. He thought of his parents, then his Fourth Uncle, then the mocking faces of his relatives, and then the merciless gaze of the middle-aged man in black from the Heng Yue School.

While he was lost in thought, he suddenly stared intently at the half-eaten bird carcass beside him. Without blinking, he grabbed it and examined it closely. He saw a red bead, the size of a baby's fist, inside the remaining half of the bird. Wang Lin pried the bead out, feeling greatly astonished.

How could there be a bead inside this bird? His heart pounded. He recalled a mythological miscellany called the Classic of Mountains and Seas that he had once seen at the Village Teacher’s place. It mentioned that if certain animals lived long enough, a treasure called an Inner Core would form inside their bodies.

If a person consumed this treasure, they would gain boundless strength, longevity, and could even regenerate severed limbs.

At the time he read this description, he had been quite skeptical and secretly scoffed. But now that he had even seen Immortals, he couldn't help but believe a few of the myths and legends described in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

Wang Lin’s heart hammered wildly. If this bead really was the Inner Core described in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, wouldn't eating it immediately cure his injuries? Leaving this place would be effortless, and even joining an Immortal School shouldn't be a problem—at the very least, it would certainly allow him to pass the Tenacity Test.

However, the bead felt hard and solid, not like something edible. He furrowed his brow, used a strip of cloth from his clothes to wipe it clean, and restored its true color.

It was a gray Stone Bead, carved with five white clouds, appearing quite ancient. Wang Lin felt greatly disappointed. Unwilling to give up, he bit it with his teeth. Finally, stroking the Stone Bead, he smiled bitterly and muttered to himself, "Tie Zhu, you are too delusional. How could there be such a coincidence in this world that a random bird that falls dead in front of you possesses an Inner Core?"

He sighed. The sky outside had grown dark. Deeply fatigued, he curled up in the corner and gradually fell asleep. The Stone Bead was carelessly placed next to the animal bones nearby.

It was already autumn, and the ground cooled very quickly, especially in the mountains. Threads of cold air continuously seeped into Wang Lin's body. In his sleep, he hugged himself tightly, and the night quickly passed.

Early the next morning, the sunrise streamed in from outside the cave, illuminating the interior. Threads of sparkling dew seeped out from the Stone Bead beside Wang Lin. As the dew accumulated, it slowly flowed onto the animal bones.

Before long, Wang Lin woke up. His arm was still swollen, and instead of showing signs of improvement, it was getting worse. Wang Lin sat on the ground, feeling melancholy.

"Am I going to be trapped here for the rest of my life?" he muttered to himself. His gaze shifted, and he suddenly noticed dew on the animal bones nearby. Feeling thirsty, he cautiously picked up the bone and licked the accumulated dew drops clean from its surface.

This dew was pleasantly sweet. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but after drinking it, his whole body felt warm and extremely comfortable.

Especially around his injured arm, waves of sore and itchy sensations appeared, and the swelling actually subsided slightly. Wang Lin rubbed his eyes, looked closely, and was immediately delighted to find that the swelling in his arm had indeed gone down somewhat. He focused his thoughts and immediately searched for other animal bones nearby, but unfortunately, none had dew on them.

Just as he was wondering, he suddenly focused his gaze on the Stone Bead next to him. Staring intently, he saw tiny drops of dew forming on it. He recalled that the bone with the dew had been right next to the Stone Bead. He gently picked up the Stone Bead, his heart pounding rapidly. After a moment of hesitation, he immediately placed it on his arm and rolled it, evenly applying the dew onto the swollen area.

A trace of coolness emanated from his arm. Wang Lin stared at his arm without blinking. After a long while, joy appeared in his eyes: the swelling in his arm had miraculously vanished. He moved it slightly; although there was still faint pain, the injury was no longer serious.

"This Stone Bead must be a treasure!" Wang Lin exclaimed in surprise.