At this moment, Chen Xu could allow himself no distraction. His gaze was locked entirely on the blinded gorilla, even as its colossal palm descended within mere inches of him. Here, he battled not just brute force, but fortune itself.
Then, suddenly, a glimmer of opportunity appeared before his eyes. Without hesitation, his fingers released, and three wolf-tooth arrows streaked from his bow like streaks of lightning, finding the last remaining eye of the gorilla. A crystalline spray of fluid erupted, and the forest was filled with the beast's earth-shattering wail.
"Fortune favors me, after all."
Exhaling softly, Chen Xu executed the finishing move with precision, leaping back to evade the gorilla's crushing blow. Its massive, disk-like hand slammed into the earth where he had just stood, sending a half-meter-thick plume of soil tumbling outward. Victory had been within the beast's grasp—so close it could taste it—but fate had intervened.
The margin for error had been vanishingly thin. And now, with both eyes lost, the gorilla's panic surged. Its fearsome cries echoed through the night as it flailed blindly, forgetting even the simple act of escaping the pit. The trapped creature thrashed within, like a plow-bound ox wrestling against its bonds.
From the surrounding forest, a rustle of leaves announced reinforcements. Ape One and the tribal captain led a squad of elite warriors from the undergrowth. Even these hardened ape-men hesitated at the scene before them, taken aback by the sheer scale of the carnage.
"Target the wounds, but stay safe!" Chen Xu's voice rang out. Swiftly, he drew their attention to the pit, where the panicked gorilla writhed, and issued commands.
He himself drew the last thirteen arrows from his quiver, nocking them with care. In the silver moonlight, he found a suitable vantage point and began aiming at the creature's vital points. Arrow after arrow flew, each strike widening the gorilla's fatal wounds.
An hour passed, and the four-meter-tall jungle tyrant now bristled with bamboo spears, resembling a monstrous hedgehog. Blood soaked the reddish-brown soil of the pit, wafting a nauseating metallic stench in the gentle night breeze.
Finally, with a decisive swing, Chen Xu drove a sharp bamboo spear into the gorilla's eye socket, piercing it fully. A howl of unbridled fury erupted as the creature's massive hand flailed weakly, its body shaking and finally collapsing fully into the pit, dust and blood erupting into the night.
"Finally… it's over." Chen Xu sank to the ground, exhaling in relief. He felt the toll of the battle in every fiber of his being. His bow felt unbearably heavy; his limbs were leaden. His inner energy had been completely exhausted, the aftereffects of the fight now coursing through his body.
His left arm, crushed by the gorilla's blow, was numb. He could scarcely comprehend how he had drawn arrows and fired them in such a state. The burning pain of internal injury intensified with every breath. Without the aid of inner energy, the sensation of his organs being set aflame was almost unbearable.
Yet, as Chen Xu collapsed in exhaustion, he could not help but notice the contrast. The ape-men were vibrant, even jubilant, circling the pit with triumphant cries. For their simple minds, the defeat of such a jungle overlord filled them with pride.
Recovering his breath, Chen Xu summoned the tribe and ordered the captain to carry him to safety. It was night, and the scent of blood would soon draw predators. To linger here would be to tempt death. Though the ape-men regretted abandoning such a prize, they obeyed.
In this battle, Chen Xu's authority as the Fire God of the tribe had been cemented. The ape-men, simple though they were, could discern strength and victory, and none could deny that the triumph was his. Without his guidance and the careful manipulation of the gorilla's hatred, even sixty warriors would not have sufficed to fell the beast.
Following his orders, the ape-men carried him back along the prearranged path, leaving the hulking corpse behind. A moonlit leopard, the size of a small mountain, slinked from the trees, assessing the scene with wary eyes. Its gaze lingered on the gorilla rather than the departing ape-men, drawn to the pit as if to claim a prize.
The forest stirred. Other predators, alerted by the scent of blood, began to emerge. The night's celebration of survival—and of death—had only begun.
Atop the cliff, Chen Xu finally allowed himself a long, shuddering breath. He was battered, his body a map of pain, but he had survived. He sat beside the fire, inhaling the acrid scent of blood and witnessing the exhausted, exhilarated tribe. A bitter smile tugged at his lips.
He had known the power of these jungle overlords in theory, but their true strength far exceeded expectation. Without fortune on his side, even a single gorilla could have wiped out their fledgling tribe.
"I still lack a true understanding… I've yet to awaken fully to the Stone Age mindset," he reflected.
Counting his losses, he found thirteen ape-men dead, victims of the gorilla's overwhelming might—either crushed or smashed beyond recognition. Among the survivors, the hunting party had suffered lightly, with only three fatalities, and the rest a mix of robust females and lean males.
Chen Xu's mind churned with strategy and reflection. They had survived, but to thrive in this Stone Age world would require far more than personal skill. He had gained insight: this was no mere game. Here, the wild dictated the rules, and human intellect, while powerful, was still fragile against nature's primal might.
Following his commands, the ape-men collected the remains of fallen tribesmen, burying them beneath stones—a first tomb atop the cliff. With the battlefield cleared, the tribe slept, while Chen Xu focused inward, gathering the scattered currents of inner energy.
Pain shot through him as his internal pathways repaired themselves. Slowly, the shattered forces of his body and mind began to unify. Twelve meridians lit with renewed energy. A full circulation through his system completed the restoration, the residual rainbow-like qi in his dantian pulsing like a well-oiled engine, driving vital energy through each conduit.
Pain gradually transformed into healing, and his wounded body began to knit itself back together. Moonlight rose, the fire dimmed, and a profound calm settled over the mountaintop. For the first time that night, Chen Xu allowed himself to sink into a state of clear, untroubled awareness.