"Yo-heave-ho... Yo-ho... One scoop of the shovel, I'm covered in sweat. One roaring chant, I'm filled with might."
In the lowlands at the foot of the hill, hundreds of men, young and old, dug dirt from the trenches with iron shovels and spades. They then hauled it to higher ground using shoulder poles and handcarts.
Despite the bitter cold, they wore only thin, single-layered clothes. Some were even bare-chested, with sweat dripping from their necks and backs onto the frozen earth.
"He Shan, don't you fucking slack off! Play dead again and I'll whip you to death!" a supervisor roared, brandishing his whip at a prisoner shackled with an iron chain.
On the hillside, dozens of armored soldiers stood with blades in hand, their faces impassive as they watched the laborers and prisoners toil below.
Zhao Shan and three other laborers formed a line, pulling a handcart laden with earth and stone as they struggled up a dirt slope.
He gripped the rope tightly. If he didn't pull his weight, the rope would go slack. The moment a supervisor saw that, the whip would come down on him.
"Damn it all," the bald man next to Zhao Shan cried out. "My shoulders are about to be rubbed raw!"
"Stop your whining. You'll bring the supervisors over, and they'll give you a good thrashing."
Zhao Shan glanced toward the hillside and whispered, "It's almost mealtime. Let's pull this last cart a little slower. Just keep the rope taut, grit your teeth, and make it look like we're struggling."
"Listen to Zhao," the other two men agreed.
The bald man wisely shut his mouth...
"Mealtime!"
The four of them had just pulled the cart to its destination and unloaded the dirt when they heard someone shouting from the direction of the work sheds.
The workers down the slope immediately dropped their tools and scrambled over, each one trying to be first.
Zhao Shan and his group, being the closest, each snatched three large flatbreads and a bowl of vegetable soup. They found a corner sheltered from the wind and watched as the others pushed, shoved, and fought for a better place in line.
'I wonder how Mom, Dad, and my brother are doing.'
Zhao Shan took a hard bite of the coarse, tough flatbread. A sharp pain shot through his teeth, and he had to chew for a long time before he could force it down.
'Dad's health is poor, Mom is blind, and my brother just turned sixteen. With me gone, how will they possibly manage?'
'Just yesterday, a laborer was killed by a falling rock from the mountain. He died without even a grunt. Another prisoner tried to escape and was shot dead by a soldier's arrow.'
Zhao Shan sighed. He wasn't afraid of the hardship, only that he would never see his family again.
...
"As long as you're okay!"
Seeing the color return to Zhao Lin's face, Zhou Pao relaxed. He turned to look at the two mutant beasts lying on the ground.
The bear and the Zhihao were locked in an embrace, face to face and mouth to mouth. It was a very peculiar sight.
"What a pair of star-crossed lovers!"
Zhou Pao sneered and drew his hunting knife. He suddenly began hacking at the bear's corpse like a man possessed, wailing, "I'll kill you, you bastard animal! Twenty years! I've endured for twenty years, and this day has finally come..."
Liang Song's face twitched. 'If you keep hacking up the hide like that, it'll be worthless,' he thought. But seeing Zhou Pao's anguished expression, he held his tongue.
Exhausted from his frenzy, Zhou Pao tossed his knife aside. He turned to face the direction of Baiqiao Village, dropped to his knees, and tears streamed down his face. "Dad, I've avenged you! Your son has been unfilial, making you wait twenty long years."
Zhao Lin, having recovered his senses, immediately checked his Spirit Beast Scroll.
The portrait in the first grid had changed from that of a simple, good-natured old ox to the face of a ferocious bear.
His strength was gradually returning, and he felt like he was in control of his body once more. But right on cue, a familiar, ravenous hunger set in.
Zhao Lin knew that having just absorbed the Essence Soul, his body was in a period of intense transformation and desperately needed nourishment.
"I'm going to check on Brother Zhu."
Zhao Lin patted Zhou Pao's shoulder comfortingly, then spoke quietly to Liang Song.
"Okay. Call me if you need anything," Liang Song replied.
Zhao Lin hurried back to the dugout. He saw that Zhu Dachun was unconscious, so he reached out to check for breath. After confirming he was alive, Zhao Lin opened his food pouch and began to eat ravenously.
His stomach was now working at an incredible rate, digesting the food almost as soon as he swallowed it.
A large amount of white mist began to form within the Spirit Beast Scroll.
Zhao Lin devoured all of his own food, but after rubbing his stomach, he felt it still wasn't enough.
"Here, eat mine," Zhu Dachun said. He had woken up at some point.
Zhao Lin didn't hesitate. He took two meat-filled flatbreads from Zhu Dachun's pack and polished them off in a few quick bites, finally feeling satisfied.
A smile touched Zhu Dachun's lips. "You have a real appetite, brother. No wonder you're so strong. Oh, right, I still haven't thanked you for saving my life." He struggled to sit up.
Zhao Lin quickly pressed him back down. "Don't move! And there's no need for thanks. After all, you're the one who taught me how to throw an axe in the first place."
Zhu Dachun paused, realizing it was true. 'What a stroke of luck,' he thought, sighing in relief.
Just as they were talking, Zhou Pao and Liang Song returned.
"How about we start heading back? Old Man Zhuang should be arriving soon," Zhou Pao said, asking for the group's opinion.
Zhao Lin didn't answer, instead turning his gaze to Zhu Dachun.
Liang Song asked, "Cousin, are you up for the journey?"
"I'll be fine," said Zhu Dachun. "Recovering at home is better than staying out here in the middle of nowhere."
After a brief discussion, they decided to build a simple raft for their quarry. Otherwise, there was no way they could transport the mutant beasts, which weighed thousands of pounds.
Liang Song stayed in the dugout to look after Zhu Dachun, while Zhao Lin and Zhou Pao went out to gather branches for the raft.
The giant tree had been shattered by the bear, and its bark and branches were scattered everywhere.
The two men gathered the materials and used the rope from their earlier trap to lash the branches together.
"The iron spear was flung away by the bear. I'll go get it; it's your family heirloom," Zhao Lin said to Zhou Pao.
"Alright, don't go too far," Zhou Pao cautioned.
Following his memory, Zhao Lin found the iron spear nearby. He also retrieved the two axes he had thrown.
But he didn't head back right away. Instead, he picked up the iron spear and began to practice with it.
Having absorbed the bear's Essence Soul, Zhao Lin was eager to find out just how much stronger he had become.
'My strength has increased by at least thirty percent!'
The increase in his strength was significant. The iron spear, weighing over a hundred pounds, had previously required all his might to wield effectively. Now, it felt much lighter and easier to handle; he could even brandish it with a single hand.
To put it in numbers, he could lift around four hundred pounds before. Now, he should be able to manage over five hundred!
'My strength is already starting to surpass that of an ordinary person. If this keeps up, I might actually be able to lift a thousand pounds!'
Joy filled Zhao Lin's heart as he silently savored the benefits the mutant beast's Essence Soul had brought to his body.
But this wasn't the time to celebrate. He walked back to the giant tree where the bear had been hibernating and found that Zhou Pao had already finished the raft.
"Brother Pao, your handiwork is excellent," Zhao Lin complimented.
Zhou Pao's raft was remarkably sturdy. The branches were neatly arranged over a frame of several thick logs, and the top was padded with a layer of bark. Three leather ropes were attached to the front for pulling.
The two returned to the dugout, gathered Liang Song and Zhu Dachun, packed their belongings, and prepared to depart.
The mutant beasts and their gear together weighed thousands of pounds, yet the three men pulled the raft across the snow with surprising ease.
The journey had been perilous, but they had come out unscathed and with a bountiful harvest. A smile touched each of their faces.