Having crossed the Western Desert and experienced the baptism of faith and righteousness on the merchant road, Tang Xiao Qi's footsteps did not stop. He turned south, stepping into the Southern Border Dense Forest, a vast expanse of endless green that teemed with both life and danger. The humid and sweltering air instantly enveloped him, a stark contrast to the desert's dryness and heat. Towering ancient trees blocked out the sky, vines hung down like giant pythons, and various exotic insect chirps, bird calls, and beast roars wove together into a primitive and wild symphony. He still sealed his cultivation, like a drop of water blending into this green ocean.
He did not go to those villages that had contact with the outside world, but deliberately ventured deep into the remote depths of the primal rainforest. Here, he was no longer an observer or temporary helper, but completely regarded himself as a tiny component of this ancient ecosystem, personally experiencing the purest and most unadorned natural power.
The rainforest's first lesson was the ruthlessness of "survival of the fittest." He witnessed a colorful poison frog whose skin secretions contaminated a leaf; moments later, a forest deer that came to drink licked the leaf, convulsed, and fell. It was quickly covered by a swarm of carrion ants arriving for the feast. He saw a python disguised as a vine, lightning-fast, strangling a wild boar foraging. The sound of bones shattering was particularly clear in the silent forest. He saw tall trees using their massive buttress roots to compete for sunlight, while orchids and ferns growing on them struggled to survive by absorbing nutrients from fallen leaves and air. There was no good or evil here, only survival. Every life struggled for continuation, the cycle of death and rebirth playing out every moment.
He walked carefully, relying on his superhuman perception to avoid hidden dangers—cleverly disguised predators, highly poisonous plants, forest floors that seemed solid but hid swamps. He learned to identify edible wild fruits and clean water sources, making fire by rubbing sticks and building temporary shelters in the most primitive way. Even so, he encountered danger several times: chased by a swarm of aggressive killer bees, nearly dying; wandered into an area emitting psychedelic miasma, dizzy and disoriented, barely escaping through sheer willpower.
However, while nature displayed its ruthless side, it also revealed breathtaking "balance" and "mutualism." He observed that fierce predators, though seemingly dangerous, had their populations limited by prey resources, never inflating endlessly. He saw certain trees' fruits could only germinate after passing through specific birds' digestive systems. He saw huge ant colonies forming mutually beneficial relationships with certain plants, the plants providing shelter for ants while ants protected the plants from pests. This seemingly chaotic jungle actually followed an exquisite and ancient law, maintaining a dynamic yet fragile balance.
The true "Nature's Wrath" descended on the fifteenth day he entered the rainforest.
It was a suffocatingly muggy afternoon when the sky suddenly darkened without warning. Dense dark clouds rolled and gathered like spilled ink. Thunder roared overhead, as if the heavens themselves were being torn apart. Then, torrential rain poured down like the Milky Way falling, violently scouring the land. This was no ordinary rainfall, but the terrifying thunderstorm unique to the Southern Border, imbued with the power of heaven and earth.
Fierce rain columns battered everything, wind tore up massive trees by their roots, lightning serpented across the sky like silver snakes, occasionally striking treetops and igniting forest fires, only to be quickly extinguished by the downpour. Torrents rushed down from heights, muddy water carrying broken trees and rocks, rumbling loudly, devouring everything in their path.
Xiao Qi sensed the danger in advance and found a cave on higher ground to shelter. He huddled at the cave entrance, witnessing this display of heaven and earth's fury. He felt how insignificant he was. Even at his peak Nascent Soul cultivation, against roaring thunder and raging flood, he probably couldn't withstand direct confrontation. This wasn't a specific enemy, but the entire natural environment's wrath, the embodiment of natural law itself.
He witnessed life's fragility. Countless small animals unable to escape in time were swept away by floods, nests destroyed. Even usually fierce beasts could only shiver and flee before heaven and earth's wrath.
But he also witnessed life's resilience and nature's restorative power. After the storm, though the land was scarred and muddy, broken trees lay scattered, sunlight quickly pierced the clouds, illuminating the wet jungle. Surviving creatures began cautiously moving about, worker ants rebuilding collapsed anthills, buried plant seeds waiting in the damp soil to sprout. The air was filled with the fresh scent of earth and plants, like a grand baptism.
Xiao Qi walked out of the cave onto the muddy earth, his heart filled with unprecedented reverence.
He understood that true "protection" wasn't about conquering nature or transforming it, but understanding it, revering it, maintaining that delicate balance. Humans (including cultivators) were part of nature, not masters above it. Excessive extraction and willful destruction would inevitably provoke nature's retaliatory wrath. Only with reverence and following its inner laws could one achieve harmonious coexistence with this magnificent creation.
His Dao heart was tempered again in this rainforest full of primal life force and destructive power. The barrier to Spirit Transformation seemed thinner still. His understanding of "power" was no longer limited to personal spiritual strength or magical ability, but expanded to include understanding and respecting nature's might, insight into and compliance with the laws governing all things.
Tempering his heart in the mortal world, traveling to the South, he comprehended the most ancient, grand, and sacrosanct thing—the Way of Nature. This understanding was deep and profound, like the ancient land beneath his feet soaked by rain.