People · Ah Niu

Year 876 of the Qian Calendar.

A new batch of "criminals" was being escorted.

All were thrown to the border adjoining the Ten Thousand Mountains.

The crowd was listless, their faces ashen, like a dried-up well long deprived of rain, devoid of any vitality.

Moments later.

Driven by the instinct to survive.

The crowd began to move forward, establishing a new settlement in the remote and desolate frontier.

...

Year 880 of the Qian Calendar.

The initial batch of "criminals" had firmly rooted themselves in Qingniu Town, settling down despite the annual harassment by demons, managing to barely survive.

Close to the Ten Thousand Mountains.

This proximity was both perilous and resourceful.

Warriors and merchants frequently traveled back and forth, staying in Qingniu Town while exploring the edges of the Ten Thousand Mountains for herbs and minerals.

The residents of Qingniu Town benefited from this.

A couple, living a stable life, had their first child.

They named him Zhang Tieniu.

The couple's thinking was simple: Tieniu, Iron Bull, sounds like something easy to raise.

...

Year 882 of the Qian Calendar.

Father Zhang, the family's pillar, died in the winter demon tide, leaving Mother Zhang to raise Aniu alone.

Demons were fierce.

Bloodthirsty and bone-devouring.

The slightly improved Qingniu Town instantly turned into a living hell.

By the following spring, the town's population had halved.

Some wanted to flee, but there were always border troops stationed at the gates leading to the heart of the Qian Dynasty.

If one were to escape to other towns along the border.

It would be better to stay in the familiar Qingniu Town.

...

Year 887 of the Qian Calendar.

Aniu was 7 years old.

He stood under the mottled jujube tree, his skin dark and sallow, a testament to years of running under the sun.

"Mother, I'm hungry..."

Aniu clutched his stomach.

Habitually seeking food from his mother.

Soon, Mother Zhang brought a bowl of dumpling soup, advising Aniu to drink slowly.

"I know, Mother!"

Aniu drank heartily, licking his lips with satisfaction, his expression particularly simple and honest.

"Being able to eat is a blessing, being able to eat is a blessing..."

Mother Zhang laughed heartily.

Later on.

Aniu's appetite shrank.

Not because he couldn't eat, but because he dared not eat.

In Qingniu Town, where food was precious, being able to eat was never a blessing but a subtle sin.

Aniu discovered this.

Due to his large appetite, Mother Zhang became afraid to eat, only having a shallow layer at the bottom of her bowl.

Aniu didn't like this.

He really didn't like it.

...

Year 895 of the Qian Calendar.

Aniu was 15 years old.

He was quite foolish, his mother said so, everyone said so, and Aniu also believed it.

As Aniu grew, his physique became robust.

He became an even bigger eater, often feeling guilty and remorseful because of it.

Fortunately, besides eating, Aniu had another advantage: farming.

Aniu was very skilled at farming.

Even in the barren frontier land, his cultivation yielded good harvests.

People praised and congratulated Aniu's mother.

Saying that the name "Iron Bull" was truly fitting.

"Hehe, hehe..." Aniu stood by, laughing foolishly, scratching his head, unsure of what to say, while his mother, beaming with joy, greeted the neighbors.

...

Year 898 of the Qian Calendar.

Including Qingniu Town, the border towns suffered a more terrifying demon tide.

For some reason.

Every year, the demon tides grew increasingly terrifying.

The flow of warriors and merchants began to dwindle.

Avoiding being swept into the demon tide and losing their lives.

The people of Qingniu Town could only remain living on the border, with no way out.

Year 900 of the Qianli Era.

An Niu was 20 years old.

He had become a robust young man, with a simple-minded look and a hint of foolishness. His thick eyebrows and big eyes, along with his dark complexion, made him appear quite honest.

This year, An Niu encountered something strange.

Upon learning of the officials' wanted notices, he hurried to inform Elder Brother Xu.

Yet, from inside Elder Brother Xu's house, he heard the loud scurrying sounds of rats.

An Niu admired him greatly: "Elder Brother Xu is amazing, even the rats in his house are impressive. Such noisy rats must be really fat."

An Niu craved rat meat.

...

An Niu was clumsy.

He knew he didn't understand the words of the scholarly teachers, nor the obscure martial arts techniques.

But An Niu felt lucky.

Because of Xu Xi's presence, An Niu was finally able to eat his fill.

The demon meat was somewhat sour and tough to chew, yet it filled the emptiness in his stomach, allowing An Niu to feel the weight of fullness for the first time.

Especially during the winter demon tides.

Those were among the few days An Niu could eat his fill.

An Niu liked this, wanting such a life to continue, until that raging fire burned down Qingniu Town, where he grew up, destroying his "home."

"An Niu, let's go."

Elder Brother Xu called from ahead, extending his hand towards An Niu.

"Where to?"

An Niu, carrying his aged mother, looked bewildered.

"To eat, to live."

An Niu was very simple-minded; he didn't understand what it meant to "live," but he knew "eating" very well.

So.

An Niu, carrying his elderly mother, followed Elder Brother Xu's lead along with the other townspeople of Qingniu Town.

...

They formed the Survival Army, counterattacked the Great Qian Dynasty, occupied several counties, and expanded into multiple states and prefectures.

An Niu saw the real world.

He saw bare bones and rivers of blood.

The first time he stood on the battlefield, he was as helpless as a child, relying entirely on Xu Xi to lead him through.

"I'm sorry, Elder Brother Xu... I've caused you trouble..."

Time really flew by.

So fast that An Niu didn't think deeply about it.

It was just year after year of eating, and time passed by quickly.

An Niu was very simple-minded, but he knew that as long as he kept up with Elder Brother Xu's pace, he could do his part.

That was the "secret" his mother taught him day and night.

Year 909 of the Qianli Era.

An Niu was 29 years old.

An Niu's mother passed away.

She didn't die of hunger, nor was she killed or died of illness.

Instead, she passed away peacefully in her sleep, never to wake again.

"Mother..." On that day, the daylight was particularly gloomy, with overcast clouds covering the sky, yet not a drop of rain fell.

An Niu's tall figure appeared particularly small in the gloomy weather.

He knelt dazedly in front of his mother's grave.

Too clumsy to speak.

He didn't know what to say, nor could he say anything, only staring blankly at the tombstone, then heavily kowtowing.

Once, twice, three times.

His forehead bled, mixing with his glistening tears.

...

Year 910 of the Qianli Era.

Xu Xi began to act. He led the entire Survival Army, heading beyond the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, attempting to forge a true path to survival.

An Niu went along.

He remained clumsy, his simple mind unchanged by his mother's passing.

Yet, as he watched Xu Xi's increasingly weary figure,

An Niu had an idea.

Or rather, an impulse.

"Mother is gone, I can't, I can't let Elder Brother Xu..."

Ah Niu did something foolish, but he was a fool to begin with, and fools doing foolish things is only natural.

He decisively broke away from the survival army's ranks.

Running in the opposite direction.

The mountain trees on either side flew past his peripheral vision, his rapid breaths driving his legs forward, Ah Niu ran towards the largest demon, even though his body trembled with instinctive fear, he kept moving forward.

He was so happy.

Happy to the point where he could barely see anything.

Turning into darkness, turning into blood, turning into his mother's call.

"Ah Niu, come home for dinner."

Earth, Yanshan City, Ah Niu snapped back to reality at his mother's call.

"Coming, Mom!"

He turned his head and answered loudly.