Late at night, Su Ming lay in his house and looked at the darkness around him. He could not fall asleep for a long time. The elder's words echoed in his ears, causing the things that happened nine years ago to appear in his head.
Su Ming let out a long sigh and sat up. He pushed open the wooden door of his house quietly. A cool breeze blew at his messy hair. The wind was very cold, as if it had arrived with the moon and landed on the ground.
It was quiet around him. Only a few faint neighs could be heard coming from Dark Mountain in the distance. Most of the tribe was dark. Only the bonfire in the middle of the tribe had some sparks. There were also some torches on the wooden walls around the tribe. In the middle of the night, the crackling sounds of the torches burning could be heard.
Su Ming lifted his head and looked at the sky. The moon was bright and the stars were sparse. It was very bright. The river of stars seemed to last forever. Su Ming's eyes were filled with confusion.
'The people in the tribe are very nice to me … but I look different from them … Perhaps this is related to my failure in worshipping the statue of the God of Berserkers …
If I don't have a Berserker Body, then I can't practice the Ways of the Berserker. I can only stay here for the rest of my life. I can't go out and I can't see the world described in the beast skin scrolls … 'Su Ming sat down quietly and leaned against the house. He looked at the sky and the confusion in his eyes became stronger.
At that moment, the sound of a song suddenly echoed in the tribe. There was a hint of sadness in the song. It seemed to have fused with the moon and melted into the land of Dark Mountain Tribe.
Su Ming frowned. His confusion was broken by the sound of the song. He did not need to get up to look. He knew that it was Liu Di playing his song again.
Liu Di was a low-ranked Berserker in the tribe. His favorite thing to do was to play the strange song. The song was very sad. Every time Su Ming heard it, he would feel sad. He did not like it.
"The Berserker Tribe has an ancestor who created the world and has been around for thousands of years … Those who wield the Berserker Mark can fly in the sky and move mountains and oceans … Those who possess the Berserker Mark can reach the sky and obtain the sun, moon, and stars …" In the middle of the night in Dark Mountain Tribe, a teenager looked at the sky and mumbled to himself amidst the song …
At this moment, he didn't notice that the black fragment hanging on his neck had once again emitted a faint light that disappeared for a brief moment …
In the blink of an eye, it was the third day.
As the Awakening day of this generation's La Sus of Dark Mountain Tribe, the entire tribe was in an uproar since dawn. Almost all of the tribe members walked out and gathered at the square in the center of the tribe with their La Sus.
The ceremony of the Berserker's Awakening usually took an entire day, especially when the La Sus was sixteen years old. It was like a coming of age ceremony, and at this time, the La Sus who had completed the Berserker's Awakening could even choose their partners.
Waves of drumming with a strange rhythm reverberated within the tribe. Following the appearance of the drumming, La Sus walked out from the crowd and stood in the center.
There were more than thirty La Sus who had completed the Berserker's Awakening this time, and most of them were teenagers. Even though they were not old, their bodies were extremely muscular, and they exuded a sense of toughness.
Even the girls were the same. Because of it, Su Ming stood out from the crowd. His handsome features made him stand out like a sore thumb among the crowd.
Even so, the people here had long since accepted Su Ming's existence. Even if he looked different to them, they did not reject him. Instead, they accepted him as one of the tribe.
Once they surrounded the La Sus who were preparing for the Berserker's Awakening, all the members of Dark Mountain Tribe began performing a primitive dance. They danced to worship the heavens, using their bodies to show respect and worship to the heavens.
"Su Ming, I heard from the tribe that you went to Dark Dragon Mountain a few days ago and brought back Dark Dragon's Saliva." As the tribe members sang and danced, an honest voice came from beside Su La.
It was a boy of the same age as Su Ming. His skin was rough, and his body was strong. He was almost twice Su Ming's size. His eyes were bright, and he was looking at Su Ming with a silly smile.
Su Ming smiled as he looked at the boy who spoke. The boy's name was Lei Chen, one of his few good friends in the tribe.
"I brought some back and went to look for you yesterday. Your father said that you went up the mountain with the hunting team. When the Berserker's Awakening ends later, you can come to my place and take some with you."
The boy called Lei Chen's eyes lit up. He quickly took a few steps forward and smiled like a fool.
"I could have come back earlier, but I ran into a mink deer on the way. You said that you needed the deer's blood to make medicine, so I followed you. I came back last night."
Su Ming knew that the mink deer was incredibly difficult to kill even though Lei Chen made it sound like it was nothing. It was also extremely dangerous. Su Ming felt warmth in his heart.
As the two of them spoke, the joyous singing around them gradually quietened down. The crowd dispersed to reveal the elder of Dark Mountain Tribe. He wore a sackcloth and held a completely black bone staff in his hands. He was surrounded by a few other tribe members as he walked over and stood before the youths.
The moment he appeared, the crowd fell silent. The youths' eyes were filled with respect. It was obvious that they were afraid of the elder.
"Worship the Berserker Ancestor!" The elder's eyes shone brightly as he swept his gaze across the crowd. His gaze paused briefly on Su Ming. As he spoke, he lifted the black bone staff in his right hand and waved it. Immediately, dozens of men rushed out from the crowd not too far away. Each of them carried a tied up wild beast on their shoulders.
The wild beasts were still alive. They let out piercing howls and struggled continuously, but it was to no avail.
There were 49 wild beasts of different appearances. Before long, all of them were carried up and surrounded the youths. Their howls echoed in the air. When they gathered together, there was a faint power that could pierce through souls. However, there were people from Dark Mountain Tribe around them who held them down tightly, not allowing them to break free.
The men standing beside the wild beasts did not hesitate. They all lowered their heads at the same time and a sharp stone blade appeared in their left hands. They pierced through the necks of the wild beasts and cut off their heads.
The howls reached their peak the moment the beasts' heads were cut off. It was so loud that it could shake the sky and earth. It made some of the 30 something La Sus who were preparing for the Berserker's Awakening show fear on their faces.
Su Ming's face was pale, but he gritted his teeth and endured it. He looked at Lei Chen from the corner of his eyes and saw that there was a glint in his eyes. There was a bloodthirsty look in his eyes. It was as if he was already used to it. He even seemed to enjoy it. It was as if he was a completely different person compared to his previous honest self.
A large amount of blood gushed out like a fountain. It emitted a foul stench as it fell on the 30 something La Sus. It landed on their hair, their bodies, and the ground beneath their feet.
"You are lucky, because there is no war between tribes. But at the same time, you are also unlucky …" the elder said softly as he looked at the youths before him.
"When I was young, the Berserker's Awakening at the age of 16 required me to cut off the head of an enemy tribe member and drink their blood to complete the Berserker's Awakening.
Compared to now, you're lucky … Unfortunately, you only saw the beast's blood and did not touch the enemy's head … "the elder murmured. He looked deeply at the La Sus in front of him, raised his right hand that held the bone staff, and pointed it forward.
At the same time, he lifted his left hand and clenched his fist before unclenching it. Immediately, a strong presence spread out from his body. That presence swept through the area and turned into a huge gust of wind that blew through the entire Dark Mountain Tribe.
Lines appeared on the elder's face. The lines intersected with each other and turned into a picture that looked like a python's head.
The python's head looked alive, as if it was real. It manifested on the elder's face and roared at the sky. It let out a soundless roar, and even though they could not hear it, all the members of Dark Mountain Tribe, including the strong tribe leader, could not help but shudder and take a few steps back.
"Dark Python Mark … This is the elder's Berserker Mark …" Su Ming stared at the elder, dumbfounded. As he looked at the lines on the elder's face, his heart was filled with shock. The last time he saw this was nine years ago. Now that he saw it again, the feeling he got was much stronger than before.
"The elder can destroy an entire tribe by himself. He's so strong, but he's only at the ninth level of the Blood Solidification Realm … I wonder how strong those in the Transcendence Realm are …
"Not to mention those who have reached the Bone Sacrifice Realm after the Transcendence Realm … The beast skin scroll mentioned that powerful Berserkers in the Bone Sacrifice Realm are rare even in middle-sized tribes. Only those unimaginably large tribes would have a few Berserkers in the Bone Sacrifice Realm." Su Ming's heart trembled. His desire to become a Berserker grew stronger.
"With the blood and the bodies of the beasts, I summon the statue of the God of Berserkers from Dark Mountain Tribe!" The elder's thunderous voice interrupted Su Ming's thoughts. As the elder spoke, the carcasses of the wild beasts around them exploded. Their flesh and blood, the blood on the ground, and the blood on the bodies of the teenagers were all absorbed by an invisible force and gathered together in midair, turning into a giant ball of flesh and blood.
"Berserker's Awakening!" The strong man beside the elder, the tribe leader of Dark Mountain Tribe, shouted.
All the La Sus, including Su Ming, bit their tongues without hesitation and coughed out a mouthful of blood. Their blood rose into the air and was absorbed by the ball of flesh and blood. With a loud bang, the ball of flesh and blood turned into a black statue.
It was a ferocious statue that was half human and half beast. It was filled with a barbaric and primitive air. It held a long dragon in one hand and a long spear in the other. Its eyes were filled with madness and bloodlust.
The moment it appeared, even the sky darkened, as if it was being suppressed by its might.
"Dark Mountain Tribe's statue of the God of Berserkers …" Su Ming's heart pounded against his chest as if it was about to explode. Yet at that moment, a faint warmth spread out from the stone on his neck and fused into his body, causing the uncomfortable feeling to disappear.
That feeling stunned Su Ming. He was about to lower his head to look when the elder's voice echoed in the air.
"Come forward one by one and worship the statue of the God of Berserkers!"
The moment he finished speaking, a teenager immediately took a few brisk steps forward and stepped right under the statue of the God of Berserkers. He disappeared in an instant. Not long after, the teenager appeared at the spot where he disappeared with a gloomy face. He retreated to the side and did not say a word.
"Next!" The person who spoke was the tribe leader of Dark Mountain Tribe. The man's face was stern as he swept his gaze across the La Sus.
One by one, the La Sus who had undergone the Awakening of the Berserkers walked forward. Not long after they disappeared, they reappeared. When a girl stepped into the statue of the God of Berserkers, the statue let out a crimson glow.
Immediately, the tribe members were energized. Even the elder looked towards the statue. After the crimson glow flashed nine times, the girl appeared.
"She has a Berserker Body!"
"The statue of the God of Berserkers flashed nine times. This means that she has a Berserker Body!"
The girl's face was filled with joy when she appeared.
"Your name is Wu La, right? Very good. Come to my side." The elder smiled and nodded at the girl.
Su Ming watched the girl walk towards the elder. He gritted his teeth and walked towards the statue of the God of Berserkers. His actions immediately attracted the attention of the tribe members around him.
Most of the people from Dark Mountain Tribe were kind and compassionate towards this teenager who was clearly different from them. Their gazes were trained on Su Ming until he stood under the statue of the God of Berserkers.
Su Ming took a deep breath and looked at the elder who was looking at him not too far away. He closed his eyes. The moment he did so, he felt an indescribable power enveloping his entire body. It was as if he had melted into mud. When he opened his eyes, everything around him had changed.
He was no longer in Dark Mountain Tribe. He was in a small dimension. It was dark all around him. There was only a black statue floating before him that let out a crimson glow.
The statue looked exactly the same as the statue of the God of Berserkers he saw outside. It exuded a barbaric and primitive presence.
Su Ming looked at the statue of the God of Berserkers and fell silent for a moment before he bowed deeply towards the statue.
He bowed for a long time. Bitterness appeared on Su Ming's face. He knew that if he had a Berserker Body, he would only need one bow to make the statue let out a crimson glow. However, everything before him was the same as nine years ago. There was no difference.
'I can never become a Berserker …' Su Ming bit his lip and let out a long sigh. He turned around and was about to leave.
Yet the moment he turned around, his body suddenly trembled. He turned his head back to look at the statue of the God of Berserkers and was stunned for a moment!
At the same time, he saw the shard on his chest that he had ignored emitting a piercing light..