Swallowed Star: Lord of the Wolf

Inside the stone house, the furnishings are simple yet sturdy.

A huge stone bed was covered with thick animal hides, along with a stone table, several stone stools, and some tribal-style pottery jars piled in the corner. Xu Yang sat cross-legged on the stone bed, not asleep, but with his eyes closed.

His consciousness instantly transcended countless dimensions of time and space, connecting with the divine incarnation in the distant cosmic sea.

The Cosmic Sea, the Primordial Universe, the Land of the Demon Clan and the Sky Wolf Clan.

In a tranquil courtyard, flowers bloom and birds sing softly.

Xu Yang's divine power avatar—a phantom formed purely from divine power, yet possessing all of Xu Yang's memories and emotions—was sitting on a soft cushion in the courtyard.

His daughter, Yuji, sat obediently beside him.

"Father, is it... dangerous over there?" Yu Ji asked worriedly.

“Yu’er,” Xu Yang’s divine avatar reached out and gently stroked his daughter’s head, conveying genuine warmth and love, “Danger is inevitable. But it is also a necessary part of the path to strength. Father is very powerful and extremely cautious, so don’t worry.”

His gaze shifted to a spot not far away, as if he could see Cangya, who was constantly cultivating, through the walls of the secret chamber: "Learn more from your senior brother Cangya. Don't be playful; focus more on your cultivation."

"If you keep dawdling like this, Cangya will probably catch up with you in no time." Xu Yang was quite helpless. His daughter was talented and gifted, but she was just lazy and didn't work hard enough.

"Don't worry, Father, I'm cultivating diligently. I've almost finished reading all the materials you gave me, and I feel like it won't be long before I reach the 30,000-fold speed." Yu Ji blushed slightly, feeling a little embarrassed. She knew her own temperament; even with her father personally giving her extra help, she always ended up with less than half the results because she wasn't putting in enough effort.

"I won't rush you. You're all grown up now. Just know what's good for you." Xu Yang didn't want to be too strict; he only had one child.

"Father, you're so good to me." Yu Ji squinted her eyes slightly, pouting happily.

In the courtyard, the night was as still as water, and the fragrance of flowers wafted through the air.

The divine avatar accompanied his daughter, listening to her recount some of the wonders of the cosmic sea, temporarily dispelling the gloom of the long wait. This tender protection, transcending endless time and space, was Xu Yang's strongest support as he journeyed across the perilous Origin Continent.

……

Originating from the mainland, the Yongzan tribe.

As the first rays of dawn pierce the night, dispelling the thin mist in the mountain valleys and draping the ancient stone houses in a pale golden veil, a gentle knock is heard on the door of each stone house.

Tuk-tuk-tuk!
His voice was steady and powerful.

Almost at the same time as the knocking sounded, Xu Yang opened his eyes. Gu Ji, who was sleeping sprawled out on the stone bed next to him, clutching an empty wine jar, also woke up with a start, perking up his ears alertly and looking sleepily toward the door.

"Who?" Guji asked in a muffled voice, with the languor of someone who had just woken up and a hint of annoyance at being disturbed.

"Brother Gu You, Brother Gu Li, it's me, Chi Gu!" Chi Gu's loud voice came from outside the door. Although he tried to lower his voice, it was still clear that he was very energetic. "I was neglected last night, so I've come today to accompany you two distinguished guests to the 'Hundred Treasures Pavilion' trading area!"

Xu Yang stood up, and with a wave of his hand, the door of the stone house slid open silently.

Outside the door, Akaya's tall figure was bathed in the rising morning light. He had changed into a clean set of black leather armor, and the tiger head totem on his chest seemed to have been carefully wiped clean. The scabs were still dark red, but he looked radiant. The fatigue and worries of the previous night seemed to have been forcibly suppressed, and his eyes held a kind of high fighting spirit and... a trace of barely perceptible excitement.

"Brother Chigu, so early?" Xu Yang walked out of the stone house and smiled.

He keenly sensed that Akaya's barely suppressed "drive" was even stronger than the night before.

"Haha, honored guests, how could we dare to be negligent!" Chi Gu grinned, revealing his snow-white teeth, and said in a hearty voice, "The trading area is most lively in the early morning, and there are many good things there."

Guji rubbed his eyes and followed, muttering, "Where's the food? I didn't get enough to eat last night..." Most of the beast leg from last night ended up in his stomach, but he was clearly still not satisfied.

Upon hearing this, Chi Gu laughed heartily: "Brother Gu Li, don't worry! The Hundred Treasures Pavilion is very prosperous, with plenty of delicious food! In addition to all kinds of rare treasures, there are also delicacies from the depths of the Great Wilderness, spiritual fruits and fine wines! I guarantee that Brother Gu Li will be satisfied!"

Upon hearing about the delicious food, Guji's eyes lit up instantly, all sleepiness vanished, and she exclaimed, "Then what are we waiting for! Let's go, let's go!"

Looking at Chigu's energetic appearance and Guji's greedy look, Xu Yang gestured with his hand, "Then I'll trouble Brother Chigu to lead the way."

"Please follow me, both of you!" Akaya perked up and took the lead.

The Yongzan tribe has already awakened in the early morning.

Women washed animal skin clothing by the stream, children chased and played on the stone path, and the training ground was once again filled with deafening shouts and the clanging of weapons.

The air is filled with the fresh scent of grass and trees, the aroma of cooking smoke, and a vibrant energy.

Chigu led Xu Yang and the other two through the gradually bustling residential area, heading towards the other side of the tribe's core area.

As you approach, an atmosphere different from the solemnity of Yongzan Hall and the hustle and bustle of the residential area begins to permeate the air—a unique aura of wealth and exchange.

Various strange fragrances began to waft through the air—

The bitterness of herbs, the coldness of minerals, the smell of gunpowder from animal hides, the aroma of burnt food... and the faint sounds of bargaining.

Soon, a complex of buildings, built against a steep mountainside, with a rugged style yet exceptionally large size, came into view.

Rather than a "pavilion," it's more like a supermarket built from massive animal bones, hard black stones, and rough logs! At the entrance are two towering leg bones of unknown behemoths, entwined with ancient vine totems symbolizing "trade and contracts."

A huge banner made of animal hides hung above the entrance, bearing three ancient and imposing characters painted in bright red:
Baizhen Pavilion!
The crowds were dense, with native warriors and tribal merchants dressed in various leather armor and carrying all kinds of packages or weapons coming and going shoulder to shoulder.

The noise, the shouts of vendors, and the sounds of bargaining suddenly became clear.

It's very close to the tribe's gate, but it's hidden by cliffs and shrouded in formations, so Xu Yang didn't notice it when he returned last night.

“Brother Gu You, I don’t think I need to explain the origins of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, do I? As for why I brought you here personally, it’s mainly because the manager of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion in our tribe has some connections with me. If you see anything you like, I can buy it for you at a 5% discount.” Chi Gu led the two to a stop at the entrance. The three Void True Gods were surrounded by people who walked around them.

"This...this is very kind of you, Brother Chigu," Xu Yang said, bowing sincerely.

He is both rich and poor now!

He is rich because he possesses many mechanical treasures, and even a Chaos Realm secret treasure like the Black Emperor Claw. Any one of them is worth millions of cosmic sands!
He was poor because these treasures couldn't be sold, and he had almost no cash on him, only the twenty-odd cosmic sands and several thousand chaos crystals he had obtained from the two Void Gods.

For a Void God, this is already considered a considerable fortune.

On the Origin Continent, the circulating currencies are Chaos Stones, Chaos Crystals, and Cosmic Sand, all with an exchange rate of 10,000.

On average, a true god would have a net worth of several Chaos Crystals.

If the true god of the void were to speak, his wealth would amount to several universes' worth.

The range for the Eternal True God is much larger—the weakest might only have a few thousand cosmic sands in their bodies, while the strongest might have hundreds of millions of cosmic sands!

As for the higher Chaos Rulers and God-Kings, it's hard to count them... They have fixed tax territories and can generate wealth continuously.

This Hundred Treasures Pavilion is the exchange opened by the Great Sage of Wine Soul within his territory, and it is also an important source of his income! In the two southwestern continents, any tribe with a bit of strength will have a branch of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

Chigu's imposing figure and iconic tiger-head totem leather armor stand out like a reef at the entrance of Baizhen Pavilion.

Even in the bustling morning, it instantly attracted the attention of several guards at the entrance, who were dressed in uniform gray leather armor and exuded a sharp aura.

These guards were not warriors of the Yongzan tribe, but official members of the Baizhen Pavilion. Each of them possessed the strength of a peak True God, and their eyes were as sharp as eagles, scrutinizing everyone who came in and out.

However, when they saw that the person who came was Akaya, their rigid and serious faces immediately showed an extremely respectful expression, even with a hint of ingratiation.

The leading guard, a middle-aged man with a faint scar on his face and an aura that had reached the early stage of Void True God, immediately stepped forward. He stood ramrod straight and gave Chi Gu a standard right-hand-on-chest salute, his voice loud and respectful: "Brave Chi Gu, you've arrived! Lord Uto has been thinking of you!"

He clearly knew Chi Gu. While he respected ordinary warriors, he didn't need to fawn over someone like Bai Zhen Ge who was backed by him. But what could he do when his steward, Uto, was on good terms with Chi Gu?

Akaya clearly recognized the man and laughed heartily, "Ishifuku, is Utsukoshi upstairs?"

"Yes! Yes! I've been waiting for you on the third floor!" The guard named Shi Fu hurriedly replied, then stepped aside to make way, made a "please" gesture, and quickly glanced at Xu Yang and Gu Ji behind Chi Gu, a hint of surprise and curiosity flashing in his eyes.

The two men had unfamiliar auras and their clothing was out of place in the tribe. However, since they were just ordinary Void Gods, he was not so humble and simply nodded in greeting.

"Okay, lead the way," Akaya said succinctly.

"Yes, warriors of Chigu, please follow me!" Shi Fu dared not ask any more questions and quickly led the way, while giving the other guards a wink.

The guards immediately understood and formed a small passage, separating Akaya and his companions from the crowd.

Upon entering the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, an even more clamorous heat wave, mixed with countless strange auras, rushed towards us!

It may not look big from the outside, but it contains a whole world inside.

The entire first-floor hall was extremely spacious, resembling a vast primitive market. Overhead, massive log beams hung from the ceiling, adorned with enormous animal-hide lanterns. The floor was paved with huge bluestone slabs, worn smooth by countless footsteps. Stalls constructed from massive animal bones or hard black stones stood side by side, the shouts, haggling, the rustling of animal hides, and the clanging of metal merging into a deafening roar.

The crowd surged through the area, with tribal warriors of varying attire and auras moving among them, or pausing in front of stalls to haggle fiercely.

“The Hundred Treasures Pavilion is open not only to my Yongzan tribe, but also to passersby traveling through the Great Wilderness… It’s just that Brother Guyou didn’t know the location of our tribe before, so you couldn’t find it.” Chigu said as he walked.

"Haha, now I know, I'll mark it on my map," Xu Yang said with a laugh.

The group walked straight through the noisy crowd and headed towards a huge, spiraling bone staircase deep inside the hall. Guards stood watch on both sides of the staircase, and upon seeing that it was Shi Fu leading Chi Gu up, they immediately bowed and let them pass.

As you step onto the stairs, an invisible energy barrier sweeps over your body, instantly reducing the noise of the outside world by more than half. The stairs are crafted from the ribs of an unknown behemoth, wide and sturdy, emitting a slight hum when you step on them.

The second floor was noticeably quieter, and the lighting was brighter and softer.

The area is divided into relatively independent zones, separated by massive animal-hide screens or stone walls carved with runes. Each zone is more elaborately arranged, like a small boutique, displaying far more exquisite and rarer items than those downstairs, with price tags now indicating Chaos Stones instead of Chaos Crystals… and even Cosmic Sand!

The guests coming and going exuded a stronger aura, dressed more respectably, and were clearly prominent figures or powerful loners.

Shi Fu did not stop and continued to lead the three upwards.

The third floor is even more tranquil and elegant.

The entire three-story building resembles a giant suite, with only a few tightly closed animal-hide doors, each adorned with a different bone carving symbol representing a different functional area.

Shi Fu led the three to the deepest part of the room, to the widest and heaviest animal-hide door, above which hung a domino pattern carved with a golden abacus. He took a deep breath, gently knocked on the door, and said in an extremely respectful voice, "Lord Uto, the warriors of Red Valley have arrived."

Immediately from inside came a smooth, enthusiastic voice with the distinctive tone of a businessman. The voice was soft yet could penetrate the door: "Brother Chi Gu? Please come in, please come in! Hahaha, we've been waiting for you!"

The animal hide door slid open silently inward.

Inside the door was a room furnished with considerable comfort and luxury. Thick white carpets made of animal hides covered the floor, and several large animal hide paintings depicting the scenery of the wilderness hung on the walls. Against the wall were several large, comfortable bone chairs covered with thick animal hides.

In the center of the room, behind a huge, wide table made from a single piece of dark gold metal ore, sat a person.

This is Uto, the manager of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

He was short and stout, dressed in an exquisitely crafted deep purple silk robe—a rarity among indigenous tribes! The robe was embroidered with intricate vine patterns in gold and silver thread, symbolizing wealth and trade. His round face was beaming with a warm smile, and his small eyes, though narrowed to slits, revealed the shrewdness and cunning characteristic of a merchant.

He was extremely well-maintained, his skin glossy and smooth, and his ten chubby fingers were adorned with gold rings inlaid with various gemstones. At that moment, he was deftly manipulating a delicate abacus, about the size of a palm and crafted entirely from some kind of dark gold metal! (End of Chapter)