Chapter 338: and translation of chapter title

338. Chapter 338 Fire-driller Clan

Numinous Treasure Daoist, like the Kun-peng of old, walked upon the Primordial Wilds' great earth; he too once passed through among the human tribe, feeling the changes humanity brought to heaven and earth.

And the strength of humanity's learning ability is what most shocked the Numinous Treasure Daoist: innately penetrating the seven apertures, whether old or young, they can all infer three from one.

Moreover, their thirst for knowledge almost far surpasses that of all the tribes of the Primordial Wilds today; as long as something can be useful, whether it is the Wu Clan's shamanic arts or the immortal and demonic Dao, they will wholeheartedly study it.

Even without a teacher, they independently created all kinds of techniques: there are arts for commanding yin souls and controlling myriad beasts, as well as arts for raising poisonous insects and crafting insect poisons.

Even gathering herbs and refining elixirs, farming, fishing, and hunting are involved; it seems that as long as it can make them stronger, they will try to learn any method.

During this period, they paid an almost terrifyingly painful price, yet even so, they never ceased.

And humanity's desire is, among the myriad things the Numinous Treasure Daoist has seen, the most intense and obvious; they do not conceal their ambition at all.

They used fire to burn forests, cleared land for farming, wove vines into nets for fishing and hunting, fired earth into pottery, and continually absorbed experience from all tribes.

They expanded recklessly across the Eastern Continent, but not by wielding conquest; rather, they continually split off, tribe after tribe.

They merged the remaining tribes together, gradually replacing them, absorbing the essence of those tribes while deliberately discarding their dross.

They loved splendid attire, pursued propriety, learned from the gods in their words and deeds, yet retained their own identity, adapting to the times, starting from their own situation, and boldly reforming.

They are innately capable of cultivation; with just a little guidance, they themselves will eagerly embark on the path of cultivation, so clever that even the Numinous Treasure Daoist himself greatly favors them.

When he passed through the human tribe, he also learned that his two elder brothers had each taken on a disciple among humanity.

The Morality Daoist took the first person among humanity, Xuan Du.

The Primordial Daoist took the next person born thereafter, named Guang Chengzi.

Both names were bestowed by Nüwa; they innately carry humanity's fortune, being the first and second persons born among humanity, and their future achievements are limitless.

The Numinous Treasure Daoist also originally wanted to take a disciple from humanity, but after repeated hesitation, he felt that nothing in the world should be exhausted, and so he gave up.

And now the leaders among humanity are humanity's three strongest tribes: the Fire-driller Clan, the Nest-builder Clan, and the Dark-cloth Clan.

They occupy the finest parts of the Yellow River basin, and are the strongest few tribes within the entire Yellow River basin, not limited to humanity alone.

However, humanity nowadays is no longer as tranquil as before; their rapid expansion has long since altered the original pattern of the tribes.

Now, throughout the Yellow River basin, war flames burn everywhere, and humanity undoubtedly holds an absolute advantage within it.

At this moment, the Numinous Treasure Daoist was boating on the Yellow River; alas, he did not see the river's magnificent waves, only the corpses drifting downstream upon its waters.

Among them were humans, as well as beings of flying beasts, running animals, and scaled armor from various tribes; occasionally a streak of light flashed across the sky, but alas it was not a meteor, rather a spell traced across the heavens when the two sides fought with magic.

Many small tribes that could not affect the battle situation were glad to see this; they stood at the edge of the Yellow River, and those with cultivation would scoop up things from the river's surface.

Those without cultivation would hold long poles, hoping to bring these drifting corpses ashore; whether human or otherwise, they would become part of their food.

Of course, this is not entirely without danger; if any tribal cultivators drifted downstream to search for their kin's corpses, the awaiting fate for these small tribes would be utter annihilation.

And these small tribes would also become provisions for the other tribes in the future; seeing this, the Numinous Treasure Daoist merely sighed deeply and then walked off elsewhere.

Yet on the battlefield, this does not cause a halt; in the rivers and mountains, or in the various marketplaces, there are figures of both sides contending.

Such fighting has not expanded to the level of race, but is confined within a single tribe, with both sides consciously limiting the scale of war.

The tribes of the Yellow River basin feared that Nüwa, the creator of humanity, would intervene, but humanity knew the mother goddess would not participate, and even Xuan Du and Guang Chengzi would not act.

Both sides have their misgivings, but simply judging by the present situation, humanity, unbound by arts, undoubtedly holds a greater advantage.

As for the name 'humanity,' it is because the various tribes do not accept being called the human tribe, so they are referred to by their kind.

Although humanity dislikes this, they cannot easily stop others' speech, and thus the name 'humanity' spread throughout the Primordial Wilds.

Perhaps one day, after humanity becomes the hegemon of the Primordial Wilds, only then, by taking the name 'humanity,' will they be accepted by all beings.

Within the Fire-driller Clan tribe, the Fire Ancestor dwells in his own house, occasionally picking up a leg of beast from the table and taking a bite.

The Fire-driller Clan excels in fire arts, and its source lies precisely in the Fire Ancestor, who once wandered the Eastern Continent, learning many tribes' fire-control techniques.

Finally he synthesized them into a whole and innovated anew; thus, among the tribes of the Primordial Wilds, aside from the top-tier innate divine sacred races, no fire art surpasses that of the Fire-driller Clan.

After the Fire Ancestor completed his studies, he gathered many clansmen, established the Fire-driller Clan tribe, transmitting fire arts, and expanded in all directions.

Although the Fire Ancestor's attire is simple, in his hands the Fire-driller Clan is humanity's strongest tribe today; his cultivation is only a hair's breadth away from a Great Luo Golden Immortal.

Only after finishing the meat on the plate did the Fire Ancestor tap the stone slab beside him; not long after, a youth entered and sat beside the Fire Ancestor.

The Fire Ancestor looked at the visitor, a slight smile appearing on his face, and said:

"Now you also begin to handle the tribe's affairs, overseeing the people's work; look at the tribe now, is there anything that needs to be changed?"

The youth's countenance was gentle; upon the Fire Ancestor's inquiry, after a brief hesitation he replied: "I have not found anything in the tribe that needs changing; today the Fire-driller Clan is like a sun-facing tree, exuding vigorous vitality."

"Under the sun's illumination in the heavens, it has grown orderly, becoming the most dazzling and tallest tree in the Yellow River basin."

"Under your leadership, the clansmen have continually expanded outward; across the entire Yellow River basin, you need only cough lightly, and to the outside tribes it sounds like heavenly thunder, deafening." The Fire Ancestor, hearing this, was overjoyed, yet he modestly said: "The Primordial Wilds continent is so vast and boundless; the place we occupy is merely a drop in the ocean, and compared to those top-tier races, humanity is still too weak."

"My achievements are also merely like stones in the mountains, piled among the rocks, not particularly striking."

"This pile of stones is accumulated by countless clansmen who have come forward one after another; I merely placed the stone on the summit, amounting to nothing."

"You are still young; not noticing the leaks there is normal, but as the future master of the Fire-driller Clan, you must grow up."

"I am merely a Taiyi; placed in the Primordial Wilds, I am nothing more than a slightly larger ant, which might bite a person and cause pain, but ultimately cannot possess the power to change the world."

"I am already old; perhaps in terms of lifespan I could still live a very long time, but for the tribe, what I can do is now few."

"Under my leadership, the Fire-driller Clan has received ample development, but you must know that I have controlled the Fire-driller Clan for too long."

"My prestige is too high, too high—so high that even you, such a tribe heir, dare not step forward to point out my mistakes."

"And my vision has long been limited to what I have experienced; regarding aspects of the tribe that could be improved, you perhaps dare not speak, but I truly cannot see them."

"Perhaps my prestige has now become a hindrance to the Fire-driller Clan's continued growth, and to me, the Fire-driller Clan has become a stumbling stone on my pursuit of the Great Dao."

"My body is still young, but my heart has grown old and weary from governing the tribe; the Fire-driller Clan needs a young person like you to lead it and renew its vitality."

Upon hearing the Fire Ancestor's words, the youth's face first showed joy, then immediately vanished, and he replied humbly:

"Master, you are still as youthful as ever; at present the Fire-driller Clan does not need someone like me to step forward, for under your leadership it still exudes vigorous vitality."

"Your prestige among the clansmen is like a towering mountain; you are the mountain itself, so how could you be merely a stone within it?"

"I hope you do not regard the tribe as your burden; look at this flourishing scene, the clansmen dwelling in peace and contentment—this is all thanks to you."

You must believe them; one day they will become your aid in reaching the mountain peak. You are like an eagle soaring in the high skies, and the tribespeople among the tribe are your feathers.

How could an eagle flying in the sky feel that its own feathers are too heavy? So don't keep refusing.

The tribespeople need your leadership more than ever; only under your leadership can the Suiren tribe become a dominant tribe in the region—this is everyone's consensus.

Seeing the young man like this, Su Zu finally smiled with satisfaction, but then his expression suddenly darkened as he asked, "Since this is everyone's consensus, how have I recently heard rumors in the tribe that I am now old?"

Just like a lion‑tiger without teeth, its claws are no longer sharp, it has lost its past wisdom and ambition, and has become content with the status quo, right?

As my disciple, and among the younger generation of the tribe you are the most outstanding; looking across the entire Primordial Wasteland Continent, you can also be considered a talented youth.

You tell me—am I really old now? Have my fangs and claws lost their sharpness?

Hearing Su Zu's words, the young man broke out in a cold sweat on his forehead and hurriedly said, "Teacher, why would you think that? Those who gossip about this are merely jealous of your strength."

Your presence is too dazzling; under your achievements, they can only hide like dark mice in corners, trembling.

These people lack far‑sighted and sharp vision, only caring about the immediate three‑inch area before them; they are foolish and sinister—how could you believe their words?

Su Zu's gaze settled on his disciple, and after a long while he sighed:

I hope so; I only wish that my tribespeople will one day clear their eyes, sweep away the haze before them, and see the true correct path.

The Primordial Wasteland is too vast, like an endless sea; although the Yellow River is broad, it is ultimately limited to the land.

They only saw this Yellow River, envied its grandeur, but overlooked the vast sea where true dragons dwell.

And the Yellow River that nurtures us will eventually flow into the sea; we steer our tribe's sailboat on the Yellow River, where we can barely survive.

But once we enter the sea, even a little wind and wave can destroy our boat, and then we must have an experienced captain.

He will lead us, when the boat is still unable to bear the sea's risks, to avoid those turbulent currents and moor the boat in a harbor.

As his words fell, a fierce gleam flashed in Su Zu's eyes, making the young man before him almost tremble; only then did Su Zu continue, "During this period, what the captain most needs to do is to throw into the water those who cannot see the hidden dangers beneath the water, who anxiously try to seize the helm and lead everyone toward the abyss."

Burning flames will dispel the long night and also burn to ashes those foolish, ignorant ambitious ones!

Their existence brings no light to the tribe at all; instead, they cast their shadow to block the burning fire, pushing the helpless tribespeople into darkness!

The tribe is like a bonfire that dispels darkness; what is needed is for each to contribute their own firewood, so that he can provide warmth to the tribespeople.

Rather than being like a disorderly wildfire that burns indiscriminately, scorching the whole forest and then reducing both forest and tribe to ashes in the flames!

Su Zu's voice was firm and decisive, reeking of bloodlust that made the young man hardly able to breathe; after a long while, the young man replied, "Teacher, I understand. I will make those meaningless voices shut up, let them gather strength, and let the tribe utter its final roar."

Su Zu nodded satisfied and said, "I am not unable to accept those young voices; otherwise I would not have let you participate in managing the tribe. Child, as your teacher, I now have little left to teach you."

But there is one principle you must understand: unrestrained ambition and desire will push both yourself and the tribespeople into a bottomless abyss.

There, even a burning flame cannot emit any light.

The young man, not knowing how to respond, merely fell silent and turned to leave. (End of chapter)