Chapter 8

All around was black mist.

A warm red light fell from the 'void sun' above, shining on the young Witch Tie.

Witch Jin and Witch Yin, with their childish faces, wiped the sweat from their faces and looked happily at the swing they had built between two stalactites after three whole days of hard work.

Witch Tong picked up Witch Tie and placed him on the swing.

Witch Jin smiled and pushed the swing.

The swing swung high.

Witch Tie laughed, a mix of fear and joy, his clear laughter echoing far, far away...

Witch Tong stared at the swing with wide eyes, turned his head forcefully, and pouted: "This is just a kid's toy... I, Witch Tong... no, I, Witch Changming, am an adult... I won't play with this kid's toy."

Witch Zhan, carrying a large snake as thick as a bowl, walked out of the black mist into the warm red light.

He looked at his four sons with a smile and patted the still wriggling snake on his shoulder: "Soon, we'll drink snake soup..."

Witch Jin, Witch Yin, Witch Tong, and Witch Tie all laughed loudly.

Their laughter suddenly stopped. From the black mist all around, countless pale, swollen, bloodstained, and grotesque faces suddenly appeared.

The faces pressed toward Witch Tie.

Witch Zhan disappeared.

Witch Jin disappeared.

Witch Yin disappeared.

Witch Tong disappeared.

Witch Tie let out a heart-wrenching cry, his body convulsing as he woke up.

"Father... brothers..." Witch Tie cried out, an indescribable pain overwhelming him, crushing his fear.

Crying, Witch Tie's tear-filled eyes looked at the object that had just frightened him into unconsciousness.

A skull, completely white, almost blindingly so, with a hint of a sinister aura, lay crookedly beside Witch Tie, its eyes glowing with a faint bloodlight, staring straight at him.

High on the rock ceiling, countless night gems emitted a bright light.

The white skull was exceptionally smooth, having just been kicked out of a mound of earth by Witch Tie, with no dust or sand on its surface, completely clean.

Despite its smooth surface, it did not reflect any light.

The bright light from the night gems shone on the white skull, which seemed to absorb all the light. Staring at the pale white skull for a long time, Witch Tie had the illusion that the skull was pitch black.

In this strange and unfamiliar place, Witch Tie, exhausted both physically and mentally, was suddenly frightened into unconsciousness by the sight of the skull.

In his dream, the loss of his father and brothers, the loss of his family, was repeated, and the pain in his heart made him forget his fear.

Witch Tie cried, sobbing.

The white skull lay crookedly on the ground, its eyes moving up and down, carefully observing Witch Tie.

Witch Tie couldn't see it, but fine rays of light were emitted from the white skull's eyes, scanning his body repeatedly.

"Is your father dead?" the white skull suddenly spoke in a stiff, cold voice.

"Uh-huh!" Witch Tie sobbed and nodded.

"Are your brothers dead too?" The white skull's jaw didn't move at all; it was unclear how it spoke.

"Uh-huh!" Witch Tie nodded again.

"Help me stand up straight." The white skull's eyes suddenly brightened, the two points of bloodlight piercing Witch Tie's eyes, making him quickly turn his head away.

"Why are you crying? Help me stand up straight." The white skull snorted coldly: "If I'm not mistaken, you are a man... a man."

Witch Tie opened his mouth.

"Men can only bleed, not cry a single tear." The white skull snorted: "Once you cry, your bones will soften..."

Witch Tie stopped crying.

He seemed to see the figures of Witch Zhan and his three brothers.

He seemed to hear Witch Zhan's roar on the training ground after he punched Witch Jin to the ground.

Witch Jin curled up in the sand, groaning in pain, while Witch Zhan bent over and roared at him.

"Get up, Witch Jin... you are a man... get up!"

"Get up, stand straight!"

"Remember, unless you are dead, even if your spine is broken, you must stand straight!"

"No matter who your opponent is."

"Remember, in any place, at any time, stand straight!"

Witch Tie clenched his teeth, wiped his face with his hand, and removed the tear marks.

Witch Jin, who was always taught to stand straight by Witch Zhan, had knelt before the enemy for his useless younger brother.

Witch Tie struggled to stand up, the image of Witch Jin kneeling flashing before his eyes. He straightened his back with great effort, gritting his teeth and staring straight at the strange white skull.

Standing straight, Witch Tie realized that the white skull, which he had kicked out of the mound of earth, was three times the size of a normal human head and did not have a single speck of dirt on it.

Moreover, its shape was a bit strange, with a high, streamlined protrusion at the back of its head, giving it an indescribable and eerie beauty.

"Done crying?" The white skull snorted: "Help me stand up straight!"

Witch Tie swallowed, bent down, and carefully grabbed the white skull.

It was cold to the touch.

This white skull was clearly made entirely of metal.

"Uh?" Witch Tie looked at the white skull in shock.

"Making a fuss." The white skull continued to snort.

Witch Tie closed his mouth, held the white skull with both hands, and exerted all his strength—this metal skull, three times the size of a normal human head, made him doubt whether he could lift it.

Surprisingly, the white skull was very light, and Witch Tie didn't need much effort to lift it.

He almost fell backward from the force, barely managing to steady himself after a few awkward steps and almost slipping on a patch of slippery moss.

"Huh." The white skull stiffly laughed: "Should I praise you for your incredible strength and agility?"

Witch Tie's face flushed, and he placed the white skull on a small mound of earth.

Standing straight in front of the white skull, Witch Tie gritted his teeth and said: "I won't cry."

In this vast and strange place, Witch Tie felt a bit of closeness to this strange white skull.

After all, Witch Tie had the courage to clean human heads.

This white skull was certainly better to look at than a bloody dead head.

Moreover, a dead head couldn't speak, but this white skull not only spoke but also gave advice.

A young boy and a strange white metal skull stared at each other for a while before the white skull suddenly spoke: "Crying so sadly, did your whole family die?"

Witch Tie's heart ached, and his eyes welled up with tears.

Suppressing the urge to cry, Witch Tie thought of what Witch Zhan had once said.

"No, I haven't... Mother and my little sister... I don't know where they are... but they must still be alive..."

"Anyway, your father and brothers are dead, what's the difference from your whole family dying?" The white skull stabbed a cold, stiff knife into Witch Tie's heart.

Witch Tie's body stiffened. He was extremely tired, his stomach empty, and hunger made him weak. The white skull's words extinguished the last bit of life in his heart.

His entire body was filled with sorrow and fear, and his fatigue drained every cell.

His mind went blank, his eyes rolled back, and his body fell backward.

If he fell this time, Witch Tie might never wake up, never be able to stand up again.

"Seek revenge." The two eyes of the white skull suddenly brightened, and the stiff, cold metal voice stabbed into his heart like a sharp knife.

"Killing your father's murderer is a matter of life and death, a man must be clear about his grudges."

"If he can kill your father and brothers, you should kill his whole family."

"Before avenging your father, you don't even have the right to die!"

A surge of hot, mad energy rose in his heart, and his exhausted body suddenly filled with a wild strength.

"Revenge!"

Witch Tie screamed at the top of his lungs.

The word "revenge" was not unfamiliar to him.

"I want to seek revenge!"

"But..."

Two streams of pale red blood tears flowed from his eyes, and Witch Tie roared at the white skull: "I can't cultivate... how can I seek revenge?"

The blood-red eyes of the white skull flickered, and it looked Witch Tie up and down for a long time before speaking softly: "I can make you cultivate... you can't cultivate? Ha, everything can become a saint, it's just a matter of time..."

"You can't cultivate?"

"Whoever said that is an idiot, right?"

Witch Tie suddenly extended his left hand and pressed it on the white skull, then punched it hard in the face.

A dull sound echoed, and Witch Tie's right fist split open, a few drops of blood sliding down the smooth surface of the white skull, leaving no trace on its face.

"Idiot." The white skull sneered: "I am made of metal, you are made of flesh and blood... why use your fist? Can't you find a rock?"

Witch Tie suddenly realized, bent down, and picked up a fist-sized rock, silently smashing it on the white skull's head.

"The one who said I can't cultivate... was my father!" Witch Tie roared as he smashed the rock.

"Grandpa, I really have a loose tongue..." The white skull's eyes flickered: "But, you'll get used to it... I've been used to it for a long time."

After smashing it a hundred times, the white skull's smooth surface showed no marks, but the rock was shattered.

Witch Tie sat on the ground, panting, and tore off a piece of snake from his waist, tearing into it with large bites. A few bites of snake meat filled his stomach with warmth, and he gradually regained some strength.

While tearing into the snake meat, Witch Tie's bloodshot eyes stared at the white skull like a wild animal: "You, can make me cultivate?"

"Listen to me, I can make you cultivate..." the white skull said: "And I can help you seek revenge..."

Witch Tie quickly finished a piece of snake meat, gritted his teeth, and stood up, staring at the white skull: "How?"

The white skull's eyes brightened: "First, answer me... what year and month is it now?"

"What year, what month?" Witch Tie looked at the white skull in confusion.

"Calendar? Date? Or something similar." The white skull's eyes dimmed a bit: "I used to remember the time... but it's been too long without encountering a living person... little boy, do you understand what despair is?"

Witch Tie opened his mouth, remained silent for a while, and then nodded forcefully.

Despair?

Is despair not watching your father turn to ashes in a ball of lightning?

Despair?

Is despair not watching your brothers be killed by the enemy?

Despair?

Is despair not... your brothers kneeling before the enemy, begging for your life, while you are powerless to resist?

"Understand!" Witch Tie struggled to say a word.

"My despair in the past was definitely ten thousand times yours. It was a kind of... despair you can't even imagine." The white skull suddenly sighed dryly: "But, it's good, now I suddenly have boundless motivation."

"Really, why am I talking so much nonsense to you, little boy?" The white skull's voice suddenly became extremely high and powerful, like two sharp swords clashing: "Come, now, hold me, and follow my instructions!"

"But, I really don't know... what calendar, what date... the teacher never taught us." Witch Tie walked behind the white skull, picked it up with both hands.

A few translucent tubes fell from the white skull's broken neck, swinging and hitting Witch Tie's wrist.

"Focus on that direction... the one with a bit of red light, that's right, come, take big steps, walk!"

The white skull's voice was full of power.

"Little guy, walk, one-two-one... one-two-one... one-two-one..."

"Stand straight, head up, legs straight, pay attention to your breathing, follow my rhythm."

"One-two-one, one-two-one, one-two-one..."

The white skull was three times the size of a normal human head, and Witch Tie, a skinny eleven-year-old, was not tall. Holding the white skull was like a small mouse carrying a large egg, making it very difficult to walk.

The white skull was not heavy, but Witch Tie had little strength.

The ground was slippery, covered with thick moss and strange vines. After walking a short distance, Witch Tie fell several times.

But the 'one-two-one' of the white skull was filled with a strange power, and Witch Tie always gritted his teeth, stood up, and continued walking in the direction it pointed.

Fortunately, the white skull's material was special, and even when Witch Tie dropped it several times, it remained clean and free of any dirt.

"One-two-one, one-two-one, yeah, kid, you're getting the hang of it... what's your name?" The white skull's eyes glowed with bloodlight, and a fine red light suddenly flashed, slicing a venomous snake dozens of steps away into dozens of pieces, unseen by Witch Tie.

"Witch Tie." Witch Tie panted: "Witch Taiping... what about you?"

"Witch Tie? Not a bad name, a man should be as hard as iron!" The white skull said: "But, Witch Taiping? 'No peace'... who named you that? It's not auspicious..."

Witch Tie's face fell.

The white skull chuckled: "Ha, ha, I really have a loose tongue... get used to it, get used to it..."

Bloodlight flickered in its eyes, and countless fine light nets, invisible to Witch Tie's eyes, spread out in all directions, covering a hundred-meter radius.

"Witch Tie, Witch Tie, I'll call you Little Tie from now on, it sounds closer, more intimate!"

"As for my name... you can call me... Old Tie!"

"Old Tie?" Witch Tie thought the name was a bit perfunctory.

"Of course, Old Tie... don't I look like I'm made of iron? It fits perfectly!"

A few dry laughs, and Old Tie said: "Keep going, one-two-one, one-two-one... walk two kilometers, then rest."

"At the same time, start cultivating!"