Chapter 7: The Coiling Dragon Ring (Part 2)
That black ring had rolled precisely to a spot near the threshold.
When Linley had taken three or four steps and was approaching the threshold, he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. He could feel very clearly that he had stepped on something like a rather large pebble under his foot.
"When I checked earlier, there wasn't a stone near the threshold. It must be a splinter from the broken wooden shelf," Linley thought, recalling the collapsed wooden rack. A surge of resentment rose in his heart, and he stomped hard on the "splinter" beneath his foot.
According to Linley's guess, if it were a rotten piece of wood, one stomp should crush it into powder. But—
"Ouch, it's this hard? What's under my foot?" Linley felt that the thing under his foot was unusually tough. He immediately lifted his foot and looked closely.
There, lying quietly on the ground, was a pitch-black, nondescript object resembling a ring. It was covered in a layer of dust, utterly inconspicuous.
"Ah, a ring?" Linley's eyes were sharp. Delighted, he picked up the black ring from the ground, then used his already dirty sleeve to wipe it vigorously several times. Only then did Linley get a clear look at the true appearance of this black ring-like item.
It was entirely pitch-black, its material seeming both like wood and like stone.
The black ring was made of a material that felt both woody and stony. On the band of the ring was carved a very blurry, twisted shape—
"An earthworm?" Linley looked at the carving on the ring band with confusion.
At first glance, Linley thought the "twisted strip" was an earthworm.
Linley laughed and muttered to himself, "This carving skill is really terrible. Any random person would probably carve better than this. What a pity—this black ring doesn't even have a precious 'diamond' on it, let alone a more valuable magic crystal."
Normally, rings would have diamonds or magic crystals.
Unfortunately, this black ring was entirely made of that dark, wood-and-stone-like material, with no trace of diamonds or magic crystals to be seen. It was clearly worthless.
For some reason, Linley felt drawn to this black ring the moment he saw it. He figured it was probably because this was the only trophy he had earned after putting in so much effort to search the old house.
"Hmm, this ring is a bit thicker than my finger, so I can't wear it... I'll find a thread, string it through, and wear it as a pendant," Linley thought, his eyes lighting up.
At only eight years old, Linley's hands were much smaller than an adult's, so he couldn't wear the black ring.
"As for this black ring, what should I name it? The Earthworm Ring? No, that sounds terrible." Linley pondered for a moment, then his eyes brightened. "Heh heh, that twisted thing could also be considered a 'dragon.' A dragon coiled around the ring—call it... Coiling Dragon, the Coiling Dragon Ring!" Even though Linley thought the twisted shape looked more like an earthworm, he still named it the Coiling Dragon Ring.
"The Coiling Dragon Ring!" Linley held up this dark, ancient Coiling Dragon Ring, smiling brilliantly.
Because of his family's financial difficulties, this was the first pendant Linley had ever owned in his life. And since he had found it himself through his own effort, he cherished it even more.
"Oh no, it's almost time for evening training!"
Linley suddenly snapped out of it, panic rising in his heart. He looked down at himself—covered in dust and grime, like a beggar. "Damn it." Without a second thought, he dashed out of the old house and ran straight to the bathing room.
"Splash, splash!"
Linley poured water directly over himself. His skin was a healthy wheat color, and his body already showed well-defined muscle lines—the result of his training. Under the rushing water, the dust on his body was quickly washed away.
He cleaned himself as fast as possible, then hurriedly changed into a training outfit.
"Thread, thread—" Linley frantically searched for a string to thread through the Coiling Dragon Ring. Suddenly, he spotted a torn linen shirt and his eyes lit up. He pulled a thin thread straight from the linen.
Linen was ordinary but sturdy and durable. The linen thread was also very strong.
He quickly threaded the Coiling Dragon Ring, tied it off, and hung it around his neck.
"I'm going to be late. My first time being late." Linley sprinted out of the house, stuffing the Coiling Dragon pendant under his clothes as he ran. Feeling the coolness of the pendant against his chest, his mood lifted.
Being late once in exchange for the Coiling Dragon Ring—
Linley actually felt quite happy.
Linley shot out of the Baruch family estate gates and headed straight for the open ground east of Wushan Town. On the streets of Wushan Town, many commoners who had finished their day's work were returning home. Seeing Linley running at full speed, they guessed the reason.
"Young Master Linley, don't rush, don't trip!"
"Lord Hillman is very strict. Young Master Linley is probably going to be punished."
...
The Baruch family's kindness toward the commoners made them very fond of Linley.
"How will Uncle Hillman punish me?" As he ran at top speed, Linley wondered. At that moment, he had no time to greet the uncles and aunties passing by. In no time, he reached the open ground east of Wushan Town.
By then, the three teams had already assembled, and Hillman was speaking. Hearing Linley's footsteps, Hillman's sharp gaze shot over.
Linley ran to the side of the team and stood still, his heart pounding as he waited for Hillman to speak.
"Today's training: double the penalty. Fall in," Hillman said flatly.
"Yes!" Linley puffed out his chest and responded loudly.
The other youths silently clicked their tongues. Just for being a little late, he got double the penalty. It looked like Linley wouldn't make it back for dinner tonight.
Just as Linley was about to run to his spot in the team, suddenly—
"Boom!" The entire ground trembled faintly. The tremors had a steady rhythm, as if a massive creature was walking step by step, causing the earth to shake.
"From the east, it's coming from the east," Linley determined immediately.
Not just Linley—Hillman, Lori, Roger, and the others all turned solemnly to look east. The ground-shaking sounds grew clearer. Every youth could feel that the rhythm of the tremors meant a colossal creature was approaching.
The footsteps shaking the ground—each tremor felt like it was pounding on Linley's heart.
What kind of giant creature was this?
Linley's eyes widened as he stared fixedly toward the east.