Chapter 172: The Fall of Stars (Part 1)
The tail of a meteor streaked across the sky above Mobei, forcefully splitting the night in two.
In young Ariel’s eyes, this meant that the Supreme God had bestowed another Star Shard.
In Mobei, divine meteors were common occurrences. People would often seek out the meteor’s landing site to find the Star Shards that fell there.
Star Shards had many uses.
Firstly, they were hard and sharp, with no other Materials comparable, making them ideal for crafting the best weapons.
No Mobei person who yearned for power didn't desire a weapon made from Star Shards.
Moreover, Ariel had heard from the old shamaness in his tribe that Star Shards could bring the protection of the gods, helping one connect with the Supreme God, and resist or even cure strange illnesses.
What kind of strange illness it was, Ariel had never truly seen.
He only knew that if one contracted a strange illness, one had to go to the temple to pray for the old shamaness's help. If one was not devout enough, and lacked the protection of Star Shards, one might fall, and could only be purified by the Supreme God, so that their Soul could be released and return to the embrace of the Supreme God.
Ariel rarely heard of anyone who had contracted a strange illness and left the temple alive. The old Clan Chief said it was because their faith was still insufficient, and they didn’t try hard enough to find Star Shards to compensate.
But Star Shards were often only obtained by extremely lucky individuals!
Anywhere in Mobei could become a Starfall site, and once it appeared, countless Mobei people nearby would rush to find and then seize them.
As Ariel watched, his eyes gradually widened. He noticed that the light of the star grew more and more dazzling, and its burning head came closer and closer, as if it was about to land right before his eyes!
“Grandpa, remember to close your eyes,” he shouted towards the tent, fearing that the dazzling light would burn his fragile eyeballs.
After a while, there was no sound. He almost thought the person inside had already fallen asleep, but then a slow, drawn-out sound emerged: “Alright…”
The voice was hoarse and weak, like an old bellows that couldn't be pulled, hissing with leaking Qi.
Ariel was very worried. Ever since his grandpa went hunting in the mountains a few days ago, he had caught a cold and quickly collapsed. Even after taking herbal medicine for the cold, he didn't get better, growing weaker by the day.
His grandpa had saved him when he was an orphan, abandoned among wolves, and had raised him. He was his only relative, so nothing could happen to him!
If Star Shards could even cure terrifying strange illnesses, could they also cure his grandpa's cold?
Ariel made up his mind: he absolutely had to get this Star Shard!
So he led his pony over and swung onto its back.
Although he was only eight years old and small, his movements were skilled. He squeezed his legs, and the horse galloped away.
After all, for Mobei people, riding horses was second nature; if a child couldn't ride a horse, they would be ridiculed.
Ariel chased in the direction the meteor fell, his heart filled with wild joy.
Yes, this time, the star was going to fall near his home!
Just beyond the mountain.
For some reason, Ariel’s grandpa was not liked by the tribe, so the two of them had to live in a desolate place.
In the past, Ariel found this annoying, as it meant he couldn't play with children his age, but now he was grateful.
Fewer people meant a better chance to get there first and snatch the Star Shard.
The meteor came closer and closer, its dazzling light stinging his eyes until they teared up.
Moreover, although Ariel didn't understand many things, his intuition told him that the light was not a good thing; it contained a terrifying intent of destruction.
He just felt that this meteor was somewhat different from the previous ones.
His heart pounded in his chest. He dared not look any longer, nor dared to get closer. He could only rein in his pony, closing his eyes.
He heard a whistling sound, from far to near, accompanied by a sharp sound wave tearing through the air, moving extremely fast. Ariel knew the star was about to fall to the ground.
The pony paced back and forth restlessly. He could only tightly grip the reins, wrapping them around his arm, covering his ears tightly, and lying prostrate on the horse’s back.
Soon, there was a deafening roar, as if the entire world had collapsed at that moment. A strong shockwave spread in all directions, and the ground trembled, as if the earth's crust was about to split open.
The pony was startled, let out a long neigh, its front hooves rose into the air, and then it galloped away in the opposite direction, carrying Ariel with it.
Ariel also trembled with fear, unable to control the pony, so he could only lie down and let the pony run for a while.
His eyes were still tearing up from the light earlier, and as he ran, he thought of his bedridden grandpa, and his tears flowed even more profusely.
No, he had to save his grandpa!
So he mustered his courage, re-grasped the reins to control the pony, gently stroked its mane, and whispered, calling the pony's name, pleading: “Zawuhar, please, let's go save Grandpa together.”
Under his soothing, the pony calmed down slightly and obeyed.
Then Ariel rode the pony and galloped towards the landing site.
...
After crossing a hill, they finally reached their destination.
However, there was nothing at the landing site, only a vast deep crater and a large expanse of black ashes.
Ariel dismounted and grabbed a handful of these black ashes.
“This is… transparent!” he muttered to himself. These grains of sand looked black, but they were actually crystal clear, like sparkling crystals.
He had only seen such crystals in the temple during sacrifices; they were very rare.
Now, his hands were full of them!
Only, they were a bit fragmented.
“Child, if I were you, I wouldn’t touch these sands.”
A voice suddenly sounded, startling Ariel, making him tremble all over. The sand in his hand also scattered to the ground, re-merging with the ashes.
He saw a strange person standing before him, their face covered by a layer of paper, holding a long sword. The terrifying, featureless face was lowered, looking at him.
Ariel shrieked and stumbled back a few steps, but a pair of hands gently held his shoulders, preventing him from falling to the ground.
“It’s alright, we’re not bad people,” a clear female voice said.
Ariel steadied himself and looked at the woman, his face flushing slightly.
This was the most beautiful and noble woman he had ever seen in his life, even surpassing the old Clan Chief’s daughter. Only, her clothing was very strange, unlike that of the Mobei people.
“Excuse me, where is this?” the woman said with a cold expression, but Ariel could hear the gentleness in her words.
“This, this is Mount Aya,” Ariel stammered.
Upon hearing this, the masked strange person said to the woman in annoyance, “Indeed, this is already ten thousand eight thousand li from Sultan City. That old fellow picked a good spot.”
“Presumably, Senior was also worried about harming civilians,” the woman said calmly.
“You little brat are quite lucky to be running around now, otherwise there wouldn’t even be dust left.”
When the masked strange person said this, Ariel was even more frightened, unable to help but purse his lips and burst into tears.
“Alright, Pavilion Master, don’t scare him anymore,” the woman said helplessly.
“Enough, enough, getting home is important,” the masked strange person said with great helplessness. “To have run this far, I didn’t even realize it. I really can’t calculate it; I don’t have that old fellow’s talent for mathematics.”
“However, fortunately, Pavilion Master, to isolate the Guai Qi, you timely severed the connection with the Dongting Autumn Moon Map placed in Sultan and brought it out separately. Otherwise, the others in the xiaoxiang eight views map would have suffered terribly.”
“That’s right.” Although Ariel couldn't see the masked strange person's expression, he could sense his pride.
“Little brat, where is your home?”
Ariel didn't know what this person wanted to do, and his heart was uneasy; he dared not speak.
It was only when the beautiful woman asked again that Ariel dared to ask, “Excuse me… what do you want to do…”
“We… want to go home alive.”