TPWBI Chapter 3

“It must be that the gods heard our plea!”

The ‘divine light’ was far away, yet everyone saw it. That strange light must be a sign from the gods.

Everyone couldn’t help but wail and cry. Being abandoned and driven out by their tribe had left them with no sense of safety. Hunger and the endless deaths had pushed them into despair.

Now, they saw hope. How could they not be stirred?

They had not been forsaken by the gods. They could go on living!

There was no need to gather them. Everyone came on their own to the edge of the Black Forest. They did not dare enter, only lingered at its outskirts.

The terrifying legends about the Black Forest now made them think it was likely the gods’ domain, which was why humans were not allowed to set foot in it. Anyone who barged in blindly would only meet death.

No matter what the truth was, that was not a place they could enter.

“Will the gods come out to see us?”

Jiao spoke with certainty, “They will, as long as we are devout enough.”

“But we don’t have any offerings at all.”

This sentence spoke everyone’s worry aloud. If the gods were willing to help them, then in return, they should present an offering.

“I am willing to offer my blood to the gods.” A young woman’s clear voice rang out.

“Ting!”

Reluctance showed in everyone’s eyes. Ting was the most beautiful girl among them. Though she was not a warrior, her beauty made her very popular.

Back when they were still in the Blackstone Tribe, many people had wanted to have children with her and treated her with great care. If she hadn’t refused to leave her frail mother, she could have stayed in the Blackstone Tribe and lived well.

Now, she was stepping forward on her own to become the offering.

“Aren’t I the most suitable? Besides, I am going to accompany the gods. What a wonderful thing that is.” Ting’s tone was light and easy.

Though she said this, and though they believed in the gods and trusted that the gods would take Ting to a better world, deep down, they still couldn’t bear to part with her.

Ting was not a warrior, but her body was strong and healthy. If she paired with a warrior, the chance of bearing a child with a warrior’s talent would be very high.

And she was so beautiful, bringing them a sense of goodness, like a ray of light in the darkness.

At this moment, no one spoke again. All of this was for the gods.

Ting raised a smile, closed her eyes, and placed the polished stone axe against her neck…

Yang Yi stepped out from the jungle and saw this scene.

“Put it down!” Yang Yi shouted angrily.

His expression was stern, his gaze landing on the stone axe with clear disgust. Even though they couldn’t understand his words, everyone understood what he meant.

Ting froze where she was until Yang Yi took the stone axe away from her.

She hurriedly knelt to the ground. “God!”

If there had still been any doubts before, the moment they saw Yang Yi, they became certain that this person was a god. He was simply too different from ordinary people.

His skin was even fairer and more delicate than Ting’s, and his attire was exquisite and refined. In front of him, even Ting, who was recognized as a beauty, felt herself far too coarse.

The clothes he wore were unlike anything they had ever seen before. They had no idea what material it was made of, but it was something extraordinary. The patterns and designs allowed him to hide in the forest without being discovered.

In his hand, he held a strange black bow. An arrow was already nocked on it, and the material looked extremely sturdy, clearly full of power at a glance.

The strange weapon at his waist, which gleamed with a metallic light, made people both fearful and envious. It looked like a tongue, with one side being a sharp blade edge and the other side like a row of fangs, giving off a chilling gleam that showed just how sharp it was.

This metal weapon looked far more formidable than the weapons held by the merchant guards from the Western Continent, and it was no less impressive than the Blackstone weapons they once possessed.

A warrior like Yan Shi felt his blood boil at the sight of such a weapon.

If they had weapons like this, then they would never have to worry about going hungry again!

Just as Mao had described, he did not have the aura of a strong person. In fact, he looked even weaker than an ordinary person, yet he dared to live in the Black Forest.

Hearing this, Yang Yi fell silent.

Should he just go along with it and admit that he was a god? This was the question he had been pondering all along.

If he were worshipped as a god, his safety would greatly increase for the time being.

But if he became a god, he would be burdened with too many responsibilities.

He was just an ordinary person, unable to do many of the things a god could do.

When that time came, his image would easily shatter. Even though he possessed many supplies far beyond the level of civilization here, and could bring them great changes, he was still not all-powerful like a god.

If he put himself too high up, he would often find himself in a situation where he could neither advance nor retreat. One careless mistake could lead to a backlash in the end.

Deceit could only bring momentary ease. He was not good at lying, and he feared living in constant dread of being exposed.

His past experiences made him never dare to underestimate anyone’s intelligence, no matter how easy to fool they might seem now.

These people were merely backward and poor, but that didn’t mean they lacked intelligence. Once they sensed something was wrong, who could say they wouldn’t tear him apart without mercy?

No one liked being deceived.

Even in a game, doing this carried risks.

There had been players who had done the same thing before. However, when their level was extremely high, the enemy exposed them, and they were defeated on the spot.

“I am not a god.”

Just as Yang Yi was about to introduce himself in suitable words, a sharp cry interrupted him.

“Jing!” Rong cried out in surprise.

Everyone’s attention was drawn to her. For a moment, no one reacted to Yang Yi’s words.

The tall man beside Rong collapsed to the ground on his knees, fainting to one side. His condition looked terrible. No matter how Rong shook Jing, he wouldn’t wake up.

“God, please, please save him! He’s a brave warrior. He shouldn’t die like this!”

Rong wailed and sobbed, completely without the fierceness she usually had when hunting.

This was her mate. Not many people formed mating bonds, but once they did, they would stay together for life unless one of them died, becoming each other’s closest and most intimate person.

The expressions on the others’ faces didn’t look good either, but there was also a sense that they had already expected this.

The fact that Jing had held on until now was already unbelievable to them. It made them realize even more deeply just how strong a level-three warrior was.

It was just a pity that in the end, he still couldn’t escape the demon’s grasp and was about to lose his life.

Yang Yi looked at the unconscious man and couldn’t help but frown.

This fellow called Jing had no right arm below about three centimeters under the elbow, his right eye was blind, and his body was covered in many wounds that looked hideous and frightening, oozing pus. His condition looked terrible.

His once tall and sturdy body was now skin and bones.

Rong cried her heart out, fully aware that Jing’s condition was extremely bad.

After coming here, it was as if he had completed his final task. His body could no longer hold on. He collapsed and could no longer get back up.

When she heard that the god had arrived, a spark of hope ignited in her heart. She was so excited, feeling that what everyone used to say was true. She was a lucky person.

She carried him on her back and came with everyone to the edge of the Black Forest, telling him again and again along the way that with the god here, he would be saved, and that they would be able to hunt together again in the future.

The god was here. Surely he could save him!

However, Yang Yi shook his head and once again denied it: “I am not a god.”

Rong stared in shock, and despair slowly filled her eyes. The same look appeared in the eyes of the others, too.

After all, they were a group of people who had been abandoned. Why would the gods show them favor?

The great gods only watched over the strong.

Rong howled and sobbed. Her last hope had shattered.

The others felt terrible as well, for this great warrior, and for their own miserable fate, with no light in sight.

“But, I can take a look.”

The clear, bright voice broke the heavy silence at the scene as Yang Yi walked over.

The crowd unconsciously parted into two rows to let him pass through. No one stepped forward to stop him.

Deep down, there was still a sliver of hope left.

Yang Yi crouched down to examine him. Jing’s condition was terrible. His whole body was burning hot, and without even measuring it, Yang Yi could tell it was a dangerously high fever.

The two most critical wounds were both showing signs of severe infection, and the other injuries were not looking good either.

What had this man been through to make it so there wasn’t a single patch of healthy flesh left on his body?

Especially his arm. The wound had already rotted, and maggots were crawling inside. Even without leaning in, the stench was overpowering.

“I can’t guarantee that I can save him. It’s possible that trying might even hasten his death. Are you all willing to try anyway?”

Yang Yi spoke in Chinese. With his current ability, he still couldn’t express this clearly in their language.

But from his tone, expression, and gestures, Rong more or less understood what he meant, and pleaded with a sorrowful voice:

“Please, I beg you, save him. As long as you save him, from now on, both his life and mine will belong to you. Whether we live or die, I am willing to try.”

The others also began to plead with Yang Yi. This man was mysterious and extraordinary. If he was willing to help, maybe it would be Jing’s last hope.

It was a gamble.

But Yang Yi didn’t plan to give up, both to blend into this other world and for the sake of a living human life.

This was his first test, and this man’s only chance to survive.

This man was already severely infected, and the people here had no way to save him.

Yang Yi used gestures to tell everyone to move back, leaving only Rong, Jiao, and Ting behind.

Rong was family, so it wouldn’t be right to send her away. Jiao and Ting didn’t look that strong but could help out.

Firstly, Rong was obviously the backbone of this group. With her here, there was no need to worry about the others doing something reckless. Secondly, Ting was the only person Yang Yi had paid special attention to.

Yang Yi was willing to take this risk, but he hadn’t forgotten to leave himself an escape route.

He took a safety rope out of his bag and tightly bound Jing to keep him from thrashing around from the pain later.

He couldn’t get anesthetics through any legitimate means, so Yang Yi didn’t have anything like that.

Seeing this, Rong and the other two immediately understood what he was doing and pressed down on the already unconscious Jing to keep him steady.

Yang Yi then took out hydrogen peroxide, Povidone-Iodine solution[mfn]a type of Iodophor solution. I think it’s also known as Betadine. Please correct me if I’m wrong.[/mfn], ampicillin capsules, sterile gauze, Yunnan Baiyao[mfn] Chinese medicine[/mfn] pills, ibuprofen suspension, as well as surgical gloves, suture thread, and a scalpel from his backpack.

The sight of these strange and dazzling supplies made Jiao and Ting both astonished and curious. They couldn’t take their eyes off them, and the hope in their hearts grew even stronger.

Even Rong, whose mind had been entirely focused on Jing, couldn’t help but cast her gaze over, too.

They didn’t know what these things were, but they were sure they were anything but ordinary.

This man might not be a god, but he was definitely not an ordinary mortal either!

Yang Yi laid everything out properly and spoke again to make sure: “I can’t guarantee anything, but I will do my best.”

Then, switching to the local language, he added once more: “I am not a god.”

The three women couldn’t understand that strange yet pleasant-sounding language, but they could still roughly guess what he meant.

Jiao said, “He was already entangled by the demons before. We had no way to take him back. If he dies, it has nothing to do with you.”

Those words gave Yang Yi some peace of mind. He took a deep breath, steadying himself mentally.

He wasn’t a professional doctor and didn’t have specialized training. He had only skimmed through some books before. Even with all these medical supplies, he couldn’t promise anything.

Yang Yi put on his surgical gloves and began tending to Jing’s wounds.

First, he rinsed the wounds with hydrogen peroxide, washing away the dirt and grime. Without anesthesia, the pain made Jing’s body shudder slightly, but the rope and the women pressing him down kept him from moving.

Next, he used the scalpel to cut away the rotting flesh. After a rough and simple stitching job, he wrapped the wounds with disinfected gauze soaked in Povidone-Iodine solution.

The entire process was crude and brutal. Blood was everywhere, making it look horrifying.

If a modern doctor had seen it, they would’ve scolded him harshly for playing recklessly with a human life.

Yang Yi regretted it the moment he made the first cut. He wasn’t a doctor; where did he get the nerve?

This wasn’t a game either. The medicine was exactly like real life. It didn’t have that magical in-game effect of instantly curing wounds. He’d been too impulsive just now.

But since he had already agreed, he could only grit his teeth and carry on. If this man’s condition hadn’t been so severe that he’d surely die without help, Yang Yi would’ve backed out at the last moment.

In just this short while, his back was drenched in sweat.

After finishing with the wounds on the body, Yang Yi felt he’d gotten a bit of a feel for it, so he moved on to the arm, and lastly, the eye.

Jing’s eyeball had already been gouged out, and the lack of proper treatment had caused an infection.

Yang Yi now could be said to have gained a bit of experience. Even when handling the part he feared most, the eye, he managed to see it through.

When the crude and rough surgery was finally over, Yang Yi used warm water to help Jing swallow an ampicillin capsule and a Yunnan Baiyao pill. After a while, he gave him ibuprofen, too.

Antibiotics, hemostatics, and fever reducers, all deployed at once. If he still couldn’t be saved, then there was nothing more Yang Yi could do.

The whole operation had drained all his strength. His legs were so weak now that if he wanted to run away, he probably couldn’t.

It helped that the three women had shown no sign of making things difficult for him, so he dared to relax just a little.

Jing had been woken by the pain right from the start. He didn’t know what the stranger in front of him was doing, but he wisely chose to trust him.

Except for some instinctive muscle tremors, Jing barely struggled. He just bit down on a wooden stick and endured the completely unprofessional, anesthesia-free surgery by sheer willpower.

When it came time to take the medicine, he cooperated fully. His will to live was extremely strong.

Yang Yi truly admired this kind of tough man. From every angle, he hoped he would survive.

He had done everything he could. Now, the rest was up to fate.

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