<svg ss="w-5 h-5 text-blue-600 mt-0.5 flex-shrink-0" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" viewBox="0 0 24 24">


    </path></svg>


    Thank you for reading on <span ss="font-semibold text-blue-700">! We provide free ess to all our stories, but maintaining this tform requires ongoing costs. To keep the site running and continue offering free content, we disy advertisements. You can close the ads anytime, or upgrade to premium membership ($5/month) for an ad-free reading experience while supporting our mission. You can also earn premium for free bypleting simple tasks. We truly appreciate your understanding and support!


    ---- Chapter 3096 Inside the valleyy the Hignd Tribe''s fertile farnd. However, beyond the valley was an entirely different scene. A narrow path, just wide enough for one person, wound down from the towering canyon into unknown territory below. The passage was deep and dark, requiring torches to navigate safely. Ordinary Hignd Tribe members were not allowed to visit the forbidden ground. This time, the group consisted of Andrew and the four outsiders, along with Othniel and the Hignd Tribe''s patrolmander.


    Thatmander happened to be Othniel''s son, the giant man Andrew had pped earlier. Finally, there was Tobiah, Knox''s elderly father, carried by two burly warriors. This small group traveled in secret toward the forbidden ground, and no one spoke. The dark passage ran along the cliff wall of the massive canyon, winding endlessly forward. Nyx said in surprise, "This was all carved out inch by inch... What a massive undertaking by the Hignd Tribe." Knox exined, "This secret passage took several hundred years toplete.


    Generation after generation of Hignd ---- Tribe members devoted themselves to it." Hershel walked at the front and led the way. When they stopped to rest, he looked at Andrew, scratched his head, and said with an awkward grin, "Sir, I apologize for my rudeness earlier." Andrew smiled and replied, "It''s nothing." Hershel was about the same age as Andrew and only a few years older than Knox. However, his features were resolute, and he was already a capable young warrior of the Hignd Tribe.


    More importantly, Hershel was extremely talented, and Andrew could tell at a nce that he would one day break through to. martial god level and be a pir of the tribe. Andrew reached into his clothes and tossed a yellow pill to Hershel. Hershel did not know what it was. He instinctively caught it, his face filled with confusion. Othniel, who was much more knowledgeable, reacted with excitement and eximed, "An elixir? That''s a rare treasure! You fool, thank Mr. Lloyd right now!" Andrew smiled. "No need for formalities. This elixir will help improve your physical strength.


    When I get back and gather the right materials, I''ll make time to refine better ones for you. Hershel, you have great talent, and I can help you be a martial god, which means you''ll be one of the Hignd Tribe''s ---- elite warriors." Hershel was overjoyed and immediately dropped to his knees, bowing his head repeatedly. Andrewughed helplessly and quickly helped him up. Hignd warriors were simple folk with straightforward minds. If you were their enemy, they would face you without fear and fight to the end.


    From what Tobiah and Othniel had said earlier, Andrew already knew what kind of person Arcturus had been. He was a simple, good-hearted man who had started life as a ve. Passed down through the generations, the temperament of the Hignd Tribe had hardly changed at all. Tobiah''s clouded eyes swept over Andrew, but in the end, he said nothing. The two warriors carried him in the middle of the group. Andrew walked ahead and did not see Tobiah''s gaze. But at this point, he no longer needed to look.


    Even the faintest attention, a shift in intent, or the slightest movement around him could be sensed. There was no doubt that Tobiah had seen Andrew give the elixir to Hershel. This not only filled Hershel and Othniel with joy, but also made the other Hignd Tribe warriors look at Andrew with ---- hope. The meaning behind those looks was obvious: Andrew was steadily earning the goodwill, admiration, and even loyalty of the mountain warriors. Andrew could more or less guess what Tobiah was thinking. Regardless, he needed the strength of the Hignd Tribe''s warriors to work for him anyway.


    So, he acted openly and unashamedly, doing exactly what he wanted right in front of Tobiah. He truly respected the Hignd Tribe. With time, he believed Tobiah would understand. This was not about bribing hearts with rewards or temptation, but about genuine respect. After several hours, light finally appeared at the end of the passage. When they stepped out, what greeted them was a ruin hidden deep within a towering forest. The surroundings werepletely silent, without even the sound of a bird, and it felt as if they had been cut off from the world and entered another realm entirely.


    Even the young Hignd Tribe warriors fell silent, losing their earlier liveliness. Nyx whispered, "The dark energy here is ancient and lingers ---- without dissipating." Andrew''s expression remained calm as he nodded but said nothing. Tobiah had his bearers set him down. After straightening his clothes, he climbed a stone stairway and beckoned Andrew and the others to follow. At the top of the stairs stood a stone statue. It was not particrly massive, just about 25 feet tall or so. It was clearly a powerful werewolf, now petrified. Beside the statue was a tall, muscr man.


    He was frozen mid- leap, his fist smashing into the werewolf''s face and tearing flesh. Though the statue had captured that single moment forever, the explosive power and impact seemed to burst forth from the stone. The leaping man''s other hand had pierced the werewolf progenitor''s heart. Meanwhile, the werewolf''s massive head was lowered, its two giant fangs buried deep in the man''s neck. Tobiah brought over a bowl of some liquid and sshed it before the statue. Othniel led the other warriors, including Hershel, to kneel before the strong man in the statue.


    They chanted in the Hignd Tribe''snguage, clearly performing some kind of worship. ---- Andrew and his group watched from the side without interfering. Knox stepped forward and also knelt and bowed. Then, he stood and said to Andrew, "This is our Hignd Tribe''s forbidden ground. Therger figure in the statue is Fenrir, the first werewolf progenitor. The other man is our ancestor, Arcturus the Unbroken." Andrew nodded and reached out to touch the statue. Tobiah warned him, "Andrew, once you touch it, you''ll be drawn into a vision of the ancient battle between Arcturus and Fenrir.


    Also, Fenrir''s statue is formed from pure dark energy. Anyone who touches it will be corrupted and their mind tainted, so please be extremely careful." Andrew only paused for a moment at these words before calmly cing his hand on the statue. His entire body shook, and everything before his eyes faded away. Nyx and the others vanished. In their ce, he found himself plunged into an ancient battle, with thunderous roars and the sounds of ughter suddenly flooding his ears.