The sun rained down heavenly light upon Wu Niu's exposed body while the fire blazed brightly, radiating its warmth. The burning cold from the night prior had been almost entirely soothed away.

A whistling sound rang out from the lightly swaying tree leaves. With it, there came a cool breeze that gently caressed Wu Niu's bare skin.

The fire crackled and popped as the burning wood cracked apart. Smoke streamed upward into the sky, leaving behind the lingering scent of ash.

Wu Niu's clothes laid flat in front of the fire, dry and warm. The muck and grime were washed away in the river, leaving the orange outfit clean and sterile.

Wu Niu's whole body was in pain from head to toe. All of his leg muscles were strained to the point of debilitation, and he felt like he most probably couldn't walk even if he tried. his feet ached all over, but the worst of the pain was relegated to his toes. The skin tissue was gray, bloated, and dead. They needed to come off, and they were about to.

In Wu Niu's hand, he held a blade made of chipped stone. In his other hand were more orange cloth bandages fashioned from the sleeve of his robe.

"Let's do this."

Manually lifting his right leg forward with his hands, Wu Niu felt as the worn muscles in his thighs painfully stretched forward. Then setting his right foot onto a smooth and warm stone, he placed his toes on the rock as if it was a cutting board.

-This is going to hurt a lot.

Slowly angling the chipped stone above his pinky toe, Wu Niu breathed in and then let out a deep sigh.

-Okay

The rock smashed down into Wu Niu right pinky toe crushing the bone underneath the bloated surface flesh. Pain bolted through his body like a lightning strike.

Inspecting it closely, Wu Niu noted that his toe was only cut about a fifth of the way through. The tools he had to work with were far too blunt and primitive for an operation such as this, but it was the best he had on hand.

-No use complaining.

Slamming the rock down once more, the bloated flesh peeled away and exposed shattered bone. Blood seeped out and flowed down the sides of the rock, like a disturbed waterfall.

Wu Niu knew he had to get this done as fast as possible. He had lost enough blood within the last few days, and he wasn't planning on seeing grey. Ignoring the grueling pain, he began hastily chopping away at his toe.

***

The smoldering remains of the fire crackled as it's residual heat began to fade away.

Wu Niu was lying down naked, trying to absorb the sun's warmth. His feet wrapped in bandages where his toes used to be.

For an hour or two, Wu Niu had been relaxing, watching the clouds float westward. It was much-needed and deserved relaxation. Although it didn't do much of anything to help cope with the trauma he faced.

The sun was soon to set, and Wu Niu had to leave and find shelter—or that would be the case if he didn't already know where shelter was. Over on a hill on the other side of the river, he could see the smallest opening.

Though it was about a mile's walk away, Wu Niu could see what looked like the mouth of a cave. The problem was that it was on the other side of the river, and he didn't see an easy way to ford it without getting his clothes wet in the process.

Wu Niu sat and pondered on that thought for a moment while looking his clothes over. He knew that he couldn't throw his pants and robes due to their lack of mass.

-I could throw my shoes across but not my…

Wu Niu's eyes stopped on a rotund stone laying at his feet.

-Got it.

Bending forward, Wu Niu lifted the stone and wrapped his clothes around it.

Then slowly lifting himself onto his feet, Wu Niu winded his arm back with the clothing wrapped stone in hand. Then summoning all of the arm strength he could muster, he lobbed the stone over the river to the other side.

The stone successfully landed on the other side of the river, fracturing into pieces.

Wu Niu sighed with relief as he picked up one of his shoes and threw it over, just missing the other side.

"No!"

Wu Niu looked on in disappointment as his shoe floated downstream.

Now having only one shoe of a pair, it was rendered useless in its original purpose as far as Wu Niu was concerned.

-Well, it looks like I'll be walking barefoot from this point on.

Looking down at his lone shoe, Wu Niu laughed and spoke.

"Well, I guess this can serve as a good cup."

Wu Niu's shoes were made out of leather infused with some leather enhancing qi. In other words, the density of the leather was increased and made more sturdy. It's standard practice for craftsmen to imbue their products with enhancing qis to increase its quality. Unfortunately, you won't find many qi enhanced items greater than the "Bronze" qi realm. It's not like it's impossible. It's very possible. However, as it stands, cultivation and crafts are both very time-consuming arts, and not very many craftsmen have the time to cultivate.

-I'd better burry the fire.

Sitting back down, Wu Niu threw his dismembered toes into the smoldering embers. Then digging up handfuls of dirt, he poured them atop the cinders, thoroughly smothering them.

-Time to go for a swim.

***

By the time Wu Niu made it to the cave mouth, the sun was setting behind the mountains. He was now fully clothed and dry except for his bare feet, which were neither clothed nor dry. The orange cloth bandages wrapped around his feet were soaked from the river's water. It was uncomfortable, but it wasn't unbearable.

Now that the situation was no longer dire, the intense feeling of hunger beset Wu Niu. He ignored the sensation because he needed sleep more than anything else.

Slowly peaking over into the cave, Wu Niu saw that there was nothing big inside it that would be capable of killing him. The cave was small and dry. The perfect environment to convert into a temporary abode.

Wu Niu stepped inside the cave and walked to the back where he laid down along the cave wall.

Closing his eyes, Wu Niu attempted to fall sleep. Suddenly, as if a spigot to his emotions burst wide open, swelling sadness spilled out from his shattered heart.

Wu Niu loudly cried long into the night until he eventually fell asleep. That night he would have numerous waking nightmares about many various related and unrelated things, all with one reoccurring theme. That one theme being betrayal.

The whole ordeal was deeply traumatizing. Especially to a 12-year-old boy, who had been so trusting of the people who he thought loved him.

Wu Niu had always been treated so well by every one of the Wu family estate, and he came to think that they genuinely cared for him, but now it was clear as day; it was all an insincere facade. They only pretended to care about him because they thought he would one day become a powerful practitioner.

It was now that Wu Niu discovered the self-serving nature of humankind. He wished he never had.