Chapter 129 – The Mutation
Translated by Sunyancai
It was a peaceful night. A few ferocious beasts quietly walked past the tree. They probably smelled Caesar’s blood so they looked up the tree. Then they swaggered away without doing anything threatening.
In the hole of the trunk, the insect no longer came out. Even when a flying insect flew to the tree hole, it no longer stretched out to open its mouth.
Shao Xuan guessed it was the profound craft that kept the other animals away, just like what happened with the tribal ceremony. Now, even though there was no flame, no ferocious beasts or other beasts attacked them, which might not be a coincidence.
In spite of knowing this, Shao Xuan still kept vigilant for the whole night.
In the early morning, the two moons gradually disappeared in the sky.
The birds in the tree had been twittering actively.
When the sunlight shone through the leaves, the birds that had stayed in the nests above Shao Xuan had already left.
Caesar’s wounds had stopped bleeding, the scabs there looked a bit horrible, but in fact, the wounds were healing up.
Lying on the bough, Caesar breathed steadily and did not wake up. Hearing his breath gradually become louder, Shao Xuan felt reassured temporarily. He also examined the broken bones in Caesar’s body, and found they now had recovered without even any traces of fracture.
Were these good changes brought by the profound craft?
Shao Xuan stood still for a moment in the tree, and listened carefully. He heard the sound of a wood whistle, so he guessed the hunting group was looking for them. He quickly took out his wood whistle and blew it according to their rhythm, which sounded like birdsong in the woods.
After a while, Mai came over with the others, looking for them.
“Ah-Xuan!”
When Mai saw Shao Xuan standing in the tree, he finally felt relieved.
The sight of Caesar shocked Mai.
“How did he get injured so seriously…” Mai didn’t continue because he became distracted.
No!
“He… he is…”
Pointing at Caesar lying there, Mai stuttered with doubts in his eyes.
“Is he…Caesar?” Lang Ga went forward to look at him carefully. “He was not so large yesterday. Why do I feel he grew up overnight?”
The others who came with Mai also nodded, glancing at Caesar constantly.
“He was injured yesterday, and experienced some changes.” Said Shao Xuan.
“But he has changed a lot.” Lang Ga muttered.
However, they shouldn’t talk about this at this moment. Their priority was leaving here and going back to the cave.
Mai and the others hadn’t gone back and kept vigilant for the whole night. At dawn, they continued looking for Shao Xuan, so they didn’t sleep.
Looking at their faces wrought with obvious fatigue, Shao Xuan felt very sorry.
“Sorry.” Said Shao Xuan.
Mai waved his hand, and said “Go back first.”
Although he would like to beat Shao Xuan here, he knew the priority was going back to the cave, for those waiting for them in the cave hadn’t slept either.
Shao Xuan put Caesar down slowly from the tree with the stretcher, for
Caesar hadn’t woken up.
Yesterday, the stretcher fitted him well, but today, when Caesar was put on it again, the stretcher was so small that half of his head and tail exceeded the edge of the stretcher.
Mai and the others picked him up under the tree. After they put down the stretcher, they said, “He became much heavier.”
“He became bigger and thinner.” A middle-aged man next to Mai whispered.
Caesar was raised very well, and he never got thin, even when he went hunting with the hunting group, different from those starving beasts in the woods. But now, Caesar looked skinny and even appalling.
With the help of Mai and the others, Shao Xuan found it much easier to
carry the stretcher to bring Caesar back to the cave.
People staying in the cave of the first holdout did not sleep well. Qiao and the others had waited for them at the entrance for the whole night. All of them were very anxious. The return of Mai and Shao Xuan with all the other members reassured them.
“It is good that all of you came back safely.” Qiao looked at those who had just returned. After carefully looking at Shao Xuan, she found he wasn’t hurt, and then she smiled.
“I’m sorry to worry everyone.” Said Shao Xuan, admitting that his leaving without saying a word was a mistake.
“That’s all right.” Qiao intended to ask them about what happened yesterday, with her eyes fixed on the stretcher. She first guessed Caesar got injured, and then she found something unusual.
“Go inside first.” Mai carried the stretcher to the cave.
Shao Xuan settled Caesar down and asked for some drugs to treat Caesar’s wounds.
When applying the drugs to Caesar, Shao Xuan briefly told everyone what happened to him after he left them.
The surrounding people were shocked by Shao Xuan’s words, especially Lang Ga.
Swallowing his saliva, Lang Ga thought it was unbelievable, and questioned, “The trap zone? Caesar led the wolves to the trap zone!”
He didn’t feel it was a pity that his traps were destroyed, but felt shocked that Caesar could trick his opponents with the traps.
“In addition, he also led them to the tar pit.” Said Shao Xuan. Standing next to him, Lang Ga could not help scratching his arm, and felt very horrified.
Since they went hunting, they always thought that only human beings could use the trap to defeat the beasts and ferocious beasts. It was unexpected that the animals could also do this. In the past, this was absolutely unimaginable.
“Why does Caesar look…”
“He mutated.” Said Shao Xuan.
To a certain extent, Caesar’s change was a mutation.
“Mutation?” Lang Ga didn’t understand this word.
“That is to say, Caesar may have become close to a ferocious beast, or even completely a ferocious beast.” Shao Xuan explained it briefly and directly.
Everyone was astonished.
This beast in the group had drawn much discussion from them, and now Shao Xuan told them that this beast changed into a ferocious beast.
A ferocious beast!
That was a giant leap.
Were they about to go hunting with a ferocious beast?
That sounded…disconcerting but also exciting.
“It depends. Let’s have a look when Caesar wakes up.” Said Shao Xuan.
“Well, since that none of us had a good sleep yesterday, let’s take a break today and go hunting tomorrow.” Said Mai.
Shao Xuan lay down against the wall, next to Caesar. He took out the fire crystal given by the Shaman from the animal skin bag when everyone didn’t pay attention to him.
He had spent a lot of the totem power on the profound craft last night. He concentrated on engraving and branding, and after having finished, he had to stay vigilant. Shao Xuan was so tired that he grasped the fire crystal to recover his power.
The fire crystal was originally red as fire, but the color became light, which was not very obvious, but Shao Xuan found it.
This change was not so obvious, but the power released by the fire crystal was enough for at least three warriors
It was unexpected that its power had been unconsciously consumed so much.
The profound craft was power-consuming, he should be more cautious in using it.
When Shao Xuan and the others took a rest in the cave, Mai led a few people to the trap zone.
In the trap zone, there were indeed several dead wolves which had been gnawed by other beasts and scavengers. Only bloody bones were left, because the smell of blood had attracted some animals.
“That is true…” Said Mai with wide open eyes after he took closer looks at a few traps.
“Ah Xuan did not lie.”
“Well, Caesar … really knows how to trap others.”
Not only Mai and his wife Qiao, but also the others who came with them, thought that if the cubs in the tribe changed like Caesar, they would…
“Mai, that would help us a lot!” Said Qiao.
“Their help may change the hunting group!”
They still had some concerns. If those cubs grew up, would they betray the group? However, since the Shaman had agreed, it must be a good thing.
The members of the hunting group had a simple mindset. Even though they had many other ideas, they believed it was absolutely right as long as the Shaman agreed.
Yes. All they had to do was to follow the Shaman’s words!
After figuring it out, Mai and the others felt more relieved. Several other people even thought about how to persuade Mai to catch cubs for his twins, and ask Shao Xuan to train them.
Mai didn’t say yes or no.
In the evening, everyone by the bonfire discussed the training of the cubs in the tribe in the future.
Suddenly, lying next to Shao Xuan, Caesar moved.
Lang Ga, nearest to Shao Xuan, also found Caesar move, so he went to have a look immediately.
“Ah , Caesar is waking up?”
Ready to look at him carefully, Lang Ga lowered his head. When he saw his eyes, he was dumbfounded.
Lang Ga felt like he fell into a pool of ice-cold water, a chill rushed over his scalp. All his muscles became tight, and his smile was wry. His veins in the arms stood out. He fought against his impulse of cutting him with his stone sword.
Caesar’s eyes were feral, cruel, and cold. Lang Ga saw such eyes in the woods every day.
“What’s up?” Asked the others who came.
Lang Ga opened his mouth, intending to tell everyone not to come closer. But he soon found the pair of eyes become gentler. When he looked at him again, he believed he was still the wolf familiar to him.
He was Caesar. Not a ferocious beasts from the woods.
When Shao Xuan came to check Caesar’s wounds, Lang Ga moved his cold hands with a wry smile, and said, “Nothing special. It’s good that Caesar has woken up.”
After waking up, Caesar slowly stood up and walked around in the cave.
“Why do I feel nervous every time Caesar approaches?” Said Tu to the people next to him.
“Me… Me too…” Said Jie Ba also.
Shao Xuan cut some meat left in the cave for Caesar.
Caesar’s appetite became much bigger, he still looked hungry after eating half a deer, as if he was not full. But there was not much food in the cave, so he didn’t continue eating.
The next day, the hunting group was ready to continue hunting. The skinny Caesar followed them.
“Why not let him rest for another few days?” Mai asked Shao Xuan.
“No, he is fine.”
Caesar was moving without hesitation. It seemed like he was looking forward to it, and could not help rushing into the woods. The sight of this made Mai no longer reject his company.
The pack of wolves was not seen near the giant-antler deer herd, so the
hunting group planned to get more deer.
They drove away the deer herd and aimed at the stray deer.
“That one!” Shouted Lang Ga, he intended to let Caesar drive the deer to him, only to see a dark gray figure flash across and rush to the deer.
Bang!
The deer and the dark gray figure fell down together.
When Lang Ga looked at them again, he found the deer had fallen to the ground, and Caesar was biting its neck.