Chapter 227 - Return
Translated by Lesyt Team
Edited by Ilesyt
The rain poured down on the earth.
With the arrival of the rainy season, those huge river rulers began their annual migration.
In some invisible places of the river, there were many aquatic creatures doing the same thing as the river rulers.
Compared with the active creatures in the river, the people of the Flaming Horns tribe were much quieter. Except the guards who were arranged to stay in various places, most people stayed at home.
One insect climbed out from an unknown place and it was moving its countless claws to climb into the house very fast.
Snap!
A wolf paw hit the insect heavily to kill it, for it was going into the house.
Caesar was lying in the room, and he almost filled the whole room. His head rested at the door. He looked like a doorkeeper, and killed whatever tried to go into the house without any delay.
Old Ke was standing in the room where he usually polished the stone tools and looking at the rain outside the window. His eyes were filled with hope.
Behind him, many wooden box had been packed and put there. At the corner of the room, there were some old stone cartons and boxes of different sizes. But those could not be taken away.
“Ok, I...”
In the tribe, like old Ke, many had already packed their things at home. There was limited space, so everyone could only take away a limited amount of things. If anyone wanted to take more things, he or she had to report it to get the permission. Otherwise, his or her things would be thrown away. If anyone didn’t want to abandon his or her things, he or she could stay here.
At the top of the mountain, Shao Xuan looked at the Shaman standing next to the of the fire pit and was saying something.
In this period of time, the Shaman came here once every day.
The Shaman said that it was a kind of ceremony, a farewell ceremony. When the rainy season ended, the tribe would leave this place where their ancestors and they had lived for nearly a thousand year. Naturally they also had to take away the fire seed.
The fire seed in the fire pit was always burning no matter how the weather was.
After today’s ceremony, the Shaman turned around and left the fire pit and walked towards Shao Xuan.
“Shao Xuan, what will happen after the Flaming Horns tribe returns to the old land. What’s your idea?” The Shaman asked.
Shao Xuan thought about it for a while, and said, “We will no longer have a peaceful life.”
“Yes.” The Shaman overlooked the waves of the vast river. Although he spoke with mixed feelings, his eyes still showed his determination.
Next to him, Ao did not speak, but his face showed his pleasure. Clenching his fists showed that he was still excited at the moment. As the chief, he would be remembered by the descendants long after he died. This was an important turning point in the tribe’s history, and their names would be recorded on the animal skin volume that would be passed down one generation after another. This was the top honor.
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Standing at the top of the mountain for a while, the Shaman, Shao Xuan and Ao went back to the stone house. The two teamleaders and several other old people had arrived there.
“Well, let’s confirm the return plan again today.” Ao opened an animal skin volume, and said.
Every two days, they gathered here to have a discussion. If they didn’t come here to discuss about the plan, they would feel something was wrong. As an important member, Shao Xuan was often asked to come here for he was the only one who had ever undertaken a voyage.
————
When the rainy season finally ended, even the people who had been quiet now became very excited.
It was time to leave.
For most of them, this place was like their old land, for their grandfathers’ grandfathers had been born here and had passed away here. It was absolutely impossible for them to have no nostalgia for this place, but the Shaman said this was not the old land of the Flaming Horns tribe.They believed him and went back together with the hope of their ancestors.
The people on the mountain went down with large and small boxes. Men and women walked along the road of glory in groups, perhaps, this was their last time to walk along this road.
A child holding his own animal skin bag followed his parents going down the mountain. Halfway, he turned around to look to the direction of his own house, and cried for some reason.
A rough big hand was put on the head of the child, and turned his head to the front. “Watch ahead and don’t look back.”
“Ok.”
At the foot of the mountain, Ge and several people usually responsible for sending food to the cave guided the children in the cave to leave.
Chacha grabbed several boxes tied by old Ke and flew to the ship on the artificial lake. Caesar carried old Ke down the mountain with the others to the lake.
They boarded their ships according to the arrangements. They had adapted to the life on board ahead of time so they would not feel uncomfortable immediately after boarding.
Shao Xuan was asked to go up the mountain to help the Shaman, who had the most things. Others could take less packages, but the Shaman could not do so. Even if the Shaman wanted to take less packages, others did not want him to do so, for many of his packages were the things left by their ancestors.
The warriors carried the boxes very carefully, as if what they were holding something fragile. They were respectful of these things so their bodies were quite stiff, and they took each step cautiously.
After carrying something down the mountain, Shao Xuan went to see old Ke and learned about his situation. He confirmed that everything was going on well and then climbed the mountain.
Before going to the mountain top, Shao Xuan went to the cave to have a look.
Since he woke up in this cave, quite some time had passed.
Shao Xuan came to the stone room with the mural, and looked at the mural on the wall. He fixed his eyes on the end of the mural and thought about it for a while. Then he carved a few words with his stone knife in the blank - We returned to the old land.
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After finishing carving the words, he added a word at the end of that sentence: “Xuan”.
Standing up, Shao Xuan blocked the vent with stones and straw, and then went out.
A gust of wind was blowing, and he could still smell the smell of fish.
Shao Xuan looked at the stone wall close to the entrance of the cave. There were still some words left carved by him when he hadn’t awakened the totem power yet, and some pictures drawn by him with carbonized twigs.
Besides Shao Xuan’s paintings, a variety of traces were left here, for the children had lived here for nearly a thousand year. There were also fish bones, old beast skins, and messy straw in piles...
Exiting the cave, Shao Xuan moved a big stone not far from the cave to block the entrance of the cave in order to cover the cave.
When he arrived at the mountain top, everything had been moved away. He didn’t need to do anything else, but the Shaman did not let him leave.
Besides Shao Xuan, Chief Ao, the two teamleaders, Mai and the other heads of hunting teams, and a few elderly people always involved in the discussion had not left.
The Shaman led them to the top, and then came down. The Shaman was holding a small flame in his hand. The flame was much smaller than it was in the fire pit, like that of a birthday candle. It was held in the palm of his hand.
Chief Ao went next to the Shaman, and Gui Ze, as the next shaman, helped the Shaman hold the stick and stood on the other side, slightly behind Ao. The others were standing around to protect the Shaman.
While walking along the road of glory down the mountain, on both sides of the road, two rows of warriors were standing there. All of them were intermediate totem warriors or above.
When the Shaman passed them, the standing warriors knelt down to show their greatest respect. They rose when the Shaman left and followed him in the back. Each of them had red eyes.
The Shaman didn’t go fast from the road of glory to the artificial lake where twenty-three ships were moored. However, no one complained about this. The people who had boarded were not impatient.
The largest ship had been docked and a wooden ladder was put down from the top.
On the ship, there was a “fire pit” as small as the basin. The Shaman brought the fire seed to the ship and then placed it into the small “fire pit”.
When the Shaman was ready, Ao announced the beginning of their voyage.
Woo~~!
The sound of a bone horn was heard. Then each person in charge of each ship gave the order to start the voyage.
They had received training, though they could not control the ships as skillfully as Shao Xuan did.
All the ship had left the artificial lake one by one. The water gate between the lake and the river was opened, so the ships gradually entered the river after leaving the channel.
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At the head of the fleet,
“Well, be careful. Don’t separate from the fleet!” Ao roared.
The fleet travelled farther and farther, and the mountain they had lived looked smaller and smaller. Each of them would have the same experience which Shao Xuan had had.
Under the water, large and small piranhas were active. If you looked down while standing at the edge of the ship, you could see many big fishes which were longer than a man. When the fishes swam past the ships, they hit the ships from time to time and the ships shook.
During the journey, Shao Xuan, who had stayed in each ship to make observations, found that the farther the ship was from the central ship, the more it was hit by the fishes.
Shao Xuan hadn’t known the reason at first, but had guessed it. In his special vision, he saw that the central ship emitted a light and influenced those closest ships. That was why they were rarely hit by the fishes.
The fire seed?!
Holding Chacha’s feet, Shao Xuan went from the outer ship to the central one. He told his discovery and guess to the Shaman and the chief, but he did not tell them about his special ability.
“Because of the fire seed?” The Shaman thought about it and his eyes flashed. “Yes, the fire seed. It is able to protect the tribe from the attacks of other beasts, ferocious beasts and the fishes in the river.”
Then the Shaman read the Shaman-spell as he did in the ritual ceremony to make the flame spread across the entire fire pit. But the fire pit on the ship was much smaller.
“Let everyone get close.” The Shaman said to Ao.
Ao went out and told the Shaman’s order to everyone. The other ships got closer to the central one, but they could not get too close. If so, an accident may happen.
Out of the cabin, Shao Xuan saw the light emitted from the central ship was much brighter and also expanded to cover the ships close to it.
After that, the other ships were seldom hit by some big curious fishes, so they were safer than he had been during his lonely voyage.
Day by day, everything was going on well. In order to save time, besides the use of sails, the people on each ship took turns to paddle. This time, Chacha didn’t push the ships, but they picked up speed. Once they confirmed the direction, they directly moved forward. They tried to take a straight route, unless they encountered some floating large fish bodies and avoided the danger. After all, if they failed to reach the other side of the river before the water level dropped, all their efforts would be in vain. If so, their tribe would be extinct.
At the same time, Shao Xuan had a strange feeling again.
This time, thanks to the fire seed and more helpers, Shao Xuan had a little more leisure time. He spent his free time in observing around the river carefully. He even observed the sky, the clouds, the moon, the stars and so on.
Shao Xuan suddenly made a guess.
Perhaps the river was not as vast as he imagined.