Shao Xuan stayed in the stone room every day, learning all the patterns on the right wall. He also studied the paintings on the wall, thinking that they might be helpful in the future. Anyway, he had nothing to do.
Winter passed day by day, and it was much calmer than he had imagined. In this winter, all the kids in the orphan cave stored fish, and with the food and firewood distributed by the tribe, as well as some common winter herbs prepared by Ge for Shao Xuan, nothing unexpected happened.
Two days ago, a younger kid caught a cold and had a fever. Shao Xuan boiled the herbs Ge gave him and fed him. His condition stabilized within two days. As long as the kid could survive this period of time, he would be fine. If his body was too weak, the herbs would be useless, and he would disappear from the world like the original body of Shao Xuan. Fortunately, before winter, the kids in the orphan cave often went out for activities, so they ate well and their bodies became stronger. The morbidity rate was not as high as in previous years.
In the stone room, Shao Xuan put a fur mat on the ground. Sometimes when he studied the murals too late, he would directly sleep here. Drawing a pattern on the ground with his finger, Shao Xuan sighed after finishing one. Two-thirds of the winter had passed, and there were still about twenty or thirty days left. If he could survive this, he would feel much better. Staying in the orphan cave every day made him feel like he was going to get moldy and rusty. He felt listless.
While he was thinking, Caesar, who was lying next to him, moved his ears and looked outside the stone room.
Then Shao Xuan heard Ge's voice.
Today was not the day he had promised Ge to deliver food. Was it because he had been thinking too much in the stone room that he remembered wrongly?
With doubts, Shao Xuan walked out of the stone room and went to have a look.
"Uncle Ge, what are you doing?" Shao Xuan looked at the triangles he had drawn on the stone wall to keep track of time. Because Ge came every three days, Shao Xuan did not use the word "Zheng" to keep track of time. Instead, he drew triangles. However, there was still one stroke left for the last triangle, which meant that Ge would come tomorrow.
Ge stood next to the bonfire and shook off the snow on his clothes. He took out a roll of animal skin and said, "I'm looking for someone. Call all those who are over eleven years old here."
Shao Xuan took the scroll and looked at it. There were seven names written on it, including Stutterer and Butcher. The two seemed to have thought of something, and their eyes lit up as they looked over in anticipation.
The names written on the animal skin roll were the same as what Shao Xuan knew. Shao Xuan called the people over and woke up the two who were still sleeping. The person who was forcibly woken up from his sleep and was still in a daze stopped rubbing his eyes when he saw Ge and the children standing beside him. Suddenly, he quickly packed up his things and ran to Ge with a grin on his face.
Ge's sight paused on the fish tooth necklaces hanging around the seven children's necks. Then he glanced at the name tags they were wearing and checked them one by one. He was usually responsible for delivering food, so he had some impressions of the children in the orphanage. However, this time he could not be careless. He had to double check.
"Yes, these are the seven."
Ge put away the animal skin roll and threw a leather cloak to each of the seven children. He said, "Put it on and follow me out later … Mo-Er, you come with us."
Mo-Er was only eleven years old after the winter, so he was only ten years old now.
Hearing Ge's words, Mo-Er put on his clothes and carried his knife. Unlike the other children, who were either excited or envious, he calmly walked over, as if he had expected this.
"Alright, Xuan, you go back to sleep. I'll leave with the others first. I'll deliver the food on time tomorrow." Ge lifted the straw curtain and left with the children.
Shao Xuan lifted the thick straw curtain a little. The cold wind blew in and made his eyes hurt. His vision was a little blurred, but he could still see the thick layer of snow outside the cave and the path made by Ge. The snow on both sides of the path was higher than the children walking on the path. The little figures were shivering because of the cold, but they still followed Ge closely. Their footsteps showed no sign of retreating, instead, they were eager.
Shao Xuan put down the straw curtain and went back into the cave. The rest of the children in the cave were no longer sleepy. They all stared at the fire in a daze.
Shao Xuan knew why.
After the winter, there would be a Snow Festival and a sacrificial ceremony. The most important part of the ceremony was the annual totem awakening. Those who could awaken their totem power would become totem warriors. Those who failed to awaken their totem power would have to wait for another year.
Normally, children around ten years old in the tribe would be sent to the mountain for the pre-selection before the end of the winter. The Shaman would keep the children who had a higher chance of awakening their totem power, and send the others back. However, compared to the other children in the tribe, the children in the cave were generally weaker, so the pre-selection was delayed by one year. In other places, children were sent to the mountain for the pre-selection when they were ten years old, but in the cave, it was eleven years old. Mo Er was a special case. After all, Mo Er was not a pure child in the cave. Because of his frequent training, his body was much stronger than the other children.
The children who followed Ge to the cave were definitely not calm now. They all hoped that the Shaman would keep them this time, because as long as they were kept by the Shaman, ninety percent of them would awaken their totem power this time. Even if the remaining ten percent failed this time, they would succeed next year.
Shao Xuan was only nine years old now. After the winter, he would be ten years old. It was still early, so there was nothing for him to do now. After Ge left, he told the other children in the cave to look for him if they needed help. Then he went back to the stone room to continue studying the murals.
Four days later, when Ge came to deliver the food, he brought back four rather depressed children. Among them were Tu and Ba. The two oldest children, who were thirteen years old, were not here. After the winter, they would be fourteen years old. It would be strange if they did not awaken their totem power.
The former cave master, Ku, was also thirteen years old. He knew some people who lived on the mountainside, so he must have been training this winter. Many warriors believed that the stronger the body before the totem power was awakened, the stronger the power would be after the totem power was awakened. Ku asked someone to take him in during the winter. He could eat better, and he could also learn from the totem warriors. It was much better than staying in the cave. This was also the reason why Ku did not stay in the cave for the winter, but went up the mountain early this year.
"Don't be sad. It's just a matter of time. Maybe you can become totem warriors next year." Ge comforted the four depressed children, put down the food, and left.
"I really envy them. They are kept by the Shaman, and they can learn from him." One of the children brought back by Ge said.
"Hey, what did the Shaman say to you?" The other children also gathered around and asked.
"The Shaman …"
The four children, who had lowered their heads, suddenly raised their heads forty-five degrees. Their eyes were full of admiration and awe.
Shao Xuan curled his lips.
Teaching? Was it brainwashing?
That old faker.
Shao Xuan only cursed in his heart, but he would not say it out loud. Look at those four children. It had only been a few days, but they had been completely brainwashed by the old faker.
After this episode, the cave became peaceful again. Although Tu and Ba were still depressed, they still had to live their lives as usual.
One night, Shao Xuan was sleeping. He dreamed of two crescent moons, the melting of ice and snow, and fire … until he heard some shouts. The shouts were getting louder and louder, and he was awakened from his dream.
The shouts were not from the people in the cave, but from somewhere outside.
The older children listened carefully after waking up, and then their faces lit up. "Winter must be over!"
Shao Xuan yawned and wrapped himself in the fur blanket. It was still dark, and the fire in the cave had already been extinguished. They could not see anything, and only the children's voices came from everywhere.
Shao Xuan was led by Caesar to the entrance of the cave.
Lifting the thick grass curtain, they could hear the shouts more clearly. They could hear the excitement and joy in those voices.
Against the cold wind, Shao Xuan looked up at the night sky.
The snow had stopped, and the two crescent moons that had disappeared for a long time appeared again. Although they were just vague shadows, they brought some vitality to the dark night sky.
Winter was over, and the sacrificial activities of the Snow Festival were put on the agenda.
How many people would become totem warriors this year? This was what many people in the tribe were thinking when they were shouting excitedly.
Everywhere in the tribe, there were people standing outside their houses, looking at the night sky against the cold wind. When these people stopped shouting excitedly and discussed the upcoming Snow Festival, they suddenly heard a child's shouts from the other side of the cave.
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