After the snowfall, the forest was covered with a layer of white.
Shao Xuan went out to hunt with the hunting team. Most of the beasts were thick-skinned but hairless. They rarely came out in the winter, so most of the beasts they hunted were hairy, which could be made into fur coats.
Because of the participation of Shao Xuan, the Elder, many people participated in the winter hunt. Everyone was very enthusiastic.
In addition to hunting, Shao Xuan also went to the dry riverbed to fish some stones back. When he was free, he would make some glowing crystals for everyone to use. The winter night would be darker, so the crystals would make it easier for everyone to move around.
During the winter hunt, Shao Xuan hunted a hairy giant beast, which he used as a sacrificial animal clothing.
When the snowfall in the forest increased, the people in the tribe stopped going out. The river around the tribe was also frozen, so there was no need to build a bridge. They could walk directly on the river. The children in the tribe liked to play on the river.
For the people in the tribe, winter meant boredom. Every day, they would gather in groups of three to five to exercise their muscles and bones, and teach the new warriors. Since they couldn't go out to hunt, they could only use other ways to vent their energy.
Shao Xuan spent most of his time in the house studying the cloud patterns. Occasionally, he would come out for some exercise, and then he would study again. Sometimes, he would ask the craftsmen in the tribe for advice. Their craftsmanship came from their ancestors, who learned it from them, and then summed up their own experience and passed it down from generation to generation. They had a good understanding of the casting and forging styles of each faction, and had a lot of contact with the works of the Xia people.
However, the craftsmen in the tribe didn't know much about the cloud patterns that Shao Xuan asked about. The craftsmen did give Shao Xuan some handwritten notes from their ancestors. Because the craftsmen sorted them out by themselves, they were messier than the ones left by the Shaman. Some of them were missing parts, or they weren't clear. Shao Xuan could barely read them.
In order to express his gratitude, Shao Xuan gave them a few glowing water sun stones, which made the craftsmen very happy.
He spent the winter studying cloud patterns and making water sun stones. When Shao Xuan heard the cheers outside, he realized that winter had already passed.
Winter came late here, and the days where they couldn't hunt weren't long. This made Shao Xuan unable to react when he heard the noise outside.
"It's over so quickly!" Shao Xuan stood up and shook the leaves off his body. He pushed the door open and walked out.
Because of Shao Xuan, some families in the tribe also used the Water Sun Stone. Even on a moonless night, other than the light from the fire, some sparkling lights could be seen.
And now, the two crescent moons that had disappeared in the sky had reappeared. From now on, the sky would be illuminated by them for the next year.
The moon came out and winter was over. The most important thing for the tribe was to offer sacrifices.
They were in different places, but the time was synchronized. There was no such thing as day on one side and night on the other. No matter which Yanjiao tribe it was, they all used the moon in the sky as a reference. It was just that they didn't know if the exact time was the same.
The shamaness finalized the time and announced it. The tribe began to get busy preparing for the sacrifice. Shao Xuan was the only elder of the two tribes. His position was second only to the shamaness and the chief. Of course, he had a lot of weight in the sacrifice.
In the past year, the awakened warriors would sit closer to the front during the sacrifice. Because from today onwards, they would officially become part of the tribe's combat power. Even if they couldn't start hunting immediately and needed to go through a period of adaptation and training, they should have the awareness to become strong. They couldn't continue to play around like children all day long.
When night fell, all the tribe members gathered.
The fire in the fire pit had been lit by the shamaness. Shao Xuan, the shamaness and the chief stood closest to the fire pit.
Looking at the fire in the fire pit, as the shamaness chanted, Shao Xuan suddenly had a feeling that there was also a fire on the other side far away. He couldn't help but look in that direction. Far away on the other side of the sea, in the old haunt of the Fearsome Beast Mountain Forest, it should also be the day of the sacrifice.
There was no communication, but their hearts were connected.
The shamaness originally wondered if the ancestral bone ornaments would appear again in today's sacrifice. But as she chanted, she found that the fire in the fire pit was especially active today. It was even more vigorous than the day they welcomed Shao Xuan.
What was going on?
The shamaness shared some of her attention and focused on the fire pit.
Since the fire seed disappeared, the fire pit had only changed greatly twice. The first time was when they welcomed Shao Xuan last year, and the second time was now.
Whoosh —
The fire rose without wind.
It was like a giant beast waking up from hibernation, waving its sharp claws and roaring.
The fire rolled up, and the totem of the two horns appeared clearly. This time, it was much clearer than last year's ceremony to welcome Shao Xuan.
This change also surprised the tribesmen who were paying attention to the fire pit. They had never seen such a change before.
But Shao Xuan had seen it before, and more than once.
The first of the three Flames of the fire pit — Soaring Flame!
As if to confirm Shao Xuan's guess, soon, the fire in the fire pit rose up in an instant. At the same time, many flames flew out from the fire pit. The fire was fainter than the one in Shao Xuan's memory. It was not so much a flame, but a reflection of the flame.
Looking at the sparks in the fire pit and the flames flying out one after another, the tribesmen were stunned and didn't know what to do.
"This is …"
The shamaness looked at the scene in front of her and murmured. At this time, she had a guess. She suddenly turned her eyes to Shao Xuan, wanting to get an answer from Shao Xuan.
"The second Flame of the fire pit — Soaring Flame!" Shao Xuan whispered.
Synchronized!
The fire pits on both sides were synchronized!
Even across the sea, even though the situation on both sides was different, at this moment, at tonight's ceremony, the fire pits on both sides were synchronized!
On the four bone ornaments worn by Shao Xuan, the crimson beads emitted flames. Like last time, the eruption of flames wrapped around the surroundings and then formed a flame giant that rose from the ground.
Because of the previous experience, everyone was a bit calmer this time. They were only shocked by the floating flames that looked like shadows. This was the first time in their lives that they had seen it.
It was strange, but there was an inexplicable sense of intimacy in the bottom of their hearts.
The tall flame giant slowly turned around and looked in one direction, which was also the direction Shao Xuan was looking at before.
At the same time, in another place far away, in the Ferocious Beast Mountain Forest.
The Yanjiao tribesmen at tonight's ceremony were worried about Shao Xuan, who had disappeared for a long time. Since Shao Xuan's disappearance in the desert, the shamaness had sent people to investigate. It took a lot of effort to find out that Shao Xuan had been hunted down and jumped into the sea. He hadn't been seen since then. Because of this, the Yanjiao tribe had almost started a war in the desert. But later, everyone was called back by the shamaness.
"Xuan is still alive." The shamaness held the box containing the Elder's bone ornaments and told everyone with certainty.
Tonight, many people thought of Shao Xuan, but they didn't expect a flame giant to suddenly appear in the fire pit!
If Shao Xuan was here, the flame giant would have calmed them down. But now, Shao Xuan wasn't here!
The flame giant that appeared didn't have any other reaction because of the kneeling crowd. The huge figure formed by the flame slowly turned in one direction.
The shamaness looked at the light emitted from the box containing the Elder's bone ornaments and was so excited that her hands trembled, almost shaking the ornaments out of the box.
"He found them! Xuan must have found them! "
The others didn't understand what the shamaness meant. They only knew that Shao Xuan was still alive. That was enough.
"When will he return?" The shamaness asked in a trembling voice.
The others thought that she was talking about Shao Xuan, but Chief Ao knew that she wasn't talking about just Shao Xuan.
After the sacrificial ceremony, no matter which branch they were from, their hearts were not at peace.
The Yanjiao people in Fearsome Beast Forest were wondering when Shao Xuan would return. The shamaness and Chief Ao were wondering if Shao Xuan had really found the other Yanjiao people. On the other side of the sea, everyone was wondering what the flame giant was looking at and what the ancestor was trying to convey. Some people guessed the reason and couldn't sleep that night.
Chief Zheng Luo sent a team with Shao Xuan to the shore where Shao Xuan had come ashore to see if there was a passage under the sea. But they returned in disappointment.
Shao Xuan didn't even see the passage that he had come from, let alone a safe passage. They probably didn't meet at the right time.
Even if they did, Shao Xuan felt that other than himself, there might not be many people who could safely pass through there.
It was impossible not to be disappointed. Even though this place had a rich culture and they could live well here, Shao Xuan still wanted to go back and take the Yanjiao people with him.
Building a ship? With their current technology, they might not be able to build a ship that could support such a long journey. There were also many giant beasts in the sea. One tail could overturn them all. The danger was no less than the passage under the sea.
After thinking about it, Shao Xuan felt that if the "bridge" under the sea could be raised, then everyone could go from one continent to another just like they did a thousand years ago.
Unfortunately, he didn't have the ability.
Forget it, he would wait for another chance. Or maybe he would find another way.
By the time they returned to the tribe from the shore, the weather was already warm. Some people had already started to try planting in the small fields of the tribe. Even if they didn't plant much, as long as they could produce something to relieve the pressure of food, it was worth it. Besides, the shamaness had told everyone that hunting was important, but so was planting. This skill could not be neglected.
There was still some time before the next hunt. Looking at the people working in the fields, Shao Xuan asked some experienced growers some questions. He remembered that he still had some things in his hands.
Shao Xuan still had some of the "thousand gold grains" that he and Ji Ju had stolen from the rats. He had thought about planting them when he brought them back, but it was already the end of the year and he had other things to do. Shao Xuan didn't think about it anymore.
He took out the bag of grains. These grains had been dried by Shao Xuan. They didn't look as bright as before, and the husks were a little dark.
Looking at these dark golden grains, Shao Xuan put them away and took them to find experienced growers. In this climate, they should be able to try planting, right?
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