After two sleepless days of deciphering, Shao Xuan drew the final result on an animal skin scroll.
Although he did not understand the cloud patterns on the cauldron, Shao Xuan already knew a lot from what he had pieced together.
The cloud patterns around the cauldron were like a guide.
Most of the Xia people's cauldrons, no, not just cauldrons, but other objects would have such cloud patterns. Just as Zheng Luo said, these cloud patterns were different from the decorative cloud patterns other craftsmen made when they were casting bronze. These patterns had inherent secrets and were almost publicly displayed to the world, but few people knew about them.
These cloud patterns were complicated but every successful Xia person had to master them. It was like an anti-counterfeiting symbol. Back then, the ancestors of the Taihe tribe could not replicate it even if they wanted to. Not only that, after deciphering the cloud patterns, Shao Xuan felt that they contained an even greater secret. Perhaps it was a secret about the Xia people or something more important.
What were the Xia people good at? Forging!
It was said that they were also good at making precision objects. The cauldrons they made were almost perfect circles. As for why there was a cauldron that failed to be forged, Shao Xuan did not know for now. However, from what he heard from others, the Xia people were indeed very capable.
Did the secret about the Xia people also involve forging?
In the information he deciphered from the cloud patterns, it mentioned a place. Xia descendants had to go there before they were considered true Xia people and worthy of the surname 'Gongjia'. Otherwise, they were failures of the Xia people.
Shao Xuan did not know how many years ago the Xia ancestors set this cloud pattern but this cloud pattern had existed for at least a thousand years. It had existed even before the Yanjiao people arrived!
Forging … This was indeed something that Shao Xuan was very interested. If he could master it, he would be able to master half of the Xia people's skills. His tribe's bronze wares would take a huge step forward. In this aspect, the Yanjiao people were indeed far behind. This tribe was still alright. The tribe on the other side of the sea probably still did not have their own metal weapons. However, there was a core seed there. If they went back one day, everyone would be able to use the skill.
As for the flat cauldron in the house, the cloud patterns on the three legs represented three words — Gongjia Mountain!
The pattern left behind by the Xia people was ultimately referring to Gongjia Mountain.
From the name, could it be the Xia headquarters? Or was it their ancestral land before the Xia tribe split up?
No matter what, Shao Xuan planned to follow the pattern and look around. If he could find the place and learn something from the Xia people, Shao Xuan's time would not have been wasted.
Shao Xuan went to the shamaness and the chief to discuss this. The chief wanted to send someone to follow Shao Xuan but there were only a handful of people who had the ability to follow Shao Xuan. Following Shao Xuan was not a burden. If they randomly sent someone, it would only affect Shao Xuan's movements. That was why only Guang Yi and Duo Kang were qualified.
In the end, Shao Xuan decided to go alone. He did not know how long he would be gone this time. The tribe still had a few trades with other tribes so he needed Duo Kang and Guang Yi to lead them. Shao Xuan himself had to stay in the tribe to hold the fort. Plus, the place he was going to was not familiar to the tribesmen so the others could not lead the way.
"Since I can find this place alone, I can go anywhere else. Don't worry," Shao Xuan said to the shamaness and the chief.
However, the Shaman and the Chief were still quite worried, and they took out some forged weapons and medicines.
Shao Xuan did not reject their kindness. He took a sword from Zheng Luo and some medicine from the shamaness. The shamaness had taught Shao Xuan how to recognise these medicines so he knew how to use them.
"It doesn't matter if we can't find Gongjia Mountain. Forging skills are not as important as staying alive," the shamaness reminded Shao Xuan to come back if he could not handle it.
Zheng Luo had the same thought. Although the cloud patterns Shao Xuan mentioned might have something to do with the Xia ancestral land and forging skills, he was more concerned about Shao Xuan. After all, Shao Xuan was the only person from the other tribe who came here safely. He was also an elder acknowledged by the ancestors. If anything happened to him, would the ancestors still protect them? Zheng Luo still wanted to bring the tribe back to Yanjiao's ancestral land when he was still alive.
"Mm, I know." Shao Xuan nodded.
You know nothing! The shamaness and chief cursed silently. They had no choice. If Shao Xuan was as mature as Guang Yi, they would not have to worry. However, Shao Xuan was too young. They were worried about a young man's temperament.
The Thousand Grain Gold's illness had been solved. Qi Qi and the rest could take care of it. Shao Xuan did not have to worry. Hence, on a sunny day, Shao Xuan set off to find the Xia's secret.
The first place he went was the river where he dug the water sun stones. After winter, when the snow melted, other than melting snow, there was also more rain. The river had risen.
There were more crocodiles in the river. Every time the hunting party went hunting, they would go around this area.
These crocodiles were very aggressive. They did not care who was on the river bank. All humans, wild animals, fearsome beasts were their prey.
In terms of size, the crocodiles here were bigger than the ones Shao Xuan saw in the Drumming tribe. There were also differences in their shapes. These crocodiles had longer snouts than the ones in the Drumming tribe. Their upper jaw was longer than the lower jaw and they had more teeth. The Drumming tribe's crocodiles had around sixty to seventy teeth. The crocodiles here definitely had more than a hundred teeth.
Their thick, nail-like teeth and their distribution in the crocodiles' mouths showed that these crocodiles were very good at catching prey. Their huge, sharp teeth could easily clamp down on their prey and drag them into the water to tear them apart.
Their powerful biting ability and well-developed muscles allowed these seemingly clumsy fellows to move with exceptional agility.
The crocodiles of the Drumming tribe, because they lived with humans, were more or less tainted with human emotions. Even if it was only towards the people of the Drumming tribe, it was still there. However, the crocodiles here wanted to kill everything. This was Shao Xuan's first impression of them.
The sun was just right. Many of the crocodiles were lying on the shore, basking in the sun. Some of them were rolling around in the mud, some were biting each other, or perhaps they were fighting. From time to time, there would be some hissing sounds.
When he was in the Drumming tribe, Shao Xuan knew that these creatures that only knew how to bite and kill were actually very smart and cunning. They didn't have big brains, but their intelligence was far beyond people's imagination.
When Shao Xuan lived in the Drumming tribe, he once saw a child from the Drumming tribe teasing a crocodile in the pond next to his house. Shao Xuan remembered that the child stood on the ground next to the pond. He didn't immediately throw the meat over. Instead, he first patted the crocodile's nose. This was like an agreement between them. After patting, the crocodile would open its mouth and wait for the child to throw the meat into its mouth before closing its mouth again.
The second time, the child took out another piece of meat from the basket. However, the crocodile in the pond retreated a little. The child wanted to pat its nose, but he couldn't. So he walked a few steps towards the pond and finished the game of patting the crocodile's nose.
The third time, the crocodile retreated a little further into the pond. The child continued to move forward. Both of his feet were already in the water.
When the child threw the meat into the crocodile's mouth, the crocodile swallowed the food. Then it quickly bit the child's clothes and dragged him into the water. The child, who was standing there with the basket, was instantly dragged into the water.
Shao Xuan, who was standing not far away, broke out in a cold sweat when he saw this scene. However, the people next to him told him that it was the tribe's Bao Yu playing with the children. They were just teasing the children.
Sure enough, when Shao Xuan looked over again, the rolling crocodile only bit the child's clothes. It didn't really bite him. The child was laughing and playing with the crocodile in the water. The meat in the basket had all fallen into the water and was divided by the crocodile in the pond. It was just a game.
However, the game of the beasts was closely related to hunting.
At that time, Shao Xuan knew that the crocodiles knew how to strategy and how to lure their targets. On land, the crocodiles might be slightly inferior, but in the water, even the Drumming tribe's people who were good at swimming were no match for the crocodiles. If the child was standing on the ground, his reaction might have been faster. However, he was lured into the pond by the crocodile and his movements were limited. He didn't even have time to move before he was dragged in.
The people of the Drumming tribe were used to it. In their eyes, it was just a game. However, in the eyes of others, the crocodiles were extremely dangerous demons. If the child was a member of another tribe, he wouldn't have been bitten by the crocodile. Instead, he would have been bitten by the crocodile's arm, leg or other body parts. After being dragged into the water, the possibility of him coming back to shore was very small. The crocodile's swaying dance and death roll were not a joke.
The people outside the Drumming tribe saw the crocodiles as killing machines.
Shao Xuan wouldn't provoke these killing machines, so he stayed far away. He didn't even get close to the river bank. He just followed the river to find the right direction.
Based on the patterns he deciphered, Shao Xuan followed the river until he found the bigger one. Then, he continued to follow the bigger one. The bigger river that didn't dry all year round was just an inconspicuous and easily overlooked tributary on the map.
From Quan Bai and the rest, Shao Xuan knew that there were crocodiles in these rivers and they had been around for a long time. Before the Taihe ancestors looked for herbs, crocodiles lived in the rivers deep within the forest, especially the thickest main river on the map. Quan Bai said that their ancestors had records of crocodiles. They said that there were extremely large, strange fish and fearsome beasts there. They were not to be trifled with, so they had to run for their lives.
Shao Xuan didn't know how big the crocodiles in the records were, but they were definitely bigger than the crocodiles in these tributaries.
Most creatures would stop growing after they reached a certain stage of development, such as humans. However, some creatures didn't. They were in the category of unlimited growth, such as trees and the crocodiles that lived in the rivers deep in the forest.
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