From the grasslands to the dry and barren land where the thousand-grain gold was found, Shao Xuan used the knowledge Ji Ju taught him to identify herbs and told the tribesmen to prepare some.
Along the way, there were too many things. They were hunted down, and there were all kinds of dangers in the forest. The injured had used up a lot of medicine. The medicine given by the Taihe tribe was almost gone. Although they had picked some herbs along the way, they couldn't withstand the huge consumption. Now, they didn't have much medicine left. Those who had not awakened their totemic power, as well as the elderly, would inevitably fall ill after a long period of time.
It had been twenty days since they set off from the tribe. There was still a long way to go and they had to keep going. Naturally, they had to prepare more herbs.
Shao Xuan taught the tribesmen how to identify the herbs in this area. If they encountered any, they had to pick them and prepare.
Looking up at the sky, Shao Xuan noticed a bird flying high in the sky. He could not see what it looked like. It flew too high and nimbly. Even arrows would not be able to shoot it down.
"What's wrong?" asked Zheng Luo as he walked over.
"That bird appeared again." Shao Xuan pointed at the shadow in the sky.
"Again?" Zheng Luo was alert. "It must be someone's pet or it's tracking our movements."
"Chief, why do you think the people from Royal City haven't appeared yet?" asked Shao Xuan.
"You mean … that bird belongs to Royal City?!"
Zheng Luo fell silent. He wasn't someone who didn't know anything. He knew that once the people in King City decided to deal with someone, they would definitely take action. The people they had met before were just tentacles that the people in King City had released first.
Since other people could track the movements of the Flaming Horn tribe, the people of King City must know something. They didn't show up, maybe they were waiting for the best time.
"They're here too?" asked Zheng Luo. Although it was a question, Zheng Luo was already fifty percent sure.
"The Royal City's people aren't used to the forest, so they haven't made a move yet. They're probably waiting for us to leave the forest and go to an open area before making a move." Shao Xuan thought about the terrain of the place they had passed through when they first came here. "After leaving this barren mountain, we will pass through a more open area with more people. The road is also relatively flat. Only after passing through that area will we enter the semi-desert area. The people from the Royal City are most likely to appear on the road in the middle. "
Zheng Luo's heart sank. Although they didn't like the pretentious people in King City, they had to admit that the Six Aristocratic Families, who used to be the strongest tribes, were definitely not to be underestimated, to be able to take down their current territory and develop to such a scale. There were children, old people, and women who hadn't awakened yet. They couldn't let go of the battle at all, nor could they give up on these people. As for the solution, the only way was to leave some people behind to block the Royal City's pursuit team and let the rest of the tribe continue their journey.
Against the people from the Royal City, it was very likely that they would never be able to keep up with the team. They couldn't even be cremated. However, for the tribe, sacrifices were inevitable. Even Zheng Luo was prepared to stay behind.
"We have to arrange for some people to stay behind the team." Zheng Luo looked at the barren mountains around them and said, "I'll discuss this with Duo Kang."
While the team was hurrying, Zheng Luo talked to the warriors according to the situation of each family. Some families were supported by one person, so they definitely couldn't let him stay behind the team.
Zheng Luo calculated that to temporarily block the Royal City's team, at least a thousand people would be needed. Otherwise, it wouldn't be of much use.
Zheng Luo wanted to add himself, but he was the chief and had to lead the team. Even if he wanted to, the others wouldn't allow it. How could a team without a leader move forward? Should they appoint a new chief now?
"I'll just join. Brother, you lead the team and keep moving," said Zheng Cheng as he strode over.
Although Zheng Cheng was rash, he wasn't much weaker than Zheng Luo. Otherwise, he wouldn't have competed with Zheng Luo for the position of chief. Usually, the two brothers didn't see eye to eye. Now, Zheng Cheng stood up.
Zheng Luo looked at his younger brother and suddenly felt his eyes sting. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Zheng Cheng. "Don't talk nonsense. That's it. How many people are there? Let me see. "
Zheng Cheng snatched the name sheet from Zheng Luo's hand. "Oh, Duo Kang and Guang Yi are here too. Wacha is here too. Mm, not bad, not bad. There's also Zhui, he's got guts. And Shao Xuan … Eh, that's not right. Brother, why is Shao Xuan's name on this? How can you put Shao Xuan's name on this? You're getting more and more muddle-headed as a chief! "
Zheng Cheng took the opportunity to scold his brother.
Zheng Luo was stunned too. He snatched the sheet back. He had told everyone about it during the break. Then, he placed the sheet on a rock for those who met the requirements and were willing to stay to write their names on it. There were too many people there so he didn't notice. When did Shao Xuan write his name?!
Anyone in the team could stay, even Zheng Luo. Only two people couldn't stay. One was the shamaness. Many things couldn't be done without the shamaness. This time, the shamaness had to be with them. The other person was Shao Xuan.
Shao Xuan was the tribe's elder and wore the ancestral bone ornaments. If they wanted to bring the tribe back to the old land, other than the shamaness, they couldn't do it without Shao Xuan. Plus, Shao Xuan was from there. Without Shao Xuan, even if they could go back, it would be difficult. They didn't know anything about the other side.
"Cross it off, cross it off. Hurry up and cross off Shao Xuan's name!" Zheng Cheng dug out a ball of dark green mud from somewhere and pasted it on Shao Xuan's name.
In the next few days, the team continued on their journey. Zheng Luo continued to check the name list to see if they met his requirements. When they were about to leave the barren mountains, Zheng Luo gave the final name list.
These one thousand people would be at the back of the team. If they encountered people from Royal City, they would have to hold them off. They would be the tribe's last shield against the Royal City's spears.
There was a mournful atmosphere in the team. However, they had already explained everything in the past few days. These people knew what they had to do and the possible consequences.
Zheng Luo finished reporting the name list and gave a simple explanation. He put away the cloth and wiped his red eyes. Although he had seen many casualties along the way, this time, it was not the small forces from before. It was a tough battle. As the leader, Zheng Luo felt sad too. However, in order to go back, the necessary sacrifices had to be made. If there was a need later, he would step up himself.
He rubbed his eyes and opened them to see Shao Xuan standing in front of him.
Knowing why, Zheng Luo coughed. "Shao Xuan, you know that everyone else in our tribe can stay, including me. We can all stay behind. Only you and the shamaness can't. If not, who's going to lead the tribe back to the old land?"
Shao Xuan paused. "I just want to try."
"Try what?" Zheng Luo was confused.
"If we meet people from Royal City, I want to try to stop them. If I can't, I can at least cause them some trouble."
"You? What trouble do you want to cause them … No, you want to borrow the power of our ancestors?! "Zheng Luo glared at Shao Xuan.
"Yes." Shao Xuan nodded.
"No, you want to borrow the power of our ancestors to bring the tribe back. You can't risk it here. It wasn't easy for us to get here. You can't gamble with this!" Zheng Luo refused firmly.
"If our ancestors were here, they wouldn't want everyone to die here just to go back. Chief, you know that I can survive a king beast. If people from Royal City come, I can survive too. Plus, I can make it easier for the warriors and buy more time for the team. "
"No!"
"The ancestors agreed."
"You …"
"Ask the bone ornament if you don't believe me." Shao Xuan took it off and handed it to Zheng Luo.
Zheng Luo's facial muscles twitched. How the hell did he have the ability to communicate with his ancestors? It was always the shamaness who communicated with them!
Seeing that Shao Xuan was still staring at him, Zheng Luo looked at the bone ornament in front of him, then turned his head and waved his hand. "Go find the shamaness! We'll do whatever she says! "
Shao Xuan grinned. The shamaness wouldn't object.
Indeed, the shamaness didn't object. When she heard Shao Xuan say he wanted to stay behind, she stared at Shao Xuan expressionlessly for almost ten minutes. Shao Xuan's forehead was sweating. Finally, she said lightly, "Go."
If it wasn't for the bulging veins on the back of her hand from gripping her walking stick too hard, people would have thought she was as calm as she looked.
No one could be calm at a time like this. They were confused and uncertain about their future, worried and anxious about what was to come. However, they had already come this far. There was no turning back.
Walking out of this barren mountain, the view became wider and more human. Because people often walked on the grass, several clear paths were formed. There were also some clear ruts on the ground.
The people around them were all trading teams from different tribes. However, compared to Hei Xiong's caravans, they were much smaller. They were just trading teams from smaller tribes. The largest group had less than a hundred people, while the smallest group only had twenty or thirty people.
When they saw the Yanjiao team, they all looked over curiously. They had never seen the Yanjiao people before. They were just curious about where this team had come from. They looked like they had traveled a long way. Their clothes were dirty and their faces were tired, but it couldn't hide their aura.
They were not to be trifled with. That was the first impression they had.
Thus, these people lowered their heads and hurried away. They were worried that the Yanjiao people would steal their goods.
Shao Xuan looked up at the sky. The bird was no longer there, but that didn't mean they had given up on watching. In fact, they didn't think there was a need to do so. They were almost here.
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