"That's right." Zheng Luo nodded. "Even if something happens in the desert, we can't do anything now. Why don't we use this opportunity to develop? We want to establish our position as the largest tribe in the Flaming River region, we don't have to worry about the desert. Even if something happens there, they'll fight their own battles and we'll do our own. "
The two shamans agreed.
"There's one more thing," the shaman said, "After this winter, Yanjiao will have to make some changes."
Shao Xuan knew what the shaman meant by "changes".
Actually, after the destruction of Wanshi, the tribe had been looking for a chance to make changes. After all, a tribe couldn't have two chiefs and two shamans forever if they wanted to continue developing. After the division of power, the people in the tribe would feel divided. It would be hard to make a decision on anything.
Now that the disaster was over, they were sure to live here for a long time. The new chief and shaman would be appointed soon.
Of course, Gui Ze would take over as the new shaman. Gui Ze also participated in the high-level meetings of the tribe. In the past year, the two shamans had passed on most of the knowledge they wanted to impart to Gui Ze. The rest would be left for Gui Ze to experience on her own.
As for the new leader, it was decided long ago that Gui He would succeed him.
Duo Kang and Ta would be the two main leaders. The two shamans and chief would step down and become elders like Shao Xuan. However, the Grand Elder would still be Shao Xuan.
Because they were prepared, no one was surprised when the shaman said this.
"When winter ends and the trading point reopens, we will invite the tribesmen from the Flaming River region over. Then, everyone will know who the chief and shaman of Yanjiao are," Ao said.
This was the result of Shao Xuan's discussion with them. When the trading point reopened, they would hold a banquet and invite the representatives of the tribes from the Flaming River region. In Ao's words, it was to "let them feel the power of the Flaming Horns".
As winter came, the temperature dropped. The ducks didn't come out of their sheds. The vegetable fields and animal pens were also protected. The green-faced fanged beasts went into hibernation again.
The days passed. It was the coldest time of winter.
It was still snowing.
However, for the Yanjiao people who had experienced the stormy winter here, this was a rather "mild" winter. Even the children who had not awakened their totemic power could go out and play for a while.
Many places on the Flaming River were covered in a layer of ice. Snow piled up on the surface of the ice, making the Flaming River look almost the same color as the land.
In the upper reaches of the Flaming River, on a bank slightly further away from the Yanjiao tribe, a huge fearsome beast walked in the snow. It shook its long grey fur and shook off the snow on its body. Then, it raised its head and looked ahead.
Even though it was far away, it could still smell the food coming from there.
His crimson red tongue stuck out and brushed past his sharp fangs.
It lifted its feet and walked forward.
The white snow was imprinted with the shape of a millstone-sized beast's claw. The white fog exhaled by the beast merged with the whiteness of the ground. Other than the sound of its footsteps on the snow, there was only the sound of its breathing.
It was getting closer.
It was getting closer.
There was a lot of food ahead.
It could even hear the sound of "food".
However, just as it was about to walk over, its body froze. There was a cracking sound under its feet.
The beast felt a sense of danger and its fur stood on end. It stopped moving forward and turned to run.
Unfortunately, it was still too slow. When it turned around, it used too much force and the thin layer of ice cracked. The cracks quickly spread to the surroundings. Large chunks of ice cracked and sank. The huge figure fell into the river.
Splash!
The splash of water broke the layer of snow on the surface of the ice. The beast's struggle made the ice crack even wider.
Under the water, a group of hungry piranhas with mouths full of sharp teeth became agitated and started biting. Even though many of them were pulled out of the water and flapped their tails in the snow, they still opened their mouths and tried to bite something.
The beast roared angrily, its voice echoing across the empty river.
Although the river was frozen in winter, the temperature didn't make the layer of ice thick enough, especially in the middle of the river. It was dangerous even for humans to walk on it, let alone larger beasts. They could only walk a short distance before their weight broke the layer of ice.
The beast was still struggling in the river. It waved its claws and many piranhas could be seen biting onto its skin. This was a common sight this winter. That was why even though the dangerous river was gone and the river was frozen, many beasts still couldn't break through the barrier. This made the Rain and Drumming tribesmen feel much more at ease.
However, this was only the case in this part of the Flaming River. If they went further upstream or downstream, would there be places with lower temperatures? Would the layer of ice be thicker? Would there be more beasts crossing the river from this side of the forest to the other side? They didn't know.
The Yanjiao people rarely went out to hunt in winter. They would only occasionally send a group of people to guard the trading point. The river was frozen and ships couldn't travel, so they had Chacha transport them by air. The two sides of the river weren't far apart anyway, so they could make a few trips back and forth.
Shao Xuan had thought of making some transport by air, like gliders and hot air balloons. However, although there weren't continuous strong winds in winter, there would be some from time to time. No matter what, the safest way was to have Chacha transport them by air.
Shao Xuan spent most of his time at home polishing lenses with Old Ke.
Today, Shao Xuan was polishing lenses when someone came to report.
"The shaman of the Drumming tribe is here!"
"The shaman of the Drumming tribe?" Shao Xuan put down the things in his hands and asked the soldier, "He didn't go up the mountain to look for the chief and shaman?"
"He did, but he said he was looking for you, Grand Elder," said the soldier.
Shao Xuan didn't know why the shaman of the Drumming tribe was here at this time, so he asked for the location and walked down the mountain.
Other than the meeting hall on the mountain, there was another one at the foot of the mountain. Most of the time, people from the other side of the river would meet there to discuss matters. At this time, the shaman of the Drumming tribe was already waiting there.
Before Shao Xuan walked into the stone house, he sensed something and looked up at the river.
The shaman of the Drumming tribe didn't come here on a raft because many parts of the river were frozen. He came here on a crocodile.
Shao Xuan thought that the crocodiles would find a place to hibernate and wouldn't come out in this cold weather. He hadn't seen any crocodiles in the past few days. Most reptiles didn't like cold weather. He didn't expect there to be something special!
On the surface of the river covered with a layer of snow, there was a long path in the middle of the river. A crocodile's head rested on the ice, facing this way.
When Shao Xuan looked over, the crocodile's closed eyes opened. Although they were a little far away, Shao Xuan could still see the dark brown irises in its eyes.
Looking away, Shao Xuan opened the door and walked into the stone house.
In the house, the shaman of the Drumming tribe was sitting by the fire, holding a shining crystal in his hand. That crystal wasn't a water moon stone, but a stone similar to water moon stones that Shao Xuan brought over from the other side of the sea.
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