At this moment, the people who heard the whistle blows rushed over too. They responded very quickly because emergencies like that happened often. There was no time to hesitate anyway. The entire area around emptied out instantly, all the people who were here left, including the children who were playing.
However, the problem ended as quickly as it began. Before a lot of people could respond, the matter was done with.
They looked at the dinosaur beast, whose head was slammed right into the ground, then at the person standing in front of it. They all looked at each other.
Fuck, who’s that?
Finally, the higher-ranked ones were shoved forward. They took a few careful steps towards Shao Xuan, saying, “You…”
When Shao Xuan turned around, they confirmed that they did not know this person but some who were on patrol duty yesterday took a look at him and said, “Eh, aren’t you the guy that Guang Yi brought in yesterday?”
At this moment, two people appeared at the fences.
“What’s the matter?” one of them asked.
The crowd’s expression changed when they saw the two, they spoke with much caution now. One of them briefly explained what just happened.
Tao Zheng had not been in the best mood. He had a very confusing meeting at the chief’s places yesterday. Today, he planned to hunt for food outside the tribe’s village but he ran into Zhui halfway there and it just made him feel worse. Zhui was an unpredictable guy, going hunting with him would just ruin his hunt. However, before they stepped out of the village, they heard all the commotion over here.
After understanding the situation, he did not think much of it. These things happened often, there were efficient systems in place to keep these animals in check. His gaze fell on the dinosaur, then at the stranger. His first response: hey, I haven’t seen this person before. He’s from our tribe? This is impressive.
His second reaction: Oh no!
Yep. Before Tao Zheng spoke, Zhui, who was standing next to him, had disappeared.
Everyone in the tribe knew Zhui was a man who liked to pick fights. Every time some warrior in the tribe performed well, Zhui would go ‘have a chat’ with them. Right now, there was a man who could slam a dinosaur into the ground, Zhui was excited as hell.
As he felt the surge of totemic power within him, he grew more and more confident. Shao Xuan and the rest of the crowd could sense the rush of energy from the advanced level totemic warrior.
Zhui was initially standing on a block of wood from the fence, now its top bit had been shaken off by the power vibrations. He hurled himself at Shao Xuan at extreme speed and utmost ferocity as if he had spotted an excellent prey in the forest. Everything around him melted away, all that was left was himself and the target he was fixated on.
That was why very few people were willing to hunt with Zhui. Most people could never get used to how his entire being would change in just one second, plus it was too difficult to keep up with him.
Before the person who was explaining the situation to them was finished, he had already charged ahead.
The warriors around them just watched. There was nothing to say, it would be useless for it was too late to stop Zhui.
Although they did not know who the other guy was, all the tribesmen were familiar with Zhui. He was the equivalent of a man who had consumed the blood of a beast, it would be difficult to stop him unless the chief or the tribe leaders were here. Other than that, they could only wait until he wore himself out.
Something bad’s going to happen!
This was what everyone thought at the same time.
They also wondered whose house would be collateral damage in this fight.
They pitied the guy. He merely fought one dinosaur and now he’s Zhui’s target.
In the face of the sudden attacker, Shao Xuan did not dodge. Instead, the moment Zhui moved, a surge of power as powerful as Zhui’s exploded from within Shao Xuan. Last night, Zhao Ming only saw faint tattoos on him because he was only using a little of his totemic power. Now, he unleashed all of it to his limit, the totemic patterns flowing like lava down his body, air rumbled around him in currents. Facing the fist rushing towards him, he stretched out his palm. He was ready.
An advanced-level totemic warrior?
Tao Zheng, still on the wooden block of the fence, was surprised. Before him was a stranger with Flaming Horn totemic patterns, an advanced-level warrior too. Was there such a person in the tribe? He suddenly thought of how he was summoned to the chief yesterday as he looked at the person in the pen. Could it be…
Boom!
A fist hit a palm, creating a deafening boom upon impact. Everyone could feel the vibration in their bones.
Shao Xuan did not dodge, merely facing the fist head-on.
It was like a rock fighting a rock.
Tao Zheng’s eyes flashed.
When Flaming Horn people fought against outsiders or hunted, they used other techniques but when they were competing amongst each other, they loved comparing strength, speed, power or any other physical attributes, fighting their opponent head-on. However, not many people in this tribe dared face Zhui head-on like this. And Tao Zheng knew them all, just not this one.
All the muscles in Shao Xuan’s body were tightly wound. The power in him was unleashed in an instant, he did not need to dodge or move or borrow something else for momentum support– facing the brunt of the attack himself!
To Shao Xuan, this was not like any other hunt- this was his first time ‘interacting’ with the other Flaming Horn tribe so he could barely suppress his excitement. He wanted to know: how did the powers of these people develop? Without the fire seed, what were they like? Everything was revealed just through one fight like a glittering sword slashing through a veil of questions. Even the roaring totemic flame in his mind seemed to be as excited as him.
It had been a thousand years…
To the rest of the people, it looked exactly like two hard boulders smashing into each other. It was hard to tell who would win.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Most people would barely make out the silhouettes, only several depressions in the ground here and there from what seemed like fists and punches (they were almost round) while the shallower ones were from hard kicks into the ground. Looks like someone would have to fill these holes up after the fight and it wasn’t going to be a simple task.
The crowd felt the ground shake as dust, pebbles and bits of grass flew as if there was a huge animal on a rampage.
They felt their bones vibrate with every thud, especially Zhao Ming, who was watching through the gaps of the wooden fence. He was utterly speechless by the entire thing- the person who stayed over in his house was an awesome fighter fit enough to fight Zhui!
Who was Shao Xuan? Why hadn’t he heard of this person? Were the chief and the leaders secretly training warriors?
Even the dinosaur dared not move. It had already successfully pulled its head out of the ground but after witnessing the sheer power of the impact between Shao Xuan and Zhui, it stuffed its head back in the ground… like a thief covering his ears while stealing a bell.
[Note: that’s an idiom, meaning blatantly ignoring a problem]
“Stop it this instant!” An angry roar came from afar like thunder.
Thud!
The two people separated.
Shao Xuan took two steps backwards, a thud with each footstep. Zhui slid backwards for a distance before stopping. Anyone near him could even smell the grass burning under his feet from the friction. If they looked closer, his straw shoes woven with vines were smoking.
Shao Xuan checked his clothes. He had often encountered ambush attacks in the forest, it had been a while since he could fight out in the open so he did not attempt to hide his capabilities. The pulsing air currents around him were difficult to control, the impact felt like two blades slamming into each other. That was why the clothes he was wearing had rips from the sharp air currents that surfaced so suddenly. Thank goodness his clothes weren’t too damaged or he would be naked in front of a lot of people.
It was the same for the other guy too. Zhui’s clothes were more torn than his.
Shao Xuan peered closer. This person looked almost as old as Guang Yi. He’d heard someone call him ‘big shot’ earlier. Was this guy the head of the hunting party?
Just as he was regarding Zhui and the rest, they were also observing Shao Xuan.
They saw how Zhui had slid back so far and yet Shao Xuan only took two stable steps back. And that was it.
They’d slammed so hard into each other and… Zhui lost?! This was shocking news.
Duo Kang, who had just appeared, had not understand what was happening. All he knew was that Zhui and Tao Zheng were preparing to head out for a hunt but then he heard all the commotion as he was heading down the mountains. Someone told him Zhui was picking a fight with someone again and hence he got very mad.
When he thought of this, Duo Kang was furious once again. He had just scolded them yesterday, now this!
Zhui was supposed to be with Tao Zheng, and he knew almost everywhere in this place anyway. The moment he stepped into the pen, he started scolding Zhui, who was wringing his hand in pain.
“Have you forgotten what happened yesterday? What did you promise the chief yesterday? Also…” Duo Kang went on a rant, his spit flying in Zhui’s face.
When he finished, Duo Kang’s expression was solemn for he was not done. He planned to scold the other guy too, starting with “AND YOU!” but then he stopped in his tracks.
After the word ‘you’, he did not make another sound. All he did was glare at Shao Xuan. His expression resembled a person who was being strangled- his face was red and he could not make out a sound.
No one knew what was the matter with him. His features were contorted, either due to rage or something else.
Duo Kang was staring at Shao Xuan, more specifically the necklace Shao Xuan was wearing. This was usually covered by his clothing so other people would not see it. However, after the scuffle, his clothes were torn in places, bits of fabric flapping in the breeze in his chest area. The fire red ball within the bone ornament had caught his eye.
He was not mentally prepared for this. There had been no signs! He had always thought it was just a story his ancestors passed down to their children… but it was here.
Was it a fake?
Just something similar?
Or… Was it real?
At this moment, Zhui, the situation, trivial matters were all tossed aside.
Ignoring everyone else, his eyes were still fixed on Shao Xuan but his hand grabbed a horn from his waist. This was the first time this horn was blown since he took over as head of the hunting party.