Bo Luo was suddenly shocked. Initially, he thought that they were the ones who rescued him. Who knew the beast that captured him was part of their gang?!
Human and beast in one team?
It was so hard to imagine!
Bo Luo had always considered himself a bold person, but after the fishing incident and what he saw now, each new incident shocked him more than the previous one.
He looked around the room at the people who were all calm and composed. He then looked again at the giant bird behind him. He wanted to shout again, but he forced down his shocked emotions and breathed in deeply. After he calmed down, he thought about what he should do next.
“You guys.....” Bo Luo pointed at the bird behind, then looked at the people around him. He didn’t know what to ask.
Seeing how shocked the person was, Shao Xuan didn’t try to beat around the bush. Instead, he said, “Although we didn’t know what happened, I think that to be exact, he was the one who saved you.”
“Saved me?”
He almost ate me! Bo Luo wanted to refute, but after he thought about it, they were probably right. If this bird did not appear in time, he would’ve been eaten by the strange fish in the river. But why did the bird bring him here after it killed the strange fish?
“Where is this? Who are you guys?” Bo Luo stood up and looked around.
It was exactly what he thought. They were still on the same river.
“We are the expedition team from the Flaming Horn tribe.” Shao Xuan said, “I’m not sure where we are, but we’re just going downstream on this river.”
“The Flaming Horn tribe?!” Bo Luo was still thinking of a way to get back, but after hearing Shao Xuan’s answer, he looked at the row of people with surprise. “You guys are Flaming Horns?”
Seeing Bo Luo’s reaction, Duo Li and the others were curious. “How did you know about our tribe?”
“H-heard about it,” Bo Luo eyed the people in front of him up and down but didn’t say any more. The defensive look in his eyes had not yet faded, but he was a little more curious.
“I heard that you guys hosted a showing-off feast? Is that true?” Bo Luo couldn’t help but ask. He really couldn’t imagine. There was a tribe capable of hosting feasts! He didn’t know what a feast was before, but he understood as soon as his dad explained it to him. After he realised what a grand event it was, he was even more marvelled. Could a tribe be that rich?
“Of course, but that feast ended before the monsoon season. Back then, only twenty-four tribes went to attend. After the feast, more tribes came to the trading point because it was officially open to the public. Didn’t your tribe go over to look?” Duo Li asked with a cheerful tone as he walked over.
“It already ended?! Where’s the Flaming River Trading Point? Did many tribes visit? Our tribe lives too far away, so we didn’t attend.” Disappointment flashed across Bo Luo’s eyes. He also wanted to experience what it was like. But too bad...
“Which tribe do you belong to? If it’s along the way, we can send you back,” Duo Li asked.
After he hesitated, Bo Luo said, “I’m from the Gu tribe. My name is Bo Luo.”
Gu tribe?
They really were the Gu tribe!
Before Bo Luo even woke up, Shao Xuan had already guessed his identity. He said that it was very likely that he belonged to the Gu tribe.
“You’re from the Gu tribe?” Duo Li pointed to the two nets set on the side. “Someone from your tribe did visit the Flaming River Trading Point.”
Seeing those two nets, Bo Luo’s eyes brightened. He said excitedly, “My dad brought it there!”
After he said this, Bo Luo suddenly felt like he said too much. His dad told him that before he knew more about the Flaming Horn’s character, he should always stay vigilant. Even though these Flaming Horns saved his life, it was still better to remain cautious. The Flaming Horn tribe seemed a lot stronger than his.
Duo Li seemed to have not noticed the defensive look in Bo Luo’s eyes. He continued, “Then why didn’t you come over with your dad to look? Our trading point is always full of excitement. There’s fearsome beast meat, beast hides, and horns. These are all very famous.”
Hearing Duo Li’s words, Bo Luo put aside his previous thoughts, “It’s too far, and the roads are too dangerous. We were not allowed to follow. But your tribe even sells fearsome beasts?! That’s crazy!”
“Heh, of course!” Duo Li was full of pride.
He walked over and put his arms over Bo Luo’s shoulder in a warm-hearted gesture. He started talking and also introduced a few of them to him, mostly their names. Then he also made a few jokes. As for their position and strengths, he did not mention even a word.
Bo Luo told them about how he brought a few people to fish but encountered some dangers. He also mentioned how he tried to distract the strange fish, so the others had time to escape. From this Duo Li could guess that Bo Luo was no ordinary person in the Gu tribe.
If he could bring people along on a hunt -fishing probably counts as hunting- he was a leader. A leader definitely had a strong influence and fame in the tribe. If it wasn’t his strength, then it must’ve been the influence of other elders.
In a tribe, higher ranking meant greater responsibilities. If they encountered any dangers, they also had more pressure than others. There was no such thing as “soldiers dying for the sake of their general” in the tribes. Whenever there was danger, they always stood in front to protect the others. If they couldn’t hold back the threat and could only resort to falling back, they had to do what was most dangerous.
Bo Luo was prepared to do such a thing, so Duo Li wanted to talk more with Bo Luo. Perhaps he might even be able to obtain more information.
“We’re almost there,” Shao Xuan said suddenly.
“What?” Bo Luo couldn’t understand what Shao Xuan meant.
Duo Li and a few others all looked at Shao Xuan.
Shao Xuan stood up. “The Gu tribe is nearby.”
“Really?!” Bo Luo was suddenly excited. Nothing could compare to the happiness he felt upon returning to his tribe alive.
Duo Li jumped up onto the mast. Standing far up, he took out Shao Xuan’s monoculars and looked far inland.
The forest was too dense with trees so he couldn’t see anything, but since Shao Xuan said they were almost here, then it must be true.
Bo Luo was excited, but he suddenly thought, ‘Have these people even been to the Gu tribe? How did they know they were reaching soon?’
He was just about to ask, but as he turned around, he saw Shao Xuan walk towards the fierce bird and hopped onto its back.
The boat suddenly shook. Bo Luo almost lost his balance.
With a whoosh, a gust of wind blew past them. Bo Luo looked up to the sky, and the giant bird was already up in the air and flying rapidly into the distance.
They really could tame fearsome beasts!
And they even flew on the giant bird’s back!
Bo Luo widened his eyes and looked at the giant bird fly away.
After a while, Chacha flew back again, except this time, he did not land on the boat. Instead, he swooped back into the air as soon as Shao Xuan leapt off. He did not leave them but continued to tail the two boats.
“Um, *Pineapple?” Shao Xuan looked over at the person who stood idly on the same spot after he drew what he needed to on his map.
[A mispronunciation of Bo Luo’s name in Chinese sounds like ‘Pineapple’]
“Hmm?” Bo Luo looked confused. “Are you calling me?”
“Yes, I’m talking to you, Pineapple. Can you contact your tribespeople directly? Like with a whistle or something?” Shao Xuan asked.
“My name is Bo Luo, not pineapple.” Bo Luo corrected him. As he thought about what Shao Xuan said, he nodded, “Yes! Do I blow now?”
“Wait first. We’re not there yet. If you blow now, they might not be able to hear it. I’ll tell you when we get there.”
“Alright!”
Bo Luo was excited that he could return, but he was still fixated on whether he had made the right decision by bringing the Flaming Horns to his tribe.
Shao Xuan stood at the ship’s bow and looked in one direction. In his sea of consciousness, on the very edge of the totem fire’s light, a small cluster was becoming more apparent.
That was a totem sign covered in mud-yellow flames. The pattern consisted of crisscrossed lines and looked just like a net.