Chapter 51 – Just one touch
Translated by Sunyancai
Flaming Horns tribe.
The life inside the tribe was just as calm and peaceful as always.
Early in the morning, old Ke tossed Caesar some meat and bones, then grabbed a stoneware and began polishing it as he sat there. He looked the same old way, without any facial expression or any words. However, people familiar with him could still figure it out that old Ke had been not quite himself lately. For example, you could see it from the wooden box at the corner for waste residue. All the residue after carving off stone flakes or pieces of failed crafted items went directly there.
Old Ke used to have far less wasted there.
Caesar who was gnawing on a bone lackadaisically in the corner seemed to be skinnier than before. It was not because of old Ke not willing to feed him, he got skinnier because of its low spirit and loss of appetite. So he seemed boney now.
Caesar’s ear moved a little and looked at the window as he was chewing on the bone slowly. Soon, a person came in through the window from the outside. Before he landed, he pushed off with a finger against the ground and with that strength he flipped in the air as if avoiding something.
“What?” Ge landed steadily and he looked around his surroundings. By the window was the trap he triggered on his last visit. Originally he was prepared for something new popping out from the ground, however, unexpectedly there was nothing at all.
This is not right!
Ge squatted down as he narrowed his eyes and scanned the room, not letting any detail escape his sight.
Caesar stared at Ge with a bone in his mouth, for he didn’t understand why this person had to roll over when he came in.
After confirming there was no other trap, Ge finally stood up. In fact, the few traps that he triggered before were still the way he left them, and old Ke did not even bother to clear the scene.
“Hey, how’s everything going, old Ke?” Ge came to old Ke’s side and handed him a few animal meat chunks and two fine stone cores which he pulled out from a hide bag, “My son is joining the next hunting mission, hence I need your help to craft something for him.”
Old Ke did not respond to his words, while he continued on working on the stuff he had at hand.
Ge didn’t mind at all, because he knew old Ke had already heard that. He just put the things aside and dragged over a stone stool as if he were in his own house. Ge gazed at the stone sword that old Ke was working on and said, “Ah-Xuan and the others have probably already started hunting at the first location. What do you think he will bring back from his first hunting mission?”
Old Ke hesitated for a moment at Ge’s words. But he kept silent as he continued on crafting.
Seeing old Ke like this, Ge finally ascertained what old Ke was worrying about.
Old Ke wed no wife and fathered no children in his life. As a youth it was okay for him to live that way, but later on when he had to quit from the hunting team because of the leg, his temper grew more and more weird. People found him difficult to get along with, and almost no kid would come to be on congenial terms with him. Even those who came to him to learn stone crafting skills, never stuck to it. Finally, Ah-Xuan entered his life, and old Ke almost treated him like his own son.
When kids went on their first hunting trip, their elders and relatives would naturally worry. So most of the parents chose to go out with their children, for at least they could have the chance to look after their own kids. Personally joining in the battle was better than trusting the kids to others’ attendance after all.
If old Ke weren’t injured, he probably would’ve taken Ah-Xuan out during the first hunting mission this year, however…
“Don’t worry. Ah-Xuan is a quick-witted boy who got awakened at such a young age. Let alone that he is favored by the Shaman! He will be fine, and you should just patiently wait for them to return on the Path of Glory. Didn’t you give him your tooth sword? He’ll be fine. He told us to rest assured, right? He knows better.”
At the same time, on the other side of the mountains, away from the tribe, Shao Xuan, who “knows better and told them to rest assured”, was sighing at the tooth sword.
After confirming the Thorn Black Wind’s death, Shao Xuan pulled out the sword. It took him a lot of strength to do that, for the knife was stuck in the Thorn Black Wind’s skull.
According to the traces on the ground and the Thorn Black Wind’s condition, Shao Xuan suspected perhaps the giant beast had hit on a huge rock when it got flushed by the avalanche. Later, it rolled down the mountain, and the Thorn Black Wind got buried here deep. The broken bones on its body should be caused by the hit, while the tooth sword stabbed deeper into its skull during the process.
One could only say that this Thorn Black Wind had bad luck. If it weren’t Shao Xuan who tagged along with the hunting trip, if it were any other newly-awakened kid, such events would not have happened at all. Without Shao Xuan, the Thorn Black Wind would have been able to get its sweet revenge back in the cave.
After pulling out the tooth sword, Shao Xuan noticed that its tip had broken off for about an inch, and there were quite a few breaches on the chipped blade. Besides, the tooth sword was filled with scratch marks.
He wondered what for amazed expression would old Ke’s have, when he presents the sword in front of old Ke after he returns.
Also, Ge would probably cry seeing the sword? He had longed for this sword since forever, and he always touched it gently. However, his precious was roughly handled by Shao Xuan and ended up like that…
As Shao Xuan was sighing at the sword, Mao was feeling blank faced with the dead body of that Thorn Black Wind in front of him. He had never expected such a giant monster dying just like that?
In all the stories that he had heard before, primary totemic warriors would never have any chance if faced with such a high level ferocious beast, unless they fought in large quantities. As for newly-awakened warriors, they should never think about confronting something like that! Once they encountered a ferocious beast, old experienced warriors would just command them to stand aside by one single shout of “Kids, get far away!”.
Mao felt more than excited, feeling the hard scales and thorns of the Thorn Black Wind with his palm. Even though he did not help much during the hunting, he felt quite agitated just to witness such special hunting and retaliation battle. Also, the untouchable image of Thorn Black Winds also faded for some extent in his heart.
Just…one touch!
Then another touch!
Oh my goodness, look at the teeth! Definitely have to touch those!
He should be the first one to touch the teeth of an adult Thorn Black Wind among his generation in the tribe! Think about that!
So, when Shao Xuan looked over in Mao’s direction, he found an odd image of Mao forcing apart the Thorn Black Wind’s jaw with his bare hands, and craning his neck to look inside.
What the fuck are you looking at!!
Shao Xuan rushed to his side and kicked Mao away.
“Aren’t you afraid to be bitten to death in case it wasn’t dead yet, you moron?”
“Didn’t you say that it is dead already?” Mao swiped off the snow on his clothes and got back on his feet. Not paying any attention to Shao Xuan’s kick, Mao continued to stare at the Thorn Black Wind enthusiastically.
People in the tribe always had a weird enthusiasm towards high-level prey, which Shao Xuan never understood.
“Do you believe whatever I say? What if I was wrong? Didn’t you notice that I was extremely nervous when I pulled out the sword? Or did you not even notice that I stood so far away from that thing after I pulled out the sword?!” Even though Shao Xuan was positive that the Thorn Black Wind was dead, with so many incomprehensible factors in this world, Shao Xuan felt it was better to be more cautious with that unfamiliar species. The chopped off snakehead could sometimes still bite people! Who knew whether that Thorn Black Wind did not have such behavior?
Before he could finish his sentence, Shao Xuan, together with Mao, heard the sound of a wooden whistle. It was not near, but according to its rhythm, it was from their hunting group.
Shao Xuan immediately showed a joyful face and raised up his arm and whistled with curled thumb and index finger in his mouth.
Different rhythms of whistles represented different meanings in the tribe. Shao Xuan knew that because every hunting warrior needed to remember them.
Seeing Shao Xuan made whistle loudly with his fingers, Mao copied his movement as well. However, Mao almost used up all his saliva yet could not make any whistling sound.
Lang Ga, Ang and some other warriors came to find them. When seeing that Shao Xuan and Mao were intact, Lang Ga almost shed some tears in his red eyes. But soon, when they laid eyes on the giant figure in the snow, those warriors nearly slipped down on the ground.
The snow was melting quickly, and the dreadful killer of the night was just lying there with its belly on the ground in silence, lifeless.