Chapter 22 – The flame doesn’t harm anyone (2/2)

Shao Xuan was just hesitating on whether to let the flame grow bigger, or shout out for help.

Without doubt, Shao Xuan cherished his life. If it was not the fact that he felt no actual harm, he would have shouted out for help already. However, firstly, the flame did not burn him or bring him actual pain; secondly, it was after all the annually most important ceremony of the tribe. Even those arrogant warriors suppressed their arrogance and behaved like civilized people, how could he take the hatred from everyone when his shouting sabotaged the great ritual? This was the only tribe in this area, and being all alone in this world, he could not afford to be hated and abandoned.

As he was thinking, he felt a shadow in front of him.

Shao Xuan looked up, and just saw the Chief’s curious eyes.

There were so many people on the mountaintop. Shao Xuan had heard no steps or people moving to clear a path, yet the Chief silently appeared in front of him! He was just beside the fire pit!

The surrounding kids were rather nervous and their attention had long since moved away from the fire pit. They could not awaken their totemic powers anyway this year, so Shao Xuan’s accident right under their noses certainly seemed to be more attractive. Now since the Chief had come, obviously Shao Xuan was in a great trouble, as far as they were concerned.

“Chief…”

Ge noticed the situation and before he could say anything, he was stopped by Ao. Ao raised his hand to show that others shouldn’t be distracted by them.

The surrounding people hurriedly focused their concentration and looked at the fire pit again. In their hearts they prayed that the coming year would promise more game and everything would go smoothly.

Among them, surely there were some with less concentration, those would constantly glimpse at Shao Xuan’s direction with irrepressible curiosity.

Ao looked at the kid in front of him, filled with curiosity as well.

Is he awakening his totemic power?

That kid was absolutely less than eleven years old, and compared with the kids around the fire pit, he appeared to be much weaker. During the pre-selection, he had seen every kid brought from the mountain foot district, yet he had no memory of this little kid.

Apparently this was also the Chief’s first time in meeting up with such circumstances. However, since the Shaman had given an order, all he had to do was to take the kid to the Shaman.

“Don’t be afraid, for the flame doesn’t harm anyone.” Ao comforted Shao Xuan in a low voice, and then lifted him up by the animal skin clothes he was wearing.

Earlier Shao Xuan was thinking with his head bowed so he did not notice how the Chief got here from the fire pit. But now he knew.

Ao jumped up directly and stepped on the shoulders of the audience. He seemed tall and strong, but the movements of his were quite lissome. He lifted Shao Xuan, yet he acted as if he and Shao Xuan were as light as a feather as he jumped over the people in the tribe. Before Shao Xuan could catch his breath, they had arrived and landed by the fire pit.

Ao told Shao Xuan to stand among the other kids, and then stepped backwards to his original spot.

Adding another kid by the fire pit naturally drew the attention of the people who were staring at the fire pit all the time. Some tried to whisper a thing or two with the one standing beside them, but a look from Ao, quickly straightened them out.

Some young warriors dancing the ritual dance almost missed a step because of distraction. But they quickly cursed in their heart, focused their mind again, and carefully continued to do the ritual dance.

However, many people could not fight the curiosity they had in their hearts. Is the kid added to the group also awakening his totemic power? Why was he not chosen during the pre-selection?

Too young at age?

People did not question the Shaman’s ability, so they guessed the fault was with the age. Aside from age, perhaps someone made a mistake when he went down to the mountain to do the preparations.

What on earth happened? And why was the kid wearing a ball of fire on his head?

Just as people were wondering, Ao looked away from the fire pit as he returned to his spot. He looked down to his hand that held Shao Xuan earlier.

That vigorous big hand that had killed countless game, had been burnt red.