Chapter 179 – What can you use for exchange (1/2)

Translated by Joycelyn

Shao Xuan applied some medicine to Old He, a medicine he mixed himself using the medicinal herbs that he gathered when the traveling group stopped for rest during the trip.

Old He’s grandson looked to be only around six years old. However, he was actually eight already. He had become skinnier due to catching a serious cold. Now, after taking some medicine, he was sleeping.

Shao Xuan still had some herbs that strengthened the body, which he had brought from the tribe when he left. He decided to share some with Old He, “These can be used by totem warriors directly. But you guys have to mix a small amount with water, then drink it.

People whose totems had not awakened yet were just like the children in the Flaming Horns tribe, their bodies weaker. Therefore, drinking just a little of this medicine could make them feel much better, and even strengthen their immunity.

“Actually, I also have some herbs here, take them with you. Even though you are a totem warrior, you can still get injured. Use them in case such an unfortunate event happens.” Old He let his old partner grab some herb packs for Shao Xuan.

There were only the two old people and one youngling in Old He’s household. Shao Xuan took a look around, helped them chop up some firewood after cutting down a few trees in the mountain, moved some stones, and helped them fix their house a little. The sky had already become dark after he finished everything up..

He then took the lamb’s leg he had traded from the Feng Tribe and roasted it, then cooked some soup with wild veggies. Only after he, Old He, and his family had finished eating, did he get up to leave.

Old He had wanted to keep Shao Xuan in his house in order to learn more about the Flaming Horns tribe. He still had many questions for him, but when he saw the colour of the sky, he decided against it.

“Rest well guys, I will come back tomorrow.” Shao Xuan said before he left.

Hearing Shao Xuan say that, Old He felt much more relieved.

Shao Xuan returned to the place where the travel team was staying. Everybody was discussing the goods they had traded today. Yu had gotten his hands on some decent fur, but of course, the most important thing was that he had managed to get some herbs he had never before seen. These were what he was the most excited about.

“Shao Xuan, did you know that in this grassland there are a lot of poisonous plants?” Yu questioned him.

“Yes, I’ve heard of them.” When he was chatting with Old He today, he had heard him mention it.

For a person like Yu, these were all treasures. But generally, for the people in the grasslands, these herbs were even worse than the birds stealing their cattle.

Those kind of plants fatally poisoned the livestock, causing huge damage to the people of the tribes. What pained them the most was that the vitality and the reproduction ability of the the poisonous plants were very strong; even if just their roots remained, it would soon start sprouting again. Even if all the poisonous plants in the grassland were cleared, they would grow right back up in a year. That was because many of their seeds were transferred via wind. In some cases, their growth was delayed by a few years before sprouting. It was extremely difficult to get rid of them.

One of the reasons wanderers were needed in the grasslands was because of these plants. There were too many of them and the people from the tribes were not willing to waste their time. Having the wanderers was really convenient, as they were willing to work for almost nothing in return and the protection of a tribe.

The poisonous plants in some tribes grew very fast, yet there weren’t enough people to exterminate them. Their livestock then died, and the healthy pasture shrunk dramatically. Thus, they would go to war with another tribe with the intention of snatching away their fields. Not too long ago, the attack on the Feng Tribe was precisely due to this reason.

Shao Xuan looked over the poisonous plants Yu had brought out. Today, when he was walking around the grasslands, he had already seen quite a few. However, there was no livestock strolling around. They probably brought a herd to an area after it had been cleared it up.

Yu was still examining the poisonous plants which greatly interested him, while Shao Xuan leaned on the wooden pillar, thinking.

Compared to Yan Shuo, Old He’s situation was much better. Although their days were difficult, and battles between tribes happened occasionally, it was still pretty peaceful. There was no need to face the threats of strangers or deal with extreme danger. For many wanderers of the Flaming Horns tribe on the grassland, the totem tattoos like those on Yan Shuo didn’t show up on them, and light patterns were seen on few of them. This was what Shao Xuan learned from Old He.

Shao Xuan originally planned to take these people he found back to the Flaming Horns tribe at the other side of the river, but now it seemed very difficult to achieve. There were quite a few young adults, but after all, they were not totem warriors and had limited ability, not to mention that there were also many elderly, weak, sick or disabled. Shao Xuan didn’t intend to abandon them. But now he had to think of a solution to take care of this in a better way.

When the Shaman asked Shao Xuan to come here and look for other members of the Flaming Horns tribe, he probably didn’t expect this situation at all. People like Old He, who were old and hadn’t awakened their totem power, were unable to travel safely.

How about telling the tribes on the grasslands to be kind to the wanderers of the Flaming Horns tribe? Useless, it didn’t work on the grassland.

If it were a large tribe like the Thousand Faces tribe, when the name of the tribe was mentioned, people would change their attitude, becoming gentler, even if they were reluctant.

But if you now told them that you were from the Flaming Horns tribe, they would at most just squint at you: What the hell is the Flaming Horns tribe?!

Power, fame, and the benefits coming along with them made everyone of a tribe expect their own tribe to grow more and more prosperous.