Chapter 473 (1/2)

Safe Return

All the snow around Shao Xuan had been blasted away so he was directly sitting on salt. There were lines on the ground, all pointing outwards.

As for the rest, many were blasted into the air like Duo Kang. Some directly hid inside the layer of snow, only coming out later.

Shao Xuan’s reminder had given them just enough time. While most were blasted away and sustained injuries, not many were severely injured.

Duo Kang and Lu slowly got up. More people walked over from afar. Some were dragged out of the snow. Unconscious warriors were dragged out of the snow, for they could freeze to death if left inside for long.

Zheng Luo faced the largest impact because he had turned around to get Shao Xuan. However, he was also one of the strongest and most of the force had been blocked by Shao Xuan. Although he had been knocked unconscious after being blasted into the air, it was still good news that he was alive. They had to carry him.

They continued looking for unconscious men, also bringing the dead bodies from the previous battles. Shao Xuan helped them find buried bodies using his special vision to look into the snow.

The severely injured and unconscious individuals were carried by the ones well enough to walk. They hurried along their journey.

Shao Xuan told them that the king beast only wanted to chase them out. If it wanted to kill, it would have done so.

Although Shao Xuan only briefly described what happened, the Taihe and Mountain Wind people did not dare underestimate the young Elder of the Flaming Horn tribe. They could sense the surge of power that blasted them into the air.

The Flaming Horns were stronger than they thought.

“Right, Shao Xuan, you said the king beast ate salt flowers and that reminded me of something. A beast that lives around the salt flats and ate salt flowers, could it be the legendary ‘salt beast’ that the Chilu people talk about?” said Zheng Luo. Duo Kang was carrying him on his back.

Salt beast?

Everyone thought about it. They could not remember the Chilu tribe’s totem. They hadn’t met the Chilu people in a while. Since the Chilu’s salt lakes were conquered and they assimilated into the cities, there were barely any Chilu tribesmen in the forest.

“I remember their totem is something with spikes, not a snake,” said a Mountain Wind warrior.

“Not spikes, it’s ice growing on its head. Do you remember how the king beast looked before the blast?” reminded Zheng Luo.

“Now that I think of it, it seems familiar.”

Due to the immediate correlation with a snake, they didn’t connect the dots.

“But the salt beast never appeared at Chilu’s salt lake ever again. Instead, top-grade salt rocks were found in the salt mines here. Why did the people who first discovered these mines trek across the salt flats of death then? A place where so many people had died? They weren’t Chilu people, they couldn’t distinguish salt grades that well. There shouldn’t have been anything attractive for them to run here. Or was the guy on a suicide mission?” said Zheng Luo incredulously.

It didn’t matter what the truth was. Centuries had passed. No one knew the truth and they could not ask the beast.

“No matter what, we can’t go to the salt mines ever again,” sighed the Mountain Wind chief.

“If we knew there was a king beast there, I wouldn’t have ever gone there!” It had been a traumatic experience for the Taihe chief, they’d barely survived this disaster. They would never come here again, it wasn’t like they couldn’t survive without the salt mines!

“All in all, it’s great to be alive.”

“It’s great to be alive!”

To have so many survivors was already the most fortunate thing in the world. The fire crystals and salt were secondary. Only one thing was the most important to these tribesmen--- survival.

“I forgot… The Fox and Shen people, are they still at the salt mines?” asked Duo Kang.

The king beast had already warned them once. If it discovered more humans, would it rage?

Or even if it ‘warned’ them like what just happened, there was no second Shao Xuan to protect them.

“After we return, observe the two tribe’s movements. If we find that they have returned, when the weather is better, we go to war!” said the Mountain Wind chief.

Speaking of weather, the relief of surviving the disaster faded.

Not sure how the tribe was doing in this weather.

It was an extreme phenomenon no one had seen in centuries, maybe millennia. No one could truly relax.

On the salt flats, it was still fine as they travelled on the beast’s tracks. Many times, they could not avoid trekking through the snow though. However, their moods were definitely better since they were going home.

The moment they stepped out of the salt flats, everyone looked up and roared at the skies.

They had survived the king beast. Now, they were going to leave the place their tribe had travelled too for the past centuries. For real. Perhaps they would never return in their lifetime. The salt mine guards were nostalgic of this place. This job was passed down generations, they knew more about the mines than anyone else. Wacha had taken over this job from his father. IT was the path his ancestors took, the job they had done.

However, when he remembered the beast, he could not do much.

They vented their emotions through shouts and yells, which shook off snow from tree branches.

What was once a forest was now covered in snow. However, there wasn’t as much snow here. In the salt lands, snow was ten metres tall. Outside, it was only up till their shoulders. Sometimes, they still disappeared into the snow when they accidentally stepped into a sunken area.

“We’ve passed the salt flats, there’s nothing to be afraid of here!” Zheng Luo told Duo Kang to put him down, then instructed the warriors to cut down trees to make stretches. This was more convenient for everyone.

The severely injured members were more comfortable on stretchers too.

The Flaming Horns were strong, four people could carry ten on a stretcher. As they distributed the injured, Zheng Luo was also placed on a simple stretcher. He stared out into the patch of white in silence.