Chapter 497 (2/2)

Not just Ao, the hunt leaders were very hesitant too. Some were concerned with a future without the fire seed, some were worried the tribe would scatter just like the other side of the ocean. Zheng Luo had told them about this.

When they spoke of this, the entire house fell silent.

The old man shaman looked at the old lady who was about to speak, then cut her off. “Ah Xuan, tell us what you think.”

Since he mentioned Shao Xuan, the old lady swallowed her anger and did not speak. She looked at Shao Xuan, waiting for his answer. A person who could borrow their ancestor’s powers must be a person their ancestors trusted. That was why Shao Xuan’s views were important.

The problem of the fire seed must be solved. Pushing it aside was useless. If they didn’t solve this, then they couldn’t talk about the completion of the fire seed. The fire seed could be merged into their beings, then it could be removed too. The ancestral records denoted the procedures for removal. After removal, their fire seed would be whole again. However, should they merge it back into everyone’s bodies or keep it in its primitive state.

Shao Xuan thought about it but did not state his decision. “Rain tribe. I believe most of you know of the,.”

The people who had been nodded. Even the ones who hadn’t, had heard of them. They also nodded.

Shao Xuan continued. “The Rain tribe lives in an arid land close to the desert. Without enough water, their lives would be very difficult. The Rain shaman’s ability to pray for rain was the main pillar holding the Rain tribe together when they prospered. And the existence of this tribe probably far exceeds many large, famous tribes.”

The abilities of the Rain tribe were well-known. However, not many were clear about their long history.

“The Rain tribe’s shaman can pray for rain because he uses their tribe fire seed’s powers. However, they slowly lost the ability to pray for rain. Suddenly, praying for rain became very difficult, the number of failed attempts increased. In the past hundreds to thousands of years, the act of ‘praying for rain’ became more of a legend. It was until two years ago when the new shaman finally prayed for rain once. However, it is still extremely difficult now.”

Sensing what Shao Xuan implied, Ao and the rest were shocked.

The fire seed was born in this world. Like a fire torch, it would extinguish one day too. The way to keep it burning forever was to keep it in their bloodline, and it would be passed down generations.

If one day, the fire seed weakened and disappeared... the Rain tribe lost their ability to pray for rain; what would Flaming Horn lose?

Power!

If the Flaming Horns lost their advantage of being physically stronger, how would they survive amongst the tribes, where ‘survival of the fittest’ was the rule for existence?

What happened to the Rain tribe was just the beginning!

While they might not experience the direct effects, in the future, thousands of years later, would the Flaming Horn descendants blame the,? Would these people here become criminals in history?

Shao Xuan looked around. “I know what everyone is worried about. In the ancestral records, there lies one sentence left by an ancestor named Chi.”

Shao Xun introduced ‘Chi’ to everyone. That year, when Flaming Horn was in trouble, all three generations of shamans were present. The old shaman had retired for the new shaman. The old shaman brought Flaming Horns ‘history’ into the forest and sat in a cave. He waited for the day Flaming Horns returned to bring this precious ‘history’ out again. This ‘history’ had long been taken back by Shao Xuan, the people here knew of it.

During the disaster, the new shaman was already training the next future shaman, Chi. At that point, the new shaman, Chi, and the chief left with the tribe to hide from the natural disasters. However, there were conflicts during the journey. The chief and ‘Chi’ brought half the tribe away, looking for a new path, while the shaman left with the rest of the people. This lasted until the lands separated and a large river isolated them from the rest of the world.

Zheng Luo’s part of the tribe could merge with the fire seed because of Chi. chi was the pioneer.

As he spoke of Chi, Shao Xuan looked at the two shamans. These were ancestral records, not every person was authorised to know if its secrets. Since they both nodded, Shao Xuan continued talking.

“In the records, Ancestor Chi said that the fire seed never disappeared. It has always been here, living in the blood of the Flaming Horns. And it would live forever as long as the Flaming Horns live.” He paused. “Then, there was another sentence. If the tribesmen exist, the fire seed will exist; if the tribesmen’s hearts exist, then the tribe will exist.”

If everyone’s hearts were one, with no distractions, then it didn't matter if the fire seed could aggregate all their powers. If their souls were not united, not everyone was thinking for the good of the tribe, even if the fire seed existed, what good would it be? The fire seed could control the people but not their hearts. Just like Dao Yu the traitor, the wanderers who gave up on this life, the warriors who ran after hearing rumours of war.

Zheng Luo’s part of the tribe had already merged with the fire seed a thousand years ago. Although they didn’t have the fire seed’s primitive powers of aggregating everyone together, they remained united. The Flaming Horns worked hard to lead a prosperous life, plus they did not have to worry about other people targeting their fire seed. Even if someone left the tribe, as long as they truly wanted to return, they could still return after a long time.

Such was change. No matter the path, they must sacrifice something.

Outside the Fearsome Beast Forest, within the Wanshi tribe.

The young Wanshi shaman stood by the fire pit. As he stared into the fire seed, he looked depressed.

“It is afraid,” said the Wanshi shaman.