Chapter 11

After eating their fill, the five of them worked together to catch six more fish. One was given to Caesar, uncooked, as it preferred raw food. As for the remaining five, each of the five people, including Shaoxuan, got one as a trophy.

When Shaoxuan returned with the four others, Uncle Ge, who was responsible for transporting food, had already arrived. However, he hadn't seen Shaoxuan and was waiting outside the cave.

The children in the cave had developed a biological clock, naturally waking up at this time every day, full of energy, waiting for their share of food to fight over. But since Shaoxuan wasn't there and Uncle Ge wasn't distributing food, they grew increasingly restless and hungry. Two of the children even started fighting over a minor disagreement, drawing blood.

Uncle Ge sat quietly on the edge of the stone vat filled with food, ignoring their disputes and preventing the children from getting close to the vat.

Twenty children surrounded the stone vat, not daring to get too close, for fear of being kicked away by Uncle Ge and having their food reduced. They didn't dare to risk it.

Uncle Ge, who had been sitting on the edge of the stone vat, looking up at the sky, sensed some movement and looked over. He saw the five children and a wolf approaching, with Shaoxuan, the new "Cave Master," leading them.

However, when Uncle Ge's gaze fell on what they were pulling, his eyes widened, and he almost fell off the stone vat in excitement.

Before Shaoxuan and the others could get closer, Uncle Ge couldn't resist jumping down from the stone vat and rushing over. He took a few steps, then retreated, picked up the stone vat, and went over again. If he left the stone vat there, the children in the cave would surely fight over the food.

"Is... is this... fish?!" Uncle Ge pointed at the fish Shaoxuan was holding.

Many years ago, due to an incident by the river, Uncle Ge had seen these creatures in the water. However, since the chief didn't allow anyone to go into the water, he hadn't seen them again. He never thought he would see them here today.

"How did you catch them?" If it was just by chance, it would be impossible to catch so many. Even catching one would be difficult. Could it be that something unusual happened by the river, causing many dead fish to wash ashore? That didn't make sense either, as there were people guarding the riverbank who would have raised the alarm if anything unusual happened. Besides, the fish the children were dragging had marks from being hit with sticks.

"Whoa—"

When Uncle Ge saw the fish's mouth and sharp teeth, he couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath. As an experienced old hunter, he could infer the creature's attack power and temperament from its appearance. This was clearly a highly dangerous species, and even a totem warrior with a strong body wouldn't want to face such a creature. But he couldn't understand how these small, weak children, who hadn't yet awakened their totem powers, managed to catch the fish.

The two older children who were with Shaoxuan couldn't resist and proudly told Uncle Ge about their "hunting operation" that morning, showcasing their bravery. Demonstrating their abilities in front of older warriors would benefit them when they joined the hunting team in the future, which was something the children in the tribe enjoyed doing.

Although the two children's narration was a bit disorganized, Uncle Ge, with his rich hunting experience, could infer more from their words. He gave Shaoxuan a complex look and waved his hand. "First, let's distribute the food."

When the children in the cave saw the fish Shaoxuan and the others were dragging, they tried to crowd around. On this side, the four people, except for Shaoxuan, immediately became alert. Even the usually gentle stutterer looked fierce, hiding the tied fish behind his back and holding a tree branch, ready to fight anyone who tried to take it.

Shaoxuan's fish was being watched by Caesar, so the children in the tribe didn't dare to take it. They could only focus on the other four. Fortunately, the food distribution drew their attention again.

It was Shaoxuan's first time responsible for distributing food, but he had seen how Ku did it, so he quickly got the hang of it, even leaving portions for the four who were protecting their own catches.

Uncle Ge watched as Shaoxuan finished distributing the food, then looked at Shaoxuan's fish, picked up the vat, looked at the fish again, took a few steps, looked back, and finally left, somewhat reluctantly. Like the two warriors guarding the riverbank, Uncle Ge wasn't interested in eating the fish; he was just curious.

Unfortunately, Shaoxuan wouldn't let him see the fish. Why should he, when this person had made him the "Cave Master" without explaining why?

No one in the tribe had named these fish, so Shaoxuan simply called them piranhas.

Shaoxuan had noticed some hanging facilities above the cave, which hadn't been used for years. He tried hanging his fish, and it worked without the stone grooves above breaking.

Seeing Shaoxuan do this, the other four also asked him to help hang their fish. They couldn't eat such large fish in one go, didn't want to share, and needed to protect them from others in the cave. Hanging them was the best solution.

The grass ropes were tied to the walls, and each of the four guarded their own rope, feeling more secure with their own things.

Seeing that the stutterer and the others had such large fish, the other children in the cave began to regret not joining them that morning.

With this comparison, Shaoxuan took the opportunity to instill an idea in these children: "Follow me, and you'll have meat to eat."

Want to join tomorrow? Sure, but...

"You have to listen to me," Shaoxuan said.

Getting the children in the cave to listen wasn't easy. Beating them today, tomorrow, and the day after wouldn't work. Many children in the tribe were not only tough but also stubborn and willing to take risks. Even if you beat them down today, they would still try to take your things tomorrow. Even the former "Cave Master" Ku, who had beaten many people, couldn't make everyone obey. Shaoxuan had seen some of the beatings, which were quite severe, and it took ten days for the victims to be able to walk again.

However, now, Shaoxuan's simple statement, "Follow me, and you'll have meat to eat," smoothed over their rebelliousness.

The next day, Shaoxuan first had the children gather grass to make ropes.

This season, there was plenty of grass suitable for making ropes, but not everyone knew how to make them. Many children in the cave didn't know, and those who had learned from their parents had stopped after their parents passed away.

There were originally twenty-seven children in the cave, but Ku, who had managed it, had left, and a quiet, unusual child was often absent. So now there were exactly twenty-five children, divided into five groups of five. Each group had someone who knew how to make ropes, and Shaoxuan explained the division of labor: who would gather grass, who would weave, and who would catch stone insects, etc.

However, these children didn't seem to like cooperation. Even within the same group, they often fought, even over a single blade of grass.

After Shaoxuan calmed the conflicts, he thought for a moment and changed his approach: "Now, each of your groups is a hunting team. This is your own hunting team!"

Hunting team...

The twenty-odd children, upon hearing the words "hunting team," were lost in thought.

In the hearts of the children in the tribe, the hunting team was a bright and prestigious term, only accessible to warriors who had awakened their totem powers.

Joining the hunting team = having a lot of food.

They never thought they could join a hunting team and start hunting right away! The thought was exhilarating!

Shaoxuan looked at them and said, "Alright, anyone who doesn't want to act together, doesn't want to follow orders, or likes to fight, step forward!"

No one moved.

The person at the front looked around, feeling too conspicuous, and quickly moved back, afraid of being misunderstood as wanting to leave.

The child who had just knocked out a tooth of a fellow group member now stood very properly, not thinking of himself as someone who "likes to fight."

"Alright, since no one is leaving, let's go. Remember, you must follow my orders. Anyone who disobeys or acts on their own will be kicked out of the hunting team!"

Knowing what these people feared, Shaoxuan used the "hunting team" as a threat. These people had bad tempers but were simple. As long as he knew what they cared about, it was easy to manage them.

Sure enough, they were much more obedient this time.

However, in actual practice, things weren't as smooth.

By the river.

The two warriors responsible for guarding stood nearby, smiling as they watched Shaoxuan frantically directing the children to catch fish. When Shaoxuan got angry, he would just beat the children, who would roll on the ground, wipe the blood from their faces, and get up, grinning, to continue pulling the ropes, not caring at all.

The eyes of these children, usually dull, were now shining with excitement, especially when they saw the fish being pulled out of the water. They were so excited they wanted to jump around, and if the fish weren't so aggressive, they would have run over to bite them and claim them as their own.

For several days, Shaoxuan took them fishing. There were many fish in the river, and they had a good harvest every day. Even if they ate to their hearts' content, there was still plenty left. However, these children, who had been hungry for so long, thought about saving food when there was plenty. Some retained the experience their parents had passed down, storing food before winter, while others followed the trend, doing what others did.

These days were the happiest for the children since they had been living in the cave. They looked more spirited every day. Those who used to sleep in until morning now woke up earlier than Shaoxuan, waking him up early in the morning. At night, they lay on the ground, staring at the large fish hanging above the cave, even after the fire was extinguished. Shaoxuan could still hear their giggles in the middle of the night, which made him feel uneasy.

Really... What the hell!