Chapter 9

For the second time, Shao Xuan dragged a fish onto the shore, which was slightly larger than the previous one. He did not ask the warrior to help stab it with a spear; instead, he used a stone to knock the fish unconscious. Even if it was just knocked out, the fish would not survive long out of water.

He tied the fish with a rope and hung it on a tree. Then, Shao Xuan took out the smaller fish that had been pierced through and found a few dry branches.

Looking around, Shao Xuan noticed that the two warriors responsible for guarding the riverbank were curiously watching him, so he waved his hand to beckon them.

The two warriors, who had returned to their post, hesitated for a moment but could not resist their curiosity and walked over.

"Axuan, what are you doing? Are you going to eat it? Do you need any help?" The warrior who had speared the fish earlier, rubbing his hands together, asked after inquiring about Shao Xuan's name.

They were both wary and curious about the "fish" as a creature, but now that the fish was dead, their wariness had vanished, leaving only the hunter's curiosity about a new prey.

"I'll do it, I'll do it! Didn't you just kill it?" The other warrior pushed the first one aside, pulled out a stone knife, and snatched the fish, gutting it and discussing with his companion.

"Huh? Is this the intestine? Why is it so short..."

"Where's its stomach? Is this it?"

"No, this is it, this must be the stomach!"

"Be careful... What's this? Don't break it, I don't know if there are any poison sacs..."

"Where's the heart? Move the knife a bit forward and see... Hey, can you do it? The fish is bleeding so much, your knife isn't steady. If you can't, let me do it..."

The two warriors were enthusiastically discussing, while Shao Xuan, standing beside them, was visibly twitching.

Are these hunting warriors? They actually seem more like eccentric forensic pathologists!

Two overly curious anatomy enthusiasts!

Despite Shao Xuan's shattered impression of these two, he had to admit that they were indeed skilled at dissection. Even though it was their first time handling a fish, they could quickly finish the job. While dissecting, they also explained to Shao Xuan the precautions they took when hunting in the mountains, such as which animals' organs were toxic, which had poison sacs, and which organs were more delicious. For unfamiliar creatures, they would not eat the organs out of caution.

Soon, only a fish with its insides removed, several cuts on its head, and its gills removed remained.

"There's not much edible left, but at least it's a decent size," the warrior with the stone knife said, wiping the blood off the blade.

They did not wash the fish in the river; instead, the two warriors used leaves to wipe the blood off the fish and wrapped the removed organs in leaves, burying them in a pit beside a tree. The smell of blood might attract other creatures, and while it was fine in the tribe, it was risky by the river. They advised Shao Xuan to do the same if he encountered similar situations in the future.

The tools used for making fire in the tribe were not as primitive as Shao Xuan initially imagined. They used a type of powder. Each warrior carried this powder and, when needed, would use a spoon-shaped stone tool and a stone pestle. They would place a little powder in the spoon-shaped tool and quickly grind it with the pestle, causing the powder to ignite. The spoon-shaped tool then became a small torch to light dry grass and branches.

When Shao Xuan first saw Ge, the food transporter, make a fire in the cave, he was very surprised. He had thought that such a tribe would use methods like friction or flint, but he did not expect such a convenient and quick tool. The children living in the cave did not have such fire-making tools and would only receive them when they became warriors and left to live independently.

Sometimes, looking at the tribe, Shao Xuan felt a strange contradiction, as if the technology they possessed was not in line with the tribe's current development.

Despite his doubts, Shao Xuan did not delve into them.

After roasting the fish, one of the warriors tried a bit to ensure it was safe. Finding the taste good, the three of them and the wolf, Caesar, finished the fish. The food was not enough to satisfy the two warriors, and Caesar was still not very interested in cooked food, eating a little and then losing interest. Only Shao Xuan was satisfied.

After eating the fish, the two warriors took the fish bones, saying they wanted to keep them as a memento. Shao Xuan thought they actually wanted to show off to their hunting team.

The two warriors continued their guard duty, while Shao Xuan, with Caesar, dragged the dead fish, tied with a rope, back to the cave.

The sky had already darkened, and some of the children in the cave were already asleep, while others were drowsy or waiting for Shao Xuan to return.

There was a fire pit in the cave. Every evening, Ge, the food transporter, would come to light a small fire for the children to warm themselves or cook food. Before, Ku was responsible for extinguishing the fire before bedtime, but from now on, it would be Shao Xuan's responsibility.

Standing at the cave entrance, Shao Xuan told Caesar to wait outside while he took a deep breath and walked into the cave.

The older children, who were not yet asleep, were gathered around the fire pit, their eyes following Shao Xuan as he entered. Shao Xuan could feel the hostile gazes. After all, today he had taken a position they had long desired.

After entering the cave, Shao Xuan climbed onto a large, millstone-shaped rock near the entrance, which was usually where Ku distributed food. From there, he could see every corner of the cave.

The older children gathered around, and Shao Xuan looked at them, clapping his hands. "Get up, everyone who's not asleep, get up!"

Except for those who were deeply asleep, the others gradually gathered.

Seeing the crowd, Shao Xuan looked at the front and said, "I know you're not happy with me taking Ku's position. You want to drive me away and take over. You're waiting for me instead of sleeping. But! This is Uncle Ge's decision. If you have any complaints, any grievances, any suggestions, don't come to me. It's useless. If you have the guts, go talk to Uncle Ge!"

The children at the front frowned, clearly considering the feasibility of talking to Ge. Would Ge get angry? Would he stop providing food? Would they go hungry? This didn't seem like a good idea. After all, they were older and thought a bit more than the younger children.

Shao Xuan glanced at them and continued, "Have you ever thought about why I can take Ku's position? I'm younger, shorter, and not as strong as you. Why did Uncle Ge choose me?!"

"Because I'm stronger! I'm more capable!" He said this with conviction, not even flinching. Shao Xuan didn't know what Ge, the food transporter, was thinking, but he planned to talk to Ge the next day. For now, he needed to get through this and impress these little "wolf cubs" to prevent them from causing trouble.

It wasn't that Shao Xuan didn't want to use a gentler approach, but these kids were too difficult to reason with. Based on his observations, Ge's decisions were not easily changed, so if he had assigned Shao Xuan to this cave, it would likely be for a while, or even longer. Shao Xuan needed to address the issues from the start, and being assertive was necessary.

The children at the front looked angry, and one of them was so furious that his eyebrows almost stood up, but before he could speak, Shao Xuan shouted, "Shut up!"

Shao Xuan then called out, "Caesar!"

Caesar, waiting outside, bit the grass rope and dragged the fish into the cave.

The children's attention was on Caesar as he entered, and only when Shao Xuan retrieved the fish did they notice the other items he had brought in.

"This thing, I hunted it!"

Shao Xuan untied the grass rope from the fish, revealing its true form. He lifted the fish by its tail, showing it to the children.

Many fish do not have eyelids and do not blink, even when dead, their eyes remain wide open.

In the dim light of the fire, the fish's originally red eyes looked eerie and dark. Its mouth, which opened and closed with Shao Xuan's movements, revealed countless sharp teeth. The fish's scales, free of dust, reflected a cold light, adding a chill to the already cool night.

The children who had been closest to Shao Xuan and had been grumbling at him took several steps back, their eyes filled with caution. Their initial hostile and challenging gazes towards Shao Xuan became more cautious.

The tribe revered strength, and powerful warriors were highly respected. Often, problems were solved through more direct methods, such as violence. However, besides direct conflict, the strength of a hunter could also be judged by their prey. The better the prey, the stronger the hunter.

Now, the children in the cave had not yet awakened their totemic powers and were not yet totem warriors, so they could not go hunting and obtain prey. They could only steal, and it was even more difficult to obtain such a fierce prey.

It was clear that this was not an easy prey to handle. Just looking at those teeth, a single scrape could tear off a lot of flesh.

"Can you hunt? Can you catch such prey? Or can you get other food? You? You? You? Or you?! Who among you can do it?!"

The children Shao Xuan pointed to shrank back and shook their heads.

"You can't! Since you can't, suppress all your dissatisfaction and emotions!"

After delivering a stern message, Shao Xuan needed to soften the blow.

Shao Xuan lifted the fish.

"This, is the gift I'm giving you on my first day in charge!"

After Shao Xuan spoke, the cave was silent for a moment before a child timidly asked, "What is a 'gift'?"

Another older child added, "Can we eat it?"

Shao Xuan choked, "…Yes." He was exhausted.

The atmosphere in the cave suddenly became lively.

All the dissatisfaction, caution, and resentment were forgotten.

"Food," for them, was probably the most beautiful word in the world.

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