Becoming a Leader in a Primitive Otherworld - Chapter 17

After swallowing the bitter medicinal broth, Xie Yu pitifully picked up the rabbit to skin it. Though rabbit fur wasn’t particularly valuable, animal hides were a hard currency, and no one would waste them.

As she skinned the rabbit, she mused about using the hides to make simple, non-insulating gloves, fur balls, and small trinkets. Overall, it was still a decent haul.

With a few swift motions, she had the rabbit skinned and tossed the hide into the wooden cabinet she’d crafted a few days prior.

Yun Nai approached, taking the crimson rabbit meat and helping Xie Yu prepare it.

Xie Yu always felt that anything bloody was unworthy of Yun Nai’s touch, yet Yun Nai handled the task with practiced ease.

The cut rabbit meat was skewered onto thick wooden sticks. Xie Yu handed them to Yun Nai, saying, “I’ll eat what you grill, and you help me grill.”

After all, Xie Yu had just been forced to drink a bowl of bitter medicine—she deserved a little sweetness.

“Oh, right,” she suddenly remembered Ke mentioning the Snake Tribe earlier. She finally voiced a question that had long puzzled her: “Why are all the other tribes’ totems animals, but ours is Apam? What exactly is that thing?”

Even the original Yu hadn’t known the answer. Xie Yu only knew that the tribe had no totem in its early years. Apam had suddenly appeared a few years after the tribe’s founding, but few ever questioned its origins.

Apam was first proposed by the inaugural Priest. Whether the Totem chose them or they chose the Totem remains a mystery.

This might also explain the Shadow Tribe’s weakness. Other tribes’ Totems were specific animals, granting them tangible powers—for example, the Snake Tribe’s members possessed exceptional flexibility.

Not to be disrespectful, Xie Yu thought to herself, but aside from the three beams of light bestowed upon them during this blessing, the Shadow Tribe’s Totem seemed to have no other discernible effects.

Only past Chiefs and Priests knew the truth. Typically, the Priest would inform the Chief, but Xie Yu had never asked.

“Apam sounds similar to Amu,” Yun Nai mused, “so I suspect it might be related to the concept of ‘mother.’ Additionally, ‘Apa’ in the ancient language of this world sounds very much like ‘great.’ There must be a connection.”

Noticing Yun Nai’s use of speculation, Xie Yu asked curiously, “Even you don’t know for sure?”

“Not entirely. My theory is that the Shadow Tribe originally lacked a Totem and was constantly at a disadvantage in conflicts with other tribes. To strengthen our position, integrate into the mainland, and elevate our status, we created a Totem to protect ourselves.”

“Is creating a totem this simple?” Xie Yu asked, surprised. “Does that mean anyone could just invent a totem and start their own tribe?”

Yun Nai shook her head. “Of course not. The number of totems on the continent is limited. Once a totem is chosen by a tribe, it won’t become the totem of another tribe unless the original tribe is destroyed. Moreover, a so-called self-created totem only becomes a true totem after it takes effect.”

“So, someone had to sacrifice themselves to activate the totem back then?”

“Yes,” Yun Nai said, adding more firewood to the fire to make it burn brighter. “Elder Priestess Luo told me that if you asked about this, I could tell you everything I know and suspect.”

Xie Yu confirmed again, “The first generation of tribespeople didn’t know about this either?”

“They only knew that the tribe suddenly had a totem. The first Priestess would never have told them the truth.”

If the tribespeople knew that the totem had been self-created, who knows how their beliefs might have changed?

By the time the tribe had developed to this point, it was no longer a purely matriarchal society. However, the first Priestess had emerged a century ago, so naming the totem “Mother” at that time made perfect sense.

The rabbit meat was now roasted to perfection. Yun Nai handed Xie Yu a skewer and began roasting a fresh one for herself.

“Let me, you eat,” Xie Yu said, stopping Yun Nai’s hand and continuing to roast the undercooked rabbit meat. “How did they activate the Totem back then?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps the suffering was too great, and the stories weren’t passed down.”

“What is our Totem’s power?” Xie Yu pondered the Tribespeople’s abilities, first ruling out physical prowess. The Shadow Tribe wasn’t particularly exceptional in that regard; most Tribespeople were merely average in physical strength, as nearly all tribes possessed similar physical capabilities.

“Mental strength,” Yun Nai replied.

Xie Yu recalled that the Tribespeople’s mental fortitude was indeed remarkable. For instance, when Jiu, Du, and the others exhumed their companion’s corpse and dissected it, anyone with a weaker mind would have long since broken down.

After gaining a rough understanding of the Tribe’s history, the skewer of meat in her hand was finally cooked. Xie Yu sprinkled on a generous amount of seasoning, filling the air with a rich aroma.

“Mid-Spring is almost over. We need to prepare for the Sacrifice,” Yun Nai reminded her. “Meat, animal hides, fruits and vegetables, tortoise shells, and precious medicinal herbs—those have been the most common offerings in recent years.”

Xie Yu had been groomed as Song’s successor from a young age and had participated in Sacrifice preparations before, so she was familiar with the process.

Yun Nai had already gathered sufficient quantities of the latter three items. All that remained was for Xie Yu to lead the Tribespeople on a hunt to collect the meat and hides for the Sacrifice.

Making bows wasn’t difficult, so Xie Yu didn’t plan to have Gan, Zhi, and the others make the entire tribe’s supply. She wanted them to focus on building the pharmacy and warehouses, emphasizing the need for three warehouses.

Instead, she led the people who would be joining the hunting expedition to gather wood for bows and arrows. After demonstrating the process, she had them craft their own bows and arrows.

The resulting bows varied in appearance, some beautiful and others crude. But since the process was straightforward, Xie Yu instructed those who struggled to make extra bows for practice.

This way, even if tribespeople lost their stone spears or knives in the wilderness, they could still fashion a bow from local materials to defend themselves.

Of course, making bows was only half the battle. Users also needed to master archery; otherwise, a stone spear would be more effective.

Xie Yu set up several targets and had everyone practice aiming at the bullseye. Some were natural sharpshooters, while others couldn’t hit the target even once in ten shots.

After Li’s arrow missed again, Xie Yu sighed, “Li, you should stick with your stone spear for now. You’re stronger with it. After this hunt, you can practice archery more.”

Li felt a pang of regret, deeply disappointed that he couldn’t use the new weapon.

On the day of the collective hunt, a portion of the tribe remained behind to guard the settlement, while all capable members participated in the hunt.

Ke was particularly enthusiastic. Her archery skills proved quite impressive, as she successfully shot several wild mountain chickens with her arrows.

Although the bow wasn’t of the highest quality and the arrows tended to stray off course, the hunt proceeded remarkably smoothly, far more efficient than previous expeditions.

By the end of the day, the harvest was bountiful. In addition to Ke’s mountain chickens, the others had also bagged various small game. The final tally included seven mountain chickens, three wild rabbits, two foxes, and even two spotted deer.

Xie Yu decided to organize another hunt in five days, this time primarily to gather animal hides. This was because meat spoils quickly, and the meat from the next hunt would serve as the main sacrificial offering.

Meanwhile, the construction team had nearly completed the tribe’s granary and pharmacy.

Three warehouses were built: one for temporary storage of meat and hides, another for wild vegetables, fruits, and supplementary materials, and the third Xie Yu planned to reserve for storing grain once they could cultivate crops.

The tribespeople skinned the animals one by one, tossing the hides into the storage shed.

Some hunters had sustained minor injuries during the hunt. Xie Yu instructed them to clean their wounds first before seeking further treatment from Yun Nai.

Xie Yu had left for the hunt with the tribespeople early that morning and hadn’t seen Yun Nai all day, leaving her with an inexplicable sense of longing.

A woman was fishing in the river. Though only her back was visible, Xie Yu recognized her instantly.

Yun Nai was fishing with a net by the riverbank. Hearing movement behind her, she turned. “Xie Yu.”

She simply spoke his name, yet Xie Yu sensed her barely concealed joy.

The cool river water clung to her skin, making Yun Nai reluctant to leave. “Were there any injuries this time?”

Xie Yu nodded. “Some were hurt. I told them to clean their wounds before coming to you.”

“I’ll go in a while.”

Unable to join the hunt, Yun Nai had Gan help her make several shuttles and measuring boards. Using these tools and finely twisted vines, she wove a fishing net. “We can use spears less often now.”

She handed the net to Xie Yu and prepared to gather medicinal herbs for the tribespeople. “Help me.”

Yun Nai left, and Xie Yu used the fishing net to haul in the catch. The mesh wasn’t particularly fine, but the fish were generally large, so most were caught, except for the smaller ones.

She sorted out the inedible fish and tossed them back into the river, intending to refine and expand the use of the fishing net. However, with the tribespeople’s growing appetite for fish, she worried that overfishing would deplete the edible species too quickly.

An idea struck her: she could dig a fish pond beside the river, enclose the edible, low-boned fish within it, and let them breed. Over time, the pond would be stocked with high-quality fish, eliminating the need for sorting after each catch.

After securing the fish, Xie Yu returned to the thatched hut.

There weren’t many injured, so Yun Nai quickly tended to them.

Those who had never hunted before were always brimming with excitement for their first kill. Yun Nai declared, “I want to eat fish today.”

“Alright,” the tall woman nodded obediently.

“You’ll eat too,” Yun Nai added, “the fish I caught.”

Xie Yu readily agreed to her request.