In the Spark Tribe, an undercurrent was stirring. Those hidden in the shadows could no longer contain their urge to erupt.
“Another disappearance?” Jing furrowed his brow slightly upon hearing the report.
The reporter said, “Yes. Over the past few days, warriors from various tribes have gone missing. They’re extremely dissatisfied. The trading area is now filled with rumors that are unfavorable to our tribe.”
“What are these rumors saying?”
“They claim that our tribe, like the Fang Tribe, eats people—and only the elite warriors, to strengthen ourselves. The greatness of the chieftain, they say, comes from how many warriors he has consumed.”
Jing pressed his lips together. “How’s everyone’s mood now?”
“They had been calmed down before, but after last night’s incident, and with them completely unaware, the fear has made them very discontent.”
“Did patrols notice anything unusual?”
“No. Because something similar had already happened the day before yesterday, we specifically deployed extra personnel,” the reporter shook his head.
“Among the missing warriors, there are even third-level warriors. Who could be capable of this? No one notices, yet there are still others in the tents.”
“Anything unusual at the guest quarters?”
“That area is very calm, and no disappearances have occurred there. Because of that, some say we’re doing this on purpose, trying to get them all to stay in the guest quarters so we can take their goods.”
Jing’s face darkened. “Keep a close watch. I’ll report to the chieftain and send more people!”
Although the Spark Tribe wasn’t responsible for the security of lands where other tribes were stationed, the fact that it happened within the Spark Tribe’s territory meant they couldn’t simply ignore it.
The idea that someone could hide in the shadows and silently abduct people was genuinely frightening.
If they couldn’t catch this person, it would pose a huge threat to the entire tribe.
Jing found Hei Lie and reported the matter.
Before Hei Lie could respond, the radio on the desk buzzed.
“Chieftain! Someone is raiding the mining area!”
Jing and Hei Lie exchanged a glance. Hei Lie quickly picked up the radio.
“What’s the situation?”
“Chieftain, you guessed right. Someone’s trying to raid the mining area. Heh, fortunately, we were prepared. One comes, one dies! No one has the skill to make it down the mountain alive!”
The mining area lay beneath a cliff. As the excavation went deeper, reaching it required using a special ‘elevator’.
The ‘elevator’ used ropes and a pulley system to send baskets carrying either people or ore up and down, or one could directly grab the rope and climb down.
Since transportation had been officially halted, most of the equipment had been collected, leaving only what was difficult to dismantle.
There were hundreds of baskets left in the mine, along with plenty of food. Normally, a small group continued mining, while the rest remained on guard.
The single path down the mountain also made the area difficult to assault.
“Stay alert at all times. Don’t let your guard down, especially at night.”
“Don’t worry, Chieftain. At night, we now turn on the daylight lamps, making it as bright as during the day. Sneaking down won’t be easy. We’re also using drones. They’ll know exactly where anyone is.”
Hei Lie was not satisfied with this. “Don’t rely on them too much.”
These things could disappear at any time.
“Yes, Chieftain!”
Hei Lie hung up the radio and turned his gaze to Jing.
“These people have started moving. The guard needs to tighten security. I’ll assign some clever Beast Tribe members to assist you.”
Compared to the later arrivals from the Eastern Continent, the Beast Tribe members were more trustworthy.
This was the result of Hei Lie’s observations over time. Although they were still somewhat unaccustomed to this way of life, they were clearly trying to adapt, and their thoughts were relatively straightforward.
Some even proactively chose to have children with the Eastern Continent people, and naturally cared for the children—a testament to their inherent Beast Tribe nurturing instincts. It was clear they genuinely wanted to integrate.
“Perhaps that’s not very appropriate. People still don’t fully trust the Beast Tribe.”
Hei Lie shot him a sideways glance, his tone sharp with displeasure:
“The Beast Tribe members who join the Spark Tribe are Spark Tribe members. No one has the right to discriminate against them. If you want to get along with us, you must accept them!”
Jing felt deeply ashamed.
Hei Lie emphasized, “No matter what others think, we absolutely cannot be influenced by their opinions. Otherwise, how can the Beast Tribe members trust us and truly integrate?”
If they were willing to accept and we welcomed their arrival back then, they must be treated equally.
Even if there is doubt or criticism from the outside, we cannot shrink back. Doing so would only make these Beast Tribe members feel singled out, creating a permanent divide.
For a tribe to become stronger, the unity between people is what ultimately matters.
The office door was knocked, and someone rushed in anxiously:
“Someone is causing trouble in the trading area. They claim their people have gone missing and demand an explanation from us.”
Hei Lie picked up a pair of binoculars and looked into the distance. Sure enough, he saw a crowd gathering in the trading area, drawing the attention of more and more people.
“It’s starting,” Hei Lie sneered.
Jing straightened. “Chieftain, I’ll handle it.”
Hei Lie nodded. “I’ve already informed Hu Wen. Just ask him for the people you need.”
“Yes,” Jing said, then left immediately, heading toward the scene of the dispute.
Even before he got close, he heard someone shouting. The voice was powerful and resonant. This was not an ordinary person, but someone with a vocal talent.
“You killed our warriors! We must demand justice for them!”
Hearing this, everyone turned their attention toward them.
As the crowd grew larger, the leader grew more excited, loudly condemning the Spark Tribe’s crimes.
“The Spark Tribe lured us here under the pretense of trade just to poison our warriors! They are demons!”
The voices of this group were so loud that they completely drowned out the protests of the Spark guards, making sure everyone clearly heard his accusations.
“Don’t be fooled by them! They are liars! They are being directed by the barbarians. Their goal is to swallow up the entire Eastern Continent!”
Earlier, the crowd had remained unmoved, since none of this had directly harmed them. But the moment they heard the words barbarians, they immediately grew wary.
Years of estrangement were not so easily erased.
Although the barbarian members of the Spark Tribe didn’t appear any different from themselves and many of them had talents tied to gentle animals, with mild tempers and soft appearances, prejudice in the heart was still not so easily removed.
“Could it be the barbarians who did it? Some of them have beastly talents. Of course, they’d want to eat people!”
“Yeah, some wild beasts love eating humans! If they carry those beasts’ talents, they definitely wouldn’t be able to resist craving human flesh!”
“…”
The scene erupted into a heated discussion. The man with the vocal talent continued to sway the crowd with his booming shouts. Anyone who tried to argue back was quickly drowned out by his voice.
“Captain, we can’t outshout him.”
Jing sneered. “And he dares to play such petty tricks in the Spark Tribe? Go get the ‘loudspeaker’.”
At once, Jing’s subordinate’s eyes lit up. He quickly ran to the logistics department to request the ‘loudspeaker’.
Soon, Jing took the loudspeaker and drowned out that provocateur’s voice.
“We of the Spark Tribe only provide the trading place. If everyone is so dissatisfied, then take your goods and leave now!”
By the time the Spark Tribe had developed to this point, when receiving outsiders, they tried as much as possible not to let items from Yang Yi’s storage space appear, especially high-technology products.
Yet at critical moments, they were not stingy about bringing them out.
Everyone was stunned by the thing in Jing’s hand. What on earth was that?
How could it make sound so loud?!
“Is this how the Spark Tribe behaves? This is too much. Our people went missing inside your tribe!”
Jing sneered, “Your people went missing in the forest. Should we blame the forest? Or are you a branch of our Spark Tribe?”
“There are barbarians in your tribe!”
“So that’s your excuse for your losses? Or do you think our combat strength is inferior to the Beast Tribe’s? If they appear, it’s our death knell?”
Those words were unpopular. In a world where the strong rule, there weren’t really laws and regulations.
Everything was judged by martial strength. The Fang Tribe had been despised before because their martial power wasn’t so great. They relied mostly on plots and schemes, and they ate their own kind, so people looked down on them.
But if a powerful tribe destroyed a weak one, people did not make many moral condemnations. They didn’t attack them verbally for that.
If you dislike someone, you simply fight them. Otherwise, don’t keep whining. That’s a symbol of weakness.
That instigator just now didn’t only have a loud voice, but there was also a kind of bewitching quality to it.
But now, after being blasted a few times by the “loudspeaker”, he actually sobered up quite a bit.
Wasn’t it true? The Spark Tribe only provided a venue.
This place was far from the tribe’s central city. Spark Tribe members rarely came here—only the guards patrolled nearby—leaving them with plenty of freedom.
If they hadn’t kept an eye on their own people, who else could they blame?
Even when camping in the wild, it was quite common for someone to be snatched away without a trace.
Just then, someone in the trading area shouted, “Wow, what kind of wine is this? It smells amazing!”
Those with sharp senses of smell immediately caught the rich fragrance, their attention shifting at once. No longer caring about the commotion here, they ran straight over.
The others were soon swept along too, all rushing in that direction, no longer interested in what had just happened.
Jing’s black eyes darkened. He unceremoniously drove the troublesome tribe out.
From upstairs, Yang Yi watched through binoculars as the trading area quickly regained its calm. He said, “That was really simple and rough. Shouldn’t you at least try to find out the truth first?”
“No need to waste time,” Hei Lie replied.
In the Eastern Continent, there was no such thing as pursuing justice. Such ideas only existed among the Western Continent people.
Here, whoever had the biggest fist spoke the truth. Why bother making it so complicated?
Yang Yi understood this in his heart as well. For now, swift and decisive action was best. As for future consequences, once everything was established, they could slowly improve the system of laws.
“Is that all they’ve got?” Yang Yi felt that this was far too trivial, barely scratching the surface.
Hei Lie set down the teacup in his hand. “It’s nothing more than a test.”
That very night, a fire broke out in the manufacturing district, and both men and beasts launched an attack.
Hei Lie quickly redeployed forces, sending Qiu Yuan to lead the cavalry in support.
The first cavalry unit, mounted on ostriches, had already been formed. Though their numbers were few, every rider was an elite.
With the ostriches, the travel time between the main city and the manufacturing district was greatly shortened.
Just as Qiu Yuan left, warehouses and houses were attacked in surprise raids, and the whole tribe erupted in commotion.
Yang Yi noticed that Hei Lie remained calm as ever, holding a book in his hands, reading with full concentration.
“Aren’t you going to check?”
Though the situation wasn’t major and was quickly resolved, it still caused quite a stir. As chieftain, shouldn’t he at least take a look?
“My duty is only to stay by your side,” Hei Lie said, closing the book in his hands.
“It’s late. Go rest. Everything is already deployed. No storm will rise.”
Seeing his unshakable confidence, Yang Yi felt no need to worry either.
Their people had trained with modern techniques for so long, armed with the best weapons of this era, and on their own home turf. If even this couldn’t be handled, then his worrying would be useless.
So, Yang Yi stretched lazily and was just about to head back to lie down.
“Wait.”
Yang Yi paused, turning to look at Hei Lie.
Hei Lie’s expression was solemn. “We’ll sleep together.”
