With Shu Bao’s explanation, the tribe members were less worried about Lan Qing’s absence. Life in the tribe continued in a regular pattern for another ten days.
However, Shu Bao found himself increasingly restless at night, spending more time pacing around the tribe’s population and reassuring others not to worry. As time passed, Shu Bao couldn’t help but become anxious.
What concerned Shu Bao greatly was the increasing number of chaotic creatures attacking the tribe each night. It seemed that with each passing night, more and more unfamiliar chaotic creatures were appearing.
Shu Bao sensed that something was amiss. Even on the first night the tribe appeared in the Chaotic World, they hadn’t attracted so many chaotic creatures. So it might not be just the failure of the Hidden Orchid but rather an issue within the Chaotic World itself.
Shu Bao’s anxiety increased. However, with the recent rise in elite and lord-level monsters, he couldn’t rashly leave the tribe to investigate the Chaotic World.
Sensing the deity’s distress, the high priest and Mu Bao worked even harder on their magical training, intensifying their nightly defenses in hopes of becoming independent enough to relieve Shu Bao from worrying about the tribe’s safety.
In addition to issues in the Chaotic World, there were problems in the real world as well. Many trees near the tribe had been cut down, so Shu Bao had prohibited further logging to prevent ecological damage. Furthermore, it had been raining continuously for several days, and this rain was not influenced by the Rain Girl but was simply due to the weather.
The advantage was that there was no need to worry about the persistent Long Tribe. However, the downside was that the heavy rain brought significant inconvenience to the tribe. Traveling, gathering, herding, and hunting all became much less efficient, and people were more prone to illness.
This wasn’t an era of advanced medicine, and even a minor cold could be fatal. Although Shu Bao had taught the high priest many new herbal recipes, herbs were still scarce resources in this era.
Fortunately, the tribe had enough food, as the increasing number of chaotic creatures attacking the tribe at night provided ample supplies. The problem was whether they could maintain their home with the current attack frequency.
Feeling that the situation was becoming too passive, and with the issue of wood resources needing resolution, Shu Bao discussed with the high priest and decided to develop the forest next to the processing factory. Of course, Shu Bao’s development approach was non-destructive.
Starting from the processing factory, Shu Bao planned to clear a small path into the forest. The tribe’s people could then use this path to transport timber. Trees would be cut down according to a set ratio while adhering to the principle of planting new trees to replace those that were cut down.
Trees grow slowly, and their growth rate might not keep up with the rate of logging. Fortunately, the forest is vast. Once Shu Bao cultivates wood-type mages in the future, they can accelerate tree growth, providing a stable and sustainable source of timber.
However, before developing the forest, the first issue to address was the dangers within, such as the giant wolf that the high priest had once glimpsed.
“Deity, everything is ready,” the high priest said, having assembled a carefully selected team for the task.
Shu Bao nodded. The team consisted of ten people, not too many, with most being members of the hunting team, along with the high priest and the little kitten.
The little kitten was very reluctant to go out in the rain, but despite its small size, it had great strength and was dragged out of the tent, leaving claw marks on the ground.
On rainy days, everyone wore large leaves on their heads to shield themselves from the rain. Shu Bao and the little kitten squeezed in on either side of the high priest’s shoulders to get under the leaves.
Initially, the high priest was a bit surprised by the furry sensations on his face, given that one was a powerful white cat and the other was a deity.
However, after walking for some distance, even in the cool rain, the high priest found himself sweating profusely from the warmth provided by the furry creatures.
The two furry beings, noticing this, seemed quite disdainful and mercilessly switched their umbrella-sharing arrangement. Thus, the entire expedition team received warmth from the fluffy creatures.
Once they entered the forest from behind the processing factory, their progress slowed significantly. There were no paths in the forest, and various plants grew densely, with many mushrooms looking quite delicious and seemingly beckoning to Shu Bao.
Shu Bao eventually had to find a suitable leaf to use as an umbrella, then jumped off one of the hunting team members’ shoulders and began foraging for mushrooms throughout the forest.
The little kitten lay lazily, occasionally yawning, clearly uninterested in mushroom picking. Cats still believe that rainy days are meant for long naps.
Shu Bao, with a small leaf on his head, moved quickly. Even though he would occasionally disappear for a moment, he soon found his way back to the hunting team. After observing for a while, the high priest shifted his focus to the forest.
As they ventured deeper, the environment grew increasingly unfamiliar. Shu Bao didn’t dare stray too far from the hunting team, darting through various plants. He diligently collected useful mushrooms and stored them in his system space.
Due to the continuous rain, there were few animals active in the forest. They encountered a mother hen with about ten chicks. The hen immediately spread its wings and emitted warning calls upon seeing the hunting team.
Since the hunting team’s mission was not to hunt this hen, they ignored it and decided to move on.
However, the hen persisted, following the team and pecking at them. Upon realizing that the humans were too tall to bother with, it turned its attention to Shu Bao, who was the only one smaller.
Shu Bao: “…” What can be done? Of course, he would catch it and take it back along with the chicks, binding them and bringing them to the tribe.
The people of the Xia Wang Tribe were quite amazed, thinking that the wild hen they encountered today was rather foolish. They had left it alone, but it had practically delivered itself to them.
Later, they also came across other less intelligent creatures, such as wild piglets, a dumb swan, and a clueless fox…
As they continued, they didn’t find the legendary giant wolf but made significant gains. They captured live animals suitable for domestication and turned the unsuitable ones into prey.
By noon, after a morning of searching, the hunting team was somewhat fatigued and set up camp to rest. They had brought two tents this time. Though it might be a bit crowded for so many people, it was far better than sleeping out in the open as they had before.
Especially when the deity took out steaming hot roast meat from a magical ring and shared it with them, the hunting team felt that despite the rainy weather, this was the most comfortable trip they had ever had.
The freshly cooked roast meat smelled delicious. Sitting in the tent, they enjoyed the roast meat and wild fruits while listening to the sound of rain hitting the tent.
Just as they were savoring the moment, one of the people sitting at the tent entrance suddenly froze and then stood up abruptly. The others looked over, and the person pointed to a nearby spot and said, “I think I saw a wolf!”
Shu Bao, who was gnawing on a duck neck, immediately jumped up, “Where? Where? Where’s the mount?”
The hunting team looked at each other, unsure what a mount was, but they could tell from the deity’s excitement that it must be something good.
In an instant, everyone swallowed the roast meat they were eating and eagerly prepared to act.
The hunting team consisted of the best hunters, so tracking was a breeze. They quickly packed up the temporary camp and set off again, following the trail of the giant wolf that had appeared.
Meanwhile, the scouting giant wolf, having had no proper meal for days due to the continuous heavy rain, quickly returned to the wolf pack’s cave to report to the wolf king about the large number of prey in the forest.
The scouting wolf moved swiftly, aware that it might have been detected by the prey, which could potentially escape.
Racing through the forest, the scouting giant wolf reached the wolf pack’s cave and delivered the news to the wolf king. Upon hearing about the large number of prey, the giant wolves in the cave stood up, ready to march out.
However, the wolf king did not immediately give the order. Based on the scouting wolf’s brief signals, the wolf king suspected that the prey described was human. The wolf king, with wisdom far beyond the other giant wolves, contemplated deeply. He had previously considered the idea of attacking a human tribe to become their deity.
But after witnessing a human hunting scene by accident, the wolf king abandoned that idea. Humans were extremely dangerous creatures, capable of hunting large beasts and even killing giant wolves. It seemed that anything could become their food.
Though the wolf pack was restless, the cave remained very quiet, indicating the wolf king’s high authority. The other wolves waited for its command.
Just as the wolf king hesitated, preparing to go out and check personally, a wolf howl echoed from outside the cave.
This was a signal of an intruder entering their territory. Realizing the urgency, the wolf king leaped out of the cave and let out a low growl, instructing the other wolves to stay put.
The wolf king, tracking the sound and scent, quickly found the group of intruders. Indeed, they were humans, but there were too few of them to pose any threat to the wolf pack. The wolf king felt somewhat relieved but continued to consider whether he should hunt these humans.
Shu Bao’s group, along with the cat, had finally managed to find the vicinity of the wolf pack’s lair. To be cautious, Shu Bao decided to scout the size of the wolf pack. Forest giant wolves were already much larger than ordinary wolves; if there were fifty or sixty of them, even with the big white cat, the high priest, and Shu Bao himself, they couldn’t guarantee the safety of the hunting team.
Shu Bao ordered the team to slow down and increase their vigilance. Following the strongest aura in the vicinity, Shu Bao moved forward. As Shu Bao pushed aside a clump of bushes, he came face to face with a giant white wolf.
The wolf king, initially focused on the humans, cast a brief glance at the small mouse that had appeared before him and then turned his attention back to the humans.
Shu Bao blinked, then blinked again. The giant wolf before him was even larger than the hunting team had described. Above its sharp eyes, there were two greenish-brown markings resembling eyebrows, composed of a special, silk-like glowing fur.
With a simple thought, Shu Bao began to suspect the identity of this unusual giant wolf. His eyes lit up with realization—capturing the wolf king was a priority in capturing wolves.
Thus, Shu Bao shouted at the top of his lungs, “Wolves are coming! Wolves are coming!”
At the sound of the shout, both sides were startled. The giant wolf looked down in shock, unable to comprehend why a mouse was suddenly speaking human language.
The alert hunting team immediately responded to the signal indicating their deity was in danger, rushing towards the sound. Then…
Then the wolf king found himself surrounded by the hunting team and an unexpectedly enormous cat.
The wolf king, “…” Everything seemed to happen so suddenly and so quickly. Who exactly was the prey here?
