Chapter 1069, Stay for Three Days First

Translator: Silavin

 

Tan and Gang Guo stood back to back, their four eyes scanning the surroundings with grim solemnity.

 

They dared not make any rash moves. There was even a trace of tension about them.

 

The scene that had just unfolded was still vivid in their minds. Neither man’s heartbeat had settled. It hammered away like a bouncing ball.

 

All around them lay the corpses of their companions, blood still seeping steadily from the wounds at their throats.

 

The dense, iron smell of blood spread through the air, and both men could not help but furrow their brows.

 

“Boss, I’ll cover you while you go first. Report this to the Shaman.” Tan spoke in a low voice.

 

He had already done his utmost to suppress the fear rising within him before he could speak. Even so, his voice carried a faint tremor. There was even a slight hoarseness to his tone. The reason he spoke so softly was to ensure the Flame Dragon Tribe did not catch wind of their intentions.

 

“No. I’m stronger than you, which means I can buy more time and give you a better chance to escape. You absolutely must tell the Shaman everything that happened today.” Gang Guo refused without a moment’s hesitation, keeping his voice equally low.

 

He felt that as the Boss of this team, it was his responsibility to ensure the safety of his comrades.

 

But the gap in strength between the two of them and their opponents was simply too vast. Since he could not protect his team, at the very least letting the one remaining companion escape would give his conscience some measure of peace.

 

This was the nature of Totem Warriors. The vast majority of them, regardless of which Tribe they hailed from, carried within them this same deep sense of responsibility.

 

Of course, there were also those who clung desperately to their own lives and were far more cunning about it.

 

“Boss, don’t be foolish. It’s precisely because your strength is greater that you can get farther. Our chances of getting the message back are better if you’re the one running.” Tan flatly refused the proposal in turn.

 

*Step step step…*

 

Just as the two of them were caught at this impasse, a series of measured footsteps rang out.

 

Sha Hong walked forward with light, unhurried steps, brushing the strands of hair that clung to her face back behind her ear. The corners of her mouth curved upward slightly as she said. “None of you is leaving here today.”

 

Ever since Sha Hong had access to linen clothing, the garments she wore had grown increasingly refined.

 

She was currently dressed in a pair of short trousers, with a fitted T-shirt cut to suit her frame perfectly on top. Her feet were shod in specially crafted Straw Sandals, and her short blue hair gave her a crisp, clean-cut appearance.

 

From head to toe she looked every bit the formidable Warrior, and the pressure she naturally emanated left absolutely no room for doubt about her capabilities.

 

“A Mid-Stage Totem Warrior. I did not expect the Flame Dragon Tribe to have you all in secret.” Gang Guo could clearly sense the level of her strength, and tension gripped him immediately.

 

Sweat broke out across his forehead and the palms of his hands without stopping. He had still been harbouring thoughts of letting one person escape to report the news. But now, looking at Sha Hong standing before him, any sense of hope evaporated all at once.

 

They had come this time with what they believed to be thorough preparations. If anything felt wrong, they had the means to pull back in time.

 

After all, the number of Totem Warriors they had brought along was considerable, and each of them was formidable in their own right.

 

Even without launching a direct confrontation, they had believed they possessed more than enough speed and strength to withdraw safely.

 

But what Gang Guo could never have anticipated was the sheer depth of the Flame Dragon Tribe’s power. He had never once imagined that their opponents would be this strong, nor that they would possess weapons of such devastation.

 

Those weapons, which he had never once laid eyes on, had claimed his companions’ lives in an instant.

 

Though he had not seen the entirety of the Flame Dragon Tribe’s forces, in the split second the ambush had sprung, Gang Guo had sensed the presence of no small number of powerful individuals surrounding them.

 

It was precisely because of this that Gang Guo understood there was no longer any chance of escape.

 

“If the two of you are sensible, the Flame Dragon Tribe can still spare your lives.” Ban Ye also stepped out with an easy, relaxed stride.

 

He and Sha Hong had not taken part in the recurve bow ambush. Instead, they had been loosening their muscles and keeping ready, prepared to capture the two Mid-Stage Totem Warriors alive.

 

As he emerged, the Totem Warriors concealed in various positions also stepped out into the open.

 

Ye Jiu, Ga, and the others all held recurve bows, moving in a measured, unified rhythm as they came out together.

 

“Ga? You’ve betrayed us.” Gang Guo glared furiously at the scorpion girl standing before him.

 

It was only now that he finally understood how they had been caught in an ambush without any forewarning.

 

It was entirely because there was someone inside the Flame Dragon Tribe who knew him well, someone who knew precisely when he would let his guard down. Someone who knew exactly when to lead him into a position of vulnerability. This was a variable he had never accounted for.

 

The only possibilities Gang Guo had ever considered were these two: Either the Flame Dragon Tribe had genuinely been subdued by the Totem Warriors sent ahead, meaning this visit would pass without incident, or those Totem Warriors had been eliminated.

 

Even if they had been eliminated, he had expected to have enough time to escape.

 

But what he had never, under any circumstances, anticipated was that they would defect. That was entirely outside the bounds of any plan he had made.

 

“In the face of overwhelming strength, knowing how to make the right choice is the best thing one can do. And this isn’t called betraying. After all, this is my home.” Ga blinked her green eyes with complete sincerity. “The days of burning, killing, and pillaging alongside the Dark Scorpion Tribe are days I never want to live again. All I want is to live well each single day.”

 

Ga laid out every word of the carefully prepared speech, each one taught to her by Su Bai.

 

There was no other reason behind it, it was simply an attempt at persuasion, to see whether those two Totem Warriors might be of use to the Flame Dragon Tribe.

 

The moment Su Bai heard that Gang Guo possessed exceptional powers of observation and deduction, he immediately knew there was a role within the Flame Dragon Tribe that would suit him perfectly. One that they were currently in desperate short supply of.

 

If persuasion alone could convince him to stay, that would unquestionably be the far better outcome.

 

“And just how good can the Flame Dragon Tribe really be? And you think wanting a peaceful life is justification for betrayal?” Gang Guo asked in disbelief.

 

Though inwardly, something stirred within him ever so slightly.

 

He had never truly been the sort of person who revelled in fighting and killing. It was simply that he had always been part of the Dark Scorpion Tribe, and his life had never offered him any real choice.

 

Furthermore, the Dark Scorpion Tribe had always lived by burning, killing, and plundering. He had never had the opportunity to go elsewhere, because every Tribe in the surrounding region eventually became part of the Dark Scorpion Tribe.

 

“You truly don’t understand. But if you live in the Flame Dragon Tribe for three days, you’ll realise that everything you’ve known before was a pile of rubbish.” Ga declared with absolute conviction.

 

She could sense that he was wavering. His expression had shifted from the fierce anger of the beginning to something considerably more composed.

 

“Let us live in the Flame Dragon Tribe for three days? What kind of new torture method is this?” Gang Guo frowned once more.

 

He assumed that a weaker Tribe would only make his circumstances worse, not offer any genuine improvement.