Chapter 1090, A Trustworthy Person

Translator: Silavin

 

Atop the High Tower beyond the farmland, Tan was in high spirits. He stood at the very top and kept peering into the distance through the telescope, unable to set it down.

 

He was like a child who had just been given a new toy. The smile on his face could not be contained. The telescope he held never once left his palm. He gripped it tightly, as though setting it on a table would somehow break it, or make it vanish altogether.

 

“Boss, let me show you around the inside of the High Tower.” He was the farmland supervisor, and the respectful greeting came easily to him.

 

He had not slept the whole night after learning that someone was coming to take charge of the High Tower. He was that pleased.

 

He spent most of his days either on the farmland or up on the High Tower. But he was no Totem Warrior, and that fact nagged at him whenever he went down to walk the fields. If a Ferocious Beast or wild creature emerged from the forest, he would have no means of defending himself whatsoever. He might make it back up the High Tower and keep his life that way, but if he could not reach it in time, the farmland would be where he met his end.

 

So when he heard that a Totem Warrior was being assigned as supervisor, he was naturally delighted. And what was more, the newcomer was a Mid-Stage Totem Warrior. There was no questioning that.

 

As long as a Mid-Stage Totem Warrior was stationed at the High Tower, he did not care in the slightest which Tribe the person had come from before joining the Flame Dragon Tribe. Once someone joined the Flame Dragon Tribe, they were one of them. He believed the Shaman would not make a poor judgement in such matters.

 

He held Su Bai in deep esteem, and so he treated the new supervisor of the High Tower with complete and sincere deference.

 

“There is no need to be so formal. I have been sent here as supervisor of the High Tower, but I am a very easy person to get along with.” Tan laughed openly and said, “Besides, you are the farmland supervisor. Our positions are not so different. There is no need to stand on ceremony.”

 

He had made up his mind to join the Flame Dragon Tribe, and he intended that commitment to come from the heart. So he had no intention of putting on airs about being a Totem Warrior, especially when the other man held a position of real responsibility.

 

“Not at all, Boss. You are a Totem Warrior, and a Mid-Stage one at that. Your standing is naturally far above ours.” He promptly shook his head.

 

“From now on we will deal with each other normally. If there is something I do not understand, I will ask you. If there is danger, I will protect the people of the farmland. You can count on that.” Tan said it plainly and without fuss.

 

“Very well. We are currently at the very top of the High Tower. You have already had a look at the surroundings. Shall I take you down to see the rest?” He made the suggestion.

 

Whenever he wanted to go down from the High Tower, he would first sweep the surrounding area with the telescope from the top. Only once he was sure there was nothing threatening nearby would he hurry down to do a quick round of the farmland. There was no other reason for it. After the round he had to get straight back up to continue watching, in order to keep the farmers working below safe.

 

“Let us go, then.” Tan was still grinning, the telescope held fast in his hand.

 

*Step step step…*

 

The two of them descended from the top of the High Tower to the level below. That floor was where people slept. It was quite spacious inside, and many beds lined the walls. The High Tower was cylindrical, and the beds were arranged along the curved wall in a full circle. In the middle of that ring of beds sat a round table, on which were placed the everyday belongings of those who lived there.

 

One floor further down was the latrine. There were many wooden buckets inside, and one could relieve oneself there without needing to go out. The buckets would be taken out and emptied the following morning. It meant that even in the middle of the night, no one had to risk going out to the farmland. It was a sensible arrangement.

 

Below that was the lowest level, which held farming tools and stores of seeds and the like.

 

He gave Tan an enthusiastic and thorough tour of everything in the High Tower, explaining each thing in careful detail.

 

“I understand. From today I will be living here in this High Tower. Come and find me whenever there is anything at all.” Tan grinned broadly.

 

“Do not worry, Boss. We will make sure you have the best spot.” He said it at once.

 

“No need for that. Whichever bed is free is fine for me. There is no need to make a fuss.”

 

Tan waved the suggestion off and asked, “By the way, the farmers who work the fields go home each evening, is that right? Then who are all these beds actually for?”

 

He knew the farmers went home at night because he had noticed it during the days he had spent observing the Flame Dragon Tribe before joining.

 

“Those are for the soldiers and Totem Warriors on patrol shifts, though there are not many of them. Just two Totem Warriors and two soldiers, that’s all.” He explained.

 

The reason so few people had been assigned to watch over the farmland was that Yan Jiao felt the forest within the perimeter now claimed by the Flame Dragon Tribe no longer held anything particularly dangerous in the way of Ferocious Beasts or wild animals. So, the farmland was considered relatively safe, and there had been no need to post that many Totem Warriors or soldiers there.

 

Most of the Totem Warriors were out patrolling the surrounding territory, or stationed within the Tribe itself, or along the great river, carrying out patrols and training. Others had been sent out alongside Hu Shi, Qing Yan, and similar figures, and a number had also been assigned to the Sea Fish Tribe.

 

“I see. With me here from now on, I will make certain nothing goes wrong with the farmland.” Tan’s expression shifted into something serious.

 

He knew this was his moment to prove himself. And keeping the farmland safe was exactly how he intended to do it.

 

“I believe you, Boss.” He began thinking ahead to the work, knowing that from tomorrow he could finally go down to the farmland and get his hands dirty. He was not someone who could sit still. Had it not been for the constant need to keep watch from the High Tower, he would have been down there working the soil long ago.

 

“I have one more question. What are all those stones arranged around the outside of the Tribe? I have noticed Totem Warriors patrolling near them.” Tan asked.

 

“Those are the stone walls of our Flame Dragon Tribe. Once they are built up fully, they will surround the entire Tribe and keep us safe.”

 

He kept walking as he explained further. “As for the Totem Warriors on patrol, they are watching for anyone from other Tribes drawing near. They are also there to ensure the walls are not damaged, and to protect those who are building them.”

 

He held nothing back in saying all of this, because Yan Jiao had already told him when bringing Tan over that the new supervisor was completely trustworthy. He had been bound by a Shaman Technique, and would give his life in loyal service to the Flame Dragon Tribe.

 

Without that, he would never have said so much, nor been so respectful from the very beginning.

 

“Understood. And we are also watching the forest for any Ferocious Beasts that might appear, I take it?” Tan thought it through as he spoke.

 

“That is so.” He gave a light nod and a small smile.