Chapter 163
Bai Qi finally caught his breath and asked Bai Tu what to do next.
Bai Tu: “Are you sure they’re from the Black Hawk Tribe? Is Yan with them? If not, send Quan to check. If they’re really from the Black Hawk Tribe, bring them in.”
Since they were already here, he couldn’t just leave them waiting outside. If it were just adults, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but since they had eggs with them, they needed to get those settled first.
Bai Tu was worried that something had happened in the Black Hawk Tribe. After all, Feather Tribe members were extremely protective of their eggs and wouldn’t casually travel with them. Every day after the egg is laid is crucial; the later it gets, the lower the hatching success rate.
There were dozens of Feather Tribe members. As Bai Tu walked, he calculated the number of vacant rooms in the tribe. No matter how he did the math, he realized that there weren’t enough individual rooms.
To accommodate more people, they had recently converted some of the residences into shared dormitories. Although there were still a few private rooms left, there definitely weren’t dozens of them.
“I hope more of them brought their partners,” Bai Tu thought. “If two people share a room, there might be just enough.”
Instead of going straight to the residential area, Bai Tu first went to find Hei Xiao to ask if he knew anything about the Black Hawk Tribe suddenly moving in groups.
Hei Xiao was even more puzzled than Bai Tu.
“There are quite a few Feather Tribe members in the Black Hawk Tribe who are laying eggs. Why would they all come here?”
Hei Xiao knew about the Feather Tribe’s egg-laying habits, which usually fell into two time periods:
Spring – This ensures a stable food supply during the hatching period but means one less hunter during this crucial season.
Autumn – This allows the eggs to hatch during winter when there’s no need for hunting, but the eggs require constant monitoring. Even when partners take turns, they have to switch quickly, or the egg could freeze.
While many in the Feather Tribe laid eggs in autumn, Hei Xiao never expected them to travel here afterward.
Hei Xiao’s gaze drifted to the sleeping cub. Slowly, he turned to Bai Tu.
“I think I know why.”
Bai Tu: “…?”
“For the sake of hatching,” Hei Xiao calculated the timing. “It’s been half a month since the cubs hatched.”
Bai Tu also looked at the cub. It made sense—the timing matched the period it would take for Feather Tribe members to fly back and forth.
Did someone rush back to spread the news about the hatching, and the Feather Tribe members followed so quickly? That was fast.
But that night, Bai Tu realized that the Feather Tribe’s speed was even faster than he thought.
This group of Feather Tribe members flew from the Black Hawk Tribe to the Snow Rabbit Tribe in just three days.
After Hei Xiao’s cubs hatched, a member of the Feather Tribe immediately flew back to deliver the good news:
The chief and his partner successfully hatched three cubs!
This news delighted the entire Black Hawk Tribe, but while they were excited, no one thought much of it.
After all, the Feather Tribe had always managed to hatch cubs, and most attributed the success to the incubation box and Hei Xiao’s good luck.
Three hatchlings weren’t unheard of in the Feather Tribe, so they didn’t see it as extraordinary. After all, to the Feather Tribe, whether it was one, two, or three, they eventually all merged into one.
Even the Feather Tribe members in the Snow Rabbit Tribe thought this way.
That was until Ying Mian’s eggs hatched. Five cubs. Five!
The Feather Tribe members at the Snow Rabbit Tribe were completely shocked.
They had thought four was the absolute limit, but even the fifth egg successfully hatched.
And that was the egg they had all thought was dead!
Feather Tribe members never give up on their eggs easily. When an egg is declared dead, it usually means there’s absolutely no sign of life.
But Bai Tu managed to hatch even that egg.
This wasn’t just about having skill or not—this was something beyond ordinary abilities.
Even the Beast God couldn’t have been more useful!
After all, they had prayed to the Beast God countless times without ever receiving an answer. But Bai Tu had actually hatched a living cub right before their eyes.
They suddenly remembered all the chicks that had been hatching continuously in the tribe. It all made sense.
The successful hatching of the cubs wasn’t due to the incubation box; it was all because of Bai Tu!
And since the number of hatched cubs only slightly exceeded the norm, everyone became even more convinced of this theory.
One Feather Tribe member, whose partner was incubating an egg, flew back immediately without even bringing food.
Whether they were from the Feather Tribe or beastmen, they could go three to four days without food or water. This eagle flew back at the fastest speed of his life, not stopping for a moment, and arrived straight at the Southern Continent.
Upon returning, he shared the news about Ying Mian and how all three of Hei Xiao’s cubs were alive. The entire tribe exploded with excitement.
All three of Hei Xiao’s cubs were alive and healthy.
Although they showed some aggression towards each other, the distance between them prevented any attacks, and eventually, they even stopped trying.
The cubs realized that food was abundant, and they didn’t need to kill their competitors to be full. Since they couldn’t reach them anyway, they chose to go back to sleep.
Meanwhile, all five of Ying Mian’s eggs successfully hatched, including the last one that Bai Tu took home for incubation.
The Feather Tribe members with eggs—regardless of whether the eggs were laid days ago or just recently—set off with them, as long as the incubation wasn’t too far along.
It took three days for them to fly from the Snow Rabbit Tribe to the Black Hawk Tribe and another three days to fly back.
On the seventh day after Ying Xiao Wu hatched, a whole group of Feather Tribe members arrived, drawn by the news.
Among them were a few who had even brought dead eggs.
They thought, “If Bai Tu could hatch a dead egg, then how long it’s been dead shouldn’t matter. We might as well bring them all to avoid wasting them.”
After all, no matter how many eggs hatched, they could learn from Hei Xiao on how to raise them.
Even if not all the cubs survived, raising half of them would still be a success!
Bai Tu refused the third Feather Tribe member who tried to give him a dead egg and firmly explained:
“Dead eggs can’t be hatched. Ying Xiao Wu was alive; he was just lazy, so he didn’t break out of his shell immediately. A truly dead egg can’t hatch.”
“Too lazy to hatch?”
Even among the Black Eagle Tribe, no one had heard of such a thing. Normally, Feather Tribe members who were fully developed in the egg couldn’t wait to break out of their shells. This was the first time they heard of a cub so lazy it didn’t want to hatch.
Everyone was skeptical. Could a cub really be that lazy?
Bai Tu sighed. He also wondered why this cub was so lazy.
It was almost thrown away because of it.
After repeatedly emphasizing his point, everyone finally believed him—that dead eggs couldn’t hatch.
But they were still convinced that living eggs had a better chance of hatching under Bai Tu’s care.
Bai Tu didn’t deny this. After all, they were all bird species, and eagle eggs shared many similarities with chicken eggs during incubation.
However, there were simply too many eggs for Bai Tu to personally oversee them all.
These weren’t just ordinary eggs. If anything went wrong while hatching chickens, they would only lose a few chicks. But with eagle eggs, even the smallest mistake could cost them a Feather Tribe member.
Chickens lay eggs daily and can lay three to four hundred in a year, but the Feather Tribe only had a few cubs each year.
For the safety of the cubs, Bai Tu refused to personally hatch all of them but suggested an alternative.
“I’ll prepare a separate room and put all the eggs inside. Everyone can mark their eggs, and we’ll hatch them together, with three to four people rotating daily to take care of them.”
Since so many eggs were laid around the same time, making individual incubation boxes would be too complicated. It was more efficient to create a larger, shared one where multiple Feather Tribe members could watch over the eggs, allowing others to attend to other matters.
This method saved time and effort. After all, the Feather Tribe members had flown a long way and couldn’t be expected to fly back with their eggs.
With the temperature dropping daily, the longer they stayed outside, the more dangerous it was for the eggs.
By staying here, Bai Tu could help monitor the conditions. He may not be able to hatch them himself, but he could still manage the temperature, humidity, and incubation environment.
And so, the group of Feather Tribe members stayed behind.
When Xiong Liao visited Ying Mian and the cubs, he was stunned to find so many Feather Tribe members at the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
“Why are there so many Feather Tribe members? What if Ying Mian thinks they’re better at taking care of the cubs?”
Xiong Liao panicked and rushed home. He finally relaxed after learning that these Feather Tribe members were already partnered and had eggs of their own.
While Xiong Liao was worried about the Black Hawk Tribe beastmen, Ying Mian was overjoyed.
There used to be very few Feather Tribe members in the tribe, even fewer with cubs. Most of his interactions were limited to Hei Xiao.
Now, with so many Feather Tribe members arriving, Ying Mian suddenly had a lot more company.
The Feather Tribe members were also thrilled—after all, they were visiting the Feather Tribe member who had hatched five cubs!
For a while, Ying Mian’s place became the liveliest spot in the tribe.
Some beastmen who had never taken care of cubs before volunteered to help out.
When food is abundant, eagle cubs are less guarded against outsiders because they don’t see everyone as a competitor.
Therefore, the arrival of the Feather Tribe members didn’t cause any obvious resistance from the cubs.
The only exception was Ying Xiao Wu.
Everyone finally understood why Bai Tu had said Ying Xiao Wu was too lazy to hatch.
Because he was indeed the laziest of them all.
Except for mealtime, he spent all his time sleeping, no matter how noisy his surroundings were.
Once, Ying Mian accidentally dropped a clay bowl on the ground. The loud crash instantly woke the other four cubs, but Ying Xiao Wu, who was closest to the noise, didn’t even flinch.
He continued to sleep soundly.
If they hadn’t seen his little belly moving up and down as he breathed, they would’ve thought the worst.
*
Meanwhile, Bai Tu was busy preparing the supplies Bai An needed for his upcoming journey.
This year, they didn’t plan to take a large amount of goods to the market to trade for salt.
However, Bai An still needed to take salt to other tribes to exchange for supplies.
They weren’t sure how much they’d get in return, but the trip required taking a sizable team.
After all, salt was a highly valuable resource for every tribe.
They didn’t plan to rob other tribes, but they had to be on guard against others trying to steal from them.
Besides salt, they were also carrying seeds and other essential goods. If this winter turned out to be harsh, these supplies could be life-saving for the tribe next year.
Bai An took along the swiftest beastmen because they needed to reach the boundary between the Eastern and Western Continents and return in the shortest possible time.
After Bai An set off, Bai Tu became even more vigilant about the underground tunnels.
Since fewer beastmen were left in the tribe, their defenses had to be even stronger.
Fortunately, their neighbors were all familiar tribes.
The Snow Rabbit Tribe was busy digging tunnels, so there was no threat from their side.
Near the Blood Wolf Tribe, apart from the Leopard Tribe, they weren’t familiar with the other tribes, but no one would dare to mess with the Wolf Tribe unless they wanted to lose their freedom.
With both sides relatively peaceful, Bai Tu’s daily routine consisted of taking his cubs to check on the paper-making progress and then visiting the eggs from the Feather Tribe.
Luckily, most of the eggs were laid just a day or two before departure or during the journey, so they weren’t affected much by the trip.
Their development was perfectly normal.
The biggest difference between the Snow Rabbit Tribe and the Black Hawk Tribe was the heated kang beds.
The Black Hawk Tribe had started making bricks like the Snow Rabbit Tribe and brought in a lot of cement.
They weren’t lacking in building materials, but the problem was that the eagles were used to nesting on cliffs.
Living on the ground made them feel insecure.
Because of this, the Black Eagle Tribe was the least eager to build houses among the neighboring tribes.
They only built a livestock area and a communal dining hall, leaving the residential houses to be shared among each other.
Considering that the Feather Tribe’s combat abilities on the ground were far inferior to those in mid-air, Hei Yan and Hei Xiao didn’t push them to build houses.
It wasn’t a big deal most of the time, but when it came to incubating eggs, they were completely caught off guard.
The few houses with heated kang beds instantly became the most popular spots in the tribe.
Both the Feather Tribe members incubating eggs and those with cubs loved staying in those rooms.
However, the Black Hawk Tribe didn’t build many houses, and with the autumn egg-laying season in full swing, it was nowhere near as comfortable as the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
If nothing else, the Snow Rabbit Tribe’s houses were by far the coziest they’d ever seen.
Even though some Feather Tribe members were staying in shared dormitories with several people per room, they still felt quite comfortable.
The temperature in the Southern Continent was slightly warmer than the other three continents, but not by much.
The difference was minimal: In the Northern Continent, you’d freeze to death overnight, in the Eastern and Western Continents, you’d also freeze to death in one night and in the Southern Continent, you’d be half-frozen to death by morning.
During spring and autumn, the temperature differences were noticeable, but by late autumn, especially when winter arrived, the differences became negligible—all of them could be deadly cold.
The Feather Tribe members who had refused to build houses or kang beds were now deeply regretting it.
They vowed that the first thing they’d do upon returning to their tribe was to build houses on the ground.
Although they didn’t like living on the ground most of the time, heated kang beds would allow them to stay indoors in winter while continuing to nest on the cliffs in spring, summer, and autumn.
As for safety concerns, they planned to increase patrols around the area.
Their initial refusal to build houses was due to never having experienced the warmth of kang beds in winter.
Although it wasn’t officially winter yet, the weather had already turned noticeably colder.
They could already feel the temperature difference between indoors and outdoors and didn’t even want to imagine how comfortable it would be to stay inside during the peak of winter.
The Feather Tribe members who had followed Hei Yan to transport goods from the start couldn’t help but laugh at their reactions:
“Now you realize how good kang beds are, huh? We told you to build houses before, but you were all so stubborn!”
They had held a grudge about this for a long time.
When they first saw the kang beds in the Snow Rabbit Tribe, the weather was already warm, so they didn’t fully appreciate the warmth.
But they could tell how valuable they were from how much the Snow Rabbit Tribe treasured them.
Having frequent interactions with the Snow Rabbit Tribe, they knew that anything the Snow Rabbit Tribe valued was bound to be good.
Therefore, as soon as they learned that Hei Xiao had obtained the secret recipe for brick and pottery making, they immediately wanted to build kang beds too.
But many in the tribe refused.
The Feather Tribe’s nests were essentially caves, just at higher altitudes.
But the space on the cliffs was limited, and everyone wanted to live up high.
Unlike the Rabbit Tribe, who were skilled at digging, the Feather Tribe’s caves were much smaller than the Snow Rabbit Tribe’s underground dwellings.
Space was already tight, and adding a kang bed would make it even more cramped.
The only solution was to build houses on the ground, but many still felt unsafe living on the ground.
In the end, only a few who understood the benefits of kang beds had their own houses.
The rest continued to live in nests on the cliffs.
They were once ridiculed for “wasting time and effort,” but now they could finally laugh back.
The Feather Tribe members who had refused to build houses looked down in embarrassment.
They hadn’t expected the kang beds to be this comfortable.
When they first arrived, the weather was slightly warmer, so they didn’t notice the difference.
But now, with frost forming outside and a stark temperature contrast between indoors and outdoors, they finally realized that building a kang bed was a short-term inconvenience but provided long-term comfort.
They immediately went to Hei Xiao and Hei Yan to book construction slots, determined to build new houses after winter.
But with so many requests, Hei Xiao had a lot to consider.
Their livestock wasn’t as abundant as the Snow Rabbit Tribe’s, so they’d still need to send a few beastmen to hunt after winter.
Besides hunting, they also needed people to sow crops.
This meant fewer people would be available for construction.
Unlike the Snow Rabbit Tribe, not all of their members knew how to build houses.
Even with a full season’s work, they could only build a small portion of what the Snow Rabbit Tribe could.
They also had to decide on the order of construction, which couldn’t be done arbitrarily.
This was the Eastern Continent, after all. Major decisions like building houses required discussions back at their tribe with everyone present.
The Feather Tribe members who had refused to build houses earlier were now filled with regret.
Fortunately, Hei Xiao assured them that he’d do his best to meet everyone’s needs.
After all, even if he didn’t do it for them, he’d do it for the cubs.
Bai Tu noticed how much the Feather Tribe liked the heated kang beds. When Hei Xiao mentioned that there weren’t enough people in the tribe to help with construction, Bai Tu immediately suggested,
“What about those from the Red Eagle Tribe? Let them do it.”
“Can we really let them handle this?” Hei Xiao was worried.
Building houses was an important task, and from the beginning, the Black Eagle Tribe, like the Snow Rabbit and Blood Wolf Tribes, only let the Red Eagle Tribe members do simple labor-intensive tasks that didn’t require skill, such as plowing, digging, and chopping wood.
“Not the construction itself—let them transport the materials,” Bai Tu clarified.
One of the reasons the Black Hawk Tribe’s construction speed was slower than theirs was because they had to transport cement from here; they couldn’t produce it locally.
Unlike bricks, making cement required a much higher temperature.
The Black Hawk Tribe didn’t have coal, and producing charcoal was inconvenient, so they couldn’t make cement on their own.
“The blacksmith team made a type of chain. We can tie it to their legs and have them transport the cement,” Bai Tu explained. “In the future, they can also be used to transport salt and other supplies to other tribes.”
This was something Bai Tu had been considering lately.
Bai An wasn’t taking many supplies on his journey—mostly salt and seeds. If they carried too much, it would slow them down.
Staying outside for too long close to the snow season wasn’t wise, so Bai Tu and Bai An agreed that this trip was mainly for scouting routes.
They would take note of all the tribes they encountered. If a tribe needed more supplies than they were carrying, they could return later and have the Red Eagle Tribe transport the goods.
After it snowed in winter, beastmen could barely move outside, but the Feather Tribe wasn’t as restricted.
The Feather Tribe generally avoided flying in winter due to the lack of prey and low temperatures, which could cause frostbite.
But transporting goods didn’t depend on hunting, and their tribe’s livestock was enough to feed them.
As for the cold, Bai Tu had already planned to provide them with animal skins and padded clothing.
If any tribes were in dire need, they could use this method to help them.
However, since the Red Eagle Tribe members were still under punishment, Bai Tu worried that letting too many of them outside might lead to escapes.
So he asked the blacksmith team to create a new type of chain—durable and nearly impossible to break, but not too heavy.
The chains could link several people together. As long as they followed the designated route and didn’t try to escape, they wouldn’t be restrained.
But if they did try to run away, the beastmen could easily tie the chains to a tree, leaving the Feather Tribe members stuck there.
At the same time, Bai Tu implemented a new policy:
Those who volunteered to help transport supplies would receive lighter punishments.
To be honest, most of the Red Eagle Tribe members had gotten used to life in the Snow Rabbit and Blood Wolf Tribes.
For most of them, life here was actually better than before.
Their only discomfort was the lack of freedom, as they couldn’t leave the tribe at will.
But during winter or the rainy season, just having enough food was a blessing.
So while staying in one place felt a bit dull, none of them were planning to escape.
Those who had high status in the Red Eagle or Black Lion Tribes wanted to escape but couldn’t find a way out.
Even if they managed to flee, it wouldn’t matter because all the surrounding tribes were connected to the Snow Rabbit and Blood Wolf Tribes.
They would have to travel even farther to truly escape, but without food or companions, such a journey would be incredibly dangerous.
When they thought about the risks outside compared to their current lives, they realized that while it wasn’t as grand as before, it also wasn’t too bad.
After a year, most of them had accepted their situation.
Their biggest motivation now was the points system used by the two tribes.
Once they earned enough points, they would regain their freedom and enjoy the same treatment as the official tribe members.
Those who hadn’t committed serious crimes were especially hopeful for this day.
Although they had to work, they weren’t cut off from information.
As long as they behaved, the guards were willing to share news with them.
They knew the tribe had plenty of food and that once they became official members, they would enjoy better living conditions.
Many of them began fantasizing about their future lives.
Even though it would take at least a year or two to save enough points, volunteering to transport supplies earned them points much faster than regular work.
While it would be cold, Bai Tu promised to provide animal skins and warm clothing.
Some of the smarter ones did the math and realized that if they helped transport supplies, they could become official members within six months.
Once this news spread, there was no need for Bai Chen or Bai Tu to say anything—those from the Red Eagle Tribe were practically jumping at the opportunity to start working.
As for the chains on their legs restricting their freedom, nobody minded at all. They already wore heavier and bulkier chains while working within the tribe.
The vultures of the Red Eagle Tribe, who hadn’t flown in over six months, began training their wings again. Bai Tu only needed a few dozen workers, but the number of volunteers was several times that.
Since they were also from the Red Eagle Tribe, the vultures on the Black Hawk Tribe’s side were just as eager to switch to this new job.
After hearing about it, Hei Xiao nodded. He didn’t even need to ask—of course, people would be willing. Who wouldn’t want to regain their freedom as soon as possible and be able to choose their own work and food?
“After winter, we can have them transport supplies together. We’ll also send another construction team over,” Bai Tu said.
They had enough people and materials to ensure that the Black Hawk Tribe could move into new houses before next winter.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Hei Xiao drew a map of all the tribes on the Southern Continent.
“I traveled around the Southern Continent a lot in the past,” he explained.
He didn’t know that his brother had been taken to the Eastern Continent, more precisely to the border between the Eastern and Southern Continents. He had spent most of his time searching in the Southern Continent.
Thinking about it, Hei Xiao felt a twinge of regret. If they had started searching in the Eastern Continent earlier, he might have found Bai Tu a year sooner. Their lives would probably be very different now.
Hei Xiao looked at the cubs sprawled out on the bed, sleeping in all sorts of strange positions, and sighed.
Even though he had accepted reality, he still felt a little heavy-hearted whenever he saw the cubs.
Noticing his brother’s expression, Bai Tu immediately said, “I haven’t said anything about your cubs, so you can’t say anything about mine either.”
One brother had three wolf cubs, and the other had three eagle cubs—neither could judge the other.
Hei Xiao: “…”
As they were talking, Bai Qi came knocking on the door.
“Bai Tu, a group from the White Bear Tribe has arrived.”
Bai Tu and Hei Xiao exchanged surprised looks.
“The White Bear Tribe? Shouldn’t they be busy digging underground tunnels?”
“How many people?” Bai Tu asked as he walked out, knowing that Bai Qi wouldn’t have come to him if it were just a few visitors.
“Thirteen,” Bai Qi replied, having counted them already.
“That many? Where’s Liao? Is Ying Mian at home?”
“Xiong Liao went back to their tribe yesterday. I haven’t checked on Ying Mian yet.”
“I’ll go get Ying Mian. You handle the rest,” Hei Xiao volunteered. He was on his way back anyway, so he could stop by and bring Ying Mian over.
Bai Tu agreed, and Bai Qi led the group from the White Bear Tribe to the meeting room.
When they arrived, they realized that although the visitors were from the White Bear Tribe, they weren’t White Bears—they were Feather Tribe members who had joined the White Bear Tribe.
Ying Mian was stunned to see so many of his kin arriving together.
“Young Chief? Why are you all here?”
“I came to escort them,” Ying Qin explained, gesturing to the Feather Tribe members behind him. “They all have young cubs.”
The last part was said mainly for Bai Tu’s benefit. Ying Qin respectfully continued, “Lord Bai Tu, we humbly ask for your help in hatching these cubs.”
Their tribe’s beastmen were small in their beast forms, and it was challenging to keep their cubs alive. In the past two years, no newborn cubs had survived.
“How many are there?”
Bai Tu didn’t refuse.
If he was already helping the Black Eagle Tribe, then helping one more group wouldn’t make much of a difference.
“There are thirty-seven eggs in total,” Ying Qin said immediately. “These are all the parents.”
“There’s no need to leave so many people behind,” Bai Tu said. “Just one parent per nest is enough.”
With the collective incubation method they were using, it only took two or three people a day to watch over the eggs.
Leaving too many people would only burden the tribe, especially in terms of housing.
Ying Qin didn’t object and immediately split his group into two teams.
Seven parents stayed behind while the other six returned with him.
“Would you like to see my cubs, Young Chief?” Ying Mian asked.
Since arriving at the Snow Rabbit Tribe, he hadn’t seen Ying Qin for more than four months. Of course, he missed him.
But with the eggs to incubate, and now with several cubs to care for, Ying Mian couldn’t leave for long.
If Ying Qin hadn’t come over this time, they probably wouldn’t have met until after winter.
“I’ll pass,” Ying Qin replied, even though he really wanted to see them.
Showing up suddenly with his tribe members was already impolite, and it would be even ruder to stay too long.
After hearing Bai Tu agree to help, Ying Qin planned to leave immediately with the others.
“Since you’re here, why not rest for a while?” Bai Tu suggested, noticing Ying Mian’s reluctance to say goodbye.
He had seen plenty of White Bear Tribe members before, but this was his first time meeting the Eagle Five Tribe.
Since they were now part of the White Bear Tribe, they should receive the same treatment.
The White Bear Tribe members had stayed here for quite a while, so letting Ying Qin and his group see the cubs wouldn’t be an issue.
Bai Tu knew that Ying Qin wouldn’t agree unless he invited them himself, so he took the initiative.
Ying Qin was touched, seeing that Bai Tu was genuinely welcoming and not just being polite.
As a leader who had brought his tribe to seek refuge with another tribe, Ying Qin knew it wasn’t a dignified situation.
He had mentally prepared himself for rejection or mockery.
But the Snow Rabbit Tribe members showed no signs of ridicule or contempt.
Not only that, Bai Tu even considered their well-being, something Ying Qin hadn’t experienced in a long time.
Even before joining the White Bear Tribe, his tribe couldn’t compare to the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
Although tribes appeared equal on the surface, there was always a hierarchy: Large tribes looked down on smaller tribes and smaller tribes looked down on those who depended on other tribes for survival.
If it weren’t for the sake of these cubs, Ying Qin wouldn’t have taken the risk of coming here.
Even within the White Bear Tribe, many mocked them for not being able to care for their cubs, let alone how the other tribes viewed them.
Bai Tu didn’t know what was going through Ying Qin’s mind.
In his perspective, people from his tribe or any other tribe were divided into only two categories: Those who had made mistakes and those who hadn’t.
Those who did wrong deserved punishment. Those who did nothing wrong should be treated equally, regardless of their race.
After transforming into human form, everyone was the same.
Why would anyone be considered superior or inferior?
Even large tribes were once small tribes that grew over time.
He saw no reason for a hierarchy of contempt.
Who knew? Today’s small tribe could become tomorrow’s great tribe.
After all, his own tribe had grown from less than a hundred people to its current size.
Bai Tu saw nothing wrong with being a small tribe.
He didn’t even realize how much his views were influencing the people around him, changing their behaviors and attitudes.
After arranging for Ying Qin and his group to settle in, Bai Tu couldn’t help but mutter to Bai Qi, “I wonder how the chief is doing on his journey.”
Bai An was visiting small tribes, and Bai Tu worried about whether they were prepared for winter.
After all, small tribes had it much harder than larger ones.
*
At the border between the Eastern and Western Continents
Bai An, the person Bai Tu was thinking about, was busy trading supplies with a few small tribes.
A small tribe’s chief asked him in disbelief, “You’re willing to trade for just one bowl of salt?”
Their tribe was tiny, with only about thirty beastmen and barely a dozen capable hunters.
They couldn’t even form a proper hunting team, so their catches were always limited.
They had to save up for years before they could trade for salt, and even then, other tribes often refused to trade because they didn’t have enough prey.
They were supposed to trade for salt before the rainy season this year, but they didn’t catch enough game.
They also hadn’t made many tools in the past two years, so the most they could trade for was half a bowl of salt.
That amount was too little for the salt-trading tribes at the market, and even the larger tribes nearby weren’t interested.
Some friendly small tribes were willing to trade, but their salt supplies were tight too.
When they heard about a salt-trading team that would accept anything, they brought out all the food they had.
They planned to pool it with a few other familiar tribes to trade for a few bowls and then split it up.
They never expected this team to agree to trade for just one bowl.
And the price was only one-quarter of a basket of food for a bowl of salt—cheaper than any other salt-trading team they had ever seen!
“Yes, even half a bowl is fine,” Bai An said, seeing his past self reflected in the other tribe leader’s eyes.
Before last year, his tribe was also small and weak.
Every time they needed salt, they had to follow other tribes to the market.
Sometimes they couldn’t even find a salt-trading tribe and had to settle for poor-quality salt.
Every time they traded for salt, they were mocked.
Thinking about those days, Bai An sighed.
“One basket of meat can be exchanged for four bowls of salt…”
None of them had ever seen such an exchange rate before, and they rushed forward, afraid they’d miss out.
“I want ten bowls!”
“Our tribe needs five bowls!”
“We want a whole basket!”
“There’s enough for everyone,” Bai An reassured them.
“We brought enough salt for all the tribes here, so just take what your tribe actually needs.
If everyone grabs as much as they can, then it won’t be enough for everyone.
If you end up with more salt than you can use, and other tribes can’t get any, then no one will be happy.
Just calculate how much you need from now until the end of winter—don’t take more than necessary.
What if food prices go up later? You’d regret trading too much now and getting a bad deal.”
Hearing this, everyone calmed down, and the amount of salt they asked for was half of what they initially wanted.
Bai An distributed the salt according to the amount of food they brought.
He also gave out some seeds and asked if anyone wanted to return with them to learn new skills.
Visiting another tribe was risky, whether alone or in a group.
The beastmen who had just received salt quickly hugged their precious salt and shook their heads, unwilling to leave their tribes.
Only the old chief who had asked earlier was curious.
“What would we be learning?”
Bai An explained, “How to grow fruits, how to cultivate food crops—like the seeds we gave you.
You can also learn about medicinal herbs and raising livestock like chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, cows, and sheep.”
After speaking, Bai An remembered something and added,
“Does anyone here not know how to incubate eggs? We can teach that too.”
“Incubate eggs? Isn’t that something all Feather Tribe members know how to do?” someone asked, confused.
Tu Xun, standing behind Bai An, chimed in, “But our tribe can hatch five eggs from one nest!”
“Five?!”
The beastmen, who had never heard of such a thing, were completely stunned.
They couldn’t believe it—could their tribe really be that fertile?
Thanks for the chapter!