I Became The Chief Of A Primitive Village

Chapter 1091, A Tremendous Price

Translator: Silavin

“Shaman, I hope I have explained everything clearly enough.” Ah Liv said urgently.

After returning from the Flame Dragon Tribe, she had relayed every word Su Bai had told her, exactly as she had heard it. That was the matter of having their Tribe contribute labour to build a road reaching the Flame Dragon Tribe. The young woman’s expression was full of anxiety.

Ah Liv was deeply worried that the condition put forward by the Flame Dragon Tribe would not be accepted.

“You are saying the Flame Dragon Tribe agreed to trade with us, but instead of wanting any of our goods, they want us to help build a road?” Shaman Lu Zheng asked.

“That’s right. Is there anything else you are unclear about, Shaman?” Ah Liv nodded repeatedly.

“What sort of road is the Flame Dragon Tribe asking us to build?” Shaman Lu Zheng continued.

He had no mental image of what a road was. The only thing he knew was the paths created up hills or through a forest.

Sometimes, for the sake of hunting or basic survival, a Tribe would lay down a path from the Tribe all the way up a mountain. It was done for the convenience of everyone in the Tribe, because they could not rely on Totem Warriors alone. Able-bodied men also had to contribute, but they could hardly send them straight through the wilderness. That was when a proper path became essential.

This was basically the full extent of Shaman Lu Zheng’s understanding of the term ‘road’.

“A road connecting our Tribe to theirs.” Ah Liv said it one word at a time.

“Say that again.” Shaman Lu Zheng could not quite believe what his ears had told him.

“A road linking our Tribe to the Flame Dragon Tribe.” Ah Liv’s enunciation was very precise this time.

But the young woman could see from his expression alone that it would not be a simple matter. She quietly gulped.

“Is that truly the condition the Flame Dragon Tribe put forward? Do they know how difficult it would be to build such a road?” Shaman Lu Zheng’s face darkened immediately.

“I believe they do. Otherwise, the Flame Dragon Tribe would not have offered to take nothing from us at all and simply ask for our labour in return.” Ah Liv tucked her green hair back behind her.

“The Flame Dragon Tribe is very clever indeed. They know we want their goods, or they would never have put forward such a condition.” Shaman Lu Zheng’s brow creased.

“Shaman, so do we agree to work with the Flame Dragon Tribe? There really is not much our Tribe can offer. Their Shaman said the Green Vine we brought is not useful to them, that they already have something more durable.”

Ah Liv was genuinely hoping to enter into a cooperative relationship with the Flame Dragon Tribe, which was why she had made a point of saying this. She wanted Shaman Lu Zheng to feel that the Green Vine, which was the Green Vine Tribe’s proudest resource, was not held in high regard by other Tribes, and was not even looked upon favourably.

“Did they truly say that? And has the Flame Dragon Tribe entered into agreements with other Tribes as well?” Shaman Lu Zheng asked.

“When I was at the Flame Dragon Tribe, it seemed like people from the Earth Tiger Tribe and the Wild Fox Tribe were also there, though I do not know if any have agreed to cooperate right now.” Ah Liv thought back carefully to what she had seen. “The Flame Dragon Tribe seem to have given those Tribes the same conditions they gave us. All of them said they would go back and consider it.”

“So, it seems the Flame Dragon Tribe is not singling out our Tribe.” Shaman Lu Zheng nodded slowly, turning it over in his mind.

He had suspected at first that the Flame Dragon Tribe was targeting them in particular. After all, they had previously sent someone to try to learn the Flame Dragon Tribe’s secrets.

The Green Vine Tribe had been caught and ended up handing over a considerable number of slaves and dried meat as compensation. Even now, Shaman Lu Zheng could not let that go. He still keenly felt the loss of those slaves. Many of them had been doing essential work for the Tribe, and their absence meant everyone had to now take on extra work.

“Shaman, please be at ease. When I visited the Flame Dragon Tribe, I was not treated any differently from before. The way they received me was exactly the same as it had always been.” Ah Liv said at once.

She had been worried about that too. After what had happened, she had steeled herself for cold treatment. But the Flame Dragon Tribe had not held her previous conduct against her, and had received her with the same courtesy as always.

“This is not a small matter. I need to carefully think it over.” Shaman Lu Zheng’s brow creased again.

He naturally wanted what the Flame Dragon Tribe had to offer. But the condition was genuinely difficult to fulfil.

“Shaman, if we agree to this condition, does that mean our Tribe will need to send a ton of people?” Ah Liv asked.

“It is not simply a matter of how many people. This is a major undertaking. It would take a very long time, and it would be dangerous.” Shaman Lu Zheng’s expression was grave. “Without a year or two at the minimum, it cannot be done. And the distance between our Tribe and theirs cannot be underestimated.”

“Shaman, I am not sure even a year or two would be enough. I think it would have to be double that, at least.” Ah Liv said from beside him, quietly.

“What makes you say that?” Shaman Lu Zheng was not quite following.

“The Flame Dragon Tribe said the road should be built like the stone roads they have in their own Tribe. It needs to be completely level and smooth, not simply a path cleared of trees and grass.” Ah Liv explained.

She had heard Shaman Lu Zheng say one or two years, and she knew immediately that there had been a misunderstanding. A wide, smooth, well-made stone road like that would not take one or two years under any circumstances.

“You mean the kind of road you have always described? The Flame Dragon Tribe actually wants a road like that built? Our Tribe would not even know how to do it.” Shaman Lu Zheng had been ready to give it more thought, but now he felt there was nothing left to consider.

“Yes, that kind of good road. But the Flame Dragon Tribe told me not to worry about that. They said they know we would not know how to build it ourselves, and that they only need us to provide the labour.” Ah Liv added.

“Ah, Flame Dragon Tribe, Flame Dragon Tribe. You are more cunning than a fox!” Shaman Lu Zheng’s brow was furrowed so deeply it could have caught flies.

“Shaman, what is our answer then?” Ah Liv asked.

She was genuinely torn. She wanted the Tribe to cooperate with the Flame Dragon Tribe, but the price being asked now felt far too heavy.

“When does the Flame Dragon Tribe want our answer?” Shaman Lu Zheng asked.

“They said the sooner the better. If too much time passes, they will take that as refusal.” Ah Liv explained.

“So, the Flame Dragon Tribe wants to push us into quickly making a decision.” Shaman Lu Zheng sighed.

“The Flame Dragon Tribe’s goods really are very good. Shaman, perhaps you might consider what it would mean for the Tribe’s future. But if cooperating with them would truly make things too difficult for us, then perhaps we should let it go.”

Ah Liv could see how conflicted he was. This was a trade of labour for goods. And in this primitive era, labour was among the most precious things a Tribe possessed. That was precisely why the Large Tribes were able to keep prospering as they did.

“Let me think.” Shaman Lu Zheng raised a hand to signal for quiet.

Ah Liv took the hint and rose to leave. As she went, she gently pulled the door shut behind her, letting the room settle back into darkness.