I have to admit that these scavengers of nature are really dedicated to their duties; they are devoured clean before carrion insects even have a chance to get a chance to eat them.

If it weren't for the three cave bear skulls still on the ground, I would have even doubted whether we had taken the wrong path.

When we returned to the pile of boulders on the mountain, the women of the tribe were very hardworking and had already started working early in the morning.

The temporary camp had gathered enough firewood, and next to a small fire, some dried meat that had been soaked in water was roasting, as well as a small amount of root vegetables such as potatoes and cassava that had been brought along.

Although this is a temporary stop, the children in the tribe are not neglecting their studies at all.

The boy was being taught by elderly people in their fifties and sixties from the tribe how to make their traditional weapons and how to start a fire.

These children may have been born with the hunting gene in their bones. Whether they are teenagers or five or six years old, they all listen attentively as the elders explain these survival skills passed down by word of mouth.

The girl, along with her mother and other women from the tribe, was learning to identify plant roots, stems, and fruits in the surrounding area.

And some plant bark that can be used to weave ropes, and to make everyday items like straw sandals and grass skirts.

In any case, no one in the tribe is idle. In this perilous rainforest, everyone needs to contribute their strength in order to survive in the brutal competition of nature.

The women took the meat we brought and, in groups of three or four, began to smoke and dry this precious food around the fire, which was divided into several piles.

The men, on the other hand, discussed with the chief and the high priest what to do next and the subsequent arrangements.

Since I was treated like a guest here, the leader didn't assign me any tasks, so I ended up having a lot of free time.

When I had free time, I would take Top to listen to their survival lessons, or more specifically, to see what the elderly people were teaching, since I still didn't understand their language at all.

The women were very enthusiastic in introducing me to some edible plants they knew and how to cook them.

However, I think their cooking methods are negligible. I could easily write them down without any effort, because their cooking methods boil down to just two points.

One way is to put it directly on the fire to bake. That will burn and not look very nice, but it's quite convenient.

Another method is to place the food on a stone slab and then roast it in a fire. This way, the food will remain more intact and won't have too much of a bitter or burnt taste.

When the second method was mentioned, the women looked rather proud, thinking that their idea was quite good and that this cooking method should be the most advanced.

I could only smile indifferently at this. If I let them know how profound my world's culinary culture is, or if I personally cooked for them to experience the taste of the food, that would be a better option.

I wonder if they believe that this food is a gift from God?

The tribal chief was still frowning, as the people he had sent out to check on the original tribe had not yet returned. The journey was neither far nor short.

After the round trip and the delays along the way, the young indigenous people didn't return until almost noon.

Judging from the less-than-pleasant expressions on their faces, I roughly knew that things wouldn't go as smoothly as we thought.

The young indigenous people told the tribe about the red tiger ants, and the facts were pretty much as I had imagined: the red tiger ants did not leave immediately.

According to the messages sent back by the young indigenous people, we learned that the red tiger ant colony had built a temporary nest in the tribe, seemingly intending to use the tribe as a temporary stronghold.

It seems their habits are similar to those of army ants; they like to find a place to build a temporary nest, and then begin to spread outwards to harvest all the animals they can reach as food.

Although these ants are hunting insects, like other ant species, their worker ants generally have short lifespans and need a constant stream of new worker ants to replenish the colony in order to survive.

Therefore, during the period when they stop building temporary nests and settling down, the queen ant, as a powerful worker ant production line, can produce up to 20,000 to 30,000 ant eggs a day without stopping.

As for when they will leave this area, it depends on the abundance of species in the vicinity and how much food they can obtain.

We don't know how long those red tiger ants will stay, and we can't live like this in the wild forever.

Therefore, our immediate priority is to find a new place to settle down and make a living, and then we can figure out a way to take the tribe back from the red tiger ants.

The indigenous chieftain consulted the tribe's high priest on this matter.

The high priest didn't answer the question immediately. He just looked at me for a long time before muttering something to the tribal chief.

The indigenous chieftain, like the high priest, cast the same gaze my way. I don't know why, but I had a feeling that something was about to happen that would revolve around me.

Before I arrived, the tribal chief said I was the person the high priest had been waiting for. It sounded a bit far-fetched, but now it seems there really is some truth to it.

The high priest pondered for a while before coming to my side and speaking, gesturing as he tried to make me understand what he meant.

He pointed to his own mouth, then to mine, and started muttering to himself. For a long time, I still couldn't figure out what he was trying to say.

Finally, it was the young local man standing next to me who sorted out his thoughts and started communicating with me using the mindset of a "young" person.

The young indigenous man came up with a clever way to make me understand what he meant, which was the most important step we took to be able to communicate normally later.

The young local brought two pebbles that were similar in shape and size and showed them to me.

I'm still a little confused. What's the meaning of these two pebbles?

What he did next amazed me.

It first pointed to one of the pebbles and repeatedly said to me, "Luo, Luo..."

Then he pointed to the giant hyena beside him, indicating that he was using pebbles to represent their guardian beast, Luo.

Then the native began repeatedly chanting in a not-so-standard accent, "Top, Top..."

Then he picked up another pebble and pointed it at Top next to me, meaning that what he said referred to Top.

I often call Top in the tribe, just like people in the tribe often call Lo, so we both know exactly what these two simple words mean.