Chapter 384 The Ninth Subordinate Tribe
"What did you say? The Teng Tribe wants us to be a subordinate tribe? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
When Qie Ye returned with the food and told the leader Gu Li about Jiang Xuan's conditions, Gu Li instinctively felt angry and subconsciously rejected them.
As the former leader of a large tribe, Guli has a stubborn pride in his heart. Even though his life is very difficult now, he still doesn't want others to trample on his pride.
Qie Ye said with a bitter face: "If we don't agree to the conditions of the Teng tribe, how can we survive? Father, we are no longer a big tribe, not even a totem warrior..."
Qie Ye's words silenced Guli and the other members of the ant tribe.
Then, everyone looked at Guli, hoping that the leader could come up with an idea and lead everyone to survive.
The surroundings were eerily quiet, but the gazes were like raging fire, burning the bone strength in the middle.
Gu Li opened his mouth, but found that he couldn't say a word.
These people followed him out because they couldn't survive in the Red Ant Tribe. If Guli couldn't lead them to find a way to survive, then they would most likely find it on their own.
Once people’s hearts are scattered, the ant tribe will be really finished.
Gu Li gritted his teeth and said, "Hold on for another three days. If we still can't find a way to survive in the long term after three days, I will go to the Teng Tribe in person, accept their conditions, and ask for a safe and stable territory for our people to live in!"
After hearing these words, almost all the members of the Ant Tribe breathed a sigh of relief, and their solemn expressions became slightly more relaxed.
As long as they can survive, they don't want to leave their familiar tribesmen and live alone in a strange place.
"Roast all the food sent by the Teng Tribe and the food we found. Fill everyone's stomachs. We will go hunting for giant horned deer tomorrow!"
At this time, it was already dark. Under Gu Li's arrangement, all the food was roasted in batches, and people rested as soon as possible after eating to reduce physical exertion.
…
Time flies and three days have passed.
During these three days, dozens of members of the Ant Tribe led by Guli were killed or injured, and there was still not enough food every day.
Worst of all, in their quest to find enough food, they came into some conflict with hunting parties from nearby tribes.
Although they relied on their large numbers and the Red Ant Tribe's former ferocity to scare off the enemy, as time went on, the truth that they had left the Red Ant Tribe and lost the power of their totem would surely be exposed.
By that time, their fate can be imagined.
It was another evening, and the dense forest was dark. Only piles of bonfires illuminated the solemn faces of the people in the ant tribe.
In the silence, Qie Ye spoke first: "Father, it's time to make a decision."
Gu Li sat by the campfire, his facial muscles trembling slightly and the new scar on his face aching slightly.
He was silent for a long time, and finally spoke in a hoarse voice: "Tomorrow... everyone follow me to the Teng Tribe and accept their conditions."
These words seemed to drain all of Gu Li's strength. After he finished speaking, he lay back, staring blankly at the sunset rays filtering through the gaps in the leaves. A single crystal teardrop flowed from the corner of his eye and fell into the dead branches and rotten leaves.
When he was young, he yearned for the most powerful force and was eager to lead the tribe to prosperity.
After becoming the leader, he found that everything was not as he had imagined. The seemingly huge tribe was actually just a superficial glory. Various problems and contradictions emerged one after another, and he was busy and exhausted almost every day.
After the conflict between humans and ants, he thought that by leading his people out of the control of the Red Ant God, there would always be a way to survive, and even restore the ant tribe's former glory.
However, the cruel reality slapped him hard in the face, telling him that it was not easy to survive with so many people.
Now, he finally recognized the truth and decided to find another big tree to rely on for the tribe. However, living under someone else's roof means that he may lose his freedom forever and will always have to please others.
He couldn't change anything after all...
In the forest, all the members of the ant tribe were in complicated moods. No one wanted to talk for a while. They just grilled food in silence. After filling their stomachs, they lay in their respective simple huts, waiting for dawn and waiting for an unknown fate.
The next morning, under the leadership of Guli, more than 6,000 people from the Ant Tribe marched through the forest towards the Vine Tribe, scaring the tribes along the way into retreating, thinking that a tribal war was about to break out.
Due to the large number of people, the journey was slow and it took them two days to finally reach the vicinity of the Teng tribe.
The arrival of so many people really scared the Mountain Turtle Tribe and the Frog Tribe. If the warriors from the Vine Tribe hadn't come to explain the situation, they would have probably thought of running away.
When these people arrived near the Teng tribe, almost all the tourists outside the tribe fled, fearing that they would be involved in the brutal tribal war.
Even the gate of the Vine Tribe was closed. The warriors took up their weapons and stood behind the vine wall, ready to prevent any unexpected situations.
“This is the Vine Tribe.”
When the people of the Ant Tribe came to the front of the vine wall, everyone looked curiously at the large ship docked at the dock, the tall vine wall, and the divine vine that towered into the sky.
Most of the members of the Ant Tribe were seeing these things for the first time, and many of them were talking about them excitedly. All the fatigue from the past few days seemed to be swept away at this moment.
Of course, there are also many people who feel heavy-hearted, because they know that this time they have offered themselves to the Teng Tribe, and they still don’t know what their future life will be like.
Gu Li walked through the crowd and went straight to the open space in front of the vine wall, trying to stand as straight as possible.
The pattern painted on his face was no longer the red ant totem pattern, but the ancient black ant totem pattern of the ant tribe.
However, due to the loss of totem power, he no longer had the warrior tattoo on his face, which was a big flaw for Gu Li.
Gu Li shouted loudly: "Gu Li, the leader of the Ant Tribe, wants to see Xuan, the leader of the Vine Tribe!"
“Ka-ka-ka…”
The vines on the vine wall began to wriggle, untangling themselves like giant snakes, and retracted backwards, revealing a huge doorway.
Jiang Xuan, wearing the animal skin armor specially made by the Teng tribe, leather boots on his feet, and holding a bronze spear shining with golden light, slowly walked out of the doorway.
When Gu Li saw Jiang Xuan's luxurious equipment and the seven warrior lines on his face, he felt bitter but also envious.
Jiang Xuan greeted them with a smile on his face and said enthusiastically: "Chief Guli, welcome to the Teng Tribe. You must have worked hard on the journey. Come in and take a rest and have something to eat."
Gu Li forced a smile and said, "No, my tribesmen are still hungry, how can I eat? Let's talk about business. I heard from Qie Ye that Chief Xuan wants our Ant Tribe to become a subsidiary tribe of the Vine Tribe?"
Jiang Xuan nodded and said, "That's right. Before you, our Teng Tribe already had eight subordinate tribes, namely the Frog Tribe, Otter Tribe, Mountain Turtle Tribe, Giant Claw Tribe, Thornfly Tribe, Rat Tribe, Ape Tribe, and Bamboo Rat Tribe."
After hearing Jiang Xuan's words, Gu Li's eyes widened and his face was full of disbelief.
He guessed that the Teng tribe might be powerful, but he didn't expect them to be this powerful.
You know, during the legendary peak period of the Ant Tribe, it only conquered two or three tribes as subordinate tribes.
And the Teng tribe actually already has eight subordinate tribes. How powerful is this force? Jiang Xuan continued: "Since Chief Guli has brought so many tribesmen here, he must have made a decision. I won't say any more nonsense."
"If you are willing to become the ninth affiliated tribe of the Teng Tribe, you will enjoy the same treatment as the other eight tribes, obtain the protection of the Teng Tribe, obtain trading priority, and various technologies that can help the tribe grow stronger."
"At the same time, any unfinished goods from the Teng Tribe can be given to you to make, and you can receive food or other supplies as compensation."
"Now, tell me your decision."
After listening to Jiang Xuan's words, Gu Li had already made up his mind. He took a deep breath, lowered his head slightly, and said solemnly: "The Ant Tribe is willing to become the ninth affiliated tribe of the Vine Tribe. I hope that Chief Xuan and the Vine Tribe will accept us."
Jiang Xuan laughed loudly and said, "Hahaha, good. From now on, we are family. Chief Guli, follow me in to worship the God of Vine. After worshiping the God of Vine, I will personally lead people to send you to the new territory and help you build houses so that you can settle down in the new territory as soon as possible."
"Then I'll trouble you, Chief Xuan."
This time, Guli did not refuse. He followed Jiang Xuan into the vine wall and bowed respectfully under the sacred vine.
“Buzz!”
The divine vine felt it, and one of its emerald green branches, flashing with green divine light, gently brushed over Gu Li's head, spilling a drop of divine liquid, which was considered an acknowledgement of Gu Li's identity.
Gu Li was pleasantly surprised to find that after that drop of divine liquid merged into his body, his whole body was filled with strength.
Although he could not transform this power into totem power due to different beliefs, it still made his strength and speed stronger than ordinary people.
Guli bowed to the Teng God again and expressed his gratitude. Then, under the leadership of Jiang Xuan, he took a tour around the residential area and prepared to go to the new territory prepared for them by the Teng tribe.
Since the Ant Tribe has no totem god, and the warriors have all had their totem power drained away by the Red Ant God, their ability to protect themselves is very weak.
Therefore, Jiang Xuan arranged their new territory to the south of the Teng tribe's territory, that is, in the direction of the lower reaches of the Nan River, close to the territory of the Teng tribe.
If any unexpected situation occurs in the future, the Teng tribe will be able to support them at the first time.
On the second day after becoming a subordinate tribe of the Vine Tribe, the Ant Tribe began to cut down trees vigorously in the new territory and built a large number of houses with the help of the Vine Tribe warriors.
In the center of the Ant Tribe’s new residential area, totem patterns of the Ant Tribe and the Vine Tribe were painted on huge stones, clearly telling outsiders the relationship between the two.
Because the Ant Tribe did not have any food reserves, Jiang Xuan specially asked Jing Jie to transport a batch of food over and lend it to them temporarily. He would return it after they settled down and had surplus food.
In this way, the wandering members of the Ant Tribe finally settled down, and the Vine Tribe also gained a large amount of labor, which was a win-win situation.
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