Chapter 160: Relying on Yourself Is Better Than Praying to the Gods

Though she hadn't asked in detail, she understood clearly enough — the people in this Tribe attributed every illness to ghosts and gods, no wonder Rongdi had said they were sick; he had known all along that every Rainy Season, these tribespeople would come down with eczema.

But the people of the Rongdi Tribe lived high up in the trees, so they wouldn't get this kind of skin disease.

The ancients didn't know what eczema was and thought it was an incurable illness, which was why they wanted to sacrifice women in a Ritual — the Ancient People were deeply superstitious, and this was ingrained in them.

However, she also knew she couldn't change this, and could only urge Ying not to carry out the sacrifice.

Hearing Nan Qinghuan's words, Ying looked at her deeply, gritted his teeth, and said, "Qinghuan, how confident are you that you can cure them?"

He didn't want to kill his tribespeople either, but the situation was rather serious now — dozens of tribespeople had died from this illness last year, and if things continued like this this year, they would face the risk of the entire Tribe being wiped out.

In that instant he was even secretly regretting it — if they had carried out the Ritual last year, would the tribespeople not have gotten sick this year? When Nan Qinghuan saw him asking her, she was about to say she had no problem with it, but unexpectedly, an old man's voice came from outside.

"Ying, you can't listen to her — the tribespeople's illness is caused by a Curse, and you must perform a Ritual. We'll hold the Ritual tonight, and before long their illness will be cured, and the Rain God will forgive them."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone turned to look and saw... several tall, burly men walking in from outside. The man at the front was as tall as Ying, looked to be around fifty or sixty years old, wore an Iron Ring around his neck, was dressed in Beast Skin, and was followed by several unfamiliar tribespeople.

Her intuition told her this old man had come to cause trouble.

"Elder has arrived."

Sure enough, Dashan recognized the newcomer.

Nan Qinghuan was somewhat speechless — Elder? Damn it, she hadn't even resolved the Shiva issue yet, and now a Elder had shown up? Wait, she seemed to recall Ying mentioning him — Elder, the one he needed to consult about abolishing the rule of blood relatives marrying each other. So what was his status in the Tribe? She had to admit, she only knew Ying was the Clan Leader, and had never considered that there were other tribespeople of esteemed status besides him.

Seeing Elder arrive, Ying hurried forward and raised his hands in a gesture of respect. "Elder, why have you returned?"

"How could I not return, when the Tribe has become like this?"

After saying this, Elder stroked his white beard and looked at Nan Qinghuan. "She is the female you found?"

Ying nodded. "Her name is Nan Qinghuan."

Elder's gaze carried disdain. "Since when did a female get to speak in our Tribe? Ying, you had better prepare for the Ritual right now. Last year it didn't happen because your A Mu stopped it — this year you must offer the tribespeople to the Rain God, otherwise the entire Tribe will suffer because of you. Haven't you noticed that this year's punishment is even heavier, all because of this female's appearance?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the tribespeople all looked at Elder in alarm. Axi also sat up straight and curled her legs close — it was true, they had gotten sick last year too, but not this many people. But she wouldn't believe this was a punishment brought by Qinghuan.

"Elder, the Rain God's punishment has nothing to do with Qinghuan. She is the Goddess, not the Plague God."

Axi's words made Elder sneer. "Hmph, what Goddess? How many things have gone wrong in the Tribe since she arrived? Don't think this old man doesn't know just because he's been away — this female's arrival has brought an even heavier punishment. Ying, what are you waiting for — why aren't you preparing for the Ritual?"

This Elder's words carried great weight in the Tribe. Hearing his words, Ying looked at Nan Qinghuan — he had promised her he would believe her words and never doubt her again.

Even under Elder's pressure, Ying still believed in Nan Qinghuan. "Qinghuan, can you cure the tribespeople?"

If Qinghuan could, then he wouldn't need to sacrifice his tribespeople. He cared about every single one of them, especially the young females — lose one, and there was one fewer.

He knew Nan Qinghuan's abilities — if she could cure the wolf tribe's plague, then she could cure this strange illness too. He believed it was an illness, not the Rain God's Curse.

Nan Qinghuan was deeply moved. Seeing Ying believe in her, in this moment her heart was filled with joy — he finally believed in her wholeheartedly.

Not wanting to let down his trust, she nodded. "Of course I can."

After saying this, she turned to look at Elder. "Old man, listen to me clearly — Ying will not drag the tribespeople off to a Ritual. I am a female doctor, and I can cure them."

"You can? On what grounds?"

Elder had never seen a female dare to talk big to him like this — this female, relying on Ying's favor, was truly lawless.

"I am a female doctor, and I have cured many tribespeople. They all know I have medical skills. Actually, after examining their condition today, it's not a serious illness — it's just eczema, a skin disease. It's nothing major."

"A skin disease?"

Elder had never heard of such a thing. "You're talking nonsense."

"I'm not. Look — everyone lives in the Cave, and the dampness inside breeds bacteria. Add to that the recent rain with no sunlight, so the people in the Tribe get this skin disease every year. What Rain God, what Ritual — none of it is necessary."

These words made the old man's teeth clatter. He was so angry he was blowing his beard and glaring. "You brazen female — how dare you slander the Rain God, you're..."

"Old man, shut up. Stop all this superstitious talk here, or you'll be locked up just like your female, with no food for three days, starving until your legs tremble."

"You female, how dare you..."

"What wouldn't I dare? Their illness isn't hard to treat — they just need to stop living in the Cave from now on, then use Herbal Medicine to brew a medicinal decoction, and after drinking it for a few days they'll recover. Youchao Xuan, go bring all the wine jars from my Cave — first use wine to disinfect them, then after disinfection prepare the medicine for them to drink. I guarantee, within seven days this eczema will clear up."

Conditions in ancient times were limited. Though her space had been upgraded, many Western medicines were still unavailable. The only option now was to rely on Chinese medicine for treatment — it worked slowly, but addressed the root cause and provided lasting results.

When Elder heard it would take seven days: "Seven days — by the time that many days pass, the tribespeople will all be dead."

"Old man, stop scaring the tribespeople here. If I say it can be done, it can be done."

Nan Qinghuan's words struck Elder like a heavy hammer. Furious, he glared fiercely at Ying. "Ying, your female is this insolent?"

But Ying walked to Nan Qinghuan's side and shielded her, saying coldly, "I believe what Qinghuan says."

"What did you say?"

"Elder, she is Heaven's Daughter. If she says it will work, it will definitely work."

"That's right, Elder, we believe in A Mu. A Mu brought Salt and food, and even made Hemp Robes for us — she wouldn't deceive us."

"Elder, we believe in A Mu too."

Nearly all the tribespeople stood up to speak for Nan Qinghuan, making Elder blow his beard and glare. His entire face twisted viciously with anger. "I am an Elder of the Tribe — and you all believe the words of this female?"