Chapter 176: The Self‑Destructive Old Witch Goes Offline

Shi Gong turned his head to look behind him, and saw… several tribe members walking toward the Cave. He stared at them in astonishment, "Adong, A Tian, A Da, you…"

How are they here? These are their own kin, each tall and robust, also the tribe's formidable strongmen.

The tribe members gave Shi Gong a cold stare, "You old fool, how dare you collude with Rongdi to harm the tribe? You're truly senile. From today we will no longer help you; we are all members of the Ying Tribe and must obey Ying."

After saying that, the men hurriedly performed a respectful salute to Ying, "Ying, rest assured, the logging is left to us brothers; we will see the tribe handle it. We fully endorse Ou Mu's plan to build houses. Ou Mu has brought food and light; we are willing to follow your words. Whatever you say we shall do."

The Ancient People have a limited vocabulary, but their words are very binding.

Hearing this, Ying was pleased, "Alright, you go down first. Starting tomorrow we'll begin preparations for logging. You may rest now; I will deal with this traitor."

"Yes."

These tribe members are from Shi Gong's and Shiva's clan; they, being powerful within the tribe, tried to play both sides with Ying, but now Ying has completely subjugated them for his use.

"Hold still, I am your elder; how can you stand by and let them die without helping?"

A Chi sneered, "What elder? Just a traitor. Shi Gong, can't you see the Ying Tribe is no longer what it was? We have clothes to wear, sweet potatoes and potatoes to eat, and we're about to build new houses. As for you, you and that old woman are trying to ruin our good days; we won't agree."

"You little brats, you…"

"Old fool, even now you still don't understand why you're unpopular. Even your own kin won't look after you?"

"You shut up."

Shi Gong was so angry he wanted to kill Nan Qinghuan; he had heard all the grievances and injustices from Shiva, and they turned out to be true!

He glared at Ying, "Before this female arrived we weren't like this, but once she came you believed her words. Female bleeding is no longer isolated, and even close siblings cannot marry. The tribe increasingly believes her. We are elders, yet you treat us like this?"

"Enough. You're so innocent. You want to harm Nan Qinghuan for your own benefit. Old fool, Nan Qinghuan has done so many good deeds for the tribe; why can't you be tolerant toward her?"

"Tolerance? She's challenging our authority; on what grounds…"

"You shut up, old man. I never intended to challenge your authority; I only do what I think is right. I want the tribe to be fed and clothed, to have houses, to live better lives. What's wrong with that? I understand why you target me: you fear I'll strip you of your power, you fear the tribe won't believe your myths, you fear you'll lose the ability to speak before the tribe. You've held sway in the tribe for years, and now you break your word—that's why you hate me. Don't think I don't know; you've never cared for the tribe, you only seek power and profit."

"Nan Qinghuan, you…"

"Take him away. Nan Qinghuan, don't waste words on him. This kind of person shouldn't be alive."

Thus, Ying dealt with the elder Shi Gong for the first time. After Shi Gong was taken away, Axi clapped her hands, "Great, Ying, that annoying Shi Gong is finally going to die, but…"

She felt a bit melancholy; there was still Shiva unresolved.

Nan Qinghuan naturally knew what Axi meant, walked to her side and smiled, "You want to talk about Shiva?"

"Yes, Nan Qinghuan, she won't let you off."

"No need to worry; this illness won't spare her either."

"Nan Qinghuan is right; since the Shiva clan has sincerely submitted, Shiva can also be eliminated."

It must be said, he had long wanted to uproot Shiva's clan's henchmen, but never got the chance; those families are deeply entrenched, making any move difficult.

Now he happened to catch an opportunity to betray them; both Shiva and Shi Gong can be removed, and he won't have to worry about their tribe sabotaging the house construction.

"No need, Ying, she will reap what she sowed this time."

"Reap what she sowed?"

Ying didn't understand the meaning, about to ask her, when a frantic voice from Dashan came, "Ying, many Shiva tribe members have arrived saying they want to see you."

Sure enough, the tribe's hearts were not unified; Shiva's maternal relatives, upon hearing this, came to cause trouble for Ying.

"Ying, I'll go meet them."

"No need, Nan Qinghuan, I'll meet them. Whoever comes is useless; Shi Gong must be dealt with."

After Ying left, Axi felt Ying was becoming better, "Nan Qinghuan, you're the smartest female I've ever seen; you've changed Ying completely."

Nan Qinghuan frowned, "I changed him?"

"Yes, now Ying talks to you differently than before; he'll consult you and ask your opinion. In the past, however…"

"In the past, he was unwavering."

Nan Qinghuan was about to speak when A Hong, inside the Cave, saw Shi Gong being taken away and immediately knelt, "Ou Mu, spare me, spare me!"

There is still someone in the Cave to be dealt with.

"Are you from Shiva's side?"

"Yes… no, I mean Shiva placed a Curse on me; if I leave her I'll die. Sorry, the medicine I put into the herbal medicine caused the tribe's vomiting and diarrhea, but…"

"It's you, you're the one who harmed us. A Hong, I'll kill you."

Axi, angry upon hearing about A Hong's poison, stepped forward and delivered a slap; the slap made A Hong scream in pain and fall to the ground, too frightened to get up.

"You… you… harmed us, you…"

It must be said, this was Nan Qinghuan's first time seeing Axi beat someone, and it was truly satisfying.

Axi is an Ancient Person; her strength is great, and A Hong's wailing was terrible.

She just watched Axi beat the person without intervening; the woman deserved the beating. Not to mention any Curse— even if there were one, it shouldn't be used to save one's own life at the expense of others.

A Hong wailed as she was beaten, while a panda played with her legs. When Axi's beating subsided, she said, "Alright, Axi, stop; you'll kill her if you continue."

"Nan Qinghuan, she deserves to die; she made me vomit so painfully; I'll kill her."

"Don't waste your strength; hand her over to Ying for dealing with her."

Hearing Nan Qinghuan say to stop, A Hong kept kowtowing, "Thank you, Ou Mu, thank you."

"You don't need to thank me; I'm not a saintly mother and won't spare you. The Tribe Rules dictate how you're dealt with; even if you die, it's deserved, understand?"

Hearing that, A Hong's lingering hope instantly turned into despair.

Nan Qinghuan had originally thought Ancient People were simple and honest, but upon arriving she discovered that's not the case; after all, they're human, with all seven emotions and six desires.

Her arrival disrupted the tribe's peace and threatened many members' positions, such as A Yue, Shiva, Shi Gong; these people, fearing loss of status, grew jealous and plotted to drive her away, even seeking her death.

The tribe members are the same: though they lack food and clothing, they will seize any profit for themselves, regardless of the deed.

Human nature is complex.

"Ou Mu, I know I was wrong. You've saved so many people; please save me, save me!"