Chapter 223: Discussion

After hearing this, the headman of this small Suiren tribe village did not give much consideration to the reasonableness of the matter or the potential consequences. Long-term dominance meant he felt no fear of other tribes in his heart, so he did not care at all about the Baifeng tribe's demands to reclaim this land and receive compensation. Instead, he was plotting how to counterattack; after all, this small skirmish had already cost them several tribesmen, and they had come to expand the tribe's territory—every tribesman was extremely precious.

Of course, the Suiren tribe was not afraid, and neither was the Baifeng tribe. After returning, they went hunting along the way and caught plenty of prey to replenish their energy. They could also anticipate tomorrow; there was an eighty percent chance there would be a battle to fight, and the Suiren tribe was not the type to suffer a loss.

After resting comfortably for the night, the members of the Baifeng tribe all donned their armor, checked and prepared their weapons, and then formed up to set out.

The people of the Suiren tribe, however, only ate some food that barely filled their stomachs. They had caught many deer, but they needed to process and smoke them before sending the majority back to the tribe, because the tribe had requirements for the materials to be turned in by these small, detached villages. If they failed to meet the requirements, the light penalty was the revocation of rights, and the heavy penalty was the stripping of privileges, turning them into ordinary tribesmen with nothing at all—and the final destination for such tribesmen was mostly being forced into becoming a Slave.

This method of establishing villages was something Baoxi and Xuanyuan had learned. Because they had previously had territorial disputes that were resolved quite easily, Baoxi also learned of this village system and felt it was very useful. Thus, he not only learned it but also integrated his own set of theories into it.

Therefore, every elite Soldier of the Suiren tribe who was sent out gradually turned from initial excitement to panic. They were excited because they had obtained real power, like a Tribal Chief, controlling the fate of hundreds of people. What they feared was discovering that it was very difficult to satisfy the Tribal Chief's almost shameless demands. The harvest of a single village was barely enough to keep their own people fed; if they turned over the majority, they would go hungry, and if they did not turn it over or turned over too little, they would be punished after one winter or summer.

Of course, the people of this village had not yet realized that something was wrong, because they had only established the village a few months ago and it was just spring; it was normal for their harvest to be small. Even if they were not full now, they still had to ensure they turned over the items to the tribe, simply feeling that the future would get better and better and their harvest would increase.

The people of the Suiren tribe also knew that their Weapons were inferior to those of the Baifeng tribe, but they felt their own weapons could still kill just the same. It was all flesh; if you hacked at it, it would die. Could it be that the people of the Baifeng tribe had thicker skin than them? Moreover, they were full of confidence in the combat effectiveness of their own Soldiers, so they were not afraid of the Baifeng tribe coming to cause trouble.

However, this time they still continued their tribe's old tradition, which was an ambush. They pretended to withdraw, and as soon as the people of the Baifeng tribe relaxed, they would immediately attack, catching the Baifeng tribe off guard.

The people of the Baifeng tribe did not put all their combat strength on display either. The ones who went out to face the Suiren tribe were just over fifty ordinary Soldiers, though they all carried Weapons in their hands. The true elite were waiting in the back; the Archer and Swordsman had their Long Bow ready, prepared to provide long-range support from the rear at any time. Although the Bow and Blade Team was their peak combat force, they had the advantage of long-range weapons, so naturally, they had to make use of it.

When the sun was shining brightly on the earth, the people of the Baifeng tribe had already arrived at the location. The result was that they saw the Suiren tribe village still wreathed in smoke, with no intention of moving away at all. They had anticipated this result, so they were not overly angry and prepared themselves for a great battle.

They shouted for the people of the Suiren tribe to come out. After a few loud calls, someone came out whom the Baifeng tribe's Bow and Blade Team found somewhat familiar. He must have been a Soldier who used to run around with Baoxi, which was why the people of the Baifeng tribe found him familiar. Since he had come out, it meant he was the person in charge of this village.

Seeing them walk up to the front, one of the Baifeng tribe members asked with a full, resonant voice: "Is the headman of this Suiren tribe team present?"

That man also walked to a safe position five or six meters away: "I am the person in charge of the Suiren tribe's Sankeshu Village. You are people from the Baifeng tribe, right?"

"It is us. We notified you yesterday to move away from here today. Why haven't you moved, and looking at the state of things here, you have no intention of moving?"

That Suiren tribe Soldier gave a slight, contemptuous smile: "How could that be? We don't have that thought, but this village has been built for a long time, and it is not easy to move. Besides, didn't you say you wanted us to pay compensation? We have to discuss that first. Furthermore, the matter of you killing several of our tribesmen yesterday also needs to be calculated clearly."

The people of the Baifeng tribe gave a cold snort: "Of course we want compensation. You have been here for so long, hunting how many things in our territory? How could there be no compensation? As for the matter of killing your tribesmen last night, don't you know how that came about? They brought it upon themselves by dying."

The Suiren tribe man pressed his hand against the Bronze Axe at his waist: "No matter what you say, our tribesmen are already dead, and this was killed by you. You must give us compensation."

A few hot-tempered tribesmen in the Baifeng tribe group were a bit angry and wanted to speak up to argue, but they were stopped by their captain. They were unable to curse out loud, and at the same time, they received a signal to prepare for battle.

Seeing that the people of the Baifeng tribe were silent, the Suiren tribe man cursed them as cowards in his heart. He then put on an enthusiastic appearance and invited the Baifeng tribe people to walk inside and sit down for a discussion, when in reality, he wanted to lead them into the ambush circle.

The leading members of the Baifeng tribe exchanged glances and ultimately decided to follow. The main reason was that if they went any deeper, their Bow and Arrow power would be insufficient, and they would be ambushed.

Seeing them follow, the Suiren tribe man turned around, sneered, and began to lead the way. Meanwhile, Baifeng and the others in the distance also knew that their Bow and Arrow were of no use at this distance, mainly because even if the range was sufficient, it would be easy to accidentally injure their own tribesmen.

Only fifty or so people from the Baifeng tribe followed, while the Suiren tribe Soldiers had ambushed over a hundred people, so they were not worried at all. The headman's mind was even entirely on the Weapons of the Baifeng tribe people.

Because he was not among the type most trusted by the Tribal Chief, he did not get a share of those Small Knives that were exchanged, and when the village locations were assigned, he was also assigned to this most remote place.