At first, I thought about traveling south to the central plains, as their society was far more advanced in both culture and technology, being the geographically closest advanced civilization to my current location. From what I'd heard, it might be the Qin or early Han dynasty. Cantonese likely retained certain phonetic features from earlier stages of Chinese, potentially making its pronunciation somewhat closer to the Old Chinese of this timeframe. I had learned basic Mandarin and knew some Min-nan words from my ancestors, but not Cantonese. Most importantly, my status within the clan was somewhat special, allowing me to live here peacefully. Traveling in this part of the world during this period would not be easy, and the Chinese might treat me as an outsider, branding me as a northern barbarian. So, I stopped thinking about traveling south for now. But ultimately, I wanted to meet and try to speak modern Thai with the Tai-Kadai people in Southern China.
After a couple of months, I slowly learned more and more about them at the spring harvest camp and while traveling to the grasslands – how they lived, their thoughts, and their beliefs, mythology, cosmology, history, culture, and customs. I slowly became part of their tribe, wearing their clothes, eating their food, herding their livestock, and learning to speak their language. Aycecek also told me that the mountain where I met her is their Sacred Mountain. They have offering rituals there, which also serve as a way of feeding the Tagh Boru's wolf pack.
The first ritual takes place at the beginning of spring, before leaving the Sacred Mountain to graze the livestock in the grasslands west of here. When the snow begins to melt, they hold a water-blessing ceremony called the Ice-Melt Ritual at the Sacred Springs on the mountain. Offerings of milk, horsehair, or butter are cast into the flame for the Water Spirit, meant to cleanse the tribe from winter spirits, bestow blessings for safe pastures, fertility and welcome the newly grown pastures for the herd, then separately offering meats to the Water Spirit for the welfare of the wolves, without burning them. The next ritual occurs upon their return to the Sacred Mountain, under the full moon light after the first snowfall. Offering thanks for everything that the Sacred Mountain provides them with and praying for mild winter and also ensuring the wolves remain healthy. They normally feed the wolves from time to time during the winter, but this isn't considered a formal ritual.
On the second full moon of Winter, the Winter Trials will begin. Boys under fifteen have the right to undertake a wolf hunting trial in the other mountains. If they succeed within seven days, they receive a mark of the Tagh Boru's tamga in wolf blood on their face, a symbol of their manhood and belonging to the tribe. They also receive a weapon, normally a knife, as a gift from their fathers. These weapons are then branded with the Tamga, signifying clan ownership and binding their fate to the Clan, committing them to fight for it forever. However, the Altin clan has the right to use the Tagh Boru's tamga.
For the girls who turn fifteen, they undertake a herbal test as their Winter Trials. They must identify medicinal herbs beneficial to both the tribe and the wolves, proving their essential survival skills for the clan. After passing the test, they will learn the complete Song of the Wolves to communicate with the wolves, sometimes even using it for long-distance communication within the Tribe. Later, the girls will receive a veil, scarf, or belt embroidered with the clan's tamga and ancestral symbols – a sign of adulthood and readiness for the formal marriage ritual. Actually, both boys and girls learn all the necessary knowledge of the Tribe, but they are tested in different aspects.
During the Summer, they hold a Celebration Gathering Festival on the Grasslands to the west, where all the clans of the Tagh Boru tribe gather. They celebrate the full cycle of nomadic life and give thanks to the Sky for safe travels and herding. Horse races, archery competitions and wrestling matches are held there, showcasing the tribe's strength. And providing young people a chance to find potential spouses from other clans. Marriage proposals, Engage ceremonies and Wedding are common in the Summer. In the Autumn, on their way back to the Sacred Mountain, they stop at a sacred place to make an offering to Mother Earth, giving thanks for the successful harvest and praying for a mild winter.
Wolves hold a sacred place in the identity of the Tagh Boru, who are known among other tribes as the "Wolf Tribe." While most pastoralist tribes view wolves as threats to their herds—often driving them off or hunting them down with trained eagles or falcons—the Tagh Boru have a very different relationship with these predators.
Instead of fighting the wolves, the Tagh Boru tame and feed them, forging a deep bond. These wolves become guardians of the tribe's territory, protecting against rival wolf packs and serving as loyal sentinels of the mountains. When the tribe migrates, they bring their wolf packs with them, releasing them into the nearby highlands surrounding new settlements.
Whenever a new clan is established, it is customary to bring young wolves along as part of the foundation ritual—ensuring continuity of the ancient bond. However, as the tribe's reach extends further into unfamiliar lands, some clans have been forced to abandon this tradition, unable to sustain it in harsher or foreign environments.
After hearing that wolves guarded the mountain where I met Aycecek, I felt a bit uneasy. Later, they told me that they had found signs of a lightning strike near the spot where I said I had been lying. Some even recalled hearing thunder from the direction of the Sacred Mountain early that morning. This made things even weirder—some began to believe I was a messenger from their Gods. A few started calling me "Sky Wolf," interpreting my arrival as a good omen for the tribe.
Even Temurel's family supported this story. Temurel and his wife, "Aylaqun," the clan's shaman, was a firm believer. His elder son, "Temurcin" the Little Iron, Aycecek's stepbrother, also believed I might be a messenger—but he remained skeptical that I truly came from the sky. As for Aycecek, she didn't seem to care much about the divine part of the story. I think it's because she speaks with me the most. Through simple words and gestures, I told her that I came from a distant land, far south of the Wall People, near the southern sea. And she believed me.
I couldn't do much about their beliefs, so I tried to be respectful and act accordingly. Thinking about it made me feel a little awkward. Back home, in my time, I was just a single 40-year-old office worker without any particularly useful survival skills. Maybe I had some basic understanding of the world, general world history and beliefs, basic science knowledge, a few words in some languages, some information about meditation, and general knowledge of traditional martial arts. I was even in the process of learning one of traditional Chinese martial art as a hobby. All of that came from my own curiosity, not from proper instruction, except for the martial art, which I was curious enough about to contact a teacher and learn properly. So why me? Why here and now? Did I have any particular skills that the Gods needed from me? Could I lead or help people here? Should I change the flow of history? What message did they want me to deliver? All these questions were really driving me crazy.
Setting that aside, I think becoming younger might be helping me learn faster than in my previous life, and Aycecek is also a really good teacher, especially in teaching the language of the Tagh Boru. It's like she knows where I'll get confused, maybe because it isn't her mother tongue either. I found that her accent is quite familiar. I took a wild guess that the Eastern Tribes might be speaking some kind of Proto-Mongolic language, while the Tagh Boru probably speak Proto-Turkic. But considering how they intermingle with each other, I have no doubt why the grammar and vocabulary are quite close.
Aycecek tried to teach me horse archery as we traveled west. Combining horseback riding with Eastern archery created a unique style. You had to aim at the target and calculate the projectile's trajectory in your head while riding on horse back. The thumb draw required releasing only after reaching a full draw, all while constantly shifting your weight to control the horse. I don't know what she saw in me, but it was still too hard for a beginner like me. So, I asked her to teach me how to ride a horse first, and she agreed.
Then she told me that her original family was a horse tribe, so she learned horse archery at a young age. Even though she joined the Tagh Boru at 6 years old, she had already learned the basic forms of horse archery. So, later she became the best archer in the Tagh Boru, both on horseback and on foot. Some warriors and girls were jealous of her skills and gave her the nickname "Karagul" the black rose. To differentiate her and mock her given name, the Moon Flower. But she embraced it as her warrior name because she thought Karagul sounded more fierce and mysterious.
And after learning the ways of the Mountain Wolf, she also became a great hunter. The Tagh Boru are experts in rough terrain and guerrilla warfare. They signal to each other in the mountains using the Song of the Wolves and other animal sounds. Because of this, others don't dare set foot on their Sacred Mountain without permission. Both the wolves and the Ghost Arrows can kill them without any warning and disappearing without a trace. But the scariest thing is that no corpses are ever left behind.
Aside from the harsh environment, I really loved this nomadic lifestyle. The people were honorable and hospitable, yet they fought fiercely on the battlefield. They were sincere in their word, and their promises were as strong as iron. Temurel even adopted a girl from another tribe and accepted an outsider like me. I thought I could live this peaceful life forever, becoming a Tribesman. That's what I believed at the time.