Time passed amid conversation, instruction, and questions. Before they realized it, the sun had once again sunk below the horizon.
Inside the massive tent, a small fire pit was lit, providing just enough light for illumination.
"Cough—cough—cough…"
The shaman suddenly broke into violent coughing, covering his mouth with his hand. When he lowered it, glaring blood stained his palm.
"Shaman, please rest for a while," Su Bai urged once more.
Throughout the day, he had been absorbing knowledge and learning the basics of being a shaman. He had already persuaded the old man seven or eight times to rest—but the shaman refused every time.
"That's enough. I've taught you everything I can," the shaman shook his head, casually wiping the blood from his palm onto his beast-skin robe.
"The rest will depend on you."
He raised his head and called out toward the tent entrance,
"Yan Jiao, is the inheritance ceremony ready?"
"It's ready," Yan Jiao's deep voice replied.
"Then prepare to begin the shaman's inheritance," the shaman said urgently. If they delayed any longer, he feared he wouldn't be able to hold on.
"Yes," Yan Jiao responded respectfully.
The tent flap was lifted. Yan Jiao and Cang Shi stepped inside, bowed deeply to the shaman, then each supported one of his arms as they helped him walk outside.
Su Bai stood up and followed behind, rubbing his thighs as he walked—he had been sitting too long, and his legs were numb.
The moment he exited the tent, he noticed the tribe had changed.
The small tents that once stood in front of the great tent had all been dismantled, clearing a wide open space dozens of meters across. At its center stood a wooden platform five to six meters wide and over a meter tall.
Surrounding the platform were ten powerful men—the hunting team's totem warriors.
Each wore fierce attire.
Some had massive ferocious beast skulls on their heads.
Some wore brightly colored feathers.
Others had necklaces made of beast fangs…
Beyond them stood the rest of the tribe—elders, youths, and women. All stared anxiously at the frail figure on the platform. Some had already begun to cry.
The shaman was helped onto the platform. Standing unsteadily, he waved to Su Bai below.
"Hurry up and come up."
Yan Hua appeared out of nowhere, her voice hoarse as she urged,
"Don't make the shaman wait too long. He's already exhausted."
"Mm."
Su Bai quickly climbed onto the platform and stood before the shaman.
"Child, sit down."
Then the shaman raised his hand slightly and turned toward the crowd below. At this moment, his aged voice rang out with surprising strength:
"Everyone, I have found a new shaman for the Flame Dragon Tribe.
For sixty-three years, I have borne this role. I am tired. It is time for a new shaman to guide you all."
Su Bai pressed his lips together. He understood the shaman's intentions—
this was laying the groundwork for him, ensuring the tribe would accept this unfamiliar outsider.
"Cough…"
The shaman bent over, breathing heavily, then suddenly waved his hand to stop the people who were about to rush onto the platform.
Wiping the corner of his mouth with his sleeve, he shouted hoarsely,
"Begin the inheritance ceremony!"
"Yes!"
The totem warriors roared upward in sorrow.
"Yes!"
The tribe echoed, voices filled with grief.
"Hah!!!"
The totem warriors shouted in unison. Totem patterns lit up across their bodies, red markings blooming on their chests and spreading across their torsos, abdomens, and backs.
"Child, these are the totem warriors," the shaman explained even now.
"They can battle hybrid ferocious beasts. With a single movement, they possess the strength of an ox and can crush wild beasts with ease."
"Totem warriors are divided into three levels: low, middle, and high. Each level is further divided into early, middle, late, and peak stages."
"All the totem warriors in our tribe are low-level. You can judge their strength by the spread of their totem markings.
If the markings haven't extended to the arms and legs, they are low-level.
If the markings reach the neck and face, they are high-level."
"As for anything beyond high-level totem warriors…"
The shaman sighed, his voice filled with regret.
"Even our ancestors left no records. I have never seen such a warrior in my lifetime."
"Shaman, that's enough. Please rest," Su Bai said hoarsely.
By now, he had been completely moved by the old man's spirit and persistence.
"Don't worry. Once the final step is complete, I can rest,"
the shaman smiled kindly, as if recalling distant memories.
"Hah!!!"
The totem warriors shouted again and began a strange dance.
They spread their arms, widened their stances, bent low, stomped heavily, and swung their arms upward, circling the platform as they danced.
Su Bai watched closely. He could sense a pattern—
as if they were depicting some unknown ferocious beast through their movements.
"Blood offering!" the shaman suddenly shouted.
"Hah!"
For the third time, the totem warriors shouted in unison. They drew their stone knives and slashed their palms without hesitation. Blood immediately flowed.
"The ritual begins!" the shaman cried.
The totem warriors raised their bleeding hands toward the platform—
like a salute, like a farewell.
"Ancestors, protect us!"
Green light erupted from the shaman's body. The blood scattered in the air was drawn by an unseen force, converging toward him.
Buzz—
As the blood entered the green light, it transformed violently. The glow instantly turned fiery red, flickering like flames in the wind.
More and more blood gathered.
The shaman's face grew paler by the second. The light in his once-vivid eyes dimmed, turning cloudy. Blood slowly trickled from the corner of his mouth.
"Totem, manifest!" the shaman roared.
As his voice fell, white light burst from his forehead. Something seemed to emerge—
mysterious characters forming one after another.
They assembled into a creature that looked like a dragon, yet not quite a dragon; like a serpent, yet not fully a serpent.
Su Bai recognized the symbols immediately—they were shamanic script.
And that phantom creature was the Flame Dragon Totem.
The Flame Dragon Totem, formed from shamanic script, entered the sea of crimson light around the shaman, swimming around him like a dragon returning to the ocean.
"Cough—cough—"
The shaman coughed violently, blood pouring from his mouth and staining his white beard red.
"Shaman!"
Su Bai instinctively tried to stand—but the shaman pressed him back down.
"Don't move. Just one last step," the shaman said weakly.
He reached toward the shamanic Flame Dragon Totem.
The crimson light around him rapidly contracted, gathering into his palm, condensing into a sphere of light no larger than a thumb.
"This… is the true inheritance of a shaman,"
the shaman said with great difficulty.
"The truth of shamanic script and the secrets of the totem are all within it."
Clutching the light sphere, he slowly brought it toward Su Bai's forehead.
"The Flame Dragon Tribe… is in your hands now."
That was the last thing Su Bai heard
before his consciousness faded into darkness.
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