Chapter 298: The main goal — to abduct people.
Chapter 298: The main goal — to abduct people.
About a mile away from the Bone Tribe's cave, there was a small earthen mound covered with trees and grass nearly as tall as a person.
The Eldest Senior Brother and his companions were now hiding here.
Unlike the Sparrow Tribe, which had few good hiding places within a radius of two to three miles, there was no shortage of hiding spots around the Bone Tribe.
The Eldest Senior Brother crouched at the front, quietly surveying the area. From the scene around the Bone Tribe, he could tell that most of their people had gone out hunting.
After all, there weren't many tribes like theirs that didn't have to worry about food all day long.
Having assessed the situation, he began to quietly arrange things.
The mood of the Bone Tribe's leader was quite good. Since suffering a heavy loss in the attack on the Sparrow Tribe, he had never been as happy as he was today.
The rest of the Bone Tribe's people were also unusually excited, and the gloom of the past period had vanished completely.
On their shoulders, they carried several pieces of game, enough to last them for three days.
Having had good luck today and caught enough game early on, they were heading back while it was still light out.That's how hunting went; you ate based on your luck. If you were lucky, you came back early; if not, you had to wait until almost dark.
With hearts full of joy, the leader and the others from the tribe walked back with heavy yet brisk steps.
"$%$%^"
The woman by the river who had been spearing fish saw the leader and his group returning with plenty of game and cried out in surprise.
Her cry startled many people, and more Bone Tribe women and underage individuals who noticed the situation also shouted for joy as they ran to meet the leader and the others.
For a while, the area was filled with joy.
The surprised cry of the woman by the river not only alerted the rest of the Bone Tribe but also alarmed the Eldest Senior Brother and the others from the Sparrow Tribe, who had just finished arranging things and were preparing to attack the Bone Tribe.
With most of the Bone Tribe's adults out hunting, this was the weakest moment, and it would be easy to control the elderly and weak.
This situation was undoubtedly favorable for the Eldest Senior Brother and his group. However, things turned out to be so unfortunate.
Before they could take action, the Bone Tribe's hunters had already returned.
This sudden event caught the Eldest Senior Brother and his group off guard.
Fortunately, they hadn't rushed out yet. They hadn't been exposed, so they took advantage of the situation to stay hidden and wait for the Eldest Senior Brother to decide.
On the other hand, the Eldest Senior Brother watched the events unfolding outside while silently recalling the various tasks assigned by the Divine Child before their departure.
"Leader, I..."
Sha, the Third Senior Brother, quietly approached the Eldest Senior Brother and whispered.
He wanted to take the seven archers and shoot the Bone Tribe's people with arrows. The spears and stones thrown by the Bone Tribe were not as far-reaching as arrows. With the element of surprise, they could kill some of them.
Such an attack would surely panic the Bone Tribe's people, and then they could rush together and defeat them.
But the Eldest Senior Brother shook his head.
The shaman made the primary purpose of this battle clear before they left, and the Eldest Senior Brother remembered it very clearly.
Punishing the Bone Tribe comes second; the most important thing is to capture as many of their people as possible and bring them back to our tribe to increase our population and strengthen our power.
What the Third Senior Brother suggested is not a bad idea. Doing so would catch the Bone Tribe off guard.
But suppose they suddenly suffer such a blow. In that case, the Bone Tribe's people might scatter and flee, making it difficult to capture many people, especially adults.
In the time it takes to hesitate over this, the leader of the Bone Tribe has already carried the game and, along with the other jubilant members of the Bone Tribe, is steadily approaching the cave.
Once they return to the cave and have that layer of protection, defeating the Bone Tribe's people won't be as easy as it is now. There could even be significant casualties.
Sha and Shang both feel anxious, especially Shang, who harbors a deep hatred for the Bone Tribe that dared to attack them.
"Let them go back," the Eldest Senior Brother lowered his voice and said to the restless Shang and Sha.
"But..." Shang lowered his voice and expressed his concerns to the Eldest Senior Brother. This was also Sha's worry.
The Eldest Senior Brother, having found the corresponding solution from the various hypothetical situations and strategies that Han Cheng had previously instructed, appeared confident.
He whispered to Shang and the Eldest Senior Brother that he had a way, so they didn't need to worry.
At this point, the people of the Bone Tribe had already reached the mouth of the cave, walking inside without stopping.
These people immersed in joy did not perceive the lurking danger around them.
Seeing that the Bone Tribe's people were no longer visible outside, the Eldest Senior Brother instructed someone to drill fire using the fire drill they had brought, then quickly extinguished it after igniting the tinder.
At the same time, the others quickly collected dry grass, leaves, and branches nearby.
Once the preparations were nearly complete, they proceeded towards the Bone Tribe's cave.
The Eldest Senior Brother with the shield team led the way, carrying a bundle of fresh firewood under one arm.
Following closely behind was Shang, leading the spear team, flanked by archers and slingshot teams.
They advanced openly and boldly toward the Bone Tribe's cave without concealment.
Not far from the Bone Tribe's cave was a firewood pile they had prepared for everyday use.
The leader of the Bone Tribe had a sense of fire prevention and was unwilling to store large amounts of firewood inside the cave.
Due to the angle, the Eldest Senior Brother and his group had not seen this before. Still, now that they discovered it, the Eldest Senior Brother couldn't help but feel overjoyed.
He had just been wondering if they had brought too little firewood. Still, unexpectedly, the people of the Bone Tribe had already prepared some.
One of the Bone Tribe members, carrying a pottery jar, came out of the cave and, upon seeing the Eldest Senior Brother and his group less than half a mile away from the cave, was first stunned, then realized the situation and shouted to sound the alarm, swiftly retreating into the cave with the jar.
The Eldest Senior Brother's group also hastened their pace, approaching the Bone Tribe's cave with a relatively orderly formation.
The Bone Tribe, suddenly aware of this news, was thrown into chaos.
The leader of the Bone Tribe, upon arriving at the mouth of the cave and seeing that it was the tribe he believed would not come again and that they were also carrying many of the weapons that had caused them significant losses, felt panic spreading throughout his being.