Without My Help, You Couldn't Figure Out This Witchcraft Spell in Ten Thousand Years

Sacrificial Artifact.

Wu Zhiqi's few words caused Shen Can's expression to change. He unconsciously kneaded Wu Zhiqi's bones again.

"Roar!"

"I was wrong, I was wrong, I won't call you ants anymore, you are the most powerful."

"What is the function of the Sacrificial Artifact?"

"The Sacrificial Artifact is used to collect the power of seated ancestors, and it is also the medium for communicating the sacrifices of the entire tribe."

"With the Sacrificial Artifact, through the communication of the Temple Guardian, the ancestors' blessings will no longer be empty words."

"A Temple Guardian can be a witch, but a witch is not a Temple Guardian."

"What is ancestral power? Can ancestors still live after they die?"

Huo Tang was a little confused by Wu Zhiqi's words.

"If they can live after death, it means they aren't truly dead," Wu Zhiqi said. "Ancestral power is ancestral power. I'm not a Temple Guardian, so I'm not very clear about it myself."

"Hmm?"

Shen Can let out a soft hum, and Wu Zhiqi flinched.

"I really don't know."

"I only know that the Sacrificial Artifact needs to be sacrificed by the tribe year after year to collect ancestral power and slow its dissipation into the world. When the tribe faces an existential threat, the Temple Guardian can use the Sacrificial Artifact to unleash ancestral power against the enemy. The Ling Yu Tribe has used ancestral power twice in the past. The last time was a thousand years ago when they encountered an incredibly powerful Disaster Beast, the Two-Headed Fei Yi. The Fei Yi caused drought across the land, and in the end, they used the power of sacrifice from the ancestors to kill the Fei Yi across borders, which then lifted the drought in the lands surrounding the Ling Yu Tribe."

"What does the Sacrificial Artifact look like?"

"Our tribe's is a fish scale drum. It's said that the Blackbird Marquis Tribe, from a faraway land, has a bronze bird."

"Marquis is an honorific title for the leader of many tribes in a region. Legend has it that after the distant era of sacrificing to heaven and earth, humanity multiplied and tribes gradually increased. To unite and resist natural disasters together, a leading tribe was needed to govern a region and unite everyone. Therefore, the title of Marquis Tribe came to be."

"The Ling Yu Tribe is a Marquis Tribe in one region."

"It is said that further into the Giant Peak Mountain Range, there are Duke Tribes that are even stronger than Marquis Tribes."

Without Huo Tang or Shen Can asking, Wu Zhiqi took it upon himself to explain. Huo Tang listened very attentively. What seemed like a simple explanation was something the Blazing Flame Tribe couldn't even begin to grasp in three hundred years.

"What about below the Marquis Tribes? Are they all savages?"

"Below the Marquis Tribes, there's a distinction between upper and lower. Tribes like yours are Lower Tribes. Hey, hey, don't hit me, I'm just stating facts."

"The prestige of a tribe isn't just measured by the number of its members, but also by its influence. Those who dwell in the mountains and forests, living only for a day and dying by night, whose demise no one would even know, living difficult lives and dying silently – calling you 'savage tribes' wouldn't be wrong, would it?"

"To become an Upper Tribe, your tribe must at least have one Heaven Vein Warrior who has advanced through the seventy-two levels of Desolate Power. Only then is it possible to have a warrior in the fourth realm of Martial Arts, the Divine Treasury."

"I said possible. Even among the Heaven Vein Warriors of seventy-two Desolate Power that our Ling Yu Tribe focuses on cultivating, the probability of advancing to Divine Treasury isn't high. The current tribal chief, moreover, with his Divine Treasury advancement far exceeding seventy-two Desolate Power, once withstood a young Disaster Beast, a Tiger Flood Dragon, without being defeated."

"Additionally, you need corresponding Witchcraft Spells. Besides combat, witchcraft spells are the foundation for improving all aspects of a tribe's foundation, from planting and hunting to crafting."

After speaking, Wu Zhiqi glanced at Shen Can. He was certain that Shen Can was practicing the Lingyu Water Control Art. It wasn't impossible for the Ling Yu Tribe to have revealed some related witchcraft spells over the years. As for Shen Can saying he learned it at a glance after seeing him perform it, Wu Zhiqi dismissed it as nonsense. Even the Ling Yu, the originators of water manipulation arts, wouldn't dare claim to have learned it from birth.

"Does becoming an Upper Tribe not require a Sacrificial Artifact?"

Wu Zhiqi nodded.

"Very few Upper Tribes possess Sacrificial Artifacts. Tribes with Sacrificial Artifacts tend to have longer legacies and have a better chance of becoming the leader of a region. The existence of a Sacrificial Artifact is like the tribe's strongest guardian, allowing the tribe to survive natural disasters. The longer the legacy, the more naturally it can become the strongest tribe in a region."

"Without a Sacrificial Artifact, the yearly sacrifices are essentially an empty gesture. The tribe's collected wishes during sacrifices cannot be stored, and it's a waste of the tribesmen's hopes for their ancestors. However, to be fair, none of your ancestors produced powerful warriors. Even if you had a Sacrificial Artifact before, it would have been a mere decoration, unable to unleash powerful effects."

Shen Can spoke up, "As the leader of a region, you mentioned earlier that Marquis Tribes must lead their subordinate tribes to sail together through storms. Why then would you engage in hunting during the flood?"

He actually had an answer to this question in his heart, but he just wanted to ask.

As expected, Wu Zhiqi started eyeing people askance again.

"That's right, the Ling Yu are a Marquis Tribe, with many tribes under their command, but you're just savages."

Wu Zhiqi's words were practically saying, "You're too weak, we won't play with you, you're not one of us."

"Of course, if your tribe could become an Upper Tribe and travel across mountains and rivers to offer tribute to the Ling Yu, perhaps you'd qualify to guard the sacrificial fires at the tribal assembly.

Don't think about being unconvinced. Many smaller tribes want to work for the Ling Yu Tribe, and it's your fortune if you can even get a chance to compete for it."

Seeing Shen Can raise his hand, Wu Zhiqi fell silent.

"What are the Sacrificial Artifacts made of?"

"I'm an exile, how would I know?"

"How many of the Lingyu Water Manipulation Manual's witch script characters do you know?"

As soon as he said this, Wu Zhiqi shut his mouth completely.

He could tell that the older person beside him was still trying to squeeze more information out of him.

This young one was trouble. Once he spilled everything, this person would definitely crush him bit by bit until he died in agony.

"Tell me your conditions," Shen Can said.

"I can teach you the witch script from the Ling Yu Water Manipulation Manual, but you have to heal me first, and I need fresh blood and flesh."

"I don't know where you got the Lingyu Water Control Art, but this art is just the most basic of basics. If you want to progress further, without my help, you won't be able to comprehend it in ten thousand years."

"If you pinch me again, or scare me with those ants, I'll kill myself immediately, and you won't have any witchcraft spells to learn!"

Wu Zhiqi glared, looking as if he was ready to die to prove his point.

Huo Tang looked at Shen Can, his eyes filled with conflict. Wu Zhiqi had devoured over a dozen of their tribesmen, not counting the injured. He truly wanted to kill him.

But this guy had valuable knowledge in his head, something the tribe desperately needed.

Should he seek revenge or obtain more secrets? He was conflicted.

Seeing that a silence had fallen, Wu Zhiqi believed he had achieved the effect he wanted.

He snorted and continued, "I've said so much already, showing my sincerity. As long as you release me and treat me well with good food and drink, I'll guarantee your tribe becomes an Upper Tribe.

Once you're an Upper Tribe, you might even become a Marquis Tribe in the future."

He said this while looking at Huo Tang, his tone as if he was patiently guiding him.

Then!

"Roar!"

Shen Can rubbed Wu Zhiqi's seemingly boneless little hand. "Everything I said just now was just talk. You need to at least offer something real to show your sincerity. Otherwise, how can I believe you?

Forget the witchcraft spells for now. Give me a martial arts cultivation technique related to the Celestial Meridian Realm as a show of good faith."

"Hiss..." Wu Zhiqi gasped, "I'm a witch, not a martial artist. The martial arts cultivation passed down in my tribe also has rules. I don't have any martial arts cultivation techniques."

"You've been in the Upper Tribe for so many years, haven't you obtained any incomplete techniques? I don't mind incomplete ones," Shen Can continued.

"Didn't I say before that I'm an exile? When I was with the Ling Yu, I was under detention. Where would I get incomplete techniques?"

"Chieftain, it seems this person has no sincerity. Let's kill him to offer sacrifices to our deceased tribesmen."

"You don't want the witchcraft spells anymore?"

Wu Zhiqi's eyes widened. Forgetting the pain, he wanted to see if Shen Can was bluffing or if he truly intended to kill him.

"Without me, you won't be able to comprehend witchcraft spells for ten thousand years!"

Shen Can ignored Wu Zhiqi's words. If he wanted to threaten him with witchcraft spells, Wu Zhiqi had found the right person.

"Since you are from the Ling Yu Upper Tribe, we savages of the mountains and forests have always respected the Upper Tribes. Chieftain, give me that Broken Blade. Using a blade from the Upper Tribe to deal with someone from the Upper Tribe is also a sign of respect for the Upper Tribe."

Shen Can grabbed the Broken Blade, casually smearing some honey on it.

"Don't be afraid, after smearing it with honey, it will be very sweet."

"..."

"Madman, you disaster beast-human hybrid demon."

Wu Zhiqi was going insane. The witchcraft spells he had relied on were now forgotten.

This was completely different from what he had imagined.

In this small tribe, he was the embodiment of witchcraft!

Did this small tribe's witch, who had cultivated the Lingyu Water Control Art, truly not care about subsequent witchcraft spells?

Ancestors of the Ling Yu, how could there be such savages in the mountains?

Feeling the sticky coolness on his neck, Wu Zhiqi shivered violently. "I know where there are cultivation techniques! Take the knife away, quickly take the knife away!"

Shen Can drew the blade, and with a shing, the skin was cut, and blood flowed out.

"I didn't lie to you, did I? Does the wound taste sweet?"

Wu Zhiqi shivered, his heart filled with terror.

'He really dared to kill me, he really wants to kill me.'

After gasping for breath twice, Wu Zhiqi stammered, "During this Eastern Hunt, three ships sank. Many warriors went down with them. They might have had recorded cultivation techniques. I know the locations of the sunken ships."

Fang Bo is an ancient Chinese term from the Spring and Autumn period, referring to the leader among ancient feudal lords. It originates from the Book of Rites: Royal Regulations.

By the time of the Shang Dynasty, there were already titles like Duke, Marquis, and Count. Outside the direct territories of the Yin-Shang, vast areas were guarded and managed by numerous tribes.

The leaders of these tribes were called Fang Bo, or simply Bo for short.

In ancient times, "Bo" meant the eldest or leader. The ancient saying "Bo, Zhong, Shu, Ji" referred to the order from the eldest to the fourth.

A Fang Bo was essentially a local leader, similar to what would later be called a regional governor.

Xibo Hou Ji Chang was the leader appointed by the Shang Dynasty to govern the numerous tribes in the western region.