Although the square of the Huracan Tribe is large, it still feels too crowded with more than a thousand people crammed together by the addition of two tribes.
There was still some animosity between the three tribes, but they had all handed over the Sacred Staff, acknowledged a new leader, and naturally obeyed the new leader in everything. With the leaders together, they could only follow, forming three distinct and irregular square formations. The size of the formations showed that the Sangqi and Manti Stone had roughly the same number of people, while the Huracan Tribe had more people than all of them combined.
Some savages from different tribes, though living nearby, stared wide-eyed at each other warily. Qingmu could sense the tension; if it weren't for the Soul of Wood's ability to control these savages' minds, he believed war would have broken out at any moment.
Qingmu, Situ, and Duwa walked side by side toward the altar ahead.
Petru also possessed half of the Soul of Fire and was originally qualified to travel with them. However, being alone, he appeared rather forlorn compared to the others who each led a tribe. So, he simply lagged behind, protecting Mrs. Larry and a few other women. He still harbored resentment towards the savages; having witnessed Mrs. Larry's ordeal firsthand, how could he forget so quickly!
Alice was just as uncomfortable as he was; surrounded by savages, she felt like she was among a group of gorillas. She frowned in disgust, then gripped Anderson's arm tightly, seemingly frightened, and complained:
"Honestly, why didn't they just disperse? These people smell awful!"
Anderson comforted him, "Just think of it as coming back with a good catch; the smell of fish farms by the sea is much worse than this!"
Alice scoffed, "All you know is fishing! Don't you think about what those savages did to the lady! And Professor Pardik and those sailors! Those beasts killed them, right in front of me, and roasted them over the fire. If I hadn't been so lucky, I can't imagine what I would have gone through!"
Anderson's face darkened. He mumbled, "I never said I could tolerate these guys. If I had the chance, I'd be happy to do something for the dead crew members. They were all so young, like my and Captain Church's children. But you see, now Mr. Qingmu seems to have become part of their family, along with Mr. Stone and this new, devout Buddha disciple."
"Can't you have a little bit of your own opinion?" Alice was clearly displeased with Anderson's words. She turned to Petru and whispered, "Hey, Redbeard, weren't you going to avenge the lady? What's wrong now? You're not acting like King of Pirates at all!"
Petru curled his lip, seemingly disdainful that a little girl would speak to him like that, but Mrs. Larry's matter seemed to be his weakness. He lowered his head and fiddled with the red coral staff in both hands.
Seeing his lack of reaction, Alice said unhappily, "Don't think that just because you got half a Soul of Fire you've become a tribal leader like Mr. Stone and the others. Look at them, they're surrounded by hundreds of people! And look at you, all alone and pathetic. What do you have besides a longer beard?"
Petru snorted, turned to look at Mrs. Larry, and seeing that she wasn't paying attention to them, gritted his teeth and said, "I will avenge you, and I will marry you. I always keep my word."
Boris suddenly leaned over and asked sneakily, "Hey, don't forget to call me if anything good happens!"
Petru said, "Do you have sound receivers in your ears? Damn it, you can hear that!"
Boris, however, wasn't annoyed. He chuckled and said, "I didn't hear anything, but I noticed the unusual twitching of your beard. I knew you were up to no good. Hehe, you've got to count me in for the war!"
Petru glared at him and said nothing more.
The crowd proceeded to the edge of the altar.
The altar was almost identical in shape to the one Qingmu and the others had seen in the Sangqi Tribe; it was also a square trapezoid built of stone, resembling an unfinished half-pyramid. The steps were rather steep, and wild grass and vines grew in many places, indicating that it was not frequently used.
Just as Qingmu and his group were about to go up, a commotion broke out in the crowd. The people of the Huracan Tribe clearly regarded this place as their sacred ground and did not want people from other tribes to approach.
An old savage from Huracan, his face painted with makeup, approached Duwa to negotiate. He was very respectful, but his attitude was clearly very resolute. Qingmu recognized him; he was the Huracan shaman who had fought them with his scepter during the battle in the valley. Judging from the way he used the scepter, his Mental Power must be extremely powerful.
Duwa communicated with him telepathically for a while, then turned to Qingmu and Situ and said, "According to their rules, outsiders are not allowed near the altar. I've tried my best to persuade him, but rules are rules."
"What kind of stupid rules are these..." Boris was interrupted by Ivan before he could even utter the dirty words.
An awkward atmosphere fell over the field.
Situ said, "What if it's just a few of us going up?"
Duwa said, "I'll try again."
She turned back to negotiate with the savage shaman. The shaman seemed to back down, muttering a few words to his followers behind him. The savages of Huracan began to make way for them.
Just as Qingmu and the others were about to go up, the wizard suddenly became agitated and shouted at Duwa.
People, unaware of what was happening, stared at them in astonishment.
Duwa shook his head, then turned back and helplessly spread his hands. "He said that no one is allowed to enter the altar. This is a greater rule, one that even the Son of God cannot transgress, unless God himself descends."
"You told him we wanted to go in?"
"Of course," Duwa said. "I don't understand their language. We communicate through the Soul of Wind, so there's no possibility of deception, and I don't want to hide anything from them."
At this moment, the Huracan Tribe who had previously moved aside surrounded them again, blocking the way to the altar.
They stood there, their expressions complex, looking somewhat bewildered. Their priest, the tribal chief, was arguing with the divine son sent by the wind god Huracan, and they could sense the content of the argument through their consciousness.
The excited priest gradually calmed down, and then led his followers to kneel down. They chanted incantations, reciting words that no one else could understand.
Qingmu and Situ exchanged a glance; they both sensed the Mental Power emanating from a slowly gathering collective consciousness. These savages were using this method to eliminate distractions, with hundreds of them sharing the same thought, resolutely preventing anyone from entering the altar.
The collective consciousness was so powerful that it subtly formed a force capable of counteracting the island's Mental Power Field.
This power was amplified by the Soul of Wind, becoming even more apparent to Duwa. Her expression turned serious, and beads of sweat even appeared on her forehead.
However, something even more incredible happened—
The savages of the Sangqi Tribe and Manti Stone Tribe suddenly knelt down and began chanting, led by their respective priests. But they were not fighting against the Huracan Tribe; rather, they were cooperating with them, strengthening the Mental Power Field generated by their collective consciousness.
Qingmu clearly felt the rebellious spirit of the Sangqi Tribe emanating from the Soul of Wood in his hand. This spirit contained extremely complex emotions: pleas, commands, requests, and hopes... but in any case, it only proclaimed one thing: Do not enter the altar!
Now, the three tribes of savages have actually united!