Mrs. Larry felt as if she were floating on clouds. Red flames danced before her eyes, and her body was enveloped in a soft, cotton-like cloud of fire, being blown about by the wind, rising and falling.
The whole world was dark, except for this ball of fire. Where the firelight illuminated, dragons and snakes rose from the land, and some giant, python-like shadows emerged from the ground and then disappeared back into it.
A sliver of light gradually appeared on the horizon, and the shadow of a large bird appeared in the halo of light. It cawed once, and then it was dawn.
Three more Sun appeared in the sky, but their positions seemed to have shifted slightly to the west or north, and the distance between them had increased.
Mrs. Larry found herself lying in a man's strong chest, her head resting on his broad, sturdy shoulders.
Petru helped the lady down and asked softly, "Are you alright, madam?"
"I'm fine, thank you, Petru." Mrs. Larry got off Petru, still clutching the Cohen manuscript she had taken from the Swordfish's captain's cabin.
They stood by the river, far from the village of Huracan People, and not a single savage followed them. From here, a straight road ran through the village of Huracan, leading to the majestic altar. The savages were still densely packed in the square in front of the altar.
Qingmu sensed something and knew that the savages had not given up their collective will; he still could not summon the people of the Sangqi Tribe through the Soul of Wood.
"I told you they were savages!" Boris spat, wiping the weeds and mud from his mouth, clearly having tripped and fallen while running away.
"It seems Cohen was right," Petru said.
"It's too early to make such a judgment now." Situ stood on a rock by the river, gazing in the direction of the altar.
"Is there any doubt?" Alice, utterly bewildered. "They are, after all, savages, not the same race as us. They eat people, and their actions are worse than those of beasts. Before, they treated you as their gods; there must have been some misunderstanding. I was worried that you might be like them, and I kept praying that I was wrong. Now, the misunderstanding is cleared up. Savages are savages, and alien savages at that. Why do you always have to be so saintly and concerned about their thoughts? Anyway, I will never forgive them; I can never forget everything I saw with my own eyes!"
Alice's voice trembled, filled with grief and indignation as she spoke of the savages; the hatred in her heart was palpable. Yes, anyone who had experienced something like hers would be left with a psychological scar; it was already remarkable that she had managed to survive.
Mrs. Larry, who had the most say in this matter, remained silent, staring thoughtfully at the manuscript in her hand.
Su Huilan felt quite sympathetic towards Alice and agreed with her words. Before this, she had also been a little worried about Qingmu and Situ's identities. Why could they gain the trust of these tribal savages? Besides their strong Mental Power, there were obviously some other reasons.
Now that she had parted ways with the Itza People, a weight had been lifted from her heart, and she said:
"No matter what, we have to find a way to get to the altar and take a look."
"This is going to be difficult," Anderson said. "Now we have to face three tribes of savages. This is going to be a tough battle!"
Boris said, " Redbeard, what do you think? I know you're a real expert on war."
Petru frowned as he looked at the village ahead, as if he were thinking about something.
Boris, growing impatient, said, "Hey, you're not fucking scared, are you?"
Petru sneered, "You don't need to provoke me. I hate these savages even more than you do. But fighting? We only have ten people, oh right, plus a bird and a cat, while they have over a thousand. Do you think we can win?"
Boris patted the gun hanging on his chest and said, "We have weapons!"
Petru snorted, too lazy to look at this belligerent Madman any longer. Even if they didn't waste a single bullet, they didn't have that much ammunition.
Alice complained, " Boris, can't you just shut up? Let's hear what Mr. Qingmu and Mr. Stone have to say."
"This is a bit strange. I think we shouldn't jump to conclusions." Qingmu looked up and glanced at the three Sun. They seemed to be moving, yet also motionless, and there wasn't a single cloud around. The distant horizon shimmered with a faint silver light. "Let's find a place to stay. I have a feeling that having three Sun overhead isn't a good omen."
The Crow cawed, "Yes, caw! I'm hungry! Let's eat something first before we talk about fighting!"
Their stomachs began to rumble involuntarily. But the food they had brought with them had been carried by the savages, and they themselves had nothing to eat.
Situ decisively said, "Let's go back to our previous camp; there's still some food stored there."
Su Huilan said, "Won't the savages come after us? After all, they built the camp."
Situ said, "We'll take the food and head to the Swordfish. Although the large ship can't sail, it can provide shelter from the wind and rain, and the lake is wide open, so we don't have to worry about being attacked."
The thought of hundreds of zombies lying in the ship's hold made people uneasy, but Situ's words made sense; Ramla could not find a better place to live than the Swordfish.
Ivan said, "We were very cursory before; if we search more carefully, the Swordfish should be able to find a lot of usable items."
With renewed confidence, everyone retraced their steps.
Qingmu glanced back; the savages were still gathered in the square, but they weren't as tense as before. He could sense some complex emotions in them from the Soul of Wood, including confusion, disappointment, and anger at being deceived.
Although he could use the Soul of Wood to send messages back, the people of the Sangqi Tribe were clearly no longer under his control. Like a group of puppets who had suddenly gained their own thoughts and the power to act freely from somewhere, their will was very firm, even though the strings binding them had not been cut yet. It was as if the cries of serfs who had been deceived and enslaved for a long time were: Get out, demon!
Duwa sighed softly and said, "Were we wrong?"
Situ said, "Actually, right or wrong isn't important. Science requires constant trial and error, and civilization is built on countless mistakes. But the key is that this time, we can't afford to make a mistake!"
Qingmu understood what he meant. They were now in an unknown place a thousand light-years away from Earth, and this might be their only chance to go home. Moreover, their decision could potentially affect the fate of all humanity.
Duwa said, "Perhaps I can try to negotiate with them again, and maybe the hostility can be eliminated."
Situ shook his head and said, "If it were just the Itza People, we could try. The scepters of all three tribes are in our hands; they are their sacred objects. But this time, it's clearly interference from another energy. Otherwise, relying solely on faith, the three tribes couldn't have suddenly united. This force not only interfered with their consciousness but is also continuously providing them with Mental Power to help them maintain their Group Dream. What this force is, and what consequences it will bring, we don't know yet."
Qingmu said, "This power comes from the altar."
Situ, however, said, "No, perhaps it comes from the entire Ramla. Where there is a positive, there is also a negative; the original Mental Power Field of Ramla is too strange."