TRWSB – Chapter 242 The Rise of a Totem Warrior

Zhuang Hao slammed his fist into the cliffside beside him, blasting a massive hole into the rock.

“Young Master Zhuang, your strength now is comparable to that of a one-star Totem Warrior,” someone remarked.

Zhuang Hao smiled slightly. “That’s excellent news.”
He looked at his own fist and thought to himself: Becoming a Totem Warrior means I’ve finally stepped into the ranks of the powerful in this world. At last, I have the ability to protect myself.

“Thorn Dragon’s blood is truly a treasure,” Zhuang Hao couldn’t help but exclaim.

The stronger the beast, the more it stimulates their growth in strength.

Fred nodded. “Indeed.”

However, Fred frowned slightly, feeling something was off. He had originally thought that a single Thorn Dragon would be enough to get them through the winter. But now, that no longer seemed true.

Zhuang Hao and Yi Fan had made rapid progress, and even Sindorei had grown stronger. With strength came increased consumption, and in just a few days, half of the Thorn Dragon’s blood had already been used up.

Fred rubbed his chin, already thinking he might need to hunt a couple more beasts.

Sindorei ran up beside Fred and called out, “Brother!”

Fred looked at him and said, “You’re not a child anymore—still charging around like this?”

“Brother, I ran into people from the tribe today,” Sindorei said.

Fred asked in confusion, “Tribe members? How did that happen? Didn’t I tell you to avoid areas where tribe members are active?”

“I didn’t go to those places! I think they were waiting for me on purpose,” Sindorei replied.

Fred and Zhuang Hao exchanged glances. Fred’s face turned serious. “Did they say anything?”

“They asked me if you killed the Thorn Dragon,” Sindorei said, puffing out his cheeks in frustration.

Fred’s brow twitched. “And what did you say?”

“I said no. If those people find out we hunted the Thorn Dragon, they might pull some tricks to get a share,” Sindorei muttered.

He had long been displeased with how the tribal chief always claimed Fred’s accomplishments as communal property, only to hand out the leftovers afterward.

Zhuang Hao gave a cold smile. “I’m afraid even if you denied it, they still won’t believe you.”

“Those bad guys,” Sindorei grumbled.

“We may have made too much noise lately,” Zhuang Hao said.

Fred nodded. “Maybe so.”

“Big Brother, I heard the tribe’s winter supply preparations aren’t going too well,” Sindorei added.

Fred nodded again. “That so?”
The autumn this year had been short, and there weren’t many beasts suitable for hunting. Plus, a lot of people had gotten sick—it wasn’t surprising things weren’t going smoothly.

News of the Thorn Dragon’s disappearance quickly spread throughout the Flying Tiger Tribe. Most believed it had left its territory, but many suspected Fred had killed it.

“If the tribe had managed to hunt that Thorn Dragon, we could’ve used its blood to baptize the children.”

Children born into the tribe could significantly improve their future prospects if baptized with high-quality beast blood early on.

“Where did the Thorn Dragon go?”

“Good riddance, that monster’s gone.”

“Maybe Fred caught it?”

“He only just became a Totem Warrior—he wouldn’t be able to handle a Thorn Dragon.”

“If Fred’s fully recovered, why hasn’t he come back to the tribe?”

…

Mier heard the murmurs spreading throughout the tribe and felt increasingly anxious.

Jesse had been busy preparing for winter supplies and was barely paying her any attention. Ever since she had been taken back by the Flying Eagle, Jesse’s attitude toward her had worsened—constantly asking if she still had feelings for Fred or wanted to get back with him.

The truth was, even though Fred had left the tribe, Mier couldn’t forget him.

She knew the tribe’s winter stockpile was insufficient. Even the warriors had been saying, “If only Fred were here.”
As a Totem Warrior, Fred’s strength was worth that of a dozen normal fighters. If he helped, things wouldn’t be so desperate.

Fred was weaving through the forest. Qi Shaorong needed a particular herb, and since the trip wasn’t dangerous, Fred had gone alone.

“Fred.”

Fred narrowed his eyes at the approaching man. “What do you want?”

Xin Ya looked slightly embarrassed. “The Thorn Dragon on North Mountain disappeared. Was it you…?”

“It wasn’t.”

Xin Ya studied Fred’s expression and said, “There were signs of battle up there. You’re probably the only one with the ability to take down a Thorn Dragon. I want to trade something for some of the dragon’s blood.”

“I didn’t do it. You think too highly of me. If even our whole tribe couldn’t handle the Thorn Dragon, how could I?” Fred replied.

Xin Ya suddenly noticed something and exclaimed, “You became a two-star Totem Warrior?!”

“You? A two-star Totem Warrior? That’s impossible!” Jesse burst out emotionally.

Kaifeng blinked and asked curiously, “Fred has been a Totem Warrior for a while now. Why wouldn’t it be possible for him to be two-star?”

Kaifeng secretly thought: Fred must have killed the Thorn Dragon and absorbed its blood—that’s how he became a two-star Totem Warrior.

Jesse pressed her lips together. The cultivation technique distributed to warriors by the tribe only allowed one to reach the one-star Totem level. To become a two-star Totem Warrior, one had to get the complete technique from the chieftain or the shaman. But Fred had never gone to ask for it.

Everyone in the tribe assumed Fred had received the technique. In truth, he hadn’t, and the chieftain and shaman had never offered it to him either. Only a few people knew Fred had always cultivated with the standard, incomplete method.

“You stole the chieftain’s technique?” Jesse exclaimed, eyes wide.

Kaifeng looked at her in confusion and asked, “Jesse, what do you mean ‘stole the chieftain’s technique’?”

Xin Ya smiled awkwardly. Fred had already become a Totem Warrior, yet his father had still withheld the complete technique. It was hard to argue that his father wasn’t at fault.

“Fred, congratulations! But how did you become a two-star Totem Warrior without the complete technique?” Xin Ya asked.

Fred shot him a cold look and said, “None of your business.”

Then Fred plunged into the forest. Though the others wanted to follow, Fred moved so fast that he disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Jesse stared after him, full of confusion.

Kaifeng sighed, “Let’s just go back. Fred doesn’t seem to want to talk to us. He’s not as approachable as he used to be.”

Jesse clenched her fists, jealousy welling up in her chest.

…

“Back already?” Qi Shaorong asked as he saw the dusty Fred return.

“Yeah,” Fred replied with a heavy heart.

Qi Shaorong looked at him and asked, “No trouble on the way?”

“I ran into some people from the tribe. They were shocked that I became a two-star Totem Warrior,” Fred said.

Qi Shaorong smiled, “Really? Is it so strange for you to become one?”

Fred hesitated and said, “Without the complete technique, it’s supposed to be impossible.”

Qi Shaorong nodded. “I see.”

Fred squinted, quietly wondering how the tribe would react once they learned of his advancement. The chieftain might think, like Jesse, that he stole the technique.

And Fred was right. News of his breakthrough stirred a storm in the tribe.

The chieftain and the shaman began suspecting each other of leaking the technique. But after confronting one another, both realized Fred had never received it.

“Did the chieftain just forget to give Fred the technique?” Kaifeng murmured with some other warriors.

The warriors looked at each other knowingly. They had long suspected the chieftain feared Fred’s potential and intentionally withheld it.

“But without the technique, how did he become a two-star warrior?”

“Maybe he didn’t need it.”

“That’s impossible!”

“Then maybe he did get it.”

“Even less likely. He left the tribe long ago. How would he get it now?”

“Don’t forget, Fred met someone influential after he left.”

“Yeah! That wandering doctor—he gave him a bow, maybe the technique too.”

“Maybe the doctor likes Fred, wants him as a partner?”

…

Zhuang Hao, dressed in beast-hide, walked through the forest.

Fred glanced at him and said, “You’ve changed a lot.” When Zhuang Hao first arrived, he carried an aura that didn’t belong in this world. Now he looked just like a leaner member of the divine-blood race.

Zhuang Hao touched his face awkwardly and said, “I’ve gotten a lot darker.”

Xindolei beamed and said, “A true warrior should be dark! Only weaklings stay pale.”

Zhuang Hao: “…”

“Fred, what’s our target this time?” Zhuang Hao asked.

Fred smiled, “An Ao Dragon.”

The Ao Dragon had a thick skull and a powerful tail. At full strength, it could topple a small mountain with a single charge. Zhuang Hao nodded, “I see.”

Xindolei bounced excitedly and said, “We’re amazing!”

She curled her lips in pride. In the tribe, women used to scare kids by saying, “Cry again and the Ao Dragon will come eat you.” Usually, when anyone saw an Ao Dragon, they ran as fast as they could. But now they were going to hunt one.

Zhuang Hao said, “It’s too early to celebrate. Let’s see if we actually catch it first.”

“We will succeed,” Xindolei said confidently.

The hunt went remarkably smoothly. Following Yifan’s plan, they first caught a wild boar. Yifan fed it a heavy dose of slow-acting tranquilizers. Once the Ao Dragon ate the boar, it fell unconscious.

Xindolei looked at the passed-out dragon in awe and said to Yifan, “Your medicine is incredible!”

Yifan waved it off. “That’s nothing.”

Xindolei: “…”

Fred glanced at Yifan. After spending time with Qi Shaorong’s group, Fred increasingly felt that none of them were simple people.