Chapter 110
Chapter 110 – The ritual dance
Translated by Sunyancai
Not everyone would have the chance to learn the ancient dance, also known as the ritual dance.
By the end of every winter, at the ritual ceremony during the Snow Festival, there would be fifty totem warriors selected to shoulder the responsibilities as ritual dancers next to the fire pit. All fifty of them were elites recognized by the entire tribe.
However, based on Shao Xuan’s knowledge, only outstanding young warriors with a few years worth of hunting experience, and those with outstanding contributions to the tribe, could be nominated to the list of ritual dancers. Over hundreds of years, very few would enter the list in their teens. Moreover, Shao Xuan had only awakened a year ago.
It sounded absurd at first.
When Old Ke heard the messenger’s words, his first reaction was denial as well. Anyone in the tribe with a normal brain wouldn’t believe it. However, the messenger double checked to confirm its authenticity, and said that it was indeed a decision made by the Shaman. The Shaman asked Shao Xuan to be prepared soon.
No wonder Old Ke became so excited.
However now, Shao Xuan felt that he was baring fangs and brandishing claws in that outfit. He felt so barbaric, like some alien creature invading the Earth. The good thing was that all people in the tribe were dressed like that. They turned into animals today, and it was a grand feast.
Old Ke had painted colorful patterns on his face with plant pigment, but Shao Xuan hadn’t. He needed to go up to the mountaintop in advance, for the Shaman would draw patterns on the fifty people’s faces himself. The pigment would also be different from the normal kind.
“I’ll be heading up first.” Shao Xuan walked out of the door with that Thorn Black Wind outfit.
“Sure, go quickly. I’ll go up with Ge and the others later.” Old Ke waved his hands, indicating that Shao Xuan should leave now, so as not to make the Shaman wait. Shao Xuan was the only one from down the mountain in the fifty. He couldn’t be late, he shouldn’t, or the others would assume people down the mountain had no sense of punctuality.
In front of the Shaman’s stone room, the others had already gathered. Many of them had learned from the team leaders that Shao Xuan was part of it this year. So, when they saw Shao Xuan in person, they were more surprised, but didn’t say anything. Today was a very serious and grand day for them. No one had extra energy to pay attention to other things.
It was already dark when the Shaman finally finished painting colorful patterns on fifty faces.
“Let’s go.” Some middle-aged man in the team said.
With the awakening of his totem power, Shao Xuan grew a lot in the past one year. However, when he found himself in in the midst of a bunch of grown adult warriors, he was still very obviously the shortest one in the crowd. Even in animal skin clothes, people knew that the little one was him.
“How is that possible? What’s he doing there?” Someone whispered as people were walking up to the mountaintop.
“Who’s that?”
“It’s Ah-Xuan! I recognize that outfit made from the skin of a Thorn Black Wind.”
Someone wearing an outfit made from Thorn Black Wind at that age, it could only be Shao Xuan.
“Is he really walking in the same crowd? How could he be one of the fifty? How old is he?”
“Can’t you just shut up?! That’s the Shaman’s decision!”
Some were astonished, and some were jealous. People shared different emotions in the crowd.
Lang Ga and the others had already learned the truth from Old Ke. But even now, they still found it unbelievable. Being one of the fifty had always been their dream since childhood. However, now their dreams came true for someone who was way younger than them.
In the circle of timber piles around the fire pit, stone basins contained with fresh fruits and ferocious beasts’ meat were already placed.
Shao Xuan followed the team and stopped by a timber pile. He had reached his spot.
The ritual ceremony was about to start, and there were already a lot of people standing on the mountaintop, while some others were climbing up the mountain. Many people in the crowd were talking about Shao Xuan. Naturally, the youngest person in the fifty, as well as the only one who had become one of the fifty after being awakened for only one year, gained the most attention from people, let alone that such a thing hadn’t happened in the last century!
There were more than eighty kids sent to the mountaintop for awakening, two more than last year. Tuo and Jie Ba from the cave, and the twins of Mai and Qiao were all in the crowd.
It grew completely dark.
Just like in Shao Xuan’s memory, one step after another, the ritual dance went smoothly. When the Shaman finally began to sing the chorus, Shao Xuan clearly felt the reaction of the totem in his mind.
At the same time, the little flame in the center of the fire pit began to grow quickly. One moment earlier, it didn’t seem to be able to light up a timber pile, but now, as if a full bucket of petroleum had been poured in, it grew big in the blink of an eye.
Being totem warriors, naturally they had a stronger perception of the totem. The totem in their minds began to expand its size together with the rising flame in the fire pit.
When the flame filled the whole fire pit, on the top of the flame, there appeared a totem of two horns wrapped in flames.