A sharp intake of breath suddenly sounded inside the Teepee as they imagined the scene.
In their minds, they pictured a large piece of Animal Hide covering them and then catching fire, which would be horrendously painful.
“Shaman, your method is feasible. They will suffer significant losses before the war even begins.” Yan Jiao immediately saw the advantage.
Qing Yan excitedly touched the green horn on his forehead and said, “If that’s the case, even if we have fewer people than them, we still have a good chance of winning.”
“What we need is to ensure victory. This plan to reclaim our Ancestral Land cannot fail.” Su Bai said. If they lost this time, there would not be a second chance, so they had to win the first battle.
“Shaman, according to what Ye Jiu and the others said, the enemy has over two thousand people. I’m afraid a single piece of Animal Hide might not be enough for us to gain the upper hand immediately,” Yue roughly understood the situation of the Black Snake Tribe.
This was also her initial concern – the enemy had more people and considerable strength, while their side had far fewer people.
“Moreover, I’ve heard that the Black Snake Tribe has many slaves. They might send the slaves to charge first to deplete our stamina.” Yan Jiao understood the battlefield situation as well.
That was how the Black Snake Tribe ambushed the Flame Dragon Tribe before – they sent a large wave of slaves to charge in first.
“If that’s the case, then the burning Beast Hide will first cover the slaves, and our plan might…” Qing Yan worried.
“Indeed, one piece of large Animal Hide might not be enough to severely damage the enemy. But what if they lose these four hundred slaves?” Su Bai said with a slight smile.
Yan Jiao and the others were stunned again, thinking they had misheard. So, Yang Jiao asked, “Shaman, but… wouldn’t it be difficult to convert the slaves?”
They all knew that slaves ate meat for survival and had the protection of the Tribe, so they would not leave so easily.
“I’ve assigned this task to Ah Ruo, so don’t worry.” Su Bai said, crossing his hands.
Cang Shi rolled his purple eyes and asked in surprise, “Shaman, when you asked me the other day if the Tribe had enough meat, was it because…”
He dared not imagine, [Is the Tribe really going to take in over four hundred slaves? That’s crazy.].
The Black Snake Tribe alone had over four hundred slaves, more than the entire Flame Dragon Tribe population. It sounded like a fantasy.
“Yes, I want to bring them into our Tribe,” Su Bai straightforwardly said.
Yan Jiao paused for a moment, then nodded, “This way, our Tribe’s population will indeed increase, and the Tribe will grow stronger. However, Shaman, we might not have enough food.”
He supported Su Bai’s decision, as relying solely on childbirth to expand the Tribe was unrealistic.
How many years would it take? How many babies would need to be born each day? How long would it take for the Flame Dragon Tribe to become a Large Tribe?
The most direct approach was to accept outsiders, just like they did with Ye Jiu and the others, to quickly expand the Tribe.
Su Bai was somewhat surprised that the Chieftain did not object to this plan at all, knowing that a Chieftain would typically prioritise the Tribe’s safety.
He composed himself and explained, “The Spotted Deer Tribe is our largest granary. We can exchange for more dried meat from them.”
“Granary?” Yan Jiao heard another unfamiliar term, then continued, “Shaman, we’re already weaving linen cloth as fast as we can. Ninety rolls is the maximum, and I’m afraid we can’t go any faster.”
Currently, the amount of linen cloth woven in the Tribe was just enough for each exchange with the Spotted Deer Tribe.
The first batch would be sent out to be delivered, and they would already start weaving the second batch. By the time the group that delivers the first batch returns, the second batch would just be finished in time.
This cycle continues, making it impossible to produce more linen cloth. Ninety rolls are already the Tribe’s limit.
“Our Tribe has other things to exchange for dried meat, not just linen cloth.” Su Bai looked completely unworried.
Yan Jiao’s red eyes moved to the side as he thought over what the Shaman had said. He suddenly had an idea, “Shaman, could it be the ceramics?”
“Of course. We’ve accumulated quite a few of those ceramics now, which can be exchanged for a lot of dried meat. Combined with the dried meat from the linen cloth exchange, it’s enough to feed over a thousand people.” Su Bai calmly stated.
He recalled asking the fox eared girl before – one ceramic piece could be exchanged for a large bag of dried meat, which was an excellent deal.
Yan Jiao nodded in agreement, saying, “Those ceramics will definitely be in high demand. Exchanging them for a large amount of dried meat shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Shaman, we also have Wolf Tail Grass Paper that we can trade.” Cang Shi thought of papermaking.
Su Bai shook his head slightly, rejecting the idea, “That won’t work. We won’t trade that for now, and we’ll also trade fewer ceramics.”
At the current stage, they still needed to be very cautious and not expose the Tribe’s valuable assets too quickly. Otherwise, it would attract envious eyes, and there would be endless people eyeing the Flame Dragon Tribe.
It was better not to flaunt wealth before the Tribe has fully grown strong enough to resist a Large Tribe.
“I understand. But Shaman, how should we arrange the people from the Spotted Deer Tribe?” Yan Jiao asked.
Yue played with her hair, her clear voice ringing out, “They might not be wholeheartedly helping us.”
The rabbit eared girl guessed that their thoughts would be similar to their own – a Small Tribe facing a large Tribe did not have high chances of victory, so they naturally would not be fully committed to helping, prioritising self-preservation instead.
“I believe they’re just going through the motions. When the time comes, let them charge at the front. After the burning Animal Hide is launched, they can go and reap the rewards.” Su Bai said, lightly tapping his index finger on the table.
Having read numerous war-related books back on Earth, he naturally understood the various thoughts of allies.
Of course, the reason for cooperating with the Spotted Deer Tribe was simply to take advantage of their numbers, wanting their help in reaping the rewards.
If the Flame Dragon Tribe had three hundred more people who could participate in the battle, he would not need the help of the Spotted Deer Tribe.
Unfortunately, the Flame Dragon Tribe had too few people who could participate in the battle.
“If we proceed according to the Shaman’s plan, their role will indeed be maximised,” Yan Jiao said, understanding the benefits of this move.
The Spotted Deer Tribe had two hundred Warrior Trainees and sixty Early-Stage Totem Warriors. It was more than enough to kill some injured Black Snake Tribe members.
“Our people will just use longbows and recurve bows to support them from behind, and use Crocodile Blades to help when appropriate.” Su Bai clearly assigned what each group would be doing.
“Understood.” Yan Jiao and the others now had confidence in defeating the Black Snake Tribe.
[noscript][/noscript]