The condition of these prisoners visibly improved; their eyes were no longer vacant, their skin became radiant, and their muscles regained strength.
"I’m healed, I’m healed!"
A prisoner with a broken arm suddenly realized that he could raise his hand, and his body was filled with energy once more.
He cried out excitedly and immediately knelt on the ground, worshipping the Divine Vine soaring in the sky.
The other prisoners gradually discovered their strength had returned, and their injuries miraculously healed.
"Thank the grace of the divine."
All the prisoners knelt down fervently, bowing to the Divine Vine in the sky.
Witnessing this scene, Jiang Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The Divine Vine displayed divine intervention, not only healing the injuries of these prisoners but also improving their constitution and evoking their gratefulness toward the Divine Vine.
Similarly, they would initially establish trust and goodwill toward the Vine Tribe as well, which was beneficial for Jiang Xuan to bring them back to the tribe.
After the Divine Vine withdrew its branches, these prisoners were no longer weak and restored to the physical condition of average people.
Once they stopped bowing, Jiang Xuan addressed these prisoners, "We belong to the Vine Tribe; the Mosquito Tribe has been eliminated by us."
"Now, I offer you two choices: one is to return with us to the Vine Tribe, and the other is to stay here."
"However, I must remind you, many fierce Bird-beaked Mosquitoes have escaped. They fear to emerge with the Vine God present, but once the Vine God departs, they will surely return."
"If you choose to stay here, facing those Bird-beaked Mosquitoes lacking a tribe, I need not explain the consequences further, right?"
Upon hearing this, the prisoners could not help but shiver, clearly having been left with a psychological shadow by those Bird-beaked Mosquitoes.
Among the prisoners, a girl about sixteen or seventeen years old was the first to step forward. She mustered her courage, looked at Jiang Xuan, and asked, "If we go to the Vine Tribe, will we be cultivated like livestock for food?"
Jiang Xuan shook his head and said, "You can rest easy on that point; our Vine Tribe has never eaten people."
The girl sighed in relief and asked again, "Will you lock us up then?"
"Of course not, bringing you back to the tribe is to help with work. If you perform well in the future, you might even join the Vine Tribe and become a tribe member."
The girl rejoiced and resolutely said, "I’ll go with you. I am not afraid of hardship, and I can do a lot."
Jiang Xuan sized up the girl.
She was wearing a very worn grass skirt, looking dirty all over, not very tall, quite frail, but with a determined gaze, unlike the other prisoners.
Jiang Xuan asked, "What’s your name?"
"My name is Dong Kui."
"Good, Dong Kui, you will come back with us."
Jiang Xuan then looked at the other prisoners and asked, "What about you? Are you coming with us or staying in the Mosquito Tribe, waiting for revenge from the Bird-beaked Mosquitoes?"
The prisoners, thinking about the terrifying Bird-beaked Mosquitoes, immediately agreed without hesitation to go with the Vine Tribe.
"Good, then come out, Hunting Team Two, untie the ropes on them."
The prisoners had sturdy tree bark ropes or grass ropes tied around their hands and feet, akin to primitive shackles preventing them from escaping.
Shi Qiu led Hunting Team Two forward and untied all the ropes on the prisoners.
The prisoners, now regaining freedom, were all moved to tears; if not for the arrival of the Vine Tribe, they would ultimately become food for the Mosquito Tribe.
"Shi Qiu, get them in line and count the numbers."
Shi Qiu led a few warriors to line the prisoners into several rows and counted them one by one.
After two rounds of counting, Shi Qiu reported to Jiang Xuan, "Chief, there are a total of eighty-nine people."
Jiang Xuan nodded and told the prisoners, "Good, continue collecting resources, and return to the tribe once finished."
The warriors of the Vine Tribe quickly sprang into action, and the prisoners did not idle, joining in the resource collection.
By the time the sun tilted westward, all the edible and usable resources in the Mosquito Tribe had been collected by the Vine Tribe, forming several small piles.
This battle’s spoils were incredibly bountiful; the warriors of the Vine Tribe were all beaming with joy, and even the prisoners shared the happiness.
Jiang Xuan had no plans to spend the night in the Mosquito Tribe as staying there made him quite uncomfortable.
"Divide these items; each person carries part of it, then return to the tribe."
Over a hundred warriors of the Vine Tribe, along with eighty-nine prisoners, stepped forward either to carry or help transport some of the spoils.
Even the giant dragonflies were enlisted by Jiang Xuan, commanded via the Divine Vine to assist in transporting a portion of the spoils.
Afterward, they embarked on the return journey with these spoils.
"Whir, whir, whir..."
In the sky, thirty-six giant dragonflies carrying the spoils took flight in the direction of the Vine Tribe.
The Vine God shrank again, hovering above the Vine Tribe’s ranks, flying leisurely.
With the Vine God around, those fierce birds and beasts dared not approach, allowing the Vine Tribe’s team to return peacefully.
Three days later, accompanied by abundant spoils, everyone finally returned to the Vine Tribe.
The Divine Vine returned to the Stone Mountain, its roots re-entered the ground, quickly growing larger, like a giant dragon circling around the Stone Mountain.