Chapter 275: Friday?

Chapter 275: Friday?

"Let's go, let's head back," Han Cheng stood on the single log boat, after looking to the east for a while, he spoke to the Eldest Senior Brother.

"What?" The Eldest Senior Brother was stunned, looking at the sun hanging in the sky, which hadn't reached the due south yet. Thinking he might have misheard, he asked in response.

Didn't the Divine Child say we should wait until tonight and start heading back tomorrow? Why the sudden change of heart now?

"Let's go back," Han Cheng repeated without turning around.

"Turn around, let's go back!" The Eldest Senior Brother, now sure of the message, shouted excitedly to the others.

Although they didn't know why the Divine Child suddenly changed his mind, being able to return early was a happy event for this group of people who were eager to go back.

Upon hearing this good news, everyone quickly turned the boats around on the water surface and headed upstream.

Han Cheng waved goodbye to the East and the imagined modern civilization.

The immediate reason for Han Cheng's sudden decision was a tiger roar.

The roar didn't scare him, but it reminded him of the two saber-toothed tigers he had seen in the woods when searching for Fu Jiang.

Saber-toothed tigers were long extinct, and there were no traces of them in the future.

Realizing this suddenly, he decided, after a moment of silence, to have the Eldest Senior Brother and the others return.

There was no need to explore the road ahead anymore.

The presence of saber-toothed tigers, a species long supposed to be extinct, meant that this couldn't be a civilized society.

I should have thought of this earlier!

Feeling relieved and somewhat lost, Han Cheng gently tapped his forehead, feeling remorseful.

Four small boats went upstream, and the journey, named "search for useful species" to verify whether the outside world was civilized, ended here.

The sound of water gently accompanied the cheerful people heading towards where they came from.

"Stop!"

Han Cheng suddenly spoke up.

Everyone was puzzled. What's wrong with the Divine Child today? He just said we should go. Why suddenly stop?

"Look there!"

Han Cheng pointed to a place on the south bank downstream of the river, telling everyone.

While the Eldest Senior Brother and the others faced upstream when they heard about returning, Han Cheng was the only one looking downstream.

Now, hearing what Han Cheng said, they all followed his gaze. Under the blue sky, a pillar of smoke was rising and swaying.

Smoke meant there were people.

They hadn't encountered anyone on their way here, so naturally, seeing someone now was unusual.

"Should we go check it out?"

The smoking place wasn't far from here. Although they wanted to return quickly, they were also curious about the sudden appearance of the smoke. Moreover, it wasn't too far away, so after considering for a while, they turned the boats around again and headed downstream to see what was happening.

It would be even better if they could get some information about the surroundings from them.

Going downstream was naturally faster, and they arrived at the location before long.

They chose a suitable place to moor the boat and went ashore.

Following the previous practice, after tying the boat here, they pushed it away from the shore with a pole, hiding the oars and poles in the bushes.

Armed with weapons, they surrounded Han Cheng in the middle and headed towards the dwindling smoke.

Treading on dry grass, they proceeded through the thick weeds.

"They're there!"

After walking for a while, approaching where the smoke was rising, the leading Eldest Senior Brother suddenly stopped, looking somewhat surprised.

Han Cheng was short, surrounded by others in the middle, so he couldn't see what was happening there. Seeing the Eldest Senior Brother and others reacting like this, he didn't know what they had seen. He was feeling anxious, he asked.

The Eldest Senior Brother hesitated momentarily, then lifted Han Cheng onto his shoulders, giving him a more precise view ahead.

Not too far away, a large fire was burning, surrounded by a group of primitive people gathered around animal skins. There were about ten of them, big and small.

Isn't it normal for primitive people to light fires? Although their behavior around the fire seemed strange, the Eldest Senior Brother and the others shouldn't be so surprised.

Han Cheng thought to himself, but his attention was soon drawn to the actions of several muscular individuals.

"Look there!"

Han Cheng pointed to a place on the south bank downstream of the river, telling everyone.

While the Eldest Senior Brother and the others faced upstream when they heard about returning, Han Cheng was the only one looking downstream.

Now, hearing what Han Cheng said, they all followed his gaze. Under the blue sky, a pillar of smoke was rising and swaying.

Smoke meant there were people.

They hadn't encountered anyone on their way here, so naturally, seeing someone now was unusual.

"Should we go check it out?"

The smoking place wasn't far from here. Although they wanted to return quickly, they were also curious about the sudden appearance of the smoke. Moreover, it wasn't too far away, so after considering for a while, they turned the boats around again and headed downstream to see what was happening.

It would be even better if they could get some information about the surroundings from them.

Going downstream was naturally faster, and they arrived at the location before long.

They chose a suitable place to moor the boat and went ashore.

Following the previous practice, after tying the boat here, they pushed it away from the shore with a pole, hiding the oars and poles in the bushes.

Armed with weapons, they surrounded Han Cheng in the middle and headed towards the dwindling smoke.

Treading on dry grass, they proceeded through the thick weeds.

"They're there!"

After walking for a while, approaching where the smoke was rising, the leading Eldest Senior Brother suddenly stopped, looking somewhat surprised.

Han Cheng was short, surrounded by others in the middle, so he couldn't see what was happening there. Seeing the Eldest Senior Brother and others reacting like this, he didn't know what they had seen. He was feeling anxious, he asked.

The Eldest Senior Brother hesitated momentarily, then lifted Han Cheng onto his shoulders, giving him a more precise view ahead.

Not too far away, a large fire was burning, surrounded by a group of primitive people gathered around animal skins. There were about ten of them, big and small.

Isn't it normal for primitive people to light fires? Although their behavior around the fire seemed strange, the Eldest Senior Brother and the others shouldn't be so surprised.

Han Cheng thought to himself, but his attention was soon drawn to the actions of several muscular individuals.

They moved away from the fire, then returned, bending down to pick something up after a while. It wasn't empty-handed; they were carrying a person.

Could it be that someone died in the tribe, and they're conducting a burial ceremony?

As Han Cheng observed this scene, he chuckled. It was similar to the customs of later generations.

However, just as the idea of a burial ceremony crossed his mind, what happened next immediately dispelled it.

As the person being carried, whom Han Cheng initially thought was a corpse, approached the fire, they suddenly feigned death and started struggling violently.

When they got closer to the fire, they broke free from the two people carrying them and stumbled away, running for their lives in the direction where Han Cheng and the others were located.

The person didn't get far before being subdued and dragged back.

Han Cheng saw some others using stones or spear-like objects to beat the person who cried out in agony.

What are they doing? Sacrificing a living person?

Watching this extremely primitive and bloody scene, Han Cheng's face turned pale, suppressing the discomfort in his heart.

However, before he could speculate further, the people from the tribe there had already noticed their presence and looked over with some alertness.

Some of them had raised their weapons, and there were incomprehensible shouts, obviously questioning them.

This didn't seem like a very friendly tribe.

The Eldest Senior Brother and the others also noticed the change on the opposite side. They quickly put Han Cheng down, took the rattan shields from their backs, and stood before him, shielding him.

Four others also grabbed shields while the rest took out their weapons.

Following their training, the five holding shields formed a protective wall at the front while the remaining seven with long spears stood behind them.

On the left, Third Senior Brother, with two archers, had already taken out their bows and arrows. On the right, two others with slingshots had loaded stones into them.

Among the nineteen people on this expedition, apart from Han Cheng and Liang, the novice doctor who hadn't fully trained yet, the other seventeen were regular participants in the training.

The Eldest Senior Brother, Shang, and the Third Senior Brother were the leaders of their respective teams.

The rattan shield and extended spear teams didn't play a significant role in defensive battles relying on fortifications, but their most effective use was in the wilderness. That's why there were the most members from these teams among the people Han Cheng brought along, a total of twelve.

Slingshots and bows were best for defense.

Especially slingshots, which made too much noise and had higher environmental requirements, such as requiring a relatively open area. That's why Han Cheng only brought two slingshot members and three archer members this time.