Ye Xi was in a sorry condition, his body covered in dirt, and he was panting for breath.
Everyone looked at Ye Xi.
It was fortunate that Ye Xi had chosen to run to the summit out of caution, and it was fortunate that he had run back to the tribe to report without care for his own safety…
The chief had many different emotions in his mind. He felt regretful, fearful, moved, and also lucky. The mixture of emotions in his chest was so complex that he didn't know how to describe it.
After holding himself back a little, he clenched his right hand into a fist and thumped Ye Xi on the shoulder as he would a good friend.
Ye Xi only felt a massive push on his shoulder, and then he staggered backward several steps before finally finding his footing.
Ye Xi massaged his aching right shoulder, baring his teeth.
The other tribe members shot critical looks at the chief.
The chief's face turned red as he softly whispered, "I forgot to hold back my strength…"
"Outside… were there a lot of insects?"
The Mud Mountain tribe members who had run into the cave first didn't know what was going on outside. When they heard conversation from the entrance, they came back and began to ask questions.
Those people who had seen the situation outside from the crack immediately began jabbering, the fear from the scene still lingering in their hearts.
"Yeah! So many black insects charged out of the forest! It was terrifying!"
"Each one was huge! Dear ancestors!"
"This is an insect flood! An insect flood!"
They were somewhat incoherent. The impact from the scene had just been too great.
A rustling came from behind the rock, like countless feet moving about.
Everyone fell silent.
Quite a few people swallowed.
"Ye Xi, were you urging us to get into the cave because you saw… an insect flood?" Awl whispered to Ye Xi.
He had kept his voice very soft, worried that he might alarm something. As he brought up the words 'insect flood', he noticeably paused over the unfamiliar term.
More and more people gathered around.
The shaman suddenly strode over with his bone cane.
"Shaman!" Everyone bowed.
His brow was dark with worry as he sternly said, "I suddenly felt uneasy, as if I had missed something. None of you must leave the cave under any circumstances."
The tribe members glanced at each other. The shaman had been meditating deep in the cave this whole time, so he had not noticed them leave the cave.
The chief remorsefully said, "Shaman, in truth, we already went out once."
They had not told the shaman not because they didn't care about him, but because they respected him so much that they did not wish to disturb his meditation.
The shaman had used his powers to treat both Calm Bulrush and Ye Xi, and then he had wasted even more shaman power on a divination. Although the shaman had not complained, the chief did not wish for the shaman to waste his energy on this matter, so he had decided on his own to unblock the cave. He had not expected such a major incident to occur.
The others also dropped their heads as if they had done something wrong.
The shaman frowned and looked at the boulder. He had been too anxious earlier, but now that he calmed down, he could hear rustling from behind the rock.
The chief awkwardly said, "Shaman, outside… is an insect flood."
The shaman's pupils constricted, and he instantly stared at him. "You said 'an insect flood'?"
The chief nodded. "The entire world is probably covered in insects by now. If Ye Xi hadn't come back to report in time… the Mud Mountain Tribe would have already ceased to exist."
All of them shivered in fear and looked gratefully at Ye Xi.
The shaman felt both afraid and lucky, and his elderly hands stroked Ye Xi's head as he said, "Good child, good child."
If this were how Mud Mountain was exterminated, how could he face the ancestors?
To be petted on the head by the shaman was something that every member of Mud Mountain desired, but Ye Xi found it very uncomfortable. However, he knew that this was the shaman's way of expressing gratitude, so he accepted it.
The rustling outside was getting louder, and insect legs were beginning to probe through the cracks.
The boulder suddenly shifted.
Several people instantly noticed this, and their hearts heavily thumped.
The shaman also noticed, his eyes focusing. He put down his hand and sternly commanded, "Send several Warriors into the cave to excavate a large rock. Five Warriors should keep the rock blocking the cave."
"Yes!"
Several Warriors ran off with their weapons, while Plate, Big River, and three more Warriors came forward to use their bodies to hold the rock.
There was a significant crack between the rock and the walls of the cave. Normally, they would stuff the gaps with dry grass or tree branches. This would allow air to flow through, and the small creatures that could get in didn't present a threat.
But perhaps because of this crack, the insects seemed to be able to smell the humans inside and had begun to try to push their way inside.
The slight shifting of the rock behind them left Plate, Big River, and the other Warriors stunned.
This rock was so huge and heavy, and it had five Warriors backing it up, but those insects were still able to shift it!
More and more legs tried to reach through the crack, and at this moment, even a flat insect head managed to squeeze its way in.
The chief's eyes turned harsh as he swung his bone saber.
Black insect blood splashed as half an insect head thudded to the ground.
The insect head on the ground was savage and ugly, more than half a meter wide. If the head was already this big, one could easily imagine just how massive the body was!
Just how terrifying would an insect flood made of such large insects be!
Even powerful pureblood fiendbeasts would have to avoid it! They had fled like frightened dogs from the other side of the Snowspine Mountains, and when the insect tide arrived here, they had immediately fled elsewhere, not even daring to resist!
In the gloomy cave, the Mud Mountain tribe members felt a chill, their hands and feet turning cold.
Crssh.
Rock ground against dirt.
The boulder trembled as it moved inward half an inch!
The pressure from outside was increasing!
The five Warriors pushed against the rock and immediately exerted their strength, their faces turning red as they roared. Through brute force, they pushed the rock back that half an inch!
But in that instant, several more flat insect heads pushed their way through the thin crack! They swayed their heads back and forth, trying to force their bodies inside!
The women bent down, grabbed their children, and backed away in fright.
Calm Bulrush and the chief used their sabers to behead these insects.
Black blood gushed from the wounds, flowing through the cracks, down the walls, and onto the bodies of the Warriors holding the boulder.
The shaman suddenly said, "Another three Warriors to hold the boulder!"
His voice was composed and forceful, his elderly figure like an unbreakable tree as he calmly issued orders.
Everyone looked at the shaman, their composure returning.
Eight Warriors supported the boulder, eight pairs of legs digging sixteen holes into the dirt.
Ye Xi clenched his fists as he stared at the numerous insect legs still in the crack.
Even now, thinking back to the scene he had seen atop the mountain made his soul shiver.
He found it entirely possible to envision that the green jungle was now just like the snowy mountains, completely engulfed in black.
Even Little Mud Mountain above them was probably covered in giant insects.
They were now surrounded by insects. If they couldn't hold this cave, none of them would survive! No, not even a bone would be left. These insects would devour them whole!
Ye Xi had never counted himself so lucky, lucky that they had Little Mud Mountain, lucky that they had this cave to protect them.
Little Mud Mountain was a rather large mountain, and its slopes were not made of loose soil, unlike some other mountains, which would have immediately collapsed after several charges from the insect flood.
Ye Xi couldn't help but worry when he realized this. From what he knew, some of the smaller tribes lived in small caves in small mountains. He did not know if they would be able to survive the insect flood.
Living in this dangerous jungle was simply too hard for humans.