Xiongli naturally noticed.
Upon returning to his room, the first thing he did was to close the door, intending to consult and inquire with the Lord of Darkness.
However, when he tried to locate the ghost-faced stone, he discovered that the item was missing!He was clearly hidden under the table, yet couldn't be found!
At that moment, Xiongli's heart turned cold.
He quickly flipped the slate containing the sheepskin scroll, but it was empty underneath; nothing was there, and the sheepskin scroll was gone!
Not only that, valuable items like money shells and pearls in his room were all gone!
Xiongli's eyes almost bled at that moment.
All of this was premeditated!
He instantly considered many possibilities. He had thought those thirty-plus witch-slave warriors were killed by people from Daji Village. What if it wasn't Daji Village but someone from his own tribe?
While he usually stayed in the village, the tribal leader often took people outside. They might have discreetly killed those thirty witch-slave warriors under his command, pretended ignorance, and deliberately lured him out of the village.
Once he left the village, they entered the temple and burned the witch fruit tree.
Then, they stole his divination stone and sheepskin scroll.
The tribal leaders probably discovered his secrets and either intended to destroy them or planned to worship the evil god!
Xiongli knew the tribal leaders had long been dissatisfied with his sole control over the tribe.
So, this situation today was truly unexpected!
He should have killed the tribal leaders in the temple earlier!
Now, releasing the leader and trying to kill him would be difficult.
Instead, Xiongli himself became the pawn in someone else's game.
Xiongli broke into a cold sweat and quickly summoned his people to discuss a strategy behind closed doors.
When Yusuo arrived, they were discussing how to kill the leader of the Lion Tribe.
Yusuo: "Looks like things are getting intense."
[If they knew the truth, they'd probably be furious.]
Yusuo: "Well, let's not let them know the truth. By the way, the good news they are discussing, reveal it to the Lion Tribe leader when the timing is right."
[...]
Even though things surprised Yusuo, he was quite satisfied.
He temporarily left the Lion Tribe and rejoined Luyan.
Seeing him suddenly appear, Luyan's eyes lit up. He walked over, gripping Yusuo's wrist.
"How are you? Not injured, I hope?"
Yusuo: "No, they can't hurt what they can't see. Besides, who can beat me now?"
After saying this, Yusuo noticed Luyan still holding his hand and shook it.
Luyan let go, checked him, and only relaxed after confirming he wasn't injured.
Yusuo said, "You have no idea what happened inside."
He informed Luyan of everything that happened in the Lion Tribe.
"Now, let's wait and watch."
It was no longer a conflict between two parties; now, it involved three.
Xiongli and the tribal leader dared not let the witch-slave warriors know about the burning of the witch fruit tree. Still, if someone exposed it, things would get lively.
Inside the Lion Tribe, Xiongli decided to strike first. He planned to talk to the tribal leader, then kill the leader and his confidants.
They moved quickly, intending to act that very night.
Yusuo, aware of this, decided to observe for now.
It started when the elves discovered a hidden dungeon containing someone resembling the tribal leader.
"Is this the hidden dungeon you mentioned?"
As the tribal leader and others went with Xiongli, they returned to the leader's house.
In a corner, they found a cave concealed by a large stone.
[Right here.]
Yusuo moved the stone and entered the dungeon.
It was cramped, with poor air circulation.
Indeed, someone resembling the tribal leader was imprisoned there. He was older, thinner, and had injuries, hastily treated with herbs. Some parts were already festering.
If not for his relatively robust constitution, he'd have died long ago. He couldn't have lasted until Yusuo came in.
Being invisible, Yusuo made minimal noise, and the man couldn't see him or know someone had entered.
Yusuo told the elves, "This person might be the leader's brother."
[Did they have a falling out?]
"Very likely; otherwise, he wouldn't be imprisoned here."
[What now?]
"Let's leave and gather information."
After scaring some people in the tribe with a bit of magic, Yusuo extracted the truth.
Formerly, the Lion Tribe had a just and kind leader. Many nearby villages benefited from him, leading to their widespread reputation. However, over two years ago, the current leader colluded with the old witch doctor Xiongli. They killed the former leader and his entire family, seizing control and transforming the tribe.
"Many fear Xiongli. He should have died long ago, but the year he supposedly died, he entered the dormant place of the witch doctor and came out within a day. Claiming to have received the favor of the witch god, he obtained eternal life and brought out the witch fruit tree, using it to harm people."
"At first, he gave the fruit to the villagers, causing many deaths and turning some into monsters. Perhaps realizing the issue, he had the leader and witch-slave warriors slaughter and abduct people, creating the witch-slave warriors."
"In private, many suspected Xiongli worshipped the evil god, but nobody dared to speak, fearing being turned into corpses or monsters by the fruit."
Yusuo listened and asked, "Has no one rebelled?"
Some tried, like Xiong Ying. Xiong Ying, the current leader's brother and former guard captain, was loyal to the previous leader. When the current leader and Xiongli created those harmful witch-slave warriors, he resisted but failed. He didn't even know where he died, and his body was never found.
After hearing this, Yusuo understood that the person in the dungeon was likely Xiong Ying.
"If I rescue Xiong Ying, would you be willing to follow him against Xiongli and the current leader?"
Initially surprised, the man replied numbly, "We can't beat those witch-slave warriors."
Yusuo smiled, "Don't worry; they'll turn on each other."
Yusuo visited Xiong Ying and his people.
Seeing someone entering, Xiong Ying was surprised. He didn't expect anyone to discover this place.
"Xiong Ying, you're really not dead!"
"You guys..."
Yusuo smiled, "Passerby, helping out in times of trouble."
Xiong Ying was cautious; he wasn't an easy person to trust.
Yusuo didn't need his trust; he said, "The witch fruit tree has burned, and those witch-slave warriors will die in a year. However, they don't know yet, and your brother and Xiongli are hiding it from them. Besides, Xiongli suspects your brother of burning the tree and plans to kill him."
Xiong Ying was shocked; so much happened outside?
"Xiong Ying, it's true. A lot has happened in the tribe."
After hearing his people's words, Xiong Ying believed half of it. He looked at Yusuo, "Who are you? What do you want me to do? I'm dying."
Yusuo shrugged, "That's not your concern. I've given you a chance; what you do is up to you."
"The outsiders have been cleared for now. Whether
to escape or not is your decision."
After Yusuo left, Xiong Ying hesitated and eventually drank the potion.
After a while, he felt the lost strength returning to his body.
Most of his injuries had healed.
At least now, he had the strength to stand up and escape.
As for the festering wounds, he'd have to deal with them outside.
His eyes gleamed as he and his tribespeople escaped the dungeon.
Yusuo watched them escape and left the Lion Tribe with the elves.
Returning, Luyan asked, "Did it break out inside?"
Yusuo, indifferent, said, "Soon."
Luyan raised an eyebrow, thinking Yusuo would stay to watch the drama.
"Leaving?"
"Wait a bit longer."
Luyan nodded, found some prey, and grilled it nearby.Yusu finished a meal with him and rested for an evening. The next day, in broad daylight, they heard tumultuous fighting in the Xiongshi Tribe.
He and Luyan found a high vantage point to observe and saw chaos within the Xiongshi Tribe.
The elven scouts informed Yusu: "Last night, while you were resting, the majestic eagle escaped with a group of tribespeople. During his escape, Xiongli was in a fierce battle with the current leader, crippling over half of their forces before killing the leader. He then revealed the news of the Witchfruit Tree to the witch-slave warriors, leading to a conflict with Xiongli's followers."
Understanding, Yusu asked, "So the eagle fled during the chaos?"
"Yes, I saw them heading east."
Yusu nodded.
Inside the Xiongshi Tribe, the witch-slave warriors, upon learning of the destruction of the Witchfruit Tree, immediately rebelled. With their strength, having just fought the tribe's leader's forces, they quickly turned the situation dire.
In short, chaos reigned within.
Yusu also witnessed Xiongli being struck on the head, yet even with a gaping hole, he miraculously survived.