Translator: Exodus Tales
Editor: Exodus Tales
When Ye Xi returned to Mud Mountain’s stall, he discovered that a large crowd had gathered around it, sounds of a fierce argument occasionally ringing out.
Ye Xi frowned and squeezed his way into the crowd.
The crowd was packed tightly, but Ye Xi was short and small, so after some effort, he managed to get his way inside.
In the center of the crowd, a large group of Totem Warriors wearing snake skins and unpleasant expressions had gathered in front of the stall.
Ye Xi spotted two familiar figures in the crowd: Still Perch and Nine Bear from the Yellow Bear Tribe.
Ye Xi’s impression of Still Perch was that of a confident and relaxed person, but at this time, the man had a dark expression and a sinister look in his eyes as he stared at the Mud Mountain group. “How could your Mud Mountain produce such excellent salt? It must be fake.”
“You’ve bought fake salt! Everyone, don’t take the bait!” the other Yellow Bear Tribe members yelled.
Calm Bulrush coldly snorted, “Just because your Yellow Bear Tribe can’t produce such excellent salt doesn’t mean other tribes can’t!”
Still Perch sharply stared at Calm Bulrush. “Oh? Your tribe just recently traded for a big bag of salt from us, and now you’ve suddenly made salt of your own? You say it’s real salt, so how did you make it?!”
Calm Bulrush coldly grunted, “Our Mud Mountain has no need to tell your Yellow Bear how we make salt!”
“Good, good, good!” Still Perch stared at Calm Bulrush and coldly chortled. He had never heard the people of Mud Mountain speak to him with this tone. It seemed that the Mud Mountain Tribe had lost respect for Yellow Bear after making salt!
Still Perch’s smile suddenly shifted from vicious anger to righteous indignation. He turned to the spectating people from the other tribes and began to speak.
“Everyone, our Yellow Bear Tribe has always had pleasant trade relations with all of your tribes! You have always used our Yellow Bear salt, so I trust that you will not be fooled by their fake salt!”
The crowd said nothing.
The salt trade with the Yellow Bear Tribe could not be called pleasant at all. Other than the stronger tribes that Yellow Bear did not dare to try and bully, was there any tribe among them that had not been extorted?
They began to chatter with each other. The Yellow Bear Tribe’s salt was too expensive, and it would often be mixed with dirt and other impurities, and it would shift between shades of yellow and brown.
When they looked at the Mud Mountain Tribe’s salt, which was as white as snow and devoid of impurities, even if they had been charged the same price, they would still have been willing to go with the Mud Mountain Tribe. But, in fact, the Mud Mountain Tribe’s snow salt was actually a little cheaper.
The silence from the crowd made Still Perch’s face slowly turn grim.
Calm Bulrush chuckled. “Everyone, can the mouths of the Yellow Bear Tribe decide alone whether this salt is real or fake? Come over and have a taste; see for yourself what’s true! Today is the first time our Mud Mountain is selling salt. In order for all of you to be at ease, we can let each one of you have a taste!”
Calm Bulrush had barely finished speaking when the murmuring crowd responded.
“I’ll have a taste!”
“Me too!”
“Don’t push! Me first!”
Everyone was anxious to get to the Mud Mountain stall and taste some salt.
Still Perch’s chest began to heave up and down, his face going as black as the bottom of a pot. Unable to think of a way to stop this, he could only viciously glare at the Mud Mountain Tribe Warriors.
The other Yellow Bear Tribe members also nastily scowled.
Ye Xi smiled. To his surprise, Calm Bulrush’s gruff appearance concealed a clever tongue. The matter had been resolved without his interference.
As he was about to go around to the back, he suddenly spotted something and paused.
A Yellow Bear Tribe member had sneaked to the very front of the crowd, posing as one of the tribesmen trying to taste the salt.
The crowd seemed to be jostling him, making him bend more and more. As his body tilted forward, the water bag at his waist began to aim its opening toward the many jars of salt displayed at Mud Mountain’s stall.
The water bag was open! And dark brown stains of dried blood could be seen on the lip!
Ye Xi’s eyes chilled, and he strode forward and savagely kicked the water bag.
The water bag flew from his waist, the blood inside splashing onto the man’s face and instantly covering him in sticky blood.
“What are you doing?!” Still Perch saw that one of his own had his face splattered in blood, and angrily questioned Ye Xi.
Ye Xi coldly looked at him, uncowed by his fury. “Your people were trying to throw blood on our tribe’s salt! What are you doing?!”
If he hadn’t reacted quickly, the bag of blood would have been poured all over the salt, and would the salt still be usable then? Moreover, they had packed the jars together, and the blood wouldn’t have just ruined two or three jars.
The Yellow Bear Tribe member would just have to say that it wasn’t intentional and that the stopper of his water bag had come off at some point. As the trade area forbade fighting, what could the Mud Mountain Tribe do to retaliate?
“Still Perch, you dare to shout at him?!” Calm Bulrush immediately stepped out of the stall. He furiously stood in front of Ye Xi and grabbed Still Perch’s collar.
Ye Xi was the disciple of Mud Mountain’s shaman. Even if Still Perch was a Level 2 Warrior of the Yellow Bear Tribe, he could not disrespect their shaman’s disciple!
The Yellow Bear Tribe members immediately circled around, aiming their weapons at Calm Bulrush.
The Mud Mountain Warriors also took up their weapons and rushed up behind Calm Bulrush.
Ye Xi whispered to Calm Bulrush, “Don’t attack. Let him go.”
Suddenly, the crowd grew restless as several Blackpond Warriors with their characteristic white clothes arrived with their weapons drawn.
The leading Blackpond Warrior had an intimidating and muscular aura that no one was willing to oppose. Seeing the Warriors of two tribes in a standoff, he immediately roared, “Put your weapons down, now!”
The roar deafened everyone’s ears.
A member of the Blackpond Tribe had spoken, so both sides, though still glaring at each other, could only put down their weapons.
“What is going on here?” the leader coldly asked.
Still Perch looked at this leader like he had seen his savior, but just as his lips opened to speak, Ye Xi got ahead of him and swiftly said, “Honored Sir, I am the disciple of Mud Mountain’s shaman. Please permit me to explain.” He slightly bent his body in a bow.
The man was somewhat surprised to hear that this youth was a shaman’s disciple. To be a shaman’s disciple at such a young age was evidence of huge potential.
While Mud Mountain was weak, it was still an independent tribe, and a shaman’s disciple was speaking so politely and had even bowed. The leading Warrior’s anger cooled, and though he remained cold and grim, his tone softened. “Speak.”
Ye Xi began to speak in a confident and even tone. “Honored One, the reason for our quarrel is very simple. It is all because of salt. The people of Yellow Bear are dissatisfied with the salt produced by our tribe and have slandered us by saying our salt is fake.”
“Oh? Your Mud Mountain produced salt?!” The leading Warrior was shocked.
Ye Xi pointed at the jars of white salt laid out on the stall. “Yes, Honored One, please see for yourself. This is the salt produced by our Mud Mountain. As it is as white as snow, we call it snow salt.”
The Blackpond Warriors had been so focused on the quarrel between the two tribes that they failed to notice the objects displayed at the stall. Now that they looked at them and saw the snow salt, they were stunned.