"The tribe used to distribute food to them. They were not starved, if that is what you are thinking. If they had, then they would have died long ago; after all, the cubs need a lot of nutrition."
"But you just said—" Ruan Chanchan began, but Yuan Ni answered her question before she could even start.
"I said that they did not have enough to eat, not that they didn’t eat anything." Yuan Ni cleared the misunderstanding at once. "They just had little to eat, as there was not much to eat in the tribe, and since there is no one to take care of them, they are often overlooked. Because of this, they are more or less starved."
"I thought the tribe gave food to everyone." Ruan Chanchan frowned. She had heard Xie Daiyu say that the tribe would often send food to the elderly and the orphans. Why was it that they were suddenly not given enough to eat? Did Xie Daiyu lie to her?
"The tribe does distribute food to them. But we are weaker than the other tribes, and we won’t have enough to eat if we share the at equally. So the tribe usually waits for them to awaken their talents at the age of fourteen or twelve. Once they awaken as a totem warrior, they are given a lot of at to eat, such that they would get stronger and increase their spiritual energy and vitality. It’s important to make them strong totem warriors." Yuan Ni’s voice was so low that Ruan Chanchan nearly missed what he was saying.
"And what if they do not awaken? What happens then?" Ruan Chanchan’s expression seed to be a bit bitter. She didn’t like the idea that the orphans had to fend for themselves. She knew that the situation of the tribe was not any better than the orphanage where she used to live. With the higher-ups who were stronger and much more powerful than the director of the orphanage, most of their funds were snatched away from them, and they were left with just a little bit of money that they could use only to feed and cover themselves.
The situation of these orphans was no different from her own and the rest of the orphans of the orphanage where they used to live.
Now that she was aware of the sufferings of these orphans, she wanted to work even harder than ever. Maybe if she were to unlock more levels, then these children would be able to live a much better life. After all, these children were the future of the tribe.
"Well, they had to join the scout team. Usually, the scouts will pick the strong ones, as they need to carry a lot of supplies back to the tribes. And the more they collected, the more the tribe would give them at in exchange. If they cannot do that, then they are asked to process animal hides and clean the trash generated in the tribe. And if they cannot do even this, then they would be left alone...they had to survive on their own..." Yuan Ni rattled off a string of harsh truths that made Ruan Chanchan wince slightly. It seed like the conditions of the tribe were even harsher than she expected.
"You an everyone who cannot awaken does these odd tasks?" asked Ruan Chanchan.
"Well, that’s how it is. In this world, only the strong survive. If you cannot even do these jobs, then what good are you? The world will not accept useless beast rs, n or won. You have to earn your keep; this is what we are taught since we are children."
He then turned to look at Ruan Chanchan and said, "Even you had to do it. Not that you did, but you were also asked to do the sa thing."
Ruan Chanchan didn’t rember anything, as the previous host of this body lived a life where she had no idea what she was doing. Since this body didn’t even rember what happened to her, how could she even rember what the previous host of this body did or did not do? So, she decisively stayed quiet.
Ruan Chanchan sighed and turned to look at Yuan Ni, who was staring at her quite attentively.
"Why are you looking at like that?" Ruan Chanchan asked. "Is there sothing on my face?"
"No, it’s nothing." Yuan Ni shook his head at once when he saw her looking at him. He turned his head to one side and then changed the topic at once. "Chanchan, continue walking; we are just near the cave of my friend."
After he finished speaking, he picked up his pace and ran toward the cave that was at the end of the curve of the mountains.
Ruan Chanchan watched the r run, and her brows furrowed slightly before she too picked up the pace and chased after him.
The two of them arrived at the cave, which was hidden in the shadows because of the many vines and the thick, gnarled branches that were stretched out.
"Su Mo!"
Yuan Ni called Su Mo’s na, but the r never stepped out, which made his brows furrow. His frown turned deeper, and he turned to look at Ruan Chanchan with a hint of dissatisfaction on his face. "I—he was right here when I ca to see you."
"Maybe he went sowhere." Ruan Chanchan didn’t think much of it.
"He must have gone off to work," said Yuan Ni with a little furrow between his brows. He turned to look at Ruan Chanchan before saying to her, "Maybe I will go to the work station and bring him here."
However, just as he turned around to call Ruan Chanchan, she reached out and caught him by his wrist. The second she touched him, Yuan Ni felt a jolt of current flow through his veins. He pulled his hand away with a jerk.
"What–what did you do to ?"
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