Orc Priest (6): 

Zhou Qinghao woke up with his mind full of prophecies.

The little snow-white rabbit lifted its head and fell into thought.

Normally, there was little contact between tribes, though not completely absent.

So, he knew something about the surrounding tribes.

The tribe that had a conflict with the hippo tribe was the monkey tribe. Not everyone in that tribe had a monkey beast form, but the chieftain had always been someone with a monkey form.

They lived in trees, usually ate wild fruits and tender leaves, and would also hunt some small prey.

Since the two tribes were close to each other, their structures were naturally similar. The monkey tribe also believed in the beast god and had a priest.

In the past, Zhou Qinghao had followed his tribe’s former priest to visit the monkey tribe’s priest.

Since they had priests, the monkey tribe people would surely respect them as well… If he had been there when the conflict happened, he should have been able to resolve it.

Now Zhou Qinghao already believed that his prophecy was real. He planned to go hunting with his tribe on that day, then persuade the monkey tribe to leave.

Having made the decision, Zhou Qinghao let out a breath of relief—only to meet Gu Juntian’s gaze.

Gu Juntian lay beneath him, smiling with narrowed eyes.

Had he been sleeping on Gu Juntian’s chest all night?

As he thought this and looked down, Zhou Qinghao found his paw pressing against a protrusion on Gu Juntian’s left chest.

The little white rabbit stiffened, then jumped away from Gu Juntian’s chest without thinking.

Gu Juntian had been watching the rabbit’s cute appearance with delight, but then the rabbit ran.

He paused for a moment, then clutched his chest and cried out: “That hurts!”

Seeing this, Zhou Qinghao quickly turned back into human form and asked, “Are you alright?”

When rabbits kicked with their hind legs, their strength was considerable. Could Gu Juntian have been injured by him?

Of course, Gu Juntian wasn’t hurt. Zhou Qinghao had fled in such a rush that his hind legs hadn’t even used any force.

He was only teasing Zhou Qinghao.

Now, seeing Zhou Qinghao worried, Gu Juntian released his hand from his chest: “I’m fine, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Zhou Qinghao glanced at him and, seeing not even a bruise, realized Gu Juntian was joking with him. But looking at Gu Juntian’s face, he couldn’t get angry.

Wait, that wasn’t the point right now!

He wasn’t wearing his animal-skin skirt!

Zhou Qinghao left Gu Juntian behind and hurried to the corner to put on his skirt.

Actually, it wasn’t a big deal even if he didn’t wear it. People in the tribe didn’t care much about such things. But Gu Juntian’s gaze made him feel it wasn’t proper.

Gu Juntian, seeing this, quietly changed position, lying face-down on the straw bed so Zhou Qinghao wouldn’t notice the abnormality of his body.

In prehistoric times, everyone dressed lightly, yet the person he liked was parading around in front of him every day… It was hard to endure!

After Zhou Qinghao dressed, he went outside. Gu Juntian followed a little later.

It was still raining that day.

The swamp where their tribe lived was mostly flooded now, with only the little island they were on and some higher ground nearby still above water.

Many people had lost their homes, but the hippo tribe wasn’t miserable. They were even cheerful, sitting together chatting and making crafts.

The storm had struck suddenly, yet not a single tribesman had died or gone hungry.

Everyone believed it was the beast god protecting them, and they respected Zhou Qinghao, their priest, all the more.

If not for his preparations, they would have been living in flimsy houses. In the middle of the night, they might have been blown away along with their homes.

Even if they weren’t blown away, they would surely have been drenched, and not everyone in the tribe liked being soaked by rain.

“Today the hunting party will split into two groups: one to catch fish, the other to come with me and take a look around nearby,” Gu Juntian said.

For a prehistoric tribe, food was essential. If they could hunt, they must hunt.

As for the monkey tribe, they would only meet them in a few days, so there was no need to worry yet.

Gu Juntian led the hunting team out into the rain.

The rain brought some trouble, but it also dulled the prey’s awareness of danger.

By ambushing early, they still managed to catch some prey, though less than the day before the storm.

Two days passed like this, and finally the sky cleared.

Gu Juntian felt a little disappointed at the weather.

Once the sun returned, those who had been staying in Zhou Qinghao’s house would surely move back, and then Zhou Qinghao would also return to his own place.

He didn’t want to be separated from Zhou Qinghao.

In that case, could he think of a way to move into Zhou Qinghao’s place instead?

Looking at the little white rabbit lying beside him, Gu Juntian thought quickly.

Just then, sounds drifted in from outside—the tribesmen were waking up.

Gu Juntian didn’t move, but the little rabbit beside him stirred awake.

After waking, the rabbit lifted its head, hopped to the corner, transformed into human form, and dressed.

As usual, Gu Juntian lay face-down and watched.

Unable to hold back, Zhou Qinghao asked, “Why do you keep staring at me?”

Lately, Gu Juntian’s gaze made him uncomfortable all over.

Gu Juntian replied, “Because you’re beautiful.”

Zhou Qinghao’s face flushed red. He took a deep breath and then said, “Today I’ll go hunting with you.”

“Why?” Gu Juntian asked. Priests did leave the tribe sometimes, but they usually didn’t go with the hunting party. Instead, they led the gathering party to look around nearby.

“I want to go farther to gather things,” Zhou Qinghao said.

Since their swamp had been flooded, wanting to gather farther away was reasonable. Gu Juntian thought it over and agreed.

Their hunting wasn’t based on brute strength but on setting traps beforehand, so Zhou Qinghao wouldn’t be in danger with them.

Still, since he was coming, Gu Juntian instructed two hippo-shaped beastmen to protect Zhou Qinghao.

“Don’t worry, Chief, we’ll protect the priest!” the two promised, patting their chests.

Only then did Gu Juntian remember that today was the day they would meet the monkey tribe.

That made it even better for Zhou Qinghao to come, since the monkey tribe respected priests.

But to reach the riverbank now, they would have to swim, and Zhou Qinghao would end up soaked…

Gu Juntian removed the door of his house.

The door was woven from wood and vines, covered with animal hide, sturdy and waterproof.

Holding it, he said to Zhou Qinghao, “Qing, later you sit on this door, and Zhuang and the others will carry you.”

Already preparing to go into the water, Zhou Qinghao said, “That’s not necessary.”

“It is,” Gu Juntian insisted. “You’re the priest, you don’t need to swim with us.”

Others in the tribe chimed in: “Yes, priest, we’ll carry you!”

“The previous priest was carried too when he went out.”

“You’re carrying a lot of things. It would be bad if they got wet.”

Indeed, Zhou Qinghao was carrying items that couldn’t get wet. He believed that, since the monkey tribe had fled here in a rush, some must have been injured, so he brought medicine.

He planned to trade the medicine with the monkey tribe’s priest in exchange for their people leaving.

In the end, Zhou Qinghao sat on the door carried by two hippos and left the swamp.

Gu Juntian was delighted seeing Zhou Qinghao being carried clean and dry.

His priest should always be so spotless.

It was a pity that productivity was low in this era. Even though he had many ideas, he couldn’t take them out so casually… Once Bai Yutian arrived, he would definitely borrow his knowledge to improve the tribe’s life and let Zhou Qinghao live better!

Barefoot, the group walked through the jungle, Zhou Qinghao no exception.

At this time, people weren’t used to wearing shoes. They had been running barefoot since childhood, with thick calluses protecting their feet from injury.

Gu Juntian walked ahead of Zhou Qinghao, pushing aside branches so he wouldn’t be scratched.

“It seems someone has been here already. There aren’t many prey,” an experienced hunter said.

“Yes, someone has been here. Look, there are marks on the trees,” Zhou Qinghao added.

The others looked up and saw branches and leaves had been broken off in places.

The traces were clearly man-made, not caused by the wind.

Just then, a monkey dropped in front of them and turned into a boy of about fifteen or sixteen. “You’re from the hippo tribe?” he asked.

Gu Juntian wanted to block Zhou Qinghao’s eyes so he wouldn’t see the boy transform, but he was too late.

He could only glare at the boy, who was carelessly not even wearing an animal-skin skirt.

“Yes, we’re from the hippo tribe. I’m the priest. Are you from the monkey tribe?” Zhou Qinghao asked.

“Yes, I am. Priest of the hippo tribe, can you help our people heal?” the boy asked.

“Take me to see them,” Zhou Qinghao said, then asked, “Where is your priest?”

Hearing that, the boy’s eyes filled with tears. “Our priest is dead.”

The monkey tribe’s priest had died? Zhou Qinghao sighed. “Then lead the way.”

He glanced at Gu Juntian, only to see him frowning unhappily.

Although he had foreseen a conflict, he hadn’t known how it would happen.

The monkey tribe shouldn’t have provoked them first. Could the conflict arise because Gu Juntian disliked them?

As he thought this, he saw Gu Juntian force a kind expression and say to the boy, “Turn into a monkey and lead the way. Walking in the trees, you can also keep watch for danger.”

Being naked was improper, but as a monkey it was fine.

The boy from the monkey tribe found this reasonable, so he shifted into a monkey and leapt ahead.

Gu Juntian finally looked satisfied and smiled at Zhou Qinghao. “Qing, should I carry you?”