Chapter 408

Chapter 331 Ambush

In an open space within the vast forests of the New World, the essence-like spirits were floating and dancing in the air. Kapak and Banu were still devoutly performing the spirit worship in front of the wilderness spirit that took the form of a wild buffalo. They bowed down to it, respectfully waiting as it consumed the offerings on the stone altar, savoring the remnants of souls left on the bones.

During the process of the wilderness spirit consuming the offerings, Kapak and Banu lowered their heads and silently recited.

“Respected Wood Hoof, as you requested, I have cut down the diseased trees in the Southern Forest. The tree plague will no longer spread.”

“Respected Wood Hoof, as you requested, I have buried the corpses of the invading beasts in the Northern Forest and performed a spirit ceremony for them. Their restless essences should now be calmed.”

Kapak and Banu spoke softly to the wilderness spirit. The wilderness spirit was the embodiment of the environment’s will, appearing in places rich with spirituality. Thus, the wilderness spirit would maintain its own environment. Shamans on the path of shamanism could also please the wilderness spirit by helping to maintain its environment.

As they listened to Kapak and Banu’s words, the satisfied Wood Hoof raised its head, nodded after looking at the two of them, then closed its eyes. Its spirit body began to emit a faint glow. Kapak and Banu immediately followed suit, closing their eyes and resonating with the Wood Hoof. In the faint light emanating from the Wood Hoof’s spirit body, tiny strands of light seemed to drift out and merge into Kapak and Banu’s bodies.

“Thank you, respected Wood Hoof…”

Feeling the increase in spirituality, Kapak and Banu immediately knelt and thanked it. The wilderness spirit in the form of a wild buffalo turned around and left after casting a glance at them. Its semi-transparent spirit body merged into the large tree behind it.

Once the Wood Hoof had vanished, the soul flames that had been floating around the area all rushed towards the stone altar, beginning to consume the remaining soul ashes in the bone fragments on the altar. After the Wood Hoof left, Kapak and Banu remained bowed for a long time before finally standing up and silently retreating.

“Brother Kapak, how much spirituality have you accumulated this time?” Banu asked Kapak, turning his head to inquire. Kapak responded lightly.

“Not too little, more than the last spirit ceremony. It might be because we completed the tasks assigned by Lord Wood Hoof this time.”

“Yes, helping Lord Wood Hoof maintain the environment can bring more spirituality. Unfortunately, such tasks are rare, and there aren’t any more this time…”

Banu replied to Kapak. Then, they exchanged a few more pleasantries in the clearing before realizing it was time to return.

“It’s getting late; if we don’t leave now, we won’t make it back to our tribes before dark. Let’s go,” Kapak said, looking up at the sun. Although they belonged to different tribes, part of their journey home was together.

“Brother Kapak, why don’t you go back today? I want to communicate more with these essences here.” Banu told Kapak, pulling out a bone fragment from his waist as he spoke. This bone fragment clearly wasn’t offered to the Wood Hoof. From Kapak’s words, he planned to offer it to the essence later.

“Oh, Brother Banu, you’re really diligent. In that case, I’ll be on my way first.”

“Haha, you’re progressing so quickly. As your senior, I’d better catch up or be left behind. See you next time, Brother Kapak.”

Finally, Kapak waved goodbye to Banu and turned to leave the clearing. Banu stood where he was, watching until Kapak disappeared into the shadows.

…

Amidst the misty forest, Kapak walked through, having just successfully completed another spirit ceremony. Feeling elated from the accumulation of spirituality, Kapak thought to himself:

“My spirituality has increased again. According to Master Scholar, the spirituality I’m currently accumulating is called the ‘Silence’ essence. He says there are five other types of essences besides ‘Silence.’ It turns out that beyond the sea, not only do they have various magical technologies and advanced techniques, but even extraordinary things are so diverse…

Feeling the growing spirituality, Kapak pondered. Recently, he not only received traditional shamanic education from Uta but also often consulted the “Scholar,” another Akka believer, through the magical illustrated books. Therefore, he learned many basic knowledge about mysticism on the Main Continent.

“According to Master Scholar, the cultivators of extraordinary powers on the Main Continent divide their levels into five tiers, and I am currently at the lowest level, the apprentice tier. According to Teacher Uta, I am merely a shaman apprentice and need to advance once more to become a true shaman. That means… A true shaman is equivalent to an extraordinary being of the Black Earth Tier on the Main Continent.

“Also… according to Master Scholar, to advance to the Black Earth Tier, I not only need to accumulate the ‘Silence’ essence but also choose one auxiliary essence from the others. I wonder what essence our tribe’s traditional shamanic path uses as an auxiliary?”

Walking through the woods, Kapak wondered curiously. Suddenly, he realized that Uta’s teaching methods had changed recently.

The old shaman had been asking him to appear in front of the tribe members more often and included him in significant ceremonies, seemingly deliberately boosting his prestige within the tribe. Even instructing him not to be too close to the people due to healing, maintaining a dignified demeanor, and keeping a mysterious and serious aura in daily life. This made Kapak feel somewhat uncomfortable and expressed his concerns, but Uta sternly warned him.

“As a shaman, we must be the most respected and worshipped person in the tribe! Our every word and action must exude mystery and authority! Remember! You are about to become a shaman who can communicate with myriad spirits. You must see yourself as a deity within the tribe. You need to establish an incredible reputation through your words and actions, transforming people’s feelings toward you from gratitude and affinity to worship! This is crucial for whether you can successfully become a true shaman!”

Kapak’s mind echoed with the old shaman’s stern words. His words made Kapak feel that becoming a shaman required the tribe’s worship, which might be related to the accumulation of auxiliary essences mentioned by the scholar.

“Whether it’s Teacher Uta or Master Scholar, they are both knowledgeable and experienced. To be taught by both of them is truly a great honor for me, and all of this is due to Akka’s favor.

“To cast a glance upon me in the remote lands and bestow grace… What is Akka’s purpose? Although Akka ostensibly seeks knowledge, with such a knowledgeable following like the scholar, is my contribution of knowledge really significant to Him? Could it be that He has seen my people suffer and chosen me to bring redemption?”

As Kapak walked, he reflected on these thoughts. Suddenly, he frowned, as if remembering something, and touched his body, his expression turning grim.

“Oh no… I forgot to bring back the bone fragments from the spirit ceremony…”

Kapak muttered, frowning. The bone fragments he had taken for the spirit ceremony were from the cremation remains of tribal members. After the ceremony, when the soul ashes were consumed, they couldn’t be discarded carelessly in the wild. According to shamanic custom, these bone fragments should be brought back and properly preserved, sometimes even used as ritual props.

Realizing he had forgotten something, Kapak panicked. He looked around and noticed he hadn’t gone too far. If he hurried back now, he should still have enough time.

“I need to go back and get them. Good thing Banu is still there; the items should still be there. Don’t let some animal carry them away.”

Thinking this, he immediately turned around and headed back towards the ceremony site.

To ensure he could return to the tribe before dark, Kapak hurried forward through the dark forest. Soon, he arrived near the location of the ceremony site. However, here, Kapak sensed unusual activity ahead.

“Boom…”

A muffled sound came from afar, causing the ground to tremble slightly. Birds in the forest were startled and flew away. Sensing the disturbance, Kapak froze in place. Through the eyes of a medium, he saw spirits fleeing in panic from the distant forest towards his direction. Seeing this, Kapak immediately used his ability to calm one of the spirits and asked about the situation.

“What’s happening up ahead?”

The mass of spirit that Kapak stopped seemed to calm down after flickering in and out of visibility. Then, it communicated with Kapak in a voice only mediums could hear.