Chapter  14

Upon hearing Moon's words, Emily could almost imagine Male's anxious appearance at that moment, which made her feel sweet inside. This primitive man always managed to charm her unintentionally! Thankfully, Male didn't believe in Yellow Leaf's words. Otherwise, in that forest Yellow Leaf mentioned, even if they dug three feet deep and searched for three to five years, they wouldn't find a trace of her.

Even if she found an exit, it would be sealed off. Even if she made some noise, everyone would just consider her a monster and ignore her. They might even throw stones, flood the area, or set it on fire? Just thinking about it was terrifying. Emily shrank into Male's embrace.

Male clearly saved her life! Male reached out as if to pat Emily's back gently to comfort her, but then he hesitated, his mind flashing back to the scene where he knocked Moon away and crushed the bamboo tube. His hand paused for a moment before quietly dropping back down.

Moon pressed them for details about the forbidden area, but Male said it was late, and everyone had already settled down. He suggested Moon carry Emily to the banana leaf bed to rest for a while, while he went to see Maple Granny.

Emily knew he was going to tell Maple Granny about the statue of Nuwa, the power of bloodlines, as well as the knife and the lighter. She felt a bit uneasy. Would Maple Granny suspect the knife and lighter? She rolled her eyes to indicate she was also involved and wanted to go.

Male didn't dare to touch Emily again, afraid of hurting her. Emily lifted her foot, complaining pitifully, "You don't want to carry me? My feet hurt!"

Male had been very careful when he put her down just now, and she believed he could control his strength. It was Male himself who lacked confidence because of his unconscious use of force that knocked Moon away and crushed the bamboo tube.

Wow, Moon's eyes widened in surprise! Women were naturally good at acting spoiled. But the women of their Nuwa tribe, with their similar physique to men and their usual hard work, felt awkward when acting spoiled. Therefore, over time, they had forgotten about this skill.

Emily, with her delicate skin and fair complexion like an unblemished moon disk, pouted her small mouth, blinked her watery eyes, and even she, a woman, felt like surrendering unconditionally and accepting any of her demands! Not to mention her brother, who cherished her so much!

Sure enough, Male obediently stretched out his hands, carefully lifting Emily and placing her on a stone bench, then squatting in front of her.

Emily climbed onto his broad back without hesitation, holding a totem wrapped in animal skin in one hand and reaching out to Moon with the other, "Moon, please give me a torch."

Male's hands were folded behind him, gently supporting Emily's buttocks. Not hearing Emily cry out in pain, Male finally relaxed and strode off towards Maple Granny's place.

At the entrance of Maple Granny's house, a bonfire was burning, and Maple Granny was calmly adding firewood. Kneeling quietly beside her were An and Yellow Leaf.

Seeing Male carrying Emily on his back, Maple Granny smiled affectionately. The wrinkles on her face, representing the passage of time, looked very kind. An and Yellow Leaf, upon seeing them, both flashed a quick but jealous glance. Then Yellow Leaf lowered her head silently, while An pleaded with Male anxiously, "Male, Yellow Leaf did it all for me. If you need to punish anyone, punish me instead!"

Male furrowed his brows slightly, looking coldly at An, "We'll discuss how to punish you tomorrow. For now, go back, both of you. Maple Granny and I have important matters to discuss."

An's face lit up with joy. She and Male had grown up together, so even if he didn't choose her as a partner, there was still some affection between them. Not punishing them now and leaving it until tomorrow meant the punishment might be light, right?

Yellow Leaf also relaxed a bit. Emily just watched them quietly, but the excitement she felt from Male's earlier attention waned slightly.

Although Emily became Male's partner, by Male's standards, he had no shortage of choices for partners. Moreover, An and Yellow Leaf were his fellow tribesmen who grew up with him, while Emily was just a newcomer.

As the leader, punishing his own people for the sake of this outsider would inevitably cause dissatisfaction among some of the tribe members.

But if it weren't for Male finding Emily, whether she could survive and see the sun again in that dark place would be unknown. If the instigators didn't receive the punishment they deserved, even if they stopped doing similar things, there would still be resentment towards Male in her heart.

When Male stopped in front of An and Yellow Leaf with Emily on his back, he looked down at them with a hint of deep smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Entering the forbidden area without permission, with intentions to harm! And the target is still the chief's wife! You two are quite bold! The night is still young, think carefully about what kind of punishment you might face!"

An and Yellow Leaf were stunned on the spot, looking at each other in disbelief. Confirming through eye contact that Male wouldn't let them off easily!

The color drained from both of their faces as they realized Male's methods towards enemies could be ruthless...

And Male's gaze just now was terrifying... as if... he saw them as enemies!

An trembled slightly as she pulled Yellow Leaf's arm. Yellow Leaf's eyelids drooped slightly. It was this idiot who messed things up!

Although the two little brats, Qi and Shi, saw her lingering near the phoenix tree with that woman on her back, she insisted she was just having a chat with An and then took her to the woods.

And this foolish woman, An, couldn't resist Male's questioning and deceitful words, and soon revealed everything.

If it weren't for this fool spilling the beans, that woman in the forbidden area might have been scared to death or eaten by monsters. Even if she wasn't eaten by monsters, she would have starved to death. How could she have been rescued by Male?

Now that she was on guard, how could she have such a good opportunity to get rid of her?

She cursed An a thousand times in her heart, but Yellow Leaf's face was very sincere, very determined: "An, you're my best friend, I don't regret doing this for you, and if I have the chance, I'll still find a way to help you get rid of her!"

Touched by Yellow Leaf's words, An made up her mind to take all the blame: "Yellow Leaf, I know you're the best to me, but when Male gets tough, he doesn't care about kinship. I'll take full responsibility for this, just say I forced you."

Tears shimmered in Yellow Leaf's narrow eyes. "No, how could I let you face it alone? We share blessings and hardships together!"

Even more touched, An felt that having a confidant like Yellow Leaf was a blessing earned over several lifetimes. "No, Yellow Leaf, listen to me. No matter how tough Male gets, he won't take my life! Maple Granny would never allow him to do that. At most, I'll suffer a bit, as long as I don't die, I still have you to take care of me. If we both get hurt, who will take care of us?"

Yellow Leaf looked hesitant and conflicted. "What you said is not wrong. But letting you face it alone, how can I bear it in my heart?"

An didn't know what she would face tomorrow, but being able to extract her true friend made her feel it was worth it: "Don't hesitate! Let's just decide like this! Let's go back and rest."

Yellow Leaf shook her head. "You go back first. When Male comes out, I'll go to Maple Granny and plead for mercy."

An looked displeased. "We said so much just now, but Maple Granny didn't even acknowledge us. Finally, when she got annoyed, she told us to shut up. I think she's just getting senile."

Gently patting An's shoulder, Yellow Leaf said, "Don't talk nonsense. After all, this matter is a handle for someone to hold against us. But I've been with Maple Granny for so many years, I've figured out her personality a bit. I'll apologize sincerely later, and then plead earnestly. Whether it works or not, there's no harm in trying. You're straightforward, so don't stay and anger her. Go back and get a good night's sleep."

An reluctantly left with the torch held aloft.

Finally getting rid of An, Yellow Leaf rolled her eyes secretly and sneaked to a inconspicuous small hole near the back wall of Maple Granny's house to eavesdrop.

If you were an excellent fiction editor, please revise and optimize the above text in Chinese and calculate the word count.

Emily felt relieved after hearing Male's words to An and Yellow Leaf. The unknown was always the most frightening. Knowing there would be punishment, and it would be severe, yet Male allowed them to imagine it for themselves tonight, it seemed An and Yellow Leaf wouldn't be getting a good night's sleep.

She found that this man, despite his appearance of simplicity, was not without cunning... Heh heh, she liked it!

Outside Maple Granny's door was a bonfire, but inside, a large blue crystal ball illuminated the room. Maple Granny took the torch from Emily's hand and extinguished it on the ground, leaning it against the wall by the door.

Inside Maple Granny's house, the furnishings were similarly simple, making this large blue crystal ball seem rather... well... luxurious!

The faint blue light emitted by the crystal ball was similar to the blue light on the corridor wall near the statue of Nuwa, but the light from this crystal ball was obviously more concentrated.

Emily stared at the blue crystal ball without blinking. This was the first "high-end product" she had seen in this tribe. Everything else was made of either stone or bamboo wood, and the shape of this crystal ball was truly round. She wondered if it was naturally formed or artificially polished?

If it was artificially polished, then the technology used to polish this crystal ball was clearly completely incompatible with the current technology of the Nuwa tribe... which means, in this strange world, there must be civilizations much more advanced than the Nuwa tribe.

This made Emily's eyes light up!

Carefully, Male placed Emily on the stone bench. Seeing Emily staring at the crystal ball in a daze, he explained softly, "This is Maple Granny's prediction ball, passed down from generation to generation by the priests of the Nuwa tribe."

Maple Granny shook her head regretfully. "In my hands, it can only be used as a moonlight source at night. Its predictive function has greatly weakened."

Passed down from generation to generation? Prediction ball? It sounded so mysterious! Was it natural? Emily was somewhat surprised.

"Maple Granny, Emily's blisters on her feet have burst. Can you take a look and apply some medicine?" Originally, Male was prepared to bring medicine back for her, but since Emily insisted on coming along, it was better to let Maple Granny apply it for her to avoid him accidentally hurting Emily.

Emily was taken aback again. Although her feet were hurting, in the face of the significant discoveries in the forbidden area and the activation of Male's bloodline power, she had put this matter aside.

But she hadn't expected that this big, rough man like Male, despite having important matters to discuss with Maple Granny, still cared about her injured foot.

The corners of Emily's mouth couldn't help but curl up, but she didn't dare to boast in front of Maple Granny.

"Maple Granny can apply the medicine for me, I can do it myself. Male, you should talk to Maple Granny about the important matters." Maple Granny looked at the newlyweds with a loving expression and nodded approvingly. "Male cares for his partner, which is a good thing. Other matters can wait. Emily, let me take a look at the blisters on your feet first."

Maple Granny noticed the small white shoes Emily was wearing on her feet, paused for a moment, and then squatted down to hold them in her hands, examining them carefully. She only noticed Emily's strange attire and didn't pay attention to how unusual her shoes were.

Emily felt embarrassed to let Maple Granny take off her shoes, fearing it would be disrespectful, so she quickly bent down to take them off herself.

Inevitably, she tore and smeared the blisters on her shoes, causing her to grimace in pain, which made Male feel even more distressed than if he were injured himself.

Maple Granny quickly treated Emily's wounds and applied medicine. Just as she placed the medicine on the stone table, she noticed the strange animal skin that Emily had just placed there.

"What is this?" Maple Granny pointed to the animal skin and asked, just as Yellow Leaf had begun eavesdropping behind the wall of the house.

"This is what I need to explain to you," Male said solemnly. "Before discussing this matter, I need to do something first."

Male looked at the stone table in front of him and, without hesitation, raised it slightly with both hands.

In fact, he estimated that he could lift the table with just one hand, but there were things on the table, and he didn't dare to risk using just one hand. Maple Granny stared in astonishment at Male and the stone table. Male smiled slightly, looking relaxed, but he still used both hands to lift the stone table effortlessly, stopping it in midair.

Her stone table was larger than those of other households. It had taken six strong laborers a lot of effort to bring it in. Now, Male alone lifted it so effortlessly?

Moreover, even when lifted off the ground like this, the things on the table remained stable.

She knew Male had always been stronger than other people of his age in the tribe, but no matter what, he couldn't easily lift a stone table like hers!

Thinking of his return from the forbidden area just now, Maple Granny's expression became grave. "What exactly happened in the forbidden area?"

Male lowered the stone table and spread out the animal skin totem on it. "Take a look at this. What is it?"

Maple Granny leaned in to take a look, her expression turning pale with shock. She immediately knelt down and began bowing to the totem, chanting words under her breath. She spoke too quickly for Emily to make out what she was saying.

Finally, Maple Granny, with trembling hands, reached out to touch the animal skin totem. "It's the true god Nuwa! The totem of the Nuwa tribe! The totem of the Nuwa tribe that can awaken our bloodline power!"

Suddenly, she realized something and her voice rose eight degrees. "Male, did you awaken the bloodline power?!"

Yes, otherwise how else could Male lift this stone table so easily?

Male nodded, attributing all the credit to his little partner. "Emily discovered the statue of Nuwa in the forbidden area, as well as this animal skin totem and this knife."

Emily took out the egg-shaped object and the lighter. "And this fire source and this thing I don't know what it is."

Maple Granny looked at the object without any sparks with confusion. A fire source?

Male lit the lighter, and Maple Granny's eyes widened. For them, using flint was considered fast for starting a fire, but compared to this, the fire source was incomparable!

After setting down the lighter, Male carefully picked up the small knife, its blade icy cold and gleaming in the reflection of the blue crystal ball, much sharper than a stone knife!

Emily watched as Maple Granny examined the small knife as if it were a sacred object, and she suddenly felt that Maple Granny might not use this knife as a tool, but rather treat it like a sacred totem.

This wouldn't do! She thought quickly. "This small knife is light and sharp. Could it be a gift from the true god Nuwa for hunting?"

Maple Granny was momentarily stunned, then she looked at Emily, her eyes revealing complex and obscure emotions. Emily thought for a moment that Maple Granny had seen through that the knife and the totem were not the same type of item, but she didn't dare to look away and met Maple Granny's gaze head-on.

Fortunately, after a moment of contemplation, Maple Granny agreed with Emily's viewpoint.

"The miraculous small knife bestowed by the true god Nuwa, Male, you should keep it. You are the new leader of the Nuwa tribe and have awakened the bloodline power. You should use this small knife, but it's too sharp. It's best to make a sheath for it."

Maple Granny's words made Emily breathe a sigh of relief.

"Since Emily found the fire source, let her keep it. Most people in the tribe have flint, and the fire source is not essential now," Maple Granny continued to arrange.

"Thank you, Maple Granny," Emily said sweetly. Maple Granny was truly wise!

"As for this..." Maple Granny reached for the egg-shaped object, wanting to pick it up and examine it carefully. This was something taken from the forbidden area of the Nuwa tribe. Although it looked inconspicuous, who knew if it had a significant background?

Just as Maple Granny's fingers were about to touch the egg-shaped object, it seemed to have a life of its own, rolling towards Emily as if it had its own consciousness...