Chapter 024: The Young Horseman

After bidding farewell to the Tree Tribe, Luo Chong resumed his exploration toward the northeast. Navigating through the dense Black Forest was challenging as the surroundings were uniformly disorienting. To maintain a straight path, Luo Chong ingeniously tied a bark rope around his waist, letting it trail behind him. By periodically checking the rope's alignment, he could ensure he hadn't deviated from his course—a simple but effective method that helped him traverse the forest.

After two days of trekking, making marks with chopped branches along his route, Luo Chong finally emerged from the gloomy woods. The dark forest gave way to a landscape of sparse woodland, shrubs, and wild grasses. Here, he spotted tracks of ungulates, confirming the Tree Elder's claims.

Armed with his bow and arrows, Luo Chong cautiously moved forward, spotting within twenty minutes the very creatures the elder had described. A herd of blue antelope, about the size of donkeys but with majestic curved horns, grazed peacefully. Their sleek, blue-grey coats gleamed under the sunlight, and their stature and the sharp horns indicated their robustness.

Marveling at the sight, Luo Chong was instantly determined to capture one. However, the task was daunting. Unlike docile domestic animals, these blue antelope were formidable with their sharp horns—aggressive and formidable adversaries if provoked. The herd consisted of seventeen individuals, including one dominant male, eight adult females, and eight young.

Luo Chong retreated to strategize. Setting aside his backpack, he constructed a makeshift slingshot, using snake-skin bags filled with dirt as weights for lack of stones. He also prepared a length of bark rope fashioned into a noose, aiming to capture the dominant male to gain control over the herd.

Hiding behind a bush, Luo Chong peered out and had to suppress a chuckle at the sight of the dominant male in the midst of mating—a perfect distraction. Silently, he swung the weighted slingshot, stirring the air with a whooshing sound that alerted the antelope. As the herd tensed, forming a protective circle around the young with horns pointed outward, the distracted pair remained oblivious.

With a powerful swing, Luo Chong launched the slingshot. The weights whistled through the air and wrapped around the hind legs of the mating pair. The sudden restraint startled them, causing a comedic tumble into the underbrush.

Seizing the moment, Luo Chong dashed forward, swinging his rope noose with the skill of a seasoned cowboy. The herd, confused by the disruption, rallied to defend themselves, but their efforts to charge were clumsily ineffective against Luo Chong's nimble maneuvers.

Skillfully, Luo Chong dodged the charging antelope, entangling several with his rope. With a few strategic pulls, he brought down five females, their intertwined horns making escape impossible. The remaining antelopes, realizing the futility of resistance, fled with the young, leaving Luo Chong with his captives.

Satisfied with his haul but rueful about the escapees, Luo Chong approached the subdued animals. He cautiously secured their legs with more rope, then turned his attention to the breeding pair, still entangled and now utterly exhausted from their ordeal.

In a display of dominance, Luo Chong decided to clip the antelopes' horns, using a heated coal to cauterize the wounds, preventing regrowth. This act symbolically and physically diminished their status and fight capability, rendering them docile and compliant.

By removing their horns, Luo Chong not only curbed their physical ability to resist but also broke their spirit, a necessary cruelty for taming such wild creatures. The once-proud herd was now reduced to a manageable group, their survival instincts overridden by the shock and submission to their new human master.

With his new captives secured, Luo Chong prepared for the journey back, planning to introduce these majestic beasts to his tribe. Their strength and speed promised a significant boost to his tribe's mobility and labor force, potentially revolutionizing their way of life with the power of domesticated blue antelope.