Book 7, Chapter 83: Sacrifice

Upon hearing the name “Blood Drum,” Ancient Gong’s eyes lit up. He immediately understood what Su Chen was saying.

The Blood Drum was a treasure that had been used by the Qiang Tribe to maintain their dominance in the past. Apparently, this treasure was unbelievably powerful, and had been instrumental in their rise to power.

It was also the reason for their downfall.

None of them had expected the treasure to suddenly lose its effectiveness. The heaven-defying might of the Blood Drum had suddenly disappeared without a trace.

And once the Blood Drum’s effects had disappeared, the kingdom established by the Qiang Tribe eventually collapsed.

The Qiang Tribe both adored and despised the Blood Drum’s existence. They worshipped its legendary strength, but could not deny that it was exceptionally plain at the moment.

Yes, the drum was still very much intact. However, its effectiveness had long since disappeared.

Now, Frost was saying that he could help them sound the drum once more.

The meaning behind his words was patently obvious.

Ancient Gong said, “What exactly are you saying?”

“I can repair the Blood Drum,” Frost immediately replied.

All of the individuals within the tent grew extremely excited.

Soar was the only one with a little fire still left in him. “Why should we believe you?”

“Because your survival is in my hands.” Frost waved his hand, and the pressure surrounding them suddenly multiplied. Ancient Gong felt as if he was going to be crushed, and he was having an extremely hard time breathing.

The high priest, however, asked sinisterly, “How will you repair it?”

“A sacrifice,” Frost replied.

The high priest shook his head. “Our ancestors tried it a long time ago. It didn’t work.”

“That’s because your way of sacrificing was wrong. The Blood Drum was never damaged, but it became hungry. You just never fed it.”

“Hungry?” All of the Barbarians were stunned.

The Blood Drum had not been built by the Qiang Tribe’s members. Their ancestor had somehow inherited it at some point, which was why they had no idea that it could actually become hungry.

But the reality was that the Blood Drum had lost its effectiveness because it was hungry.

“How can we feed it?” the high priest asked.

“It must be fed by a bloody battle. Only then will the Blood Drum be satisfied.”

The Qiang Tribe’s previous sacrifices had been of captives and commoners. The Blood Drum, however, despised that kind of sacrifice. Only the blood of elite warriors would quench its cravings. It would rather starve to death than indulge in such worthless blood.

The Qiang Tribe had indeed been performing sacrifices, but they had been mostly useless.

This was why the Blood Drum had eventually fallen asleep.

However, Frost knew exactly what was going on with this drum.

The Blood Drum was constructed from the eyelid of a god. Because the drum possessed divine power, it was able to unleash an incredible might. This was also why sacrifices were necessary.

The Blood Drum could be satisfied by worshipping it as well.

Of course, because Frost wanted to stir up chaos, he would not tell them the full truth. It was also true that this method would yield more instantaneous results.

“How many warriors are needed?” Ancient Gong asked.

“The more the better. The Blood Drum’s power is related to how full it is. Every time you use it, some of the Blood Drum’s power will be expended. The best way to help it recover is to use it in battle,” Frost replied.

The Qiang Tribe of old had relied on the Blood Drum to steamroll their way across Barbarian territory. As such, they had unintentionally met the Blood Drum’s requirements. After unifying their territory, however, war became rare, and the Blood Drum slowly but surely began to row hungry. This was why the Qiang Tribe had only discovered the Blood Drum’s ineffectiveness when it was too late.

From that point onwards, they no longer brought the Blood Drum with them to battle, resulting in the Blood Drum being permanently stowed away.

Until today.

The eyes of the Qiang Tribe’s members gleamed with excitement.

Soar glanced at his father, who appeared to be elated. “We must sacrifice to the Blood Drum!”

“Of course,” Frost replied with a slight smile as he loosed the restrictions on the.

Ancient Gong and the others glanced at each other before all suddenly bowing to Frost. “Many thanks, sir!”

From that point onwards, Frost was designated by Ancient Gong as the chief high priest.

This was the beginning of the long and bloody journey that the Qiang Tribe embarked on.

On the seventh day that Frost became the chief high priest, the Qiang Tribe declared war on their neighbors, the Erh Tribe.

The Qiang Tribe successfully defeated the Erh Tribe, but the Blood Drum’s hunger was not yet satisfied.

It had gone hungry for far too long. One or two battles would not be enough to awaken it.

As such the Qiang Tribe declared war three more times.

The other Barbarian tribes were totally flabbergasted. After all, attacking so many tribes in rapid succession was bound to increase their casualties and enrage the other Barbarians.

A response came very quickly.

The repeated victories had obviously put the Qiang Tribe in high spirits. When they attacked the Thunder Tribe, however, they received quite a significant backlash.

At the Five Clouds Mountain.

The Qiang Tribe and the Thunder Tribe were arrayed in formation against each other.

As the war drums began to sound, the Qiang Tribe’s soldiers rushed forwards like a violent river.

The Thunder Tribe was clearly weaker, but their leader seemed to display no sign of anxiety. Instead, he signalled for his men to give a signal.

Following a few low, bellowing signals, another group of soldiers appeared off in the distance.

Ancient Gong was stunned. “The Cloud Tribe? Why are they here?”

“Do you even need to ask? They were waiting for us to make a move.”

Even though the Qiang Tribe was more powerful than the Thunder Tribe and the Cloud Tribe, they didn’t have the confidence to take both of them on at once.

Ancient Gong gritted his teeth when he saw the Cloud Tribe’s members charging in their direction. He was about to issue a command when Frost suddenly stopped him. “Command the Qiang Tribe to attack the Thunder Tribe. Leave the Cloud Tribe to me.”

“Chief high priest?” Everyone was stunned.

Frost strode calmly towards a large carriage not far away from where they were.

A giant drum rested on top of that carriage. The drum’s body was made out of Purpleheart Wood, and the surface of the drum was bloody red. The drum itself emanated an extremely oppressive aura.

It was the Blood Drum.

Frost walked over to the drum and picked up a mallet as he said, “Continue to add more sacrifices. It’s about time for the drum to wake up anyways. Awaken, o powerful, all-consuming will. Use the blood of our enemies to demonstrate your might.”

As he spoke, he began to gently beat the drum.

The drum didn’t seem to respond, but Frost continued to seriously and rhythmically beat the drum.

“Father?” Soar glanced at his father agitatedly when he saw this.

Even though Frost had sworn that sacrifices would awaken the Blood Drum, Soar was still nervous, since the Blood Drum had not awakened before battle.

And now, the Cloud Tribe was already on their way. If chief high priest Frost had miscalculated, then the Qiang Tribe would be pincered if they only focused on the Thunder Tribe.

Then...... What should they do?

Ancient Gong glanced at Frost, then at the oncoming Cloud Tribe warriors before gritting his teeth and shouting, “All warriors, continue to press the attack! Destroy the Thunder Tribe!”

He had chosen to trust his chief high priest.

The Qiang Tribe’s warriors continued to slaughter the Thunder Tribe’s warriors, entrusting their back lines to Frost.

Up on the carriage, Frost was still calmly beating the drum.

The sound coming from the drum was filled with an ancient, mysterious aura.

The Cloud Tribe drew closer and closer.

They swept towards Frost like a tidal wave, who stood alone and staunchly faced off against them.

“Attack!” The Cloud Tribe’s warriors battlecries could be heard by now. One of the officers in the lead gave the command, and tens of thousands of arrows flew into the air, casting a dense shadow on the ground.

Even when facing a storm of arrows, however, Frost remained calm.

His gaze was unfocused as he began to chant.

The mallet gently tapped against the surface of the drum, which rippled like a body of water. Suddenly, Frost lifted the mallet and struck the drum, hard.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion of sound rang through the air.

The Blood Drum began to glow with a burst of red light, and the explosion of sound from the drum echoed through the mountain.

The storm of arrows suddenly came to a halt, and they clattered onto the ground harmlessly.

The drum exploded with sound once more. This time, the wave of sound rushed towards the Cloud Tribe’s soldiers, enveloping them totally. The Cloud Tribe’s soldiers immediately fell to the ground, clutching at their heads as they howled in pain. Blood began to spurt from every orifice of their bodies, pooling beneath them and forming a river of blood.

The shrill sound of bone flutes began to float through the air. The Cloud Tribe’s priests were obviously trying to repel the Blood Drum’s powerful booms.

Frost, however, struck the Blood Drum a third time. The priests’ flutes shattered, and a cloud of blood appeared above them. Streaks of blood-red light descended from the cloud. Upon closer inspection, it became apparent that these streaks were the attacks of the malicious spirits inhabiting the cloud.

These malicious spirits were created by the Blood Drum. The sheer volume of attacks they unleashed rapidly swallowed up the Cloud Tribe, leaving everyone who saw this scene dumbfounded.

“The Blood Drum! It’s the Blood Drum!” the Cloud Tribe’s leader howled in despair.

“The Blood Drum has awakened!” Ancient Gong cried out as well.

Ancient Gong knew that his gamble had paid off as soon as the Blood Drum was activated.

Cries of raucous joy and celebration could be heard as the Qiang Tribe’s morale skyrocketed, and they charged at their opponents with renewed vigor.

On that day, the Qiang Tribe won a tremendous victory over two tribes.

Chief high priest Frost’s extermination of the Cloud Tribe would go down in the annals of history.

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