We made you the chief, and now you've become the world's chief?

Chapter 48 The Cave in the Downpour
This rain is so heavy!

The raindrops, as big as beans, formed lines, creating large sprays of water wherever they fell.

In such extreme climates, not only does the soil in the forest lose its supporting strength, but it becomes virtually impossible to move around.

Moreover, without rain gear, the rain affected visibility, making it impossible to see anything clearly.

Watching the women's departing figures, Xia Minghao still felt it was too unsafe and immediately shouted.

"Shiphat! Come back!"

Amidst the thunder and the faint roars of wild beasts, the women turned their heads to look at Xia Minghao.

Hifa hesitated for a moment, then led everyone back to the cave.

Courage doesn't mean recklessness. Xia Minghao was naturally very pleased to see that Xifa and the others were willing to go out fishing with fish traps in this kind of weather.

But if an accident happens, then it's all over.

These are the most important forces around me.

After weighing the options, Xia Minghao decided to stop all outdoor work and wait for the rain to stop.

"I don't know how long this rain will last. If it only lasts for two days, these supplies should at least keep the people in the tribe from going hungry."

Xia Minghao looked at the two earthenware jars filled with dried meat and fish and filled with animal fat, pondering in his mind, and then looked at the eight large pheasants.

These pheasants are probably the happiest people in the cave right now. The damp environment has attracted more insects, allowing them to have a delicious meal.

If the rain lasts too long, then these grain reserves will come in very handy.

Hipha returned to the cave without saying anything.

After setting down the fish trap, he sat down by the fire to warm himself.

They were not surprised by the torrential rain; after all, heavy rain had become commonplace since they migrated into this great forest a few years ago.

However, the Wu tribe, who have lived in this forest the longest, had a somewhat strange expression.

They originally wanted to perform well and do more to gain Xia Minghao's approval.

But unexpectedly, it started raining heavily.

Walking in the heavy rain was difficult enough, let alone traveling such a long distance to find all sorts of things for the chief.

This caused a sense of unease among all the women of the Wu tribe, who worried that they would be driven away by the Xi tribe.

Everyone wanted to do something, but after thinking it over, they realized they couldn't do anything.

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became. She kept stealing glances at Xia Minghao sitting at the entrance of the cave, afraid that he would come over and make them leave at any moment.

Only the women of the Wa tribe showed surprise at the torrential rain outside the cave.

The four women from the Wa tribe, in particular, couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

……

The cacophony of rain and the faint rumble of thunder lingered in my ears, while a gentle breeze carrying moisture swept into the cave.

Even Xia Minghao, dressed in outdoor adventure gear, felt a chill and sneezed.

Looking at the increasingly heavy rain and rising white mist outside the cave, a serious expression appeared between his brows.

The food problem wasn't too serious; what really worried Xia Minghao was the unexpected rainfall.

Why is it raining so heavily?

This isn't even the real rainy season yet. If the real rainy season that Hima mentioned were to arrive, with the rain lasting for about a month, how terrible would the environment become...?

No wonder Hima always looks fearful when she mentions it.

Such a harsh living environment would inevitably bring all production activities to a standstill.

This entire month of rainy season has become "garbage time"...

Thunder rumbled through the forest again. Xia Minghao rubbed his throbbing temples, preparing to return to his tent for some "enlightenment."

However, he will most likely fall asleep soon after "enlightening himself," because Xia Minghao is already feeling drowsy.

In fact, the primitive people living in the cave were the same.

This drowsiness on rainy days is essentially a survival strategy inherited from evolution. Reducing energy expenditure and conserving energy on rainy days, when outdoor activities are not advisable, is an efficient way to cope with environmental changes.

But as he walked past the women of the Wa tribe, Xia Minghao overheard their conversation and was somewhat surprised.

The women seemed to be saying that they had never experienced such heavy rain before...

"Li Tribe, have you never experienced heavy rain like this before?"

Xia Minghao asked a question, and the woman from the Wa tribe, who was chatting and repairing the pottery blank at the same time, immediately looked over respectfully.

One of the women immediately replied.

“Chief, it’s not the Li tribe, it’s the Wa tribe. We have rain where we are, but it’s not this heavy.”

When the woman spoke of the Li tribe, her eyes clearly held a hint of hostility.

Hearing the affirmative answer, Xia Minghao was even more puzzled.

Xia Minghao had heard Wamu mention the former location of the Wa tribe.

It was a two-day walk to the Li tribe, while the Li tribe was about a day's walk from here.

Even if you consider it as a straight-line distance, it's not far.

How could the climate change so much at such a close distance?
It's raining heavily on one side and drizzling on the other?

Is it...

An idea suddenly popped into Xia Minghao's mind, and he immediately asked.

"Is there a mountain in the Wu tribe's area? A very big and very tall mountain?"

"A very big and very tall mountain?!"

The four women from the Wa tribe looked at each other with surprise in their eyes.

They didn't know why the chief knew about this.
These primitive people could not possibly know.

This is known as the "rain shadow effect".

When moist air collides with the mountains, it is forced to rise and cool, forming torrential rain on the mountainside.

As the airflow descends over the mountaintop, the moisture decreases, and the flatlands on the other side of the mountain may only experience light rain.

This difference in terrain elevation results in two regions experiencing drastically different rainfall patterns during the same rainy season.

If that's the case, then the location of this salt spring is truly a treasure trove.

Xia Minghao had previously learned from Wamu that there was a mountain near the salt spring, but he did not expect it to be such a high mountain.

The mountains, which can mitigate the rainy season, can even be considered natural barriers.

Looking again at the torrential rain outside the cave, Xia Minghao decided to change his previous strategy.

Xia Minghao's original plan was to first explore the area, find malachite, make bronze weapons, and then go to the Salt Spring to kill the human-faced bear, thus completing the migration.

But now it seems that the rain is so heavy that bronze smelting is impossible.

Therefore, even if malachite were to be found, it would be of no use.

It would be better to migrate there first, so that even if the rainy season comes, production activities will not be completely restricted by the rainy season.

As for the killer bear, the Xi tribe's hunting team has now been trained and is fully capable of this.

With the goal shifting from exploration to migration, Xia Minghao was preparing to consider a detailed plan.

Suddenly, a slight commotion was heard coming from the women of the Wu tribe who had been gathered at the entrance of the cave.

Curiosity arose in my heart, so I went over to check the situation.

But then they saw the women of the Wu tribe throwing away several small creatures that had crawled over.

At the same time, fear was evident on their faces as they were extremely wary of the creature's two large pincers.

Upon seeing the thing crawling out of the mud, Xia Minghao's slightly narrowed eyes widened instantly.

Isn't that a crab?

(End of this chapter)