"Come on you two! Are the Gopher Tribe and the Black-footed Ferret Tribe that weak? Your totem spirits have not done anything yet!"

The Shamans of the two tribes bitterly looked at the speaker. "Shut up. There is a powerful array under their village. Our totem spirits will need a bit of time to destroy it. If you are in a hurry, why don't you send your birds to attack? Your Cobalt Eagle has yet to do anything aside from some basic scouting."

Seeing the Shamans of the different tribes starting to argue with each other, Joyah, one of the Shamans of the Vicious Rhino Tribe decided to intervene. As a large tribe, the Vicious Rhino Tribe had three Shamans; for this operation, two of them came to support the army.

"Gentlemen. It is not the right time to argue. Put aside your differences for the sake of this battle first. The dungeon will be shared among us based on our contribution to this battle. Naturally, if a totem spirit does nothing, their respective tribe won't receive any benefit."

The old Shaman of the Blue Eagle Tribe snorted. He raised his hand and instantly, the Cobalt Eagle, the totem spirit of his tribe took off toward the Musclewood Tribe. At the same time, the Purple-eyed Vulture followed behind the Cobalt Eagle. Contrary to the Three-Horned Rhinoceros who was dealing with the barbarians, the two birds' goal was to attack the enemy's totem spirits. They only wanted to disrupt the three spirits' spell, stopping them from giving the [Bestial Strength] buff to their tribesmen.

"Since it is not working. Let's stop trying to go underground and attack directly," said the Shaman of the Gopher Tribe. He commanded the Pocket Gopher to attack the barbarians directly and was quickly joined by the Golden Ferret.

Now, all ten spirits were actively participating in the battle but at that moment, the Shamans who were watching the battle from a safe point, saw a large wave of skeletons emerge from the nearby forest.

The old men frowned. "We were right. Just like the Bramble Deer Tribe, the Musclewood Tribe is also getting help from the dungeon. But these are only skeletons. Our men can kill them with a single attack. There is no need to intervene."

The Shamans confidently observed the battlefield. They did not have to act for now. It was only when the Musclewood Tribe would send their own Shamans that they would act. So far, the battle was still in their favor; the skeletons would not change the outcome of the battle.

However, it all changed when they a war horn sounded from the Musclewood Tribe. It was different from the traditional war horns they were used to. This one sounded more like a musical instrument.

The Shamans' face turned pale as they saw a figure materialize above the Musclewood Tribe.

"Another totem spirit? Impossible! A tribe can only have one totem spirit!" exclaimed Joyah.

With a calmer tone, Vellen, the second Shaman of the Vicious Rhino Tribe commented, "This is not a simple totem spirit. Just like the Humanoid Metal Slime, it also comes from the Central Plains. Just with its presence, the Tribesmen of the Musclewood Tribe have the power of their attack increased; they can ignore our defensive equipment to some extent!"

In the distance, they could see the spirit taking the form of a Giant King Crab! It ferociously raised its pincers as its eyes slowly turned toward the barbarians fighting. But that was not the end, next to it, another spirit appeared, this time taking the appearance of a Warthog.

"This... The power of the totem spirits of the Central Plains is really on a different level. With the passive effects of these three totem spirits, they almost made up for the difference between the [Bestial Strength] and [Predator]... I also feel a strange force helping the Musclewood Tribe; its effects are quite significant," commented a Shaman.

"Do you think we should recall our totem spirits and have all ten work together to produce the [Primordial Strength] buff instead?"

Witnessing the unexpected development, the Shamans became anxious. Joyah quickly tried to calm them down. "Gentlemen! There is no need to worry. Even if they can now match our strength, remember that we have the numbers. Victory is within our grasp. Furthermore, our allies are on their way here."

"Yes, you are right. The troops of the dungeon of the Bramble Deer Tribe should arrive soon. I am curious about the strength of that dungeon," said a Shaman.

"Dream on! As if they are going to send their strongest monsters. If even your tribe was smart enough to not send all its tribesmen, don't you think others would also realize that."

"Stop bickering, you two... Old Vellen, may I request you to peek into the future and determine the outcome of this fight. This will reassure us," said another Shaman.

All eyes turned toward Vellen. The latter could only smile and agree. To hold this alliance together, he needed to make some sacrifice and so, he took out a relic and activated it. The pupils in his eyes disappeared.

While the battle was raging, the Shaman's surroundings became silent to avoid disturbing Vellen.

"The Vicious Rhino Tribe is really impressive. To be able to raise a Diviner; only the tribes of the Central Plains would have enough resources to do so. If we really get our hand on the dungeon, you would be able to officially become the number one tribe of this region."

The Shamans murmured among themselves and soon, Vellen opened his eyes again. "Cough Cough."

"The situation is better than it looks. These two totem spirits can only appear once. The Musclewood Tribe is using unique relics to summon them, but the relics broke upon their activation. After the fight, these spirits would have nowhere to go and would disappear into nothingness. If we just retreat and come back after a few hours, they will have wasted the two spirits."

The Shamans' face lit up. "Really? Should we order the retreat then? There is no harm in losing a battle to win the war! Furthermore, the dungeon's troop will have enough time to arrive and we won't have to expose our tribesmen to much danger."

Vellen shook his head. "No. Aside from these two relics; the Musclewood Tribe has a third one. I saw it. It is a scale. I don't know what totem spirit it will summon but this one is dangerous. If they ever use it, we need to quickly retreat, or a monster will appear! A monster that even the tribes of the Central Plains would not be able to face!"

"A monster?" The Shamans were stunned. The thought of quickly leaving this battle crossed their mind but Vellen continued.

"We cannot retreat or else, the Musclewood Tribe might use it the next time. We just need to make it appear as if they have enough chances to win to make them reluctant to use it. There is something I want to say. The Musclewood Tribe's reinforcement is also on its way. They are the merchants' allies. Although they are weak, there is a significant number of them; the battle might be troublesome if they make it here."

"The merchants? Won't we antagonize them if we fight them?"

"It is fine. Merchants only look at profits. They are backing the Musclewood Tribe because they have the dungeon. As soon as we get our hands on it, I guarantee you they will come and ask to cooperate with us."

Joyah looked at Vellen's expression. As they came from the same tribe, Joyah was familiar with Vellen. From his expression; he could tell that something was wrong, but he did not want to alarm the other Shamans.

"Gentlemen. I think Vellen's message is clear. We should make our moves ourselves and aim for the Musclewood Tribe's Shamans. We need to move quickly before the merchants' army arrives."

...

While the Shamans were busy arguing among themselves, the situation on the battlefield changed. The Warthog King roared before charging at the Three-Horned Rhinoceros. Despite its smaller size, the Warthog King sent the Rhinoceros flying. The poor beasts was taken by surprise as the ground disappeared under its feet; it found itself crashing into the barbarians. Fortunately, it was only a spirit or else, it would have crushed its own allies.

The Three-Horned Rhinoceros did not stand a chance alone. It was only level 49 while the Warthog King was level 51. There was only a difference of two levels between the two totem spirits but in terms of bloodline, the Warthog King completely outclassed its counterpart. Several barbarians sacrificed themselves to keep the Warthog King away. Their attacks felt like mosquito stings, but they nevertheless bought enough time for the Three-Horned Rhinoceros to recover.

The latter roared threateningly at the Warthog King. It was confident in its own strength and believed it was pushed back because it was caught off guard. However, reality soon dawned on the Three-Horned Rhinoceros as it was utterly defeated despite the help of the barbarians.

In the meanwhile, the Giant Crab King turned its attention toward the Pocket Gopher and the Golden Ferret. The first totem spirits it saw were the Cobalt Eagle and the Purple-eyed Vulture, but it held a natural fear for birds; its natural predators consisted mainly of birds. It was more comfortable in dealing with the other two totem spirits.

Using its huge claws, the Giant Crab King pushed back the two totem spirits. It was only after working together that the Pocket Gopher and Golden Ferret were able to hold their ground.

The Cobalt Eagle and the Purple-eyed Vulture were unfazed by the appearance of the two new Totem Spirits. They did not affect their original plans. The two birds aimed directly for the three totem spirits. As long as they disrupted their skills, the balance would instantly tilt in favor of the ten tribes.