Chapter 26

A small team of sub-beasts in the tribe was sneaking around the broad flat ground beneath Zhuo Yan’s cave. In front of them lay a patch of vibrant green seedlings, neatly arranged in rows. Although the leaves were still tender, it was evident that they were thriving.

“Looks just like mud beans,” one sub-beast exclaimed in awe.

Another person was also surprised and said, “This place wasn’t like this before; it was all grass, so much grass.”

“Didn’t Zhuo Yan and the others just turn the soil and dig up the grass a while ago? They said they were going to plant mud beans. Turns out they really grew them.”

“But, but aren’t mud beans only available before the snow season?”

“Did Zhuo Yan plant them?”

“What does it mean to plant?”

Everyone looked at each other, not understanding what ‘plant’ meant. They only heard Xiao Xian mention it; he called this planting potatoes, which sounded strange. After questioning him, Xiao Xian explained that potatoes were mud beans, and since Brother Zhuo Yan called them that, he had gotten used to it too.

In any case, everyone still didn’t understand what planting was.

“Do you think there are really mud beans down there?”

“Maybe they aren’t ripe yet. Let’s not dig them up to check.”

Although everyone was curious about this patch of land, they fundamentally cherished food, especially since it had been planted by other sub-beasts. Even though they had previously disliked Zhuo Yan, it was undeniable that this was something Zhuo Yan, along with Qiao and the others, had cultivated.

“They all saw it.

“…Actually, Zhuo Yan is quite clever.”

“Yeah, I saw Xiao Xian and the others weaving grass by the river every day. They made brooms that can be used for sweeping, and the wooden buckets they carry are very convenient.”

“I saw that too, and they also made mats. They said that laying the mats on the stone bed when it gets hot will be very cool. The mats are woven from grass, which is easier to clean than leather.”

“Chun, maybe Zhuo Yan really didn’t know that you and A-Shu were together at that time. Don’t be angry; he now has a white-haired one, and you and A-Shu have become partners.”

“Chun, can you greet Qiao? Ask Zhuo Yan how to do this.”

“Yeah. But why didn’t Zhuo Yan come today? Where did he go?”

“I saw them; they got up very early and went outside the tribe. Also, Qiao and Ada were with them. I heard Xiao Xian say they were going to make a door.”

“A door?”

“What’s a door?”

“Is it the wood at the entrance of Zhuo Yan’s cave?”

“I don’t know.”

The sub-beastmen were curious about the door Xiao Xian mentioned, but other beastmen and sub-beastmen rarely visited each other’s caves without an invitation. Wandering around someone else’s cave would be seen as an invasion of territory, and some beastmen would get very angry about it.

Everyone just stood at the foot of the slope, watching Zhuo Yan’s cave from a distance. However, due to the angle, they could only see a blurry outline that looked like wood. Was wood blocking the entrance to the cave?

“It seems more convenient than stone.”

“But stone is safer.”

“That’s true.”

In the end, everyone was still most curious about those mud bean leaves. As they left, they continued discussing when they would mature. Would they really be able to eat mud beans in the summer? If that were the case, wouldn’t that mean they could harvest mud beans twice a year?

In the woods.

Zhuo Yan and Qiao’s group arrived at this robust forest early in the morning. Ada had chosen a tree and was chopping it down. Zhuo Yan and the others were waiting at a distance; they could only proceed with their work—like cutting branches and bundling them up—once the tree fell.

Feeling bored, Zhuo Yan took A-Yin to explore, and they didn’t go far before unexpectedly finding a patch of mushrooms—colorful and bizarre mushrooms in various shapes and sizes.

Zhuo Yan: …These look so beautiful; they must be poisonous mushrooms that would make you lie flat after eating them.

“This one will make you see all sorts of crazy things after eating it,” Aman said, pointing at a light green mushroom that he had somehow come across.

Seeing Zhuo Yan looking at him, Aman added, “You can eat it if you want; it won’t kill you, but it will give you a really bad stomachache, and you’ll be throwing up for a long time.”

“?!” Zhuo Yan was surprised. “I wasn’t planning on eating it! But have you tried it?”

“Yeah, actually, it’s quite an experience,” Aman reminisced, “Everything gets all colorful and beautiful in front of your eyes.”

Aman, today you have been unceremoniously removed from the medical profession.

You’re still eager to try mushrooms!

“What about the others? Don’t tell me you ate them too?” Zhuo Yan said, holding up a bright magenta mushroom that looked extremely toxic.

Aman replied, “I didn’t eat it. A silly tooth pig ate it. The tooth pig died, and we all shared its meat, but then our stomachs hurt for a long time too.”

“……” The orcs and half-orcs are truly powerful; they survived this. Zhuo Yan sighed, grateful that he was a half-orc now. Otherwise, with the physique of a modern human, he would have lost his life a hundred times over after coming here.

Seeing that Zhuo Yan was reluctant to discard the mushroom, Aman seriously suggested, “If you want to eat one, this green one is good. It won’t hurt your stomach as much; you’ll just throw up for a few days, and you’ll see some beautiful images in front of you. It’s quite nice; go ahead and eat it.”

“……”

A-Yin anxiously lifted his front paw to push Zhuo Yan, urging him not to eat it. “Don’t eat it, Brother! I’ll find something tasty. This one will give you a stomachache.”

“I’m not eating it.” Zhuo Yan patted A-Yin’s head. “I’m not Aman.”

Aman glared at him. Zhuo Yan pretended not to see and crushed the red mushroom underfoot, while he kept the green one. Aman looked pleased and said, “You still claim you won’t eat it.”

“I really won’t. I’m taking this back to dry and grind into powder. I’m thinking of using it for traps to see if I can catch some small animals.”

With Zhuo Yan’s words, Aman’s earlier smugness froze on his face. He thought for a moment, revealing a look of ‘why didn’t I think of that,’ ‘it can be used like this,’ and ‘Zhuo Yan, you’re quite cunning.’

“This is called strategy.” What cunning! Zhuo Yan imitated A-Yin with a hum and patted A-Yin’s ear. “Let’s gather some more. Aman, are you sure it’s not toxic?”

Aman grumbled as he followed along, “I’m still alive and not dead.”

“True enough.”

A-Yin went to find green mushrooms for his brother, tilting his head and panting, sticking out his tongue. Brother is really smart! When he finds them, he’ll howl, and Zhuo Yan will know to come right away. He discovered some wood ear mushrooms in this area.

All of them were put into a woven basket.

There were actually plenty of edible things in the forest: mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and wild vegetables. But there were also many dangers. Zhuo Yan picked some mushrooms that looked familiar; if the green mushrooms could stun chickens or rabbits, they could be raised. He wanted to feed them some wild grass to see if they were safe to eat.

All of it was taken away!

When Shitou came to find them, Zhuo Yan had already filled most of his basket with mushrooms, and Aman had some in his basket too. Upon seeing this, Shitou said, “Aman, you’re silly. Eating these will give you a stomachache.”

“I know,” Aman said, looking a bit smug. He told Shitou, “I plan to dry these green mushrooms and grind them into powder to see if I can stun some small animals.”

Shitou asked, “…Is this Zhuo Yan’s method?” Though it sounded like a question, he was already quite sure.

Aman huffed in frustration, and Shitou chuckled, saying he guessed correctly.

Zhuo Yan ignored their banter, leading A-Yin ahead as they headed back. Behind them, Shitou and Aman continued their back-and-forth, with Aman saying, “How did that kid Zhuo Yan come up with this idea? It’s really clever; I never thought of it.”

Thank you, thank you.

On the way back, Aman told everyone about the green mushrooms. Xiao Xian and Qiao listened with expressions that said, “It can be done this way too,” while Ada asked if he could have some.

“Of course! I picked a lot. Qiao, I’ll share some with you,” Zhuo Yan readily agreed.

After dividing the green mushrooms, they got down to business.

The group took turns working. Since Zhuo Yan and Xiao Xian were a bit weaker, they focused on the smaller branches. They used vines to bundle up six bundles that could be taken home for firewood, while Shitou and Aman went to chop down trees with Ada.

Qiao suggested that the door be made like Zhuo Yan’s family’s.

“I also want to improve it a bit, specifically to refine the door for my cave. Qiao, where do you plan to place your cave?” Zhuo Yan asked.

Qiao and Ada had discussed it and decided on a location downward between their two caves.

After hearing this, Zhuo Yan felt that the tribe was quite safe, so he decided to make the wooden door similar in thickness to his family’s. If it was too thick, the wooden hinges wouldn’t be able to bear the weight. He said, “Then let’s build a roof with a sloped angle, shorter so it can be fitted above the cave entrance. This way, it can prevent wind and snow from blowing in through the windows. With a slope, the accumulated snow will roll off by itself, and it will also be easy to clean.”

“It’s getting hot lately. I also want to put the stove for cooking outside the cave and build a wooden fence to enclose the chickens and rabbits.”

Aman objected, saying that the chickens could fly.

“We can trim the chickens’ wings,” Zhuo Yan said. He knew that the chickens here were quite strong; once their wings were trimmed, they wouldn’t be able to fly.

After he said this, he noticed everyone looking at him in shock.

“What? Is that cruel?” he asked, puzzled.

Only A-Yin rubbed against his leg, his blue eyes full of admiration, thinking, ‘Brother is so smart and capable. Good little brother; I didn’t raise you in vain.’

Aman scratched his head, “It’s not that it’s cruel; it’s just that we never thought of this before.”

“Zhuo Yan, what’s the point of raising them? They’re just going to be eaten anyway. Why not eat them early?” Xiao Xian didn’t understand why they needed to ‘raise’ them.

This time, it was Aman who nodded in agreement, looking puzzled. It wasn’t that they weren’t smart; it was just that they didn’t see the reason for raising chickens when there wasn’t even enough food for the beastmen in their families.

In the tribe, both the sub-beastmen and the beastmen thought this way. Forget about chickens; even if a family got a lot of meat from one boar, they could still finish it—especially for the beastmen, who could transform into beast form and eat. A single hearty meal could last them for three days.

So there was no concept of raising livestock in the entire tribe.

“Chickens might not be enough for one meal, but if I raise one hen and one rooster, then let them breed and raise the chicks, I’ll have a continuous supply of chicken meat. If I can catch a boar in the future, I could also raise pigs.”

“Chickens eat bugs, grass seeds, and potatoes; rabbits only eat hay, and boars eat pigweed and potatoes. All of that works.”

“Looking at it this way, it would be even better if I could raise sheep, as they only eat grass.”

Zhuo Yan shared his farming plan with everyone, and they listened with frowns, including Ada. Only A-Yin wagged his tail, showing no doubt about his brother’s plan, even thinking that he must catch some sheep for his brother in the future.

Brother thinks sheep are good; they only eat grass.

Aman and the others didn’t doubt Zhuo Yan; rather, the idea of ‘raising’ conflicted with their past experiences of living and eating. They needed time to digest it, but luckily, they were just chatting while tired from work, and they continued with their tasks.

After the big trees were cut into sections, Ada used the old method to slice them up, and they tied them with vines to carry back. They certainly couldn’t haul everything in one trip, and by the time they returned for the second trip, everyone in the tribe was in high spirits.

“Zhuo Yan, the hunting team is back today, and they brought a lot of meat.” A familiar sub-beastman greeted Zhuo Yan enthusiastically.

Zhuo Yan was taken aback for a moment; the sub-beastman’s enthusiasm made him feel like they were good friends, but they had only crossed paths while working. Other sub-beastmen quickly gathered around, chattering excitedly to share the good news.

“You and Qiao just left not long ago, and some beastmen from the hunting team returned first.”

“Yeah, do you know? They killed a mammoth.”

Zhuo Yan: !!! Woc!

“And six antelopes.”

Zhuo Yan: !!!!!!

Is this for real? Is today a holiday? What a great day!

Ada had already asked a patrolling beastman for the details, and while Zhuo Yan was surrounded by several sub-beastmen, he overheard bits and pieces. They had killed a baby mammoth, but it hadn’t been brought back yet—

The beastman who had lost his son to a mammoth had participated in this hunt. While chasing a group of antelopes and mammoths, this grieving father chose to go after the mammoth.

The tribe leader took a look and divided the hunting team into two groups; the beastmen who wanted to follow to the mammoth’s territory could choose to do so, while he would take the majority to catch antelopes.

The father, who had lost his son, patiently tracked the mammoth herd, following their traces. An experienced old beastman, with the cooperation of his teammates, managed to kill a baby mammoth as a form of revenge.

His son died beneath the feet of an adult mammoth, while the baby mammoth died at his hands.

“Qiao, I’m heading out to meet up now.” Ada quickly ran back and gave Qiao a hurried hug.

“I know.” Qiao nodded, adding, “Make sure to come back.”

“Okay.”

Aside from a small patrol team, the rest of the beastmen had set out. The sub-beastmen who had been chatting by the river were now returning to their caves, and Qiao, Aman, and the others said their goodbyes.

“Let’s take the wooden planks tomorrow.”

“Zhuo Yan, we’re heading back now. You should hurry home too.”

“Got it.” Zhuo Yan called for A-Yin and quickly went home, closing the cave door behind him.

Now there were only five people in the patrol team, all older beastmen. It wasn’t that they lacked experience, but if something really were to attack, they wouldn’t stand a chance. Everyone was still safety-conscious.

Zhuo Yan sat on the mat, holding A-Yin, still thinking about the news from earlier.

“This time the tribe has reaped a lot: six antelopes and one baby mammoth. I wonder how much that baby weighs.” Zhuo Yan recalled the baby elephants at the zoo; they were quite heavy but not enough to warrant the whole tribe heading out to respond.

A-Yin squatted on the mat, lifting his front paw to step on Zhuo Yan. Zhuo Yan said this was “milking,” hiding his claws and gently stepping on Zhuo Yan.

Zhuo Yan leaned back comfortably, while A-Yin sometimes acted as enthusiastically as a puppy and at other times clung to him like a spoiled kitten. However—Zhuo Yan’s gaze fell on A-Yin’s paws. These were not the paws of a small cat; the pads were large and thick. When he grew up, a single slap could take a head off.

“Good job, A-Yin.” Zhuo Yan held A-Yin’s paw and looked towards the cave entrance, saying, “I hope everyone comes back safely. That way, we can have meat to eat tonight or tomorrow.”

Zhuo Yan wasn’t very concerned about the tribe, or rather, he and his mother relied on each other for survival, worrying daily about making ends meet. He had no channels to obtain information about the tribe and didn’t care much about it.

Zhuo Yan lived on the fringes of this community. A few times he ventured deeper, especially the first time he received meat. There weren’t many people in the tribe—counting both sub-beastmen and beastmen, there were perhaps over fifty—but the tribe’s area was vast.

Leopard-people preferred to live dispersed and alone.

Usually, there was a hunting team that went out to hunt, often finding herds of animals. The food they hunted would be distributed to everyone in the tribe, with the largest portions going to the beastmen on the hunting team. Of course, privately, sub-beastmen and young beastmen could keep any prey they caught for themselves without needing to share.

So, in this world, if a sub-beastman didn’t have a beastman to live with, life was truly difficult. Meals would consist of potatoes and taro, with occasional additions of meat from the hunting team to mix in for some sustenance, but safety could not be guaranteed.

As for having children…

Zhuo Yan analyzed the most plausible conclusion: females were all called “A-Ma” (mother), and males were called “A-Fu” (father). In Ada’s family, since Ada’s mother was a beastman, Ada must have been born of his A-Fu, which makes sense.

He had previously unconsciously thought with a modern mindset that “A-Ma” referred to someone who gave birth. If that were the case, then beastmen and sub-beastmen would still need to differentiate between males and females. Wouldn’t that mean female beastmen would have to both give birth and go out to fight and hunt?

Now, this line of reasoning seemed simple and straightforward, aligning well with the world of beastmen. It felt right.

It wasn’t until night fell that the tribe became quiet. With nothing to do, Zhuo Yan placed the green mushrooms he had brought back during the day by the fire to dry them out, boiled some hot water, and cooked some tuber fruits. He and A-Yin shared the meal.

It really was a feast one moment and hunger the next.

“Let’s sleep; once you fall asleep, you won’t feel hungry anymore,” Zhuo Yan felt a pang in his heart at his own words.

A-Yin cuddled against his brother, his head resting on Zhuo Yan’s cheek. Zhuo Yan ended up eating some fur, spat it out, and rubbed A-Yin; A-Yin must surely be hungry.

In the later half of the night, the sky was still dark, and all that could be heard was the sound of clanging bells.

Zhuo Yan was still dreaming when he was awakened by A-Yin licking him. Groggily, he asked what was wrong. A-Yin couldn’t speak and continued to lick his brother, making soft “ow-ow” sounds. This time, Zhuo Yan really woke up and then heard the clanging sound.

He… couldn’t tell what the signal meant; was it a warning of danger or a call to collect meat?

Zhuo Yan asked A-Yin, and A-Yin jumped off the stone bed and ran toward the door, scratching at the wooden door. Zhuo Yan understood the meaning— it meant they could go out, so that meant the hunting team was back?!

“Let’s go, let’s go!” Zhuo Yan felt energized!

A-Yin ran back with the vine basket in his mouth. Zhuo Yan saw this and slapped his forehead, “My A-Yin is so clever; I almost forgot about this. Here, brother will take it. Let’s go!”

With one person and one leopard, as usual, A-Yin ran in front. After a while, he circled back to check around his brother to see if there was any danger behind them, being quite alert. As they walked deeper into the tribe, the crowd grew denser and more lively.

“Zhuo Yan, you and the white-haired kid are here!”

A stranger, an A-beastman, greeted him.

Zhuo Yan: …Since yesterday afternoon, these A-beastmen have been very friendly toward him.

“Yeah, I heard the noise. This is my brother; he gave himself a new name, A-Yin.”

The A-beastman changed his tone, “The name you picked is really nice. Let’s go quickly.”

As they moved forward, the crowd grew larger, and everyone chatted excitedly about the harvest from this hunt. Among them, someone mentioned, “…I heard someone got injured.”

“Who got injured? Was it A-Lei’s beast father?”

Zhuo Yan guessed that A-Lei must be the young beastman who had died.

“Yes.”

Sure enough.

As for the extent of the injuries, nobody knew; they were taken to the uncle. Zhuo Yan thought that the uncle should be the second-in-command of the tribe, responsible for managing and distributing the meat and having some knowledge of healing.

Finally, they arrived, and Xiao Xian and Aman called out to Zhuo Yan. He joined their small team, and Aman said, “How come you were talking to those guys?”

“Exactly.”

There’s some gossip! Zhuo Yan had a curious expression: “Did you guys have some disagreement before?”

“Don’t you remember? They were the ones who teamed up with Chun to beat you up,” Aman replied, feeling exasperated.

Zhuo Yan: …Huh?

Xiao Xian and Shitou both looked over.

Zhuo Yan cleared his throat and said, “It’s too dark, I can’t remember faces. Besides, they greeted me with smiles, so we just chatted a bit.”

“They must have seen our potato field,” Xiao Xian recalled. “Yesterday when we came back, someone asked me when the potato field outside Zhuo Yan’s house would be ready.”

“They also asked me how I planted them.”

Shitou said, “So did you tell them? They should be begging you for information.”

Xiao Xian had forgotten that part. “I forgot they had to ask me nicely. But even if I told them, they wouldn’t understand, plus everyone was in a hurry to get back to the cave, so I didn’t say much.”

Everyone had an open and honest personality. Although they talked about “not telling” or “only telling if they beg,” whenever they came across a topic, they would indeed chat away with all kinds of gossip until they finally waited for the clan leader and the uncle.

The crowd immediately quieted down.

Now it was time to divide the meat according to the number of people; everyone formed a line voluntarily: the sub-beastmen and the minors in one line, and the beastmen in another. A-Yin stood behind his brother, and Zhuo Yan asked him to come to the front.

The torches were lit.

Zhuo Yan finally saw what that large black mass was—was that a mammoth calf?!

The clan leader spoke, saying that the decision to pursue the mammoth was made by A-Lei’s beast father, and that the tusks belonged to A-Lei and his father. The whole crowd agreed. The clan leader raised his hand and then let it fall again, and the crowd quieted once more.

“Thanks to our brave hunting beastmen.”

“Thank you!”

“Let’s divide the meat,” the clan leader said.

The crowd moved forward in an orderly manner. The uncle in charge of distributing the meat glanced at A-Yin in front of Zhuo Yan but didn’t say much; he directly handed A-Yin a large chunk of meat, which Zhuo Yan estimated to weigh over thirty pounds.

Whoa!!!

When it was his turn, he also received meat, weighing over twenty pounds.

Zhuo Yan carried the heavy basket on his back and followed A-Yin out. A-Yin wanted to help him carry something. “Let’s get out first, and then you can carry it,” he said, as there were still others behind them.

Who would have thought the uncle called him back?

Zhuo Yan quickly went over obediently and saw that the uncle handed him two bones from a pile thrown aside—these were antelope bones. Zhuo Yan accepted them with thanks and hurriedly left the line.

“We’re heading back first,” Zhuo Yan greeted Qiao and the others.

A-Yin ran ahead of him, and when they got home, the orange sun rose, shining at the cave entrance. Zhuo Yan looked at the orange sky and said, “Let’s have breakfast first.”

He had gone to bed hungry the night before, and now breakfast was so plentiful. A-Yin was eating half a piece of raw meat, probably around ten pounds. Zhuo Yan still needed to roast his. He glanced at A-Yin and asked, “Can you finish that?”

“Awoo~” A-Yin wagged his tail, indicating that it was no problem.

Zhuo Yan began to light a fire to roast the meat. With so much meat, they didn’t have salt at home, so they had to dry it into jerky. By the time he started roasting the meat, A-Yin had already finished that piece, licking his lips with a somewhat unsatisfied look.

“A-Yin, there’s more here.” Zhuo Yan cut another large piece, and A-Yin looked up at him, seemingly saying he was full and that his brother should eat. Zhuo Yan smiled and patted A-Yin’s ear, saying, “It’s getting hot, and the meat won’t last, so go ahead and eat.”

He had just dismissed the thought of drying the meat. Zhuo Yan realized that A-Yin might never have been truly full before—

Comparing today’s portion, when they had roasted chicken before, A-Yin had urged him to eat more.

Thinking of this, Zhuo Yan felt a little heartbroken and gave A-Yin another large piece. After all, beastmen could last for three days if they were full. “If you really feel full, then stop; don’t overeat.”

A-Yin nodded and looked at his brother. Zhuo Yan told him to eat, saying that he had had enough. Only then did A-Yin lower his head to continue eating the meat.

Out of about fifty pounds of meat, A-Yin had eaten over thirty pounds. When it came to the leftovers, A-Yin shook his head. He was even afraid his brother wouldn’t believe him, so he lay on the ground and rolled over onto his back. Looking at A-Yin’s round belly, Zhuo Yan finally believed him this time.

He himself had roasted and eaten two or three pounds of meat, and the remaining ten pounds or so could still be dried into jerky.

However—

“The house is out of salt, but this elephant meat really has a bit of a salty flavor,” Zhuo Yan took another bite, carefully distinguishing the taste. It was very faint, almost imperceptible, but it was definitely there.

Zhuo Yan thought about how herbivores have high blood salt content, and elephants need to replenish their salt as well.

So how do elephants replenish their salt?

Surely they can’t run to the territory of the sea people? The feathered people’s market is over half a month away from them, not to mention the territory of the sea people. The hunting team that captured the mammoth had only been gone for two or three days, indicating that the mammoth’s range of activity wasn’t very far.

Zhuo Yan pondered over these questions while A-Yin, unaware of what his brother was thinking, was feeling very full and excited after eating so well today. He rolled around at Zhuo Yan’s feet, nudging him.

“I’m thinking about salt; there should be a salt mine nearby,” Zhuo Yan said as he was nudged by the fluffy creature, looking down to talk to A-Yin.

A-Yin blinked, realizing that his brother was thinking about salt. He couldn’t help but jump up and squat beside Zhuo Yan, wagging his tail.

Having spent a long time together, the two had developed a strong sense of understanding. Zhuo Yan took a glance and knew what A-Yin was trying to say. He said, “It’s impossible for us to track the mammoth right now; we just killed its calf. If we get discovered, it would be like delivering a meal to them.”

“That’s not urgent; I’m just speculating. I’ll ask Sister Qiao to find out where the teams that tracked the mammoths have been.”

In fact, even if he found out, they would still need experienced orcs to guide them through the area.

As an underage sub-beastman, Zhuo Yan knew that no orc would be willing to trust his judgment about finding salt in places where mammoths were active.

His strength was too small, and his words carried little weight.

Zhuo Yan also conveniently ignored the fact that he had entered his mating period and was no longer considered a minor. However, he didn’t care much about it; he could still hide from it. His small stature meant that even when his uncle distributed meat, he received the treatment of a minor, getting an extra couple of bone pieces.

At that moment, he kept one for himself and gave A-Yin the other. “You can chew on this for fun.”

As the sun illuminated most of the cave, they heard Aman calling from below, “Zhuo Yan, Zhuo Yan, we’ve arrived—”

“I’m coming down,” Zhuo Yan shouted to A-Yin, putting the carrying basket on his back and closing the door to their home.

Yesterday’s lumber still hadn’t been fully transported, so everyone continued to work on that today. As they set off, they chatted excitedly, all having eaten roasted meat. Zhuo Yan learned from Ada that more than ten orcs had gone to assist yesterday, with all the young and strong orcs in the tribe participating.

The mammoth calves had also been divided up and not all were brought back—there was simply no way to carry them all. The overwhelming smell of blood had attracted hyenas, vultures, and other carnivorous animals watching hungrily.

As Zhuo Yan walked along the path, he calculated in his mind. According to the hunting team and the orcs sent to assist, there were probably just over twenty young and strong orcs left, while a patrol team of five remained. The tribe had many capable young orcs.

Half of the tribe consisted of sub-beastmen and minors, with almost no elders—his uncle, the oldest, looked to be only in his thirties or forties.

The tribe’s population was estimated to be over sixty.

Based on the amount of meat to be distributed, besides the mammoth, there were six antelopes as well. Would it mean that with over twenty people, each could carry two hundred or three hundred pounds?

“Ada, can I ask how much you can carry?” Zhuo Yan inquired.

“One white-horned ox.”

He guessed correctly.

The white-horned ox weighed two to three hundred pounds. If that’s the case, the amount of meat wouldn’t match up. However, so many people had gone yesterday not just to carry back meat, but also for defense, to prevent other animals from attacking while the leopard people were dividing the meat.

Aman looked at Zhuo Yan with an expression that said “I knew it,” and then said, “Zhuo Yan must be worried about crushing his little brother A-Yin. If you go to the market next year, A-Yin should be able to carry you. He’s still a cub, but you’re so thin; it’s just the weight of a white-horned ox cub. Don’t worry, Zhuo Yan.”

… What is this nonsense? Zhuo Yan glanced at the other kids, who all seemed to have misunderstood, especially since he had only asked about the market.

Qiao also laughed, saying, “Ada’s mom and dad are going this time, so I said I could help you bring back some salt. Zhuo Yan, if you don’t have salt, you could get sick, especially us sub-beastmen.”

Since they had already brought it up, Zhuo Yan thought for a moment and said, “I roasted meat this morning and found that the mammoth meat was a bit salty.”

“Really?” Xiao Xian thought carefully. But his family had salt, and he had added it while roasting, so he couldn’t recall if the mammoth meat itself was salty.

The others felt the same way, and Aman said, “You must have been craving salt too much.”

“It’s not that I wanted it; you guys can try it when you get back. I was just wondering why mammoth meat would taste salty. Is it possible that it eats something salty?” Zhuo Yan finished his thought.

Qiao said, “It eats grass, right? Ada.”

“Yeah, it eats grass,” Ada confirmed, then thought for a moment, “Sometimes it also cleans itself in the mudflats.”

Aman chimed in, “Could it be the muddy taste? Ah, but we cleaned it, so it shouldn’t be dirty.”

“Zhuo Yan, did you not wash the meat you roasted this morning? Is it the taste of mud?”

Zhuo Yan: … Fine, the conversation can’t go any further; let’s move on to the next topic.

“Today, we should be able to move the lumber back in the morning. I want to water the potato field at noon, so let’s dry this wood for a few days first.”

So, everyone naturally began chatting about making the door and the work for today.

Ada and Qiao still needed to dig holes, so Zhuo Yan said, “Then this door will be left to us? Consider it a gift to bless your companionship.”

“That works.” Stone was the first to agree.

Aman and Xiao Xian also said it was good.

Qiao and Ada smiled and thanked their friends for the gift.

Among the group, only A-Yin remembered and believed his brother’s words—that where the mammoths roamed, there must be a taste of salt…