Chapter 49

Zhuo Yan harbored a personal ambition to secure A-Yin a measure of respect and status within the tribe. However, Xiao Xian and the others completely missed this underlying message, focusing entirely on the idea of no longer being at the mercy of the Featherfolk market.

Being the youngest, Xiao Xian couldn’t contain his excitement. Just thinking about Zhuo Yan’s earlier remarks made his cheeks flush. Even the usually composed Shi Tou and Cong Lv sparkled with enthusiasm.

Zhuo Yan’s words had been nothing short of brilliant!

As for A-Yin’s standing in the tribe, that was already understood. It was common knowledge that the salt had been brought back by A-Yin and Da Ya, and that A-Yin had chosen to venture into the mammoth territory.

“Zhuo Yan, this is taking too long. I’m going to grab my mat,” Shi Tou said.

“And mine as well,” Aman chimed in.

This time, Zhuo Yan didn’t refuse; they could always reweave the mats later. They absolutely had to produce salt today.

The impact of salty mud could never match the dramatic effect of actual salt laid out before everyone.

Shi Tou and Aman dashed back home again. This time, Da Yun was well-behaved and didn’t cause any trouble. Zhuo Yan had observed that the children in the tribe were quite adept at knowing when to be mischievous. When the adults were busy, they played quietly, avoiding dangerous areas. However, as soon as the adults were free, they would rush to the river to splash around, climb trees, or turn themselves into little mud creatures.

Noticing the harsh sun outside, Zhuo Yan felt Da Yun’s forehead; he was drenched in sweat.

“A-Yin, take Da Yun inside to nap for a bit,” he instructed.

Da Yun was startled. “N-No, no, no!” he protested, his words tumbling out.

A-Yin didn’t want to sleep either. He wanted to help his brother! He could fetch water quickly and even wash stones by the river, saving his brother from having to run around in this heat—what would happen if his brother got sunburned?

Zhuo Yan couldn’t persuade them, so he picked up Da Yun and settled him in the cave, where it was cooler. He gave Da Yun some semi-cooked dried meat to chew on; this was safe for him to eat.

It seemed there wouldn’t be time to cook lunch today.

He poured a cup of water for Da Yun, gently patting his head. Behind him, A-Yin shadowed closely, his eyes fixed on Da Yun’s food, making Da Yun lower his head to munch on his jerky.

After confirming Da Yun’s forehead was at a normal temperature, Zhuo Yan had noticed the boy’s face and neck had turned red from the sun. He worried about Da Yun getting heatstroke and debated whether to mix some bitter tree sap powder into his water—something that neither the sub-beasts nor the beasts liked to drink. Even a little would deter a child from touching it.

If Da Yun wasn’t burning up, there was no need to mix it.

“Da Yun, sit here and eat your meat like a good boy,” Zhuo Yan settled him in before turning around and nearly tripping over A-Yin. He noticed A-Yin staring intently at Da Yun’s food and, thinking A-Yin was hungry too, handed him a piece of jerky, affectionately ruffling A-Yin’s ears.

So fluffy!

A-Yin brightened up, happily wagging his tail as he grabbed the jerky and followed his brother outside to help with the work.

Zhuo Yan pulled out another mat, wiped it down, and resumed filtering the mud—there was plenty of it. He used a stone pot to mix and dilute it, repeating the process over and over. When Aman and Shi Tou returned with their mats, both of them were flushed from the heat, beads of sweat glistening on their foreheads.

Aman spoke up first, “We just got stopped by a few sub-beasts. They said A-Yin and Da Ya brought back mud, but I insisted it was salt. They just laughed and kept laughing, saying the Featherfolk market was so far away that they didn’t know if the salt exchange team had even arrived. They simply wouldn’t believe that A-Yin and Da Ya brought back salt!”

“Patrolling Duo Yu passed by and loudly announced that he heard they were bringing back mud.”

“I’m so furious!”

“They’re all laughing; I don’t understand what’s so funny.”

Aman exploded with frustration like a firecracker in the summer heat, talking a mile a minute. Xiao Xian, hearing this, put down his stirring stick and put his hands on his hips. “Oh, if I were there, I’d give them a piece of my mind!”

“Shi Tou mentioned it,” Aman replied.

Everyone turned to Shi Tou, who nodded and said, “I told them we brought back two bags of mud from the mammoth territory and were cooking salt. Zhuo Yan said this is salt, and we’ll have it ready by evening.”

Zhuo Yan thought to himself that honest Shi Tou was right.

“Once those guys heard that, they laughed even harder!” Aman exclaimed, already so angry that he was starting to lose his temper. He looked at Zhuo Yan, “Is it really going to be ready by evening? We have to show the entire tribe; it really is salt!” He couldn’t contain his frustration.

Shi Tou also turned to Zhuo Yan.

Zhuo Yan didn’t respond immediately; instead, he lifted the filtering mesh for everyone to see. As a few heads leaned in, Xiao Xian’s eyes widened in shock, and Shi Tou looked incredulous. “The muddy water has turned clear, Zhuo Yan!”

It was certainly not as clear as river water, but the filtered liquid was far less murky than before.

Zhuo Yan assessed the situation and confidently declared, “We’ll definitely have the first batch of salt by this evening.”

Hearing this, Aman felt refreshed and didn’t mind the heat anymore.

“Come on, let’s get to work!”

The group rolled up their sleeves, excitedly anticipating the moment they could present their salt to the tribe, proving once and for all that what they had was not just mud—it was salt!

Zhuo Yan planned to filter a third time. He could guess how news was spreading outside the tribe. Like Aman mentioned, while the sub-beasts were warming up to him, they still didn’t believe him. At best, some would stop mocking or offer half-hearted reassurances that A-Yin had been fooled or mistaken.

However, the beasts remained skeptical and continued to scoff.

A-Yin, who didn’t hold much respect in the eyes of the beasts, decided that since they were about to reveal their salt, they might as well make a grand show of it—better than the salt sold at the Featherfolk market!

Muddy salt was nothing; it had to be purer and better than what was sold in the market.

They gathered wooden barrels, basins, stone pots, and clay pots to begin. Once the two bags of mud were thoroughly diluted and filtered, the waste was dumped near the crooked tree. They utilized every filtering vessel available, with everyone working quickly to prepare the “filtering mesh.” Zhuo Yan had just completed the first round, which was simple enough for anyone to do.

Cong Lv and Shi Tou went to the river to fetch small stones, returning with a pile of clean ones. Meanwhile, Aman, Xiao Xian, and Zhuo Yan began crafting the filtering mesh. Soon, the rhythmic dripping of water filled the cave.

It was all filtering perfectly.

“Use the stone pot to boil the salt,” Zhuo Yan advised as Shi Tou reached for the stone pot to wash it. He quickly stopped him, saying, “Take a breather; there’s no rush. This filtering takes time.”

Without a stool left, they ended up sitting at the cave entrance on a wooden stick. Zhuo Yan brought out some semi-cooked dried meat. Even the sub-beasts could nibble on some raw meat. Everyone munched on the jerky while resting, the atmosphere quiet, as they all focused on the dripping water.

In this atmosphere, fatigue crept in, and some leaned against the cave walls, dozing off. Zhuo Yan rested against A-Yin, stealing a brief nap while still preoccupied with the salt. It was a short but sweet sleep—a grounded feeling that surpassed the quality of sleep from the past few days.

When he awoke, the sun hadn’t shifted much in the sky. Aman and the others were still busy filtering more saltwater, and Zhuo Yan realized he hadn’t been asleep for long but felt much more energized.

“Zhuo Yan, I checked, and the first barrel is almost full!” Xiao Xian exclaimed.

This was the first barrel they had filtered. Zhuo Yan stood up, noticing that Shi Tou had already cleaned the stone pot. He checked the progress and said, “We’ll filter the third batch in the stone pot, filling it halfway, then we’ll boil it.”

“Got it!” Shi Tou and Aman nodded in agreement.

Cong Lu, though a bit older and less familiar with them, was Staying to help because one of the bags contained his family’s salt mud. He didn’t want Zhuo Yan to handle it all alone, and he figured he could learn how to do it himself next time.

Now hearing that the salt was almost ready, excitement and eagerness lit up his face.

“Zhuo Yan, you’re really clever! How did you think of making the mud water clean like this?” Cong Lu genuinely complimented.

“When we made pottery, we had to wash the mud, which is similar to this method. I just wanted to give it a try. And diluting the mud? I remembered when we cooked soup; when we added salt, it turned the broth salty. Salt is granular, so I thought if we dissolved a lot of salt in the water, once it boiled down, wouldn’t the salt remain?”

Cong Lu pondered this and realized it made sense.

“Since we’re all cooking and eating, you’re the only one who thought of this method.” Shi Tou admired Zhuo Yan, unable to figure it out himself.

Aman and Xiao Xian joined the conversation.

“Zhuo Yan mentioned before that mammoth meat has a salty flavor, but back then, we didn’t think it actually had salt,” Xiao Xian said, growing increasingly animated. “It was during that mammoth hunt—” but he abruptly halted when he noticed Cong Lu.

The mammoth hunt had occurred a long time ago, undertaken to avenge A Lei.

Aman, noticing Xiao Xian’s awkwardness, chimed in, “Later on, we encountered the gray mammoth. Zhuo Yan said its meat had a milder salt flavor, which A-Yin must have heard about. A-Yin went looking for it. If Zhuo Yan hadn’t mentioned it, we wouldn’t have even considered that angle.”

“Right, right,” Xiao Xian nodded fervently, not daring to meet Cong Lu’s eyes.

Cong Lu sensed the group’s avoidance of A Lei’s death but didn’t know what to say, so he decided to keep quiet. Filtering required patience, especially the third round, where the mats grew thicker and the dripping slowed.

It wasn’t until sunset that they collected a little more than half a stone pot, with three more buckets left to filter.

“Let’s boil it now; there’s no rush for the rest,” Zhuo Yan said, noticing it was getting late and wanting to produce some samples first.

Shi Tou finally heard this and eagerly placed the stone pot on the fire pit, while Aman began gathering firewood. The stone pot heated slowly, but with a fierce fire, it quickly brought the water to a boil. The group gathered around the stove, undeterred by the heat, taking turns adding fuel and checking on the progress.

“Zhuo Yan, look!” Little Xian couldn’t contain his excitement, pointing at the white granules clinging to the walls of the stone pot. “Is this it? But it doesn’t look like the one from the Feather People’s market!”

Zhuo Yan was taken aback by the amount of salt produced. The uneven surface of the pot was dotted with white crystals—certainly not the pure white of modern table salt, but definitely whiter than the salt Little Xian had brought him before.

Little Xian, initially uncertain, read Zhuo Yan’s expression and felt a wave of relief. During the filtration process today, he had inadvertently tasted a bit on his fingers, and it was indeed salty. “This is amazing! Let’s take it to the tribe and show everyone!” Aman remembered the grudge from lunchtime and couldn’t contain his enthusiasm.

Previously, anything Zhuo Yan did piqued the curiosity of the beastmen—remnants of the pottery they had fired. But today, word had spread through the tribe that the fierce warrior, A-Yin, had brought back two bags of mud, and although Aman and Shitou had mentioned that they were boiling salt, no one came to check because the belief that “only the Feather People’s market has salt” was deeply ingrained.

Not just the Leopard Tribe, but the entire Prairie Forest, consisting of the other three tribes, had passed down this belief for generations. It was said that salt was brought by the feathered beings who flew for a long time to reach the sea, where it was created by the Sea People.

But here, so close to the Feather People’s market, in the mammoth territory, there was salt? Who would believe that? No one would.

As the moisture in the stone pot evaporated, a layer of white granules began to appear on the walls and bottom, slightly grayish but predominantly white.

“Hey, Aman, turn down the fire a bit. I’ll go get a bowl.”

“Who knew we’d get this much salt?”

A-Yin leaned in close to his brother, stretching his neck and howling with excitement. He had eaten plenty of the salty mud from the mammoth territory and had brought back the saltiest part!

Zhuo Yan didn’t understand the words, but he recognized A-Yin’s pride. He playfully tapped A-Yin on the forehead. “Yes, the salt yield from what you brought back is indeed high.”

As the last bit of moisture evaporated, Aman extinguished the fire.

The sky was overcast, but the smiles on everyone’s faces shone brighter than the sun. They gathered around the pot, waiting for the high temperature to drop. Zhuo Yan fashioned a small brush from a piece of fur and gently swept the salt crystals from the pot walls to the bottom. Stone carefully supported the pot with more fur, helping Zhuo Yan pour the salt into a bowl.

Half a pot of water yielded a bowl of salt—an impressively large bowl at that.

“Is this… is this really it?”

“Why does it look different from the salt we exchanged for at the Feather People’s market?”

“Our salt is whiter and finer.”

Zhuo Yan handed the bowl to the others, unable to hide his grin. “Give it a taste.”

“Can we, Zhuo Yan?”

“Just try it directly?”

Zhuo Yan remained silent, encouraging them to sample it. Little Xian was the first, pinching a bit with his fingers, followed closely by Shitou and Aman. Zhuo Yan then offered the bowl to Cong Lu, and he too took a taste.

“Wow! Zhuo Yan, this is real salt! So salty!”

“We actually made it!”

“You’re incredible, Zhuo Yan!”

“This salt doesn’t crunch against my teeth.” Cong Lu noted carefully. “Sometimes the salt from the Feather People’s market has a gritty texture.”

That must have been sand.

“It’s really, really, really salt!”

The excitement was palpable, and Cong Lu’s eyes sparkled with joy—it was truly salt.

“Let’s head to the square and show everyone!”

“Right!”

“Who should we find?” Aman pondered, unsure whom to summon for a clan announcement. The chief wasn’t around, and there were injuries in the patrol team. “We definitely can’t call for Masha.”

Zhuo Yan chimed in, “Cong Lu, let’s get Da Ya. We’ll go together.”

“Okay! I’ll head back now. See you at the square!” Cong Lu took off, almost running from Zhuo Yan’s home.

The others didn’t bother cleaning up—there was really nothing to tidy.

Now, no one cared about the filtration buckets; they would take their time cleaning those later. Shitou carried his little sister Da Yun as they set off, Zhuo Yan holding the bowl of salt, and A-Yin trailing behind his brother. The group walked briskly, feeling as if they had just returned from a great victory—and in a way, they had.

The sky had darkened by this point.

Because the beastmen hadn’t gone hunting these past few days, spending their time in the tribe, with both day and night patrols keeping things safe, the sub-beastmen had been hiding from the heat during the day and were now returning to the river for a wash.

“Zhuo Yan, what are you all doing?” A sub-beastman called out, noticing the group.

Zhuo Yan replied loudly, “A-Yin and Da Ya brought back salt, and we’re taking it to the square to show everyone!”

The sub-beastmen who had been heading towards the river froze, their expressions puzzled as if the heat had fogged their understanding. “What?”

“Salt! We made salt! A-Yin and Da Ya brought back the mud, and we cooked it into salt!” Aman boasted, his voice bright and proud.

“Right!” Shitou chimed in.

“A whole bowl of salt!” Little Xian added.

A few scattered sub-beastmen stood dumbfounded, glancing towards Zhuo Yan. Salt? They exchanged confused looks. “Did Zhuo Yan just say salt? Did I hear that right?” “Mud water cooked into salt?” “Wait, did I really hear that right? It’s salt?”

They abandoned their plans to wash and raced to catch up with Zhuo Yan.

“Zhuo Yan, do you really have salt?”

“Mud water can actually produce salt?”

Zhuo Yan paused, turning to face the approaching sub-beastmen. He spoke earnestly, “It’s not just mud water; it’s the salt mud that A-Yin and Da Ya brought back from the mammoth territory. There’s salt in this mud, and today, with Little Xian, Aman, Shitou, Cong Lu, and A-Yin, we spent the whole day boiling it out.”

“Ah?”

Some gasped in bewilderment. Others, though silent, wore confused expressions. They struggled to grasp what Zhuo Yan meant, still not understanding how salt could be extracted from mud. No, no—salt was something only the Feather People’s market possessed.

Faced with the bewildered looks of the sub-beastmen, Zhuo Yan generously offered the bowl. “This is it.”

“This is so white, it doesn’t look like it came from mud!”

Xiao Xian quickly interjected, “Of course! We worked all day to wash it out of the mud. No, wait, we filtered it out!”

“Is this really salt?”

Aman was getting annoyed. “We’ve told you already; why don’t you believe us?”

“It’s just that this is whiter than the salt from the feathered people’s market,” one of them argued skeptically.

Zhuo Yan nodded knowingly, gesturing for Xiao Xian to use a small spoon to scoop some out for everyone. “Go ahead, give it a try.”

Xiao Xian understood the cue and carefully filled the spoon with a small amount, pouring a little into the palm of each person. “You guys should taste it.”

They exchanged wary glances.

“What’s the worry? It’s not poisonous mushroom powder,” shouted Shi Tou.

Tentatively, they extended their tongues to lick the salt. Their faces mirrored one another’s—shock, confusion, and then renewed shock as they examined their palms and then looked back at Zhuo Yan holding the bowl. “It’s really salt! And it seems even better than what we get from the feathered people’s market.”

They couldn’t quite put their finger on it, but it didn’t hurt their teeth when they ate it.

Xiao Xian, Shi Tou, and Aman burst into laughter.

As they made their way to the square, more people joined them, their faces lighting up with shock and delight. They followed Zhuo Yan, slowly recovering from their disbelief and exclaiming, “I tasted it! It’s really salt!”

“I haven’t tasted it yet; is it true?”

“Really, I tasted it too!”

“There’s actual salt from the mammoth territory?”

“It was brought back by A-Yin and Da Ya.”

“I heard A-Yin chose Mahu’s team but didn’t go hunting with them…”

There had been gossip about Mahu and his team mocking A-Yin, the shapeshifting beast, and rumors circulated that they might have perished beneath the feet of a mammoth. Before A-Yin and Da Ya returned, other beasts in the tribe had speculated about their fates.

But this morning, the sub-beasts in the tribe heard the latest—A-Yin and Da Ya had ventured into the mammoth territory and returned with two bags of mud, claiming it contained salt.

Everyone laughed, thinking it was a joke. Nobody believed that it could be salt. Some even remarked, “As long as they’re back safe, that’s what matters.” Others commented, “I thought Da Ya would end up like his son, A Lei, dead beneath a mammoth.”

As more and more people gathered in the square, the sound of drums filled the air.

The elder emerged from the large cave, moving slowly. Sub-beasts carrying and cradling their young followed him to the square. The patrolling beasts transformed back into their human forms and rushed back, the crowd swelling with confusion as they wondered what was happening.

“What’s going on?”

“Is something wrong?”

“Dian is out too, and so is Mahu.”

“I just heard from Ah Bai and the others that A-Yin really did bring back salt, so they came to tell us in the square.”

“???”

“No way!”

“Salt only exists at the feathered people’s market; it can’t be salt.”

“It’s just mud; I heard they brought back mud.”

“No, no, it’s really salt! I’ve tasted it! Zhuo Yan is amazing! He and Xiao Xian, Aman, Shi Tou, and Cong Lu worked all day to extract salt. Not all mud contains salt; the salt in the mud was brought back by A-Yin and Da Ya.”

Skeptics remained unconvinced, but those who had tasted it were adamant that it was real. Soon, the two sides of the conversation grew louder, almost sounding like an argument, and the entire square was filled with rising voices exclaiming: “Salt?!” “No, it’s not!” and so on in a repetitive chorus.

Finally, torches were lit, illuminating the square. Da Ya, holding a torch, announced loudly, “This morning, A-Yin and I returned from the mammoth territory. You’ve all heard; we brought back two bags of mud.”

The square erupted into chatter again. “See, Da Ya said it’s mud!” “It’s really just mud.”

“A-Yin said there’s salt in the mammoth territory, so we brought back muddy salt.” Da Ya’s voice rose, nearly shouting now.

The previous noise abruptly quieted.

“A-Yin, you and your brother come here; I don’t know how to cook muddy salt,” Da Ya said, standing beside A-Yin and holding the torch.

Zhuo Yan, cradling the bowl of salt, stepped forward with A-Yin to a central spot. Under the warm glow of the torchlight, the front-row sub-beasts and beasts could see what was in Zhuo Yan’s bowl.

It was white. Was it really salt?

But it didn’t look like the salt from the feathered people’s market.

“It’s salt, cleaner salt. A-Yin and Da Ya brought back two bags of muddy salt, and there’s a lot of salt in there. We—I, Cong Lu, Shi Tou, Aman, and Xiao Xian—spent all day cooking this salt.”

“They really did bring back salt.”

“Everyone can have a taste.”

Zhuo Yan loudly named each partner who had worked with him that day, emphasizing: A-Yin and Da Ya brought back the salt.

The square fell silent, everyone captivated in a state of disbelief. Could it be true? They instinctively doubted it, but Zhuo Yan was so sure and even invited them to taste it. If it were fake salt, he wouldn’t dare let them try it.

Zhuo Yan used a small spoon to serve everyone, starting with the two elders.

The elders, bearing the marks of time on their weathered faces, had eyes that lacked the brightness of youth. Now, as they sampled the white granules, their expressions softened. Slowly, the wrinkles on their faces seemed to relax, and their cloudy eyes sparkled with newfound light.

“It’s salty.”

“It’s definitely salty.”

A chorus of “?!” erupted from the crowd.

Is it really salt?

Could it be true?

Some still hesitated to believe it.

Zhuo Yan enlisted Shi Tou, Aman, and Xiao Xian to help distribute samples. Before long, the square was filled with exclamations of “It’s salty! It’s really salt!” echoing as everyone basked in the shock and confusion that quickly transformed into immense joy.

“It’s really salt!”

“A-Yin and Da Ya brought back salt!”

“Where’s the mammoth’s salt?”

“How do we wash the muddy salt?”

“It’s been so long since we had salt in our caves. Can I trade some, Zhuo Yan?”

“I want to trade too! I want to trade!”

The square erupted in a frenzy of excitement, with even some eager to offer items in exchange for salt—leather, wicker baskets, bone knives, stone blades—anything they could find.

“No trading!” shouted Zhuo Yan, trying to restore order. As the crowd quieted down, he added quickly, “The salt is located in the mammoth territory. I can teach everyone how to make mud salt. The chieftain hasn’t returned yet, and our tribe isn’t large. We don’t consume much salt, so the beastmen can discuss it amongst themselves. We can first head to the mammoth territory, collect some mud, and then cook it together. The weather is warm enough to dry the salt as well.”

Ah Tou was still in Ah Daze, unable to believe that A-Yin had actually spoken the truth. He had doubted A-Yin, even feeling a pang of sadness for not choosing to team up with him. He should have trusted A-Yin and gone along with him…

Ah Ri looked down and licked his palm, tasting the salty flavor.

A-Yin really did bring back salt.

Ah Hui’s eyes sparkled as he looked at A-Yin, now fully convinced of his capabilities. Not only was A-Yin a fierce fighter, but he had also found salt.

…

The beastmen in the tribe had been disunited, having gone two days without a successful hunt. Ma Ha had a broken leg, and Dian’s shoulder was badly injured. Duo Yu and his partner were moping and complaining. But now, every beastman was united in purpose—except for Ma Ha, who remained dazed, grappling with the reality that the salt had been brought back by that white-haired beast he secretly despised.

His mind was a whirlwind; he couldn’t think straight.

“When are we going to the mammoth territory to get the salt mud?”

Everyone looked first at Dian, then at Ah Sen, then at Da Ya, and finally at Huo Xia.

They needed a decisive beastman from the tribe to organize the salt retrieval.

Among the tribe, three experienced beastmen were present. Huo Xia had never been interested in decision-making; he was not suited for it and usually just followed orders. Da Ya had a bad temper ever since his son’s death, previously only getting angry at those who made mistakes during hunts, but now he barely interacted with anyone, appearing cold and distant.

Ah Sen was preoccupied with the imminent Ah Rival of his partner, Lin Rong’s baby.

This was why the chieftain entrusted the tribe to Dian—he was stable and clever, plus the three older and experienced beastmen were keeping an eye on things. They should be able to hold the fort until the salt retrieval team returned. However, the hunting party had only lasted half a month, and now they were scattered. The last couple of days had relied on Ah Sen to maintain order.

Ma Ha’s fight with Dian had impacted the younger beastmen. Previously, they had respected Dian, but now doubts were creeping in—Ma Ha’s broken leg didn’t count as a win, and Dian’s injured shoulder didn’t either.

So now, the whole tribe waited for their ‘leader’ to make a decision, their gazes shifting from one person to another, until they unexpectedly landed on Zhuo Yan—

It was a strange situation, considering there hadn’t been a sub-beastman as the chieftain before, but quickly everyone’s perspective shifted. They weren’t suggesting Zhuo Yan become the chieftain, just that he could organize things, similar to a potter arranging their tools.

Or perhaps they could ask Zhuo Yan to suggest how to organize it, and if it didn’t seem suitable, they could discuss it further.

Most importantly, salt had been brought back by A-Yin—though Da Ya was involved too.

“Zhuo Yan, you decide,” one of the beastmen said.

“Yeah,” another agreed.

“I heard A-Yin say the salt was in the mammoth territory, and you were the first to mention it,” another chimed in.

“Indeed,” Zhuo Yan replied, puzzled.

Facing the eager stares of the tribe, Zhuo Yan realized that everyone, based on what he knew, was as impoverished as his family—once winter ended, they had no salt left. The best they had was from the Xia family, who managed to scrape together a bit during pottery-making.

It had been at least a month since anyone had eaten salt.

With the hot weather, the greasy, bland roasted meat was unappetizing. The sub-beastmen were truly longing for salt. Besides its flavor, the tribe’s elders had often warned that going too long without salt could affect the sub-beastmen’s night vision.

“I’ll consult with a few experienced beastmen. Please wait a moment,” Zhuo Yan said, no longer hesitant, as he turned to find his uncle, Da Ya, and Huo Xia. A-Yin followed closely behind him, and they reached a consensus quickly. Zhuo Yan asked, “Is the salt location near the mammoth territory? We’ll only collect mud salt, avoiding any mammoths. Would that be safe for a few of us?”

A-Yin barked enthusiastically.

Nearby, Ah Tou said, “A-Yin says that during the day, the mammoths are active there, but they’re gone at night.”

A-Yin barked again.

“Further back near the lake, the mud there is saltier and farther from the mammoths. We should only go at night; that should work for a few of us,” Zhuo Yan noted, glancing at the three younger beastmen.

“You two experienced beastmen,” he addressed.

Da Ya replied, “I’ll go.”

Ah Sen hesitated, as Lin Rong was about to give birth soon, but he was also willing to go. Zhuo Yan spoke first, “Uncle, you stay back to patrol at night.” Ah Sen readily agreed.

Huo Xia said he and Da Ya would go. As long as he didn’t have to handle anything else, he was fine with it.

“Young beastmen, Ah Ri, Duo Yu, Ah Tou—”

A-Yin looked at his brother, wagging his tail.

Zhuo Yan decided, “Let’s include A-Yin as well. He knows the location.”

“We’ll set out for the salt in two days.”

Once Zhuo Yan finished organizing, he asked everyone if that was alright. Everyone nodded enthusiastically, even those not directly named, like Ah Hui and Duo Yu, were not upset. In fact, Ah Hui, who no longer had any fondness for Zhuo Yan, had been swayed by A-Yin’s assurance that his brother was very clever, so Zhuo Yan’s plan must be sound.

That night, as they made their way back, everyone was in high spirits, chatting animatedly about salt. “How did A-Yin find out about the salt?” one asked. “Oh, I know! Remember when we ate mammoth meat in the tribe? Zhuo Yan’s family ran out of salt, and while roasting meat, Zhuo Yan mentioned that mammoth meat had a salty flavor. A-Yin overheard…,” another explained. “So that’s how it was! Zhuo Yan is really clever!” “A-Yin is brave too, daring to venture into mammoth territory without transforming!” “Absolutely!”

“A-Yin is so brave!”

As they walked home, Cong Lu listened to the distant chatter and looked at his partner, saying, “Today, I was with Zhuo Yan and the others cooking salt. Everyone was talking about the mammoth meat. It was because of you bringing back that mammoth calf for Ah Lei.”

Da Ya remained silent.

“I’ve been thinking,” Cong Lu began hesitantly, “perhaps the divine spirits have called Ah Lei to join them. The salt from the mammoth territory has brought everyone together, Da Ya… I don’t know how to put it into words. Zhuo Yan and A-Yin may not have known Ah Lei, but I feel like they are connected somehow. They’ve brought such immense surprise to our tribe.”

Cong Lu struggled to express his thoughts clearly.

In modern terms, it felt as if fate had woven their lives together. Ah Lei’s death, Da Ya’s quest for revenge through the mammoth meat, which led Zhuo Yan to discover its salty flavor, reminding him that elephants need to replenish their salt intake…

Everything seemed to follow a path, as if guided by some invisible force.

Da Ya turned to his partner, taking his hand in his. “Let’s live well, Cong Lu.” He gazed into the distance at the starry sky, filled with countless stars. Perhaps among them, one was Ah Lei’s guiding light.