The two of them returned to the grassy field where they had picked the red fruits, standing at the same spot where they first spotted the long-legged bird. 

The surrounding red fruits had already been picked clean, leaving only the bare vines behind. 

Wen Ze turned sideways and pointed ahead. “The long-legged bird was eating there, wasn’t it?” 

Zhuo Mu nodded. “Yes.” 

“This area is full of vibrant red fruits. So, what was it actually eating? Let’s go take a look.” 

Impatient, Wen Ze led the way, swinging his black-silver knife to clear the weeds, with Zhuo Mu following behind. 

As they got closer, they slowed their pace and split up to carefully search the area. 

Among the thick weeds, there were many red fruit vines, each bearing countless orange-red fruits. 

As the wind blew, the vines rustled, making a soft, scratching sound. 

After a while, Wen Ze’s eyes started to blur from staring too long. 

But he didn’t give up. He kept pushing aside the grass to make sure he didn’t miss anything. 

Finally! In the midst of the red fruits, he spotted a hint of yellow! 

“I found it!” 

“I found something here, too.” Both of them spoke almost at the same time. 

Wen Ze got excited and turned to Zhuo Mu. “So, it’s not just in one spot?” 

He quickly counted. On the vine in front of him, there were about ten fruits. 

The shape and size were just like the red fruits, but the color was golden yellow! They were ripe! 

Two of the fruits had marks from being pecked by birds, and the remaining fruit pulp was releasing a rich, honey-like fragrance! 

Zhuo Mu responded as he walked over. “Looks like it.” 

Wen Ze grinned, unable to wait any longer. He reached out and picked one of the golden fruits. 

With his long fingers, he carefully peeled away the outer layer, unveiling the ripe, juicy fruit within. He brought it close and inhaled its rich aroma. 

“It smells so good… It’s completely different from the red fruit!” he said. 

Zhuo Mu agreed, “I can smell it too. This should be delicious.” 

Wen Ze eagerly said, “I’ll try it!” 

He quickly wiped the fruit clean and bit into it. 

After the red fruit had left a big psychological scar on him, he was still cautious, even though he suspected this was just a bigger version of the yellow mushroom fruit he had seen in his past life. He only bit into the skin a little. 

But the moment his tongue touched the fruit pulp, the intense sweetness, along with the fruity aroma, exploded in his mouth, making his eyes widen in surprise! 

Wow, this is insanely sweet! Is this fruit filled with honey? 

In his past life, he had eaten the mushroom fruit, and it was quite sweet. However, it was clearly more like fruit juice. Its sweetness and thickness were nothing compared to this! 

This was like syrup, just as sweet as pure honey! Taking a big bite might even make his throat sore from the sweetness. 

Not long ago, he had been grumbling in his heart about how the sour fruits in the beast world had mutated to be both big and bitter. 

Such a large patch of beautiful fruit was completely inedible—what a waste. 

But now, he wanted to say: Thank you, beast world! Thank you, Beast God! For making the yellow mushroom fruit so incredibly sweet! 

It was an amazing surprise! 

Wen Ze smacked his lips and laughed before saying, “Zhuo Mu, we’ve found a treasure! It’s really sweet and has a unique fruity aroma. It’s delicious! You should try it!” 

After nodding, Zhuo Mu grabbed a yellow fruit from the vine, peeled away the skin, and bit into it lightly. 

He looked at Wen Ze with surprise. “It does taste really good.” 

Wen Ze burst into laughter. “We called the long-legged bird stupid, but I think we were the clueless ones. We actually thought it was eating those bitter red fruits. If that were true, how could it be so excited to eat them?” 

Zhuo Mu smiled lightly. “Good thing you realized something was off and came back to check. This yellow fruit is so sweet, we should be able to squeeze honey from it and store it.” 

Wen Ze chuckled at the new name, “yellow fruit.” 

But calling the red ones “red fruit” and the yellow ones “yellow fruit” did make sense. 

“I think so too. Sugar doesn’t spoil easily. Just like honey, if stored properly, it can last a long time. You never noticed this yellow fruit before?” 

“No, I haven’t.” 

Wen Ze nodded in understanding. “It’s probably because there’s so little of it, and it’s so delicious that as soon as it ripens, all these greedy birds eat it up.” 

He turned around and started picking fruit from the vine with both hands, putting them into his basket. 

“Now that we’ve found them, we’ll take all these fruits back with us!” 

“Alright,” Zhuo Mu said with a smile. “You pick from the left side, and I’ll go right. Let’s try to search the entire area before it gets completely dark.” 

“Got it! Check carefully—don’t miss any!” 

“Understood.” 

The two of them, enjoying the taste of the yellow fruit and savoring the rich fruity scent in their baskets, felt completely relaxed and at ease. 

The vine was soon picked clean, and Wen Ze continued searching ahead. 

He was just as serious and focused as when he searched for honey, looking around carefully and sniffing the air. He checked every patch of grass and vine over and over; afraid he might miss something. 

But even with such a careful search, they still found way fewer yellow fruits than red ones. 

Wen Ze guessed it wasn’t just because birds had eaten them. The main reason was likely that such delicious fruits were naturally rare. 

After the sun had fully set, the area grew even darker. 

Thankfully, their sharp eyesight allowed them to see clearly even in the dim light. 

Hurrying along, just before it was completely dark, they finally finished searching the entire area. 

Together, they managed to gather about half a basket of yellow fruits. 

Zhuo Mu skillfully changes into his beast form, flicking his snake tongue. “It’s getting late. We need to hurry back. Get on my back first, and we’ll count everything once we’re there.” 

Wen Ze agreed. 

He quickly climbed onto Zhuo Mu’s back, and the giant snake slithered swiftly through the grass, leaving the dark wilderness behind them. 

It was a moonless night, and the heavy clouds made it even darker. Wen Ze used the twinkling stars to help him count their haul for the day. 

A small chunk of honeycomb, a big basket of bird eggs, four long-legged chicks, half a basket of red fruits, and half a basket of yellow fruits—quite a good haul! 

They had worked hard from morning till evening, and while they were tired, the fruits of their labor made Wen Ze feel sweeter than honey! Sitting on Zhuo Mu’s back, he swayed happily from side to side. 

Zhuo Mu lowered his voice. “If you’re tired, you can lie down for a bit. We’ll be there soon.” 

Wen Ze’s eyes lit up, and he chuckled. “Then I won’t be polite!” 

With that, he let himself fall back and stretched out on the giant snake’s body. 

Ah~ All his joints felt like they had stretched out! So comfortable, so relaxing! 

Zhuo Mu was fast, and in about half an hour, they returned to the tribe. 

The patrolling beastmen saw them, with lingering worry on their faces. 

“Zhuo Mu, Wen Ze, you’re finally back! Yin He said you’ve been gone for a while. If you didn’t return soon, we were about to send someone to find you!” 

As they got closer to the tribe, Wen Ze sat up from Zhuo Mu’s back. 

Hearing this, he quickly explained, “We spent a bit more time gathering today and made everyone worried.” 

The patrolling beastmen waved it off. “It’s fine. As long as the two of you are safe, that’s what matters. Hurry home now.”  

When Yin He saw them, he let out a sigh of relief. 

“Brother, Brother Zhuo Mu, I was so worried something might have happened to you outside. You came back so late—did you find a lot of honey?” 

Wen Ze pulled out the small piece of honeycomb from his space. “We only found this little bit of honey, but we discovered some other good things!” 

He excitedly told Yin He about digging up bird nests and collecting the yellow fruit. 

Yin He gasped in amazement multiple times and muttered, “If only I had gone with you.” 

As they talked, Wen Ze wasn’t idle either. He put down the items, washed his hands, and started preparing to cook. 

But when he lifted the wooden lid off the stone pot, he was surprised to find a pot of hot stewed meat inside! 

Looking at the clay pot on the stove, Wen Ze saw that it contained steamed vegetables, roasted sausages, and boiled milk! 

He looked at Yin He with surprise. “Did you make all this food for us?” 

Yin He, caught off guard by Wen Ze’s bright, shining eyes, couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed. He turned his handsome face away and said hesitantly, “Well… I tried doing it like you taught me, but it doesn’t taste as good as when you make it…” 

Seeing him act so thoughtful and well-behaved, Wen Ze felt warmth in his heart. He reached out and ruffled Yin He’s fluffy head, feeling pleased. 

“This is already really good! Yin He, you’re so capable. Zhuo Mu and I can have a hot meal as soon as we get back!” 

Yin He’s face turned red from the praise, but his lips curled up into a proud smile. 

“Oh, and I finished picking the osmanthus flowers. I dried them just like you said, then put them away in the cave before the sun went down.” 

“Alright, alright! You’re doing amazing! Yin He, this family really can’t do without you!” 

Yin He felt his heart swell with pride at Wen Ze’s praise, so much so that he almost wanted to change into his beast form and roll around on the ground. 

A few days ago, Zhuo Mu had brought back a large, smooth rock from the wild and used it as their table. 

The three of them gathered around the stone table and had dinner together. 

Wen Ze was in a great mood and complimented everything, from the stewed meat to the milk. 

Yin He laughed. “So I actually have a talent for cooking, huh? Heh heh.” 

Wen Ze grinned. “Yeah! Keep practicing, and soon you’ll be the head cook of the house!” 

Holding his bowl, Yin He responded loudly, “Alright!!” 

Zhuo Mu silently ate the rather average-tasting stew, thinking to himself, Wen Ze is a bit terrifying. 

Because he didn’t have to cook, Wen Ze saved a lot of time. 

Now that he was well-rested, Zhuo Mu went to wash the dishes while Wen Ze sorted through their haul for the day. 

The long-legged bird and eggs were placed in the cave for later. 

As for the honeycomb, there wasn’t much, so he cut off a small portion and mixed it with hot water for everyone to drink, adding freshly picked osmanthus flowers for extra fragrance. 

The yellow fruit was crushed with a homemade wooden pestle, and he squeezed out the honey syrup. He stored most of it in a dry, oil-free jar, while keeping a small amount to soak the osmanthus flowers. 

He cleaned the seeds and planned to try planting some while the weather was still warm. 

“Do we have any small wooden boards?” he asked the other two. 

Zhuo Mu handed him one. “Will this work?” 

“Yes,” Wen Ze nodded, covering the honey jar with the board. “This will do for a few days. Once our kiln is ready, I’ll make a pickling jar to store the honey syrup.” 

Zhuo Mu asked, “What kind of jar?” 

Yin He asked, “Pickling? How do you do that?” 

Wen Ze chuckled. These two always focused on different things. 

He explained to Zhuo Mu first: “It’s smaller than a regular jar, with a rim around the top that curves upward. When the time comes, we’ll pour water into the rim and cover it with a bowl. This way, the water helps seal off the air.” 

Zhuo Mu imagined it and said in surprise, “That actually works… You always come up with great ideas.” 

Wen Ze waved modestly. “I didn’t come up with it myself. I learned it from others.” 

Without noticing Zhuo Mu’s deep gaze, Wen Ze went on to explain to Yin He what pickling was. 

“It’s like with salted meat. You use a lot of salt to preserve vegetables so they don’t spoil as quickly.” 

Yin He nodded. “Ah, I see… Before, when autumn came, we’d dry a lot of vegetables for winter. But dried vegetables taste bad.” 

Wen Ze smiled. “Pickled vegetables are really flavorful and go great with rice! Once I find the right ingredients, I’ll make some for you!” 

Yin He shouted again, “Yes!!” 

Wen Ze thought of pickled cucumbers, radishes, string beans, and sauerkraut, and his mouth started watering. 

Imitating the other beastmen, he silently prayed in his heart: Oh great Beast God, please let me find these delicious vegetables soon! 

*** 

The next morning, after Wen Ze got up, he went to the field by the river where he had cleared some land and planted the yellow fruit seeds. Then, he came back to make breakfast. 

Zhuo Mu had already fetched water and milked the cow. 

At breakfast, Wen Ze pushed the freshly boiled milk toward Yin He. 

Yin He’s small face slightly dropped as he whispered, “Brother… can I skip the milk today?” 

“What’s wrong?” 

Yin He sighed, “I’ve been drinking milk every morning and evening for a while now. I really can’t drink anymore.” 

So he was tired of drinking it. 

Wen Ze’s eyes curved with a smile. “But you used to really like milk.” 

Yin He pouted. “I still do, but if you make double-skin milk for me, I’d still want to eat it…” 

“Haha, alright! I’ll use half of the milk to make double-skin milk for you and add some yellow fruit honey syrup and osmanthus!” 

Yin He’s eyes lit up. “Yes!” 

As for the remaining half, Wen Ze, reminded by Yin He, thought about making some yogurt. 

Not only did yogurt have a great taste, but it also helped with digestion and provided calcium, which he really liked. 

Before coming to this world, whenever he went grocery shopping, he always tossed a pack of yogurt into his cart—preferably a buy-one-get-one-free deal. 

It wasn’t until he came to this beast world, where there was so much work to be done, that he had forgotten about making it. 

As for how to make yogurt, he’d heard some tips from a classmate who studied food science. 

It was both simple and tricky. 

The simple part was mixing the ingredients together and leaving them at the right temperature to ferment. 

The tricky part was that he didn’t have a yogurt starter, like bacterial culture powder. 

For now, he decided to try using just milk. 

After breakfast, Zhuo Mu hurried out to go hunting. 

Wen Ze boiled some water and made two servings of double-skin milk.  

Then, he poured the remaining milk into a smaller bowl that had been scalded with boiling water and heated it over a water bath. 

Once it was lukewarm, he took the milk out. 

Next, he emptied the water from the stone pot and placed a few long-burning charcoal pieces into the stove. 

When the stone pot was warm enough, he placed the bowl of milk back into it, stirred the milk a few times with clean chopsticks, and covered the pot with the wooden lid. 

Yin He eagerly ate the double-skin milk while watching Wen Ze closely. 

Once Wen Ze finished, Yin He finally asked, “Brother, what are you planning to make now?” 

Wen Ze answered, “I’m trying to make yogurt with the milk.” 

Yin He looked a bit surprised. “Sour milk? Doesn’t that mean it’s spoiled? Can we still eat it?” 

“It’s not that kind of sour. If I can make it right, you’ll see, the taste is very unique.” 

Yin He was excited. “Okay!!” 

As they chatted, Wen Ze lifted the wooden lid and saw that a layer of milk skin had formed on the surface of the milk in the small bowl. 

If he was relying on the bacteria in the air to ferment the milk, having a milk skin blocking the air probably wasn’t ideal. 

But he couldn’t keep stirring the milk all day long. 

Thinking about it, he simply removed the milk skin and put the lid back on. 

“Wen Ze!” A voice called out from a distance. 

He looked up and smiled. “Uncle, what brings you here?” 

Sang Hui smiled and replied, “I’ve got news for you! Our pottery kiln is ready! The tribe leader said we’re collecting firewood today to fire it up properly! Tomorrow, we’ll shape the clay, and we’ll be making our own pottery!” 

Wen Ze’s face brightened. “Really? That’s great! It hasn’t been long since we returned from the Rainbow Sun Tribe, but I’ve been looking forward to it so much that the wait felt endless.” 

Sang Hui nodded. “It went quickly when we were digging the earth at the start. But when it came time to finish the kiln, I had to be careful not to let the information leak, so I only brought a few people from the tribe to help. That’s why it took longer.” 

“Ah, I see. That makes sense. What are you going to do next?” 

“After notifying everyone, I’m going to collect firewood.” 

“I’ll go with you! Oh, right—Zhuo Mu already went hunting. Should we call him back?” 

“No need, no need. Firing pottery is important, but we can’t neglect gathering and hunting for the tribe.” 

“Got it. Wait a moment, I’ll let Yin He know.” 

Wen Ze turned around. “Yin He, when it gets warm later in the morning, take out half of the charcoal from the stove. Be careful not to get burned!” 

Yin He responded, “Okay!” 

With that, Wen Ze and Sang Hui left together. 

Firing pottery was a major event for the entire South Mountain Tribe. While Wen Ze was gathering firewood in the mountains, he ran into many people who weren’t out hunting or gathering. 

Even the little ones followed behind the adults, excitedly picking up branches while chattering away. 

Everyone’s faces lit up with joy at the mention of the pottery kiln. 

“If this works, we won’t have to exchanged red clay with the Rainbow Sun Tribe for pottery anymore!” 

“Yeah, we can make our own!” 

“It’s amazing! We’ll finally have our own good pottery!” 

Caught up in their enthusiasm, Wen Ze grew even more excited about the tribe’s first pottery firing. 

By afternoon, half the tribe had gathered firewood. Sang Hui led the group to the kiln to start filling it with firewood and lighting the fire. 

Standing outside the kiln, they could feel the heat rising from inside the mountain. 

There was no need for so many people to stay and watch, but no one moved. Looking at their faces, Wen Ze could see the genuine and simple hope for a better life in their eyes. 

Finally, it was Sang Hui who clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. 

“Alright! Two people will stay and keep watch. The rest of you can head back. We’ve gathered enough wood for today. Tomorrow, those who aren’t hunting or gathering should wake up early to dig clay, shape the pottery, and fire the kiln!” 

Wen Ze and the others responded loudly, “Got it!!” 

Zhuo Mu, who had been leading the hunt, returned by noon and was now at the kiln. 

As the crowd scattered, the beastmen changed into their beast forms, carrying their partners and families as they made their way home. 

Zhuo Mu, in his pure white giant python form, naturally carried Wen Ze on his back. 

The two of them headed home together. 

As soon as they arrived, Wen Ze noticed Yin He standing by the stove, frowning as he sniffed at a bowl of milk. 

“What’s wrong?” Wen Ze walked over, sensing something wasn’t right. 

Yin He looked up. “Brother, is this what you meant by yogurt? Something doesn’t seem right.” 

Wen Ze looked down and saw that while the milk had thickened, it had turned into lumps, like tofu pudding, with a strange color and cloudy, foul-smelling liquid. 

“…Well, that’s a failure,” Wen Ze sighed. “This isn’t what I was trying to make. Let’s pour it out, and I’ll figure out what went wrong.” 

Zhuo Mu, standing next to him, said, “It doesn’t look too bad. Maybe I should just eat it.” 

“No, no, we can get fresh milk every day. I don’t want you to upset your stomach.” 

Reluctantly, Wen Ze poured the spoiled milk away. 

As they ate, he kept thinking about where the mistake had happened. 

Was it because the milk had been boiled first? Or maybe the fermentation temperature was off? Or was it the bacteria in the air? 

If it was one of the first two, he could adjust it. But if it was the bacteria, there wasn’t much he could do. 

Making yogurt shouldn’t be that difficult, otherwise China wouldn’t have such a long history of eating it. 

Zhuo Mu quietly observed Wen Ze’s troubled expression. 

After the meal, Yin He went to milk the cows and feed them. 

Zhuo Mu took over washing the dishes and casually asked, “Wen Ze, it’s still early. What are you planning to do next?” 

He thought that if Wen Ze said he wasn’t sure, he could suggest going for a soak in the hot springs. 

Last time, Wen Ze really enjoyed it and even mentioned wanting to go again. 

But Wen Ze, the ever-diligent half-beastman, didn’t even consider relaxing. Instead, he listed off a bunch of tasks: 

“I’m going to check on the tomatoes in the fields, then take a look around the pond to see how the lotus roots and tree bark are doing. Oh, and we still need to process the wool from the two fluffy beasts you hunted earlier.” 

Zhuo Mu sighed helplessly. “We’ve been working all day, and we have to get up early tomorrow. Let’s at least skip the wool processing for now.” 

Wen Ze sensed something in his tone and looked over with his dark, clear eyes. “Hmm?” 

Zhuo Mu shrugged. “How about we go to the hot springs?” 

Wen Ze’s eyes lit up—he was clearly interested. 

But he shook his head. “Going there and back, plus soaking, will take quite a bit of time. Let’s skip it for today and go after the pottery is fired.” Otherwise, he’d keep thinking about it and wouldn’t be able to relax properly. 

Zhuo Mu nodded and then asked, “The nuts sent by the Snow Sea Tribe are still in the cave. Should we eat them?” 

“That sounds good!” Wen Ze smiled. “We just sun-dried some salt and picked some yellow fruits. I can make sweet, salty, and plain pine nuts!” 

Seeing the smile return to Wen Ze’s face, Zhuo Mu finally relaxed. 

“Do you need me to do anything?” 

“Hmm… Can you get me some river sand? The fine, yellow kind.” 

“Okay, I’ll go now.” 

Wen Ze got up. “Then I won’t rush to the fields just yet. I’ll wait for the pine nuts to be ready, grab a handful, and eat them on the way! Haha, just thinking about it sounds nice!” 

Zhuo Mu’s narrow eyes curved slightly. “Alright.” 

Just then, Yin He came back carrying a bucket of milk. The moment he heard food was being made; he got excited. 

“Brother, should I help carry the pine nuts over?” 

“Sure! Bring the walnuts over too while you’re at it. Let’s smash some open to eat!”

What Wenze didn’t expect was— 

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