Along the way, Shen Nong would subconsciously ask Tu Dong about some plants she had never seen before, and Tu Dong could answer most of them.
They can even describe some of the reactions that occur after eating them.
Shen Nong not only recognized many plants she had never seen before, but also gained a great deal of knowledge about herbs.
I don't know if it's because of the environment, but there are the most hemostatic and analgesic herbs here.
Every time Tu Dong collects herbs, he looks like he wants to watch but doesn't dare to.
Shen Nong knew she wanted to learn, but identifying herbs and treating illnesses were things that couldn't be learned simply by wanting to learn.
At the very least, one should be able to clearly remember the medicinal properties of each herb, as well as the contraindications between herbs.
Shen Nong deliberately tested him and discovered that Tu Dong had a very good memory.
The other party also had a strong interest in herbs, and Shen Nong was willing to cultivate that interest.
However, he only learned about herbs as plants and did not conduct in-depth research for medical purposes.
He knew the most basic things; anything deeper wouldn't work.
So I spent some infrastructure points to redeem a book of Chinese herbal medicine from the system, and it was even an illustrated version.
First, lay a solid foundation, then add some prescriptions and case studies.
The book cannot be taken away, and Tu Dong is illiterate.
Shen Nong asked Tu Dong to come to the cave every day to identify three kinds of herbs. Tu Dong would first memorize their appearance, and then Shen Nong would explain the effects of these herbs to Tu Dong.
If it were a rabbit, it would learn to read even faster.
Although Shen Nong thought this way, he did not put learning to read on his agenda.
These days, even food and drink are a problem; who has the time to learn to write?
It was no secret in the Mu tribe that Tu Dong was learning to recognize the appearance of various grasses from the priest, but in their hearts, they didn't think of it as recognizing grasses, but rather as recognizing the divine book.
They didn't actually understand what the "book" meant; they just remembered that the priest had told Tu Dong to look at the "book."
Therefore, Tu Dong's status in the Wood Tribe was higher than before, and he was the highest-ranking person in the Wood Tribe besides the priests and the hunting team.
Some even say that Tu Dong will be the next priest.
Tu Dong had no idea how the other people in the tribe viewed her; all she knew was that she had to memorize the appearance, effects, and uses of the herbs taught by the priest every day.
This was something she had only dared to dream about before, not even dare to hope for.
No one knows how happy Tu Dong was when the priest told her she could learn about herbs and their healing properties from him.
She squatted in the sun and used a small twig to draw the shapes of the herbs she had just learned about on the ground.
He was muttering, "Big chicken, stop the bleeding, remove the bed poison."
Shen Nong was asking the system to print out pictures of sores for Tu Dong to see when he heard Tu Dong mispronounce half of the seven words. He corrected him, saying, "Da Ji, Qu Chuang Du."
Tu Dong quickly repeated it several times to make sure he read it correctly.
The system has recently been working part-time as a printer, and the infrastructure points Shen Nong gave it weren't even enough to break even, so it's been harboring resentment for a while.
In retaliation, it always picks the most disgusting kind of scar whenever it looks for pictures of wounds.
Shen Nong was indeed disgusted the first time he was caught off guard, but from the second time onwards he never looked at anything on paper again and just gave it directly to Tu Dong.
The system knew Shen Nong wouldn't fall for it, but it persisted every time.
What if Shen Nong accidentally sees it one day?
Shen Nong's battle of wits with the system was tough on Tu Dong, who couldn't eat meat several times after looking at the pictures.
When Catgrass and the others came to find Shen Nong with a bunch of berries in their large leaves, Rabbit Winter had just finished looking at the pictures of Sores.
A dense patch of things, big and small, made her think that she wouldn't need to eat meat tonight.
"Priest! These are the fruits we found for you, they're delicious." Catgrass handed the large leaves to Shen Nong, looking at him expectantly, hoping he would accept them.
Shen Nong took the fruit and smiled slightly, "Bring your empty bowls to me when you're eating barbecue."
Catgrass and the others nodded their little heads and ran off happily.
Shen Nong washed a fruit and put it in her mouth. It tasted a bit sour and astringent. However, the fruity aroma was very strong, so it was not bad.
"Can you still eat meat tonight? If not, take some fruit home." Shen Nong could tell from Tu Dong's expression that the system was up to no good, so she sent another disgusting picture.
He then took out a bamboo tube from the cave, which contained sugar water.
Whenever Tu Dong felt nauseous and couldn't eat, Shen Nong would give her a can to take home and drink. She was to bring it back the next day after she finished it, and he would continue to pack more for her.
This can be considered a way to make up for the winter.
Rabbit Winter loved the syrup; it was sweeter than the best berries she had ever eaten. She happily took the bamboo tube, instantly banishing the disgusting image from her mind, her thoughts filled only with the sweet taste.
"Thank you, priest! I can still see!"
——
While eating barbecue, Shen Nong used a bamboo tube to pour sugar water into the bowls of Maocao and the others.
The little ones' eyes shone brightly from drinking, brighter than the stars in the sky.
Catgrass even forgot its sadness at not being able to eat red berries; all it felt was the syrup.
"Priest, what kind of water is this? It's so delicious!" Catgrass sipped the sugar water slowly, reluctant to drink too much at once.
Shen Nong didn't know how to explain the white sugar for a moment, and only said that she would tell them later.
He remembered that the system also sold seeds, so he could plant some sugarcane, sugar beets, etc., and make sugar to sell.
However, the tribe's salt is running out, and his infrastructure points are almost used up. He needs to send Hu Xiao and the others to the Salt Department to exchange for more salt.
Tiger Roar and his group started training on their own a month ago, going to the grasslands to fight giant beasts every day.
He's usually very busy and hasn't been able to visit.
However, the system indicated that there were already two level 7 orc warriors, but this time the system did not allocate the base points to Shen Nong.
Shen Nong wasn't in a hurry anyway, so posting them all at once was the same.
I just don't know which two people were promoted to level seven.
Shen Nong didn't have enough infrastructure points to treat herself to special meals with the system, so she always ate with the tribe.
But today he felt something was off. In the past, the people in the tribe were always happy when they ate meat, which meant they wouldn't go hungry.
But today, apart from a few cats and cats who received the sugar water, most people had a gloomy face.
What happened in the tribe?
Catgrass and the others didn't leave; they all gathered around Shen Nong. Shen Nong quietly asked Catgrass, who was closest to her.
Catgrass swallowed the sugar water in his mouth, staring at the last mouthful in the bowl and drooling. "It's probably because the beast tide is coming. Every year when the beast tide comes, the adults do this."
A beast tide?
Shen Nong thought it must be the Great Migration of animals, rushing to warmer places to survive before the weather gets completely cold.
He asked, "What will happen when the beast tide comes?"
After thinking for a moment, Catgrass replied truthfully, "The hunting team will go out hunting, and the meat they hunt will be larger than usual. They will then save it for winter."
Isn't that just storing food? But if that's all there is to it, why does the Wood Tribe look like this, even appearing somewhat fearful?
"However, there are always far fewer people when the hunting party returns."
Catgrass held the empty bowl, licked the bottom, and gave up when it found no sweetness. "The old man who lived with us in the big cave said that Rabbit Flower and I used to have parents. But they couldn't come back from the beast tide."
He reluctantly put down the bowl and looked at the night sky. "Hushan's parents went to the beast tide last autumn and never came back. Hushan remembers what they look like, so the Beast God will let Hushan's parents meet with him while he is sleeping."
“But I don’t remember what they look like at all. I’ve never seen them while I’m asleep.”
Shen Nong understood; many people from the Wood Tribe died every year during the beast tides.
No wonder the population here is so small; there are more elderly people and orphans than young adults.
The quest previously released by the system, which required five level-seven orc warriors, is likely related to this beast tide.
——
The day of the beast tide was approaching, and the atmosphere in the tribe grew increasingly tense. Shen Nong had originally planned to go find Hu Xiao and the others to see how their training was going.
If that doesn't work, we'll have to find another way to store food for winter and abandon the beast tide.
But Hu Xiao and his group returned even faster.
They were being stopped at the gate by the guards and not allowed to enter. Tiger Roar was yelling at the top of his lungs, "I am Tiger Roar! Open your eyes and look! Why won't you let me in!"
The guard stared at Hu Xiao for a moment, then pointed his stone gun at him warily. "If you're Hu Xiao, then I'm Hu Ya! I'm warning you, don't come any closer to the Wood Tribe! Our priests are very powerful!"
Tiger Roar couldn't understand why the tribe didn't recognize him after he hadn't returned for a while.
Upon hearing the mention of a priest, he quickly said, "Then go and call the priest; he'll definitely recognize us!"
When Shen Nong arrived, she saw ten strong men blocking the entrance to the tribe.
They were all exceptionally tall, with well-developed and firm muscles, exuding a powerful aura.
One of them was particularly tall, I'd estimate he was about 1.9 meters, and his hair was very neatly styled and tied with straw rope.
His eyes were deep and bright, his nose was high and straight, and his facial features were well-defined.
His tanned skin glistened with tiny beads of sweat under the sun; his broad shoulders and powerful waist exuded strength and aggression—a perfectly proportioned inverted triangle physique.
Shen Nong, a fan of good looks, was immediately drawn to the other person, who in turn looked at her, his dark eyes rippling like water, exceptionally vivid.
It was as if the big dog, which had been away from home for a long time, had finally seen its owner and couldn't wait to rush into its owner's arms and cuddle up.
That look... a choice?
Shen Nong looked at the others in disbelief, wanting to confirm.
Ze looked dejected when Shen Nong looked away. If he really had a tail, it would be drooping at this moment.
"Priest!" Tiger Roar waved his hands frantically, "It's me! Tiger Roar!"
Shen Nong is now certain that these muscular men are indeed the ten who left the tribe a month ago.
The reason why all ten of them were described as strong men was because, if Shen Nong didn't look closely, she couldn't tell at all that the four of them, including Mao Yun, were any different in build from the other men.
This change is too drastic.