This was the only chance the outlying tribes had to break the curse, and she couldn't let it slip away easily. Just as Tree Fruit was about to rush over to remind Cliff Rain to think about the divine tree's prophecy, Cliff Rain spoke up before she could, "Come and take a look."
After saying that, Ya Yu asked the tribal chiefs and priests to step back, giving the people of the Wood Tribe enough space, and try to lift the curse on Wolf Cliff.
Tree Fruit breathed a sigh of relief, Rabbit Wind and Cat Grass didn't feel much, but Deer Water also breathed a sigh of relief.
He really wanted to see the symptoms recorded on the wooden tablet with his own eyes, and of course, it would be even better if he could cure them.
"Ya Yu, what are they doing?"
"The time for the fire ritual is approaching, why are you telling us to step back?"
"Yes, if we miss the time, we'll have to wait again."
"We're in a hurry to exchange for salt stones. Some of the orcs in the tribe are already exhausted and will die if they don't eat the salt stones soon. We don't have time to waste here."
Ya Yu didn't answer their questions, but simply stood in front of them with her body, repeatedly muttering, "Wait a little longer, wait a little longer."
Ya Yu didn't send any of the Ya tribe's orcs to stop them; he was too frail to hold them off anyway. However, the tribal chiefs and priests ultimately didn't actually rush out, nor did they leave. They shook their heads and sighed, choosing to stay and see what was going on.
When Lu Shui and his companions reappeared, the priests and chieftains of the other tribes all turned their attention to them. Tu Feng and Mao Cao remained calm, while Lu Shui, under the gaze of everyone, stiffly prepared to examine the extremely weak chieftain of the Cliff Tribe.
According to the medical team's rules, he needed to wash his hands with warm water before the examination, but there wasn't even cold water here, let alone warm water. He didn't dare to mention it, so he took out the animal skin handkerchief he carried with him, wiped his hands clean, folded it and put it aside before starting to pry open the mouth of the person lying down to examine him.
Weak and feeble, pale complexion, bleeding gums, missing teeth, bruises on the body...
Lu Shui picked up a fur handkerchief from the side and wiped his hands, confirming the illness: it was a disease caused by not eating vegetables and fruits for a long time.
In other words, the chieftain of the Cliff Tribe was not cursed, but rather suffered from scurvy.
A note from the author:
In reality, scurvy diagnosis is not so perfunctory.
Chapter 76
treat
Each member of the Mu tribe's medical team carries a small animal skin satchel containing prepared, commonly used herbs, mostly for stopping bleeding.
Since joining the medical team, Lu Shui has never taken off this small shoulder bag.
However, his small satchel also contained a type of dried fruit called "wild prickly pear".
Every day, the medical team taught Lu Shui about various illnesses and herbs. Because of this, Lu Shui learned a lot, and it was the first time he had ever learned that he could get sick even if he didn't eat fruits and wild vegetables.
The wooden board depicted fruits rich in vitamin C that could cure the ailment, including oranges from which they had made jam.
Lu Shui didn't know what the strange and hard-to-pronounce name "Vitamin C" actually meant, and Captain Tu Dong only told them that this was the main reason why these fruits could treat the ailment.
Among these fruits, there was one small one covered in thorns. This fruit contained many substances that could cure scurvy, and its strange appearance left a deep impression on Lu Shui.
Later, when collecting the food, Lu Shui deliberately looked for it and actually found it.
When the tribe members found new herbs or edible fruits, they could receive candy as a reward from the priest. Deer Water, finding wild prickly pears, obtained a whole bag of candy. The fish-skin bag was stuffed full, and Deer Water ate the candy throughout the entire winter.
Wild prickly pear, the first fruit that Lu Shui found that could cure diseases, was dried by him and some was put in the animal skin bag he carried every day.
Lu Shui took out some dried wild prickly pear fruit, wondering if it was still as effective after all this time. Besides, there was nowhere to find fresh fruit now; it wasn't ripe yet.
"Cliff Tribe Priest, I need hot water."
Boiling would yield better results, but we don't have earthenware pots here, and we don't know how long it would take to boil in a stone bowl.
Ya Yu thought for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "Is it heated by fire?"
Lu Shui subconsciously explained, "Fire burns too slowly, use stones."
Because Lu Shui's attention was focused on Lang Ya, he didn't see Ya Yu's bewildered expression. Tu Feng noticed Ya Yu's expression and said to her, "Have your tribe fill stone bowls with water and bring them over, and also get some fire."
Ya Yu nodded repeatedly, then called over two orcs and told him to do as Tu Feng said.
"Captain, when you throw the stones later, throw these dried fruits in too." Lu Shui took out a handful of dried fruits and handed them to Tu Feng.
"OK."
After the orcs of the Cliff Tribe had fetched water and fire, Rabbit Wind surveyed his surroundings and headed straight for the area with rocks.
He picked up a suitable stone, weighed it in his hand, and handed it to another cliff tribe orc, saying, "Wash these stones clean."
The orc from the Cliff Tribe didn't immediately accept the stone, turning to glance at their priest. Cliff Rain nodded slightly, indicating that he should do as the other party said. The orc refrained from asking further questions, curiously taking the stone to wash it.
Rabbit Wind wasn't idle. Too lazy to find more branches to start a fire, he simply pulled some out from under Wolf Cliff. Amidst the astonished gazes of the many tribal chiefs and priests, he folded them into the shape of a small fire.
When the orc who washed the stones returned, a fire had already been lit at Rabbit Wind's feet, and there was also a stone bowl filled with water.
"They're clean." The Cliff Tribe handed the wet stones to Rabbit Wind. Rabbit Wind picked up the stones and looked at them; they were quite clean. Then he threw them all into the separated fire pit.
The beastmen present were completely bewildered by this series of actions. They looked at each other and then stared at Tu Feng.
They had absolutely no idea what this high-level orc would do next.
Tu Feng completely ignored the staring gaze fixed on him, squatting on the ground and poking at the stones with a twig to ensure they were heated evenly, without even lifting his head.
Once the stones were almost heated, Tu Feng put the dried fruit given to him by Lu Shui into the stone bowl, and then used a twig to pick up the heated stones and drop them into the stone bowl.
"Sizzle—"
The hot stones made a piercing sound when they met the cold water. As more and more hot stones were added, the water temperature gradually rose and soon made a "glug-glug" sound.
The orcs, who had been waiting for Rabbit Wind's move, were puzzled by his continued burning of stones but didn't pay much attention. However, before they knew it, Rabbit Wind made another move they couldn't understand.
The group stared at the stone bowl. In winter, they used the stone bowl to melt snow or ice into water. They knew that it would take a lot of time to make the water in the stone bowl make that sound.
It's absolutely impossible for it to be that fast.
What did the other party do? They heated the stone, then threw it into the water, and the water quickly heated up.
Is this even possible?
Ignoring the doubts and questions in the eyes of the clan leaders and priests, Tu Feng quickly gathered some leaves and placed them around the stone bowl before handing it to Lu Shui. "There's no spoon here, how are you going to feed him?"
"Huh? A spoon? I have a spoon!" Catgrass, who had been staring intently at the orcs around him with a stern face, suddenly turned around. He pulled out a strangely shaped piece of wood from his pocket, his eyes filled with reluctance. "I made this myself, and Deer Frost even praised me for it."
Rabbit Wind took the strange piece of wood and examined it closely. He could vaguely make out the shape of a spoon. Although the handle was crooked and twisted, as if a dog had chewed it, it did not prevent it from being used.
"Lu Shuang even said the meat soup made by Tuanzi was delicious, and you actually believed him when he said your spoon was beautifully made?"
The thought of Tuanzi's dark meat soup made all three of them feel a strange bitterness in their mouths and they shivered for no reason. Catgrass stammered, "Anyway, Lu Shuang said that mine looked good."
Rabbit Wind stopped teasing him and kept saying, "Beautiful, beautiful."
After this incident, Lu Shui and Mao Cao relaxed considerably. Mao Cao helped Lu Shui lift Lang Ya up, and Lu Shui used a wooden spoon to scoop up water from the stone bowl that had been soaking wild prickly pears, gently blew on it to cool it down, and then brought it to Lang Ya's lips.
Lu Shui knew the person was still conscious, but this illness would make them weak. He said softly, "Open your mouth and drink, it might help."
Wolf Cliff knows everything; Cliff Rain had probably told him everything when she stood in front of him earlier.
Rather than saying that Cliff Rain ultimately chose to let Deer Water try, it would be more accurate to say that Wolf Cliff wanted to give it a shot.
Cliff Rain sensed Wolf Cliff's intention; he knew that the Fire Sacrifice could no longer be performed normally.
As Langya moved his lips, Lushui pushed the wooden spoon forward again, and Langya drank a spoonful of wild prickly pear juice.
And so it went, until Langya had unknowingly drunk the whole bowl of wild prickly pear juice.
Lu Shui had tried wild prickly pear soaked in water before, but the taste wasn't very good. It was so sour that he closed his eyes. He still preferred to drink jam soaked in water.
...
Shen Yi had already led the orcs back to Wushan and, as Shen Nong had instructed, had forged a considerable number of iron knives and scissors. The first batch of iron ore slag, iron knives, and scissors were delivered by the Feather Tribe orcs, along with a combat sword.
Looking at the smooth, sharp blade of the sword, Shen Nong couldn't help but marvel at how well the spiritual core energy had been spent; it was practically a free method for forging cold weapons.
However, the iron sword was quite heavy, and he didn't need any weapons anyway; even if he did use one, Shen Nong preferred to use a dagger.
Orcs have even less need for weapons; they fight in human form and can't hold weapons. A troop of ballistae in the tribe is enough for ranged attacks, but for close combat, they still have to rely on orcs in human form. It's far more practical to find a way to increase the orcs' level than to mass-produce cold weapons.
So Shen Nong casually tossed the first sword of the Beast World into the cave.
As the saying goes, if you want to get rich, build roads first.
However, building roads is not something that can be done overnight. In addition, there are many mountains in the Beast World, and even muddy roads made by footsteps are rare, making it even more difficult to build roads.
The only road Shen Nong can build now is a cement road connecting the surrounding tribes.
This road isn't something Shen Nong can just build on a whim. Otherwise, if the Mu tribe had a cement road leading directly to the entrances of those tribes, it would scare them to death.
He specifically asked Maoyun to ask the priests of various tribes. According to Maoyun, apart from the seven priests who had lived in their tribe, the priests of the other tribes all cried and said no.
Shen Nong thought about it, tears welling up in his eyes with fear, yet he had to muster the courage to refuse. He couldn't bear to have anyone ask again, so he decided, "Fine, if they don't want it fixed, then it's fine."
With an extra manpower, Shen Nong started thinking about building a house again.
The outer walls of the tribe have been built, and the brick-making team is still producing bricks every day, resulting in a considerable pile. Since there's no steel reinforcement, the houses can't be directly poured with cement. Building with bricks and then reinforcing them with cement is possible, and it's much sturdier than a mud house.
It's quite difficult for the tribe's orcs to get water now; they have to fetch water from the stream. It would be a good opportunity to dig some wells and build some irrigation canals.
Whether it's houses, wells, or irrigation ditches, bricks are needed, so the brick-making team started working day and night again.
Most of the seven orc tribes that had agreed to send people to work in the Wood Tribe were also helping to make mud bricks in the brick-making team.
As the sun reached its zenith, four food-making teams from various groups of the Wood Tribe arrived, each carrying two large wooden barrels in pairs. "Time to eat!"
Because the brick-making team had more members, they had two more wooden barrels than the other teams.
Songshan was the first to rush over, grab a bowl, and scoop up some meat. He craned his neck, staring at the wooden bucket, and asked, "What are we having for dinner today?"
The food preparation team members used wooden spoons to serve meat to Songshan, "simmering meat chunks and seaweed and pork rib soup."
As he spoke, two large spoonfuls of seaweed and pork rib soup were poured into Songshan's large bowl, and a bowl of braised meat was also stuffed into his other hand. He walked to the shade of a tree with a bowl in each hand. The braised meat was made by wrapping it in leaves and simmering it in the soil over a fire. Songshan only learned about this way of eating after he came to the Mu tribe.
He loved braised meat; it made the meat incredibly tender. The people of the Wood Tribe didn't know what they added to the meat, but one bite was so delicious they almost wanted to swallow their tongues.
Needless to say, the kelp and pork rib soup was so delicious that Songshan never knew bones could taste so good.
And this seaweed, which I'd never tried before, tasted even better with the meat broth than without it. Matsuyama always drinks at least three large bowls of it.
More and more orcs gradually appeared around him, but Songshan only focused on eating.
Slurp, slurp.
Kelp and pork rib soup is so delicious!
He's going to drink four big bowls today, no, five big bowls!