Cultivating Medicinal Herbs, Breeding Millet Seeds, Raising Wild Beasts

The next day.

"Pack up and let's go. As long as we're alive, there's hope."

At the water's edge, Huo Tang gently patted Shi Fu.

Shi Fu's contribution was indispensable in helping these hundreds of people survive.

"Sigh..."

Gazing at the water for a long time, Shi Fu sighed and turned to walk towards the settlement.

The gnashing teeth of revenge had long since gone numb, replaced only by pain. Even if he wanted revenge, he didn't have the strength.

He didn't even know the origin of his enemy.

As for that mysterious fleet, Huo Tang wasn't too worried about it now.

Ships needed water, and it was clear the flood had provided the fleet with the convenience to sweep through the tribes.

Now that the mountain torrents had stopped, they had probably already 'returned with full loads.'

Blazing Flame Tribe.

Ancestral Temple.

After Huo Tang went out, the tribe's elders habitually came to the Ancestral Temple to discuss matters, gathering around the fire pit.

"The chief has been out for so long without sending back any news. I wonder how he's doing."

Huo Yu poked at the flickering bonfire with a wooden stick, his face filled with worry.

In the past, the tribe's range of activity was only a hundred li. Even hunting trips took only a day or two.

Now, in just a few months, tribe members had gone out repeatedly, traveling so far without a single word, how could they not worry?

After a moment of thought, Huo Yun, who was beside him, took out the animal skin bag he carried.

From one of the bags, he took out a handful of tender medicinal herbs and handed them out to everyone.

"These are common medicinal herbs collected by our tribesmen when they go out. The flood lasted too long, and only scattered medicinal herbs are growing in the mountains now, and their growth is not very good."

Huo Xian carefully examined these commonly used medicinal herbs. He found that the seedlings were small and the branches and leaves were weak, a significant difference from the same period in previous years.

Before Huo Xian could speak, Huo Yun took out two more witch medicines from another bag. They had already rotted and were oozing juice.

These were herbs that had reached their maturity cycle and could be used in medicine.

One was bleeding-stopping grass, primarily using its leaves.

The other was rock sand ginseng, using its roots in medicine.

Both had already rotted.

The prolonged flood had now shown its impact on the medicinal herbs.

Not only these medicinal herbs, but some of the resources previously retrieved from various tribes had grown mold due to dampness.

"The harvest of witch medicine won't be very good this year. We'll have to use the reserves sparingly."

The Blazing Flame Tribe had continuously collected witch medicine over the years, but only in the nearby forests.

The amount collected also depended on luck; sometimes more, sometimes less.

While it was true that a tribe relied on the mountains for sustenance, when the things growing in the nearby mountains were no longer enough, the best method was to master cultivation techniques and plant whatever was needed.

They were all common, frequently used medicinal herbs with one to two years of cultivation. There was no need to worry about the efficacy of self-cultivated herbs.

As for those precious treasures that took hundreds of years to grow, they would worry about them when they found them.

"Uncle, I think we should cultivate these common witch medicines ourselves."

Shen Can voiced his idea. The tribesmen just lacked the concept and needed his guidance.

"I agree with A-Can's suggestion."

Huo Xian nodded in agreement. Unlike before, the tribe's demand for medicinal herbs had greatly increased. Relying solely on foraging might not be enough to meet the demand.

The tribe had cultivated medicinal herbs before, but it was not on a large scale. It required a significant investment of manpower and resources.

The growth environment for medicinal herbs was different from that of humans. Humans could adapt, but each medicinal herb had its own characteristics.

Some preferred shade, some preferred sun, some needed the fertilizer from specific wild beasts, and so on.

In the past, they only focused on the most basic necessities, and there was no energy to manage medicinal herbs.

"Then let's start by cultivating the most commonly used medicinal herbs," Huo Xian said. "I will take charge of this matter."

Regarding the habits of medicinal herbs, Huo Xian felt that few people in the entire tribe could match him.

Seeing that the elders who had finished discussing matters were about to leave, Shen Can quickly spoke up.

"Wait."

Since they were discussing the cultivation of witch medicine, they shouldn't neglect food either.

The tribe's farming methods were slightly better than slash-and-burn, but they were still crude. They dug pits and buried soil, with no research into pest control.

"The yield of our staple crops isn't high, and it's also related to our planting habits.

I noticed the weeds in the fields were growing better than the millet seedlings before.

Some of them even had small insects. This kind of rough, free-range farming won't work; we need intensive cultivation."

Shen Can felt a bit helpless, remembering how Auntie Shen, a tall woman from the tribe, used her fingers, as thick as small radishes, to pick up insects and accidentally crush the millet seedlings.

Her palms, as large as cattail fans, weren't exactly suited for delicate work.

Everyone was accustomed to this rough planting method and had no concept of soil clumping or the accumulation of small stones.

Shen Can didn't know much himself, but he at least understood that insects needed to be caught and that weeds shouldn't compete with millet seedlings for sunlight, water, and nutrients.

As for cultivating better millet seeds, looking at the tribe's current conditions, it was best to put that aside for now.

First, they needed to establish the practices of intensive cultivation and pest control.

"A'Can, if you have ideas, you'll need to set up the framework. We elders are old and only act according to past experience; sometimes, we end up being a hindrance."

Huo Yun spoke. Many people in the tribe were involved in farming, but they had long been accustomed to the inherited farming methods.

Change required a leader.

Shen Can was the most suitable.

Several Clan Elders nodded. Only Huo Shan's eyes were clear as he stared blankly at the bubbling, steaming clay pot.

"Alright," Shen Can agreed with a nod.

"Uncle Huo Shan, select twenty people from the hunting team for me. They need to be agile and good at running."

"Also, pull out all the tribesmen who have previously raised wild beasts."

"Now that the tribe's activity range has expanded, shouting is no longer effective for communication. Let's see if we can use people to replace it for now."

"The hunting team should first capture some Mountain-Cleaving Kui to tame as mounts, and then capture some birds to try and cultivate, to see if they can be used to transmit messages."

Shen Can was confident about taming Mountain-Cleaving Kui. The Shanghuang Tribe had ridden one over before. If other tribes could tame them successfully, it meant wild beasts could be tamed.

Besides, he knew how to use medicine.

No matter how ferocious the wild beasts' habits were, increasing the dosage of the medicine would work.

Wild beasts might not be smart, but they understood the difference between pain and food, right?

The key to taming was whether they could be domesticated. Stubborn breeds that couldn't be domesticated would be killed and eaten.

The tribal council today was addressing new issues that arose after the tribe's reforms.

When new problems are encountered, they should be solved. Only when reforms are in motion can problems be continuously discovered.

The next day.

Huo Shan, along with over a dozen tribesmen, left the tribe, carrying Mafeisan. Their mission was to find Mountain-Cleaving Kui and bird nests.

Concurrently, within the tribe, a training ground was being cleared in the northwest corner of the settlement.

Tribesmen who had prior experience raising wild beasts within the tribe were busy setting up the training ground.

Huo Xian also began his busy work, gathering all the tribesmen with experience in collecting medicinal herbs. They recounted their experiences as if giving statements.

The plan was to compile the experiences of all herb collectors, remove the verbose and useless parts, and create an experience book detailing the growth environments and habits of commonly used medicinal herbs.

Then, based on this experience book, a medicinal herb cultivation garden would be opened on Tribe Mountain, adapted to local conditions.

In the fields outside the city, many figures were busy pulling weeds.

A few days later, in the Ancestral Temple.

Shen Can was preparing witch medicine.

Under the stone pestle, dried witch medicine was being ground into powder.

This was 'pesticide,' purely extracted from herbs, specifically for killing insects.

Shen Can mixed the powder with water, then flicked his hand, and the splashing water formed a mist that fell.

"Good, witchcraft is indeed useful."

A month and a half later.

In the eastern mountains of the tribe, a winding procession moved forward, carrying large bags and packages.

"We're almost at Tribe Mountain, it's just ahead."

Huo Tang walked at the front, pointing towards the gently sloping Tribe Mountain, several miles long, surrounded by small isolated mountains in the distance.

Da da da!

At this moment, chaotic sounds echoed from behind the small mountain blocking their path.

Before anyone could react, four Mountain-Cleaving Kui appeared, letting out low growls.

"Patriarch, you're back."

Huo Shan, leading the group and riding a Mountain-Cleaving Kui, looked at the returning Huo Tang and his party with great joy.

Huo Tang and the remaining tribespeople he brought back looked towards the Mountain-Cleaving Kui.

What in the world is going on?

"A'Shan, what is this?" Huo Bai rushed forward from the back of the group, his eyes practically glued to the Mountain-Cleaving Kui.

Huo Shan chuckled, "I don't know either. The witch gave me witch medicine and a big club, and these Mountain-Cleaving Kui became very obedient not long after we caught them."

As he spoke, he patted the head of the Mountain-Cleaving Kui beneath him.

The Mountain-Cleaving Kui let out a low whimper.

Upon hearing it was the witch's doing, the Blazing Flame tribespeople looked understanding, as if it were perfectly normal.

"I knew we should have asked the witch to give one to us before we went out. You got lucky."

The dispirited survivors from each tribe, who had been in a somber mood the entire journey, now showed expressions of surprise and awe, sizing up the powerfully built Mountain-Cleaving Kui.

"Let's go, back to the tribe."

The group continued forward. After rounding a solitary mountain that blocked their path, the mountain ranges on both sides came into view.

There were watchtowers on the mountaintops.

Along the mountain slopes and the gentler terrain between them, all the land had been cleared and cultivated.

Figures could be seen bent over, working the fields.

As far as the eye could see, the farmlands stretched all the way to a tall city in the distance.

The fields were lush and green, with young millet swaying vibrantly.

Shi Fu slowly retracted his gaze and looked at Huo Tang, "Tribe Leader, didn't you say the Blazing Flame was a small tribe?"

"Ah (ā)… ah (à), yes, we did." Huo Tang also withdrew his gaze, instinctively replying.