Bronze Age

The next few days passed.

Yang Yu personally instructed the tribespeople to dig a charcoal pit and build a pit furnace outside Tribal Camp.

The charcoal pit was mainly used for burning wood into charcoal.

The pit furnace, meanwhile, was used to smelt ore into copper.

Charcoal played a crucial role in smelting ore into copper. Without charcoal, the copper produced would not be particularly pure.

After the charcoal pit and pit furnace were completed, Yang Yu mobilized the second group of Hunting Team warriors. They dragged a sled toward the cave in the mountain where the Copper Ore was located to mine it.

The first group of Hunting Team warriors, led by Yang Feng, began burning charcoal outside Tribal Camp.

"Feng, from now on, lead five warriors and help the workshop establish a Blacksmith Workshop."

Yang Yu looked at Yang Feng, who was about to enter old age. While Yang Feng was still young and strong, he wanted him to make the most of his remaining strength.

"Blacksmith Workshop?"

Yang Feng looked at his clan leader in surprise. "Clan leader, spring has already arrived. Our clan needs to farm..."

"It's fine."

"Leave the farming to the women of the tribe."

"You men can handle the physically demanding work."

Yang Yu said solemnly, "The Blacksmith Workshop is the key to taking the tribe another step forward. It cannot be delayed."

"Understood."

Looking at the tribe bustling with activity, Yang Yu felt a pang of sympathy deep in his eyes, though he concealed it well.

Let me work a little harder and lessen the burden on our descendants.

"Lie," Yang Yu said. "Lead the remaining Hunting Team warriors in hunting. Make sure the tribespeople do not have to work on empty stomachs during this period."

"Understood." After receiving the clan leader's order, Lie immediately geared up and led the Hunting Team warriors into the forest to hunt.

"Clan leader."

Just then,

an elder of the tribe came over, leaning on a cane.

"Elder, what brings you here?" Yang Yu hurried over to the old man and asked.

"Clan leader, although we are old, we are still members of the tribe. We cannot sit idle and burden the tribe."

The elder grinned at Yang Yu.

The tribespeople were all working now, while the group of old people had nothing to do.

They felt uneasy about it as well.

The tribe needed everyone's contributions.

Hearing this, Yang Yu looked at the group of old tribespeople behind the elder. After pondering briefly, he said, "Honored elders, I understand that you do not wish to become burdens on the tribe. Then I will arrange some work for you as well."

"Then help burn charcoal!"

"Burn charcoal? We don't know how!"

When the elder heard that the clan leader was willing to give them work, he and the others could not help but sigh in relief. But when they thought about burning charcoal, they were utterly confused.

How was charcoal burned?

"When we cook with fire, the black wood that does not burn into ash is charcoal."

Yang Yu explained it to everyone one by one. "Since you do not know how, I will teach you."

Next,

Yang Yu took some short logs from the warehouse and tossed them into the charcoal pit. Then he found many dry twigs and threw them into the pit as well, before adding some kindling.

Because there were so many dry twigs, they caught fire very easily.

Once the flames grew strong, he sealed the charcoal pit.

After completing everything, he said, "Honored elders, making charcoal is this simple. Once the temperature drops tomorrow, you can take out the charcoal."

"Also, elders, can you still chop wood?"

"Large branches are very difficult to burn, so they must first be chopped into short sections. That way, the charcoal can be burned as quickly as possible."

"Hahaha!"

"Clan leader, don't underestimate me. Back in my day, I was also a warrior of the Hunting Team. Though I am old now, I can still chop wood."

Hearing this, one of the elders burst into laughter and strode toward the warehouse.

He emerged from the warehouse carrying a stone axe, then walked over to the trees cut down by the other tribe's warriors and began chopping wood.

The other elders also burst into laughter.

If they could eat, naturally they could work.

The other elderly women exchanged glances and said, "Clan leader, our strength is inferior to theirs. We cannot chop wood."

"Then you will be responsible for burning charcoal. If the charcoal is still being burned, you can go to the fields and help the women of the clan farm."

After all, they were also labor for the tribe. He simply had not thought of it before.

If they could do something to help the tribe, they should do something.

Otherwise, these old people would feel uneasy too.

The tribe nowadays was no longer a matter of each household managing its own affairs. Everyone shared the same communal meals.

"Understood."

Time slowly passed.

Under Yang Yu's leadership, the Yang Clan gradually got on the right track.

When copper tools appeared, it meant that this primitive era now possessed weapons far beyond what the era should have had. The tribespeople also gained enough strength to resist the wild beasts in the forest.

Humanity began to move onto the true right track. Under Yang Yu's leadership, it advanced toward the top of the food chain.

With the appearance of wooden wheels, wheelbarrows gradually stepped onto the stage of history.

Because of the addition of the Moon Clan, the birthrate of the Yang Clan also grew higher and higher.

Likewise, the problem of childbirth in this era soon followed.

Whether in this era or in the technologically advanced twenty-second century, giving birth was a passage through the gates of death for women.

Thus, many families faced the problem of women dying in childbirth while bearing offspring.

Yang Yu gradually began to take this issue seriously. He personally sought out older people who had experience as midwives and taught them how to train the tribe's girls to handle childbirth, as well as perform simple bandaging.

Five years later, the population of the Yang Clan had already broken into the double digits and reached the astonishing triple digits.

Many of the older Hunting Team warriors had already withdrawn from the Hunting Team, while the grown children had all joined it.

Of course, Yan had not joined the Hunting Team.

After turning sixteen, he began running all over the mountains, trying every kind of wild grass in an attempt to discover which herbs could cure illnesses for the tribe—even experimenting on himself.

"Time really passes quickly!"

Yang Yu stood beneath a banyan tree in Tribal Camp, watching the children playing in the middle of the tribe, a smile in his eyes.

Beside the banyan tree, Lin Er sat on the swing Yang Yu had made. She had acquired the mature charm of a married woman, and as she watched the children playing and laughing ahead, an uncontrollable smile spread across her face.

Children were the tribe's entire future.

"Ah~"

"Waa waa waa~"

Just then,

for some unknown reason, one of the hunting dogs raised by the tribe suddenly charged toward the playing children and attacked.

Seeing this,

Yang Yu's expression changed slightly. He immediately rushed toward the children.

Lin Er also rose from the swing.

What was going on?

Why would a perfectly good hunting dog attack the tribe's children?

After reaching them in a few steps, Yang Yu grabbed a child who was about to be bitten by the hunting dog and kicked the maddened animal.

"Awoo~"