Roast Meat, Seasonings, and Wine

Blair was soon promoted to elder because of his various inventions.

The bow and arrows he invented also quickly proved immensely useful within the Tribe.

With Richie's permission, Barlow began using the Lightning Bow to try clearing dangerous creatures from the mountains and forests for his people.

The enormous venomous spiders in particular.

Whenever Barlow acted, he could shoot a giant spider lurking in the shadows and preparing to attack people from twenty or thirty meters away with a single distant arrow.

Amid a series of crackling sounds,

the giant spiders would gradually curl up.

Then they would give off a burnt smell and collapse onto the ground.

Those seeing such a sight for the first time were utterly amazed.

Before, they had been so troubled by these terrifying spiders that they did not dare go into the mountains. But with Barlow and the Lightning Bow, everything changed.

In the eyes of the Tribe, Barlow was a natural master archer. His arrows never missed, and the Lightning Bow made him even more formidable.

Of course, this was also related to his diligent study and relentless practice.

During this time, Barlow practiced Archery day and night.

Over this period, his [Archery lv1] successfully advanced to [Archery lv2].

Though it was only one level,

it was already equivalent to the gap between a novice and a proficient practitioner among ordinary people.

"I never expected that not even birds flying in the sky could escape your arrows. It seems you must have been diligently training your Archery skills lately."

Watching Barlow skillfully shoot down a bird in flight, Blair could not help feeling inferior.

He had known Barlow for a long time and understood his character well.

Although this warrior possessed extraordinary talent in wielding weapons, he must also have put in tremendous effort practicing Archery during this period for his skill to improve so quickly.

The deep calluses worn into Barlow's hands were the best proof.

However, Barlow picked up the bird, scratched his head, and said somewhat sheepishly,

"Actually, I just wanted to use my bow and arrows to catch more food."

To him, the forest was a treasure trove of meat.

Eating was the greatest joy of Barlow's life.

That was also why he had diligently practiced using the bow and arrows during this time.

With bow and arrows, he could easily hunt those cunning prey animals without needing a [Bird-Catching Net] or [Rabbit-Catching Cage].

Whether they flew through the mountains, ran across the land, or swam in the water, he could easily harvest those prey.

Barlow practically swept across the entire island with the Lightning Bow.

During this period, the formerly fierce beasts and venomous insects in the mountains and forests would flee in panic whenever they saw humans, no longer daring to harass them.

They feared that one careless mistake would turn them into charred corpses like their companions.

Now, with Barlow's help, people no longer feared the giant spiders in the mountains and forests. The Tribe could safely go into the mountains to gather wild vegetables and medicinal plants.

During this period, [Herbalism lv1] spread rapidly.

[Herbalism lv1]: With a certain degree of insight into plants, identify, gather, and utilize all kinds of plants.

Many members of the Tribe gained the knowledge of [Herbalism lv1].

But something strange happened.

It was as though something unseen was guiding those Tribe members gathering herbs, making them consider whether these strange-tasting plants could be used for more than medicine and might have other uses in food.

Soon, someone made seasonings from certain plants.

"Spicy Garlic water can be used as a dip for meat. It's intense!"

Someone shared this.

Spicy Garlic was an herb with a pungent flavor.

Originally, some Tribe members found that mosquitoes and insects hated its smell, so smearing the pungent juice on their bodies could drive away insects and relieve itching.

No one expected someone to use this pungent plant as a seasoning.

As a result, people discovered that it truly gave them a "painful yet pleasurable" sensation when eaten. It could also remove the gamey smell from meat and make food more appetizing.

Soon, [Consumables] in the Tribe's [Tech Tree] contained more than just the medicinal [Spicy Garlic Insect Repellent].

The edible [Spicy Garlic Seasoning] also appeared.

At that point, with spicy seasonings, people also needed drinks to ease the heat.

Thus, [Fruit Wine] came into being.

[Fruit Wine] was a beverage invented by the Tribe.

Calling it an invention

was not entirely accurate.

Someone had discovered long ago that spoiled Return Fruit juice had an indescribably strange taste.

Recently, while gathering herbs in the mountains and forests, people found more wild berries.

For some unknown reason, they suddenly had the idea to pound these already spoiled wild fruits into a paste with stone mortars, then seal it together with some stream water inside clay jars.

The result was that they "accidentally" produced Fruit Wine with a unique flavor.

Some believed this Fruit Wine tasted strange and was difficult to swallow.

Others thought it had a distinctive flavor and was exhilaratingly satisfying.

After drinking it, they would even gain a pleasantly intoxicated, floating sensation.

Some people who drank Return Fruit Wine even did many foolish things, as though they had eaten brightly colored mushrooms.

Richie therefore ordered that Tribe members were forbidden from privately brewing or drinking wine during their daily work.

Only during ceremonial festivals could wine be brought out, allowing people to drink Fruit Wine.

Barlow was delighted by the Tribe's "great inventions" involving food.

He was even happier than when he had first seen Blair invent the bow and arrows.

Especially fond of strong flavors, he added Spicy Garlic to every meal and had a cup of Return Fruit Wine from time to time.

Although people sometimes disliked the strange smell coming from his mouth, he did not care in the slightest and generously shared his prey with some Tribe members.

His only regret was this.

With more seasonings and wine, there was not enough meat to eat.

After all, no matter how exquisite other things were, they were merely accompaniments to meat.

But although life was better now than before, they still could not eat meat at every meal.

Sometimes, even when they caught fish, they had to make them into salted dried fish as reserve food for the Tribe.

At that moment, someone made a suggestion:

"Barlow, if you can shoot down that strange giant one-eyed bird, everyone can have a good feast."

It was a huge bird beast covered in green feathers that often circled above the coast.

It had a huge green beak and appeared to have been born with only one eye. Its appearance was extremely bizarre, and unlike other seagulls, it was not foolish enough to land on the beach easily just because it was given a few fish.

Cunning and deceitful were its defining traits.

The One-Eyed Green Bird would sometimes perch in the Return Fruit grove by the sea, secretly pluck the Return Fruits bestowed upon the Tribe by the gods, and then fly away.

As it departed, the One-Eyed Green Bird would not forget to circle above people's heads and scatter yellowish-brown droppings.

That huge strange bird had long made people grit their teeth in hatred.

Yet they had no way to deal with its agility and cunning.

If they could shoot it down, they could have a fine meal and vent the hatred in their hearts.

Amid the Tribe's urging, Barlow slung a heavy leather quiver full of arrows over his back, took the Lightning Bow, and rushed toward the coast.

A group of indignant people had already gathered there.

"Where is that one-eyed bird?"

Barlow asked.

Following the direction in which people pointed, Barlow raised his head and narrowed his eyes against the sunlight.

He soon discovered that the One-Eyed Green Bird was actually hiding atop the enormous Red Tree bestowed by the gods.

"Honorable Captain of the Guard, you must shoot down this giant bird for us! My head has already suffered from it more than ten times!"

"That bird is incredibly cunning. If you miss, next time it'll fly away from far off!"

Standing beneath the trees of the Mangrove Forest, people shouted indignantly.

The One-Eyed Green Bird merely disdainfully shook the feathers on its shoulders at the people shouting below.

It was as though it had grown accustomed to such scenes.

It had long noticed that these land creatures did not even dare approach this vast Mangrove Forest easily. All they knew was how to make such noisy sounds.

As long as it stayed atop this enormous Red Tree, those foolish creatures would never harm a single feather on its body.

After giving the crowd below a contemptuous glance, the One-Eyed Green Bird casually opened its huge green beak.

The Return Fruit it held in its beak immediately fell from the high tree to the ground.

"Bang."

The hard shell of the Return Fruit, which struck the ground heavily, immediately cracked open.

The One-Eyed Green Bird swiftly flew down and picked it back up.

Then, it inserted the sharp edge of its green beak into the crack and sucked the delicious juice from inside the split fruit.

Its single eye seemed to reveal an ease and contentment much like that of a human.

Normally, this was how it used gravity to break open the hard shells of these fruits.

"Damn it, those are fruits bestowed upon us by the gods."

Amid the angry gazes of the crowd, Barlow's expression remained unchanged.

He merely began to approach slowly. After choosing a good angle, he took the bow and arrows from his back.

His body seemed to merge with the bow. The moment he pulled the bowstring, his entire body had already finished gathering strength.

Nock, aim, release.

The movements flowed as smoothly as water.

Whoosh!

No one saw how the arrow was fired.

They only saw a streak of black light.

The arrow pierced straight through the One-Eyed Green Bird's back with a dull thud.

A series of crackling sounds followed from within its body.

"Caw!!"

The One-Eyed Green Bird was clearly shocked by the sudden attack and let out a hoarse, miserable cry.

It hurriedly spread its wings, trying to fly into the sky as quickly as possible.

But as flashes of electricity flickered, it immediately lost control of its body amid the numbing sensation.

Its wings froze halfway through a flap.

It immediately plummeted to the ground.

Yet even so, after landing, it could still flap its feathers, which had begun to burn.

Its tenacious vitality astonished everyone.

But when they noticed that the electric arcs seemed to be weakening,

some bold Tribe members quickly rushed forward and pinned down the One-Eyed Green Bird as it still struggled to take flight.

Faced with this cunning giant bird that stole the gods' gifts, every member of the Tribe wanted nothing more than to skin it and eat its flesh.

Now was the perfect time for revenge.

However, when the surrounding Tribe members swarmed forward and pinned the dying giant bird to the ground as it continued struggling,

a stonemason inexplicably raised his head and stared blankly at the sky.

As if there were something in the heavens.

"Hey! What are you standing around for? Come help! This thing isn't dead yet!"

Hearing his companion call out, the stonemason snapped back to his senses and hurriedly continued helping pin down the giant bird.

No one noticed that the green sheen on the feathers of the One-Eyed Green Bird beneath them suddenly dimmed somewhat.

At the same time, the light in the pale green pupil of its enormous eye almost instantly scattered.

It was as though something had suddenly drained away its life force.

The One-Eyed Green Bird stopped struggling.

Yet unaware of this, people merely immersed themselves in the joy of avenging their grievance. They cheered as they placed the One-Eyed Green Bird's corpse on a wooden rack, carried it back to the Tribe's clearing, and sprinkled it with all sorts of novel seasonings.

That night,

even the air in the Tribe carried a sweet fragrance.

That crisp and spicy flavor would henceforth linger through every night after Barlow fell asleep, remaining ever fresh in his dreams and impossible for him to forget for a long, long time.