Insect Wax (Continued)

Qing Kuo was tending to the buds of the Red Sparrow Branch, said, "It tastes good, and sometimes we pick some to put in vases. But it wilts very quickly, and the place where it grows is quite far from our tribe, so we usually don't come here specifically; we just pick some when we happen to be passing by."

Jian Mo pinched the flower bud and felt that it was very delicate. It crumbled into mud with a gentle rub, and it did look like it would wither very quickly.

Indeed, nothing is perfect.

Qing Kuo and the others were all experienced sub-beastmen who gathered flowers. Their hands moved quickly, alternating between brush and pluck.

The flowers gently landed in the basket, filling it to the brim.

Jian Mo was a little slower, but because she had many Red Sparrow Branch, her final harvest was still quite good.

They quickly picked the Red Sparrow Branch and took them home, preparing to soak them.

Jian Mo was extracting essential oils for the first time and didn't know how to do it, so she could only use the most basic method: putting the flowers into the oil and then heating it.

They dared not raise the oil temperature too high, fearing it would ruin the aroma, so they simmered it slowly over a low flame.

Batch after batch of Red Sparrow Branch flowers were added to the oil, and the oil in the earthenware pot became increasingly red and the aroma increasingly strong.

Red Sparrow Branch are not poisonous, and Jiujiu waits nearby, eating fried Red Sparrow Branch vegetable dumplings.

Seeing how much it was eating, Jian Mo mixed some spice powder into the food and shaped it into balls for it to eat.

Zhou Fu looked around and couldn't resist ordering one. After tasting it, he said to Jian Mo, "It's quite delicious. Although it's a little astringent, the floral flavor is very strong."

The children watching from the sidelines couldn't resist any longer. "Jian Mo, we want some too!"

He Feng smacked Jiujiu's thigh with a huff. "You stinky Jiujiu, you're so disloyal! You didn't even warn us when there was something good to eat."

Jiujiu blinked innocently, "Chirp!"

Seeing their reaction, Jian Mo had no choice but to give the little ones a portion of the filtered flower dumplings as well. "Eat less, I'll fry some vegetable dumplings for you later."

The little ones cheered and offered to help. "Jian Mo, is there anything we can do?"

Jian Mo: "Take Jiujiu out to play, don't get in the way here."

The adults all laughed when they heard this.

Qing Kuo looked at Jian Mo and laughed, "I thought you weren't bothered by the little brats' chattering, but it turns out you are.

The flowers of the Red Sparrow Branch have a strong fragrance and beautiful color, making them excellent for making medicated soaps and oils.

Especially for medicated soaps, once they are filled into a patterned mold and then unmolded, the finished product is very delicate and beautiful.

Jian Mo and the sub-beastmen from the tribe took them to the Mengshui Tribe to exchange for goods.

Their medicated soaps were indeed very popular, and the replacement of berry-patterned fabrics also went smoothly.

However, medicated oil--

Yun Long laughed and said, "Your medicated oil is not as good as ours. Our medicated oil can not only reduce swelling and relieve itching, but also repel insects."

As he spoke, Yun Long had someone bring them the medicinal oil in a ceramic jar to show them.

The medicinal oil from the Mengshui Tribe is pitch black and has a pungent smell that is neither quite fragrant nor quite foul. When you spread it with your fingers, you can feel a cool sensation before the fragrance wafts out.

Jian Mo applied the ointment to the spot where she had been bitten by an insect, and sure enough, the pain and itching stopped.

It does look a bit better than their Spirit Cat Tail Grass oil.

Jian Mo sniffed, her nose stinging from the strong smell, as if her delicate nasal mucosa had been punched, and she couldn't tell what the ingredients were at all.

Yun Long said, "This is our secret medicinal oil; it shouldn't be applied to sensitive areas."

Jian Mo nodded.

Qing Kuo asked in surprise, "You didn't have this medicinal oil before, and you never promoted such a good thing."

Yun Long: "This is a new product from this year. I was just about to go to your tribe to ask if you wanted some, and then you came over. So, do you want to exchange some to take back with you?"

Jian Mo: "Can we change the formula?"

Yun Long smiled and said, "A formula will do. If you want to trade it for a soap formula, I'll trade with you."

Jian Mo considered it in her mind. "Then forget it."

Yun Long: "Then let's exchange the medicated oil for your soap."

As a result, Jian Mo and his group didn't sell many of their medicinal oils; instead, they ended up exchanging them for medicinal oils from the Mengshui Tribe.

Summer has arrived, and the weather is getting hot. Every evening, flying insects overhead seem to chase after people like dark clouds.

Although most insects don't bite, they can still be annoying when they're around people, and sometimes they can even bump into people's eyes and nostrils.

Applying the medicinal oil from the Mengshui Tribe makes all the difference; the flying insects seem to have encountered a natural enemy and stay far away from them.

This was the first time Jian Mo and his group had used the medicinal oil from the Mengshui Tribe. They weren't sure about its effectiveness beforehand, so they didn't use many.

When they saw what it looked like, everyone was shocked.

Qing Kuo stared at the flying insects overhead. "Good heavens, where did they get this formula? The effect is amazing!"

Ye Luo: "I don't know if they mixed it themselves, or if they got it from another tribe."

Qing Kuo: "It seems like it was swapped from another tribe. Mengshui Tribe has been hosting quite a few people lately. But no matter how it was swapped, the ingredients should still be things that their tribe already has."

As he spoke, Qing Kuo tried to smell the medicinal oil again.

The smell of the medicinal oil was pungent and complicated. He sniffed it several times but couldn't smell anything, and then turned his head away and sneezed uncontrollably.

Ye Luo: "They probably followed the same logic as us; to mask the active ingredients in the medicinal oil, they deliberately added a lot of fragrance."

Qing Kuo rubbed his nose. "Too cunning."

Jian Mo laughed, "We're just as cunning."

Qing Kuo: "We have to be a little cunning, otherwise the Mengshui Tribe will have figured out everything about us and we won't be able to guess anything about them."

Then Qing Kuo muttered, "Forget it. We can't guess the ingredients in their medicinal oils, and they can't guess how our soaps and glass are made."

Jian Mo thought the same thing, "Our soap is relatively simple to make, so replacing it shouldn't be a loss."