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Jian Mo carried the purple bird into the house and set it by the hearth. He turned it this way and that for a while, trying to figure out how to prepare it.

It seemed he had to drain the blood first, then boil water to pluck the feathers.

As it happened, Wu Jiong had boiled some water. Jian Mo asked, "Can I use this boiling water?"

Wu Jiong said, "I boiled it for you. Use as much as you like. What do you need it for?"

The beastmen hadn't been in the habit of drinking hot water before. Jian Mo had never gotten used to drinking unboiled water, and after he asked Wu Jiong to boil water a few times, Wu Jiong began boiling a whole vat every day.

Jian Mo glanced at the purple bird. "I'm going to pluck its feathers."

Wu Jiong said, "You don't need boiling water for that."

Jian Mo was puzzled. How could he do it without boiling water?

Wu Jiong said, "Just pull the feathers out. I'll take it to the river and do it there. You stay home and cook."

Preparing it at home would indeed make the floor filthy. The floor was dirt, too, and it would be bad if it got wet.

Jian Mo nodded, then remembered something. "Can you bring all the feathers back?"

Wu Jiong was surprised. "The purple bird's feathers?"

Jian Mo said, "Yes. I'll see if I can keep them and make something with them."

Wu Jiong said, "All right."

Jian Mo smiled a little and asked, "Do you want roast meat or meat patties? Or should I make some of both?"

Wu Jiong answered without hesitation. "Meat patties."

After Wu Jiong left, Jian Mo went under the eaves and cut off some fatty and lean meat, then found some vegetables to put in the patties.

Although his knife was made of shell, it had been sharpened to a fine edge and had no trouble cutting meat or vegetables. Apart from being prone to chipping, it had no other problems.

The stone slab used for grilling meat was harder to work with. It took ages to heat up, but once it was scorching hot, food burned easily on it and had to be turned often.

Jian Mo busied himself at home.

Wu Jiong soon returned with the prepared purple bird, and Jian Mo's meat patties were almost done.

When Jian Mo saw him come back, he hurriedly served him some meat.

The two sat by the hearth and ate breakfast.

Wu Jiong said, "I ran into some of the tribe's sub-beastmen on my way back. They asked me to see if you wanted to go gathering with them."

Jian Mo's eyes lit up. "Can I? I want to go!"

He had already spent seven or eight days at Wu Jiong's house, and yesterday was the only time he'd had a look around the tribe. He'd long since felt cooped up.

Wu Jiong said, "Go ahead. They'll be gathering near the tribe, so there's not much danger."

Jian Mo asked, "How do I go with them? Should I go find them?"

Wu Jiong said, "When I go hunting later, I'll take you to them."

Jian Mo nodded and used two sticks of a suitable thickness as chopsticks to pick up his meat patties.

He had only just recovered from being ill, so he had used less fatty meat and added more vegetables to the patties, making them a lighter version.

Wu Jiong watched him pick up the patties and eat them in that strange manner, but said nothing.

After quickly finishing breakfast and washing the dishes, Jian Mo put on a carrying basket and followed Wu Jiong out.

In the open space at the center of the tribe, beastmen, sub-beastmen, and little cubs who couldn't yet take human form were already going about their business.

People gathered in twos and threes to chat. When they saw Jian Mo come out with Wu Jiong, quite a few came over to greet them, then turned curious gazes on Jian Mo.

A strange sub-beastman arriving in the tribe was a novelty, and they could talk about it for a long time.

Wu Jiong led Jian Mo up to a sub-beastman. "Qing Kuo, I'm leaving Jian Mo with you today. Thanks for looking after him."

Jian Mo recognized the sub-beastman as the model-like man with cat ears on his head.

Today, he looked entirely human, and his ears were ordinary human ears too.

Qing Kuo looked up and met Jian Mo's gaze.

His eyes sharpened, and he slowly curved his lips. "All right, as long as he doesn't wander off."

Jian Mo didn't know if it was his imagination, but he felt that Qing Kuo's manner was especially like a cat's, or rather, a feline's, with a natural hint of fierceness.

With Qing Kuo staring at him, Jian Mo wisely said, "Once we're out there, I'll do as you say."

Qing Kuo glanced at Jian Mo again, his lips curving in satisfaction. "Then stay behind me later."

More and more people gathered in the open space, and Jian Mo noticed that they had split into quite a few groups.

Some of them walked over to Qing Kuo. They all appeared to be older sub-beastmen.

Qing Kuo was clearly the leader of this group. Once everyone had arrived, he briefly introduced Jian Mo to them, then led them out.

Jian Mo walked among the group, answering when someone spoke to him but not volunteering anything when no one asked.

Before long, everyone's attention shifted away from him, and they began talking about all sorts of things happening in the tribe.

Jian Mo listened silently and learned quite a bit.

It was probably autumn in this world too. The wind was somewhat dry and cold, and the sky looked deep blue and high overhead.

If the plants and people around him hadn't been so unfamiliar, gathering in mountain woods like these would probably have been very pleasant.

Jian Mo looked at the snow-covered mountains in the distance and sighed inwardly.

He really couldn't go back.

This was probably a forest the sub-beastmen knew well. They hadn't gone far before they found a grove of fruit trees.

They spread out, each finding a tree and starting to gather.

Qing Kuo motioned for Jian Mo to follow him. "We'll pick the energy fruit from that tree."

Jian Mo nodded.

They walked beneath a tree at the edge of the grove. Qing Kuo looked up, set down his carrying basket, and sprang upward. The nails on his hands and feet sprang out, forming sharp, curved hooks.

Then he dug his claws firmly into the trunk and climbed swiftly upward, as nimble as a cat.

In the blink of an eye, the long-limbed sub-beastman had climbed onto a high branch. He looked down at Jian Mo and motioned for him to come up.

Jian Mo's mouth fell slightly open as he looked up at the sub-beastman standing in the treetop.

The tree was at least twenty meters tall and grew perfectly straight, with no branches until six or seven meters above the ground.

Jian Mo looked at the bare trunk, then down at his own legs.