Chapter Summaries

Jian Mo saw that the Flying-Winged Beast had recovered from its wounds and that its broken wing was healing. He noticed it had eaten the food the tribe provided and was now nibbling grass.

• Jian Mo found that tribe members had taken up spinning and knitting with shed beast fur and were making small accessories.
• Jian Mo had a rest day and wandered around the tribe before visiting the Flying-Winged Beast.
• Jian Mo examined the Flying-Winged Beast and saw that its wounds had healed and its broken wing had mostly recovered.
• Jian Mo watched the Flying-Winged Beast eat with the claw on its injured wing and noticed it was also eating grass.

Jian Mo discovered fish in the river while washing fur and tried to catch them, but the fish escaped. He made a damaged basket into a fishing trap and headed out, though the children warned him that fish tasted bad and smelled strongly.

• Jian Mo brought the Flying-Winged Beast grass, tubers, and a bone, and promised to look for more food later.
• Jian Mo washed his clothes and the Long-Headed Beast's fur in the river, where he spotted fish and knocked one unconscious with a punch.
• Jian Mo tried to catch more fish by hand, but they swam away.
• Jian Mo found a badly damaged basket, trimmed its hole, and set off to catch fish.
• Qiu Li and the other children told Jian Mo that fish tasted awful and left a lingering fishy smell.

Jian Mo took Jiang Xing and the other children fishing, then prepared the catch to show them and Wu Jiong that fish could taste good. Wu Jiong helped him sharpen the shell knives, and Jian Mo finished cleaning the fish before dark.

• Jian Mo persuaded the children to help catch fish for the Flying-Winged Beasts, and they agreed to go with him.
• Jian Mo gave the children baskets, and they caught several large fish in the shallow river.
• Jian Mo stopped the children from fishing as the evening grew cold and returned to the tribe with them.
• The children offered their fish to Jian Mo, who promised to cook some for them the next day and use the scraps to feed the Flying-Winged Beasts.
• Jian Mo cleaned the fish at Wu Jiong's house, and Wu Jiong briefly helped before taking the shell knives to the river to sharpen them.

Jian Mo prepared and fried fish, winning over the tribe with its taste and sharing portions with the children who helped. The next morning, he woke to find that late autumn had arrived, and Wu Jiong helped him find a robe against the cold.

• Jian Mo named the Flying-Winged Beast Jiujiu and marinated fish overnight before drying it outside.
• Jian Mo fried the fish, and the tribe members and children enjoyed it without finding it fishy.
• Jian Mo gave portions of fried fish to the children who had helped catch or watch it.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong ate fried fish for dinner, and Wu Jiong offered to catch more fish when Jian Mo wanted.
• Jian Mo woke before sunrise and noticed that the weather had turned cold as late autumn arrived.
• Wu Jiong found Jian Mo a light animal-hide robe and said he would alter it to fit.

Jian Mo foraged with Zhou Fu, cared for the recovering Flying-Winged Beast, and learned its wing was healed enough for training. Wu Jiong agreed they could prepare to ride it and went to ask Qing Kuo for a sturdy rope.

• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong ate breakfast before Jian Mo joined Zhou Fu and the others to forage.
• Jian Mo gathered food and heard from Zhou Fu that winter shortages forced some tribes to go hungry regularly.
• Jian Mo fed the Flying-Winged Beast and found that its wound had healed and its wing no longer seemed painful.
• Jian Mo met Wu Jiong and told him the Flying-Winged Beast seemed ready to fly.
• Wu Jiong examined the Flying-Winged Beast, confirmed it could be trained, and went to ask Qing Kuo for a sturdy rope while Jian Mo stayed with it.

Jian Mo and the tribe tried to train the injured Flying-Winged Beast to fly, but it refused to obey anyone except Jian Mo. With Wu Jiong riding behind him for safety, Jian Mo asked the beast to take off, and it answered with a cry.

• Wu Jiong returned with a crowd, and they roped and restrained the Flying-Winged Beast.
• Ban Ming tried to ride the beast and make it fly, but it stayed on the ground despite his efforts.
• The Flying-Winged Beast ignored Ban Ming and rubbed its head against Jian Mo, appearing to choose him.
• Wu Jiong agreed to ride with Jian Mo, and the beast patiently let Jian Mo climb onto its back.
• Wu Jiong held Jian Mo securely as Jian Mo asked the Flying-Winged Beast to fly, and it gave a long cry.

Jian Mo agreed to raise the Flying-Winged Beast, named it Jiujiu, and began caring for it as his household grew. The next day, he gathered extra food and tended to Jiujiu, discovering how much work the beast’s appetite and droppings required.

• Jian Mo rode the Flying-Winged Beast through the sky with Wu Jiong, and the beast refused to fly for others unless Jian Mo was aboard.
• The tribe agreed to help feed the Flying-Winged Beast, and Jian Mo accepted responsibility for raising it.
• Jian Mo named the Flying-Winged Beast Jiujiu, and it chirped happily at the name.
• Jian Mo carried a larger basket while gathering energy fruit and gathered grass and prepared food for Jiujiu.
• Jian Mo fed Jiujiu, refreshed its water, and cleaned up its droppings.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong gathered hairy roots to use as food for the Flying-Winged Beast and began processing them to extract their starch. They pounded the roots at the tribe’s stone mortar, leaving Jian Mo to turn and push down the pulp.

• Jian Mo decided hairy roots could feed the Flying-Winged Beast or provide starch, and Wu Jiong agreed to try extracting it.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong flew to a distant mountain on the Flying-Winged Beast and dug up a large load of hairy roots.
• They returned to the tribe, washed the roots by the river, and removed bug-infested parts.
• Wu Jiong showed Jian Mo the tribe’s stone mortar and transformed into a giant white wolf to pound the roots.
• Jian Mo pushed the roots down and turned the pulp with a wooden stick as Wu Jiong worked the stone hammer.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong processed maogen starch and made pancakes with meat and pickled vegetables, which they shared with the Flying-Winged Beast. The next morning, Jian Mo spun thread while gathered foragers talked, and Zhou Fu complained that his shell knives had broken.

• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong pounded, washed, and strained maogen, leaving the starch water to settle overnight.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong poured off the clear water and used the starch to make pancakes with egg, grilled meat, and pickled vegetables.
• Jian Mo fed a meat-filled pancake wrap to the Flying-Winged Beast, which eagerly swallowed it.
• The next morning, Jian Mo spun thread among a group gathered to forage.
• Zhou Fu complained that three shell knives had broken and said he had nearly missed breakfast.

Jian Mo joined the tribe on a long trip to gather shell knives at a distant alpine lake. The group reached the muddy, plant-filled shore, where they prepared to start collecting.

• Jian Mo heard that shell knives were breaking, and Qing Kuo agreed to take him along to gather replacements.
• Jian Mo collected hougou fruits with the tribe and prepared meat for the next morning’s early departure.
• Jian Mo joined Wu Jiong and more than ten pairs of beastmen and sub-beastmen as they traveled across canyons, ridges, and a plateau.
• Di Ya led the group to a vast alpine lake surrounded by snowy mountains and coniferous forests.
• Jian Mo noticed the lake’s thick muddy shore and dark green aquatic plants as everyone headed over to collect shell knives.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong gathered Knife Clams at Shell Lake, where Jian Mo kept the clam meat that the others usually discarded. They returned to the tribe after dark, divided the harvest, and Jian Mo began making dinner while Wu Jiong offered to help.

• Wu Jiong led Jian Mo into the muddy lake to dig up enormous Knife Clams and collect their shells.
• After Wu Jiong discarded the clam meat, Jian Mo asked to keep it, suggesting they could feed it to Jiujiu if it proved inedible.
• The other gatherers gave Jian Mo their unwanted clam meat, and Zhou Fu warned him that it contained worms and should not be eaten raw.
• As the weather grew colder and Jian Mo began to feel unwell, Wu Jiong called an end to the gathering.
• The group returned to the tribe after dark, left half the Knife Clams for distribution, and took the rest home.
• Jian Mo started a fire and told Wu Jiong to rest while he made dinner, but Wu Jiong offered to help.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong enjoyed grilled razor clam adductor muscles, and Jian Mo dried the remaining meat for later use. When A Da arrived with a deep, bleeding leg wound, Jian Mo stopped the bleeding and said it might need stitches.

• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong ate the grilled shellfish meat and agreed it was tender and delicious.
• Jian Mo boiled the remaining adductor muscles in salted water and set them out to dry.
• Jian Mo watched tribe members making shell blades and decided to grind some shells himself.
• Hong Qiu brought the injured A Da to Jian Mo after he slipped while pursuing a Long-Headed Beast.
• Jian Mo wrapped A Da's injured leg tightly to stop the bleeding and said the wound might need stitches.

Jian Mo treated A Da’s badly cut leg by cleaning and stitching the wound, then sent him home to rest. A Da left in Wu Jiong’s care, and Heng Man returned with meat to thank Jian Mo, who refused payment.

• Jian Mo persuaded A Da to have his wound stitched and took him to Wu Jiong’s house for treatment.
• Jian Mo sterilized his tools, rinsed A Da’s wound with saltwater, and stitched it while Wu Jiong held A Da steady.
• Jian Mo applied herbs and bandaged the wound, then told A Da to rest and return the next evening for a checkup.
• Wu Jiong carried A Da home, and Heng Man later brought Jian Mo meat as thanks.
• Jian Mo refused the meat as payment and told Heng Man to make A Da nourishing food while he recovered.

Jian Mo checked A Da’s leg and warned that it might not heal enough for the upcoming Hunting Gathering. When a messenger from the Mengshui Tribe announced that the gathering would begin in five days, Jian Mo learned more about the event and asked whether the participating tribes changed each year.

• Jian Mo found that A Da’s wound had nearly healed but advised him that strenuous activity at the Hunting Gathering could reopen it.
• A Da asked to participate in the gathering, and Jian Mo told him they would check his leg again before deciding.
• A messenger from the Mengshui Tribe announced that the Hunting Gathering would be held in five days, and the tribe agreed to participate.
• Zhou Fu and Xi Lu told Jian Mo that the gathering featured competitions, entertainment, and trade between tribes.
• Jian Mo asked whether the tribes attending the Hunting Gathering were different each year.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong planned to catch fish at the Green Marsh Source to trade at the upcoming hunting gathering, and most of the tribe joined their trip. The group reached the marsh and began fishing, but some grew impatient with how slowly they were catching fish.

• Zhou Fu and the others advised Jian Mo to bring useful goods, and Wu Jiong suggested he trade food at the hunting gathering.
• Jian Mo decided to bring fried fish pieces, and Wu Jiong proposed catching fish at the Green Marsh Source.
• Zhou Fu and other tribe members asked to join Jian Mo and Wu Jiong, so Wu Jiong arranged a day-long fishing trip for the tribe.
• The tribe set out at daybreak, rode across the open land, and reached the marshlands led by Di Ya.
• Jian Mo and the others spread out to catch the large fish, while some complained that the murky water made fishing difficult.

Jian Mo helped Wu Jiong’s tribe devise a way to catch a large number of fish, then taught them to cure fish and made a new fried fish dish. The tribe enjoyed the crispy, tender result as they prepared their catch for preservation.

• Jian Mo suggested building a downstream dam and driving the fish toward it, and Wu Jiong organized the tribe to try the method.
• The beastmen stampeded through the marsh, driving schools of fish downstream, where everyone caught and strung them while returning smaller fish to the river.
• The tribe filled their baskets and used all their rope, then washed off the mud and fishy smell after returning home.
• Jian Mo showed the tribe how to cure fish with salt and seasonings, while he marinated fish pieces, coated them in egg and hairy-root starch, and fried them.
• Zhou Fu and Xi Lu tasted Jian Mo’s fried fish and praised its lack of fishy smell and its crisp outside and tender inside.

Jian Mo traded his fried fish within the Riverside Tribe, then traveled with Wu Jiong and the tribe to the Mengshui Tribe’s Hunting Gathering. After arriving, Wu Jiong went to meet the hosts and told Jian Mo to stay with Qing Kuo and the others.

• Jian Mo traded fried fish to Ze Yu and other Riverside Tribe members for cloth.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong caught more fish and made a chewy, seasoned fried-dried fish without starch.
• Jian Mo joined Wu Jiong and the Riverside Tribe on their journey to the Hunting Gathering.
• Jian Mo saw the varied beast forms and Beast Marks of people from other tribes on the way to the Mengshui Tribe.
• Wu Jiong changed into human form to meet the Mengshui Tribe’s people and told Jian Mo to stay with Qing Kuo and the others.

Jian Mo traded his fish pieces at the Hunting Gathering, then joined the tribe to watch the gladiator matches. As he watched the brutal beast-form fights, he looked at Wu Jiong and struggled to imagine him entering the arena.

• Wu Jiong told Jian Mo to ask the tribe for anything he needed, then left to speak with the Mengshui Tribe.
• Qing Kuo helped Jian Mo set up a stall, where Jian Mo offered fish pieces for tasting and traded them with Duan Xu of the Red Zheng Tribe for a bone dagger.
• Duan Xu invited Jian Mo to watch the gladiator matches and said he was third in line to compete.
• Jian Mo sold both baskets of fish pieces and helped Zhou Fu and the other sub-beastmen trade their goods.
• Jian Mo and the others joined Wu Jiong in the stands and watched two beastmen fight in their beast forms.
• Jian Mo wondered how Wu Jiong would fight as a giant wolf, and Wu Jiong met his gaze.

Jian Mo watched Wu Jiong fight for the Riverside Tribe in the arena and worried as he faced a string of opponents. After the matches ended, the pair prepared to return with the goods Jian Mo had traded for.

• Wu Jiong explained that tribal chiefs fought in the arena to display their tribes’ strength, then entered the arena as the Riverside Tribe’s first fighter.
• Wu Jiong defeated a Giant Armor Beast beastman by using his speed and teeth to wound and pin him until he surrendered.
• Qing Kuo told Jian Mo that Wu Jiong had been chosen as chief after defeating the tribe’s fighters and called him a born warrior.
• Wu Jiong fought eight beastmen without losing, though his white fur became stained with blood, and Jian Mo offered to apply medicine to his shallow wounds.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong watched the remaining matches until nightfall, then prepared to leave as Jian Mo showed him the useful goods and fabric he had traded for.

Jian Mo learned that the soft cloth he had traded for was made from Pack-Pack Beast fur and decided he wanted to obtain the animals for their milk. After Qing Kuo identified the cloth’s source, Jian Mo and Wu Jiong arranged to seek Pack-Pack Beasts with him the next day.

• Jian Mo showed Wu Jiong the unusually soft cloth, and Wu Jiong recognized it as Pack-Pack Beast fur.
• Wu Jiong explained that Pack-Pack Beasts were difficult to raise, but offered to trade for two because Jian Mo wanted to see them.
• Jian Mo and Wu Jiong visited Qing Kuo, who remembered that the cloth came from a sub-beastman of the Ice River Tribe.
• Qing Kuo and Ban Ming explained that Pack-Pack Beast milk and meat tasted unpleasant and that the animals were easily frightened, even in the wild.
• Jian Mo, Wu Jiong, and Qing Kuo arranged to trade for Pack-Pack Beasts the next day, then Jian Mo and Wu Jiong walked through the tribe and went home to sleep.