Chapter 137

The young beasts of the tribe chattered excitedly as they formed a long line heading toward the stone sheep pen beside the kiln site.

The thick wooden gate of the sheep pen opened, revealing the flock lazily lying in sunlight streaming through the window.

Horned beastmen entered the pen. The four-eared sheep leader at the flock's periphery lifted its eyelids, seeing these familiar beastmen entering with rattan baskets, and gently swished its tail.

But before its tail could return to the ground, four more people rushed into the pen, each grabbing a sheep leg and dragging it outside.

Brief chaos erupted in the sheep pen. The next moment, grass fodder soaked with stinky vegetables came raining down.

Sheep in the flock circled a few times, raised heads calling out several times. Getting no response, they lowered heads to chew grass on the ground.

The horned beastmen's actions were smooth and practiced—after all, during summer shearing, they did this almost daily.

"Got it out!"

Amid the children's cheers, the four-eared sheep leader was dizzily placed on the ground. Immediately a tall, sturdy four-eared sheep charged over.

The leader sheep was knocked hard, but its newly regrown fur remained very thick. Chuan Chuan's hit didn't reach vital spots.

Mouse Lin waved his fist: "Chuan Chuan cheated!"

Qi Bai took sides over reason: "This is called ambush! It's also a tactic!"

"Baa!"

Finally reacting, the leader sheep roared angrily. It had always been the most authoritative presence in the flock—no sheep had ever dared challenge it like this. The leader scraped ground with hind legs, lowering head to charge at Chuan Chuan.

"Bang!"

Instinctively, Chuan Chuan lowered head to block the leader's attack with its horns. Two pairs of four-eared sheep horns collided heavily, each testing strength against the other.

Qi Bai only knew before that fighting bulls locked horns—never expected four-eared sheep fought this way too.

But the anticipated scene of Chuan Chuan's overwhelming victory didn't appear.

After a while, the leader suddenly pulled back, then leaped high with front legs, pressing down hard—horns crashing into Chuan Chuan's head again.

Chuan Chuan was forced half-step back by the sudden attack. While still somewhat dazed, the leader charged again.

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"

Sheep Ling frowned, rubbing his own forehead.

Although beastmen had sheep among their beast forms, they rarely attacked directly like wild beasts. Just hearing the horn collision sounds made Sheep Ling's head buzz.

Wolf Ze watched Chuan Chuan progress from dazed confusion to gradually grasping horn collision patterns, nodding at Rhinoceros Zhou and others.

Horned beastmen waiting nearby quickly rushed forward, separating the two locked sheep. One was swiftly tossed back into the pen, the other dragged back to the crowd.

Now no trace remained of Chuan Chuan's previous appearance. Fighting its kind seemed to awaken combative instincts in its blood. Even restrained, Chuan Chuan vigorously raised hooves, wanting to chase and fight another hundred rounds.

Wolf Ze pressed one hand on Chuan Chuan's horns: "You're still far from ready."

Chuan Chuan gradually calmed, four ears visibly drooping. Qi Bai smiled amusedly, patting Chuan Chuan's head: "Don't lose heart! We'll definitely defeat them!"

Having lost face, Chuan Chuan lacked its earlier cockiness approaching the sheep pen, unwilling to acknowledge chattering little ones following behind. Returning to its bamboo nest, it buried its head in feed.

Qi Bai secured the ducks, watching through the bamboo door as the little sheep fiercely feed: "Chuan Chuan wants to turn frustration into appetite."

Wolf Ze carefully considered Qi Bai's words, finding them quite reasonable: "Eat more—definitely will become stronger."

The two slowly descended stone steps. With no tribespeople living in Black Mountain's stone walls now, snow accumulated thicker on steps. Qi Bai could still find his footprints from this morning.

A cold wind blew. Qi Bai wrapped his cloak tighter, hands tucked into inner pockets: "Did you already know Chuan Chuan couldn't defeat that leader sheep?"

Wolf Ze said: "Wild beasts fight differently from beastmen. Winning methods differ too. Chuan Chuan must these itself. Its current approach is right—only eating more brings more strength."

Considering Wolf Ze's usual eating habits, no wonder he agreed with Chuan Chuan on this.

"So what are we eating tonight?" But Wolf Ze's thoughts clearly remained on food, casually remarking, "I heard from Bear Feng you made delicious sweet potato noodles."

Under his hood, Qi Bai secretly smiled.

Since Wolf Ze returned, Chuan Chuan had been training constantly. Qi Bai focused on Chuan Chuan's food, somewhat neglecting his big dog.

Qi Bai smiled: "Then we'll eat that tonight."

Returning home, Qi Bai picked two sweet potato slices drying on bamboo racks, gently tapping them together—hearing crisp sounds.

These were dried just days ago—now seemingly ready.

Wolf Ze's voice sounded: "When can we eat this thing?"

Turning, Qi Bai saw Wolf Ze squatting, examining pottery jars placed in corner.

Wolf Zhe first saw these green-powdered things. yet Qi Bai treated them like treasure—even carefully collecting moldy soybeans into jars soaked in salt water. Predictably, the jar contents looked even more disgusting now.

Qi Bai had to treasure these—the green mold proved successful first-step soybean paste making: "Don't worry about this. Needs at least two hundred days minimum."

Hearing this, Wolf Zhe moved slightly farther from the jar. Beastmen's hunted food spoiled within days unprocessed. He hardly dared imagine what terrifying thing Qi Bai would make after two hundred days.

Qi Bai raised eyebrows: "Don't look down on it. This is very tasty seasoning."

"The stone mill might be in use now." Qi Bai found a clean hide bag in bedroom, sweeping winnowing basket's sweet potato slices into it for Wolf Ze: "Trouble you to queue up."

Wolf Zhe certainly didn't consider this troublesome—taking the hide bag, he hurried toward young beasts' house.

Qi Bai rubbed hands, circled kitchen, finally taking out some smoked meat and large sour bamboo shoot piece, chopping both into fine dice.

Adding lard to pottery pot, frying scallion-ginger-garlic until fragrant. Adding chopped smoked meat, stir-frying until half-cooked. Then adding remaining sour bamboo shoots, stir-frying together.

Sour bamboo shoots were salt-pickled. Smoked meat itself had special aroma. So stir-frying sour bamboo shoots with smoked meat, Qi Bai added no other seasonings, preserving ingredients' natural flavors.

Qi Bai shoveled stir-fried side dish into large pottery basin, placing in nearby oven to keep warm.

After scrubbing pottery pot clean, he poured all water from bamboo tubes into pot.

Just then, Wolf Ze lifted outside hide curtain, seeing this said: "Tomorrow I'll find large stone to make a缸."

Beastmen continent had no industrial pollution—fallen snow was very clean. Last winter, Qi Bai and Wolf Ze always drank snow accumulated on stone platform.

But with more tribespeople now, constant foot traffic trampled snow near homes—unsafe to drink directly. So now Qi Bai carried bamboo tubes to waterfall edge for water every morning.

The pool beneath waterfall hadn't completely frozen yet. Everyone chiseled small holes on riverbank for water access—not too troublesome.

Qi Bai covered pot lid. Water jars were daily necessities: "Okay. Make a smaller one for meat too."

Most distributed tribe food now was cured or smoked meat. But hunting teams still patrolled territory daily, occasionally bringing fresh prey—everyone could share some fresh meat.

Daily cured/smoked meat wasn't healthy. Qi Bai wanted to freeze some fresh meat—allowing variety every few days.

Qi Bai added sweet potato flour Wolf Ze just ground into pottery basin, adding water bit by bit. Gradually, a large dough formed in Qi Bai's hands.

Wolf Ze saw Qi Bai pinching off a dough piece: "This seems different from what people said."

"Mm." Qi Bai rolled the dough piece into small ball, using finger to poke hole through center, then lifting to show Wolf Ze: "Today I'm making窝窝头."

A steamer sat on stove edge. Qi Bai placed shaped窝窝头 one by one into steamer. By time steamer filled, water in pottery pot basically boiled. Covering pot lid, steaming for over ten minutes.

As steam dispersed,窝窝头 no longer looked dry. Wolf Ze不顾烫, picking one窝窝头, squeezing it—soft窝窝头 quickly resumed shape.

Qi Bai opened oven baffle, taking out smoked meat sour bamboo shoots kept warm inside, heading indoors. Wolf Ze carried entire steamer.

窝窝头 and smoked meat sour bamboo shoots arranged on kang table. Qi Bai took small spoon, scooping smoked meat sour bamboo shoots into窝窝头, handing to Wolf Ze: "Taste."

Wolf Ze ate the窝窝头 from Qi Bai's hand in one bite. Immediately his eyes lit up: "Delicious! These vegetables can become so tasty!"

If seeking a cook's happiest moment—certainly seeing food eaters devour eagerly.

Qi Bai took a窝窝头, adding some vegetables for himself: Mm, quite delicious.

Seeing Qi Bai prepared only smoked meat sour bamboo shoots tonight, Wolf Ze thought he might remain hungry. But after half-steamer of窝窝头, he already felt full.

Wolf Ze unconsciously slowed eating pace, looking at窝窝头 in hand: "This food actually made me full."

If换成 same-sized sweet potatoes, Wolf Ze确信 eating double wouldn't bring fullness. But sweet potato flour foods achieved this effect.

Qi Bai felt impressed by Wolf Ze's敏锐.

Since Qi Bai made sweet potato noodles, most tribespeople had tried this food. But even Sheep Luo hadn't noticed flour foods' difference.

Qi Bai nodded: "Not only that—drying sweet potatoes into flour preserves them long-term. Foods made this way taste good too. Paired with beast meat, we won't fear hunger anymore."

Wolf Ze's expression turned serious: "If tribe plants these crops in soil like you did, can we obtain more food?"

Qi Bai said: "Correct."

Wolf Ze suddenly recalled Qi Bai's first blueprint during wall construction.

On that blueprint, Qi Bai already marked farmland locations. Wolf Ze smiled: "Seems you planned this long ago."

Qi Bai rubbed ears: "My former people grew all food themselves. So I instinctively planned this way."

Wolf Ze nodded seriously: "Your former tribespeople were wise beastmen."