Chapter 10
There was very little prey in the Snow Wolf Tribe’s territory. After all, this place had previously been unclaimed land. If there had been plenty of prey, it would have been occupied by another tribe long ago. It would never have been their turn to come here.
The little prey that did exist in the territory would not always stay in the same place either. Sometimes, they might run into another tribe’s land. The hunting party was mentally prepared for this. Today, after walking across more than half the territory without finding any prey, they had originally thought they would return empty-handed. Unexpectedly, just as they were about to head back, they suddenly discovered several curved-horned beasts. The entire group was overjoyed.
What puzzled them, however, was that this herd of curved-horned beasts had clearly seen them, yet they did not run. They either lay or stood where they were. This made the snow wolves, who had originally been ready to make a move, hesitate.
Sick prey could not be eaten. This was common knowledge among beastmen. Eating diseased prey could very likely make them as weak and powerless as the prey itself. If cubs or injured beastmen ate sick prey, their lives might even be in danger. Therefore, everyone would rather go hungry than catch sick prey. After all, missing one or two meals would not threaten their lives.
Lang Yu did not answer the member’s question. He was observing the condition of the curved-horned beasts.
The more he looked, the more he felt that these curved-horned beasts were not sick. Their condition looked more like exhaustion. They could no longer run, so they had simply stopped running.
A predator had been nearby.
Realizing this, Lang Yu raised his head and distinguished the scents in the air. Very soon, among the smells of prey, ice, and snow, he caught a trace of an unfamiliar wolf scent that was about to fade away.
This area was very close to the Black Wolf Tribe’s territory. These curved-horned beasts had most likely run over from the Black Wolf Tribe’s side. They had just been chased, so when they saw the Snow Wolves, they did not flee—not because they did not want to, but because they truly had no strength left.
Lang Yu felt somewhat puzzled. Curved-horned beasts were among the prey animals best at running. How much prey did the Black Wolf Tribe need to catch in order to exhaust curved-horned beasts to this state?
Many thoughts flashed through Lang Yu’s mind one by one, but in the blink of an eye, he had already made a decision.
“Catch two. Move quickly.”
Prey moved around. Prey at the edges of territory had always belonged to whoever saw it first. However, if the two sides encountered each other face to face, it was easy for conflict to arise. They had to finish this quickly.
The other members were already used to obeying Lang Yu’s commands. As soon as Lang Yu finished speaking, the entire team swiftly split into two groups and locked onto the two beasts Lang Yu had chosen.
When two of the members approached the curved-horned beasts with stone knives, Lang Yu spoke again.
“Don’t kill them. Knock them out and carry them back.”
Killing them here would leave the smell of blood, which could easily attract other predators, especially primitive beasts. Primitive beasts that had not evolved were not very clever, but their noses were very sharp. And because their brains were not very useful, they often killed without eating, wasting food for nothing. If primitive beasts were really drawn here, the other curved-horned beasts would not survive either.
In any case, these curved-horned beasts could no longer run. They might as well carry them back alive and kill them later.
Hearing this, the two members who had originally planned to kill with one strike put away their stone knives, picked up large stones nearby, and while the other members drew the prey’s attention, threw the stones over.
They had done things like not killing prey at the hunting site before. Prey blood could replace salt, and if they could avoid wasting it, they would. It was just that prey usually struggled constantly, so they could only slaughter it first before bringing it back. Hunting normally consumed a great deal of strength. It had never been as easy as today—so easy that even on the way back to the cave, they still had not quite recovered from the unreality of it.
If they had not been carrying two curved-horned beasts, they would have doubted whether they had truly caught any prey.
Having not exhausted themselves chasing and biting prey, the hunting party’s steps were light. For the same distance, they were much faster than the day before yesterday. When they returned to the settlement, the sky had not yet darkened. The gathering team had only just returned and was resting.
Several wolves searching for vines nearby were the first to see the hunting party. At the same time, they saw the two prey animals they were carrying over and immediately cheered.
Although they had not yet seen exactly what the prey were, wolves had never been picky about prey species. As long as it was prey, it was worth being happy about.
Lang Shuo had not expected the hunting party to bring back two prey animals at once either. In his impression, the prey on the Beast World Continent far surpassed modern animals in both size and running ability. Any prey that could still appear during the snow season would have long gone extinct if it did not have some life-saving skill. Because of this, catching prey during the snow season was even more difficult and often required a great deal of time and energy.
He had already prepared himself for the hunting party to return empty-handed today. There were still some bones left from the long-horned beast they caught the day before yesterday. If they smashed them into small pieces and stewed them in the pot, together with the food brought back by the gathering team, they would not go hungry today.
And now, not only had the hunting party brought back prey, they had brought back two at once. It was completely unexpected.
Lang Yu did not take the credit for himself. He explained the sequence of events. Apart from clarifying the source of the prey, he also used the chance to warn the sub-adults who were eager to join the hunt every day.
“Other tribe beastmen may appear at the edge of the tribe’s territory at any time. If you smell the scent of other beastmen, leave quickly.”
The edges of territory had always been disputed areas between tribes. Prey might be on this side today and run to the opposite side tomorrow. Therefore, within a certain range along the edge of a territory, prey did not have strict ownership. Anyone could catch it.
That was the principle, yes. But during actual hunting, beastmen easily got carried away and became hostile toward all predators that appeared. At such times, if they encountered another group of beastmen also hunting, they would immediately regard the other side as competitors. If both sides were hot-tempered young beastmen, it was easy for a fight to break out. One careless incident could become a conflict between two tribes.
Those who went hunting today were all members who had been adults for more than two years and had always followed him on hunts. That was why Lang Yu had chosen to catch the prey. If there had been sub-adults or newly adult beastmen beside him, Lang Yu would rather have returned directly than take the risk.
As long as the members were safe, prey could be caught anytime. Members getting injured was the greatest loss.
Even if no one in his own tribe was injured, injuring members of the other side would also be troublesome. Beastmen all had one thing in common: they protected their own. Therefore, the best way to handle things was to separate young beastmen from one another.
No matter the tribe, sub-adult and newly adult beastmen were existences that gave the whole tribe headaches. Beastmen at this age were reckless, impulsive, full of energy, hot-tempered, and acted without considering consequences. Managing them was exceptionally difficult.
Fortunately, their tribe did not have many members in this age range, Lang Yu thought with relief. When there were fewer of them, they were easier to manage. Even if someone disobeyed, dragging them out for a few rounds of scolding would be effective. If there were too many, then these two would make mistakes today, those two would make mistakes tomorrow—just thinking about it gave him a headache.
Thinking of troublesome sub-adults, then thinking of his own younger brother, Lang Yu immediately felt incomparably comfortable.
Lang Shuo was the most worry-free sub-adult of all.
Lang Shuo did not know that Lang Yu had praised him in his heart once again. He was watching the wolves carrying prey not far away.
The two curved-horned beasts the hunting party had brought back were enough to feed the entire tribe for several days. However, they would not eat them all directly. Instead, they would set aside half for storage, in case they had no food during the coldest period.
If they had been in their original territory, from the first snowfall onward, the tribe would have begun preparing stored food to get through the snow season. The day before yesterday was only because they had just arrived in a new territory, and everyone had been hungry for a long time, that they had divided up the entire prey animal and let everyone eat their fill. Starting today, half of each future hunt would be preserved.
Every tribe member knew this habit, and the method was very simple. The meat was cut into palm-sized pieces and placed in the snow. When everyone went to rest at night, the pieces would be collected and placed near the cave entrance, covered with snow and ice to keep the temperature low while masking the bloody smell of the meat. When they could not catch prey, they would take it out to eat.
Which portions would be eaten today and which would be preserved were all arranged by Lang Yu. This had originally been the work of an older beastman in the tribe, but they had lost too many tribe members on the road. Many positions that had no one to fill temporarily had fallen onto Lang Yu.
Only after Lang Yu finished arranging these matters did he go to find Lang Shuo. After taking a few steps, he suddenly sensed that something was a bit off. He looked around, comparing the hunting party, the gathering team, and the other members, and then noticed the difference.
The members who had stayed in the settlement, whether adult beastmen or sub-adults, including several children, all had animal hides on their bodies that had changed shape. They looked a little strange, but fit closely to their bodies.
As he was thinking, Lang Yu saw several members of the gathering team who had already rested for a while gather around Lang Shuo and mutter with him for a bit. After they finished speaking, they took something from Lang Shuo. The item was too small, so he did not see it clearly.
Soon, the other hunting party members also discovered the difference in the tribe. They curiously touched the animal hides of nearby members.
“How did you make this? Why doesn’t your hide let wind through?”
Immediately, someone took out a needle and thread.
During the day, after Lang Shuo finished sewing Lang Hui’s animal hide, someone had noticed it. Later, when he helped Lang Nuo sew his hide, the scene became similar to when they had woven baskets, with several people gathered around to watch.
The Snow Wolf Race’s execution ability when it came to handiwork was beyond question. On top of that, the stitching method Lang Shuo used was not difficult. Very quickly, some people understood it. When Lang Shuo was sewing his own hide, the few beastmen who understood followed along and learned.
Because they were only altering the upper-body hides, there were not many places that needed sewing. As a result, in half an afternoon, aside from the cubs who had no hides to wear, the hides on the other members had all changed shape. Some had only altered the two sides and had not sewn sleeves. Others completely followed the modification Lang Shuo had made for Lang Hui. Overall, they looked clearly different from the members who returned that evening.
These modifications were not large, but the benefits they brought were obvious. The two sides beneath the armpits no longer let wind in the way they had before, and moving around was not as inconvenient as when everything was tied together. They were warmer without affecting activity.
Lang Shuo took out the last set of needle and thread and asked Lang Yu, “Brother, should I sew yours for you? I’ll make it like Nuo’s.”
Lang Shuo pointed at Lang Nuo, who was working not far away. Considering that sub-adults and adult beastmen were very active, he had not sewn sleeves onto their animal hides. Instead, he referred to their previous wearing style and had the hide drape directly over the shoulders. That way, when they walked normally, their arms would be covered, and it would not get in the way when carrying things.
Lang Yu did not hesitate in the slightest. Any hesitation would be a sign of distrust toward his younger brother. As soon as Lang Shuo finished speaking, he had already taken off his animal hide.
As he had in the afternoon, Lang Shuo was only responsible for sewing. This time, Lang Yu helped punch the holes.
Lang Yu’s hide was a whole piece, so only the sides at the waist needed to be sewn together. It was finished quickly. Lang Shuo handed it to Lang Yu, helped him put it on, and explained how to take it off quickly, to avoid delaying him during hunts.
“It’s fine. We prepare in advance when hunting,” Lang Yu signaled for Lang Shuo not to worry.
After discovering prey, the hunting party would find a place to transform into beast form ahead of time. After catching the prey, they would return. By the time they walked back to the place where they had left their hides, they would have just stopped sweating, and their hides would not be dirtied. Perhaps because their original forms were white, the Snow Wolf Race was rather particular about this and would not randomly throw their hides around.
To increase efficiency, beastmen did not wear extra animal hides while hunting, regardless of whether they hunted in human form or beast form. The hide that came with their bodies could cover their private areas, and that was already enough for them. They removed their hides before the hunt began, so the thing Lang Shuo was worried about would not happen.
Hearing that putting on and taking off animal hides would not affect the hunting party’s efficiency, Lang Shuo relaxed and showed Lang Yu another result from today.
“Brother, that is the basket everyone wove. It can hold all the cubs.”
At this moment, Lang Shuo experienced the happiness his classmates used to have when sharing something new with their parents.
Lang Yu was undoubtedly an extremely cooperative parent. He looked in the direction Lang Shuo pointed.
The large basket was right beside Lang Shuo. It was made from the vines the gathering team had sent back that morning and the stems of nearby plants. The finished product was not as delicate as the small grass nests, but its advantage was that it could contain all the cubs.
The bottom of the basket was supported with bamboo, so two people could directly carry the basket and the cubs inside in and out, which was extremely convenient.
Lang Yu immediately noticed the advantage of the basket. “In the future, we can bring the cubs out often.”
To cubs, outside the cave was very dangerous. Aside from primitive beasts that might be lying in ambush, the members within the tribe were also a danger. Whether sub-adults or adult beastmen, their bodies were many times larger than cubs. One step or one bump from them would be a disaster for a cub.
If the cubs were directly kept inside the basket, the other members would not have to worry about accidentally kicking a cub while walking. Even if a primitive beast suddenly appeared, they could quickly move the cubs back into the cave without having to catch them one by one.
Lang Shuo had the same thought. Judging from the cubs’ behavior these past two days, they all liked being outside rather than in the oppressive cave. Even if their range of movement was currently small, it was still more comfortable than a cave surrounded entirely by stone.
However, the cubs were still young. They could stay outside during the day, but once the sun set, they had to be sent back in.
After Lang Yu and Lang Nuo carried the cubs back into the cave, Lang Shuo’s attention returned to the food.
The prey they had brought back today was curved-horned beast. In Lang Shuo’s view, it was about fifty percent similar to cattle, and the taste was also similar. Curved-horned beast was a little fattier than long-horned beast, but it did not have chunks of solid fat. Instead, like marbled beef, the lean meat was threaded with fat.
This kind of meat was very suitable for hotpot. Unfortunately, the tribe’s knives were not sharp enough. Cutting chunks was fine, but cutting thin slices was asking too much. Moreover, the tribe did not have that many pots. Lang Shuo searched through the recipes in his mind and finally chose something simple that could be made right now.
“Brother, help me find a few flat stones. They should be on the thinner side.”
Lang Shuo measured out the size and thickness of the stones with his hands.
He wanted to make stone-grilled steak.
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