It was nighttime when the six of them returned. They purposely waited for the tribesmen to rest before carrying the stones back. Because the smelting process was still in the experimental stage, they didn't know if it would succeed so they didn't announce it yet.
The next day, Zheng Luo's blacksmiths arrived. According to the slave masters' requirements, they were just regular 'blacksmiths' but to the tribesmen, they were masters so everyone called them 'Master XX'. The blacksmiths blushed and waved their hands, saying they weren't skilled enough to be considered 'masters'. Ever since they met Gongjia Heng, they didn't dare call themselves' masters' anymore. They were much more humble now.
This time, Shao Xuan called them over to talk about smelting ores. They had already seen the theory behind it.
A stone room for smelting ores was built at the edge of the tribe. The stones the six of them brought back yesterday were all placed inside.
There were many guards around the stone room. Other than the chief, the leader and Shao Xuan's group, no one else was allowed to get close. Shao Xuan brought the blacksmiths over so the guards could recognise them. Zheng Luo's people aside, the people here weren't familiar with the blacksmiths.
"From now on, the five of them will be the blacksmiths here. They can enter the stone room freely," Shao Xuan said to the guards.
After carefully memorizing the faces, voices and other characteristics of the five people, the guard nodded. They were assigned to such an important task, of course they had to treat it seriously.
Ores, they wanted to have ores too.
They had to prepare a smelting furnace, charcoal and other ores to be used as catalysts. These things were used for a few days so when Duo Kang and the rest went out to hunt, they didn't see the stone room open.
Shao Xuan had thought about smelting ores too. Even if he didn't know about ores, he could use the circular diagram to calculate the location of the ores. However, iron was harder to smelt than copper and there weren't many records on smelting ores. Shao Xuan didn't dare to try. No one knew what would happen to the core seed.
Rice had to be eaten one bite at a time. It was better to smelt ores first. Good bronze wares were not inferior to others.
Shao Xuan and the five blacksmiths smelted the copper ores in the stone room. They followed the Gongjia ancestors' method of observing the air and smelting. Then, they calculated the most suitable metal ratio to forge a copper sword.
It was simple in theory but not in practice. There were too many factors that could change the outcome. If everyone could easily make a good bronze weapon, the Gongjia family would not be in such a high position.
On this day, when Shao Xuan and the other craftsmen were experimenting again, someone came to report that people from the Lu tribe had arrived. The shaman said that if Shao Xuan was free, he should go over.
There was no need for Shao Xuan to keep an eye on the work at hand. In the past few days, the other craftsmen had already gained experience. They picked up the work faster than Shao Xuan. After all, they had been exposed to this kind of thing for a long time. Even if they had just started smelting ores, they learned very quickly. Shao Xuan was also relieved to leave the work to them.
"Alright, I'll be right there." Shao Xuan sent the messenger back first, then said a few words to the five craftsmen in the stone room. He came out to wash his face before heading over.
The Lu and Yanjiao tribes had been trading. Every year, the Lu tribesmen would visit two to three times. Sometimes, they were here to deliver baby beasts. Other times, they were invited by the Yanjiao tribe to teach them. After a few exchanges, the relationship between both parties was considered harmonious.
The person who led the team this time was Yan Jiu, someone Shao Xuan knew.
It had been a long time since they last met. Yan Jiu had always thought that something had happened to Shao Xuan. When he heard that Shao Xuan had returned to the tribe, he especially wanted to talk to Shao Xuan. The Lu tribe could start trading with the Yanjiao tribe because of Shao Xuan.
"Haha, Shao Xuan, long time no see!" Yan Jiu looked at Shao Xuan and laughed loudly.
"Indeed, long time no see. How's your tribe?" Shao Xuan asked.
"Not bad. We've been robbed a few times." Speaking of this, Yan Jiu's smile faded.
"The Wanshi people?" Shao Xuan asked.
"Yes, other than the Wanshi people, there are also the slaves of the slave masters. But they only robbed us once." Yan Jiu was depressed. In the past, there was only the Wanshi tribe here. After the incident in the desert, the slave masters came out and there was one more problem.
Fortunately, the slave masters mainly focused on recuperation. They didn't jump out to make enemies. They were also worried that the other major tribes would target them and rob them of their last stock.
Even so, Yan Jiu and the others didn't dare to come here often. It wasn't easy to come to the Yanjiao tribe. The Lu tribe didn't bring many things each time they came here. The Yanjiao tribe didn't trade large amounts of adult animals from them anymore.
"But this time, I didn't see anyone from the Wanshi tribe. What happened to them?" Yan Jiu asked. In the past, when they came here, they would always see some small groups of the Wanshi tribe. Today, they didn't see any of them.
"Who knows what they're thinking." Shao Xuan shook his head.
"Right, I heard that your tribe has a lot of new people?" Yan Jiu asked the first key question of the day.
"Yes, they were separated from the previous tribe. Now they're back."
Which tribe lost more than four thousand people at once? Yan Jiu thought Shao Xuan didn't want to answer, so he asked another question, "What happened to your tribe a few days ago? Why do I feel that the fire seed of your tribe seems … seems … "
Yan Jiu didn't want to say the word "gone". After all, for the tribesmen, such words were like curses. It was very unfriendly.
"The fire seed of our tribe just changed a little. You noticed it too?" Shao Xuan was surprised. The Lu tribe was still some distance away from them.
"Of course we noticed it. Not only us, but other tribes also know that something happened to you." The Lu tribe was a nice tribe, and they were close to Yanjiao. So after that day, people came to them one after another to inquire about what happened.
Hearing Yan Jiu's words, Shao Xuan guessed that some people couldn't wait and would come to them soon. Before, it was because of the conflicts between the other tribes and Yanjiao. But since it was related to the fire seed, those people might come shamelessly.
If they came to them, what would they do about the fire seed?
Yan Jiu chatted with Shao Xuan for a long time before leaving. They were annoyed by the other tribes' questions, and they were curious, so they came here. They couldn't ask about the secrets of the other tribes, but Yan Jiu could feel the difference in the Yanjiao tribe. The fire seed of Yanjiao seemed to be gone, but also seemed to be still there. It was just not obvious.
Strange Yanjiao people.
Fortunately, although the Lu tribesmen were curious, they weren't very curious. If they couldn't figure it out, they stopped thinking about it and went on with their lives. They never fought with others for anything. As long as it didn't harm the interests of the Lu tribe, they didn't care.
After Yan Jiu left with his people, Shao Xuan went to the two shamans to discuss the fire seed. They discussed how to answer if those people came to them. The Yanjiao tribe could close their doors and not see anyone, but those people wouldn't give up easily. They might even use all kinds of tricks. It wasn't that they were afraid of them, but they had to be prepared. They didn't want to panic when something happened. The tribe was big, and many things had to be arranged in advance.
However, the Wan Shi tribe and the slave masters who escaped from the desert were indeed a big trouble. After all, they were close to here and had bad intentions.
This nail had to be pulled out as soon as possible. Shao Xuan touched the knife in his hand and thought.
Shao Xuan wasn't the only one who thought this way. The two chiefs had discussed it many times in private. It was just that Zheng Luo's people had just arrived and weren't used to it yet. Plus, they had merged with the fire seed, so they might not be in their best fighting condition. They just needed time.
After going out to hunt once or twice and practicing more, they might be able to adjust their condition. At that time, the complete Yanjiao tribe, the new Yanjiao tribe, would be tested on the Wan Shi tribe and the slave masters!
A few days later, the first batch of hunters who went out to hunt after the merging of the fire seed returned.
Looking at them, they adapted well and brought back a lot of prey. The results were good.
Duo Kang didn't care about that. He was competing with Guigou and Ta, but this time, he didn't pay attention to how much prey they brought back. Instead, he paid attention to the green-faced fanged beast Shao Xuan mentioned before.
When Shao Xuan saw the prey the three team leaders brought back, his facial muscles twitched uncontrollably.
There were all sorts of strange-looking sheep, deer, cows and so on. But none of them matched the characteristics of the green-faced fanged beast.
In other people's eyes, the three team leaders really had … unique hobbies.
"Shao Xuan, these aren't the same?" Duo Kang asked expectantly.
"According to the description, none of them fit the description," said Shao Xuan helplessly.
The three team leaders showed obvious disappointment in their eyes.
Duo Kang thought for a moment, then asked, "Can it only be the green-faced fanged beast? Can't it be other red-faced fanged beasts or white-faced fanged beasts? "
"Actually, there are other fearsome beasts that can do it but those are the Gongjia family's secret techniques. I've never seen them before and they might not be as effective as the green-faced fanged beast. However, there is one that can beat the green-faced fanged beast. I've seen it before."
"What is it?!" The three team leaders craned their necks like chickens waiting to be slaughtered.
"Stone worms," said Shao Xuan.
"That's easy!" Ta grinned.
"Anything above the fearsome beast level," continued Shao Xuan.
Ta fell silent.
They had never seen fearsome beast level stone worms before. Even if they did, they wouldn't emerge from the ground. They couldn't possibly dig into the ground to look for them, could they? The worms would probably run away before they could dig anything up. It would be extremely difficult.
As for king level beasts, Zheng Luo and the rest didn't dare to take the risk. Wouldn't that be suicide?
"… Then let's look for the green-faced fanged beast. I don't believe we can't find one in this entire forest! "Duo Kang didn't look at the prey anymore. He ran towards the smelting room.
Guigou and Ta followed suit. They were equally anxious. To them, metal was a new experience.
Watching them leave, Shao Xuan pondered. There were no green-faced fanged beasts or stone worms. Were there any other suitable fearsome beasts? The Gongjia ancestors couldn't have tried every type, right?
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