Yú Zhōu was praised, feeling a bit embarrassed but still sitting with a straight back. These days, under Yú Sū's repeated requests, he had learned to sit upright unconsciously, giving him a dignified appearance beyond his years.
The chief witch of the Barbarian Tribe, envious, sincerely believed that Yú Zhōu's future would be extraordinary. He inquired about Jiǎn Yúnchuān and Lù Yàn, asking if there was any urgent matter for their absence.
Yú Sū replied, "Indeed, there are some matters."
The chief witch expressed regret but didn't press for details. He warmly entertained Yú Sū and asked for his thoughts on the Beast God Festival.
Yú Sū replied, "Very impressive."
The chief witch showed a hint of pride, "This is a festival passed down through generations in our Barbarian Tribe, a benevolent gift from Lord Beast God."
However, this year, the mystical power granted by Lord Beast God seemed to linger unusually long. Yú Sū conversed with the chief witch, contemplating the recent events after the Beast God Festival.
After the festival ended, the mysterious power disappeared. Although it was unlikely to reappear, the sudden occurrence left Yú Sū with some thoughts.
[Master, are you alright?]The all-purpose spirit perked up, not forgetting to inquire about Yú Sū's well-being.
"I'm fine, just a bit startled."
[Me too, it's strange. Why would the Beast God be interested in us?]
"Perhaps because I was a guest of honor at this Beast God Festival? I asked the chief witch, and he mentioned that the Barbarian Tribe had never invited outsiders to participate in the festival before."
[Ah? So, are we being noticed because we stood out too much?]
"Possibly."
Yú Sū still felt a bit uneasy.
*
After the visit to the Barbarian Tribe, Yú Sū led his team back to Yú Village, then went to Lu Shen Mountain to consult with Qīng Zé.
Upon hearing Yú Sū's account, Qīng Zé, with a serious gaze, assessed him. Yú Sū, allowing the scrutiny, inquired if Lord Beast God's attention was truly due to the rare appearance of an outsider in the Beast God Festival.
Qīng Zé expressed that regardless, it wouldn't affect anything. Lord Beast God and them had separate domains; Lord Beast God wouldn't actively harm Yú Sū.
Yú Sū cautiously asked, "But what if Lord Beast God intends harm to me?"
Having learned that the gods could communicate with their believers during this period, Yú Sū suddenly felt a bit uneasy, worried that his actions might have drawn unwanted attention.
Qīng Zé assured him that if any deity were to unjustly harm Yú Sū, it wouldn't turn a blind eye. If Qīng Zé couldn't handle it, he would report it to higher authorities.
Yú Sū, pleasantly surprised, widened his eyes slightly and leaned towards Qīng Zé, asking in a low voice, "Really? So, does that mean I have divine protection now?"
Qīng Zé chuckled lightly.
Yú Sū said, "...?"
Approaching Qīng Zé again, Yú Sū stared at him seriously, "Lord Mountain God, I thought I heard something strange just now. Was it you?"
It was peculiar; it clearly sounded like a human voice.
Qīng Zé used his deer hoof to push Yú Sū away, using his gaze to warn him not to get too close.
Yú Sū, seeing no response from Qīng Zé, began to doubt if he had misheard.
...
After leaving Lu Shen Mountain, Yú Sū asked the all-purpose spirit, "Little All, did you hear anything just now?"
The all-purpose spirit hadn't paid much attention to what Yú Sū and Qīng Zé were discussing, so it didn't notice any peculiar sounds.
Yú Sū said, "Maybe I misheard."
Yú Sū didn't dwell on this matter and first went to check the salt fields. After inspecting the salt field's operation, he returned to the village.
This year's harvest was complete, and the rice, after thorough drying and cleaning, was now stored in the warehouse, which was filled to the brim.
The hemp had also been harvested, and Xīn Yà and the others were leading the slaves in sun-drying the hemp.
The slaves, living a more comfortable life in Yú Village than in their previous settlements, had left their past behind and were eager to perform well, aspiring to become official residents of Yú Village.
Inspired by the slave who had risked their life to save the members of the merchant caravan, they now eagerly volunteered for dangerous tasks, hoping to achieve great feats.
Based on the discussions among the slaves, Yú Sū had Yú Fēng record the different attitudes, focusing on those with acceptable character. As long as they earned merits, Yú Sū would officially allow them to become residents.
So far, over ten slaves had gained official status.
This made the other slaves envy them.
During work, they became even more diligent.
Yú Sū no longer needed to worry about these matters. Yú Fēng and the others took care of it.
His main focus now was teaching reading and writing and imparting medical knowledge at the medical office.
After a period of learning, the adults had made significant progress in reading and writing. Even Yú Měng, who used to fidget a lot, could now seriously write twenty large characters.
In the medical office, with the help of the information provided by the all-purpose spirit, Yú Sū selected suitable medicinal formulas and compiled a book titled "Basic Medicinal Formulas."
It was a thick book, and Yú Fēng and the others cherished it. Upon realizing that even as former witch doctors, they had many characters they couldn't recognize, they attended Yú Sū's daily teachings to learn more characters.
However, Yú Sū had originally planned to teach only ten adults, but now, with the addition of the medical office personnel, the number had increased.
Now, Yú Sū primarily taught about thirty adults. Yú Fēng and the others were quick learners.
After some time, Yú Sū noticed Yú Shān and the others discussing something. They were probably discussing the medicinal formulas they couldn't understand. To address this, Yú Sū decided to annotate the names of certain herbs, as the common names used by people differed from the names in the formulas.
"It's commonly known as redback grass," Yú Sū said to Shān Yáng.
"That means I didn't recognize it wrong. Thank you, Lord Yú Sū," Shān Yáng said, preparing to take the "Basic Medicinal Formulas" back for further study.
Yú Sū stopped him, "Wait, some of the herb names differ from common usage. Help me identify them, and I'll make notes."
Shān Yáng agreed.
After proofreading for a few days, Yú Sū made the necessary annotations. He handed the revised "Basic Medicinal Form
ulas" back to Shān Yáng and the others, allowing them to continue their research.
"Lord Yú Sū, you mentioned that there are many rarer herbs in the eastern mountains. When can we go to collect them?" Shān Yáng proposed.
Yú Sū replied, "The eastern mountains are more dangerous. You shouldn't go. I'll send someone to collect them."
It was also a convenient time to replenish some of the herbs.
Yú Sū summoned Lù Yàn and instructed him to organize the cultivators. Anyone at the Foundation Establishment stage or higher had to enter the eastern mountains for training.
Yú Village now had around thirty cultivators. Ten of them had reached the Foundation Establishment stage, and the rest had not fully opened their acupuncture points. It was still risky for them to face magical beasts, and Yú Sū didn't want them to confront magical beasts too soon.
Upon hearing about the upcoming training in the eastern mountains, Yú Měng and the others were excited. They hadn't officially faced magical beasts yet.
Moreover, the eastern mountains held abundant resources. Anything they collected could be exchanged for points at the administration office, allowing them to obtain various items.
Lù Yàn personally led the group.
He also needed a breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage and required more combat experience.
Yú Sū handed him the horn that the Barbarian Tribe had given him. "We don't have signaling charms or signal flares for now. Use this horn as a substitute. If you encounter an insurmountable danger, blow the horn, and I'll come to rescue you immediately."
Lù Yàn nodded. He hung the horn on his waist and set off with his team.
Jiǎn Yúnchuān was also in the team. As Yú Zhōu watched them leave, he asked Yú Sū when he could go for training.
"Let's talk about it after you've opened all your acupuncture points."
Yú Zhōu hung his head. He had only opened six acupuncture points so far, and opening all of them seemed like a distant goal.
...
In the eastern mountains.
Yú Měng and the others followed Lù Yàn to the foot of the mountains.
"Split into two groups. One group follows Yú Měng, and the other follows me. Don't get too far apart. If you encounter danger, call for help immediately. Search the periphery for now before entering the mountains."
"Yes."
After dividing the groups, Lù Yàn led his team into the mountains.
The eastern mountains were vast, and there were still quite a few low-level magical beasts hiding there. It was due to Yú Sū's presence that these beasts hadn't come to the plains near the river in the past couple of years. Most of them remained concealed deep in the mountains.
On this day, the magical beasts in the mountains sensed the presence of human intruders again.
"A group of demonic beasts were startled and ran to spread the news.
'They are people from the Great River Plain!'
'Is it that ominous star?'
'I didn't see it clearly, but I hurriedly ran.'
'...'
While the demonic beasts were hiding everywhere in fear, Lu Yan and his group had already begun collecting resources.
In the eastern mountain range, the most abundant spiritual herb is the Huiyuan Grass. Besides that, there are some herbs that may lack spiritual energy but are still relatively rare, all worth collecting.