Meng Yuqing left the follow-up work in Xia's capable hands as Xuan led him off the platform.
As soon as they stepped down, several enthusiastic tribe members surrounded them, greeting Meng Yuqing warmly. He instinctively stuck close to Xuan, smiling and responding politely.
Xuan skillfully guided him through the crowd, keeping the more eager members at bay. It wasn't until Xia had a flat stone brought over and placed the three herbs on it for public viewing that the crowd's attention shifted.
"Now everyone can come up and carefully observe the herbs, but you are only allowed to look, not touch. I'll assign guards to ensure this. The herbs will be on display for three days. Hunting and patrol teams will have priority. Make sure to memorize them before heading out tomorrow," Xia announced.
Once they were clear of the crowd, Meng Yuqing let out a sigh of relief and patted his chest.
"They're so enthusiastic!"
"That's because you did something amazing. Everyone likes you," Xuan replied, a smile in his eyes.
Back at the house, Meng Yuqing received a system notification.
Random Task Completed:
Promote Three Herbs
Reward: Energy increased. Please check your energy reserve for details.
Meng Yuqing opened the energy storage space and saw that the mist-like energy had increased slightly, but it was still far from enough to make any purchases in the system's shop.
Closing the storage screen, he started pondering potential uses for Wu Thorn Grass and ways to discover new herbs. The medicinal properties of this world's plants were far greater than he had expected. Saving Luo yesterday had been a desperate gamble, as he hadn't been entirely sure the herbs would work. Thankfully, their potency had pulled through.
The Next Morning
Meng Yuqing grabbed some leftover Wu Thorn Grass and asked Qiuye for a stone bowl and a wooden pestle to use as a mortar and pestle.
Qiuye gave him a disapproving look and refused to let him start experimenting until Xuan returned. Unable to argue, Meng Yuqing had no choice but to pass the time by browsing through the system's Beastworld Encyclopedia.
When Xuan finally returned, he found Meng Yuqing sitting at the door, staring into space.
"What are you thinking about?" Xuan asked, waving a hand in front of his face.
Meng Yuqing snapped out of his thoughts, and upon seeing Xuan, he jumped up in excitement and hugged him tightly.
"You're finally back!"
Caught off guard by the sudden enthusiasm, Xuan froze in place, letting go of the small wild animals he'd brought with him. The animals wasted no time bolting in all directions.
"Catch them! They're important!" Meng Yuqing released Xuan and clapped him on the shoulder before running after the animals himself.
Xuan couldn't let a sub-beastman chase after wild animals, even small ones. He quickly took action, rounding up the fleeing creatures with ease.
Qiuye peeked out from the house to see what the commotion was about, then shook his head and went back inside. "Young people," he muttered to himself. "As long as they get along, it's fine."
After a quick lunch, Xuan prepared to return to the construction site, while Meng Yuqing grabbed the Wu Thorn Grass and his tools, giving Qiuye a hopeful look.
"Fine, fine. Be careful," Qiuye said with a wave of his hand, and Meng Yuqing happily followed Xuan out the door.
"Xuan, what kind of weapons do you usually use?" Meng Yuqing asked cheerfully.
"Weapons? Beastmen don't use weapons. Our teeth and claws are the best weapons," Xuan replied, puzzled.
"Wait, so when you fight or hunt in human form, you don't use anything at all?"
"Why would we fight or hunt in human form? We always use our beast forms," Xuan said matter-of-factly.
That stumped Meng Yuqing. Right—beast forms were the ultimate weapons. But what about sub-beastmen? They didn't have beast forms.
"But sub-beastmen don't have beast forms. Without weapons, we can't protect ourselves at all," Meng Yuqing pointed out.
Xuan froze mid-step and turned to look at him, his eyes filled with a mix of pity and sadness. Meng Yuqing blinked in confusion—what was Xuan imagining now? Last time, he'd assumed Meng Yuqing wasn't an adult. What was it this time?
"We'll protect you. If a beastman can't protect a sub-beastman, they're useless," Xuan said solemnly.
"It's not like that," Meng Yuqing argued. "Even if you're strong enough to fend off any danger, we're still individuals. What if danger strikes when you're not around? Then we'll have no way to fight back."
Realizing what he'd just said, Meng Yuqing quickly clammed up and glanced nervously at Xuan.
Xuan's expression turned melancholic as he gazed at Meng Yuqing.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" Meng Yuqing started.
"You're right," Xuan interrupted.
"So that's what you plan to do with that grass? Make weapons?" Xuan asked, eyeing the Wu Thorn Grass in Meng Yuqing's hands.
"Exactly. If we coat a blade with its juice, even a small wound could paralyze or incapacitate an enemy," Meng Yuqing explained.
"You'll need something sharper than a stone knife for that. Stone tools take too much time to sharpen, wear down easily, and aren't ideal," Xuan said thoughtfully.
"There's no rush. First, I need to test the potency. If it takes too much juice to work, coating weapons might not be practical," Meng Yuqing said.
Xuan nodded in agreement.
At the Construction Site
Mu and Lie were already waiting. After a quick greeting, Xuan got back to work with them, leaving the small wild animals tied securely with vines.
Meng Yuqing sat to the side, using the stone bowl and wooden pestle to crush the Wu Thorn Grass into a paste. Once it was ready, he dipped a small stick into the juice and approached the animals.
Xuan, keeping a watchful eye on him, handed instructions to Lie before joining Meng Yuqing.
"Let me do it. Just tell me what you need," Xuan offered, holding out his hand.
Meng Yuqing eyed the animals, the smallest of which was the size of a large dog. Deciding it was safer to let Xuan handle it, he handed over the tools.
"Apply the juice to their wounds and observe the effects. Be careful not to get it on yourself," Meng Yuqing warned.
"Got it. I'll be careful."
Each animal had minor wounds from being captured. As Xuan approached with the juice, the animals struggled and growled in protest.
Lie paused his work to watch, while Xuan carefully applied the juice to each animal's wound. Both he and Meng Yuqing observed the animals intently.
"System, can you time this?" Meng Yuqing asked.
"Yes, Host. Timing started."
The animals' movements slowed gradually. The smallest one closed its eyes and stopped moving entirely. The others followed suit, their reactions correlating to their sizes. The largest, about the size of a yellow ox, lasted the longest but succumbed in under a minute.
The experiment was a success. Wu Thorn Grass was even more potent than Meng Yuqing had hoped.