Yan Mo got a scoop of water, but he had to resist the urge to swallow it all at once. Instead, he forced himself to drink slowly.While Yan Mo was drinking, the man spoke to Fat Dog, who had just come over, and took something tied to the grass rope around his waist and handed it to the burly man with the slightly protruding belly.Fat Dog nodded, stuffed it away, then walked straight into the straw hut and dragged out a seriously injured beast that looked like a dog with a broken leg. He then slit its throat.The man looked at Yan Mo, who was still drinking from the wooden scoop. He took the scoop from Yan Mo's hand, filled it with blood from the beast's neck, and handed it back to him."Drink!"Drink beast blood…Well, that was also a way to replenish salt and nutrients.Yan Mo endured the nausea and silently lifted the scoop, drinking the blood inside.He did not know whether this body had already grown used to such a diet, but although he felt psychologically disgusted, he did not actually feel the urge to vomit.During this time, the man had gone to pick some cirsium leaves and stuffed them into Yan Mo's hands.After wiping his lips, Yan Mo sincerely thanked the man. Even though this was the same man who had pulled his hair and dragged him around, he still thanked him anyway.The man grabbed Yan Mo's arm, checked his broken leg, and replaced the iron shackle with a rope loop.Yan Mo silently thanked him in his heart. Being chained in iron shackles had been terribly uncomfortable. If this man dared to take him in and treat him decently, then Yan Mo would at least have a chance to survive.It was not comfortable to be dragged by the armpits, but Yan Mo endured the pain and took the opportunity to observe the surroundings.This was not a harmonious tribe.That was Yan Mo's first impression of this place.Back in the square, aside from speaking a few words to Fat Dog, the man had not exchanged greetings with anyone else. The men and women around him had barely even looked at him, and naturally no one greeted him either.From the square, Yan Mo could see a very large fenced settlement. The people here lived in tents made of animal skins. The arrangement of the tents looked almost planned, with a wide dirt road in the middle large enough for two carts to pass side by side, and tents lined up on both sides.There were people at the entrances of the tents and on the road, but Yan Mo did not see this man talking to anyone, and no one spoke to him either. Most of the people walking along the road moved in silence, while those sitting by the tents were busy with their own tasks.The square seemed to be located in the middle of the settlement. The tents below the square looked smaller and rougher, while those above it were larger and neater.The man did not walk very far before dragging Yan Mo into a side path.Yan Mo secretly looked around as he was dragged along. Among all the tents he had seen, some were clearly much better than others. There were even warriors in leather skirts guarding a few of the larger tents.This settlement seemed to be built along a gentle slope. Yan Mo guessed that the people living lower down the slope were the poor, the weak, and the slaves, while the higher one went, the higher the status of the household.The man who had brought him back clearly held some status in this tribe.Yan Mo paid close attention to the layout. After turning into the side path from the main road, the man's tent was located in the fourth row, near the very end.The spacing between the rows of tents was even, almost like military barracks, but the men and women working outside them were obviously not soldiers.Most of the people here wore only leather skirts or grass skirts around their waists. The women were bare-chested. Children ran around wearing only strips of cloth or grass. A few old people were completely naked.The settlement was not completely silent. Children shouted, adults called out to each other, and from time to time there were screams or cries coming from inside certain tents."Yuan Zhan, weren't you talking about bringing back meat? What is this?"At last, someone greeted the man.The man called Yuan Zhan dragged Yan Mo to the entrance of his tent and replied, "The meat wasn't dead yet, so I brought it back."The newcomer was a man slightly shorter than Yuan Zhan, also with a tattoo on his face.Because of the angle, Yan Mo could clearly see the large bulge hanging under the man's leather skirt."Brought that back? As a slave?" The man poked Yan Mo's face with obvious disappointment. "What use is he, injured like that? Even if he's a boy, he still can't do much work."Yuan Zhan opened the curtain of his tent and casually replied, "He costs nothing. Free labor.""It's free, yes, but…" The man changed the subject. "Actually, I came looking for you about something.""Wait a minute."Yuan Zhan stepped around Yan Mo, took a stone scoop from a large stone water tank outside the tent, dragged Yan Mo beside it, and poured water over his injured leg.The cold water shocked Yan Mo back to full awareness, and he could not help groaning.Yuan Zhan paid no attention to his reaction. He poured the water directly over the writhing insects and the rotten flesh, then reached straight toward the wound."Ah—!"Yan Mo screamed.Yuan Zhan did not care whether it hurt or not. He simply washed off the foul-smelling dirt and wanted to carry Yan Mo inside his tent."I'll call my slave to help you clean him up," the other man said. He glanced toward the neighboring tent and shouted, "Cao Ting, come here!"A female slave with nothing covering her upper body emerged from the next tent."Wash him properly. Don't waste water!""Yes, Da Ren," the female slave answered. From where she stood, she could already see the water scoop in Yuan Zhan's hand.Seeing that the slave had taken over cleaning Yan Mo, Yuan Zhan was happy to save himself the trouble. He beckoned to the other man. "Come."The other man followed Yuan Zhan into the tent, and the curtain dropped closed behind them.There were not many things inside the tent. At the far end, a few large stones served as a base for a bed made of straw and animal fur. In the middle was a square stone that seemed to be used as a table. There were no stools; people simply sat cross-legged around it.Two spears hung on one side of the tent wall, along with several sharpened bones and a few leather skirts. Near the corner by the curtain were piles of bones and fur. Yan Mo did not know whether it was because of those things, but the whole tent had a strange, unpleasant smell."Why?" the man asked after sitting down cross-legged.Yuan Zhan understood what he meant and smiled. "Because even though he's injured like that, he didn't collapse right away. He even smiled at me. This kid will probably make a very patient slave.""Really?" The man thought for a moment, then glanced toward Yuan Zhan's left side.Yuan Zhan's eyes lowered slightly before lifting again. "What are you here for?"The man immediately put on an annoyed expression. "The tribe has summoned all the third-rank fighters to meet with the chief and the elders. They want to expand the hunting grounds. The areas they want overlap with other people's hunting zones. If the elders approve it, we'll have to fight for them. But those areas don't have much profit in them, and we're short on people. It'll be even harder to wrestle a level beast and become fourth-rank."Yuan Zhan tapped his knee. "It's not just about advancing. Getting enough food for the winter is already a problem.""That's true. Still, you know how to survive better than most. If that one can't live, you can always kill him in winter. As your personal slave, at least you won't have to divide his meat with the tribe.""You didn't come here just to complain about my slave. What do you really want?""Complain?" The man leaned closer to Yuan Zhan, lowering his voice. "I came to ask whether you want to…"Outside the tent, Yan Mo forced a smile at Cao Ting the moment she came near him."Sister, do you think… I could get some help? I learned healing from a priest."Cao Ting was a very gentle female slave. Seeing the cold sweat on Yan Mo's face from the pain, she could not help reaching out to wipe it away."You're a disciple of a healing priest?" she asked in surprise. "Then how did you end up… being brought back as a slave?""I'm from the Salt Mountain Tribe. Our people were attacked, and we lost our home. We were attacked by wild beasts while migrating…"There was no need for him to say more. Cao Ting had already understood why he was here. Sympathy and helplessness appeared in her eyes."What is your name?""My name is Yan Mo.""Yan Mo? Then I'll call you Little Mo. You can call me Cao Ting.""Sister Cao Ting." Yan Mo completely ignored his real age and did his best to take advantage of this body's younger appearance."Sister, can you help me boil a pot of water? I need it." With Cao Ting's help, Yan Mo struggled into a sitting position.Outside the tent was a fire pit, and beside it stood a water tank. For safety, the cooking fire pit was set next to the water supply.The pot was not metal, but a large stone pot hollowed out of rock. It looked extremely heavy, yet Cao Ting lifted it onto the fire pit with ease."Sister, do you have a knife here?""Yes. Wait, I'll get one." A carefully polished stone knife was a valuable item and would not be left lying around outside."Sister, wait. Is there…" Whatever Yan Mo wanted to say next was swallowed back. He did not think they would understand the word for needle.Cao Ting asked, "What else do you need?""Wood. If there are no planks, sticks are fine.""How large?" Cao Ting asked. "If I need bigger pieces of wood, I'll need Da Ren's permission.""Branches are fine too." Yan Mo had already made a rough plan. He described the length and thickness he needed, then added, "And some straw rope… and some salt…""There isn't much salt. Da Ren has to allow it." Cao Ting could find him some branches easily enough, but she did not dare give him salt without permission. She could only call softly toward the tent for her master.The other man soon came out with Yuan Zhan. After hearing what Yan Mo needed, Yuan Zhan personally fetched some salt from inside the tent.The other man left, while Cao Ting remained to help Yan Mo.Yuan Zhan handed the salt to Cao Ting, then took his spear and headed back out. It was not dark yet. He wanted to see if he could still catch some prey or gather fruit before evening. Besides, because he had brought Yan Mo back, he now had one more mouth to feed, and he would have to hand over twenty percent of any extra catch to the tribe.As they waited for the water to boil, Cao Ting quietly explained some things to Yan Mo.The highest-ranking warriors in this tribe were fourth-rank fighters. Only a fourth-rank fighter could become chief. Third-rank fighters had to take turns hunting and provide prey to the tribe according to the amount assigned to them. On days when it was not their turn, they could go out hunting for themselves. Anything they brought back had to be divided, with twenty percent given to the tribe and the remaining eighty percent kept by the hunter.That sounded good in theory, but the beasts near the tribe were powerful, and few could be hunted alone. The closer hunting grounds had fewer beasts, and the weaker the warrior, the poorer the ground he was assigned.Sometimes warriors who were not on rotation would join together to hunt, but in order to protect the tribe's overall survival, they could only hunt in the zones assigned by the tribe or in unclaimed wilderness.Those without combat ability were responsible for all other work. Civilians without combat power included the old and the weak.Slaves were divided into two kinds. One kind belonged to the tribe. These slaves did the hardest and dirtiest work—farming, grazing animals, preparing hides, grinding stone, and so on. Sometimes, during winter, they were even used as reserve food.Warriors above second rank could have private slaves of their own. A second-rank warrior could have one slave, and a third-rank warrior could have two. The higher the rank, the more slaves and wealth a warrior could possess. A personal slave generally lived better than a tribe slave. If the master was decent, a private slave could even live better than some civilians. But if the master was cruel, life would be even more miserable.The tribe did not provide rations for private slaves. If a warrior wanted one, he had to feed it himself."My master is called Yuan Diao," Cao Ting said. "Only warriors can have the tribe's surname. Our tribe is called the Yuan Tribe. It's said that our people have lived on this grassland and along the desert edge for hundreds of years. We're one of the larger tribes nearby. You said you're from the Salt Mountain Tribe—I know of them. Your tribe was larger than ours originally. We've traded with them before. Maybe you'll see your people again someday on a trading day."Yan Mo understood her meaning.She was trying to comfort him.But as long as the Zhi people never appeared in front of him, he did not care about seeing any of them again."Are you really going to use herbs?" Cao Ting asked curiously."Yes." Since Yuan Zhan's tent did not contain proper grinding tools, Yan Mo had to make do with whatever he could find. He asked for a small stone pot, a thick bone stick, and then had Cao Ting crush the cirsium leaves inside the pot.By then, the water had begun to boil.Yan Mo put the stone knife into the boiling water.After sterilizing the knife, he boiled some salt water too.The salt Yuan Zhan had provided was coarse and full of mineral impurities, yellowish-black in color. It could not be used directly, even after boiling. It still needed to be filtered.Then, using the stone knife he had sterilized in boiling water, Yan Mo began scraping away the pus, dead tissue, and even the insects that had infested the wound.The pain was so intense that his hands trembled, but no one here could help him. Cao Ting did not dare look too closely, much less assist him. In places like this, not everyone had the courage to face blood and rot. But for Yan Mo, who had years of medical knowledge and experience, keeping a steady hand was essential."Why did you boil the stone knife?" Cao Ting asked as she watched him scrape and cut at the wound."To disinfect it," Yan Mo answered.He scraped away all the dead flesh and filth from the wound and was just about to wash it with the filtered salt water that had been boiled twice when white light suddenly appeared again in the center of his right palm.Yan Mo looked up at Cao Ting.Fortunately, she was busy shaving down the rough edges of the stick and had not noticed the change in his hand.At that moment, shouting suddenly erupted in the distance.Yan Mo had no time to inspect his palm. Cao Ting stood up and looked toward the noise.The shouting was getting closer.It was running toward their area.Someone dashed past them and shouted loudly toward the tent next to Yuan Zhan's.A woman rushed out of that tent and followed the person immediately. Two children came running after her as well.A moment later, a woman's grief-stricken scream split the air."Da He—!"
