Chapter 41

Lu Yu didn’t cook all the lion meat for everyone to have an extra meal. He kept a piece of leg meat and planned to preserve it using a traditional method, in case there was a need for it in the future. He first rubbed salt powder all over the surface of the meat, then stored it in a cool, shady place where it wouldn’t be exposed to the sun.

In fact, it wasn’t just the lion meat this time; he also considered making some cured meat and pickled meat for storage. Lu Yu arranged the meat and planned to make a drying rack for it tomorrow, which he could easily do by himself.

After finishing this task, he went outside for a walk, checking if all the bonfires were extinguished and if there were any night watchers. The Matais had never experienced a fire, so they didn’t know how terrifying it could be when it got out of control. He needed to keep an eye on it.

After everything was tidied up and he had a simple wash, Lu Yu returned to his small wooden house, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep.

A vast expanse of white mist.

Lu Yu skillfully found the wooden house of the “Control Room,” pushed the door open, and entered, calling up the game panel.

[Beginner Combat Training Ground]

[Number of Participants: 57]

[Current Training Items: Formation/Fighting/Archery/Riding/Physical Fitness]

[Please select the open items]

Except for the night watchers, everyone else, including Shi Tou and Xiao Shui, entered the training ground. After all, they were different from ordinary children. Although Lu Yu hoped they could have a happy childhood, he also hoped they could become strong as soon as possible to protect themselves.

Lu Yu clicked on the number of participants.

A list with avatars was vertically displayed.

Just like a friend list in a chat software.

The avatars were taken automatically by the panel when Lu Yu selected the participants during the day.

Lu Yu first selected a few children like Cha Zhe, Shi Tou and Xiao Shui and assigned them physical fitness tasks. Then he picked Xia Cao and a few Matai women, assigning them the archery tasks, while the rest, except for Tai Lie, were assigned to combat training. These arrangements were discussed with them beforehand.

Lu Yu also utilized his limited gaming knowledge:

Warrior = Tank

Archer = DPS

(“DPS” typically stands for “Damage Per Second” in gaming contexts. It refers to the amount of damage dealt by a character, weapon, or ability over the span of one second)

He himself took on the role of a nanny responsible for producing healing pills…

As for Tai Lie, Lu Yu assigned him to the formation training to see how he would perform.

In Lu Yu’s opinion, formations were mainly used in ancient large-scale battlefields involving tens of thousands of people. Since there were only around sixty Matais now, they probably wouldn’t need formations, but it was good to take a look first, as they might learn something.

After everything was arranged, Lu Yu went to the physical fitness training himself.

Physical fitness training was different from combat training, mainly involving various basic exercises.

Lu Yu had visited the dreams of different people, and the panel intelligently tailored various training programs and durations based on each person’s physical condition. However, they all seemed quite basic, probably because the training ground was still low-level.

After an intense day, Lu Yu continued training diligently in his dreams at night, showing great determination.

One night passed.

Lu Yu woke up leisurely, about to stretch lazily when he felt some soreness in his arm muscles. It was the lingering pain after intense exercise, but it wasn’t too uncomfortable, more like being well massaged. Although it felt nice, the effect might be compromised.

Lu Yu got up energetically, washed his face with clear water, and brushed his teeth with a plant containing small thorns dipped in salt powder. He had seen Matais brushing their teeth by squeezing the juice of a certain fruit into their mouths, holding it for a while, then spitting it out, and rinsing their mouths several times with clean water. Lu Yu had tried it, but the taste of the fruit juice was strange, so he preferred his own method.

After washing his face, he checked on the meat he had prepared last night and turned them over.

After airing for two or three days, they would be ready for the next step. Today, Lu Yu didn’t go hunting with the hunting team. Besides having other tasks to do, the Matais seemed to be on high alert. As soon as he mentioned “hunting today…”, Shan Pu and the others scattered far away.

“Witch, you were frightened yesterday, better rest well today.”

“Yeah, with us here, there’s no need for you to worry about hunting.”

“We’ll bring back lots and lots of prey. Witch, you don’t need to worry.”

“That’s right…”

Even Xia Cao, who usually respected his opinions, came out to speak, “Witch, today you just need to rest in the village…”

Seeing their panicked faces, Lu Yu found it somewhat amusing. “I didn’t say I was going. I just reminded you to be careful while hunting, don’t stray too far, and the same goes for Shan Pu, don’t lure the beasts too far away.”

Hearing this, the Matais collectively breathed a sigh of relief. Lu Yu distributed the healing pill to them.

After sending off the hunting team, Lu Yu called Xia Cao and went to the valley. However, instead of going directly into the valley, he surveyed the surroundings first.

The valley was neither too big nor too small; it was spacious enough for several hundred people to live comfortably, but with farming, it became a bit crowded. So, he needed to find suitable land around to cultivate rice.

Fortunately, there was plenty of flat land nearby.

After selecting the land, Lu Yu entered the valley and greeted the people inside, asking them to gather everyone for wild fruit picking, fishing, and material collection.

Someone asked curiously, “Is there something you want to discuss with us?”

Lu Yu got straight to the point, “I’m here today to tell you a few things. First of all, I’m actually a witch.”

Lu Yu had considered whether to reveal his identity as a witch to the people in the valley. He had already taught them many things and demonstrated his unique abilities. If someone wanted to harm him, whether he disclosed his identity as a witch wouldn’t matter. If everyone could work together without any suspicions, revealing his identity might even strengthen cohesion and, most importantly, make them trust him more.

Some people were puzzled, seemingly not understanding what Lu Yu was saying. Some knowledgeable individuals covered their mouths in shock and exclaimed, “You’re actually a witch!”

Lu Yu nodded. Those who understood what a witch represented began frantically explaining to those around them.

“A witch is a very powerful person.”

“They can predict the weather and heal illnesses.”

“They’re very rare; even large tribes may not have a witch.”

“I can’t believe I’m seeing one alive.”

Lu Yu tried to maintain a smile. When everyone seemed to have grasped the concept, he cleared his throat and said, “Ahem, the second thing I want to tell you all is that I can teach you how to cultivate a type of food. When this food is grown, you can harvest a lot of it, enough to feed everyone and store for a long time.”

People were puzzled, “Cultivate?”

Lu Yu briefly explained to them what cultivation meant.

The crowd was ecstatic; some people’s faces even turned red. “Can we really grow food?”

Lu Yu smiled, “Yes, you can. In fact, wild fruits and vegetables can also be grown, but they cannot be stored for long, nor do they provide enough sustenance.”

The crowd clenched their fists, excited and overwhelmed. They were originally slaves of the Blackwater Tribe, living at the bottom. Their daily food consisted of some wild fruits they found, but these fruits were mostly water and couldn’t fill them up. Moreover, they couldn’t be stored for long. In such dire circumstances, they even considered eating dirt. Now someone was telling them that food could be grown, and not only could they grow a lot of it, but they could also store it.

At this moment, if Lu Yu hadn’t mentioned he was a witch, they might have even thought he was a deity.

Lu Yu continued, “I’ve already found suitable land for planting rice. I’ll take you to see it later and teach you how to cultivate. Now, besides this, there’s one more thing I want to tell you all.”

The crowd hadn’t fully recovered from their excitement just now and asked blankly, “What is it?”

Lu Yu asked, “Does anyone here know how to make utensils and weapons?”

People shook their heads, and someone sighed in frustration, “We can only make some simple stone tools, like stone chips and stone cones. As for weapons, we can barely manage with stone axes and spears…” They didn’t know how to make better stone tools and weapons; they had no place to learn, and no one to teach them.

Lu Yu said, “I can teach you.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire crowd fell silent for a few seconds, then everyone became restless.

“What, what? You can even do that?”

The people in the valley were completely stunned.

Lu Yu had a serious expression, “Tonight, I will teach you how to make these things in your dreams. If you see anything unusual, don’t be surprised, just follow along and learn.”

Someone swallowed nervously, “Learn in… dreams?”

Lu Yu was solemn, “During the day, we all have other things to do. Learning in dreams can save time and is more convenient.”

“Oh, I see. Alright, no problem.”

The people in the valley couldn’t come up with anything else to say and could only nod in agreement. The impact on them today was too great. In the future, they would not only be able to easily fill their stomachs but also learn how to make utensils and weapons.

Someone nudged the person beside them, “Hey, did you hear what the witch just said? Am I dreaming?”

The person beside them rolled their eyes, “You couldn’t dream up something this good even if you tried.”

“Yeah, that’s right! Haha, so that means it’s all real!” The person burst into laughter.

—

After waiting for their emotions to calm down, Lu Yu took them to the location he had found. Growing rice well wasn’t easy, and they didn’t have farming tools at the moment. They relied solely on manpower and simple stone tools, and they only had a limited amount of rice seeds. So Lu Yu’s teaching was particularly meticulous, and before they knew it, the day had passed.

Lu Yu returned to the village, his back aching from the day’s work. It had been a long time since he had done this kind of labor, and for a moment, he found it hard to bear, his back sore.

Xia Cao worried, “Witch, is your back okay?”

Lu Yu smiled, “It’s fine, just a little tired.”

Tai Lie, returning from hunting, set down the game on his shoulders and looked up to see Lu Yu rubbing his back, barely managing to smile as he talked to Xia Cao.

Furrowing his brow, he walked over, “Is something wrong?”

The two turned around.

Suddenly, Xia Cao remembered something, her eyes lighting up, “Witch, why don’t you let Chief massage your back!”

Lu Yu looked puzzled, “Huh?”

Xia Cao continued, “Chief can do this! Before, whenever Shan Pu and the others sprained their legs or backs, Chief would help massage them! It’ll be quick!”

Lu Yu realized what she meant and waved his hand like a fan, “No need, no need.”

Just a touch yesterday had… If he received an actual massage…

Xia Cao, very considerate and gentle, persuaded, “Witch, for minor injuries like this, I know you’re reluctant to use pills, but if you leave minor injuries untreated, what if they become major injuries? It’s better to massage them.”

Lu Yu stuttered, “I, I can do it myself—” His words were interrupted.

“Lu Yu, come to the stone house tonight,” Tai Lie said calmly, cutting him off.