The first year of the formation of the Vine Tribe, spring, March 2nd.
In the southern forest of the Vine Tribe, over a dozen Big Horned Sheep were grazing while warily observing their surroundings, ready to flee at the slightest disturbance.
These Big Horned Sheep had brown fur and were massive, with adult Big Horned Sheep weighing over five hundred pounds.
The most distinctive characteristic of the Big Horned Sheep was the pair of large, curved horns on its head, resembling the size of bison horns rather than the slender nature of regular sheep horns.
"Whoosh!"
Suddenly, an arrow flew through the gaps in the branches and leaves of a large tree, shooting towards one of the Big Horned Sheep like lightning.
"Baa!"
The arrow struck the Big Horned Sheep in the belly, and it let out a miserable cry, then, with the arrow buried in its stomach, it started to run away.
The sheep herd was thrown into chaos.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."
At this moment, from two other directions, four more arrows were shot out, with two hitting the same Big Horned Sheep, while the other two missed.
The Big Horned Sheep herd began to run wildly, especially the two that were hit by arrows, crying out miserably as they ran, heedless of direction.
"Chase!"
Jiang Xuan jumped down from a big tree, slung his bow over his back, and with a Bamboo Spear in hand, quickly ran after the herd.
Chi Shao, Gou Teng, Shi Qiu, and Nan Xing also jumped down from their trees, chasing along with Jiang Xuan.
Fortunately, they were all One-Color Warriors now, much more robust than ordinary people, otherwise it would have been difficult to catch up with the fast-running Big Horned Sheep herd.
As time passed, the two Big Horned Sheep that had been hit by arrows began to slow down due to severe blood loss from their wounds caused by the vigorous activity, and eventually fell heavily.
After the two Big Horned Sheep collapsed, Jiang Xuan and the others quickly caught up and finished them off to ensure their death.
Chi Shao used a bamboo tube he carried and collected the fresh sheep blood from their necks, intending to take it back and cook it rather than drinking it raw as they used to.
The other four did the same; none of them drank the raw blood.
Due to the lack of salt, the blood of mammals like Big Horned Sheep could replenish the necessary salt lost after intense exercise, so drinking blood was normal for the tribe people.
Since Jiang Xuan informed them, under the guise of an elder from a dream, that drinking raw blood could lead to illness, Chi Shao and the others stopped drinking raw blood and took it back to cook it before consuming it.
Jiang Xuan extracted the arrow from a Big Horned Sheep's belly, wiped off the blood, and said, "The archery training indeed paid off; hunting these large prey is much easier than before."
Chi Shao agreed, "Yes, the bow and arrow have a long range, catching the prey off guard; it's much better than throwing short spears and Stone Throwing Ropes."
Gou Teng happily looked at the two Big Horned Sheep and said, "Such big horns would look great hanging on the wall."
The tribe people liked using horns, teeth, feathers, and other parts of their prey to decorate houses and themselves, and the youths were no exception.
They planned to take the complete skulls back and hang them on the bamboo house walls as decorations.
Jiang Xuan said, "Let's find some vines to tie them up first, and then find two poles to carry them back."
"Yes, Chieftain."
The five of them immediately got busy.
A few minutes later, the two Big Horned Sheep were tied up, and the poles to carry them were found, ready for the journey home.
Suddenly, from afar came a faint "woo woo" howling sound.
Jiang Xuan held his breath and listened; he was familiar with that sound because it was the noise made by tribe people when driving away prey.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."
Jiang Xuan quickly climbed the tallest nearby tree, stood above the jungle, and heard the sound more clearly, mixed with the cries of beasts.
Due to the dense trees, Jiang Xuan could hear the sound but could not see anyone, only a flock of startled birds.
Jiang Xuan climbed down and gravely said to Chi Shao, "Those people's hunting range is getting closer to this area; sooner or later, they will find our tribe's location."
When Jiang Xuan first saw smoke from campfires, he knew that outsiders had also come to this forest.
Gradually, they could see smoke more often, coming closer, and now they could even hear the sounds of hunting.
This made Jiang Xuan anxious; the Vine Tribe had worked hard to achieve a better life, and he could not tolerate having everything destroyed.
Chi Shao comforted him, "With the Vine God here, even if they find us, they won't easily attack because they won't gain much even if they take over the Vine Tribe."
Jiang Xuan nodded. Chi Shao had a point; there were only five of them, and they hadn't settled long enough to accumulate many resources.
If the outsiders realized that attacking would cost them heavily, they might not attack so easily.
However, Jiang Xuan was unsure about the old vine's nature and could not guarantee it would protect them if the time came.
For his safety, he couldn't rely entirely on the old vine; he needed to find ways to protect himself.
"Let's head back."
Jiang Xuan and Chi Shao picked up one Big Horned Sheep, while Gou Teng and Shi Qiu carried the other, with the youngest, Nan Xing, on guard duty.
Half a day later, the five returned to the bamboo house, where the two Big Horned Sheep were quickly processed.
The sheepskins were stripped, dried, and soaked to make Beast Hide Clothing for winter or bed coverings.
As the three youths desired, the sheep heads were cleaned of meat to be used as decorations.
The mutton was cut into pieces, hung over the fire, and smoked day and night to prevent spoilage.
The sheep bones were used to make Bone Knives, Bone Spears, Bone Plows, and other weapons and tools.
Almost every part of the Big Horned Sheep was effectively utilized, with even the inedible parts thrown into fish traps as bait.
The tribespeople, living in a resource-scarce environment, wasted nothing that could be used.
After processing the two Big Horned Sheep, Jiang Xuan and the others had a hearty meal, gaining the energy to continue working.
"I plan to dig a tunnel under our bamboo bed so that if the outsiders attack, we can temporarily hide in the tunnel."
Jiang Xuan shared his idea with Chi Shao and the others.
The inspiration for digging tunnels came from his previous life's knowledge of the tunnel warfare.
During wartime, civilians used their ingenuity to the fullest for survival.
They dug tunnels beneath stoves, beds, cabinets, and other hidden spots in their homes.
Whenever the enemy approached, they would hide in the tunnels, eluding them, and resume their lives after the enemy left.
Jiang Xuan intended to dig a simple tunnel for self-protection, believing that, if done discreetly, with the tribespeople's limited awareness, it would be hard for them to discover it.
Chi Shao's eyes lit up after hearing this and said, "That's a good idea; I agree."
"We agree too."
Jiang Xuan nodded, "Great, we'll take turns digging the tunnel starting today."
Without delay, Jiang Xuan grabbed a Bone Plow, moved a bamboo bed aside, and began to dig.
Thanks to increased strength and improved tools, although there were many bamboo roots underground, Jiang Xuan made quick progress.
Chi Shao used a vine basket to carry the dug-out soil to the field outside.
From that day on, two of them would dig the tunnel daily, while others hunted, fished, or farmed.
Days later, the Vine Tribe's bamboo house had a tunnel inside that continued to widen and deepen.
With this tunnel, they could hide temporarily when facing insurmountable danger, ensuring their survival.