Surviving in the chaos of war begins in the wilderness.

Chapter 47 The Harvest of Wheat

The happiest time to haul in the net is the most troublesome time to reap the harvest.

Those four fish traps did indeed burst open one after another, but these kinds of nets are not picky eaters at all. They contain all sorts of things, such as fish, shrimp, crabs, eels, loaches, and even quite a few crayfish from another world.

In the end, Zhou Ye kept some large fish for salted fish and a considerable amount of river shrimp that could be dried. He threw most of the rest back into the river, and the small portion wasn't kept for himself either. It was mainly used to feed the pheasants and ducks.

At this moment, Zhou Ye decided to temporarily halt his hunting plans; saying anything more would be a waste.

Aside from using snares to trap bamboo rats in the bamboo forest, and occasionally setting a few ground cages... I guess we'll wait until the autumn fishing season for the rest.

Next came the training of basic archery skills.

Zhou Ye took out bundles of finished bamboo arrows from the warehouse, and then used the eight-stone bow to shoot them into the air towards the river.

The previous winters were so boring, I bet several thousand of these bamboo arrows have already been made.

However, in basic archery practice, it is essential to shoot with full force, meaning to draw the bow to its maximum extent. The material of bamboo arrows simply cannot withstand that immense speed and force, and they will explode and disintegrate in mid-air.

This also includes the wooden arrows we bought; they couldn't withstand the weight of an eight-stone bow, and would break after only two or three arrows.

Therefore, in future battles, iron-barreled arrows must be used. These are arrows made entirely of iron.

Those iron-pole arrows are quite expensive. So let's make use of these bamboo arrows while practicing! To be honest, it will at least reduce the inventory in the warehouse.

By now, my basic archery skills have reached perfection, and it will take about 50 more days to max out this skill.

So despite having a large number of bamboo arrows, several hundred will be used up every day, lasting only about 10 days at most. Fortunately, there's a decent stock of fish maw and feathers in the little farm, so we can... use those up!

There were actually quite a few areas for improvement in that previous battle.

At such close range, and with my basic archery skills already at a high level, how come I only hit one out of three targets? I guess I should just level up to the maximum as soon as possible!

In addition, there's the fundamental skill. Zhou Ye finally tasted the benefits of a solid foundation.

Take that knife-wielding thief for example. His knife was sharper and stronger, and he was even more skilled in the ten sword techniques of the army. He also had more combat experience.

It was because his basic slashing skill was maxed out. Okay! He also had agility far exceeding that of ordinary martial artists at the entry level, plus the bonus from his basic shield bash, which allowed him to quickly gain the upper hand.

Therefore, Zhou Ye plans to max out all the basic martial arts skills. Regardless of whether there are reward points, he wants to solidify his foundation.

In any case, the experience points gained from practicing inferior martial arts techniques increase much faster. It takes about four months to reach the maximum level of a basic martial arts technique. Spending two years building a solid foundation is definitely worthwhile.

……

In the following days, Zhou Ye stopped fishing and catching birds and began collecting herbs from the mountains and forests.

The areas near my little homestead are already my own private plots, so I can leave them for now; herbs won't just grow legs and run away. Finally, I chose to explore some more unfamiliar areas further away…

That evening, Zhou Ye practiced the Small Wind and Thunder Stance in the courtyard, his Qi and blood constantly surging through the acupoints of his spine.

The spine, also known as the dragon bone, the great dragon, etc., is extremely important in martial arts training. Once all the acupoints along the entire dragon bone are broken through, one can complete the initial stage and progress to mastery.

After two hours of cultivation, Zhou Ye smiled knowingly.

Sure enough, the improvement in physical constitution has had a remarkable effect. Currently, it only takes four days to gain 1 experience point, shortening the time by a full day!

Since the effect is so good, should we add another point to the root bone?

After some thought, Zhou Ye still hesitated. He only had 5 natural attribute points left, which could indeed add 1 point to his constitution. But spending them all at once, without any spare natural attribute points, made him feel uncertain!

So let's hold off for now. We'll do it after we've farmed a few more points, or after we've maxed out the basic archery skill reward.

Next comes the autumn harvest season.

Zhou Ye found it somewhat amusing, though, as the two acres of wheat were no longer really needed. It was simply a matter of following past practice to see things through to the end.

Since crop rotation was no longer necessary, the harvest took only one day. However, the drought did have some impact; the final yield of wheat from two acres was less than 600 jin (300 catties).

With the farmland matter finally settled, Zhou Ye resumed collecting medicinal herbs. Other items had limitations, but herbs were the quickest way to convert them into cash.

You see, Zhou Ye won't be so "cautious" in his upcoming cultivation. He'll definitely need a lot of auxiliary medicinal herbs, as well as medicinal baths to aid his body-tempering technique. Add to that the large amounts of food needed to replenish his qi and blood, and it'll be a constant drain on his finances…

A few days later, Zhou Ye found a clump of dragon root on a hillside, and he happily collected the herbs into a basket.

But just then, several black dots suddenly appeared at the foot of the mountain. It turned out to be a large black bear, followed by two lively bear cubs.

Zhou Ye didn't really have any intention of hunting; he just didn't want to waste those iron arrows.

Currently, whenever Zhou Ye goes into the wild, he always carries three iron-pole arrows, five wooden-pole arrows coated with snake venom, and about twenty other wooden-pole arrows.

Although wooden arrows simply cannot withstand such enormous force, it is not necessary to draw the bow fully; often, drawing it only seven or eight tenths full is sufficient.

Strangely, the large black bear hid the two cubs behind a rock. It clearly noticed Zhou Ye and roared a few times, seemingly as a threat. But after roaring, the large black bear ran into the dense forest behind it without looking back.

"Um?"

Zhou Ye became curious. Ignoring the two mischievous bear cubs, he activated his high agility and followed them from a distance…

Fifteen minutes later, Zhou Ye almost burst out laughing.

A swarm of bees was seen flitting about, chasing and stinging the large black bear. Surprisingly, even as it fled, the bear didn't forget to lick the honey from its paws a few times!

They fled all the way to where the bear cubs were hiding, and then the big black bear stuffed honey into the mouths of the two cubs...

"Huh?" There's honey here?

After observing the surroundings, Zhou Ye discovered a valley in the mountains, where wildflowers were in full bloom, forming a flower field. Surprisingly, there were also many beehives in the valley, making it a paradise for bees.

Since that's the case, then I'll become a honey thief for once!