Chapter 40: A New Day at Black Moon Camp

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After dinner, Zhou Xu was already utterly exhausted from the day’s battle and the repeated use of the Eye of Insight.

He had just finished arranging the night watches for Zhou Chongshan and the others and was preparing to go to sleep when a system notification rang out in his mind…

System Notification: Congratulations! Zhou Xu’s Command has risen to two stars!

Zhou Xu’s face immediately lit up with delight.

After all, he had spent this entire period directing his tribesmen in one task after another. Today, he had even conquered a new camp. It was only natural for his Command to rise to two stars. In truth, his previous one-star rating had been rather low.

Of course, even if he had been mentally prepared for it, there was still every reason to be happy when good news arrived.

Rising from one star to two was relatively easy, but advancing from two to three would be far more difficult.

According to his understanding, two stars still fell within the range of an ordinary person. Once one reached three stars, however, it meant that one’s ability in that particular area was enough to stand out among countless ordinary people.

Even Zhou Chongshan, who had displayed such formidable fighting ability, still had only two stars in Martial Prowess. Zhou Xu had just confirmed it.

He did not dwell on his five-dimensional panel for long before lowering his gaze.

The number of people under his command had more than doubled, rising from the original thirty-one to sixty-eight.

Combat in this era was not especially lethal, since the weapons available were relatively limited in their ability to kill. As a result, it was not actually that easy for someone to die in battle.

Most deaths occurred afterward, when the wounded failed to receive proper treatment and their injuries worsened until they eventually succumbed to illness.

Before setting out, Zhou Xu had already reminded Flying Sparrow and the others to use the fresh water stored in the clay jars to clean the wounds. Given Flying Sparrow’s ability to carry out orders, there was no need for him to worry.

Under these circumstances, the territory under his command had also changed from the Salt Lake Tribe into the Salt Lake Camp and the Black Moon Camp. This was probably the result of the increase in the number of camps under his control.

The discovery of the Black Moon Camp had given Zhou Xu a much clearer plan for what lay ahead.

First of all, they would certainly need to move the vast majority of their people to the Black Moon Camp and develop it as their main settlement.

The reason was self-evident. Food resources were more abundant there, allowing them to provide a relatively stable food supply for a larger population.

At the same time, the surrounding soil was also more suitable for the agricultural plans they would need to implement in the future.

Naturally, as an important resource site producing coal ore and salt, the Salt Lake Camp was not something Zhou Xu would abandon. It would continue to be developed as a resource center.

In simple terms, most of the population would be transferred to the Black Moon Camp, while only the workers and the basic garrison would remain at the Salt Lake Camp.

As these matters slowly occupied his thoughts, Zhou Xu soon drifted into sleep without realizing it.

Although he was sleeping in a newly conquered camp, he still slept soundly that night.

When he awoke, Zhou Xu’s head felt somewhat heavy and muddled. He had probably overused the Word of Truth the previous day and had yet to recover completely.

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He had originally intended to conduct some tests on the Word of Truth known as Skeleton Manipulation today, but it seemed he would have to put that off for a few days.

When he stepped out of the tent, the tribesmen who had only just sworn allegiance were already waiting for him to issue instructions.

Faced with this situation, Zhou Xu began by asking a question.

“What were you responsible for before? You start.”

“I was responsible for fishing.”

“I was a fisherman too.”

“I was responsible for gathering supplies.”

“…”

Listening to their answers, Zhou Xu nodded slightly.

“Good. I understand. You and you—starting today, you will be responsible for fishing. You will handle gathering supplies…”

The previous day, Zhou Xu had used the power of the Eye of Insight to take a rough look at their five-dimensional panels. Although he had only glanced over them, he had still gained a general understanding of their talents.

Though none of these ordinary people possessed any outstanding abilities, each of them nevertheless had tasks they were relatively good at and tasks they were less suited to perform.

Assigning them to positions that matched their strengths would naturally allow them to demonstrate greater value.

Of course, the tribesmen themselves had no idea about any of this.

They did not know why their new leader had made these adjustments, but since he had issued the orders, they simply had to obey.

The entire process took only a few minutes. After making the necessary changes, Zhou Xu turned his attention to the three people who remained.

They were probably the handicraft team of the Black Moon Camp. Weaving fishing nets, sharpening weapons, and similar tasks were all their responsibility.

The former chief must have selected them personally. They were likely the most deft-handed people in the tribe.

“All right. From now on, I will teach you how to weave fishing nets.”

His words caused a hint of confusion to rise in the hearts of the three tribesmen.

As far as they were concerned, they already knew how to weave fishing nets. They had even completed three of them.

They could not understand why their new chief still wanted to teach them.

However, considering his position, they obediently chose to comply.

Zhou Xu had never actually made a fishing net before. But looking at theirs, he saw that they were nothing more than a series of knots, each one tied loosely and carelessly.

After being soaked in water, they became even looser.

Any fish caught in such a net would be able to wriggle free with just a little effort.

That being the case, whatever else might be said, Zhou Xu was at least highly skilled when it came to tying knots.

He had also given the matter some thought before going to bed the previous night, so his thoughts remained fairly clear.

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“Watch carefully.”

As he spoke, Zhou Xu slowed his movements and tied a knot step by step, methodically and without the slightest haste.

Maintaining the same rhythm, he quickly completed two sections of netting before handing them to the three members of the handicraft team for inspection.

In truth, they did not even need to touch them. With their naked eyes, they could clearly see that the knot tied by their new chief was far sturdier than the ones they had made before.

The “miracle” displayed by their former chief had been effortlessly shattered.

“All right. Now follow along with me, one step at a time.”

A knot could not be all that complicated, no matter how difficult it was. Moreover, all three of them were among the most nimble-fingered people in the tribe. After Zhou Xu patiently guided them through the process several times, teaching them by hand, they had essentially mastered it.

From that point onward, the work was simply an endless process of tying knots.

In this era, weaving a fishing net was not only tedious and monotonous but also extremely time-consuming.

Zhou Xu could not possibly stay there and weave nets with them all day. He had other matters to attend to.

“Big Stone, take us to the nearby areas where people conduct their daily activities.”

Since he had decided to focus on developing the Black Moon Camp, Zhou Xu naturally needed to gain a thorough understanding of the surrounding environment first.

While he was at it, he could also see whether there was anything else worth discovering.

As before, five guards led by Zhou Chongshan had already taken up their positions.

Just as when they had gone to the grasslands the previous day, five men would remain behind to guard the Black Moon Camp, while five would accompany Zhou Xu to ensure his safety.

Without wasting any time, the group soon set off and began their work for a new day.