Yang Yi’s initial resistance gradually shifted into acceptance and eventually turned into enjoyment. Along the way, he even had the leisure to observe the surrounding scenery.
It wasn’t until his legs started going numb that the group finally arrived at the place selected for drying the lumber.
This area was an open grassland. The terrain was flat, and in the distance, one could see lush, verdant forests.
The grassland had already been cleared. Following instructions, quite a few large pits—each about one and a half meters deep—had been dug into the ground. When they arrived, two people were still digging more pits.
The lumber transport team’s workload was extremely heavy. The weather was still slightly cool, but all of them were bare-chested, their bodies glistening with a light sweat.
When the sentry spotted their arrival, everyone stopped what they were doing and came over to greet them.
Hei Lie put Yang Yi down. “We’ve arrived.”
Yang Yi’s legs were a little numb. If it weren’t for Hei Lie supporting him, he would have nearly lost his balance.
He gave an awkward cough, trying to cover up his embarrassment.
The ones doing all the running and labor moved with swift, steady steps, while he, someone who had been carried the whole way, couldn’t even stand properly. How shameful…
Fortunately, no one paid attention to these details. They all took it for granted that this was how a Divine Envoy should be, very delicate. After all, none of them had ever seen another Divine Envoy.
“Divine Envoy.” Jing, the one in charge of the lumber transport team, walked over.
Right now, the lumber transport team is extremely important. They were also responsible for the safety of the pottery group not far away.
The people over there weren’t as physically strong as those here. Therefore, if food shortages occurred, it would also be up to this team to provide support. Because of that, Jing had been assigned here to take charge of the overall situation.
Jing was also an outstanding warrior. Now that he had a prosthetic limb, his combat ability was gradually recovering. It wouldn’t be long before he returned to his peak. Having him in charge of this place couldn’t be more appropriate.
The lumber transport team was now divided into five smaller groups: the Lumber Group, the Transport Group, the Wood-Shaving Group, the Pit-Digging Group, and the Defense Group. Altogether, there were fifty people. Each group was assigned a different number of members based on the intensity of the work, and each had its own group leader.
This team’s combat capability surpassed that of the Spark Tribe’s initial team. They were fully capable of living independently out here.
“How does your arm feel?” Yang Yi looked at his prosthetic limb.
The first version of the prosthetic hadn’t been very practical. Whether in terms of comfort or adaptability, it had been far too crude.
Yang Yi had been continually researching ways to improve it, hoping to make the prosthetic truly become a part of Jing’s body.
Jing’s prosthetic had been revised several times over the past period, each iteration better than the last. The last major adjustment hadn’t yet shown results when Jing was sent out here.
Yang Yi had been wanting feedback, so he asked about it the moment he arrived.
“I think it works incredibly well! It’s already completely become a part of my body. Just yesterday, I used it to stab straight through a long-haired sheep’s head!” Jing said proudly, showing off.
Jing had always been satisfied with his prosthetic. He had even thought the earliest, rough version was good enough.
Although after a full day, the stump would be rubbed red, that didn’t mean much to him. It wasn’t even as uncomfortable as being bitten by venomous insects in the wild.
But the Divine Envoy had always been looking for ways to improve it, constantly thinking about how to make it the best it could be, so that he could truly have a hand that would allow him to return to his peak. That touched him deeply.
Yang Yi nodded, catching another keyword in the conversation.
“Long-haired sheep?”
“Yes, the kind with very long, white wool. It feels soft and warm to the touch. I’ve never seen them before back in the Blackstone Tribe. Their wool should be great for making warm clothing. I’ve already collected some.”
Yang Yi nodded again, making a mental note of that matter, but first turned his attention to the issue of artificially drying the lumber.
“Take us to see the wood first.”
Yang Yi had no idea what kind of trees they had cut down, nor whether they were suitable. He had only given rough instructions regarding the size.
He assumed they were using the same type of unknown trees currently used in the tribe, only that the trees now would likely be thicker and sturdier, more than enough for house construction.
The felled lumber had been neatly arranged, with wooden supports underneath to keep them off the ground. Branches were laid over the top to protect them from direct sunlight.
Every log was about as thick as a large barrel and incredibly straight.
Jing pulled the branches aside. Yang Yi got a clear look at the wood lying on the ground. His eyes immediately went wide.
“Divine Envoy, what’s wrong? Is this wood no good?” Jing asked nervously.
They hadn’t cut the type of wood the tribe normally used before. Since those trees weren’t thick enough, they figured wood was wood and took the liberty of switching to another kind.
Yang Yi suppressed his excitement. His voice even trembled a little. “You cut all this type of wood?”
“Yes, we found a whole area where this kind of tree was really abundant. All kinds of thicknesses, too. It’s closer than other areas, so I chose them. Divine Envoy, if it’s not suitable, I’ll have everyone switch to another kind right away.”
“No, no, no. This is perfect!” Yang Yi was so excited that he felt a little dizzy.
He stepped forward and took a sniff. It was exactly that light, elegant fragrance.
When he saw the already cut wooden planks, his emotions surged beyond words.
This was the extremely precious golden nanmu!
Every single tree was this thick. Who knows how many years it had taken them to grow to such a size? Just to give an idea: a nanmu tree with a diameter of less than 10 centimeters needed ninety years to grow.
In ancient China, high-quality nanmu was used to make imperial dragon thrones for emperors. It was also used to construct royal palaces, tombs, gardens, and more. By the Qing dynasty, it had already become incredibly rare.
Nanmu had the unique quality of being neither too wet nor too dry. It was exceptionally durable. During the Ming dynasty, key structures like palaces, city towers, temples, and imperial residences all used nanmu as main beams.
One of the largest surviving wooden architectural halls, the Ling’en Hall of Emperor Yongle Zhu Di’s Changling Mausoleum, was supported by massive golden nanmu pillars.
By modern times, golden nanmu had been driven up in price even more, becoming a symbol of wealth and status.
Yang Yi himself didn’t have much interest in this kind of thing. He could only recognize some common trees like birch, and so on.
The reason he could instantly identify golden nanmu wasn’t just because of its distinctive grain, but because his old man’s favorite was exactly this kind of wood.
Their home had quite a few antique pieces made of golden nanmu. His dad was stingy about everything else. He’d often go out in just baggy shorts and flip-flops, looking like some shabby, penny-pinching old man from the streets. But when it came to this, he’d spend money without so much as blinking.
Every time Yang Yi heard the price tags, he couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air. Meanwhile, the old man always wore a face like he’d scored big. Many of the best pieces, even with money, were simply not for sale.
Yang Yi’s family background was quite good. A typical second-generation beneficiary of urban village demolition.
His parents were diligent, capable, and had a keen eye for investment. In the early days, they acquired a lot of real estate and even owned a fairly profitable factory.
Yang Yi, just by collecting rent from the properties under his name, could live a very relaxed and comfortable life.
This was also the reason why he nearly broke down when he first transmigrated here. He was just someone who claimed to love dragons but feared the real thing! With his family’s conditions being that good, he must’ve had his brain caught in a door to actually want to transmigrate!
Yang Yi looked at all this golden nanmu wood and felt that filling in the things taken out from the space would be as easy as turning his hand.
These pieces of golden nanmu were practically the same as heaps of gold. Based on his knowledge of golden nanmu, the quality of this batch was extremely high. On Earth, it would definitely fetch a sky-high price.
“These trees are very precious. Let’s try using other kinds of wood first,” Yang Yi said, unwilling to let such valuable wood be ruined in his hands.
There were a lot of considerations when it came to drying wood. Due to differences in air humidity, climate, and other factors in each place, the moisture content of the wood had different standards.
With their current level of technology, the best they could do was to ensure that the houses built with these woods wouldn’t collapse too easily.
As long as they didn’t try to construct overly large buildings at the start, it should still be fairly achievable.
“This kind of tree is really common though. Why is it considered precious?” Jing asked, puzzled.
Yang Yi felt as if he had taken a blow to the chest and needed a moment to recover.
Every time he went home, his dad would often scold him for being rough, terrified that he’d damage his “treasures”. And now look at this!
He really should drag his dad over to take a look. Even though the old man had weathered many storms, he’d definitely pass out from sheer excitement.
Hei Lie also nodded affirmatively. “There really is a lot. We used to often burn it as firewood.”
“……”
Now, Yang Yi finally understood the pained yet helpless expressions everyone had when he took out some tools for use.
What a waste. Such an utter waste!
It took him quite a while to recover from the shock.
“Then let’s use them to try it out first. We won’t need too much wood at the beginning, so we can avoid wasting effort in case of failure. During this process, we must observe carefully, so we can use the experience for reference next time.”
When Yang Yi previously had Jing and the others look for a suitable place to dry wood, he had already sent over an auditing student who was doing very well in his studies. This student was specifically in charge of recording the data here.
All the specifications Yang Yi had mentioned earlier—what dimensions were needed, how they should be processed, and what standards to meet—were all memorized by this student, who also helped guide and arrange everything accordingly.
Before officially starting the wood-drying experiment, Hei Lie led several people to pitch a large field engineering tent on an open patch of ground and set up an altar in front of it.
Yang Yi was already very familiar with this whole procedure now. He waved his hands around theatrically in a fake ritual, then ordered the tent to be opened.
The tent, which had originally been empty, was now piled full with steel bars about 8 cm in diameter and large sheets of iron.
“Thank the gods for their gift.”
Everyone knelt in reverence, full of genuine gratitude.
One group of people carried the steel bars and iron sheets out of the tent. Very soon, they had accumulated into a small mountain, much larger than the tent could possibly have held.
On the other side, Yang Yi had people lay down a thick layer of wood shavings at the bottom of the pit. These had been prepared in advance by the wood-shaving team. They had already broken down quite a number of planks and planed them to be very even and smooth.
The moment Yang Yi saw them, he immediately decided to pick out a few pieces to bring back and use as his desk!
He actually hadn’t been that obsessed with golden nanmu before, and used to scoff at his dad’s obsession with it. But now, upon seeing these familiar grain patterns, he couldn’t keep calm. His emotions surged, memories flooded in, and more than anything, he wanted to possess them.
“Pile these wood shavings into the soil, make sure to compact them tightly, to prevent open flames from appearing.”
Yang Yi explained, one by one, exactly what to do and the reasons why it needed to be done, so that they could truly understand the underlying principles and be able to adjust accordingly in future practice.
Once the shavings were dumped in, everyone jumped into the pit to stomp them down. Hei Lie joined in as well. He didn’t take any special privileges just because he was the chieftain, always doing everything personally.
Seeing everyone busy at work, Yang Yi wanted to try it too, but the group unanimously refused.
“Divine Envoy, let us handle it!”
Everyone held the same belief: he was a messenger sent by the gods, and the gods did not wish for them to receive without working. Therefore, they could not allow the divine envoy to directly step in and help.
Yang Yi didn’t insist. As the only technical advisor at the moment, he had to maintain full oversight and observe every step. He couldn’t afford to let any mistakes happen.
The thick layer of wood shavings had been laid and compacted. Yang Yi didn’t have an exact number for how tightly it needed to be packed, so he could only go by instinct.
“Did you record the data just now?” Yang Yi asked.
The secretary of the lumber transport team, also the auditing student mentioned earlier, nodded repeatedly and handed Yang Yi the clipboard in his hands.
“Divine Envoy, I’ve written it all down.”
Yang Yi could only understand the Arabic numerals and a few scattered Chinese characters on it. Ming hadn’t been studying for very long and could write very few words, so he marked things down using his own system.
“Sort out the commonly used characters you usually encounter. I’ll teach them to you before I leave.”
“Thank you, Divine Envoy!”
Ming was overjoyed. His biggest regret after coming here was that he could no longer continue auditing classes. He really liked learning to read and write. Even though it was very difficult, he still truly enjoyed it.
He wanted to be able to read the books the divine envoy had brought out. He wanted to know what the gods had said to them.
Yang Yi thought for a moment, then pulled out a set of children’s literacy flashcards from his pocket. They contained commonly used words, illustrated with pictures to explain their meanings.
“You can follow these to learn characters in the future.”
“This… this is for me?” Ming was incredibly moved.
Yang Yi smiled and nodded. “It’ll be harder without someone to guide you, but if you keep practicing writing, when you come back or when I come over again, I’ll teach you then. You should be able to remember much faster.”
“I’ll definitely study hard. I won’t let you down,” Ming promised seriously and earnestly.
Yang Yi did not doubt that. The people here were all incredibly hardworking. Once they set their mind on something, they would throw in two hundred percent of their effort to accomplish it.
Their intelligence wasn’t much different from people on Earth, but most of them could maintain a high level of mental focus for long periods of time. Even the children were the same, so their learning efficiency was very high.
Now, most of the children in the study group could already read simple short stories on their own. They were still practicing dictation, but they could already write simple characters.
Currently, they have been assigned to different teams. On one hand, training themselves as secretaries; on the other, continuing to deepen their studies.
Yang Yi was now planning to recruit more children. When the time came, he would have these senior students serve as their teachers, step by step, achieving total literacy for everyone.
Once the bottom of the pit was prepared, they had to begin setting up a steel frame inside it and then carry the wood in and place it on top.
Since this was the first time trying it, Yang Yi didn’t go overboard. He chose the smallest pit and decided to dry five logs.
He had wanted to use even fewer. He felt that just one would be enough. But after Hei Lie’s persuasion, he changed his mind.
If the test sample was too small, and there weren’t enough logs on either side for comparison, it would be impossible to accurately judge the results. There were plenty of trees around. With tools, logging wasn’t that exhausting, so there was no need to skimp here.
In the end, Yang Yi agreed to standardize the process and began to control each step even more strictly. It had to succeed in one try. He would not allow these logs to be wasted in vain.
Once the wood was in place, the top of the pit was sealed tightly with iron sheets, but a gap was left between the iron sheet and the wood for ventilation.
Finally, the wood shavings at the bottom of the pit were ignited, and the smoke from the shavings would be used to fumigate and steam the wood in order to achieve the drying effect.
The method Yang Yi was using usually took about ten days for planks. For logs this thick, the time would likely have to be doubled. As for how well it would turn out, that was still unknown.
At least based on the information he had, it seemed relatively easy to accomplish.
“You must keep a close watch. Don’t let a fire break out. Only smoke should be used. If the shavings run out, remember to refill them at any time.”
“Divine Envoy, how do we know when the wood is successfully dried?” Ming asked.
“This is a wood moisture content meter. Around 11% to 16% water content is considered normal. Each time you test, select three different parts. If the average falls within that range, then it’s a success.”
Yang Yi took out a black device about the size of a palm and handed it to Ming, teaching him how to use it and how to read the data.
Ming held the instrument, which looked extremely precise, not daring to use any force. He is afraid he might crush it, so he just cradled it carefully in his hands.
“Divine Envoy, I’ll definitely take good care of it!”
Yang Yi neither confirmed nor denied: “Your most important task going forward is to use this instrument to feel the moisture content of the wood. Try to rely on your experience to grasp it as much as possible before the device is taken back by the gods.”
Construction couldn’t happen without large amounts of wood, so drying the wood became extremely important. Otherwise, relying on natural air-drying alone wouldn’t be able to meet demand.
In that case, they would need a very professional and highly sensitive technician.
The first step was to develop a sense for the humidity in the air and the moisture content of the wood. Only then could it be reasonably controlled.
There were other methods for drying wood. The one they were using now just happened to be the most suitable for their current situation.
Instruments weren’t eternal; people had to learn to sense things on their own. In the past, when there were no instruments, the old craftsmen relied solely on experience.
Yang Yi believed that these people could do the same.
“And this—this is a temperature and humidity tester. You’ll use it every day to measure the air’s humidity and start learning what a certain level of humidity feels like. There are many methods for drying wood. Some of them will require this data.”
There was a reason why Yang Yi had chosen Ming for this task. It wasn’t just because he was the fastest learner among the auditing students. It was also because of his sensitivity to the weather.
That was something Yang Yi had discovered by accident. Ming was just an ordinary person, so everyone, including Ming himself, had always assumed he didn’t have any special ability.
Until one day, after class, the ever-eager Ming, still unsatisfied, looked up at the sky and sighed, saying, “Looks like I won’t be able to go to class tomorrow.”
The others were curious why he said that. Ming replied that it would rain tomorrow night.
They didn’t currently have any spare buildings to use as classrooms, so all lessons were held outdoors. Once it rained, classes couldn’t take place.
At that time, the moon was bright and the stars were few. It didn’t look like it was going to rain at all.
No one took it seriously, but unexpectedly, it did rain the next day. And it rained right around the time for class, exactly as Ming had said.
Even so, everyone still didn’t think much of it. There were people like that in the tribe. Just by looking at the stars and smelling the air, they could guess what the weather would be like the next day. It didn’t seem all that special.
Rain or shine, they had to get things done either way, so it didn’t make much difference to them.
Someone casually mentioned the matter in front of Yang Yi, which made him start paying attention to this person. He discovered that Ming was indeed more sensitive to weather than the average person.
Yang Yi had originally wanted to place him in Qing’s team. But later he realized that Qing’s abilities were sufficient for now. Putting Ming there wouldn’t let him fully use his potential. It would be a bit of a waste.
After thinking it over carefully, he finally decided to assign Ming here instead.
“Before I leave, you must become fully familiar with all of this. This job can’t afford any mistakes.”
Now that Ming had been entrusted with two precious instruments and had been personally instructed by the divine envoy, he immediately felt he was carrying a heavy responsibility.
“Divine Envoy, I will definitely do my best!”
“I believe you have what it takes,” Yang Yi smiled and encouraged him.
The wood-drying setup was more or less complete. They only needed one person to come by from time to time to check that no open flame had appeared. As for everything else, they would have to wait ten, maybe twenty days to see the results.
During this period, the main task of the lumber transport team was to cut down trees and break them down into planks and shavings. Only after the drying was successful could they proceed to the next step.
The process was relatively long, so they could only wait patiently.
Yang Yi temporarily set aside the matters here and went to check out the fleece from the long-haired sheep that Jing had mentioned.
“Divine Envoy, take a look. This is the one. It’s extremely white and soft.”
Yang Yi took a handful and examined it. As expected, it felt very nice to the touch, almost like cashmere.
“This kind of wool would definitely make very warm clothing. How many sheep did you hunt to get this much wool?”
“Only three. These long-haired sheep look really big, but it turns out their wool is thicker than their meat. Once the wool’s taken off, there’s basically nothing left. This is the inner layer of the fleece. The outer layer is really coarse.”
As Jing spoke, he couldn’t help but complain. They had thought they’d hunted a large catch, but once the fleece was sheared, there was barely anything underneath.
“And the meat of this kind of sheep is especially awful, just like rotten meat. No wonder they’re so weak, and yet no predators go after them.”
Just thinking about that disgusting taste made Jing feel nauseated. They weren’t the kind of people who wasted food, so in the end, they had forced themselves to eat it.
From the look on Jing’s face, Yang Yi could already imagine how horrifying the meat must be. For a group of people who could eat practically anything to react like this, it really had to be terrible.
“Are there a lot of these sheep?”
“An awful lot. They always move in large herds, which makes them hard to catch. We just happened to grab a few that got separated from the group.”
Yang Yi thought for a moment, then asked, “With such thick wool, wouldn’t they feel hot when the weather turns warm?”
Jing didn’t respond. He had never seen this kind of sheep before, and there weren’t any near the Blackstone Tribe.
“This kind of sheep sheds its wool on its own when the weather gets hot,” said Hei Lie, who was well-informed and experienced.
Yang Yi’s eyes lit up. “Then can we collect that shed wool?”
Hei Lie paused to consider the possibility. “We probably can.”
“Jing, keep an eye out in your daily observations. If there’s any shed wool, gather it up.”
“Alright.”
Jing agreed readily. They now had binoculars given by the divine envoy, so they could observe from a distance without much effort.
Yang Yi planned to collect the wool and take it back to have someone with nimble hands spin it into yarn and then knit it into sweaters.
There were instructions in his books on how to knit sweaters. With this much wool, it should be enough to make several, right?
The next morning, Yang Yi and his group set out. Before leaving, Yang Yi left behind some supplies, including fine salt and sugar.
The salt they currently ate was all coarse salt brought back by Hei Lie’s group. Both the taste and salinity were much worse compared to what Yang Yi had brought.
Fine salt was no longer used in everyday meals. Aside from Yang Yi, no one else had regular access to it.
Even though they knew Yang Yi possessed a large amount of salt, Hei Lie never considered taking any of it.
In the future, just like back in the Blackstone Tribe, they would organize a dedicated salt-exchange team to go and trade for salt.
Now that they had learned the craft of pottery-making, it would be much easier than before to trade for salt. This was already a major improvement.
No one had any objections to this. It had always been their way of life. What Yang Yi brought was simply a gift from the gods.
They believed the gods would not want their people to become lazy, nor would they provide for them indefinitely. To be greedy and only indulge in comfort would anger the gods, and they would no longer receive divine protection.
It had to be said, the fact that these people believed in the gods was actually a good thing for Yang Yi.
Thank you for the chapter 💕