“Your surname is Lu, and you are a scholar?”
Xia Tian faced Li Ru, who had been brought over by soldiers, and asked.
“Yes, I am Lu Ru, I have read a few books, and I greet the Lord!”
Li Ru, dressed in a black changshan, was slightly anxious, but outwardly he remained calm.
“Very good, since you are a scholar, you must be very clever. My territory is currently facing a small problem. Do you have a solution?”
Xia Tian looked at him with a smile.
Since Li Ru did not want to reveal his identity, he would not force him.
But a talent who excels in both strategy and internal affairs...
Since he has joined the territory, he should play some role!
“This... could the Lord please elaborate?”
Li Ru met Xia Tian’s smiling gaze.
For some reason, his initial anxiety eased considerably, and he immediately spoke with a serious expression.
So, Xia Tian briefly explained the current shortage of meat to Li Ru.
“Hmm, Lord, I wonder if there are any skilled hunters or fishermen in the territory?”
Li Ru pondered for a moment, then smiled and said.
“Hmm, hunting and fishing!”
Xia Tian was stunned for a moment, then realized.
That’s right, hunting is out, but fishing is entirely possible!
The Ghost Vultures and Centaur tribes’ sweep could only clear out land creatures, but aquatic creatures were completely unaffected.
“On the way here, we passed a river. I saw that its water was quite clear, with many fish swimming in it. If we can find a way to set nets and intercept them, we should be able to harvest a good amount of fish every day!”
Li Ru continued.
As a strategist, it is a basic quality to constantly observe the surrounding environment.
Hunting in the river also has the advantage of not having to worry about “draining the pond to catch all the fish.”
After all, river water flows, bringing in a large number of fish catches every day.
And there were also people who could fish. Among the group of people recruited just now, there was one with a green name who was proficient in “fishing.” The only problem was that relying on manpower to catch enough fish for six hundred people would probably be very difficult!
“However, who said fishing must rely on humans?”
After being inspired by Li Ru, Xia Tian was already confident.
His gaze shifted to a corner of the territory, a place guarded by several soldiers from the Trap-Breaking Camp, preventing the refugees from Qingfeng Village from approaching. Inside, the sounds of roars, tearing, and chewing could be faintly heard.
“Lu Ru, since you are a scholar, your books must have written about how to resettle these refugees... I need to go to that river to investigate the situation. You, Hua Rong, Shen Lian, and Da Niu will work together to resettle these refugees!”
A few minutes later, Xia Tian, riding on the back of a black and white Jiao Pheasant, looked down at Li Ru and said.
“Lord, I...”
Li Ru’s expression was a bit confused.
He really wanted to say, Lord, have you misunderstood what a “scholar” is? Which book teaches such things?
However, Xia Tian was already riding on the back of that black and white fierce beast, which he dared not approach, and rode away with Wu Song, eight soldiers from the Trap-Breaking Camp, the elite territorial resident who tamed the black and white Jiao Pheasant, and an elite territorial resident skilled in fishing.
Li Ru watched Xia Tian’s departing back, and after a moment of thought, his demeanor changed, giving him a calm and composed air, as he walked towards the chaotic crowd!
...Thump, thump, thump.
Twelve robust and ferocious black and white Jiao Pheasants ran swiftly through the jungle.
Their dragon-shaped claws provided far more stability in the jungle than even cloven-hoofed animals, and they could even easily climb trees and rocks!
The reason Xia Tian personally participated in the action was not simply for fishing, but because he wanted to personally investigate.
If the environment was suitable, he decided to expand the territory a certain distance towards the river, preferably to cover some of the river.
In that case, he could consider cutting down the trees by the river and clearing the land for fields.
Fishing was only a temporary measure. To truly establish a foothold in the Eternal Land, the traditional farming skills of the Huaxia people could not be abandoned. The seventh-tier black and white Jiao Pheasants were very fast, running about three li through the jungle before arriving at a gurgling river!
The river was about ten meters wide, only a small river, or even a stream.
However, in the relatively clear river water, many fish of various shapes and sizes could indeed be seen swimming.
Black, white, red, green; some like jellyfish, some like insects, some like spiders... many were creatures that did not exist on Earth at all.
Howl! Howl!
Upon reaching the water’s edge, the black and white Jiao Pheasants seemed to become excited, howling as they rushed into the river.
As creatures evolved from a combination of dragons and chickens, these creatures had no fear of water. In fact, relying on the “buoyancy” emitted by their white feathers, they could even run at high speed on the water’s surface for a short time, using their long, dragon-shaped mouths to snatch up fish and shrimp that couldn’t escape the river water, easily crushing the scales and shells of the fish and shrimp with their sharp teeth before swallowing them.
“Tell them not to just eat, but to herd the fish...”
However, Xia Tian brought them here not for bathing and foraging.
He had the handler direct the black and white Jiao Pheasants to split into two teams, herding the fish upstream and downstream, concentrating a large number of swimming fish together.
Then, the eight soldiers from the Trap-Breaking Camp, under the guidance of the elite fisherman, began to cast nets and fish.
The net was brought by the elite fisherman from Qingfeng Village. Its coverage was not too large, but after the fish were concentrated, one cast could bring up several thousand catties of fish.
Of course, not all types of these fish were edible.
Like pufferfish on Earth, they might be delicious, but dying from them was also very quick!
Therefore, it was not easy for ordinary people to survive by fishing after entering the Eternal Land.
But as a lord, with his “Eye of Insight,” whether something was edible was clear at a glance, so this was not a problem for Xia Tian.
Moreover, to ensure that even some dangerous fish could be successfully caught and not destroy the only fishing net they currently had.
Xia Tian specifically used “Midas Touch” to enhance this fishing net to “gold” quality, greatly improving the net’s quality. Even if an eighth or ninth-tier creature was caught, it would not be able to easily escape!
Thus, with twelve black and white Jiao Pheasants herding, and eight soldiers from the Trap-Breaking Camp casting nets and fishing, after several rounds, they easily harvested over ten thousand catties of edible fish.
Xia Tian was ready to stop.
After all, if there were too many fish, they couldn’t eat them all at once.
Moreover, living creatures could not be stored in the lord’s space and required manpower to transport them back to the territory, so catching too many at once would also be strenuous!
However, an unexpected event occurred at this moment.
A black and white Jiao Pheasant found a black “stone” about half the size of a table in the water. It curiously stared with its vertical pupils and pecked it with its sharp beak.
Thump!
The black stone did not change, quietly sinking to the bottom of the water, motionless.
Howl! Howl! ...But the black and white Jiao Pheasant was persistent, still pecking with its beak, and even extended a claw to try and flip the black stone over, believing there might be something underneath!
“Splash, splash, splash...”
The black stone suddenly changed, a crack appeared on it, and it immediately bit the extended claw of the black and white Jiao Pheasant.
Then, almost half of the riverbed shook.
A giant turtle, with a shell the color of black jade, adorned with mysterious patterns, and a width of four or five meters, emerged from the mud. The so-called black stone was merely the top of its head, exposed after most of its body was covered by the riverbed’s silt.
【Black Jade Dragon Turtle (Blue)】
【Level】Ninth Tier (Metamorphosis)
【Physique】10.1
【Soul】10.2
【Traits】Long Lifespan, Treasure Identification
【Description】A creature from another world, possessing a portion of dragon bloodline, cautious by nature!