Chapter 35

The phrase "humans are social animals" might not have resonated with Cloudy in the past. Was it because daily life was too exhausting to spend time with others, or was it purely due to her personality? Cloudy pondered this as she wasn't really gloomy in character... just lazy.

Back then, she tended to do everything on her own - watching movies, eating, shopping, strolling... going out with friends once or twice a month was considered the limit. Even during holidays back home, she felt pressured, partly due to family conflicts.

But now, she yearned to be with people, or rather, with Titus specifically. Being with him brought her peace and joy. She wondered if she could make friends with other locals if she tried.

However, it was uncertain. When she first arrived in this settlement, the locals didn't seem keen on interacting with her; they treated her as a strange intruder. Those locals who had disrupted her green hill cave were clearly hostile, making Titus, a friendly local, a rare find.

Lost in her thoughts...

Cloudy sharpened a stick, despising her own brain. Titus had only been gone for less than an hour, and she was already contemplating life... just how much did she need someone's company? Wasn't she doing just fine before she met Titus?

The crackling fire burned nearby, urging Cloudy to quicken her stick-sharpening to calm her mind. After a series of actions, she felt much better. Setting down what she held, she took a deep breath, realizing she had plenty to do and no time for overthinking.

She had given up on prolonging the burning flame. With her current knowledge and tools, she could only keep it going for half an hour at most, and obtaining animal fat wasn't easy. While fire was crucial, she lacked the resources to invest significant time into research. She planned to focus on that when she had enough food and supplies stocked for the rainy season when she couldn't venture outside.

She had survived for a long time without fire before, so she was sure she could manage now!

Let today be the last day she used fire. Cloudy had a small plan in mind - fire, mud, water... she had all the basic materials needed to try making pottery.

Wetting the mud with water, shaping it, and finally baking it at high temperatures... making pottery required skillful clay, and success now depended on luck. By the water's edge, she molded several small jars and bowls. It was a bit more challenging than she had imagined, with the mud becoming too watery at first.

After adjusting the water content and struggling to make the clay stick together, she finally managed to create 3 small bowls and 2 small plates. Carefully, Cloudy placed them on leaves and dragged them to the edge of the fire pit.

Should she put them inside the fire or outside? After some thought, Cloudy decided to do both.
She placed a bowl and a plate in the fire, while the rest were left on the side. Then she brought some stones to enclose the entire fire pit, trying to stabilize the temperature a bit more.

The firing process took some time. During this time, Cloudy cleared a space on the rocky wall next to the wooden cabin and made a makeshift calendar. Starting from today, she marked each day by scratching a white line on the stone wall, leaving a visible mark for each day.

Staring at the scratched line, Cloudy thought to herself, after a month, it should look like the marks left by prisoners in a jail in movies. Pretty close. Besides marking the days, Cloudy also drew a big circle with a stone and surrounded it with an even larger circle.

Green slopes, settlements, caves were all marked on the rocky wall according to the signs Titus had drawn. This was their map. In the following days, as they went out to explore, they would note any places worth revisiting here.

Next, Cloudy attended to some miscellaneous tasks. She moved Titus' large bed out of the wooden cabin, stacking it outside to create more space indoors. Cloudy organized all the weapons they had - 5 bone spears, 1 large bone club, and 3 bone knives.

After calculating the time, Cloudy left the cave to collect materials for fire starters. She made five trips in total, bringing back all the fire starters to dry under the sun directly below the courtyard. Once she finished these tasks, Cloudy didn't even break a sweat.

Her physical strength was improving, but she found herself getting hungrier more quickly. Back on the green slopes, a few fruits a day were enough, but now, skipping a meal of dried meat was out of the question. She rummaged through a wooden box and found a piece of dried meat, quickly devouring it.

Thinking of having another piece, Cloudy hesitated as she looked at the pile of dried meat. Would it be too extravagant to have two pieces in one meal? In the past, she would ration her food carefully. After some contemplation, Cloudy reached for the second piece. After all, who knew how long these dried meats would last! She might as well enjoy them while she could.

By now, it had been nearly two hours since she started firing the clay pottery. Cloudy squatted next to the fire pit and used a wooden stick to poke around a bit. "Hmm..."

It was a whole new field for her. She looked at what she had poked out, almost entirely turned into crumbled earth. However, miraculously, a small bowl survived the firing process, maybe because it was relatively small and had a simple shape. Though the edges were a bit rough, resembling a dog's chewed toy, it had indeed hardened and taken shape.

It was very hot, too hot to touch. She could only poke the clay bowl with the stick, admiring her "masterpiece." The clay bowl was half a thumb deep and the size of a palm, with a very small capacity. But these were not issues; if she gathered suitable clay from the rainforest, she could definitely make better containers in the future.

Feeling satisfied, Cloudy gazed at the tiny clay bowl.
The whole person is bubbling with excitement. Things that were once taken for granted are now precious here.

I really want Titus to see this too! I wonder if they have this kind of technology in their settlement?

After the clay bowl had cooled completely, Cloudy carried the small bowl to the water's edge and tried to scoop up some water. After letting it sit for a while, there was no sign of leaking. She held the clay bowl in amazement, marveling at how her clumsy skills as a master had actually succeeded in making a usable clay bowl.

This method seems feasible. Cloudy called it the Probability Manufacturing Method in her mind, believing that as long as she made enough, she would definitely produce a usable one. Placing the successful clay bowl aside, she began to work with the mud again, shaping all sorts of clay pots and dishes to be fired!

Cloudy was more hopeful that the pots could be successfully fired, so that there would be something relatively sealable to store food in.

While all these clay items were being fired, Cloudy started using her new bowl. It might not be too disrespectful to use this precious bowl just for drinking water; she planned to use it to make... stew!

Among the fruits she brought back was one that didn't have much flavor but had a texture similar to radish. Cloudy planned to use it as a side dish.

She first filled the clay bowl with water and placed it by the fire. She picked a flat stone from the collection as a cutting board, three radish-like fruits, two palm-sized pieces of dried meat, and a little bit of leftover fat from yesterday.

As the water in the clay bowl started to bubble, Cloudy threw in the small piece of fat. Then she started preparing the ingredients, using a bone knife to peel the fruits. The fruit had very thick skin, and she ended up with only a small amount of flesh after peeling it. Cloudy went to get a few more fruits temporarily, cutting them into irregular pieces.

Once the fruits were cut, Cloudy started cutting the dried meat, slicing it vertically into thumb-sized strips, then cutting them horizontally into cubes. By this time, the fat in the clay bowl had completely melted, and the steam rising from it carried the aroma of fat and a slight animal scent.

The soup showed a hint of white, yellow oil flowers floating on the surface as the boiling bubbles rolled. Taking advantage of this moment, Cloudy poured all the meat cubes in. In just a few minutes, the dried meat also cooked out its fat, completely blending into the soup, giving it a slightly pungent smell. The soup became slightly thicker, turning into a less appetizing yellow-white color.

Cloudy clenched her fists and waved them non-stop, she was very excited. Although what she cooked was not perfect, it was warm stew! Amazing, the fire was amazing!

When the meat cubes turned white from being cooked, she poured the cut fruits into the wooden bowl all at once. The soup in the bowl was instantly covered, and she liked thick things, so she decided to stew it a bit longer. While stewing, Cloudy kept stirring with a small wooden stick, getting used to the slightly pungent smell.

Only when the bubbles became thick and heavy did Cloudy use the stick to lift the bowl from...
Near the bonfire, she couldn't wait for it to cool down, so she took a shallow sip while lying on the ground... and of course, she ended up yelping from being burned.

"Mmm..." Cloudy covered her mouth and ran frantically towards the water pool, taking a big gulp of water to cool her burning tongue and upper lip. What was she in such a hurry for... her mouth was definitely going to blister now!

After that, Cloudy learned her lesson and patiently waited for it to cool down before starting to eat. Because her tongue was burned, her sense of taste was temporarily dulled. It was a bit sticky going in, the texture she liked. The diced meat and fruit had been cooked until completely soft, melting between her teeth without needing to chew.

It didn't have much flavor, but there was a fragrant oiliness to it.

"Mmm..." The warm, sticky sensation made Cloudy hum with satisfaction after every bite, wishing there was some salt. Cloudy squinted her eyes, savoring the stewed meat soup; it would be insanely delicious with some salt added, wouldn't it? Maybe some chili or white pepper...

In this vast rainforest, there must be plants that can be used as spices, finding spices and salt would become an important goal later on...!

What a pity, what a pity. Cloudy held the small bowl and rocked back and forth. If only she had thought of making a bowl yesterday, then Titus could have joined her in enjoying this steaming delicacy.