Chapter 36: The Stone Tool Craftsman

"So mysterious," Yan Hua muttered, wondering if all Shamans were like this, always keeping people guessing."…" Su Bai’s eyes twitched. He could clearly hear the cow horned girl’s muttering. He could only helplessly shrug.

He was not trying to maintain an air of mystery. However, even if he explained, the beast eared girls would not understand. [Should I explain everything from start to finish? Nah. I rather not.]

"We’re here. One of those two Teepees ahead is where the woodworker is," Yan Hua pointed to a simple Teepee a few metres away.

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"What about the other Teepees?" Su Bai could hear the sound of something being hammered inside. It was a very steady and powerful sound.

"That’s where the stone tool craftsman polishes stone tools," Yan Hua said in a clear voice.

"Oh? Let’s go see the stone tool craftsman first," Su Bai said softly. Since coming to this primitive society, he still did not know how stone tools were polished.

*Clang bang clang bang…*

As the three approached the Teepee, the hammering sound grew louder.

Su Bai arrived at the Teepee and saw that the ground was covered with stone fragments, with seven or eight head-sized stones on either side of the Teepe’s door flap.

"Uncle Shan Qiu, the Shaman is here," Yan Hua called out to the Teepee.

The names of people in the Tribe were very simple, some named after teeth plus a favourite colour, others named after natural features like mountains, water, or trees.

*Clang!* The sound of hammering stones suddenly stopped. A few seconds later, the Teepee’s door flap was lifted, revealing a short figure, only about 1.3 metres tall.

"This…" Su Bai’s black eyes trembled. The curiosity on his face had disappeared. It was replaced by solemnity.

Shan Qiu’s face was covered in dirt and dust, making his features unclear. His short-cropped hair was also covered in brown stone dust. The most striking thing was his pair of severed legs. Everything beneath the lower half of his calves were completely gone. What replaced them for walking was a pair of muscular arms, even thicker than a normal person’s thighs.

"Shaman, why have you come to a place like this?" Shan Qiu grinned, revealing a mouthful of big yellow teeth as said in a hoarse voice, "If you have any tasks, just send someone to tell me."

Su Bai managed to force a smile. His expression remained stiff as he said, "I’ve never seen how stone tools are polished, so I wanted to come and see."

He truly could not smile. Not after seeing a disabled person doing one of the Tribe’s most laborious jobs.

"If the Shaman wants to see, you can come in at any time," Shan Qiu nimbly moved aside with his arms. It was the first time a Shaman had come to his place. Even in the Tribal Ancestral Land, the Old Shaman had never visited his Stone Crafting Workshop.

"Then I hope I’m not intruding," Su Bai stepped into the Teepee, seeing nothing but stones. There were twenty to thirty of various sizes, with the only open space being from the door flap to the central fire pit.

"Shaman, sorry that it’s a bit messy here." Shan Qiu scratched his head, a bit embarrassed.

"It’s fine," Su Bai scanned the area and softly asked, "Can you please give me an introduction?"

"Alright," Shan Qiu nodded quickly, skillfully supporting himself on the ground with his arms. He moved to his stone polishing position, and picked up a palm-sized stone.

He spoke seriously and attentively, "A stone of this size can be polished into a spearhead, or used for throwing."

Shan Qiu put down the stone in his hand and pointed to a long, strip-shaped stone not far away, explaining, "That’s a good piece of stone. Without any Stone Eye or Stone Core, it can still be polished into an excellent stone knife."

"What are Stone Eyes and Stone Cores?" Su Bai was gradually drawn in, feeling that polishing stone tools involved many intricacies.

"Stone Eyes are cracks in the stone. Stone Cores are like hidden blemishes in the stone. Some Stone Cores are harder than the stone itself, while others are more brittle, greatly affecting the integrity of a stone."

Shan Qiu spoke knowledgeably about stone tools. "The most troublesome are Stone Cores. If a piece of stone material has a core, and it’s not durable, it will break after just a few impacts."

In primitive society, without iron tools, only stones served as weapons. Naturally a unique culture had developed around them.

"How many days would it take to polish that stone into a knife?" Su Bai asked curiously.

"Probably about two days. Stones that already have that kind of texture are relatively easy to find, so it’s not very difficult to polish," Shan Qiu said confidently.

"That long?" Su Bai was surprised. It took longer than he had imagined.

"Shaman, that’s not long at all," Yan Hua, having spent time with Su Bai, knew the Shaman lacked common sense in many areas. She explained in her clear voice, "To polish a good stone knife takes a lot of time. It sometimes takes three to four days. Only someone with Uncle Shan Qiu’s skills can polish a good stone knife in two days."

"I’m not as good as what Hua’er is saying. it depends on how easy the stone material is to polish," Shan Qiu said, a bit embarrassed by the praise.

"…"

The rest of the time passed in questions and answers, with Su Bai specifically watching Shan Qiu polish stone tools for a while.

"Alright, I won’t keep you from your work any longer," Su Bai said softly, as he still needed to visit the woodworker.

Shan Qiu supported himself on his arms, preparing to see the Shaman off.

Seeing Su Bai at the door flap, he suddenly spoke up, "Shaman, is there any stone tool you’d like me to polish?"

"I can also polish bone tools," Shan Qiu added.

Su Bai turned his head to look at Shan Qiu’s expectant eyes. His mouth curving upward as he said, "Then I’d like a stone knife, using the best stone material."

"Yes, I’ll absolutely use the best material," Shan Qiu called out excitedly.

"Then, I look forward to it," Su Bai said gently, stepping out of the Teepee, his mood had improved drastically.

He glanced at the cow horned girl and softly said, "Let’s go. Take me to see the woodworker."

"Yes," Yan Hua led the way.

As they walked, Su Bai suddenly asked, "What happened to Shan Qiu’s legs?"

"His legs were bitten off by a Ferocious Beast," Yan Hua bit her lips and said in a low voice, "Uncle Shan Qiu used to be a Totem Warrior, but after his feet got severed, he became a stone tool craftsman."

"I can sense that he was once a very powerful warrior," Su Bai could feel the rich Qi and strong vitality in Shan Qiu’s body.

"If Uncle Shan Qiu’s legs had not been injured, the position of Chieftain might not have gone to my Father," Yan Hua shrugged and said.

"He’s a talented man," Su Bai nodded.

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