Chapter 1107, The Stone That Burns

Translator: Silavin

 

Sha Lan continued to talk about the Red Horse Tribe for some time, covering their way of life and the location of their Hunting Ground.

 

“That Tribe probably won’t do much for our development, at least not yet. The Arrow Root Fruit is really the only thing they have.” Su Bai said lightly.

 

Apart from the Arrow Root Fruit, the Red Horse Tribe had nothing especially distinctive. Well, there was also the fact that they were a Tribe led by women.

 

The reason Su Bai said the Red Horse Tribe could not help the Flame Dragon Tribe much, for the time being, was precisely that: their Tribe was built around women. And the Flame Dragon Tribe right now was in the middle of building houses, roads, and so on. These were all of it heavy, physical work. So, for now, the Red Horse Tribe could not lend much aid.

 

It was not to say that they could not deploy female Totem Warriors. But what Su Bai needed was a mass of manpower, not a few elites that would cost more in exchange.

 

“That’s true. Once our Tribe expands, we should be able to find use for them.” Sha Lan said gently.

 

“Right. Tell me about the other Tribes.” Su Bai was curious about all the remaining ones.

 

“The second Tribe is the Soft Rabbit Tribe. They are rabbit Demi-Humans. The representatives who came this time are three triplets, and from what I understand, they are quite striking in appearance.” Sha Lan said simply.

 

“Oh? Triplets?” Su Bai gave an interested nod. “What is their Tribe’s specialty product?”

 

The image that came to mind when he thought of a rabbit eared girl was the Tribe’s Yue, who was usually cool and quiet, not prone to talking, and very capable.

 

“What the Soft Rabbit Tribe is most proud of is a certain type of stone. Apparently, it has an enormous use. They burn it for fuel. Though none of us quite know how.”

 

Sha Lan had the attendants bring the stone in as well. “Shaman, this is the one. Have a look.”

 

Su Bai’s eyes brightened the moment he saw it. He recognised it instantly.

 

He took it with undisguised delight. “This stone is called saltpetre. It’s one of the raw materials for making gunpowder.”

 

He was genuinely pleased. He had sent Tribe members out to search for this stone before, but there had never been much good news on that front. The amount recovered had been small, which meant the Flame Dragon Tribe did not actually have a ton of gunpowder in reserves.

 

The root of the problem was that saltpetre, the key ingredient, was scarce. Otherwise, Su Bai would not have been so concerned.

 

What worried him was that if the Dark Scorpion Tribe launched an attack, the Flame Dragon Tribe would not have enough gunpowder to defend itself. That was why he had put his hopes in the Tribe’s Warriors, hoping they would grow stronger quickly, and that more Warriors would awaken. Training soldiers, too, was part of his plans.

 

He had expected some gains after sending Hu Shi aboard the Flame Dragon to leave the Tribe and visit other Tribes, to see what they had that the Flame Dragon Tribe might need.

 

To think that the Soft Rabbit Tribe had saltpetre, arriving at just the right moment. It was hard not to be delighted.

 

“Is that the white powder that gets added when making gunpowder?” Sha Lan seemed to recall something.

 

“That’s the one. It’s quite rare. Finally, we’ve got some good news. Does the Soft Rabbit Tribe have much of it?” Su Bai asked.

 

“Yes. That seems to be the case. They mainly use it as fuel. This means they don’t have to go out chopping wood, which saves them a lot of time for other things.”

 

Sha Lan turned her blue eyes in thought. “I remember very clearly that Uncle Hu Shi said the Soft Rabbit Tribe even gave him a demonstration. On the boat.”

 

“Do they grind the stone into powder and then burn it?” Su Bai guessed.

 

“How did you know, Shaman?” Sha Lan’s eyes went wide.

 

“Well, I know this stone well. It’s a raw material for making matches, gunpowder, and fireworks. When you mentioned a stone that could burn, I already have a rough idea.” Su Bai smiled.

 

“I see. But why does a stone burn?” Sha Lan genuinely could not picture it.

 

“Saltpetre on its own doesn’t burn that easily. It won’t burn unless it’s mixed with sawdust, cotton, linen, or other flammable materials.”

 

Now that Su Bai knew they were grinding it to powder before burning it, he understood. It would be far easier to ignite that way.

 

He turned the thought over, then continued. “As for why they use it as a substitute for firewood… I’d believe the saltpetre here burns for quite a long time.”

 

He weighed the stone in his hand and began to wonder whether saltpetre from this era, or perhaps just from this region, was somehow different from what he knew. If it was, that was very good news. A longer burn time was an additional advantage, one that would only make it better for matches and gunpowder.

 

“It sounds as though the Soft Rabbit Tribe already understands saltpetre’s uses quite well. Trading for it may not be easy.” Sha Lan said.

 

“That’s true. They already know its value. To reach any kind of cooperation with them, we will have to offer something worthwhile in return.” Su Bai nodded thoughtfully.

 

“What are you thinking of doing, Shaman?” Sha Lan asked.

 

“Let me think it over. Let’s see what the Soft Rabbit Tribe is actually after first, then we can respond accordingly.” Su Bai said lightly.

 

He was not worried about what demands they might make. People of this era were not that difficult to deal with, and the Flame Dragon Tribe had many things to offer. Any one of them was enough to win a Tribe over.

 

“Understood. The Soft Rabbit Tribe has around two hundred or so Warriors. It is a Medium Tribe, with roughly three thousand people in total.” Sha Lan said from memory.

 

“That’s not a lot of them. If another Tribe were to attack them, they’d find themselves in a difficult position.” Su Bai remarked.

 

“What do you mean by that, Shaman? Are you saying their Tribe might be targeted?” Sha Lan asked.

 

“Roughly speaking, yes. Showing off something this valuable to other Tribes is not wise. It’s bound to make people covetous, especially any Tribe with designs on expansion.” Su Bai said.

 

He felt the Soft Rabbit Tribe was too open about these things. Such great resources should not be shown off so readily to others.

 

It was true that he had sent Hu Shi and the others to chat with neighbouring Tribes. But the Soft Rabbit Tribe, even so, seemed to have very little instinct for self-protection.

 

“We’ll see how they handle it. With their current numbers, if they were to face a Large Tribe, they would definitely struggle.” He paused. Sha Lan’s cat ears gave a small twitch.

 

“Shaman, should our Tribe get involved?”

 

“It’s not really our business. Let them make their own choices. Though, I have a feeling they will come to us in the end.” Su Bai smiled.

 

If the two Tribes were to form a proper cooperative relationship, it would be natural for the Soft Rabbit Tribe to come to them.

 

“Should you perhaps give them a small warning, Shaman? That way they would remember our Tribe fondly.” Sha Lan suggested.

 

“That’s not a bad idea. We’ll see when we receive them. Hard to say for certain at this point.” Su Bai smiled faintly.

 

“Understood.” Sha Lan gave a nod.