The area was surrounded by many animal footprints, especially those of grass-eating animals.
It seemed like this place was a natural salt deposit.
Minh Vu couldn't resist licking those salted rocks, while Klu and the others stared in amazement.
"The Leader is eating dirt!"
In contrast to Klu's group, Minh Vu was ecstatic.
It appeared that the tribe's difficulties had been resolved satisfactorily.
The salt ore contained a significant amount of impurities, and the taste was mixed with the earthy bitterness.
Refining it into salt required substantial processing.
In prehistoric times, this would have been considered a monumental task.
However, for modern people, it was a trivial matter.
Even an eighth-grader would have knowledge of such processes.
Having studied eighth-grade chemistry and conducted practical experiments, mixing salt and sand, then filtering out the salt, was a familiar task.
Simply dissolving the salt-sand mixture, filtering out the sand, and evaporating the solution through heat would yield salt.
This was table salt, easy to dissolve. However, this salt ore was more challenging to refine, but not impossible.
Minh Vu immediately ordered the hunting party to mine the salt ore and bring it back to the tribe. The hunters sighed, with only Orc and his hunting dog obediently following orders, without any complaints.
The six-member team used stone knives to excavate the ore, which proved to be quite difficult to extract. Despite the effort, Minh Vu, standing on a small mountain ledge, observed the surroundings. It seemed that this place had been submerged by the sea, and after a long time, the sea retreated, leaving behind this salt deposit.
After about half an hour, all the baskets were filled.
Each basket held at least around 8 kg of salt ore, totaling nearly 50 kg. If the salt content in the ore was high, it could yield around 5-6 kg of refined salt.
This production was not insignificant and could sustain the Stone Tribe for about 10 days to half a month.
Once the collection was complete, it was already early evening.
The temperature had risen, and the group headed back to the tribe.
The tribe was in the process of relocating the day's harvest to the cave.
The kitchen team had already produced 200 kg of food for the day, and the Stone Beads production had reached 30 kg.
The rat fur problem had also been resolved.
The pottery production for the day included four large pots and ten small ones because the tribe had enough clay pots at the moment; any surplus was stored for future use.
Seeing that there was no prey on the backs of the hunters but only dirt and rocks, Vu frowned.
"Klu! What's the use of bringing rocks? Rocks aren't edible!" Vu scolded.
Klu rolled his eyes, his face blushing. This wasn't his idea; the leader ordered him to dig and bring the soil back. Moreover, he even witnessed the leader eating dirt.
Minh Vu laughed and then gave instructions.
"Alca, Akam, go to the stream and collect small stones, smooth ones."
"Orc Ivan, Klu, grind these rocks now."
Vu didn't understand. "Edible rocks?"
"Yes! They're delicious! Minh Vu chuckled.
Not long after, all the supplies were brought back by the tribe members.
Under the gaze of everyone, Minh Vu got to work.
First, he took out the three largest pots in the tribe, with a diameter of 40 cm and a height of about 50 cm.
The first pot was filled with water to dissolve the freshly ground salt ore.
The second pot had its bottom broken, serving as a filter for the saltwater.
Since they had no filter paper or cloth, Minh Vu devised a simple water filtration system.
He first added a layer of dry grass, followed by small stones, charcoal, and finally, larger stones.
The last pot was used to collect the filtered saltwater.
The tribe members didn't understand what their leader was doing, but one thing was for sure, they would have something tasty to eat.
Once everything was ready, the sky had darkened, and Minh Vu instructed the people to prepare dinner.
Meanwhile, he continued to observe the ongoing work outside.
The salt ore water was a dark, murky color, but after passing through Minh Vu's simple filtration system, it turned clear, resembling the water from the stream outside.
Not letting the people wait too long, Minh Vu brought out the pot containing saltwater, placed it over the fire, and let it boil.
Regardless of how much it boiled, everyone went into the cave for dinner.
Some members resisted, wanting to eat what was being cooked on the other stove.
Still, Minh Vu insisted that it would be for tomorrow, so they reluctantly went into the cave for dinner.
After a satisfying dinner, the tribe gathered outside the cave, eagerly waiting.
However, Minh Vu couldn't let them have idle hands. Under the flickering firelight, he began instructing them on making twine from bark.
Making bark twine was relatively simple.
A few days earlier, Minh Vu had instructed the youngsters to collect bundles of grass and bark from small branches, which were now gathered in the sheltered part of the cave.
The bark was pounded to remove the flesh, leaving only the fibers.
These fibers were then rolled on the thigh, elongating them, and finally twisted together using a three-strand technique, resembling the method of tying a knot for a rope.
Depending on the desired thickness, the twine was made in various sizes, from as thin as a candle wick to as thick as a thumb or forefinger.
These twines would prove extremely useful in this harsh winter.
About two hours later, the first pot of saltwater had dried up to the bottom.
Now, beneath the pot, there was a continuously accumulating liquid.
Minh Vu immediately stirred it with a stick until the salt formed into crystals.
After around 10 minutes, the first batch of salt was complete. The finished salt was not completely white, still retaining a cloudy yellowish tint because the saltwater had been filtered only once.
If the water had been filtered two or three times, the result would have been different.
Minh Vu was the first to taste the result.
When the salt touched his tongue, a taste of pure saltiness flooded his mouth, without any bitterness.
At this point, he let out a sigh of relief.
He then handed it to Vu for a try.
Vu was also surprised, putting a grain of salt in his mouth.
As the salt touched his tongue, the elder's face contorted with an expression of horror.
"Salt! Salt! Salt!" Vu exclaimed.
"Exactly! It's salt! We don't need to trade with the Large Stone Tribe anymore! We can produce our own salt!" Minh Vu exclaimed loudly.