Once upon a time there was a greedy snake.

Chapter 5 Don't eat just any food

Before I knew it, day and night had already turned seven times.

The terrifying giant serpent that the previous chieftain had spoken of had not yet appeared, and the entire forest remained peaceful and serene.

It's as if the story about the giant serpent was just a hallucination of the previous patriarch on his deathbed.

This made the Radiant One, the nineteenth leader, even more confused. He had originally vowed to avenge his father, but now, after waiting for seven days and nights, he himself began to doubt himself.

"Does that giant snake really exist? Or can snakes really grow that big?"

More and more doubts arose in the mind of the Radiant One.

When doubts arise, one naturally wants to think about how to resolve them, but the current Radiant Ones are already struggling to even think normally.

Simply because he was extremely hungry.

He did send his men away, but in his eagerness for revenge, he forgot to tell them to leave behind more food and water.

It was just a small oversight, but it directly plunged the Radiant Ones into an unprecedented predicament.

During the first few days of waiting, the Radiant One did not realize that there would be such a problem. At that time, he not only had a leather bag full of water, but also a few slices of dried wild beef to fill his stomach. These tightly pressed jerky pieces were not only rich in salt, but also quite chewy. Just one slice was enough to eat for a day. It was a portable ration specially provided for mages.

However, as the strongest mage in the Ignivas family, the Radiant One's appetite is also quite astonishing.

The water in his sac had run out four days ago, even with his extreme frugality. As for food, the few pieces of dried wild beef he had originally intended as emergency rations had now dwindled to a tiny piece the size of a fingernail.

Even though he had put this small piece of dried meat in his mouth and sipped it repeatedly, he didn't dare to swallow it.

Simply because he still needed the taste of this dried meat to make himself eat grass.

Indeed, as the nineteenth leader, he possessed formidable strength. With just a clap of his hands, he could easily hunt even the enormous mammoth.

But that would require being able to see a mammoth.

Right now, let alone mammoths, there isn't even a rabbit to be seen around. No matter how skilled he is, without prey, he won't have anything to eat.

"Were all the wild beasts scared away when so many people were building the altar...?"

The Radiant One immediately realized the problem.

So, when the dried meat he carried was almost gone, the Radiant Ones could only do what the antelopes and rabbits did: pull up wolftail grass and sedge grass from the ground and stuff them into their mouths.

Actually, the wisest choice would be to leave now, go back to the village and have a good meal, or at least go to a slightly farther place to find some prey or berries to fill their stomachs—however, perhaps due to being too persistent, or perhaps because they were too hungry to think straight, the Radiant One showed no intention of leaving at all.

"If I leave now, wouldn't all the hunger I endured these past few days have been for nothing?"

With that in mind, the Radiant One gritted his teeth and persevered.

He viewed this as a battle, a battle against hunger. The stronger the opponent, the more determined he became—he believed that he could overcome the current predicament through willpower and defeat the giant serpent through wisdom.

But as it turns out, the Radiant One overestimated himself. He might be able to overcome adversity through willpower and defeat beasts through wisdom.

But he couldn't overcome his stomach.

The hungrier he was, the more his reason became. Without nutrition, his brain worked slower and slower. Although he could still persevere, all he had left was the act of persevering.

However, he really couldn't keep going on eating grass alone.

"Is there anything else that can be eaten?"

The Radiant One, dizzy from hunger, instinctively turned his head.

It seems there really is.

That was a mountain of mammoth meat, originally intended as a sacrifice to the serpent god. However, after seven days and nights, this once fresh meat had long since begun to emit a foul odor.

"But, it should be fine, right?" The Radiant One instinctively swallowed.

"Just remove the parts that can't be eaten... So what exactly are the parts that can't be eaten?"

It was at this moment that the Radiant One remembered that he had poisoned the meat—but driven by hunger, he still felt that there must be some meat that was neither rotten nor contaminated with poison.

"As long as I can take a bite, even if it's just a piece the size of a fist... or even a slice the size of my palm, I can keep going, I can keep going..."

His mind was still hesitating, but his body had already instinctively drawn the bone knife from his waist.

"It doesn't matter if you cut into some spoiled parts, as long as it's cooked through, there shouldn't be any problems."

Thinking this, the Radiant One clapped his hands together.

A huge fireball shot out of nowhere, directly igniting the long-extinguished campfire.

The bone knife, already impatient, was already slicing into the mammoth meat in front of it.

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"Hmm? Why does it smell like barbecue?"

Deep in the mountains, Du Yi suddenly raised his head, hissing as he sensed the faint scent wafting towards him.

Although the smell was very faint, almost imperceptible, Du Yi could still tell that it was indeed the aroma of barbecue. As a seasoned barbecue expert, he could even tell from this faint smell that the person grilling the meat was definitely a novice.

Both the meat quality and the cooking time were lacking.

Furthermore, several of the most important parts are missing.

"There's no salt or sugar... and too little oil."

Du Yi, deep in the mountains, shook his head repeatedly.

More spices are a matter of luck, but salt and sugar are the most basic. Salt goes without saying; it's the most basic seasoning. The savory aroma of the meat juices comes entirely from salt. As for sugar, whether you use honey or tartare berry jam, it can effectively enhance the flavor of the meat juices, bringing immense happiness the moment you put the roast meat in your mouth.

Of course, the most important thing is the fat. When grilling meat over an open flame, the fat and lean meat must be grilled together.

"Otherwise, if you dry-roast it like this, the meat will definitely cook, but the juices will also be dried out, making the meat very tough and dry, and it will choke you when you swallow it."

Du Yi is quite experienced in this area, after all, he learned a lesson from this when he first started learning how to grill meat.

This made him want to go and have a conversation with them.

For some time now, he has been gathering spices and firewood in the deep mountains, and also taking care of his two previous hearty meals. He hasn't cooked for a while, but the aroma of roasted meat wafting from afar has given him the urge to show off his culinary skills.

"Let's go and take a look."

With that thought in mind, Du Yi carefully placed the giant trees he had just broken off and then continued his winding journey.

For Du Yi's enormous body, the journey wasn't too far. In just a moment, he saw the altar that was clearly man-made.

However, Du Yi was no longer paying attention to the altar itself, because the savage on the altar, dressed in animal skin, had his eyes rolled back and was foaming at the mouth, clearly on the verge of death.

Beside the savage was a piece of mammoth meat, half-roasted, still emitting a strange odor.

Du Yi had made barbecued meat that was so bad he couldn't eat it before, but this was the first time he had ever killed himself by grilling meat.

Fortunately, the person did not appear to be dead yet. Du Yi was quite experienced in dealing with food poisoning, so after thinking for a moment, he decided to save the person.

Saving a life can be a great foundation for communication.

(End of this chapter)