Lords of the Heavens

Chapter 30 Cutting Firewood and Burning Charcoal
After lunch, Li Wei rested for a while, and with Penny's occasional guidance, he prepared to split the oak tree into firewood. Without a saw, it was a nightmare.

But he had no other choice. If the family wanted to increase and upgrade their tools, they had to go through a difficult process of initial accumulation.

Especially now that he's the head of the household, he can't even slack off.

For the next two days, Li Wei struggled with this oak log, almost to the point of vomiting blood, before he finally managed to chop it all into firewood and throw it aside to dry. However, there was no notification. Clearly, this firewood was related to the construction of the blacksmith shop, and perhaps the settlement would only be made after the blacksmith shop reached a certain stage of construction or was completed.

However, besides that, Li Wei also gained 20 logging experience points from this log. Including the 10 points he had before, he gained a total of 30 logging experience points over the past three days. He really lost out.

At this stage, because Fila donates all the food to her family, she doesn't have to pay for her daily meals, and she can retain her logging experience and other professional skills.

"Maybe I can switch careers and become a lumberjack, transforming into Bald Qiang?"

"However, it seems difficult, or perhaps not at all. Penny spent more than ten days cutting down trees to build the wall, but it didn't seem to trigger anything."

After dinner, even though his whole body ached, Li Wei habitually whittled wooden arrows by the campfire. Now he whittles ten arrows every day and shoots them ten times. He's not just doing it perfunctorily; he's learning.

From the body posture when shooting an arrow, the stance of the arms, legs, and feet, the power generated by the waist, to the subtle techniques of drawing the bowstring, and the process of nocking the arrow, etc.

This all requires establishing a series of physical muscle responses.

Most importantly, because there was no teacher to guide him, he had to figure it out on his own, make his own judgments, and shoot based on his own intuition.

This is a long-term endeavor, and perseverance is key.

Nothing happened overnight. The next day at dawn, Li Wei ate breakfast and set off on his own to find a second oak tree in the forest across the stream. He was no longer so troubled. He just wanted to work hard. So what if Fila took the position of head of the family again next month? He wasn't a newcomer anymore.

Sufficient family contributions can prevent him from being killed off by the plot, and the hunter profession can guarantee a living. Overall, his family with Penny and Fila has temporarily entered a period of normal development.

Li Wei, the hunter and the farmer, is indispensable.

Fila, the cook, is just as indispensable as the gatherer.

The same applies to Penny, the artisan.

The competition and conflict between the three people is not as intense at this stage.

It may not become apparent until the next stage.

For the next six days, Li Wei cut down two more oak trees and chopped them all into firewood. At this point, the three-unit log felling mission in the main quest was completed. He gained a total of 90 logging experience points, bringing his total experience to 105 points. However, for some reason, he did not trigger the one-star logging card.

During this time, Penny's injuries gradually recovered, and she began to do some light physical work, such as improving the stove that had been built earlier.

Occasionally, they would go out for a stroll, and even Fila stopped causing trouble, so things were quite harmonious.

“George, let’s burn charcoal tomorrow. My injury is basically healed.” Penny suddenly spoke up after dinner.

"Row!"

Li Wei readily agreed. Building the blacksmith shop was also part of the main quest, even though ten days had already passed and Fira's main quest was almost complete. The next day, as soon as it was light, Li Wei got up and, under Penny's command, worked like a beast of burden. Burning charcoal was a skilled and not easy task.

Throughout the day, Li Wei was kept running around by Penny, looking disheveled and somewhat like a charcoal seller covered in dust and soot.

After dinner, he felt completely drained.

Even so, after resting for a while, he got up, whittled ten wooden arrows, and diligently completed his daily ten shooting practice sessions in the dim light of the campfire.

Sometimes, you can't put all your eggs in one basket with your career card.

If only he has it, it can be considered a cheat code, but if all players have it, then it comes down to wisdom and perseverance.

Otherwise, how could he possibly surpass others?

For the rest of the time, Li Wei was burning charcoal.

Once he had a basic grasp of the charcoal-making process and gained some general experience, Penny stopped instructing him and went out to explore the next day. She returned empty-handed that evening, seemingly searching for iron ore.

As for Fila, she successfully completed the main quest assigned by the head of the family, which means she will have seventeen days to develop her own activities.

Judging from the current situation, it's almost a foregone conclusion that Fila will become the head of the household again next month.

Because if Fila wants to compete, her total family contribution could potentially exceed fifty points.

This is something Li Wei can never compete with.

Every day, Penny would bring back several pieces of iron ore of unknown quality. After a few days, she had accumulated a lot of them. Surprisingly, these could be counted in Li Wei's main quest. Perhaps it was because he was going to cooperate with Penny to build a blacksmith shop, so they were temporarily teamed up.

In addition, Penny would take some time in the evenings to make clay molds and leave them in the room to air dry.

Seven or eight days passed, and everything was ready. During dinner, Penny suddenly spoke up.

“George, the charcoal you made is good. You’ve worked hard these past few days. With the charcoal and this iron ore, I’m confident I can smelt a batch of molten iron tomorrow. However, the amount of iron ore is a bit small, and I don’t know what the iron content is. Just to be on the safe side, we might need to smelt a few iron tools to make up the difference. Mom, George, what do you think?”

Li Wei was wary upon hearing this. He didn't know much about these things, but he knew that Penny wouldn't speak without reason.

“I disagree. These tools were left by your father and were bought from a blacksmith in town. The materials and forging quality are excellent. Penny, I understand your desire to become a blacksmith, but you can’t ignore the risks. In another month, the wheat fields will be harvested, and those damned birds and beasts will come day and night to steal our grain.”

“We need to spend more time and energy maintaining the farmland, instead of getting too involved in your plans. Look at how your brother has been working himself to the bone trying to help you lately, my poor George. And we don’t have much food left at home, especially meat. Without enough meat, we simply can’t sustain this heavy labor.”

"He should be hunting, not burning charcoal for you!"

Fila decisively stated her position: she disagreed.

(End of this chapter)