Leisurely Farm Life in Beast World

"Shaman Ji Nuan."

The voice of an orc came from the doorway, and Ji Nuan set down the small shovel she was holding and stood up to see the approaching figure, a smile appearing on her face: "Brother Ge Tai, what brings you here? Come in, quickly."

Ge Tai strode in and it was only then that Ji Nuan noticed the frown on his brow, his expression grave.

"What’s happened? Weren’t you out with the tribe gathering salt fruit?"

Ge Tai looked at Ji Nuan, his voice full of heaviness: "Shaman, we went to gather salt fruit, but all of the salt fruit we’ve planted has rotted and died.

We went into the forest to search, but the salt fruit trees we found were the same—all the trees we had previously harvested from were dead, their trunks turned black with not a single leaf remaining; the entire trees looked as if they had withered."

Upon hearing this, Ji Nuan’s pupils contracted, and the smile on her face faded: "All dead? Did you bring any back?"

Ge Tai nodded: "We did, they’re in my family’s courtyard. I’ve already told my father, and he asked me to find you."

Ji Nuan, not bothering to wash her hands, simply wiped off the dirt and hurried toward Chief Ge Xing’s house.

At Chief Ge Xing’s house, Aunt Naima and Grandma Shaman were also reviewing the small tree, which was not even shoulder height to an orc, with solemn expressions.

"How could this happen? Why would the salt fruit trees suddenly wither away, not leaving even one behind?"

Grandma Shaman reached out and snapped a branch, the crisp "snap" letting them know—there wasn’t a bit of moisture left inside the trunk.

It was as dry as the firewood they used for burning during the cold season.

Footsteps came from outside the courtyard, followed by the "creak" of the gate as it opened, and Ji Nuan quickly entered.

Ge Xing stood at the doorway, waiting for the arrival of the other team leaders.

"Grandma Shaman, Clan Leader, Aunt Naima."

Ji Nuan greeted the elders, then settled with a serious face beside the pitch-black small tree on the ground.

She, like Grandma Shaman, snapped off a piece of branch, finding no hint of green or moisture inside—like charred firewood.

This filled her with doubt; could it have been struck by lightning during the rainy season?

She turned to Ge Tai by the courtyard gate: "Brother Ge Tai, are there any signs of burning around these salt fruit trees?"

Ge Tai shook his head upon hearing this and said gravely, "No, at first I thought these salt fruit trees had been burned, but there’s no sign of fire around them, and even the grass beside the trees is lush and green."

Ji Nuan stood up, holding the branch, and sat down by the stone table.

Right now, she truly could not fathom the reason all the salt fruit trees in the Eneru Forest had died.

Before long, several of the tribe’s team leaders also rushed over, their expressions grave as the orc who went to deliver the news. This caused everyone’s anxiety to rise.

After hearing Ge Tai’s description, they were greatly alarmed. Seeing the severely shrunken salt fruit tree on the ground only made their faces grow even more distressed.

The tribe had gotten used to using salt as a substitute for beast blood and found it to be healthier—it wouldn’t cause them to contract worm disease.

But now, Ge Tai was telling them that all the salt fruit trees in the Eneru Forest mountain range had withered away—how could they possibly accept this?