Chapter 86: Step 86 to Greatness: Finally, Salt At Hand!
Adrian put the pouch aside and filled a clay-coated coconut shell about halfway with clean water from the pond. He gradually added the crushed salt while stirring continuously with a wooden stick.
The white crystals began to dissolve, but dirt remained suspended in the water while small stones sank to the bottom. He kept stirring until most of the salt had dissolved, leaving a murky brine behind.
"Now we wait," he said, setting the bowl aside. "Let the mixture settle for a bit."
"It looks like muddy water right now. Will it really become clean salt?" Hannah asked.
The women gathered around, watching the bowl with interest.
"It will," Adrian assured her via text. "It just needs time, like ten minutes, for the impurities to settle down. Do not touch it, though, or we’ll have to wait even longer."
After ten to twenty minutes, the mixture gradually settled as he wanted.
Floating on top were bits of bark and plant matter. In the middle was the clearer saltwater brine, and at the bottom were sand, clay, stone dust, and heavier impurities.
Adrian used a large leaf to skim off the floating debris carefully. He then decanted the clear brine into another clay-coated coconut shell, stopping before the bottom sediment started moving. He left the last centimeter or two behind and discarded the muddy residue.
It wasn’t the best method to get the salt, but it was the easiest one. That’s why he wanted Nysa to clean the impurities herself so they wouldn’t have to worry about making the brine in the first place.
Just then, a thought hit him.
I’m a moron, aren’t I?
Nysa had trouble separating the sand from the impure salt. However, she wouldn’t have trouble separating the brine! After all, salt would mix with water, but sand wouldn’t. He could have just given her the brine solution to purify!
Even though he had that thought now, he decided to use it next time. After all, he had already made the pouch and stuff. It would turn to waste if he didn’t use it now.
Yes. That’s the only reason I’m doing this. Definitely not, because the girls saw me make the rough filter and would ask me about it if I didn’t use it now.
Now, he took up the filter he had made and placed it over another clean coconut shell.
"Mika, a little help," he said, holding the filter. "I want you to slowly pour all the water into this pouch. Can you do it?"
"Of course, male," Mika replied, thumping her chest, which made it wobble a bit. "I have the best hands for the job."
Adrian nodded, tearing his gaze away from her chest. Back when she hit it, he almost yelled at her to be careful. He had experienced them once, and it would be a shame if something happened to those beautiful mountains because of rough handling.
Mika poured the mixture into the makeshift filter. Adrian watched as the liquid passed through while tiny suspended particles were caught in the fabric.
They repeated the process several times to ensure that the brine was as clean as possible.
"This should do it," he said, holding the bowl up to the fire.
The brine looked almost transparent now, with only a faint cloudiness remaining. It was to be expected, as it was a rough filter, not like the manufactured ones.
"Someone make a stand with the stones," he said, holding the bowl himself as he didn’t trust anyone with it anymore.
Sera, sensing what he wanted, hurriedly arranged some stones around the simmering fire. He placed the clean brine over the fire, using gentle heat. He avoided boiling it violently, opting for a slow simmer. The water gradually evaporated.
As more water disappeared, tiny white crystals began forming along the edges of the bowl. Adrian reduced the heat even more, careful not to burn the remaining liquid. He kept a close eye on the process, stirring occasionally.
Slowly, more whites were exposed as crystals formed rapidly. When only a small amount of liquid remained, Adrian took the bowl off the fire. The remaining heat finished the evaporation and stopped before scorching the crystals that were attached to the shell.
Soon, all the salt had turned into white flakes, ready to be ’harvested’.
"...finally," Adrian mumbled.
He felt a great sense of accomplishment as he looked at the purified salt. The process had taken time and patience, but it was worth it. Besides, it was the only time he would use that process.
With Nysa’s help, the process would be much faster and simpler. They would just need to make the brine solution and let the slimes clean it up. Once that was done, anyone could heat the solution to get salt.
It was also the reason he wanted all the women to see the process themselves. So that even if he slept for more than seven hours, they could still work on producing salt.
However, there was a problem.
"We only heated it once, but the shell already has cracks in it," he mumbled.
Even though they had protected the shells with hardened clay and used low flames, it seemed the coconuts couldn’t really tolerate the heat at all.
If they wanted to mass-produce it and establish a salt monopoly amongst the players, they would need proper clay pots and other utensils as soon as possible.
But for now, this was enough.
"Alright, grab the bowls and do it yourself this time," he announced. "You have seen how to do it, so I won’t hear any excuses for it. Once you’re done, we can cook coconut-seafood stew."
At his words, Sera took the lead, carefully repeating the steps Adrian had shown them. Hannah and the others watched closely, learning from her since Adrian didn’t really explain the procedure to them, just how it was done.
While they worked, Adrian slipped away with a bowl of brine to check if the slimes could actually help him with the processing or not.