This Is My Primitive Tribe - Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Making Bows and Arrows

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

When they returned to the bamboo house, the sky had already turned dark.

Jiang Xuan lit a torch and planted the small stone eggs and saplings he had brought back in a suitable place. Then he began to think about self-preservation.

The wisp of smoke in the forest lingered in his heart for a long time, like a sharp sword hanging above his head. No one knew when it would fall.

In the primitive jungle, people from different tribes were often more terrifying than ferocious beasts.

Ferocious beasts could be chased away with all kinds of methods, but in order to fight for prey, population, and various resources, the tribes would often fight to the death.

Therefore, if the Vine Tribe wanted to survive for a long time, they had to start thinking about how to protect themselves when facing other tribes.

Jiang Xuan thought for a long time and decided to do three things first.

First, he would increase the strength of the five people as much as possible and create defensive and offensive weapons.

Second, he would accelerate the process of planting and cultivation to ensure that the tribe had enough food. Then he would find a way to increase their population.

Third, he would build a defensive line of dangerous plants around the tribe and use them to protect the tribe.

Of these three things, the first was the most important.

This was because it would take a long time to achieve the other two goals. However, creating weapons would increase one’s combat strength in a short period of time.

In the forest, there were not many weapons that could be made with bare hands. Jiang Xuan planned to make bows and arrows.

The bow was a true long-range weapon of destruction. It replaced the slings and spears with extremely poor accuracy and short range.

Whether it was hunting or fighting other tribes, the side with more excellent archers often had a greater advantage.

Stone Loach had a bamboo bow, but it was too soft to withstand the power of a one-color warrior. It had almost become a toy.

Because of the limited conditions, Jiang Xuan wanted to create a single bow.

Those bows that were made from only one main material were called single bows. They were simple to make and could be made with only primitive tools.

As for those synthetic bows made from many materials, although they were more powerful, they were very time-consuming and required a lot of tools and technology. Jiang Xuan could not make them at the moment.

The next day, Jiang Xuan prepared to make bows and arrows.

“Pop!”

Jiang Xuan went to the stream and found a hard gravel. After shattering it, he chose a few large stone fragments with sharp edges. After bringing them back to the bamboo house, he first made a simple stone axe. Then he chose suitable wood in the forest near the bamboo house.

“Chief, what are you looking for?”

As expected, Chi Shao followed him. She was always worried about Jiang Xuan going out alone, afraid that something would happen to him.

Jiang Xuan turned around and said in exasperation, “Sister, how many times have I told you? Just call me Xuan.”

Chi Shao said stubbornly, “Since you’re the chief, I have to call you chief.”

She was a very opinionated person. It was difficult for others to persuade her to change her mind. Therefore, Jiang Xuan had to give up persuading her.

“I’m looking for wood suitable for making bows.”

Jiang Xuan said, “The outsiders might find us here at any time. If we master the bow and arrow, we won’t have to fight them head-on if there’s a conflict.”

In short, the five members of the Vine Tribe were too weak. They were young and had pitifully little combat experience. They had no chance of winning in close combat. Long-range attacks were the best way.

Chi Shao nodded. “I’ve seen the hunting bows of tribal warriors. I’ll help you find the right wood.”

“Okay.”

After all, Chi Shao had been in the hunting team for half a year and knew more about the animals and plants in the forest than Jiang Xuan.

The two of them circled the forest twice. Chi Shao saw a large tree and her eyes lit up.

It was a big tree that required at least five people to hug it. It was almost straight and very tall and dense.

Chi Shao used a stone knife to cut off some bark from the tree. Inside was a purple tree trunk. After a while, red sap flowed out.

“We call this tree the Purple Blood Tree, because once you cut open its bark, you can see the purple trunk. Its sap is like blood.

It’s extremely tough and difficult to break. In the past, warriors of the tribe liked to use it to make spears. Most of the warriors in the hunting party used this tree to make their bows.

But be careful. Its sap is poisonous. If a wound on your hand touches the sap or you accidentally eat it, your entire body will ache for two or three days.

After the warriors cut down the purple blood tree, they usually roast it over a fire or leave it for a few months before using it. The sap inside will solidify, so they won’t have to worry about being poisoned.”

Jiang Xuan nodded and remembered Chi Shao’s words.

This tree was too big. Even its branches were extremely thick and tall. If he wanted to make a bow and arrow, he had to find a small tree.

Fortunately, there were many small purple blood trees near this big tree. Jiang Xuan chose to cut down six straight and treeless purple blood trees in one go.

After removing the branches and treetops, he tied them up with vines and carried them back to the bamboo house with Chi Shao.

After returning to the bamboo house, he first followed Chi Shao’s instructions and hung these purple blood trees horizontally above the fire pool. He roasted them for a whole day so that the sap inside would solidify and not flow out when he cut them.

Then he skinned the purple blood tree and used the stone axe to chop it into a suitable bow.

The center of the bow was the point of impact and also the point of grip. It was thicker, and the curved bow belly on both sides was thinner.

He had to be very careful with this step. If he didn’t cut it well, the wood texture of the bow would be damaged, and the bow would easily deform or even break.

As they needed to make bows and arrows for five people, it was obviously impossible for Jiang Xuan to do it alone. Everyone was helping to do the rough work. The more detailed work was done by Chi Shao and Jiang Xuan.

After the bow was cut into a suitable shape, Jiang Xuan cut out grooves on both sides for tying the bowstring. Then he chose the toughest bark rope as the bowstring and bent the bow slightly before tying the bowstring.

Next was the bow training segment.

A bow that had just been made could not be bent to a large extent. That would damage the bow.

The training of the bow was to slowly adapt the back of the bow to the bend, and in the process, continue to scrape and adjust the bow to make the width of the bend on both sides consistent.

Jiang Xuan created a simple bow rack and placed the bow on it. He first pulled the bow to a smaller extent and fixed the bowstring so that it remained open. He carefully observed the curvature on both sides of the bow.

If the bow did not bend enough on one side, he would use the stone knife to dig and scrape until the two sides were aligned.

When the bow adapted step by step and bent to a suitable angle, he took it down from the bow rack, fixed the bowstring, and polished it.

At this point, a primitive single bow was basically completed.

If possible, it was best to apply some tung oil on the bow to prevent moisture and cracks.

Jiang Xuan did not have any tung oil, but he had found a natural tree paint on Chi Shao’s suggestion. After applying it, it would have the same effect.

After that, Jiang Xuan made some more feather arrows. The arrow shaft was made from a small, straight shrub that could be used directly after being roasted and straightened.

The arrowheads were made of polished rhombus-shaped stones. The glue from fish gills that Jiang Xuan had stored previously came in handy. After boiling the fish gizzard glue and adding some fiber, the arrowheads could be firmly stuck to the arrow shafts.

The arrow was made from the tail feather of a bird. The end of the arrow shaft was split and the symmetrical tail feather was clipped to it and tied with a thin rope.

After the arrowhead, shaft, and feathers were done, an arrow was completed.

Ten days later, all five bows and some arrows were completed.

Everyone in the Vine Tribe had a bow of their own and a batch of arrows.

Jiang Xuan and the others walked into the forest with their first bows, preparing to try them out.

Jiang Xuan was the first to attack. He aimed at a big tree about 20 meters away. This big tree was about the size of a washbasin.

He held his breath and nocked an arrow. Then he aimed at the trunk of the tree and released the bowstring.

“Swish!”

The arrow instantly tore through the air, but it brushed past the tree and stabbed another tree.

“The shot went awry…”

Jiang Xuan felt very awkward. After all, the people behind were watching.

“It doesn’t matter,” Chi Shao said gently. “It’s normal to miss the first time. Any archer needs a long period of training to be accurate.”

Jiang Xuan nodded and said, “Continue practicing. I don’t believe I can’t shoot accurately!”

He shot arrow after arrow. After shooting all the arrows, he went over to pick them up and continued practicing.

He was patient and persistent. Once he was set on doing something, he wouldn’t give up easily.

After an hour, he was finally getting the hang of it. Occasionally, he would hit a larger target.

The others were practicing diligently.