This is the most pitiable cow I have ever seen.

George felt a searing, fiery pain at his vulnerable spot, nearly losing consciousness as his eyes flickered and threatened to close. All strength drained from his body in an instant, and his hind legs trembled uncontrollably.

The ratfolk, seeing George utterly powerless, unleashed their full fury upon him, dealing blow after blow in a relentless assault. The scent of blood wafted through the grass, thick and oppressive...

Was that the end? Hardly. The pain and torment had only just begun.

Behind George, a one-eyed rat with a crooked grin grasped the end of his spear, hanging his entire weight from it, his toes barely touching the ground as he swung wildly, driving the spear deeper into George’s back.

Swinging and swaying, he seemed to lose himself in the act, growing more frenzied by the minute.

Yang Jie watched the mad glint in the one-eyed rat’s gaze, his brow furrowing, and he found himself feeling pity for the young wild bull.

George, on the other hand, was beyond tears. His mouth was filled with dirt, and he lasted only a short while before his eyes rolled back and he collapsed into unconsciousness...

But then, fifty meters away, Tuqi suddenly let out a shrill warning cry.

The sharp rat squeal snapped Yang Jie and the others from their frenzy, putting them instantly on alert.

From the direction of the Tam River behind them, a prehistoric giant crocodile, nearly ten meters long, was quietly stalking toward Yang Jie.

Yang Jie turned just as his eyes met the crocodile’s. For a moment, rat and crocodile stared at each other, caught off guard. The giant reptile’s forelimb hovered midair, just six meters away, and an awkward silence hung in the air...

Yang Jie’s pupils contracted, his fur standing on end, as if icy shards had filled his veins.

“Run!”

Someone, perhaps another ratfolk, noticed the approaching crocodile and shrieked in terror.

In an instant, the rats scattered, fleeing for their lives, even the one-eyed rat, who had been so intent on tormenting George, leapt headlong into the grass.

Fifty meters away, Tuqi, clutching a portable crossbow, squinted his rat eyes and took aim at the crocodile’s hind leg. Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger.

A poisoned bolt shot out, sinking into the root of the crocodile’s thigh, buying precious time for his companions to escape.

Those who had been beating George scattered in every direction.

Yang Jie understood at last the nature of these ratfolk.

When faced with a helpless victim, they were ruthless, arrogant, and utterly merciless.

But confronted with a powerful enemy, their courage evaporated. They cared only for their own lives, abandoning their comrades without a second thought.

Yang Jie saw it clearly and felt a chill in his heart.

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“Sigh, this is a hard group to lead!”

These eleven militiamen were all Yang Jie’s hard-earned assets; losing even one would be painful.

Fortunately, the giant crocodile was not after the ratfolk, but drawn by the scent of blood, it made straight for George.

“This is the most pitiful bull I’ve ever seen...”

Watching from afar as the enormous crocodile clamped its jaws around George’s skull and began twisting and turning, Yang Jie couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy.

Before long, the rats had safely returned to the camp.

Yang Jie, back at the camp, opened his system panel to check on their technological progress:

Technology: [Primitive Brick Firing Method] completed...
Unlocked building: Ratfolk Brick Kiln

Technology: [Stone Sling] completed...
Unlocked building: Sling Training Ground

Technology: [Folklore] completed...
Unlocked building: Cultural Square

Technology: [System] completed...
Unlocked new building: Propaganda Center

...

Yang Jie operated the system interface while directing his tribe to begin construction of the newly unlocked buildings.

The primitive brick firing method, as the name implied, was the simplest and most crude way of making bricks. It usually took about half a month to produce results.

A wooden mold was made, filled with clay to the desired shape, then placed in the brick kiln and fired for about two weeks. The resulting bricks were of poor quality, but sufficient for building a pigsty in the countryside.

Standardized bricks were far more complex, with a much longer production cycle.

First, clay must be sourced from at least two feet underground, commonly called "gum clay," which forms over ten thousand years and has excellent plasticity.

After excavation, the clay must be exposed to the elements—wind and sun—for about half a year, allowing natural erosion to break it down and soften it. Then, it must be manually crushed and sieved, leaving only the finest pure clay.

But that’s not all. The pure clay is then mixed with water and kneaded repeatedly, much like making dough. Of course, hands aren’t the only option; cattle can be used to stomp the clay into a thick slurry. Human labor is required to turn and knead the clay five or six times, a process that directly determines the quality of the bricks.

Once the clay is properly prepared, it is shaped using molds. During molding, the clay must be tightly compressed, and fine sand must be spread where the bricks are set, to prevent sticking.

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After excavation, drying, kneading, and molding, the bricks finally enter the kiln for firing, which takes one to two months.

These are the bricks used to build high-rises in cities. Given Yang Jie’s current resources, such ambitions are out of reach. If he could cobble together a wall in a month, it would already be highly efficient.

The second technology, [Stone Sling], was not literally about throwing stones, but rather a ratfolk method of ranged attack. Stones the size of walnuts were tied to the ends of ropes or vines.

The technique was simple: grab the center of the rope, swing it overhead with force, and once enough speed was achieved, hurl it at the target’s legs. This required practice; without it, accuracy was poor, and friendly fire was likely. The slings depicted in drama, with shot-put sized stones, were entirely unrealistic.

Currently, in this Stone Age, their technological level was limited to [Basic Woodworking]. Both bows and crossbows required [Intermediate Woodworking] for their essential components, so Yang Jie’s best options for ranged attacks were spears and slings.

A note: making bows was not as simple as tying animal sinew to a stick. If penetration and range were the goal, throwing stones was far more practical.

The cultural square was simply a tidied clearing, increasing the comfort of the tribe.

The propaganda center, however, was more significant. With it, Yang Jie immediately issued two decrees through the system.

The first was akin to the universal conscription policy of Country H, requiring all ratfolk to complete a set amount of training at the training grounds each month. Given their shortage of soldiers, the tribe could enter a state of total war at any time.

The second was a reward-and-punishment system, similar to company performance reviews. Yang Jie had noticed many farmers slacking and shirking their duties during his patrols, so he established a mechanism to incentivize or penalize accordingly, assigning several ratfolk to supervise this task.

And how to deal with those who performed worst in farming?

Simple: since the militia was short on rats, those lazy ones were sent to serve under Shuke. If they didn’t want to farm, they could at least serve as soldiers.

This system not only punished slackers but also rewarded diligent workers to varying degrees.

Additionally, Yang Jie and Shuke devised a militia training regimen.

The focus was on agility and teamwork, cultivating a collective spirit through combat readiness exercises.

Specific requirements included: daily field training of at least ten kilometers; a minimum of two hours of cold weapon sparring each day.

In short, Yang Bing and Yang Jie applied their understanding of modern military training directly to the tribe. With time pressing, there was no room for hesitation.

As the sun set, another busy day ended. The adult wild rats of the tribe were each at their posts, working tirelessly, while the young in the burrows grew stronger day by day.

Everything was progressing smoothly, moving in a positive direction.

But Yang Jie was unaware that a looming crisis was quietly approaching...

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