I've been transported to the orc continent.

Chapter 259 Cocoon

Bai Ling voiced his thoughts: "Chieftain, we can ask the orcs in the central tribe if there are any Sky Orcs who want to move, and we can ask them to move to the tribe."

"If any Sky Orcs are willing to come, we can help them build houses and give them ironware. Anything that the Horde Orcs have, the Sky Orcs who move here will also have."

Zhan said, "I'll find some time to talk to the orcs in the central tribe. If any sky orcs are willing to come, that would be wonderful."

*

After the thatch is dried, it is bundled together with wheat straw and placed in the yard to continue drying.

The silkworms that Bai Ling was raising were already as long as his palm. They had a huge appetite and needed to be fed several times a day. Bai Ling asked several beastmen to help pick mulberry leaves.

Bai Ling now spends most of his time at home, feeding silkworms and livestock. The orcs from the surrounding tribes have also sent him many wild birds.

Last year, when Bai Ling went to Greenwood Tribe to transplant mulberry and oak trees, he mentioned that he wanted to tame wild birds. It was difficult to catch birds in winter, but in spring, when everything comes back to life, many wild birds fly back from warmer places. The beastmen from the surrounding tribes caught a lot of wild birds and gave them to Bai Ling.

Bai Ling inquired carefully about the habits of these wild birds and finally kept three types: one was a bird that lived by the water, similar to a goose, but entirely white and twice the size of a goose; another was a bird that lived in the mountains and forests, capable of short-distance flight, with gray-green feathers, and about the size of a swan from her previous life; and the third was a bird that lived on the plains, with vibrant colors, and about the size of a goose from her previous life.

All three birds were kept indoors, and to prevent them from escaping, Bai Ling clipped off one of their wings.

When these birds were first brought here, they all looked listless. Bai Ling would catch earthworms and worms every day and mix them with bran to feed them. Over time, the birds slowly started to eat. Although they would still run around in the livestock shed, they were much better off than when they were first brought here.

*

The silkworms seemed to grow bigger every day, and Bai Ling didn't dare to neglect them at all. She checked on them countless times a day. One day, Bai Ling picked up a silkworm to observe it and found that the silkworm had actually raised its head.

Bai Ling knew that this was the silkworm signaling that it was about to spin its cocoon.

He put down the silkworm in his hand and picked up another silkworm from the tray. This silkworm didn't raise its head but instead moved around on Bai Ling's finger.

Bai Ling checked more than ten silkworms in succession and found that four of them had started to lift their heads. Bai Ling knew that it was time to arrange a "home" for them to spin their cocoons.

Although Bai Ling raised the silkworms, many people in the tribe helped him. Bai Ling never intended to keep the silkworm raising techniques to himself, so he taught the tribesmen every step of the process. Now that the silkworms are about to spin their cocoons, Bai Ling naturally has to teach the tribesmen how to do it.

After waiting for three more days, even more silkworms started to raise their heads. Bai Ling knew that the silkworms were ready to "go up the mountain," so he called over all the beastmen who worked for him.

Bai Ling first brought in the silkworm cocoons he had prepared beforehand and hung them on the strung-up straw rope. Then he picked up a silkworm, which lay on Bai Ling's finger and raised its head slightly. He then picked up another silkworm, which also raised its head in Bai Ling's palm.

"Put the silkworm in your palm. If it raises its head, it means it's time to spin its cocoon. You need to put the silkworm on the cocoon," Bai Ling said to the beastmen as he placed the silkworm on the cocoon. "You select some silkworms that have already raised their heads and put them on the cocoon. Don't select any sick silkworms or those that don't look well."

This was not a difficult task. Following Bai Ling's instructions, the beastmen selected the silkworms that had raised their heads and placed them on the silkworm cocoons.

Bai Ling and the beastmen worked for most of the day and only managed to select half of the silkworms. More than half of the silkworms were placed on the silkworm cocoons, and the remaining silkworms could not lift their heads. Bai Ling was not in a hurry and could select them again tomorrow.

One of the orcs was surprised and pointed at the silkworms on the cocoon, saying, "Why are these silkworms so well-behaved? Aren't they usually the ones that like to move around?"

Bai Ling said, "They are about to spin silk. Before, they didn't have a suitable environment, so they kept moving around. Now that they have a suitable environment, they will spin silk and form cocoons, so they don't move around much."

Another orc asked, "Is a cocoon the same as silk?"

Bai Ling shook her head and said, "Of course not. Silkworm cocoons have to go through many processes before they become silk."

*

Three days later, silkworm cocoons appeared on the silkworm cocoons. The cocoons were not only off-white, but some were also light blue. Bai Ling found it a bit novel. He had seen colorful silkworm cocoons before, but he didn't expect to see them here. They were even a beautiful blue, like lake water.

Yue also returned from hunting. He looked around the silkworm cocoons again and again. He didn't find it strange, because he had seen these kinds of cocoons in the wild, but those cocoons were not as beautiful and were rougher than these.

The silkworm trays have all been washed clean and are now ready to be used to hold silkworm cocoons.

Bai Ling, along with her family, Yue, and the beastmen who helped, picked the silkworm cocoons and placed them on the silkworm trays. These cocoons needed to be further sorted, and all the spoiled cocoons had to be thrown away.

Of course, not all silkworm cocoons need to be removed. Bai Ling left some on the silkworm cocoons. The pupae inside these cocoons will grow into adults, wait to mate, and then leave behind silkworm eggs.

Bai Ling raised a lot of silkworms, and naturally harvested a lot of cocoons. The beastmen were very excited and wanted to see how Bai Ling turned the cocoons into silk. Bai Ling smiled and said, "This can't be done in a short time. I have to sort out the cocoons first."

Bai Ling picked up a silkworm cocoon, held it up to his eyes, and said to the orcs surrounding him, "The silkworm cocoon is a thin layer of downy hair; you have to rub it off with your hands."

Bai Ling demonstrated for everyone. He placed the silkworm cocoon between his fingers and gently rubbed it with several fingers, leaving a thin layer of silk fibers on his fingers.

Bai Ling placed the silkworm cocoons in her hand onto the empty silkworm tray, then picked up another cocoon and gently rubbed it between her fingers.

Orcs' hands are used to manual labor, and their fingers are calloused, so they can easily rub off the outermost layer of the silkworm's skin.

More and more silkworm cocoons were being collected on the silkworm trays. Once the trays were full, Bai Ling first built a simple fire pit using a few mud bricks, and then took out the earthenware pot from her home.

Water was added to the earthenware pot, the fire was lit and the water was boiled, and Bai Ling took out the silk-drawing machine again.