In the rock pit, the huge semi-circular wooden basin bubbled with boiling water, within which chunks of fatty intestines bobbed up and down, and a thick layer of golden fat floated on the surface of the water.
The unique terrain formed a natural heat gathering area, and outside the rock pit, Bi Fang peeled off the entire piece of musk ox skin, tilting the hunting knife, carefully scraping off the fat and the innermost layer of the skin.
"This is the subcutaneous tissue, a layer composed of fat and connective tissue that accommodates blood vessels and nerves. Don’t waste it; we can also use it to render oil," Bi Fang said.
Bi Fang threw the hanging, greasy cheese-like layer into the pot, where it continuously tumbled with the boiling water.
Once the inner layer was cleaned, Bi Fang turned the musk ox skin over to clean the outer surface, scraping off the knotted hair and then rinsing it several times with boiling water.
Unfortunately, although this place was also a forest, there was no river, so the skin couldn’t be soaked. Bi Fang had to make do with what he could, unable to clean it thoroughly.
While waiting for the animal skin to dry completely, Bi Fang moved over to the skinned musk oxen. Deprived of its furry coat, the musk ox’s naked red muscles were exposed, looking quite shocking.
Although Sanshao (Three Fools) had eaten a lot already, there were still many internal organs left inside.
"Every part of a prey theoretically has its use. For instance, the intestines, stomach, and bladder, once cleaned, even if not eaten, serve as bags with excellent expansibility and strong sealing effects, useful for carrying water," he noted.
"The same is true for an animal’s head. The fluid inside the eyes mixed with twigs can be used to make strong glue, and the fresh brain matter will later be used for tanning the animal skin."
Bi Fang separated the remaining viscera to avoid cross-contamination.
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"Especially when cutting the liver, one must be careful not to rupture the gallbladder, as anything that comes into contact with bile will be contaminated," he advised.
Bi Fang carefully extracted a long, dark object that was almost inky green in color and looked very suspicious in shape.
"Many people have a misconception that bile is secreted by the gallbladder, but in reality, bile is primarily secreted by the liver, and the gallbladder serves to concentrate and store it. When bile is initially secreted by the liver, it’s quite thin, but through concentration in the gallbladder, it becomes much thicker," he explained.
"Believe me, you wouldn’t want to taste it, or you’d regret many things in life," he warned.
[I know this. If the fish’s gallbladder is punctured, none of the surrounding flesh can be eaten.]
[Just thinking about it makes me frown.]
[It’s bitterly disgusting.]
Anatomizing an animal is harder than most people imagine, especially an oversized one. It’s a test of both physical strength and technique.
But Bi Fang’s technique was extremely proficient; nearly all of his movements were fluid and seamless. Many viewers who had seen the butchering in slaughterhouses felt that even the masters who had done this kind of work their whole lives were about this skilled.
In fact, experts can tell just by the way one starts with the guts, professionals can determine skill level from that very first step.
Following the incision along the breastbone area, all the way to the unmentionable parts, this is a quite difficult task. The location is near the posterior, and if one carelessly cuts the tube connecting to the unmentionable parts, the surrounding meat will be contaminated.
Who knows how many apprentices have paid their dues learning the proper technique and strength required.
But clearly, Bi Fang didn’t waste an inch of material.
"In theory, regardless of whether the environment is cold enough or not, we should always wear gloves when handling dead animals, to avoid cuts that can lead to bacterial infections. If conditions don’t allow, we must ensure not to get injured and wash hands regularly."
Bi Fang skillfully used the Hunting Knife to carve up the Musk Oxen. All ungulates share similar body fat and muscle distribution, so the skills involved are largely the same.
"As we can see, there is a thin layer of filmy substance on much of the meat. This is the normal fascia, and there is no need to remove it, in fact, it’s best preserved as it helps keep the meat."
A considerable amount of greasy, white fat fell onto the snow, quickly freezing like stones.
After trimming off all the visible chunks of fat, Bi Fang packed them into the prepared stomach sacks, filling two of them.
Musk Oxen are not entirely bovines; essentially, they are transitional animals between cattle and sheep, having basic characteristics of both. Like cows or sheep, they also have four stomachs, and Musk Oxen are no exception.
With intestines and bladders, Bi Fang was able to craft quite a few storage pouches at once.
That’s why he doubled up, to prevent the fat from leaking out, cramming everything into the backpack until it was bulging.
This was probably the highest energy part of all the edible sections of the Musk Oxen.
Separating them in advance was a precaution, in case they encountered insurmountable events, such as other Predators or blizzards, during the Musk Oxen transport where they might have to abandon their spoils.
"As long as we have this fat, our Hunting won’t be considered a loss," Bi Fang was very satisfied.
Rendering fat, curing skins, and cutting up meat, even all done simultaneously, require loads of time.
As time went by, they gradually completed these tasks.
The fats rapidly solidified into a pale yellow color in the low temperatures, emitting an incredible aroma. With so much of it, Bi Fang collected all into the intestinal bags, rolling them into a bundle shape for convenient transport.
The entire Musk Oxen was thoroughly dismembered, with the useless rib, tail, and spine bones discarded for Sanshao to gnaw at leisure, while all the useful parts were kept. However, Bi Fang did reserve the leg bones for himself.
While heavy, they indeed provided great material for making weapons and tools. Bi Fang kept two and after stewing the rest, crushed them open and sucked out the bone marrow.
Meanwhile, Bi Fang and Sanshao were feasting on some of the less cost-effective lean meat. With their strong digestive capacities, he could eat again every two hours.
With the continuous supply of energy, Bi Fang could feel his physical strength rapidly returning to its peak Status, despite the continuing drop in external temperature.
By the time he finished all this, it was already the next day.
The animal skin stretched tight on the wooden framework snapped crisply when tapped, the frost falling off in a shower.
Bi Fang applied the mix of hot water and brain matter to the Musk Ox Skin to prevent the fibers from binding back into rawhide, and continued to work the still stiff areas until he had cured the entire hide.
With that, everything was accomplished.
The symbolic white Musk Ox horn helmet was mounted on Goudan’s head, and Bi Fang, now down to only the two-hundred-kilogram carcass, loaded it onto the sled. With one man and three animals as the primeval driving force, they set off back in the direction they came from.