Legendary Traveler: By Earning Progress Points I will Become Supreme!

As expected, the return trip back up the mountain and to the cave went unhindered, mainly thanks to the only threat being the snow itself, and since the way back wasn't difficult for Glacia to navigate, the pair of lord and summon safely returned to their cave within 15 minutes.

Unlike the trip down the mountain to the cavern, where the small ball of fluff trotted along due to being weary of pulling the sled, this time, she was fully capable of running at her top speed while dragging Aoni along.

Thus, the trip was cut down by more than half.

Upon returning and dumping off his Full Pack, Aoni was quick to feed Glacia and inform her they were making multiple trips. However, after the third haul, the lad believed his baby Yeti would be able to complete the task on her own much quicker than if she were forced into dragging him along back and forth.

Having been aiding her lord in collecting the Salt multiple times by now, she didn't even need to be asked or told to do so, and the moment they entered the cavern, she would dart down the path and toward the lake to begin her collecting.

But if Aoni were to allow Glacia out on her own, it would cause a slight issue, and that was the fact that she had no way to carry back the loot. Due to the size difference between the baby yeti and the backpack he had been using, even if she were able to carry the weight with no problem, it would be far too cumbersome and, as such, would no doubt hinder her movements.

So, after giving it much thought, Aoni decided to shred his only t-shirt and turn it into a sachel for his beloved summon; after all, he still had the makeshift jacket, and since he was close to making some warm equipment, the shirt would end up being nothing more than a rag anyway.

Just like that, the furry missile began her solo farming of Salt.

Mind you, the amount of Salt she could carry was about a quarter of what could be stored in Aoni's pack, but the speed at which she was able to not only travel but collect the mineral was far faster.

With Glacia constantly moving back and forth from the cave to the cavern and back, the next step on Aoni's docket was to build several wooden drawers, approximately 1.5x1.5 feet in size. After all, the tanning of the hide consisted of a few steps, including salting, compression, and drying, so he would need the proper tools to complete each of the important steps, starting with storing and compression.

For the rest of the day, Aoni busied himself by carving several drawers with his knife until he felt he had enough before moving on to creating matching lids for each one.

The goal was to make a manner of sandwiching the salted material between a plank, closing it off from the air, and applying weights in the form of heavy rocks to each one.

Since the lad didn't have any machinery and only his knife to do this, of course, the boards used to close off the drawer weren't "perfect" by any means; however, by shaving down the edges, he was able to get a decent enough fit.

The only difficulty he faced was creating a means of removing the "lid." In the end, he chose to make a notch at the top of each plank and tie some leftover vines to it like a handle.

Then came the testing phase, where Aoni would constantly adjust the lid by sliding his knife along the edges of the plank until they would sit flush with the drawer but were still easy to pull off.

There was a small hiccup, though; one of the lids ended up being too tight, and Aoni was left stabbing the plank over and over, followed by slowly wiggling the lid off, but apart from that, it all went smoothly.

Although it took up a significant amount of time to finish each box, when complete, they were entirely reusable and would meet Aoni's needs for some time.

By the time the sun had begun to dip below the horizon, and Glacia had long since stopped running back and forth, Aoni placed the last of the drawers to the side and moved on to crushing the salt rocks.

He did this by utilizing the empty wooden drawer and a stone from outside like a mortar and pedestal.

First, fill the drawer halfway with salt rocks, then SMASH SMASH SMASH, followed by some grinding, annnnd repeat.

So, with daylight being replaced by the cold dark of night, only the faint sounds of Glacia snoring and the repetition of Aoni grinding salt could be heard.

'That should be enough,' with his hands beginning to go stiff, Aoni called it a night some two or three hours after nightfall and stretched out his arms and lower back.

Before him sat eight wooden drawers, half filled with finely ground Salt, and their matching lids resting against them.

Achieving his minor goal for the day and feeling exhausted, the lad didn't want to venture out into the cold and retrieve the pelts, so he figured it was time to address the whole Energia Crystal conversion thing he had learned about earlier.

Standing up on wobbly legs due to having sat cross-legged all evening, Aoni walked over to his desk, sat down with a soft grunt, and picked up one of the 12 Low-Grade Energia Crystals he had dug out earlier in the day.

However, the more he examined the Crystals, the odder they appeared in his eyes. Then again, it wasn't surprising because every Energia Crystal he had ever seen in his life had gone through a process similar to gem cutting, and what he was holding was the raw product, not the finished one.

| ★ Energia Crystal located |

| Would you like to convert it to Progress Points? |

Just like when he had extracted the crystal from the wall, the moment it came in contact with his skin, a notification flashed in front of his eyes; only this time, he was ready for it.

'Convert the Energia Crystal into Progress Points,' with a nod and a mind full of expectations, Aoni gave the mental command.