Chapter 146: Bear Hunting
This was an era where humans and beasts were both predator and prey.
Mai Dong added, “It all depends on your strength and what kind of prey you’re after. Take me, for example—”
He coughed as he spoke, and a flush of red appeared on his pale face.
After recovering from his cough, he continued, “With my current strength, if I go hunting, I’m more likely to become prey for a beast.”
Hearing this, Xia Lu Nong and his companions exchanged uneasy looks.
Yan Xi Nian asked, “Where’s the nearest river? We’ve brought nets and are thinking of catching some more fish.”
Mai Dong replied, “There are plenty of rivers nearby, but you’re not the only ones with that idea. Since winter started, most of the rivers near Black Gold Base have already been scoured by others using electric machines, so there aren’t many valuable fish left.”
Xia Lu Nong couldn’t help but interject, “There are people using electric machines to fish?”
“Of course there are, and quite a few at that. The most extreme are those with electric abilities; they can directly electrify the river water. The fish in the nearby rivers have almost all been electrocuted. If not for a mutated giant fish that killed a few people last fall, there wouldn’t be any fish left in the nearby rivers.”
Xia Lu Nong didn’t know how to respond to that.
Yan Xi Nian remained calm and asked, “What about rivers farther away?”
“Farther away, there’s the Chiming River, but unless you’re absolutely sure about it, fishing there isn’t worth it. Just the fuel and energy costs alone are high, not to mention the dangers you might face. But since you have your own vehicle, that makes things easier.”
Yan Xi Nian asked him for directions.
Since Mai Dong had developed a small bond with them, he took out a map. “This is an internal map we use. The circles mark areas where there’s more wildlife. The Chiming River is here. There’s a group of bears that fish in the river, so people usually avoid it when fishing.”
Yan Xi Nian carefully examined the map.
It was covered in circles of varying sizes, with labels indicating different types of animals.
Mutant tigers, mutant lions, mutant wolves… There were quite a few dangerous animals marked in red.
In addition to the animals, there were also dangerous plants marked in red.
Poplar, willow, banyan, and rose bushes—plants that seemed ordinary before the disaster had become very dangerous after mutating.
After they finished looking, Mai Dong said, “This is the latest map. If you’re not strong enough, it’s best not to go after the more valuable creatures.”
He smiled wryly, adding, “Of course, that’s for people like me. You’re much stronger, so you probably don’t have to worry. Anyway, the Chiming River has the most fish, but it’s also the riskiest. You should think it over carefully.”
Yan Xi Nian patted his shoulder. “Thanks for the heads-up. We’ll give it some thought.”
“No need to thank me. We’re all in this together, and I hope you stay safe,” Mai Dong said. “I’m not strong enough to go with you, so if you do decide to go, you’ll be on your own.”
After a brief discussion, Yan Xi Nian and his group decided to head toward the Chiming River.
As they left, Mai Dong reminded them, “That group of bears has mutated quite a bit and now works together. If you do go, be extra careful.”
They drove off.
Their truck was sturdy and had been modified, so while they noticed some unfriendly stares on the street, they weren’t too worried, though they still remained cautious.
Xia Lu Nong muttered, “Humans really are different now.”
“That’s normal,” Yan Xi Nian replied as he drove. “What’s the plan? Are we really going after those bears?”
Xia Huo Qu said, “We should avoid them if we can. We’ve already got plenty of fish. There’s no need to take unnecessary risks. When we get close to the Chiming River, we’ll shift into animal form, while Kong Zhi and Xia Lu Nong drive the truck.”
Kong Zhi nodded. “No problem, but we should inspect the vehicle first before heading out.”
Xia Lu Nong, sitting beside him, added, “Speaking of that, I’m so envious of Black Gold Base’s armored vehicles. If we had one and paired it with space-storage bamboo tubes, it’d make life out here so much easier.”
Yan Xi Nian laughed. “Let’s see how much we can gather on this trip. If we make a good haul, we’ll trade for one and take it back to the base. Maybe the people at White Building can figure out how to make a copy.”
Xia Lu Nong chimed in immediately, “And that food energy detector! It’s such a shame no one at our base thought of that.”
“That’s why we needed to come out and see things for ourselves,” Yan Xi Nian said. “I’ll drive. You guys inspect your tools and catch some sleep while you can. After we finish the vehicle check at noon, we’ll head straight to the hunting zone.”
Xia Lu Nong’s backpack contained two guns, two cans of honey, one jar of honeysuckle, and several sealed bags filled with various seeds.
These seeds were newly acquired from Black Gold Base.
Among them were bamboo seeds, crop seeds, and medicinal seeds, especially some that could heal wounds or neutralize poison.
Since their team didn’t have a doctor, they had to be extra cautious and well-prepared.
After carefully checking his supplies and making sure everything was in order, Xia Lu Nong transformed into a cat and curled up on Kong Zhi’s lap to sleep.
He had developed the ability to sleep on demand, a crucial skill for ensuring they were well-rested and alert in case of emergencies.
The truck rumbled forward, soon leaving the populated area behind.
Black Gold Base was a large settlement, and they occasionally passed people on the road.
These people drove a variety of vehicles, wore all sorts of armor, and had obvious signs of beast transformations.
Some gave them hostile looks, while others were more friendly, showing that the area was home to all kinds of people.
Xia Lu Nong took note of everything.
There weren’t many valuable hunting areas near Black Gold Base anymore.
The Chiming River was quite far, and they didn’t arrive until the afternoon.
Even without shifting into animal form, they could easily smell the distinct odor of black bears in the air.
Yan Xi Nian remarked, “I was hoping the bears would hibernate, but it looks like they’re still pretty active. That smell—it’s fresh, probably from marking their territory this morning.”
Wild animals often use urine or feces to mark their territory, and the scent was unmistakable.
Yan Xi Nian and Xia Huo Qu’s scent was also strong when they shifted into animal form, but since they were still human, they could control it enough not to scare away prey.
Yan Xi Nian tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.
“Those black bears are definitely fierce. We’ll need a plan,” Yan Xi Nian said. “It’s getting late today. Kong Zhi, fly up and scout the area. We’ll rest outside for the night and start fishing tomorrow.”
Kong Zhi nodded, shifting into his golden eagle form and flying out from the back of the truck.
Xia Lu Nong shifted back into human form in the truck bed.
Golden eagles were excellent for keeping watch, and after flying for more than ten minutes, Kong Zhi returned.
After putting on his clothes, he told Xia Lu Nong and the others, “Those bears are even smarter than we thought. I saw them digging fish ponds outside their den, where they were keeping fish they had caught.”
Yan Xi Nian was surprised. “They’re that smart? They’re digging ponds and keeping fish? Anything else we need to watch out for?”
“Yes,” Kong Zhi said grimly, “they also eat people. I saw quite a few human bones in their territory.”
Xia Huo Qu sat up straight, his expression serious. “Are those the remains of people they’ve eaten recently, or are they old bones?”
“It seems recent. The bones were wearing winter clothing.”
Everyone fell silent after that.
The ferocity of the black bears was bad news for their small group.
Yan Xi Nian said, “Let’s take a vote. Should we avoid the bears or try to take them down?”
Xia Huo Qu replied, “We don’t have enough information to gauge our odds. Let’s observe them tomorrow and decide then.”
Yan Xi Nian agreed, “That’s all we can do. Let’s get some rest tonight, save our strength, and observe tomorrow. We still need to fish—each river has different kinds of fish. If we don’t catch anything, it’ll raise suspicion.”
They parked the truck in a relatively safe spot and took out food stored in their space bamboo tubes for a good meal.
There were plenty of abandoned houses by the river, and they searched through them, but found nothing of value.
As more time passed since the disaster, the chances of finding anything useful were decreasing. Once most things decayed, finding anything would become even harder.
They realized they needed to focus on self-sufficiency. Otherwise, they’d eventually be forced back into a primitive way of life.
Xia Lu Nong, using his remaining energy, planted another bamboo shoot and created eleven more space bamboo tubes.
His ability wasn’t suited for combat, but it was great for evasion and escape, so using it now didn’t pose much risk.
After creating the space bamboo tubes, he breathed a sigh of relief, shifted into his animal form, and went to rest.
To maximize rest, they decided to take turns standing watch individually instead of in pairs. Since Xia Lu Nong had depleted his energy, he was exempt from watch duty that night.
The night watch was supposed to be peaceful, but around midnight, Xia the cat suddenly woke up in a panic.
He had heard a strange sound.
He opened his eyes abruptly and looked over at his brother and Yan Xi Nian, who were still sound asleep. Clearly, they hadn’t heard the noise.
Xia the cat gave each of them a gentle swipe with his paw, waking them up, and let out a soft “meow.”
At the same time, Xia Huo Qu’s eyes snapped open, fully alert.
Xia Huo Qu peeked outside the truck’s tarp and whispered, “What’s going on? What did you hear?”
Xia the cat shifted back into human form, wrapping a blanket around himself. “I think I heard cats.”
He paused and added, “It sounded like a lot of wild cats.”
