Chapter 148: Double Bears
Xia Lu Nong and the others rested and didn’t start searching for the bears’ lair until the afternoon.
For safety’s sake, Xia Lu Nong transformed into his beast form again, successfully gathering information from several cats to avoid being misled.
Among the cats, intelligence varied—some knew more, some less.
After separate interrogations, Xia Lu Nong pieced together enough information to estimate the situation with the bears.
Once back in human form, he dressed, took out his notebook, and showed them the details he’d gathered about the bears.
There seemed to be around twenty bears.
Based on the information they’d received, they numbered the bears from one to twenty.
Xia Lu Nong showed them a simple map he had drawn. “This is the general range where the bears operate. They only gather when they need to hunt together. The rest of the time, they stay apart. We can start with these two bears in the northeast corner. If we don’t succeed the first time, we can come back and try again.”
The map was passed around.
Xia Huo Qu nodded. “I have no objections to this plan.”
The others agreed as well.
Xia Lu Nong said, “Then let’s drive the truck to a nearby location, and when we get there, we can shift into our beast forms.”
He pointed to a specific mountain that was easy to recognize.
Xia Huo Qu asked, “Is this place downwind?”
“Yes,” Xia Lu Nong replied, sketching a quick diagram. “Based on the shape of the mountain, the wind should blow this way.”
In mountainous areas, the wind patterns were easier to predict.
After confirming the plan, they got into the truck and headed out.
They brought the cats along, keeping them under close watch to prevent any interference.
Having eaten their fish and witnessed the group’s strength, the cats had no complaints.
They quietly curled up in the truck bed, paws tucked under them, not making a sound.
Before getting out of the truck, Yan Xi Nian glanced at the cats and said, “They’re behaving pretty well.”
“Not really,” Xia Lu Nong replied. “These cats are opportunists. If they see a chance, they’ll betray us in a heartbeat.”
The big orange cat met Xia Lu Nong’s gaze, flicked its tail, then quickly tucked it away.
Yan Xi Nian chuckled.
For safety, all four of them acted together.
It was already winter, but after the mutations, the bears no longer hibernated.
Approaching from the side, they soon reached the bears’ territory.
Through binoculars, they spotted two brown bears near the frozen river, fishing.
These two bears seemed to have a close bond, cooperating smoothly.
Xia Lu Nong whispered, “They’re Asiatic black bears.”
These bears were common.
Compared to polar bears, they were less aggressive but still formidable, especially with their powerful bite force.
After the great disaster, all flora and fauna faced mutations, and these two bears were no exception.
Their massive bodies looked like small mountains, rippling with thick muscles that made them appear incredibly fierce.
Their small, black, beady eyes, sharp and alert, added an air of cunning to their appearance.
Seeing the thick muscles on these two bears, Xia Lu Nong felt a bit uncertain about facing them head-on.
He anxiously moved backward and whispered, “In the wild, bears are even more dangerous than tigers. We need to be careful.”
Yan Xi Nian reassured him softly, “Don’t worry. The three of us will take on two bears, and with you directing from the sidelines, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
Xia Lu Nong still wasn’t confident.
Yan Xi Nian added, “Let’s observe them for a while and see if they separate.”
The two brown bears by the edge of the frozen river seemed to have just finished hunting. The ice here was thick, but it was still risky for the bears. Each bear, weighing at least four or five tons, sat on the ice, using its front paws to tear into fish and eat voraciously.
The fish were quickly frozen once pulled out of the water. From a distance, they could hear the crunching sounds as the bears devoured the frozen fish. The scene was brutal.
Xia Lu Nong’s eyes fell on the red fragments beneath the bears—likely blood and flesh from the fish. The bears were completely focused on eating, and the fish looked plump.
Xia Huo Qu and the others patiently waited downwind, looking for the right moment to strike.
While they could control their urges, the cats in the truck, smelling the fish, couldn’t resist. Several cats poked their furry heads out, trying to locate the source of the fishy smell, making rustling noises.
Xia Lu Nong’s face tensed. They hadn’t fully fed the cats earlier, and the risk of betrayal was real.
He let out a soft “meow,” full of warning, trying to get the cats back into the truck.
The cats hesitated, glancing at Xia Lu Nong, then at the distant snow, as if caught between choices.
Just as Xia Lu Nong was about to stand up and chase the cats back into the truck, Kong Zhi grabbed his arm, signaling towards the bears.
The bears, wild creatures through and through, had heard the noise. They paused their meal, slowly moving toward the sound on all fours.
“Damn,” Yan Xi Nian muttered, not taking his eyes off the bears. “They’ve sensed something is off and are coming to check. We can’t hide anymore. We need to come up with a plan fast.”
Xia Huo Qu said, “There’s no time for a plan. If we meet them head-on, we have to strike first. Let’s all shift into our beast forms.”
Kong Zhi added, “Xia Lu Nong, stay as you are and ride on my back.”
Xia Lu Nong nodded softly, “Alright, I’ll grab the gun.”
They had already discussed their battle strategy. In an instant, the group stripped off their clothes and transformed into their beast forms.
Their animal forms were massive, with strong scents.
The wild bears quickly picked up on their presence. Abandoning their meal, they roared and charged at the group on all fours.
Xia Lu Nong, clinging tightly to Kong Zhi’s neck, was lifted into the air by the golden eagle as it soared. From above, he watched the scene below, eyes wide with awe.
He had never seen anything like it in his life.
The ground shook as the multi-ton bears ran, snow and ice trembling beneath their heavy steps.
His brother and Yan Xi Nian, in their giant wolf and tiger forms, charged directly at the bears, their trained reflexes allowing them to leap toward the bears and swipe at their faces with their paws.
Blood immediately spurted from the bears’ eyes and noses as they roared in pain and lunged back.
The giant wolf and tiger didn’t stick around for long. After landing their blows, they quickly moved forward, leading the bears away from the truck.
The bears, not intelligent enough to recognize the plan, instinctively chased after them.
Seizing the opportunity, the golden eagle dived down from the sky, aiming for the eyes of the smaller bear.
The bear, battle-hardened, rolled on the ground just in time, dodging the eagle’s talons, which narrowly missed its eye.
The bear gasped as it rolled, but the giant wolf took the chance to leap in and clawed at the bear’s face, crushing its eye.
Everything happened in an instant. The larger bear tried to come to its companion’s aid, but the giant tiger held it back, using its size and fighting skills to maintain a stalemate.
In its fury, the bear completely ignored its fallen companion.
The giant wolf and the eagle took turns attacking, and soon, the smaller bear’s throat was torn open, hot blood spilling onto the snow, filling the air with the scent of iron.
Sensing the growing danger, the larger bear roared fiercely.
Neither side wanted to prolong the fight, but the intensity kept escalating.
The smaller bear was quickly worn down, and once it died, it was three against one.
The giant tiger, wolf, and golden eagle, each a fierce fighter capable of taking on hundreds, easily overpowered the remaining bear.
The larger bear was soon killed as well.
The giant tiger let out a triumphant roar.
Xia Lu Nong understood its meaning. The area was now filled with the scent of blood, and they were still deep in bear territory—it was dangerous to stay.
They needed to leave quickly, or they risked being cornered by other bears.
From the eagle’s back, Xia Lu Nong shouted into the wind and snow, “I’ll go down and drive the truck over. We can load the bears into the truck and get out of here!”
The giant tiger roared in agreement.
The golden eagle swooped down toward the ground, and when it was two or three meters from the snow, Xia Lu Nong jumped off its back.
He rolled to absorb the impact, then ran toward the truck.
The cats had completely lost control, darting over on their short legs to lick the blood-soaked snow.
Xia Lu Nong ignored them, scrambling into the driver’s seat and starting the truck. He drove it toward the others, knowing that each bear weighed at least three to four thousand pounds.
Their truck couldn’t fit two bears.
The ground was dangerously icy, and overloading the truck would be too risky.
Watching as they loaded the larger bear onto the truck bed, Xia Lu Nong shouted, “We need to stop and dismember the second bear to fit it into the spatial bamboo tube, or it definitely won’t fit.”
Xia Huo Qu and the others realized the same thing.
Without hesitation, the three of them shifted back to human form and found clothes in the truck.
After dressing, Xia Huo Qu said, “Let’s get started now. Xia Lu Nong, come help cut this bear into sections.”
Among them, Kong Zhi was the best at dissecting. He took the lead, while the others assisted.
They began by skinning the bear, then cutting off the meat bit by bit. At this point, appearance didn’t matter—they just needed to cut the meat and stuff it into the spatial bamboo tube.
Luckily, the bamboo tube’s opening was now very wide, larger than their waists, so it didn’t matter if they cut the meat into large pieces.
These two bears had mutated significantly, but after assessing them, the group decided the meat was edible. They set aside concerns for later and focused on getting the job done.
They worked quickly under the pressure, and within half an hour, they had completely processed the multi-thousand-pound bear.
They didn’t bother with the innards. Since the spatial bamboo tubes were valuable, they couldn’t risk using them to store organs and potentially contaminating the meat, so they discarded the intestines.
The cats, having almost licked the bear’s blood dry, eagerly rushed over to feast on the discarded intestines.
Xia Lu Nong glanced at the cats and sniffed the air, frowning. “I have a bad feeling. Let’s finish up quickly and leave. Staying here could lead to something dangerous.”
His intuition was usually spot-on, especially when sensing danger.
Given his warning, the group wasted no time, hurriedly packing up and preparing to leave. As for the armored vehicle in the bear’s lair, that would have to wait for another day.
