Chapter 42: The Badger

“Owwoo~”

As soon as they left the house, Xiong Ba eagerly dashed out, chasing a chicken in the distance that flew up in fright.

Seemingly unsatisfied, it ran back and pinned down a large rooster, roughly playing with it but not biting it seriously.

It seemed like it was venting the frustration from being tormented by the little princess, Xiaoxia, at home. The rooster squawked pitifully, like a little girl.

“Alright, alright, stop playing around,” Lin Heng said, watching it.

“Wang Wang!”

Xiong Ba reluctantly released the rooster and trotted back to Lin Heng’s side.

Though it had only been at Lin Heng’s home for a few days, it had been well-fed and well-cared for, even helping with pest control. Its coat had become shiny.

At just over two months old, it was already 30 centimeters tall with a large frame, though it looked somewhat skinny and unattractive.

This was the awkward phase for a dog. After about six months, it would start to look better once its body finished growing.

After checking the sky, Lin Heng led Xiong Ba toward Hongfeng Mountain on the west side of the village. He planned to hunt nearby today.

“Suddenly really thirsty.”

Lin Heng looked around and noticed that his third uncle, Lin Xutao, lived not far away. He decided to head over to grab some water.

Arriving at his uncle’s house, he saw that the gate was open and his third aunt, Li Xue, was chopping pigweed in the yard.

“What are you doing here? Your third uncle is out working and doesn’t have time to help,” Li Xue frowned and said with a hint of disdain.

Lin Heng wasn’t surprised. In his past life, his third aunt had always been like this. Whenever her husband occasionally helped his family, she would mock him sarcastically.

“Aunt, I’m not here to ask for help, just thirsty and wanted to borrow some water,” Lin Heng explained.

“The well’s in the back, there’s a bucket. If you want water, get it yourself,” Li Xue said, not even bothering to look at him as she continued her work.

“Okay, I’ll go to the well then,” Lin Heng felt a bit disheartened. All he wanted was a drink of water, but her attitude was so harsh.

He had helped her family by bringing half a fish the other day, yet she acted so snobbish.

After drinking some water behind the house, Lin Heng and Xiong Ba headed towards Hongfeng Mountain.

Hongfeng Mountain was a mixed forest, with trees of varying heights. The tall red maples and pines reached over 20 meters high. There were also scattered oaks, locust trees, chestnut trees, yellow locusts, and boxwoods, all around 10 meters tall. The shorter bushes consisted of a large number of firethorn shrubs.

The land at the foot of the mountain was sandy, planted with peanuts, sweet potatoes, and soybeans. Two fields were planted with glutinous rice.

The area didn’t see many visitors, and the grass was tall. After the rain, everything was wet with dew, and Xiong Ba was soaked as it led the way.

“Chirp chirp!!”

A few grey-green birds were chirping from the firethorn trees, seemingly unafraid of Lin Heng.

These birds were about the size of an adult fist. Lin Heng didn’t know their scientific name but heard locals call them “Green Hu Diaozi,” though he had no idea what that meant.

They tasted decent; he’d caught them before as a child, roasting them for food, though the meat was scarce. A two-tael bird was already pushing it.

Lin Heng had come this way hoping to find wild rabbits. Theoretically, there should be some here, but unfortunately, after two rounds of searching, he found none.

“Chirp chirp!!”

Two more Green Hu Diaozi landed on a tree about five meters away, calling non-stop.

“Forget it, small meat is still meat.”

Lin Heng shook his head, raised his slingshot, aimed, and fired. With a snap, two or three birds flew away, but one fell to the ground.

“Guess I’m going to have to rely on the air force today.”

Lin Heng sighed, muttering to himself.

“Eh, where’s Xiong Ba?”

Suddenly, Lin Heng realized Xiong Ba had disappeared, and it had been quiet for a while.

He quickly scanned the area, trying to avoid disturbing any nearby prey.

“Gada gada!!”

Suddenly, Lin Heng saw Xiong Ba leap from a patch of weeds, and then he heard the startled cry of a wild chicken and the sound of feathers flying everywhere as Xiong Ba chased it.

“Owwoo~”

After failing the hunt, Xiong Ba let out a disappointed cry.

“Try harder next time.”

Lin Heng watched the wild chicken fly off for about 700 or 800 meters before turning back to comfort Xiong Ba.

Once it returned to his side, Lin Heng patted its head to encourage it.

“Let’s go, let’s head up to Hongfeng Mountain.” Lin Heng patted Xiong Ba and started climbing up the mountain.

The sky grew darker, and the clouds thickened, making the night fall earlier than usual.

It seemed like Lin Heng’s luck had run out, as he didn’t even spot a dove or a bamboo partridge.

“Chirp chirp!!”

Suddenly, several Green Hu Diaozi chirped ahead.

This time, Lin Heng raised his slingshot and fired without hesitation.

With a snap, two or three birds flew off, but one fell to the ground.

“No choice, I can’t rely on the air force.”

Lin Heng shook his head. Determined not to just rely on the air force, he picked up the fallen Green Hu Diaozi and put it into his bag.

Soon, he shot down six more, collecting seven in total, though he still couldn’t summon a dragon.

Boom!! Boom!!

At that moment, the sky suddenly flashed with terrifying white lightning, followed by a deafening crash of thunder.

“Not good, it’s going to rain.”

Lin Heng’s expression changed. He grabbed his slingshot and shot two more Green Hu Diaozi before heading down the mountain with Xiong Ba.

As they jogged, he suddenly noticed something flash across the forest.

At first, he thought he had seen wrong, but when he looked down, Xiong Ba had also stopped.

“What is that?”

Hidden behind a tree, Lin Heng waited and saw the figure again.

It was the size of a local dog, with two white streaks on its fur. Lin Heng held his breath: “Damn, it’s a badger!”

This was the biggest prey he had encountered since his rebirth.

A badger can weigh up to 40 pounds, though most are around 20-30 pounds. Its meat is delicious, and its fur is valuable.

The one he saw now probably weighed about 20 pounds, and a full skin could easily sell for 30 yuan, sometimes even 40.

Looking at the sky, Lin Heng gritted his teeth: “Let’s go, let’s follow it quietly.”

Such a big prey should not be missed. Who knows when he would find another one?

As for the rain? It hadn’t started yet.

“We’ll move downwind.” Lin Heng motioned for Xiong Ba to follow quietly as they crept toward the badger.

Badgers have poor eyesight but an extremely sensitive sense of smell, so Lin Heng had to be cautious.

There was a small stream separating him from the badger, but fortunately, it hadn’t noticed them yet. The badger was still rooting around for food.

Boom boom!!

Lin Heng’s heart pounded as his palms grew sweaty from the tension. This was the biggest prey he had ever hunted, and he had no experience with such a large animal.

Aside from his skill with a bow and a good dog, he didn’t know much about hunting.

Carefully crossing the stream, Lin Heng peeked out from behind a firethorn tree. To his surprise, the badger moved another five or six meters away.

Now, they were about 60 or 70 meters apart, and Lin Heng needed to close the gap.

Xiong Ba had already separated and was approaching from another angle, but Lin Heng didn’t have much hope in it since it wasn’t as big as the badger.

Drip drip drip!!

Suddenly, the sound of raindrops hitting the leaves filled the air. Lin Heng looked up and saw that it was about to rain.

There was no time to hesitate; he had to act fast. Otherwise, the badger would surely leave for shelter as soon as the rain started.

Stepping forward cautiously, Lin Heng closed the gap by another five or six meters. As he prepared to continue advancing, the badger suddenly raised its head and looked in his direction.

“Shit, it’s noticed me!”

Lin Heng’s heart raced. He was already panicking, wondering whether to rush out and shoot an arrow or wait for the next opportunity without alarming the badger.

Just then, a violent lightning bolt flashed across the sky, lighting up the dim forest like daylight.

Boom!!

After the flash of lightning, thunder rumbled in the distance.

The badger only glanced up at the lightning before returning to its search for food.

Lin Heng calmed himself down and noticed the badger had turned its head away. He quickly closed the distance to around 20 meters, hiding behind a wild pepper tree and a firethorn bush.

Now, they were only about 30 meters apart, within the effective range of his bow.

Looking at Xiong Ba, Lin Heng gritted his teeth, picked the best arrow, and nocked it on the bowstring.

After aiming for five seconds, he released the arrow with a whoosh!

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(End of Chapter)