Hunting Wilderness: Starting with the Butcher

Chapter 48 Berries, Grouse, Wild Mushrooms!

Feeling refreshed after finishing his first bowl of pine needle tea upon landing at Black Bear Bay, Yuan Linghan grabbed his bow and arrows and hunting knife and began his first exploration. He needed to find out as soon as possible what usable resources were available around the camp.

There's not much time left before it snows here. To survive the extreme cold, we must quickly build a safe and warm shelter. In addition, we need to stock up on enough food.

When the snow season arrives, outdoor hunting becomes even more difficult. And hunting in the mountains can only begin after the snow stops. Surviving snowy days depends entirely on pre-stocked food supplies. Each step is crucial; any oversight could lead to elimination.

Following the path up the edge of the winding stream through the thicket, Yuan Linghan soon spotted a patch of low shrubs. Seeing the plants growing among them, he couldn't help but laugh and exclaim, "Wow, looks like I'm in luck! I've found a berry patch!"

Stepping into the bushes, Yuan Linghan bent down to pick the edible berries and introduced them to the camera he was carrying. Although these berries were wild, they tasted quite good.

"With this berry grove, I can achieve berry freedom in a short time!"

The berries growing in this thicket are common local varieties, including blueberries, honeysuckle berries, and blueberries. During the picking and tasting process, Yuan Linghan felt that blueberries and blueberries tasted better, while honeysuckle berries were more sour and astringent.

While picking and tasting a small amount of fruit, Yuan Linghan also discovered traces of many animals that had been in the thicket. After patrolling the area, he took out his paracord and made several snare traps along the animal trails he had found.

After everything was set up, Yuan Linghan smiled and said, "I hope these traps will yield some results tomorrow. I'll need to spend time building a permanent shelter later, so I won't have much time for hunting each day. For now, I can only rely on the harvest from these traps."

While patrolling the area around the camp, Yuan Linghan discovered numerous tracks of black bears. In addition, he also found what appeared to be footprints left by a herd of deer and wolves. These findings led him to believe that the animals in this area were quite active.

While passing through a relatively sparse forest area, Yuan Linghan spotted two towering trees. He quickly walked to the trees and carefully examined the area behind them, discovering that it was a slope.

Standing between two large trees, Yuan Linghan suddenly smiled and said, "I think this location is perfect for building a permanent shelter. The spot between these two trees is an ideal entrance, and such an entrance would be absolutely sturdy."

"Once I clear and level the slope behind the trees, I can build a sunny and sheltered hut here. It has a good view, isn't far from the water source, and if I have time later, I can even fence off a yard nearby."

For Yuan Linghan, the purpose of this trip was to find a suitable location to build a permanent shelter. Since he immediately took a liking to this place, he naturally wouldn't hesitate too much. Besides, there was plenty of wood and stone to collect nearby.

Having determined the location, Yuan Linghan decided to move the temporary shelter there the next day. From now on, this would be his campsite for living alone for the next hundred days. After choosing the location to set up the temporary camp, he got up and walked towards the temporary shelter.

On his way back, Yuan Linghan, with his keen hearing, quickly heard faint noises coming from the jungle ahead. Without much hesitation, he took down the iron bow from his back and took out two arrows, holding them in his hands.

A light-feathered arrow is used to hunt small animals. A heavy-feathered arrow is used to hunt large prey. As he bent down and approached, he quickly spotted a grouse foraging in the bush ahead, and immediately switched to the light-feathered arrow.

"It's a grouse! Looks like dinner's sorted!"

Muttering to himself, Yuan Linghan stopped about twenty meters away from the grouse, nocked an arrow, drew his bow, and aimed. The light arrow flew swiftly, accurately piercing the unsuspecting grouse and instantly embedding it firmly in the ground.

"Looks like I won't go hungry today, and I might even have a delicious meal. I found a lot of edible wild mushrooms on the way. I'll pick some later and pair them with the plump grouse. Wow, I'm already drooling."

With a smile, Yuan Linghan quickly stepped forward and picked up the already dead grouse. He used his hunting knife to slit the grouse's neck, draining as much blood as possible from its body. After doing this, he hung the grouse around his waist.

Walking to the spot where he had previously discovered the wild mushrooms, Yuan Linghan bent down and picked them up. Although there were many kinds of wild mushrooms growing in the jungle, some of them were still inedible, and he carefully explained them to everyone.

"If you're in the wilderness and want to savor the deliciousness of wild mushrooms, you must gather only those that are edible. But this red, spotted fly amanita mushroom—once you've tasted it, it'll probably send you to meet your maker!"

While picking wild mushrooms, Yuan Linghan explained and introduced them. After the video was broadcast, many viewers in North America and other countries watched it and felt that Yuan Linghan was not only funny but also had a bit of a sarcastic and roguish charm, which made him very popular among young people.

Viewers who particularly enjoy the outdoors were able to avoid poisonous wild mushrooms thanks to Yuan Linghan's explanations and introductions. This novel experience of "learning from television" made them instantly fall in love with this Chinese-American athlete.

In reality, to obtain more editing material, Yuan Linghan specifically learned how to be a live streamer. After unlocking this skill, he directly upgraded it using his basic attributes, and now his live streamer skill has reached the intermediate level.

Having gathered enough wild mushrooms for one evening's meal, Yuan Linghan planned to come back tomorrow to pick more that remained unpicked. Considering that these wild mushrooms would disappear after the snowfall, he planned to dry or roast them directly after picking them then.

After all, dried wild mushrooms can be preserved for a longer time. When hunting wild animals, they can also be used as a side dish to enrich the diet. He even plans to store some dried berries in that berry field.

Besides stocking up on dried goods and ingredients before the snowfall, Yuan Linghan will also try to collect some natural seasonings later. Judging from the previous brief inspection, hunting prey shouldn't be a problem later on, so naturally, he needs to consider how to cook them.

He'd rather eat well than just be full!

Back at the temporary camp, Yuan Linghan glanced at the sky and ultimately decided against trying his first fishing attempt. Instead, he gathered more firewood, intending to light a campfire. In addition, he set up several warning devices around the camp.

Knowing that this jungle is inhabited by wild beasts such as black bears and gray wolves, we naturally need to be extra vigilant. Most importantly, Tom had told us before we set off that wilderness hunters had previously spotted what appeared to be mutated beasts in the surrounding area.

Unfortunately, despite the large number of wilderness hunters dispatched by Aipai Company to search the area, they found no trace of the mutated beasts. The only discovery was that the Black Bear Bay area was indeed rich in wildlife resources.

If any contestant were to encounter a mutated beast during the filming of the show, the outcome would likely be disastrous. Even Yuan Linghan, who had hunted mutated pythons before, couldn't guarantee he would escape unscathed if he encountered a mutated beast again.

Knowing this, Yuan Linghan dared not be careless. Even if he was only resting at this temporary camp for one night, he had to ensure his safety as much as possible. In addition to the campfire, he also whittled several wooden javelins with an axe in case of emergency.

After setting everything up, it was completely dark. Although the forest was silent, the roaring campfire gave Yuan Linghan, who was focused on cooking, a great sense of security. With this campfire burning, even wild animals wouldn't dare approach!