Chapter 258 - 81: Setting Out Again

The town journey concluded perfectly.All the leather was traded away, leaving only the grizzly bear skin that Bokan gifted to Chen Wen and Hua Yun.

Besides that,

Chen Wen and Hua Yun also acquired almost all the supplies they needed.

The sled had a complete makeover too.

Early the next morning, under the gray sky, Chen Wen and Hua Yun quietly left the town.

They needed to catch up on progress.

...

Three days after leaving the town,

Chen Wen chewed on an orange, feeling a bit depressed.

To be honest, buying so many fruits and vegetables was because Chen Wen wanted to experiment if the traded supplies could yield any new entries.

But he was disappointed.

The traded supplies didn’t count as progress entries for this journey, which meant Chen Wen’s plan to exploit a bug was gone.

"We need to push ahead aggressively now."

Hua Yun was gnawing on dry bread spread with chocolate sauce.

This time, they traded for plentiful supplies, so they didn’t have to be too frugal.

As for meat, neither Chen Wen nor Hua Yun was in a hurry to eat it now.

"We should catch up; Hank and the others seem to be more than half a month ahead of us; they might be near the Yukon midsection now."

Chen Wen remarked with emotion.

Just thinking about the upcoming two months of hiking and being significantly outpaced by others, made him a bit anxious.

"Don’t put pressure on yourself. I heard from Renia that they didn’t trade for much supplies in the town."

Hua Yun said, "We’ll gain momentum later on and definitely catch up to them."

Chen Wen found this pleasing to hear.

From the map, in another month, they’d reach the second town.

The second town was quite large; by domestic standards, it could be considered a county.

Located in the midsection of the Yukon River, it flourished due to the gold rush and continued on due to gold mining.

Chen Wen thought for a moment and said, "How about searching for gold dust in the river when we get there? This place has produced quite a few wealthy people!"

Hua Yun grinned, "If there was still gold dust, do you think it would be our turn? The Yukon people must have sifted the river sands countless times."

True enough.

Chen Wen sighed, "Too late! The Yukon people have been mining gold for over a hundred years."

"Anyway, let’s focus on pressing forward."

Now equipped with better gear and a recent heavy snow, the temperature in Yukon dropped drastically.

Their speed was much faster now.

...

Fifteen days later.

During these fifteen days, it was exceptionally calm.

So calm that Chen Wen found it almost boring.

Both the lynx and the Golden Eagle also felt incredibly bored.

Every day, they would pester Chen Wen to tell them stories.

Chen Wen, playfully mischievous, started telling them about the great migrations.

The lynx kept wondering how those grass-eating deer could endure such long migrations every year.

The Golden Eagle reflected on how unfortunate the predators in those areas must be!

Every year, the prey migrate so far away; following them would be utterly exhausting!

Unlike them, the fortunate Golden Eagle’s prey migration only meant moving from mountain top to the base.

With a flap of its wings, it would catch up easily.

"Let’s take the afternoon off today."

Calculating the distance, Hua Yun said, "We’ve already covered quite a distance, 20% faster than our intended pace."

"Yeah, we should take a break. Constantly marching on has left me nearly numb."

Chen Wen shook his head, loosening the reindeer reins.

It’s worth noting that the reindeer didn’t feel bored by such long-distance travel.

In fact, it seemed excited.

After all, it was accustomed to continuously migrating with its herd before.

Returning to this familiar rhythm, the reindeer could only say five words: stable and happy!

"Let’s find a place to camp, rest for the afternoon, and move on tomorrow."

Hua Yun suggested, taking out a bow and arrow, "You set up camp, and I’ll look for some game around here."

Ah, so that’s why she suggested taking a break; it was due to her hunting craving.

Chen Wen chuckled.

Ever since getting the new bow and arrow, Hua Yun had been eager to test them out.

But unfortunately, after leaving the town, she hadn’t had the chance to showcase her skills.

Today, Hua Yun finally had her opportunity!

Hua Yun noticed Chen Wen’s smile and felt a bit awkward, as if her thoughts had been seen through.

But she maintained her serious demeanor and said, "Although your survival skills are much stronger than mine, when it comes to tracking prey, I’m a bit better than you. So, it’s best for me to handle the tracking."

Chen Wen nodded, agreeing with Hua Yun’s statement.

After all, without considering the entries, he indeed wasn’t as good as Hua Yun.

However, when considering the entries, Chen Wen could narrowly surpass Hua Yun.

Adding in the Golden Eagle and the lynx, it would be a total domination.

But Chen Wen wasn’t overly competitive; compared to the painstaking effort of hunting for entries,

he preferred lounging at the campsite.

"Alright, it’s settled. You go hunting, and I’ll stay at the camp and... work!"

Chen Wen almost let his true thoughts slip.

"Oh, take the lynx with you; it might come in handy."

In this weather and environment, the lynx’s keen hearing was an invaluable asset.

Moreover, the lynx and Hua Yun were quite close; it could understand small gestures and signals from her.

...

As Hua Yun headed out,

Chen Wen skillfully gathered wood, cleared the snow, and started building the camp.

Setting up a temporary camp didn’t take much time.

Since the two would take turns on night watch, constructing just one shelter was sufficient.

When it came to building shelters, Chen Wen was quite adept.

Using three roughly equal-length sticks as the main beams, he built a triangular shelter.

Using one long and two short sticks as the main beams, he made a lengthier triangular shelter.

In short, Chen Wen would choose different types of triangular shelters based on the current situation.

All aimed at being simple and efficient.

Today’s shelter was a lengthier triangular one.

After setting up the main beam, he placed branches on the longest stick to lay a foundation for the moss.

Once the sticks were set, he laid the moss on top.

Blocking the wind, conserving energy, and insulating the shelter was ready.

After setting up the shelter, he used the remaining sticks and wood to build a campfire.

He poured some gasoline and lit it with a fire starter.

With a "whoosh," the flames roared.

Then he gathered some stones nearby to build a stove.

Placing a pot filled with snow on it, he waited for the snow to melt.

"Comfortable!"

Leaning against a spruce tree, with a sleeping bag under his waist, Chen Wen stretched his legs.

And he dozed off.

...

In contrast to the leisurely Chen Wen,

Hua Yun moved quietly through the forest.

She occasionally glanced around, trying to spot some game.

The lynx followed behind Hua Yun, its tufted ears constantly twitching.

Any sound in the surroundings couldn’t escape its keen hearing.

Soon, the lynx sensed something.

It let out a low growl, making Hua Yun turn her head.

"Did you hear something?"

Although the lynx didn’t understand Hua Yun’s words, it caught her meaning from her actions.

The lynx nodded slightly and shifted, leading Hua Yun to the side.

Seeing this, Hua Yun immediately followed along.

She now somewhat understood why some hunters are keen on training hunting dogs.

Having such a highly perceptive assistant nearby truly made hunting twice as effective!

Under the lynx’s guidance, Hua Yun crossed a spruce forest and came to a halt in front of a fallen decayed tree.

There, she saw the game the lynx had spotted.

A massive flock of ptarmigans!

How massive?

Hua Yun conservatively estimated the flock to have at least eighty birds!

They were rummaging through the snow for food, meandering southward.

"Phew~"

Hua Yun took a deep breath to steady her heartbeat.

She slowly raised her new bow and arrow.

The hunt began!