Returning to the small mountain village of '86, intelligence updated daily.

As dawn broke, the other residents of the village were still asleep.

The four young men of the Zhou family gathered together and walked quietly along the village path.

The road was muddy because it had just rained.

None of the four spoke, for fear of disturbing the tranquil village.

After walking for a while, because everyone was walking very fast, around 7:30, a large mountain appeared in front of the four of them.

Without hesitation, we followed the path at the foot of the mountain uphill.

They occasionally encountered villagers picking wild mushrooms along the way, but the four members of the Zhou family did not recognize them. They only continued on their way after confirming that the villagers could no longer see them.

The mountainside near the village was completely cleared of everything. In those days, food was very precious, and as soon as the news spread, countless villagers would rush to grab whatever good things were available.

Naturally, there weren't many valuable mountain products left in the front mountains, which were the first to be affected.

Even if some mountain produce remains on the shady side, it won't be much.

This time, however, their target was behind the third mountain.

Even the most experienced hunters in the village wouldn't dare venture into that place alone.

Moreover, you must know the way to get in; otherwise, it's not uncommon to be trapped in the mountains for days and nights.

In addition, there are aggressive animals along the way, so most of the villagers only dare to move around in the front of the mountain.

Zhou Rui and Zhou Shijie walked at the front, one leading the way and the other clearing the path. Zhou Rui planned to follow the same route they took last time to the second mountain.

After leaving the village, Zhou Ming became very active, pestering Zhou Rui to let him see the thing, but Zhou Rui refused, because there would still be people around.

Since none of them had watches, they didn't know the exact time, but Zhou Rui estimated it was close to eight o'clock, and unsurprisingly, the intelligence for the day resurfaced in his mind.

[Intelligence 1: In the pine forest behind the mountain, after crossing a thicket of bushes, there is a stream. Follow the stream to see the Ganoderma lucidum on the cliff.]

[Intelligence 2: At the fork in the road in the bushes, the stream flows in the opposite direction; there are venomous snakes.]

There were still two pieces of intelligence, and to Zhou Rui's surprise, this time the intelligence actually pointed him in the right direction.

He had originally planned to take that hidden path, because he had seen a stream in the pine forest last time.

Based on yesterday's intelligence, following this stream will most likely lead us to our destination.

Today's intelligence confirms his thoughts, and there's even more important intelligence today.

If you take the wrong path, there are poisonous snakes.

That thing is no joke; getting bitten by it...

Upon thinking of this, Zhou Rui's expression turned serious, and he cautiously reminded everyone.

"Dad, Second Uncle, Brother, be careful, especially in the grass, there might be snakes."

Zhou Shiwei walked at the back of the group, his attention constantly focused, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

Although he wasn't a hunter, he would go into the mountains to find wild produce to supplement his family's income. He was also aware of the dangers in the mountains, so he had been very careful since he started going there.

Zhou Ming seemed a little relaxed, his expression full of curiosity. He rarely went into the mountains, and this time he was even more excited to see Zhou Rui hunting with his own eyes.

However, Zhou Rui's words were clearly directed at him, because he added a sentence afterward:

"Especially you, little brother, if there's any danger, you must listen to your father. Your second uncle and I might not be able to protect you in time."

Zhou Rui spoke very seriously and solemnly, and Zhou Ming restrained his curiosity this time.

In contrast, Zhou Shijie, who was walking slightly ahead of the group and at the very front, completely obeyed Zhou Rui, his face expressionless. He had already taken the machete from Zhou Ming.

Now they are holding a sickle and a machete in each hand, alertly clearing the way ahead.

The four-person team had lost the laughter and joking they had when they first entered the mountains, because they had now reached a shady mountain and a pine forest.

Unexpected situations can occur at any time in the mountains: aggressive wild boars, highly venomous snakes, insects, and even tigers rumored to roam deeper in the mountains...

Although the sun is out now, it is blocked by the dense canopy of trees. However, the gradually rising temperature still fills the forest with water mist.

The air in the pine forest was very refreshing, but Zhou Rui and his companions clearly had no time to appreciate the scenery.

Even Zhou Rui brought out his weapon, a meter-long, gray-brown hunting rifle, which he had already loaded with five rounds of ammunition.

We must be vigilant. Last time, although we avoided danger thanks to our experience and good luck, we were unarmed.

Now that we have real weapons in hand, we naturally take them out and get ready.

With this in hand, Zhou Rui felt even more confident.

He led the three to the place where they had previously dug up wild gastrodia elata. Zhou Rui pointed to the pits that had been disturbed but then completely filled in again and said:

"Dad, this is the place where we dug up wild gastrodia last time."

Zhou Rui glanced at it and saw no signs of human damage, only some tender weeds that had grown due to the soil being disturbed.

Zhou Ming was still wandering around the squirrel forest at the back when, after a while, he shouted loudly:

"Brother, there's something here!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Rui quickly ran over, as did Zhou Shiwei and the other man.

As he got closer, Zhou Rui was both amused and exasperated.

"Brother, this isn't our target this time."

There were several wild yam plants scattered on the ground.

But having gone to such great lengths, Zhou Rui naturally couldn't possibly dig up the wild yams like he did last time.

Zhou Shijie then spoke with some confusion:

"Nephew, don't you want it? This stuff can be sold for money."

Clearly, Zhou Shijie still wanted to dig them up, because the four people's baskets were all very large and could hold a lot of things.

Zhou Rui simply shook his head: "What if we catch another wild boar? We won't be able to carry it all—"

Upon hearing Zhou Rui's words, Zhou Shijie suddenly realized what was going on.

Yeah! They have guns this time, so they can get whatever they want, right? Why bother with these heavy yams?

He clearly believed that as long as he had a gun, he could hit his prey every time, but in reality, it still depended on luck.

Zhou Rui didn't say much, nor did he linger there, and continued walking forward for a while.

After passing through the bushes, Zhou Rui came to a stream.

This is a three-way intersection. According to today's intelligence, the good stuff is along the path by the stream.

The other one is inhabited by venomous snakes.

With this in mind, Zhou Rui focused intently and led the three of them quickly across the stream.

After walking a short distance, Zhou Shijie said in frustration:

"Brother, my nephew and I encountered the sambar deer here last time. Those guys were huge and there were so many of them. I felt like I could have caught one just by shooting at them blindly. It's a pity they're not here this time..."

His tone was full of regret, but before Zhou Shiwei could respond, Zhou Rui said half-jokingly:

"Second Uncle, don't be discouraged! Maybe we'll run into each other again today!"