Infinite Hunter

End of Chapter 43

The Night King didn't move, but the White Walker wielding a spear beside him, coordinating with him, charged forward, driven by Cheng Yijiu's momentum. Seeing his advance, the lion-skinned knight seemed to grow larger, and he could only roar and thrust his spear recklessly. This was the result of Cheng Yijiu's experience and momentum as a swordsman. He used distance and the rhythm of his movements to deceive his opponent's attack.

Cheng Yijiu took a step, his pace and distance catching the Night King off guard. It was too late for the Night King to step forward to block him; he was half a step behind. Furthermore, Cheng Yijiu adjusted his direction with this step, using the guard to block the Night King. A spear thrust forward, but Cheng Yijiu used the hilt of his sword to deflect the thrust, then shifted his sword and easily pierced the guard's throat.

The blade spun, its sharp edge slicing through the White Walker's neck. The wound had already begun to melt, and the White Walker fell to the ground, leaving Cheng Yijiu facing the Night King. The Lion Knight assumed a bullhorn stance, a familiar assault stance, aiming to slay the White Walker King within three strikes. This kind of small-scale duel was always decided by a few strikes, or even a single blow.

It now seemed that Cheng Yijiu had a huge advantage. The lion skin on his body had proved that it was unlikely to be broken by the weapons of the White Walkers. Unless the ice crystal sword in the hands of the Night King was also a divine weapon, otherwise he would lose. Cheng Yijiu launched a surprise attack, and the Night King started with an orthodox head-slashing move. Cheng Yijiu directly used his sword to stab the head, and the Night King immediately changed his move to block, and was stuck by Cheng Yijiu's sword, and the ice crystal sword was half-disarmed.

Cheng Yijiu then pulled with incredible speed, severing the Night King's right arm, where the sword was held. The tip of the sword simultaneously ripped a massive gash in his armor. The Ice Sword slipped from his hand, and the Night King was severely wounded. Cheng Yijiu didn't give him time to recover. With a brilliant, beautiful, spinning slash, the Lion Knight decapitated the White Walker King.

The white dragon wailed, its strength seemingly drained by the Night King's death. The already barely maintained balance was shattered, and the black dragon completely gained the upper hand. The white dragon fell heavily to the ground, bleeding blue blood. Cheng Yijiu approached the white dragon and swung his greatsword, decapitating it with two blows. He breathed a sigh of relief, "This long quest has finally come to an end."

Cheng Yijiu untied the dragon saddle. The black dragon must have known something, clinging tightly to the saddle with its front paws. Its huge head drooped in front of Cheng Yijiu. It was surprising that such a large black dragon could whimper like a dog. Cheng Yijiu patted its nose and said, "You are free. Live freely in Westeros." Cheng Yijiu waved to the black dragon and turned to walk towards a door.

He grabbed the spear that had fallen to the ground - it was of no use to him, picked up the sword, and with the lion skin still draped over him, pushed open the door.

The dragon's roar shook the snow on the mountains, and the blizzard died. The dark, leaden clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, and sunlight penetrated the broken clouds like a pillar of light, supporting the sky and the mountains. The wights were no longer there, but were the White Walkers still there? No one knew, perhaps they would still exist in the eternal night further north. The huge shadow of the black dragon swept across the forest, and it also flew towards the warm south of Westeros.

Longneck Swamp is the Black Dragon's traditional habitat, centered around Cheng Yijiu's cabin. Later, Lion's Roar Castle was built on the site of the cabin, becoming the seat of the Nodion family. This family possesses fiefdoms, but produces little. They don't maintain an army, instead earning their living as mercenaries or trainers, as per traditional custom. The clan leader, for every generation, must be the strongest swordsman and inherit the title of "Lion King."

Cheng Yijiu looked at the modern living room he hadn't seen in years. Compared to the Middle Ages, this living room, decorated like the 19th century, was certainly a modern living room. Of course, Cheng Yijiu first removed his armor and leather, which needed to be cleaned and oiled. After removing them, he went straight to take a shower. When he came out, of course, he ordered a large iced cola. After taking a big sip, he burped with great satisfaction. "Eighty percent of the value of iced cola comes from the first sip!"

Cheng Yijiu removed the leather fittings from his armor and sword, tossing them into the cleaning oil along with the spearhead. He activated the ultrasonic device to begin cleaning. Any blood and grease that might have settled on the surface would be washed away by the special cleaning oil, thus preventing rust—though cold iron doesn't seem to rust easily. The lion hide was similarly scrubbed with a special surfactant, then stretched out to dry in the shade.

Cheng Yijiu slept soundly once again on his modern bed. Time had left no trace on him; he was still the same young man in his twenties, approaching thirty. Upon waking, his memories of his years in Westeros seemed to have faded, no longer holding such vivid memories. He quickly adjusted to the state of a modern person. Cheng Yijiu didn't bother with the cleaning. Instead, he headed down from the third floor, where he'd rested, to the second-floor display room for the spoils of war.

He pushed open the door to the small hall displaying "supernatural" creatures. Sadly, there were no stuffed dragons, but there was a dragon skull and a scale model, roughly 48:1—fully movable. The skull was supposed to be the white dragon, but the scale models represented every dragon he had ever seen—including the mother dragon's three cubs. Cheng Yijiu examined them for a long moment before carefully setting the black dragon model down.

The sword and armor were put away later, and Cheng Yijiu walked to the study - he did not find the book of A Song of Ice and Fire, nor any record of his hunting this time.

The man sighed, put on his coat, and pushed open the door. His next mission wasn't due for months, so he needed to enjoy modern life. He went downstairs to his shop, opened the shutters, and began business. As usual, he sat at the cashier, surfing the internet with rapt attention, occasionally playing a game. As for catching up on the TV series "Ice and Fire"? Sorry, he had absolutely no interest in that.

His shop was mostly frequented by neighbors, and if he calculated carefully, he could probably survive on the pet food profits alone—this mission had paid him a good sum, enough to make him a millionaire, even in the US. Cheng Yijiu was considering closing the shop early that afternoon to practice his shooting; perhaps the next mission would require it.

Volume: Red City

Chapter 1 Beginning

It was past three in the afternoon. Seeing that no one seemed to be around, Cheng Yijiu closed the shutters. He went upstairs, opened the door, and entered the hunting lodge. He continued to the first-floor armory. The cold weapons and lion skins had been stored away. The chain mail and other armor plates had been put on the mannequins, as had the lion skins. The broadswords and spears were also placed on the shelves. The broadswords, in particular, hadn't been sheathed, but were left exposed to the air—it was fine, it was oiled.

The bow, unstrung and placed on a shelf, was quite troublesome to maintain—a modern glass bow would be much easier. Cheng Yijiu walked into the other half of the room and took down a rifle from the shelf. This room was truly a dazzling display, with modern and contemporary firearms hanging on the walls. There were flintlock rifles, pistols, and rifles. This was in case he went hunting in the 17th and 18th centuries.

There's a pistol, or a double-barreled shotgun, one that could be used in the 19th century. Next up are the Winchesters, starting with the Model 1887. The 1887 definitely isn't on the list because Cheng Yijiu built this lever-action shotgun with a shortened barrel and stock, a larger guard, purely out of respect for the truck driver and Arnold. The fancy loading method definitely wouldn't work for hunting. Next up is an Model 21 double-barreled shotgun, and then Cheng Yijiu's most commonly used Model 70 rifle, chambered for the .300 Winchester Magnum.

Next came the actual pistols, starting with the Thompson single-shot pistol, which used the same ammunition as the M70 and was a one-shot weapon. Then there was the Colt Python with a six-inch barreled .38 Magnum revolver, and a .44 Automatic Magnum that was just for display and unlikely to be used. This thing was pretty good-looking, but the recoil was ridiculous, and it was also big and heavy, so it was just for display.

As for other firearms, there are no automatic rifles or semi-automatic rifles here, only some flash bombs and smoke bombs, but no lethal grenades - and I have never seen anyone hunting with grenades... But I have seen fools using grenades to fish, and ended up killing themselves and their boat.

He grabbed his rifle and a box of bullets—almost all the bullets here were handmade, so their ballistic properties were quite uniform. Cheng Yijiu pushed open the garden gate and headed to the shooting range. Including his time in Westeros, he hadn't touched a gun in a long time, so he needed to get back in shape. "From a swordsman to a gunman..." Cheng Yijiu muttered, loading five rounds into the chamber with a clip and pushing the bolt to load the gun.

After firing more than ten shots, Cheng Yijiu began to regain his feel for the gun, and even with the standard mechanical sights, he was becoming more and more accurate. He then returned to retrieve his pistol, especially the ***, and began firing. The Python revolver's recoil was very well controlled, and the six-inch barrel provided ample accuracy—the eight-inch barrel was originally the most accurate, but it was a bit longer and less convenient. The six-inch barrel was more than accurate enough, as this thing was meant to be used in life-or-death situations.

It seems that guys like Cheng Yijiu cannot commit crimes. Once they do, they will be finished as soon as people check for gunpowder residue. At that time, they will have to dig three feet into the ground to make him tell them where the gun is hidden... This guy fired hundreds of rounds of ammunition in a few days and directly recovered to his best condition.

During the past few days since the opening, those people haven't come to visit, and there haven't been any phone calls. It seems that everything is fine. But of course, those weird things shouldn't be everywhere, otherwise they would have been suppressed long ago. Cheng Yijiu is optimistic that they will cause a big incident sooner or later, but there is no other way. You can't do without studying these things, and studying these things means being prepared for trouble.

Cheng Yijiu had only been opening the shop halfway these days, and he'd considered hiring a clerk. That way, he'd have time to hang out, and it would seem more reasonable, right? However, he still hadn't found a suitable one. These days, even hiring a clerk wouldn't be possible without paying him 4,000 yuan, and 4,000 yuan would essentially cover the shop's profits. "It doesn't matter. I don't rely on this for a living anyway." Cheng Yijiu posted job openings at both the official employment agency and his own shop.

Many people applied for the job, but one girl piqued Cheng Yijiu's curiosity. She was quite beautiful and well-educated, and didn't look like someone looking for a sales job at all. Most importantly, she was quite mysterious, though that was just the impression she gave off. "Well, five social insurances and one housing fund, five days on, two days off, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Is the salary of 3,800 yuan acceptable to you? If so, sign the contract."

As for the mystery or connections behind him, Cheng Yijiu said he really didn't care. Who could be more mysterious than him? He was definitely being monitored by the relevant departments, and he was also serving as an "advisor" to the relevant departments. If there was really any problem, the relevant departments would definitely be the first to find out. If it wasn't possible, this girl was from the relevant department, and even if she didn't apply for the job, her social connections and family situation would definitely be discovered.

If there is any problem, the relevant departments will come directly to Cheng Yijiu. If they don’t come to him, it proves that it is not a big deal.

Cheng Yijiu finally had some time to hang out, see a movie, eat, go to the amusement park, especially the arcade—as for finding a woman? Forget it, he wasn't in the mood for that right now. Living like a Puritan in Westeros had temporarily suppressed his desires, but it would take time for those desires to rekindle.

The new employee, Tang Ning, rarely spoke to her boss, Cheng Yijiu, after arriving. She often stayed alone, playing with her phone or tidying the shelves. Cheng Yijiu didn't care; he didn't expect business to be booming. Cheng Yijiu had already removed the replica models, but the wood carvings remained, and sales seemed to be decent.

Tangning didn't make any changes to her sales strategy, such as "How about opening an online store, boss?" Her customer service was polite but not enthusiastic, which was fine. Cheng Yijiu also liked this style—he'd been a bit embarrassed by the service at Haidilao before. However, the presence of the beautiful salesperson had attracted teenagers, young men, and even middle-aged men to the store.

Someone bought seven bags of cat food in a week. Who knows what kind of cat he has—a Siberian Golden Tabby? Another person generously purchased the most expensive wolf fangs from Cheng Yijiu—those werewolf fangs costing tens of thousands of yuan. These people were like peacocks, parading themselves before Tangning and trying every trick in the book to strike up a conversation.

This gave Cheng Yijiu quite a bit of fun to watch—but his mission was about to begin, and it looked like this mission would be in the 1990s. That made things easier, and Cheng Yijiu prepared to carefully select his equipment.

Chapter 2 Place

Cheng Yijiu knew that since it was the 1990s, he had more options. He could only bring seasonal hunting clothes. He'd choose a rifle, not a pistol, but a Rambo knife, a large telescope, field utensils, and a magnesium rod. He'd pack everything up, and add a pipe and tobacco, essential outdoor supplies, to the small bag. Cheng Yijiu wasn't a smoker, but tobacco had many uses.

The bullets were packed in a cowhide box, which had accompanied Cheng Yijiu through many missions. After everything was ready, Cheng Yijiu opened the door...

Before him was fresh air and endless mountain ranges. He was at a small rest/turnaround platform on the highway. There were few cars on the road, but a powerful Ford Mustang 4WD was parked on the platform. Cheng Yijiu casually tossed his belongings into the Mustang's back seat and fished out his "legal" documents, including his gun permit, from the Mustang's passenger compartment.

"This time it's in Japan," he sighed. This was the tail end of Japan's bubble era, but his car was considered quite "noble" in Japan, as it was a pure American car. His hunting target was clear—what other big game could there be in Japan? It was Kuma, wasn't it? Bears were the only possible prey in Japan—in modern society.

"Akita Prefecture? Are we going to hunt those black bears that are not much bigger than dogs?" Cheng Yijiu was also unsure. If it was in Hokkaido, it could be possible to hunt brown bears over 300 kilograms, but he had checked the map for the mark on this small platform. It was in Akita, right? Would there be brown bears here? It was autumn now, the most beautiful tourist season, and the surrounding scenery was very beautiful. "The mountains and rivers are quite magnificent. It really deserves to be the longest mountain range in Japan."

This place is now considered a tourist destination, with many hot springs and skiing in winter - it may be the place with the most snowfall in Japan except Hokkaido. Now it is another era of prosperity, and the Japanese have plenty of money and will never skimp on themselves when it comes to vacation.

Cheng Yijiu drove forward, knowing the mission wouldn't be too far away, and that the duration might even be extended—certainly not like last time, but perhaps a bit more relaxed. "I feel like my ability to access other worlds has grown significantly. Perhaps this hunting lodge is restoring its power?" Cheng Yijiu pondered as he drove.

He had to constantly remind himself that this was Japan, and driving was on the left. He had to not habitually drive on the right. The American troops could drive however they pleased, but he, who might hold an American passport, couldn't. The car continued on until, about twenty kilometers in, there was a fork in the road. It had the name of a town written on it, but Cheng Yijiu couldn't quite make it out. So, without giving it much thought, he simply followed the fork.

After driving further into the mountains for about an hour, he saw a railway line along the way, and finally arrived at a town. This run-down town was probably built in the style of the early 20th century, but the train station was quite large, probably for tourism. The commercial facilities in the town seemed to be built around the train station. Cheng Yijiu did see quite a few shops that you would probably not see in Tokyo—such as those buying furs and selling arsenal ammunition.

Japan has strict gun control laws, so Cheng Yijiu's ID looked a bit strange because it was written entirely in English. Furthermore, the issuing unit didn't look like the Japanese government, but rather the US Forces Japan headquarters. Cheng Yijiu couldn't understand how the US military headquarters could issue something like that. While the US Forces Japan were supposed to rule Japan, they certainly didn't interfere in Japan's internal affairs to this extent.

The map in Cheng Yijiu's hand covered more than just the town itself; it also showed several roads leading to nearby villages. He chose a so-called ski village and headed there. If you have a destination in the mountains, you'll definitely find it there. Buses only run four times a day in places like this, though they increase to sixteen during ski season. However, most tourists still charter or rent a car. Cheng Yijiu saw the specimens—everything from deer to bears—in the town's station exhibition hall.

The bear was not small in size, but it was still a crescent bear. "There are not many black bears that can grow to nearly 200 kilograms, especially Japanese black bears. I remember that those weighing more than 100 kilograms are considered big bears." Cheng Yijiu has seen North American grizzly bears. That thing is also a black bear, but it is much bigger. The Japanese black bear is of medium size among the black bear subspecies, smaller than the Northeast black bear.

But Japanese brown bears are huge—that's because they evolved from Ussuri brown bears, which were able to enter Japan during the last ice age. They didn't have time to shrink, so some bears weigh 500 kilograms, which is no less than most Kodiak brown bears. Cheng Yijiu figured he'd only be hunting large black bears, perhaps 200 kilograms, which would be a piece of cake for him.

You think a black bear like this could attack and eat a human? That's a bit unlikely.

In short, Cheng Yijiu asked a few questions at the town office, bought some things at the store, and then drove along the road to the village. The road was winding all the way, and Cheng Yijiu even caught up with a bus on the way. The bus was going from the town to the village. It didn't seem to be very crowded, which was because the countryside in Japan has begun to decline. Young people are heading to Tokyo for work, and there may not be one in ten left in the local area.

After driving for an hour behind the bus, Cheng Yijiu finally arrived. The houses were all Japanese-style, and it felt like he was back in the days when he'd last come to Japan to hunt man-eating brown bears. But if he looked closely, he realized, "Times have progressed after all." While many of the houses here were still made of wood, they were at least supported by cement, and the roofs were no longer simply thatched.

"Post office, police station, village office, cafeteria, grocery store, outdoor gear and ski shop, and even a small...is that a billiard parlor?" These buildings were all relatively impressive, single-story metal-frame structures, and the most modern in the entire village. Cheng Yijiu drove directly to the village office parking lot and got out. "Hello," he said, greeting the middle-aged woman inside.

There was a look of vigilance in the other person's eyes. "Ah, can you recommend a place to rent here? I want to live here throughout the ski season. Yes, long-term." Cheng Yijiu put on a foreigner's tone. Anyway, his ID was issued by an American, so he could easily pretend to be an Asian American.

Chapter 3 Transition

The village chief and the police from the village police station - there were only two policemen, who probably couldn't even handle a theft case. They came together and started to bow and nod. Cheng Yijiu, who had to follow the local customs, also bowed and nod to them, but the amplitude was very small, which was the attitude of a superior.

His car proved this point too—an American Mustang, a noble left-hand drive car, the kind an American soldier would drive, which made the village chief bend his back even further. The gun he later pulled out was in its holster and not visible, but I figured it couldn't be bad.

Out of duty, the police asked Cheng Yijiu to produce his documents including his passport and gun license. They were in awe when they saw them - because it was Uncle Mi Lijian's passport, which did not have Japan's entry and exit stamps, and the cards and documents inserted in the passport, as well as the most important gun license, were all written in English. The two Japanese policemen's foreign language skills were not very good. After looking at them for a long time, they only knew that they were the documents of a noble American uncle, but they couldn't figure out what they were.

In a hurry, Cheng Yijiu took out an English-Japanese dictionary from somewhere. He smiled and explained the word order to them, letting them look it up in the dictionary themselves. After confirming it, he translated it for them - once again allowing these people to confirm that this was a noble American military officer, a superior person in Japan.

The two policemen were particularly amused by the fact that the gun license was actually issued by the U.S. Forces Japan Command and signed by the commander. Cheng Yijiu's request was quickly met—there was no problem finding a house. The village's main source of income came from winter skiers, so there were plenty of vacant houses.

Even Cheng Yijiu's demands were met—he had indeed been given a separate house. The owner of the house was no longer around; the elder had passed away, and the younger man had moved to Tokyo. The house was rented out to the village office for a small fee. It was a nice house, built with concrete pillars and mud brick and wood walls.

"To accommodate tourists, they've even made special modifications to make them pay a high price." Cheng Yijiu was pleased with the double walls of mud bricks on the outside and wood panels on the inside. This way, the house would be well insulated. The ground was elevated, also with a double floor, and covered with tatami mats to block the cold wind from blowing in through the cracks in the floor - if there was any.

There is actually a layer of clay heating pipes under the tatami - the area is not large, that is, under the bedroom near the fire pit. There is a stove with the air vent facing outside near the entrance. If firewood or coal is added, natural convection will draw in the cold air outside, and after heating it, it will swirl under the floor.

This wasn't a traditional Japanese design; the traditional Japanese design was a central fire pit. Cheng Yijiu put his things inside, closed the door, and prepared to rest. He didn't need the kang for heating yet, but the fire pit could be lit to boil water. Autumn nights in the mountains were still quite cold.

The bedding was also dried in the sun, and Cheng Yijiu paid very quickly without bargaining - but tourists from Tokyo are all rich these days. The village chief sent a sheepskin mattress to Cheng Yijiu, and Cheng Yijiu was about to go out to scout the area. He also learned from chatting with the village chief that there were bear hunters in this village.

"Old man Tian Wulang, at 65, can still carry a 120-kilogram bear down the mountain by himself." The village chief spoke endlessly about this old bear hunter, seemingly a village legend. Cheng Yijiu later learned that the old man had hunted hundreds of bears in his lifetime—Japanese black bears are not endangered, and in the 1990s, the annual hunting rate was around 1,500.

Cheng Yijiu knew that with the further concentration of Japan's population and the disappearance of a large number of old hunters, the number of bears in Japan would continue to increase, and eventually there might be 60,000 to 70,000 bears distributed in Japan.

Tian Wulang, the bear hunter, had a strange temper, so Cheng Yijiu had no interest in approaching him. He took a topographic map and a compass and prepared to walk around the mountains to familiarize himself with the terrain. The man-eating bear hadn't appeared yet, and Cheng Yijiu didn't know if shooting it after finding it would count as completing the mission.

There were many animals in the mountains. Although they were called bear hunters, they hunted far more than just black bears, including wild boar and deer. They couldn't survive by hunting black bears alone. Wild boar and deer reproduced much faster than black bears. Cheng Yijiu had already spotted a herd of deer in the mountains, and he'd also spotted wild boar tracks. He tucked his rifle under his arm, lit his pipe, and placed one foot on a rock, watching the deer leap in the distance.

"I have to smoke my pipe. It's late autumn and there are still so many bugs." Cheng Yijiu smiled bitterly. Even though he was wearing long sleeves and long pants, these bugs kept flying at his face. After smoking the pipe, the situation improved a lot. After all, the pipe smoke doesn't enter the lungs, so while enjoying the aroma, it also minimizes the damage to the respiratory tract.

Cheng Yijiu puffed out smoke, and suddenly his eyes flashed, "Oh, this bear is quite big." He saw claw marks on the tree, which were probably more than two meters from the ground. Such a black bear must be quite large. Cheng Yijiu had not planned to hunt in the mountains today, so he walked about ten kilometers of mountain roads nearby and then returned.

"This mission will probably be quite long, so the timeframe for entry is relatively generous—it's no longer the day before the incident." This also makes it easier for him to blend in with the crowd, so it's a good thing. Cheng Yijiu actually prefers to just come in and start, then kill and leave. What's wrong with being straightforward?

Now, he could only enjoy the local customs and people, see more and walk more, so that the rewards after completing the mission would not be just specimens and money. If he continued like this, he would sooner or later become a folklorist - the kind commonly known as an old con man.

After returning to the village, Cheng Yijiu decided to drive to Machigami. He needed to buy a lot of things—at least snowshoes, cold-weather clothing, goggles, hats, and other things for winter hunting, as well as some convenience foods like canned goods. If it weren't for the limited edition items from the 1990s, he would have brought his own at the beginning of this century. Nowadays, anyone with money can buy them, which is much better than at the beginning of the century.

"What a pity, there are no hunting dogs." When he passed by Tian Wulang's house, he saw the bear hound in the kennel and felt a little envious. If he had a bear hound, Cheng Yijiu would be much better at tracking and making mistakes - but he still didn't have any pets, so forget about getting a black dragon. It was impossible.

Come to think of it, it seems like keeping a fierce dog is illegal in Shanghai, even in the countryside. Good hunting dogs aren't cheap, and training them takes a lot of effort. It would be heartbreaking if the police confiscated them. "The bear dogs here are all Akitas, but isn't the best bear dog in the world the Karelian Bear Dog? Too bad I can't get one right now," Cheng Yijiu thought as he drove.

Chapter 4: Hunting

Cheng Yijiu sighed and groaned as he drove along, feeling helpless. Perhaps he could have had a pet once, as a golden eagle would have been quite good at hunting and tracking, but he couldn't keep one. Could a private individual keep a national-level eagle? If so, wouldn't he be able to keep a eagle and charge admission?

Speaking of which, neither Akita Inus nor Karelian Bear Dogs are on the list of banned dogs in Shanghai, but to tame such a dog, not to mention the purchase cost, he doesn't know how to train a dog - this is not something that can be solved by just finding a dog trainer. What he needs is not a pet dog or a companion dog, but a hunting dog.

They are the most dangerous of all hunting dogs, used to hunt large predators. They have a high elimination rate and are prone to casualties—this is usually a game for the wealthy.

He sighed and thought that his sense of smell was not bad now, especially when he was concentrating. It was quite sensitive, wasn't it? If the bear had just passed by a few minutes ago, he would probably be able to smell it.

When the car arrived at the Machi Station parking lot, Cheng Yijiu got out and went to a camping supply store. He was looking for winter hunting gear—windproof, waterproof, and wear-resistant fabric, lined with fur, and interlayered with down, all with warmth as the priority. In a place with heavy snow in winter, down jackets seemed to be less popular.

Cheng Yijiu knew that this was because of the fabric - once a down jacket gets wet, its thermal insulation ability will drop rapidly, so most of the clothes here are fur-lined, and Cheng Yijiu chose a sheepskin coat, which has wear-resistant fabric reinforced on the shoulders, back, elbows and chest.

Thick sheepskin provides warmth and is moisture-resistant. Cheng Yijiu also bought thick winter hiking boots. He also bought skis and snowshoe covers—sometimes these are necessary to properly navigate the snow. "I'll also buy leather gloves, canned food, and a bunch of fresh Japanese food and cold drinks. I estimate I'll be in the mountains for at least a week."

Cheng Yijiu cooked instant noodles in a pot hanging over the fire pit in the Japanese-style house. Back then, Japanese instant noodles hadn't been completely overtaken by the food industry's modern chemical seasonings, so they still contained a fair amount of real ingredients. "Is that why the taste is bland? I've been poisoned by modern seasonings," Cheng Yijiu complained with a smile.

He had already walked through the village that day—it wasn't small, at least two kilometers from end to end. The village was an irregular shape, covering an area of ​​about five or six square kilometers, including farmland. Most villagers made a living by farming or doing odd jobs in town, while some went to the mountains to gather local produce, and a few were hunters.

Many young people go to the city to work. There is a primary school in the village, and several teachers teach all grades - this is funded by the state.

"Oh, it's snowing!" Cheng Yijiu felt a chill on his face as he watched the dogs running around the village. He stretched out his hand and saw snowflakes falling from the sky. "This is the first snow. The real heavy snow won't come for another week or two," said a nearby villager.

Cheng Yijiu is very friendly and looks very cheerful and bright, so the villagers quickly became familiar with him. Besides, he often treats everyone to a drink in the village cafeteria, and the local children also like this big guy very much - because Cheng Yijiu is knowledgeable and can always tell a lot of novel stories.

Especially when he talked about his experiences hunting man-eating lions in Africa and catching tigers that mauled people in South Asia, these stories were very exciting and captivated not only elementary school students but also adults. These were all Cheng Yijiu's own experiences, so the local hunters among the listeners sounded the same and were not bragging.

So they invited Cheng Yijiu to join them in their last bear hunt before winter. Cheng Yijiu's gun was better than theirs. These people were all using small air rifles made in Japan. Hunters in the city would buy foreign guns, while most of the hunters in the village still used guns that were more than ten years old.

Bear hunting is a group activity, mainly involving hunters forming a circle and using sounds such as whistles and horns to drive the animals, forcing them to run in a specific direction. Then the hunter in charge and with the best marksmanship will calmly aim and fire at the prey from a low position - this requires good command and skilled cooperation.

Three local villages had jointly organized this hunt, led by the club's president, a man in his fifties. As a guest, Cheng Yijiu was even able to chat with the main shooters. The hunters were gradually taking up their positions, maintaining a clear range of fire to avoid hitting their own men. They used bird whistles to communicate and confirm each other's positions.

"What a skillful teamwork, Mr. Tanaka," Cheng Yijiu praised. "I've always hunted alone before, but I've never seen a group hunt like this."

The other party also laughed. "I didn't expect Mr. Michael to be an experienced hunter who hunts alone." That's right, Cheng Yijiu's alias is Michael, a name that Japanese people can pronounce with ease. Tian Wulang from the village did not participate in this hunt. "I saw Mr. Tian Wulang from this village go into the mountains alone." Cheng Yijiu continued, "Is he also the type who hunts alone?"

The other person's face was full of respect. "The old man always goes hunting alone with his bear hound. He's a real bear hunter."

At this point, the sound of the bird whistles changed. Everyone was already in position, and President Tanaka, below, also took out his whistle and blew the bird call. Almost all the hunters then used special horns or simply whistles to startle their prey as they moved, forcing them to run towards the foot of the mountain.

If there were any confused beasts fleeing in the opposite direction, the hunters would fire depending on the situation—if it was too dangerous, they would avoid it. Soon, Cheng Yijiu spotted a bear through his binoculars. "There's a bear over there. It's not very big, but it looks like a male bear," he pointed.

Mr. Tanaka had seen it, too. He added, "A sub-adult male bear." The bear panicked and ran downhill. Cheng Yijiu didn't even bother to draw his gun. A hunter standing halfway up the mountain opened fire. He was only thirty meters away, and the bear's flank was completely exposed to the hunter, with no trees blocking his range of fire.

If he can't hit the bear again, this hunter is doomed. Cheng Yijiu could see that these hunters were all in their prime, probably in their thirties or forties. As the gunshots rang out, Cheng Yijiu watched through the telescope as the bear tumbled down and stopped moving on a relatively flat surface.

Cheng Yijiu raised his gun and said, "Is it okay for me to shoot a wild boar?" It wasn't just bears that were rushing out, there were also deer and wild boars. The hunter just raised his gun and immediately put it down. "Well, these wild boars are lucky. It seems that there is no backup in this place and the distance is quite far. I think I'll give up."

Chapter 5 Objectives

Without a daylight scope, Cheng Yijiu gave up on hunting at this distance. He didn't want to waste bullets, and this cautious attitude actually made the veterans of the hunting club feel better about him. These people were traditional hunters who valued sustainable development—hunting traditions dictated restrained hunting. Cheng Yijiu knew that within another twenty or thirty years, the number of hunters in Japan would plummet, and wild boar, deer, and black bears would become an epidemic.

This hunt resulted in the killing of a bear and six wild boars. Cheng Yijiu also went to see the bear. The sub-adult male bear was about the size of a large mastiff, not considered a large bear. The wild boars were all sows; not a single boar was caught. Cheng Yijiu didn't take any trophies. Out of courtesy, he took a pig's stomach home. "This thing can't be eaten without some good stuff. Wild animals are like that. Fortunately, it's a sow."

There was no need to be friendly with old man Tian Wulang. He had a strange temper, his wife had passed away, and his children had moved to Tokyo and were said to rarely visit him. Cheng Yijiu had seen him carrying a bear down the mountain. It was even larger than the bears he had hunted before, weighing at least a hundred kilograms. Three bear hounds walked beside the old man, making Cheng Yijiu a little envious. In the fall, if he shot two or three black bears, he would generally earn enough for the year.

He could easily support his family by doing some farm work. This was how bear hunters had lived for thousands of years, and so had Tian Wulang. Cheng Yijiu noticed that one of the old man's ears was missing, and there were tear scars on his face, marks from claws.

Cheng Yijiu had heard the story of Tian Wulang from the villagers. They heard that Tian Wulang saw a big bear in the mountains, "It's not a crescent bear, it's a brown bear." When he heard this, Cheng Yijiu had to interrupt the other party's narration, "That's not right, I remember that brown bears are distributed in Hokkaido? When did they cross the strait?" The other party shrugged his shoulders, "Really, there are both black bears and brown bears here." Cheng Yijiu was really surprised. Perhaps this kind of thing really happened in some cases.

Anyway, there were brown bears here, and Tian Wulang had spotted a very large brown bear with a nearly red mane covering its head, shoulders, and back. Cheng Yijiu, thinking back to the two large bears he had hunted, curled his lips, wondering if the brown bears over three meters tall mentioned were as big as the one he had shot. It was probably comparable to the man-eating brown bear from Hokkaido, but definitely smaller than the one he had shot in North America. That bear stood nearly four meters tall, which was considered large even for a cave bear.

It was this bear that left Tian Goro with the scars he bears today. The bear was incredibly ferocious, and after it suddenly attacked Tian Goro, it was his bearhounds who fought back desperately, sacrificing their own lives to deflect the bear's fatal attack. Tian Goro then fired a shot, hitting the bear in the head, in the right eye. Unfortunately, because he used an old Murata hunting rifle, he wasn't able to kill the bear.

"Maybe there's a bullet in its brain. This bear won't hibernate anymore. Tian Wulang was injured four years ago. In the past three years, people have spotted this bear foraging in the snow." The villager said, "Fortunately, it wasn't spotted here in the past two years, otherwise our livelihood would be in danger." Cheng Yijiu poured him a glass of wine.