The Deer in the Forest

After a busy day, he finally finished watering all three fields. Now he had to wait a few days before sowing the winter wheat.

So Li Wei planned to start cutting trees the next day. The good news was that Penny and the others had made decent progress: they had forged their first steel axe. Their excited expressions showed just how pleased they were with their results.

Unfortunately, it wasn't a one-star-quality axe. Even with the appropriate profession card, making one required constant practice. Only after honing their skills could they have a chance of crafting a one-star-quality piece of equipment.

All in all, there was nothing to envy. The most important thing was to focus on his own work.

He slept well that night. After breakfast, Li Wei took the freshly sharpened steel axe across the stream to the forest and began the second part of the Main Quest: felling oak trees.

The place was nothing like it had been a few months ago. Li Wei and Penny had chopped down so many trees that it looked as though they had bitten a chunk out of the forest.

Apart from a few very large trees, they had cut down all the small and medium-sized ones.

Li Wei had originally thought he might replant the forest next spring, but then he realized how foolish that was. There was no need to do that here—and what excellent farmland this was!

Once the roots were dug out and the land leveled a little, he could probably reclaim dozens of mu of prime paddy fields.

The foundation of a great enterprise!

But the work involved was simply too much. Even after three years, when the mission ended and they cleared it, he probably still wouldn't have managed it.

Even as he thought this, Li Wei didn't let his attention wander. He continued watching his surroundings warily, because even at the edge of the forest, surprises—and scares—could suddenly appear.

So although he carried an axe in one hand, he held a hunting bow in the other, with a broadhead feathered arrow clenched between his teeth. He hadn't brought many arrows. Those feathered arrows, made with pheasant feathers, needed to be stored carefully or they could easily get damp and spoil.

Besides, hunting was just a side benefit. He couldn't forget the Main Quest.

Moving on tiptoe, he crossed the forest's edge and went several hundred meters farther, climbing a gentle hill. About fifty meters away, an oak tree with entirely red leaves came into view.

Just then, perhaps thanks to some kind of instinct, he noticed a patch of color in the bushes behind the oak that didn't quite fit.

It was the sort of thing most people would easily overlook.

But Li Wei realized at once that it might be a wild animal.

He slowly lowered his axe and silently shifted one step to the side. At the same time, he made a rough estimate of the terrain and his distance from the animal.

It had to be more than forty meters away, and bushes and other trees were in the way. He would only get one shot.

What's more, he still couldn't tell what kind of animal it was. Its fur blended in too well with the leaves.

"Judging by that patch of color, it isn't a tiger, a bear, or a wild boar!"

"Could it be a deer? A sika deer?"

Li Wei remembered that Sam, the hunter who had been eliminated, once said he had seen a deer at the edge of the forest.

He relaxed his breathing as much as he could, took out a broadhead arrow, and nocked it on the bowstring. Then he slowly moved to the other side, staying as quiet as possible. He needed to get closer, because the hunting bow didn't have enough power to inflict a fatal wound on prey from more than forty meters away.

One step, then another. Li Wei stayed calm, and even his heartbeat seemed to settle. That was one of his strengths: once he got past the breaking point, he could control his emotions remarkably well.

It had been the same when he'd encountered the first old wolf by the stream. After the initial terror, he'd been unusually calm and decisive.

He had also managed to sleep soundly all night despite the wolves' harassment.

Of course, his regular practice probably had a lot to do with it, too.

In the blink of an eye, Li Wei had silently shifted seven or eight steps, passing three large trees. Meanwhile, the animal—likely a deer—had cautiously changed positions several times in the bushes. It was indeed a herbivore, since the grass under the bushes was tender.

He already had a good chance of hitting it, but Li Wei stayed calm and kept moving, looking for an even better line of sight.

At last, when the distance between them was about twenty-five meters, the deer finally sensed something was wrong. It turned and sprang away, fleeing into the depths of the forest.

Its movements were graceful and swift, as perfect as a golden bolt of lightning.

It was so fast. Its reflexes were so sharp.

Li Wei had learned from television and books that deer could run very fast, but that had only been an abstract idea, even a vague one. Now he had truly seen just how fast this deer was. It was like a magnificent song of life in motion, nature's finest masterpiece, forged in the brutal struggle for survival. It was not to be defiled.

Those who tried to defile it could only watch from afar and sigh.

But in that moment, Li Wei's caution, composure, and instincts as a hunter gave him the advantage. In particular, he had moved so quietly that he'd passed up several good opportunities to shoot. He had feared that the instant he startled the deer, its speed would turn a decent angle into a bad one.

Once it started moving, he would have only one shot.

As the deer leaped away, Li Wei drew his hunting bow to full draw without hesitation, aimed ahead of it, and loosed. The arrow struck the deer in its left ribs.

It wasn't enough to kill it instantly. It staggered on for a few more bounds, then continued fleeing into the forest.

Li Wei chased after it without letting up. There was no real skill to it now—he just had to keep pursuing.

The young deer managed to flee several hundred meters through the forest before finally collapsing. Its vitality was astonishing.

[Your caution and composure helped you perform exceptionally well. You successfully hunted an adult, healthy sika deer. Its overall value is worthy of a one-star rating.]

[You gained 60 Hunting Experience.]

[Since this was an unexpected gain outside the Main Quest, the prey belongs to you. Would you like to donate it to the family?]

[You donated this one-star-quality sika deer. According to the rules, it weighs 100 jin in total, and each 5 jin counts as one unit. You have therefore gained 20 Family Contribution Points. Your current total contribution is 103 points.]

[Note: A one-star-quality sika deer may yield one-star-quality deer hide, but only if you have the corresponding butcher profession. This work will automatically be incorporated into the butcher's monthly Main Quest. If the hide is successfully removed and tanned, the butcher will receive a bonus of at least 5 Family Contribution Points at the end-of-month review.]

Several lines of information appeared in quick succession. Unlike before, he didn't have to bring the deer home to receive a prompt.

That was good. It seemed there were no other large carnivores nearby. The cooler weather might also have helped keep the carcass from spoiling as quickly. In the height of summer, it would have been crawling with maggots in less than half an hour.

Li Wei pondered these rules as he stepped forward and pulled out the arrow. Looking at the deer blood gushing from the wound, he remembered the stories about people drinking deer blood. Should he take a few sips? Otherwise, by the time he carried the deer home, all the blood would have drained away.

But after thinking it over, he decided against it. Caution came first. What if there were parasites?

His Level One Awakening Health Points couldn't afford that kind of abuse. Penny, who looked like a little old lady, was a cautionary example.

After all, one of the conditions for clearing this mission was to survive for three years.