That was the only way it might work. If he hit it anywhere else,
the consequences were unimaginable.
Besides, Su Wei had little confidence in his shooting ability.
And this was a hungry bear that had just emerged from hibernation!
Heavy footsteps and the sound of snapping branches came from behind him. The bear seemed to have spotted him and was giving chase.
Su Wei's heart pounded wildly as he ran frantically through the snow, using every last ounce of strength.
The stabbing pain in his lungs grew worse, and his legs became too heavy to lift.
Su Wei glanced back.
The brown bear wasn't enormous, but it was still imposing. It galloped through the snow on its powerful limbs, moving at an astonishing speed.
It was a young male brown bear, perhaps newly separated from its mother and living on its own. Hunger had made it extremely aggressive.
Su Wei didn't dare look again. He could only put his head down and run.
He had to find a way to shake it off.
He couldn't outrun it in a straight line; he lacked the stamina.
He had to use the terrain.
Su Wei's mind raced as he tried to recall everything he knew about dealing with brown bears.
Climb a tree?
No, brown bears can climb trees.
Play dead?
That was a last resort against a mother bear with cubs. Playing dead in front of a hungry male was like delivering takeout straight to its door.
As he ran, he scanned his surroundings out of the corner of his eye.
A short distance ahead was a steep downhill slope. At the bottom appeared to be a stream covered in ice and snow.
An idea occurred to Su Wei.
He abruptly changed direction and charged toward the steep slope.
When the brown bear saw its prey change direction, it turned after him, its massive body plowing a deep furrow through the snow.
Su Wei reached the top of the slope and, without the slightest hesitation, threw himself onto his side and rolled down, clutching his backpack.
The thick snow made an excellent cushion as he hugged his backpack and tumbled rapidly down the steep slope.
As the world spun around him, Su Wei shielded his head and the rifle in his arms.
Thud.
He slammed hard into a tree at the bottom of the slope, finally coming to a stop.
Pain shot through his back. Su Wei felt as if his bones were about to fall apart.
But he had no time to worry about that. He struggled to his feet and looked toward the top of the slope.
The brown bear had reached the top. It looked at the steep slope and the tiny figure of its prey below, then let out a roar.
It tried to descend, but the slope was too steep and the snow too slippery. Its massive body made it difficult to keep its balance.
The brown bear tried several times, nearly slipping each time.
Su Wei seized the precious opportunity and scrambled toward the other side of the frozen stream.
He didn't dare pause for a moment. Only after he had run a long way and made sure the brown bear was no longer pursuing him did he collapse into the snow.
Su Wei gulped for air, his chest heaving violently, his whole body drenched in cold sweat.
He lay in the snow, staring at the gray sky, and took several minutes to recover.
The encounter had been a wake-up call.
Hunting was far more dangerous than he had imagined.
The Gathering Module could only help him find plants; it couldn't warn him of these moving, deadly threats.
He had to unlock a new module as soon as possible, such as the Hunting Module.
Only by gaining the ability to protect himself could he survive here.
After resting for over ten minutes, Su Wei struggled to his feet and checked himself over. Aside from some bruising on his back, he was fine.
He brushed the snow off himself and prepared to continue on his way.
Just then, Su Wei caught a glimpse of an unusual patch of white out of the corner of his eye.
Chapter 4: A Snow Sprite, Another Blizzard Approaches, Su Wei Departs
A patch of white stood out sharply between the snow and the dead trees.
It was moving.
Su Wei's breath stopped for a moment.
He had only just escaped the brown bear. His whole body ached, and he was utterly exhausted.
But now, his attention was entirely drawn to that patch of white.
Its ears twitched slightly above a slender muzzle, a small body, and an enormous mass of tail fur.
It was snowy white all over, without a trace of another color. As its body trembled slightly, its fluffed-out fur could be clearly seen swaying back and forth, incomparably smooth.
It looked just like a sprite of the snow.
Su Wei was instantly transfixed.
It was a fox, a fox more beautiful than any he had ever seen.
Yes, beautiful.
That was the word he used to describe it.
Then the fox turned its head, and a pair of icy blue eyes looked his way.
At the sight of those crystal-like icy blue eyes, Su Wei's head buzzed.
An albino red fox!
A blue-eyed albino red fox!
The creature from the eight-thousand-dollar bounty in the original owner's memories had appeared right before his eyes, alive and well.
The original owner had even died in a blizzard while pursuing it.
Eight thousand dollars!
A whole eight thousand dollars!!
The figure gave Su Wei a surge of energy.
The minimum payment was thirty thousand dollars, and this would pay off nearly half of it!
The white fox had evidently spotted him too, and a flicker of panic flashed through its icy blue eyes.
It didn't linger. Pushing off with all four legs, it moved swiftly, darting into the woods beside it.
"Fuck!"
Su Wei cursed and, without thinking, set off after it.
The tension and exhaustion from his recent escape from the bear seemed to vanish under the stimulus of eight thousand dollars.
He had only one thought in his mind.
Catch it. I have to get that money!
Su Wei raced through the snow, the rifle bouncing against his back with dull thuds.
He kept his eyes fixed on the white figure in the woods, putting all his strength into every step.
The wind whipped up grains of snow, pelting his face with a piercing chill.
The white fox was fast and knew the terrain well.
It always found the path with the shallowest snow, leaping nimbly between trees and rocks.
Su Wei wasn't so fortunate. Every step through the deep snow took tremendous effort.
Less than ten minutes into the chase, Su Wei slowed noticeably.
His earlier escape had already drained his strength, and now sheer determination alone kept him going.
A sharp pain gripped his lungs, and every breath hurt.
At last he could run no farther. He braced his hands on his knees and panted violently, white mist billowing from his mouth.
The white figure had long since vanished deep into the woods.
Su Wei raised his head and looked in the direction the white fox had disappeared. Unwilling to give up, he punched the large tree beside him.
Snow rustled down from the tree, showering his head and face.
The icy snow brought him back to his senses.