Chapter 1078 - 97: The Plan Ahead

How to store food is indeed a challenge for the two of them.

Their food, roughly calculated, amounts to about a ton now.

A moose weighing over half a ton, a brown bear, several Siberian Roe Deer. Even if the internal organs and leather are removed and quite a few bones are taken away, the total must be close to a ton.

In short, this food might be a necessity for Chen Wen and the group’s survival in the future, critically important, but at the moment, this food is just a burden hindering their progress.

Hua Yun heard Chen Wen’s question and found it quite a headache as well.

She had thought about the issue of transporting food, but after pondering it many times, Hua Yun came up with no solution.

After Chen Wen raised this issue, both of them fell silent.

The hunting just finished, and now this problem arose.

It’s really exhausting without time to rest.

After a while, Hua Yun tentatively suggested, "Why don’t we just transport all the food back and then come out again?"

Chen Wen waved his hands repeatedly: "Come on, it’d be better to just rest at the shelter."

Hua Yun nodded in agreement.

That’s indeed the logic.

After waiting for a while, Hua Yun suddenly seemed to remember something.

She immediately said, "By the way, when you went to Caprivi before, I recall you transported materials using a canoe. Do you think we can use this method now?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Wen shook his head: "At that time it was because we’d tamed a hippopotamus, and the hippo could pull the canoe in the water, which allowed us to use the canoe for transport. If we want to replicate that now, we’d have to paddle on the canoe."

"But the canoes we made ourselves, to be honest, are of poor quality. Loaded with people, they can only carry a small portion of the materials, and our goods are simply too much. So trying to use canoes for material transport is not very realistic."

Listening to this, Hua Yun felt a bit disappointed.

If this method doesn’t work either, then she’s out of ideas.

But just when Hua Yun was about to give up, Chen Wen unintentionally glanced at the Northeast Tiger, and suddenly his eyes lit up.

Northeast Tiger!

This guy can swim, and it’s not afraid of the cold!

There’s a saying called "Like a tiger with wings added," describing a powerful person becoming even more powerful with help.

This indicates that tigers can adapt to both aquatic and terrestrial environments!

And the Northeast Tiger is also characterized by its two-layered fur. During winter, their fur is exceptionally dense, making them the most densely furred among tigers.

This creature can swim, isn’t afraid of the cold, and has considerable strength.

If it could help pull a canoe forward in the water...

However, truth be told, doing so would be quite a predicament for the Northeast Tiger. Its small body size makes pulling a canoe onward rather difficult.

Unless it’s a standard adult Northeast Tiger, only then might its strength and body size be enough to pull a canoe.

Chen Wen’s expression alternated between excitement and depression, making Hua Yun a bit apprehensive.

She couldn’t help but clear her throat, interrupting Chen Wen: "Actually, this is almost enough. It’s not like we absolutely have to continue hunting forward; if worse comes to worst, we can return. After being out here for so long, consider Adam who is stuck at the camp; he’s probably also feeling restless. By then, let them come out for a round."

Hua Yun’s words caught Chen Wen’s attention.

He nodded.

Considering things from another perspective, Adam is truly a bit unfortunate.

Since arriving here, he’s mostly been doing odd jobs and contributing physical labor. Instances like hunting are considered rewarding amidst the monotonous survival environment.

Chen Wen was just about to speak when he suddenly remembered something.

Thinking from another perspective!

If carrying food is a hassle, might leaving the food here be more convenient?

Chen Wen said, "Do you remember how you dealt with food during your time in solitary wilderness?"

Upon hearing this, Hua Yun nodded: "Of course I remember, wasn’t it similar to dragging a sled, carrying food to go, leaving heavy food at..."

Speaking, Hua Yun paused.

She somewhat surprisedly said, "You mean, find a place to hide the food? That’s actually a good idea, but it needs to be stored secretly. There are quite a few Wolf Minks around here; I heard the noises they made while on night watch last night."

As the two talked, the Golden Eagle and Northeast Tiger returned from a distance.

Seeing the Northeast Tiger, an audacious idea flashed in Chen Wen’s mind.

He looked at Hua Yun and asked, "What do you think about letting this guy guard the food?"

Hearing this, Hua Yun paused.

She looked at the Northeast Tiger that had followed them all the way, hesitantly saying, "In terms of combat ability, it can fight off a group of Wolf Minks, but if you have it guard the food, aren’t you afraid it’ll eat all the food? And will it actually listen to you and safely guard the food here?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Wen thought for a moment: "No worries, although this guy eats a lot, we have the innards of the moose. By then, we’ll leave the innards for it to eat. Besides, whether it listens to me depends on upcoming training."

Looking at the approaching Northeast Tiger, Chen Wen said, "Tonight I’ll try to train it, and see if it can quickly learn this ability. If it works, we’ll continue forward. If not, then we head back."

This suggestion seemed reasonable.

Hua Yun agreed to Chen Wen’s idea.

However, in such a short time to teach the Northeast Tiger how to guard food, she felt it would be extremely difficult.

Therefore, Hua Yun sensed they had a higher probability of heading back.

...

After the Northeast Tiger returned, Chen Wen did not immediately inform it of the recently discussed results.

After Hua Yun fell asleep, he planned to have a good talk with this Northeast Tiger; it would not be too late to discuss then.

Seeing the moose meat cooked, Chen Wen shared half with Hua Yun.

The two began to enjoy their dinner.

It must be said, Chen Wen’s culinary skills are truly exceptional. Hua Yun ate the moose meat, which tasted equally as good as something from a barbecue restaurant.

The spices were evenly and suitably sprinkled, adding perfectly nuanced flavor—not too light, yet not overpowering the meat’s aroma.

And the meat was roasted just right—neither too dry causing a burnt taste nor too light leaving it undercooked.

The moose meat was grilled to perfection, thoroughly cooked with some meat juice remaining.

"Delicious!"

Hua Yun couldn’t help but comment; this was her first time tasting moose meat.

Chen Wen nodded slightly and said, "The meat is good; autumn season is indeed prime hunting season. Many animals, after an entire autumn’s maturation, have their meat become notably delicious."

As he spoke, he was also looking at the system-provided entries.

But this time, the entry provided by the moose wasn’t exactly what Chen Wen needed; it was two bad entries mixed with one good entry, leaving no choice.

And this good entry, to be honest, Chen Wen felt it somewhat useful, but not greatly beneficial.

[Rapid Drying (Blue): Quickly shaking your body allows you to shake off water droplets from the body and fur, enabling a swift transition to a dry state. After employing this entry to shake off moisture, you are less prone to catching cold or falling sick.]

Honestly, Chen Wen couldn’t fathom exactly what use this entry might have, but upon closer thinking, it might be quite useful in some survival zones that require getting into water.

If playing in the water before Lake Baikal freezes over, it would have some use.

However, the hearing-related entry Chen Wen most desired wasn’t acquired this time.

Nonetheless, Chen Wen now has decent perception ability, and if his hearing were greatly enhanced, it would also take considerable time to adapt.

All things considered, this entry is adequate.