Beastmaster: I'm really just a forest ranger

Chapter 302 The Legend of the Man-Eating People in Anchang Village During the Great Snowfall!

At three o'clock in the afternoon, as the sun slowly moved westward, Chen Yuan chose to return to the farm.

As for the other staff members who attended the meeting, they all had their own things to do.

For example, Zhang Hao, who is about to be promoted to deputy director, plans to first learn about the information on the Fire Spirit Monkeys in detail, and then personally negotiate with them to persuade them to move away from this place.

Based on the basic information he currently has, the Fiery Spirit Monkey evolved from the Qinling Golden Monkey, retaining its gentle nature and showing almost no malice towards beast tamers.

Persuading these guys to move away from their habitat shouldn't be difficult.

Anyway, there are plenty of forests near Xuanhe Village that are suitable for them to live in, so they don't necessarily have to stay here.

But if it were the monkeys on Mount Emei, Zhang Hao's negotiations would be an insurmountable challenge.

According to the latest news, since the monkeys of Mount Emei evolved into monkey-like pets, they have continued their bad nature and acted extremely violently, often beating up passing beast tamers.

If the beast tamers retaliate, they will unite the strength of their entire clan to carry out revenge.

Nowadays, these monkeys have shown a tendency to rule the mountain, causing a severe impact on the ecological environment of Mount Emei.

The Beastmaster Association had no choice but to issue a task for the beastmasters to resolve this troublesome matter.

But these monkeys have become quite a force to be reckoned with, and very few beast tamers are confident they can resolve this incident.

Aside from Zhang Hao, the other staff members also had things to do.

Some were responsible for attracting investment, while others were busy contacting construction teams.

Xuanhe Town is located in a remote area with winding and difficult mountain roads, making it difficult to transport construction equipment in. Fortunately, many pets can join this bustling construction project, which can greatly alleviate the construction pressure.

As for Chen Yuan, he doesn't need to get involved in these tedious and troublesome things; he just needs to do his own job well.

Looking at the supplies that hadn't been packed yet, Chen Yuan smiled helplessly: "Forget it, let's go into the mountains tomorrow."

It's too late to go into the mountains now, and he doesn't want to travel through the Qinling Mountains in the dead of night, as that would cause him a lot of unnecessary trouble.

The kids were on their own, some training diligently like Cola, others playing and frolicking, while Chen Yuan lay on the sofa reviewing the documents Zhang Hao had sent.

These are work reports sent by other forest rangers.

[Date: December 17]

Report: The sound of drumming was heard coming from the cliff in the northwest direction of Mingyang Village at night, which the villagers mistook for the anger of the mountain god.

Situation: A group of giant horned lizards are using their heads to bang against a rock wall to attract mates, creating a resonant sound like a muffled war drum. They need to be guided to a more distant area to avoid disturbing the village.

Summary: Resolved

Following the incident in Daping Village, Chen Yuan instructed the forest rangers to investigate any unusual situations and report them to him so that he could follow up on the situation promptly.

"The mating season for the giant horned camel lizard is actually in winter?"

"That's quite unusual."

Upon seeing the first work report, Chen Yuan clicked his tongue in amazement and quickly turned to the next page.

[Date: December 26]

Report: After three consecutive days of heavy snow, villagers in Anchang Village discovered a giant five-toed footprint, half a meter deep, near the village. Ice crystal fragments remained inside the footprint for a long time, causing panic among the villagers.

Situation: Initially believed to be the footprints of some kind of large humanoid pet, but after further investigation, no further clues have been found so far.

Summary: Unresolved at present.

"Oh?"

"A giant five-toed footprint?"

Upon seeing the key characters, Chen Yuan's eyes flashed, and he sat up slightly, murmuring softly.

His first thought was exactly the same as the beast tamer's: this must be some kind of humanoid pet.

But after searching his mind for a long time, Chen Yuan couldn't think of any humanoid pets that met the criteria, so he shook his head and said, "Maybe it's a pet that hasn't been discovered yet."

"Since it hasn't affected Anchang Village, let's observe for now."

A thought flashed through his mind, and Chen Yuan replied to the message: "Keep following up."

Then, Chen Yuan lay back on the sofa in a more comfortable position, gazing at the dim light bulb and muttering, "Anchang Village? I remember that's the poaching gang's hideout, right?"

Anchang Village is not too far from Xuanhe Town and has been incorporated into the latter's jurisdiction.

"Well, since it concerns Xuanhe Town, let's find some time to go and check on the situation."

With a murmur, Chen Yuan continued to curl up on the sofa and review work reports.

After finishing his work, Chen Yuan watched television, and a news report caught his attention:
"Recently, many adults have neglected to supervise their children, resulting in several cases of children venturing into the wild to explore."

"Here, I would like to remind all parents to strengthen their supervision of their children."

Upon seeing this news report, Chen Yuan's lips twitched: "That kid is really brave to go on an adventure in the wild."

The wilderness is now a hundred times more dangerous than before. Even ordinary adults face great danger when entering, let alone children. Even the most ordinary lark can threaten their lives.

But some unruly kids just won't listen to advice. They are naturally audacious, and the more their parents try to stop them, the more they crave it.

"A few more rounds of mixed doubles beatings will teach this brat a lesson," Chen Yuan shook his head.

The mischievous kids in Xuanhe Village don't have these problems; once they leave the village, the Paw Patrol will bring them back.

When even television became boring, Chen Yuan simply lay down on the sofa and went to sleep.

The room was quiet, with only the warm light casting ripples on Chen Yuan's body. The twin concubines silently watched videos to learn skills.

This was destined to be a peaceful day.

Anchang Village
"This road needs to be repaired."

Xiao Zhao returned to his hometown, Anchang Village, with his wife and children. This time, he planned to bring his parents along to go to the city.

The two elderly people have lived in this remote mountain village for decades and rarely have the opportunity to see the outside world. This time, the opportunity was rare, so Xiao Zhao decided to take them with him.

Anchang Village is even more remote than the former Xuanhe Village. The mountain roads are dilapidated, and many sections are still dirt roads, making it very difficult to drive there.

Although he had only lived in Xuanhe Town for two months, Xiao Zhao felt deeply grateful for the town.

This benefit is reflected in the improved infrastructure, the better employment environment, and the strong sense of security.

"Dad! I'm going to play by myself!"

After visiting his grandparents back in his hometown, Xiao Zhao decided to go for a walk while his parents were trying to persuade him to.

"Okay, be careful." Xiao Zhao was busy persuading his parents. The two elders were reluctant to let him spend money to go out and have fun, and they were both stubborn. So he just waved his hand casually.

Leaving the house, Xiao Zhao looked around and suddenly felt bored.

"This place is no fun at all!"

There was no Paw Patrol, no Lark, and no playmates.

On a late afternoon after the blizzard had just stopped, Anchang Village looked like a patch of coarse cloth carelessly tossed into the folds of the mountains, its gray-tiled roofs laden with thick snow.

Little Zhao stood in the desolate street, breathing on his frozen, red hands to warm them, the pom-pom on his tiger-head hat bouncing around him.

Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he jogged forward until he arrived at a familiar old house.

He looked up at the old house, a smug smile gradually spreading across his face.

He discovered the poaching team here last time and told Chen Yuan, earning praise from everyone.

Could there be bad people living here?

A strong desire to explore welled up in Xiao Zhao's heart, but he did not forget the most basic principle of caution. He carefully and cautiously approached the old house while keeping a watchful eye on his surroundings.

Unfortunately, no poachers lived in the old house.

That's true, no poacher would choose such an ominous place as their base.

"Ugh, so boring."

Seeing that there were no bad guys around, Xiao Zhao got bored again. He lowered his head and kicked a small stone. The stone flew forward and eventually hit the snow behind the old house.

Xiao Zhao suddenly felt a chill and was about to go home to warm himself by the fire when he looked up and found that the place where the small stone had fallen was a deep pit.

His eyes lit up, and he ran forward quickly, only to find a deep pit the size of a millstone suddenly embedded in the snow, like a giant human footprint.

Crouching down for a closer look, one could see a few star-like ice shards embedded at the bottom of the deep pit, their faint blue light undulating with the twilight, like teardrops falling from a glacier.

Looking ahead, there's not just this one footprint, but a series of footprints winding their way into the pine forest.

The old house is located on the very edge of Anchang Village. The houses here have all been abandoned, and almost no one comes here on weekdays.

The cold wind scatters snowflakes from the branches, and little Zhao's eyes shine as he follows the huge footprints that resemble deep pits, as if possessed.

Last time he discovered poachers, what will he discover this time?

Will everyone reward him this time?

After walking for a while, through a bare pine forest, a cave came into view, where a huge footprint stopped.

Little Zhao remembers this cave; it used to be his and his friends' secret hideout.

But all the friends left the village, and those beautiful memories were forever sealed away.

Suddenly, a cool, icy wind carrying the scent of rocks and snow blew out of the cave. Little Zhao shuddered, but mustered his courage and peered inside.

Looking ahead with the dim sunlight, one can vaguely see a huge shadow, almost filling the entire space, huddled up.

The massive shadow's body was covered in thick, blue-and-white ice armor, which gleamed with a cold, hard luster under the dim light.

It was so big that it nestled inside the cave like a small, breathing snow mountain, making the already enormous cave seem incredibly cramped.

This huge creature seemed to be breathing, and each heavy breath stirred up a fine gust of icy wind, which condensed into tiny frost flowers at its mouth and nose, falling down in a soft rustling sound.

Little Zhao was so frightened that he sat down on the snow with a thud, his heart pounding in his ribs, and his eyes filled with deep fear.

He wasn't afraid of poachers, nor was he frightened by wild pets, but what kind of monster was the big guy in front of him?

Little Zhao suddenly remembered a story his parents had told him: it was said that there was a very, very big snowman living in the mountains. It was cruel and ruthless and would snatch up disobedient children and eat them in one bite.
"Don't eat me!"

Little Zhao sat on the cold snow and shouted loudly, his voice tinged with a sob.

The man-eating snowman seemed to be alarmed by this statement.

The massive body trembled slightly, and the ferocious head covered in ice armor slowly rose, causing Xiao Zhao's heart to skip a beat.

At the same time, a pair of enormous eyes, like melting amber, opened in the shadows of the cave. Their gentle gaze, tinged with an indescribable weariness, slowly fell upon the trembling little one at the cave entrance.

Unlike the ferocious, enormous head, there was no ferocity in its gaze, only a deep, almost crushing weakness.

The snowman made no sound, but slowly and cautiously spread out its enormous paws, which could easily crush the heads of other pets, and then gently and repeatedly pressed them against its belly covered with thick ice armor.

The movement was slow and heavy, carrying a sense of weakness that even a primary school student could understand.

Then, it tilted its head slightly, its amber eyes gazing intently at little Zhao sitting on the ground, its gaze filled with the purest, most undisguised plea.

It was even afraid that Little Zhao wouldn't understand its meaning, so it slowly opened its mouth, revealing huge but harmless teeth, and a gurgling sound, as if coming from the depths of a glacier, rolled out from the back of its throat. The sound was hollow and deep, full of longing for food.

It didn't approach the frightened little Zhao, but instead used silent body language and its huge eyes to express the simplest and most urgent request: hunger.

The snowman is hungry.

Little Zhao was stunned. He looked at the giant's huge hand pressing on its stomach, at the exhaustion and hunger that were almost overflowing in its big eyes, and at its huge body that was trembling slightly due to hunger and weakness.

It doesn't look like a man-eating monster, but rather like... more like the big yellow dog at Grandpa Niu's house at the village entrance, whimpering from hunger at the door, with the same expression and the same movements.

He remembered how his stomach would rumble when he was hungry, how he would feel so uncomfortable that he wanted to cry, and how he would pester his parents for food.

Where are the snowman's parents?
A faint warmth, mixed with compassion and courage, welled up in his heart, and he was no longer afraid, or at least not so afraid.

"are you hungry?"

Little Zhao stared intently at the snowman, the warmth within him emboldening him to speak.

"Roar"

The snowman's voice was very weak as he gently nodded his enormous head.

Little Zhao suddenly turned around and stumbled towards the village like a startled rabbit.

He ran back to his yard and shouted, "Dad! Mom! I found a big snowman!"

Little Zhao dared not hide the story of the snowman; despite his young age, he knew the gravity of the matter.

I called out in the yard for a long time, but there was no response.

Upon entering the house and finding his parents nowhere to be seen, Xiao Zhao had no choice but to run into the kitchen.

The stove was still warm. He tiptoed and quickly grabbed three still-warm roasted sweet potatoes with charred, honey-drizzled skin from the stove. He then laboriously hooked two glistening, fragrant pieces of cured pork from the roof beam.

Carrying three roasted sweet potatoes and two pieces of cured pork, Little Zhao ran back to the cave, panting.

The snowman remained huddled in the cramped cave, its amber eyes seeming to gleam faintly when it saw him return.

Little Zhao mustered his courage and carefully walked up to the snowman, throwing the food he was carrying onto the frost-covered ground.

He then dared not stay there and quickly turned and ran home.

A biting wind howled behind me, and through it came the snowman's grateful cry: "Roar!"

A smile spread across Xiao Zhao's face. He skipped and hopped back home, and upon seeing his parents who had disappeared earlier, he greeted them with a boastful tone, "Dad! Mom!"

"Guess what I found in the secret cave?"

"A snowman!"

"A super, super big snowman!"

"It's different from what you've told us. It doesn't eat people; it eats roasted sweet potatoes and cured meat!"

"It even thanked me!"

After saying that, Xiao Zhao stood there with his hands on his hips, chin raised, his face full of pride.

He was waiting for his parents' praise.

But the father, with an indifferent expression, pulled out his belt, and the mother, equally expressionless, picked up a broom.

clap clap clap!
As his skin was torn and flesh ripped open, little Zhao burst into tears, and the sound of his scolding echoed in his ears:

"How many times have I told you, don't go outside alone!"

"It's dangerous outside, extremely dangerous."

"If you don't listen, we'll just have to teach you a lesson."

"."

Little Zhao's heart-wrenching cries echoed around the house. Only after his grandparents arrived to rescue him did Little Zhao snort coldly and put away his belt.

When dealing with unruly children, gentle persuasion is often ineffective; only a painful beating can leave a lasting impression.

After making sure Xiao Zhao learned his lesson, Xiao Zhao asked Xiao Zhao, "Tell me what happened earlier."

"woooooo"

Little Zhao didn't want to talk to his father, but when he saw the sharp glint of the belt, he started to sob and stammer as he recounted what had happened.

"Giant footprints"

"The Big Snowman"

After listening to Xiao Zhao's account, Xiao Zhao frowned deeply, paced back and forth, and said in a low voice, "It's the same as what the village chief just said at the meeting."

"no!"

"We must tell the village chief this news right away!"

(End of this chapter)