Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Damn it, the moose has changed its route, and it's running so fast, I wonder how far it will go in one go." Wang Shouye frowned, not expecting such an unexpected turn of events.

Roar... howl... the howling sound continued to echo from the other side of the mountain.

The dogs were no longer afraid and had all stood up, but they all gathered around their owners for comfort.

Wang Shouye, Gu Shaofeng, and Zhang Shitou stroked the dogs' heads and bodies, offering them encouragement.

Zhou Rui quickly moved closer to the mule, hugged its head, and kept comforting it.

After a while, the mule finally quieted down, snorting, but there was now a puddle of urine beneath it. This mountain lord was truly powerful.

"Uncle Wang, what is the tiger fighting with?" Zhou Rui heard the warning and intimidation in the voice.

"It probably is, but they haven't started fighting yet. The tiger is intimidating the animals that are competing with it for food."

"Master, should we go take a look? Maybe we can find a bargain." Gu Shaofeng's idea was particularly unconventional.

"Still trying to find something? We're already losing track of our prey. Besides, even if we go, are we guaranteed to find something? We might not find anything, and the tiger might have already snatched the food and run off."

Wang Shouye was in a bad mood and annoyed. Even a moose, frightened by a tiger, wouldn't run far, and now Gu Shaofeng was stirring up trouble.

"Eat quickly, and after you finish, hurry up and follow them to see if you can still catch up. Hopefully, they won't keep running."

Upon hearing this, everyone hurriedly stuffed steamed buns into their mouths, and if they choked, they poured water into their mouths.

Wang Shouye finished half a steamed bun and wiped his mouth.

"Alright, let's start chasing after that moose that rolled down and see if it's injured. Maybe we'll get lucky and snag a moose for free."

Wang Shouye quickly adjusted his mindset and even had the mood to make a joke. There was no way around it; hunting in the mountains was unpredictable, and things couldn't always go as planned.

"Alright. I saw it clearly just now. That moose rolled quite a distance. Luckily it wasn't a male, or it might have killed itself with its antlers."

Upon hearing this, Gu Shaofeng's mood immediately improved, and the frustration he felt from being scolded by Wang Shouye vanished instantly.

"Let's go, let's go! Let's set off right away."

The group hurriedly chased after the moose, thankfully it rolled down the mountain and they didn't have to climb any further. Zhou Rui tried to follow at the back, but trouble arose; the big mule refused to move.

Zhou Rui pulled hard forward, but oh no! The mule bellowed and shook its head, even trying to back up. Zhou Rui slipped and couldn't hold on any longer.

The commotion finally alerted the people in front, and they all turned around.

"Junior brother, what's wrong?" Zhang Shitou asked curiously.

Zhou Rui loosened the reins and spread one hand out: "I don't know, this mule suddenly refused to move, and nothing I did could pull it."

"Were you scared by the tiger?"

"Maybe, they all peed just now," Zhou Rui explained, knowing that everyone's attention had been drawn to the tiger on the mountainside.

"Scared to death? Why don't you try feeding it some alcohol, Junior Brother?" Gu Shaofeng scratched the back of his head.

Zhou Rui thought for a moment and realized there was really no other way at the moment, so he immediately started rummaging through his backpack. They say alcohol emboldens bears, maybe it can even embolden mules.

Zhou Rui pried open the mule's mouth and poured most of the bottle down its throat.

Everyone stood together watching. After a few minutes, the mule's eyes slowly turned red, and heavy breathing came out, carrying a strong smell of alcohol.

Zhou Rui tried pulling the reins, and the mule actually moved forward.

"It's done! You see, I'm the best at this. This mule got bolder after drinking the wine."

"Alright, you're just lucky. Now that the mule can walk, let's get going."

Wang Shouye was still a little anxious. The distance between them and the moose had already widened, and if they delayed any longer, he didn't know if he could catch up.

Half an hour later, on a flat area halfway up the mountain where the moose had rolled down, there was a large patch of collapsed snow, several square meters in size. It seemed the moose had struggled there for a while before getting up.

Wang Shouye bent over and followed the moose hoofprints, walking for about thirty meters.

"It seems this moose can't escape. One of its legs is probably injured; its hoof isn't putting any weight on it, and the marks on its legs are much shallower than the marks on the others."

Now everyone's interest was piqued. After searching for so long, finding something was better than nothing.

"Spotted area, go. Wrap it up."

Spotted Dogs dashed off instantly, and the other dogs, seeing this, all rushed after them.

"Come on, keep up. The dog and the moose are too big for each other, we can't carry them."

Everyone started jogging together.

A long, deep moo rang out, deep and resonant.

"It's entangled, quick, quick!"

The group quickened their pace, kicking up countless snowflakes.

A few minutes later, what appeared before everyone was eleven dogs, circling around a female moose.

The moose stood on three legs, with one of its hind legs slightly tucked in, barely touching the ground. This moose was over two meters long, over 1.8 meters tall, and weighed at least a thousand kilograms.

The size difference was too great, so the dog didn't blindly rush forward. Even if it were a female without long, sharp horns, it still wouldn't be able to withstand a kick.

When the moose saw Zhou Rui and his group approaching, it became even more flustered, since a person standing on the ground looks much taller than a dog.

However, Gale and Moon Chaser, along with their pack of dogs, were quite cunning. Seeing the moose trying to run, they would dart under its belly and bite it. Some bit its thighs, others its tender belly flesh, preventing it from running away.

"Stone, go and take care of him."

Hearing Wang Shouye say this, Zhang Shitou didn't waste any words. After all, the new gun needed to be put to use. Having a moose to draw blood for the new gun was quite useful.

Bang... The moose staggered. At such close range, it didn't fall after being shot.

Bang... Zhang Shitou fired another shot. Boom! The ground shook. Luckily, Jifeng dodged quickly enough, or he would have been killed.

"That's really big, and it's just a female deer. If it were the biggest male deer, it would weigh at least 1,500 pounds."

"At least it wasn't a wasted effort, even if we didn't catch the deer herd in the end..."

Snapped!

"You bastard, how dare you hit me!"

"Who told you to jinx it? If we really can't catch up, it's all your fault," Wang Zhen retorted sharply.

"Alright, let's bleed. Quickly take out the water jug ​​and empty wine bottles, don't waste them."

Wang Shouye shut them up with a single sentence; if they had kept arguing, it would have gone on forever.

The moose was too big, so Zhou Rui and Zhang Shitou worked together to cut it open, while Gu Shaofeng and Wang Zhen assisted. They drained the blood, removed the entrails to feed the hunting dogs, and offered them to the mountain god in the water.

Everything was cleaned up in just over ten minutes.

"Uncle Wang, what's the next step?"

Wang Shouye nodded as he looked at the hunting dog's half-round belly. It hadn't been fed to its full size at once, yet it could still walk.

"I'll take Shaofeng and Zhenzi ahead to see if the moose herd shows any signs of stopping."

"Ruiwa, you and Shitou get a makeshift sled and have a mule pull it behind you."

"We don't need to look for food tonight, which will save us some time. We'll try to go as far as possible. If we really can't find anything, we'll build a snow hut in front of you and wait for you."