Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

On the mountain in the early morning, the mist gradually dissipated, and everything was so fresh and clean. Zhou Rui stood on the top of a small hill, carrying a basket on his back, looking around. Zhou Rui's equipment was no different from usual, except that the machete he carried had been replaced with a scythe, and he also had a Mauser 98K slung over his shoulder.

"Buddy, let's see if you can have your fill today." Zhou Rui patted the Mauser rifle that was already loaded with five bullets and muttered to himself.

Zhou Rui carefully observed from the mountaintop, but this season was truly unfriendly to hunters; the vegetation was too dense, making it impossible to see anything. Hunters in this area generally didn't hunt in the mountains during this season, and even if they did, it was mainly for setting traps. In spring and summer, the lush vegetation not only made it difficult to find prey but also obscured the trajectory of bullets.

Fortunately, Zhou Rui had a cheat code. He immediately focused his mind, capturing unseen information. To the northeast, a faint mist carried the smell of meat. That's it; there should be a stream there, probably a water source for the animals. Zhou Rui gazed in that direction, but the route he took was winding and circuitous. There was no other way; some places were simply impassable due to the dense bushes.

It was a pheasant. Zhou Rui wasn't disappointed; he hadn't had chicken soup for days, and he'd even finished the smoked pheasant. Zhou Rui took out his slingshot, but in this forest, he only had two shots at most.

*Thud*, the pheasant fell, but there wasn't even a second chance. The rest of the pheasants fled, leaving only a pile of feathers. Zhou Rui wasn't too disappointed; he had expected this outcome given the circumstances. He gathered the feathers and tossed them into his basket before continuing his search along the stream. Water sources are gathering places for many small animals, and the banks of the stream are often littered with footprints—the best tracking information for hunters.

These are wolf footprints. Two or three days have passed, but Zhou Rui still hasn't been able to detect any wolf information from the air.

Yes, these are duck footprints, fresh. The pheasant soup was delicious, and the duck meat was good too. The flock of wild ducks was heading upstream along the stream, and Zhou Rui followed the tracks closely, climbing steadily. His steps weren't slow, but he was still cautious. Even though he had brought a gun, once he entered these vast mountains, it was hard to say who the hunter and who the prey were.

He heard a quacking sound ahead; he had finally caught up. In the sweltering heat of the deep forest, Zhou Rui's clothes were almost completely soaked. He became even more cautious as he approached, afraid of making the slightest noise and ruining everything. The water ahead widened into a small pond about ten meters in diameter, where about a dozen wild ducks were pecking at small fish and shrimp.

Zhou Rui put down the basket and gun on his back and took out a slingshot and mud pellets. There was no other way; with this gun, there would probably be hardly any flesh left after hitting such a small animal. Zhou Rui pulled back the slingshot, trying to aim at the furthest one.

*Snap, snap, snap...* Several sounds rang out in succession. But on the seventh snap, the rubber band made of tire snapped. "Damn it!" Zhou Rui spat, threw the slingshot to the ground, grabbed his knife, and ran forward. There was nothing he could do; besides those already on the ground and those that had run away, three more, some limping, some with one wing askew, were still darting into the woods.

Zhou Rui waded through the water, grabbed a wild duck by the neck, twisted it, and then kicked another duck out of the water, killing it instantly. The last duck flapped its wings and ran to the shore. Zhou Rui's dagger flew out, and the duck was pinned to the ground on the bank.

Zhou Rui picked up the wild ducks one by one, finally pulling out the knife nailed to the bank. This duck was a mess, covered in blood. Oh well, he'd just use it for lunch. Then Zhou Rui collected everything, including the slingshot. Upon closer inspection, the rubber band was broken in two; it seemed to have been left out for too long, making it brittle. He'd just go to the clinic next time and get a tourniquet; those would be much better.

Zhou Rui put five wild ducks into his basket, then gutted the one that had been stabbed to death, scooped out its internal organs, rubbed them with salt, and then scooped up some mud from the stream and covered it up completely, feathers and all. He then lit a fire on the ground and threw the mud lumps into it.

Zhou Rui found a large rock to sit on and took off his shoes. His shoes were completely soaked from wading through the water and needed to be dried. He placed them near the fire while waiting for the duck to cook. About half an hour later, his shoes were dry, and estimating the duck was cooked, he quickly used a piece of unburnt firewood to dig out the mud clumps. He then used a stick to break open the dried mud, and the mud shell, along with the duck feathers stuck to it, peeled off.

"Mmm, this is Beggar's Duck Fragrance." Zhou Rui, who had been running through the damp jungle for most of the day, was starving. He tore off a duck leg, blew on it, and took a big bite. Although it was only seasoned with a little salt, the duck, weighing four or five pounds after removing the innards, was dripping with fat. One bite filled Zhou Rui with satisfaction. After finishing two duck legs, Zhou Rui waited for the duck to cool down a bit before grabbing the whole duck and gnawing on it.

Men should eat meat heartily like this, it's just a pity there's no wine. Zhou Rui had dined in high-end hotels all over the world in his previous life, and to be honest, it was nothing special. Eating in those environments was about socializing and etiquette, something Zhou Rui was never used to. Zhou Rui preferred to eat meat and drink heartily with a few close friends at roadside stalls.

Thinking of this, Zhou Rui opened the water bottle, poured some onto the ground, and then took a big gulp. To my brothers who fought alongside me, may you rest in peace in heaven. Unfortunately, I don't believe in God, so he kicked me back.

Zhou Rui, having eaten and drunk his fill, sprawled out on the large rock beneath him, limbs outstretched in contentment. This was the damn life of an immortal. In this life, Zhou Rui didn't want to venture out into the world again; he only wanted to watch his younger siblings and niece grow up, send them to school, and broaden their horizons. As for the future, whether they wanted to go to big cities or come back was up to them. Zhou Rui himself only wanted to stay in the village he had dreamed of in his previous life for the rest of his days.

My wife from my past life—forget about it. I already wronged her once in my past life, so I shouldn't cause her any more trouble in this one. I doubt she'd even want to see me again anyway.

Zhou Rui rested for a while, then looked up at the sky, but damn it, the sky was completely obscured by leaves. He could only estimate the time; it was probably getting late, so he decided to head home. Not having a watch was really inconvenient, Zhou Rui thought. He'd save up some more money and buy one.

Zhou Rui extinguished the remaining fire with water, packed up all his equipment, and headed back. He walked at a steady pace, remaining vigilant about his surroundings. This was a habit Zhou Rui had developed as a mercenary; he couldn't relax until he had completed his mission and returned to the safe zone, or he would lose his life.

After walking for more than an hour, and just as they were about to leave the forest, Zhou Rui suddenly felt two streams of energy rushing towards him. Zhou Rui immediately stopped and focused on sensing them. He saw that one stream of energy was cold and the other was hot; the cold was chilling, and the hot was warm and fragrant. Moreover, in the short time Zhou Rui stopped, the feeling grew stronger and stronger.

Zhou Rui looked around and chose a tall tree, about four or five meters high, to climb. He took off his basket, hung it on a branch, chose a large horizontal branch, sat on it with his back against the trunk, and silently released the safety of his 98K rifle.

As they drew closer, Zhou Rui's breathing became steady, and his eyes remained fixed straight ahead. A gentle breeze rustled through the trees, the sound of animals rubbing against the grass. The animals ahead began to appear and disappear, the lead animal still bearing forked antlers—a herd of sika deer.

Zhou Rui checked the time; it should be a little after 2 PM. But shouldn't the sika deer be resting at this time? Why are they running around like crazy? Is some large predator chasing them?

While keeping an eye on the deer herd, Zhou Rui also kept a close watch on what was behind them. Why wasn't anything there? Animals that could threaten sika deer should be large, so why couldn't they be found?