Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

At this moment, the tiger's huge head had been shattered into pieces by the bullets, and its appearance was no longer recognizable.

The only thing that can be confirmed is that it is absolutely dead.

Wang An tried to stand up, but his body wouldn't allow it. So, he lay there, fumbling with his hands to change the magazine on his Type 54 pistol, and started pulling the trigger again and again towards the sky.

At this moment, Wang An was still some distance away from Mu Xue and them, but it was definitely more than 400 meters away, so Wang An didn't know if the gunshot could be heard.

Furthermore, the gunfire from the 56mm semi-automatic rifle and the 54mm pistol was a series of shots. If Mu Xueli and Wang Li could hear it, they would definitely be rushing over here by now.

But even after all eight bullets were fired, Wang An didn't hear any movement from the woods.

For some reason, Wang An suddenly had a feeling that he was about to die here.

That feeling of helplessness—having a clear mind but being unable to do anything with one's body, and finding even the slightest movement difficult—was something Wang An had never experienced before.

Of course, it might be because of his daily practice of the Scorpion Climbing Technique. Wang An's arms and hands could move and he had strength, but as soon as his arms supported him on the ground and he tried to sit up, he felt his stomach churning and blood gushing from his throat.

After thinking for a moment, Wang An put his left thumb and forefinger into his mouth, took a slow, deep breath, and then whistled loudly.

After whistling, Wang An felt a sudden wave of dizziness, perhaps because his brain was lacking oxygen. Sleepiness suddenly washed over him.

Wang An knew he couldn't sleep, because if a person falls asleep after being seriously injured, they might never wake up again.

So Wang An forced himself to stay awake for a while, but eventually succumbed to sleepiness and closed his eyes in a daze.

Just as Wang An was drifting off to sleep, he saw a gray fox running swiftly towards him from the woods not far away.

If you look closely, you'll see that this fox's tail is only half-finished, meaning it's a fox with a broken tail.

A closer look reveals that the fox has many scars on its body, clearly inflicted by other wild animals.

To be honest, this fox is really tough; it's amazing that it can still be alive and kicking despite suffering so many injuries.

However, this also proves that the fox is extremely intelligent, managing to escape danger time and time again. If it were any other animal, it would probably have died eight hundred times over.

That's right, this fox is the one with the broken tail that became close friends with Wang An when he and his group went to YJ County to pan for gold, and that served as Wang An's gold-finding beast.

I still remember when Wang An and the others left the gold mine, Wang An wanted to take it home, but the fox with the broken tail only gave Wang An its severed tail, while it itself remained in the mountains.

Wang An felt it was a pity at the time, because the fox with the broken tail was quite skilled at finding gold and had helped Wang An find a lot of gold nuggets.

To be honest, it was fortunate that Wang An's whistle alerted the fox to his location; otherwise, who knows when the fox and the human would have met again.

Soon, the tailless fox arrived near Wang An, but the tiger's aura made it linger nearby for a while before cautiously approaching him.

It must be admitted that the tiger's power in these mountains is absolutely invincible. Even if it is dead, other wild animals would not dare to approach it easily.

This explains why tiger carcasses found in these mountains are rarely mutilated. Because, apart from flies and insects, other wild animals dare not approach.

This is the terror of the king of beasts; even in death, he will not allow other wild animals to desecrate his corpse.

And this is exactly what the old saying means:
"Though the tiger is dead, its power remains."

The fox with the broken tail cautiously approached, then hid behind a large tree and observed for a long time. Perhaps confirming that the tiger was no longer breathing, it then walked towards Wang An.

It was easy to see from its eyes that it was terrified. Its long, narrow fox eyes kept glancing at the tiger's corpse, as if the tailless fox would run away without hesitation if it detected any unusual movement.

It can be concluded that if Wang An hadn't been there, the fox with the broken tail would never have come near.

Approaching Wang An, the tailless fox first sniffed Wang An's face, then stretched out its front paws and slapped Wang An's large face.

Wang An was in a state between sleep and wakefulness when he felt something furry stroking his face, gradually bringing him back to consciousness.

Wang An thought the tiger had come back to life and was about to eat him; he was looking for a place to bite.

Upon thinking of this, Wang An couldn't help but open his eyes, and he also raised the large 54 pistol that he had been clutching in his hand.

This thing is about to be eaten. We can't let the tiger have its fill. Is it Wang An's character to not give it a couple of shots before it dies?
In fact, Wang An was a bit confused at this moment. He couldn't even remember killing the tiger just now. It was only his subconscious resentment, indignation, and unwillingness that made him react in this way.

But what greeted Wang An was the narrow, cunning eyes of the fox with the broken tail.

Wang An blinked, reached out and hugged the fox's neck, and said somewhat excitedly:

"Tail cut off, ha!"

He only chuckled once, but because the laughter affected his stomach and intestines, it immediately stopped Wang An's laughter.

I have to say, that really hurts!

This pain instantly brought Wang An to his senses, making him realize his predicament. He said weakly:
"Broken Tail, what brings you here? Did you know I was in trouble and come to rescue me?"

At this moment, Wang An finally understood why most of the locals were averse to beating foxes; some things simply cannot be explained by science.

Wang An didn't know why the tailless fox had appeared.

Just as he was about to fall into a deep sleep, the tailless fox miraculously appeared. How can this be explained?

After Wang An finished speaking, the tailless fox nudged Wang An with its head, seemingly responding to him, or perhaps asking him what to do now.

Wang An smiled and said:

"Duanwei, go and call Xue Li and Lao Wu over for me. They're the two youngest idiots from when we went gold panning. I fired so many shots, their ears must be stuffed with pig bristles, they didn't even hear a thing." (End of Chapter)