American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 14 Spruce Grouse
When Lin Yu-an, carrying a camera, trudged to the permanent camp, he discovered that the edges of the shallow pit he had initially dug the day before had collapsed in some places due to the erosion of rainwater.

The stones that had been painstakingly collected were soaked by the rain, making them even heavier and more slippery to move.

Instead of rushing to continue digging and building walls, he first carefully checked the drainage of the entire site.

Thanks to the terrain, most of the rainwater flowed down the hillside towards the stream, preventing serious flooding within the campsite, which relieved him.

He first dug a simple temporary drainage ditch around the excavation area to guide any rainwater that might fall again to another location. Only then did he begin clearing the collapsed soil under the camera's view and continue the arduous work of digging and moving rocks.

The muddy ground made every step extremely difficult for him, and the slippery stones almost slipped from his hands several times, but he did not stop at all.

The camera was also recording footage of his work.

Around noon, thanks to his tireless efforts, the stone wall of Lin Yu'an's shelter had been extended upwards by more than ten centimeters. Although the progress was slow, with each additional stone added, his sense of security increased.

I took advantage of the break time to check the traps.

The autumn rains dampened his expectations for the traps' success, as animals typically reduce their activity on rainy days, and the rain also diluted the scent of the bait.

Sure enough, after inspecting all the elastic lasso traps he had set up, they were all empty. One of them even had its triggering device malfunction due to water accumulation and loose soil.

"As expected." Lin Yu'an shrugged at the camera, not showing much disappointment.

"That's how hunting is, full of uncertainties. All we can do is keep trying, keep adapting, and silently accept it."

He carefully repaired the damaged trap and reapplied fresh bait. Just as he was about to leave, he caught a glimpse of something unusual under a fallen, dead tree not far away.
The withered tree was so old that its trunk was hollow and rotten inside, covered with a thick layer of moss. Lin Yu'an walked over curiously and gently tapped the hollow trunk with his logging axe.

"Hmm? In here..." He seemed to hear a faint sound.

He carefully used the axe blade to peel open a small opening in the rotten bark and peered inside.

"Wow! Look what I found!"

Lin Yu'an's face lit up with surprise as he pointed the camera at the tree hollow: "Guys, this is a natural treasure! Lots of dried pine cones and some unidentified small nuts!"

It turns out that this hollow tree hole is likely a "granary" where squirrels store food for the winter! Because the tree hole is located high up and is covered by tree bark, the pine cones and nuts inside remain very dry and are not affected by rain at all.

Lin Yu'an said excitedly, "This is truly a godsend! Although I don't know what kind of nuts these are, they look rich in oil and can provide a lot of energy. Thank you for nature's generosity!"

He didn't take all of these "windfalls," but only took about half of the pine cones and a small handful of nuts.

"We can't be too greedy. We need to leave some food for these little guys to get through the winter, right?"

Lin Yu-an had a premonition that if he took all the nuts in front of the camera, he would face a barrage of criticism when the show aired! So he only took a little to avoid unnecessary trouble later.

In the afternoon, the sun finally peeked through the thick clouds, dappling the forest. Lin Yu'an decided to seize this rare good weather and continue practicing his archery accuracy.

He went to the relatively open woodland by the stream and used dead trees as makeshift targets.

Lin Yu'an took the brand-new American hunting bow from behind his back, skillfully nocked a practice arrow, and said to the camera, "Alright, it's time for archery practice!"

"Fortunately, the draw weight of this bow is just right for me. It provides a certain range and power without tiring me out too quickly. However, I still need a lot of practice to truly achieve the ability to shoot exactly where I want."

He took a deep breath, recalling the essentials of archery in his mind: stance, nocking the arrow, drawing the bow, aiming, releasing... striving for perfection in every movement.

"Whoosh-!"

The first arrow left the bowstring, making a slight whooshing sound, and struck the withered tree right in the center of the bullseye! He knew exactly what the result would be. After months of exploration since his rebirth, he had discovered that the benefits of the spatial cheat were not limited to spatial storage.

It seems that his body has also been enhanced, greatly improving his sense of distance, the intensity of his vision, and even his somewhat mystical sixth sense.

Lin Yu'an said with some pride, "It seems that I have a lot of talent for shooting! Now I can hit the target every time within 10 meters!" "This is completely different from shooting at the shooting range. The wind direction, light, and my own heartbeat in the wild will affect the trajectory of the arrow."

After boasting, he sheepishly retrieved his arrows and continued practicing.

The second arrow, the third arrow, the fourth arrow...

He kept adjusting his posture, breathing, and aiming, setting the target further and further away. Sweat began to trickle down his forehead, and his arms ached from constantly drawing the bow, but he enjoyed it nonetheless.

With each arrow's thud, he felt a primal power surge through his body!

Just as he felt he was getting better and better at controlling the bow and arrow, suddenly, a "coo coo coo" sound came from the bushes not far away!

Lin Yu'an stopped moving instantly, his eyes immediately becoming wary!
That sound... could be a grouse!

He carefully lowered the bow, listened intently, and determined the general direction from which the sound came.

Lowering his voice, he excitedly said to the camera, "Did you hear that? There are grouse around here! This is practically a free dinner! I hope my archery skills will come in handy!"

He swiftly drew an arrow from his quiver, fitted with a sharp hunting tip, and then, like an experienced cheetah, stealthily crept towards the grouse's call.

Parting the dense foliage, he indeed saw, about fifteen meters away, a plump spruce grouse with grayish-brown feathers, leisurely pecking at berries on the ground under a low spruce tree, completely unaware of the impending danger.

Lin Yu'an slowly crouched down, using a thick tree trunk as cover, and then slowly, extremely slowly, raised the hunting bow in his hand.

He controlled his breathing, making it long and steady, and focused all his attention on the grouse! He could clearly see every time it lowered its head to peck at the food, and he could even feel its feathers trembling gently in the breeze.

Slowly drawing back the bowstring, the bow made a slight "creaking" sound, which was particularly clear in the quiet forest. The grouse seemed to sense something, and raised its head warily, its round eyes looking in Lin Yu'an's direction.

It's now!

Lin Yu'an's eyes narrowed, and the moment he released the bowstring, his wrist lifted almost imperceptibly to counteract the arrow's downward trajectory.

"Whoosh-!"

The arrows shot through the air like lightning!

"Pfft!"

A dull thud of flesh being pierced rang out!
The spruce grouse let out a short, mournful cry, its body trembled violently, and then it fell straight to the ground, its wings flapping futilely a few times before it fell completely silent.

One arrow, one kill! A direct hit to the vital spot!

"YES!"

Lin Yu'an could no longer contain his excitement, and he suddenly clenched his fist and let out a low cheer!

Excitedly, he pointed his camera at the grouse and shouted, "See that, guys! I shot a grouse with my bow and arrow! This is the first time in my life I've successfully hunted one with a bow and arrow!"

"The pine grouse is also known as the spruce grouse because its diet consists almost entirely of pine and spruce needles, as well as some insects and berries."

"Currently, it has been listed as a Least Concern species in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Ver3.1 since 2012. In other words, it can be freely hunted and consumed without worry, but it is not an animal that is completely protected by law."

After introducing the grouse, he still couldn't hide his excitement, saying to the camera, "This is incredible! It just appeared near me like that! We'll have roast chicken tonight! Thank you, nature!"

He carefully pulled out the arrow, wiped away the blood, and Lin Yu'an returned to the temporary shelter with his double harvest for the day: dried pine cones and a plump spruce grouse.

Have any of you readers ever eaten grouse? Is it as delicious as free-range chicken?
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(End of this chapter)