American Landowners: Starting with Hunting in Alaska

Chapter 179 The Skeleton and Flesh of the Wild Temple

Suwei withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Matt.

"I don't need a traditional designer."

Matt's rolled-up blueprints froze in mid-air, his eyes wide with astonishment.

Su Wei did not offer much explanation.

He stretched out his hand, pointing through the wind and snow, to the huge log skeleton in front of him.

"Matt, listen up."

"I don't intend to renovate a hotel suite in the heart of this wilderness that smells of industrial plastic or is covered with wool carpets."

"What I want is a palace."

His voice was unusually steady in the cold wind.

"A palace built entirely of polar wilderness, by wind, snow and giant beasts."

Matt looked in the direction Suwei was pointing.

The cold wind whistled through the cedar logs, making a low, mournful sound, as if an ancient beast was breathing within its skeleton.

"A space of one thousand square meters, divided into two floors."

Suwei strode forward, stepping through the snow towards the interior of the skeleton.

Work boots left deep, crunching footprints in the snow.

"The core exhibition area, covering 100 square meters, is located in the center of the entrance on the first floor."

"I've named this area the Pinnacle of Kodiak."

Suwei stopped in the very center of the skeleton, tilted his head back, and let the snowflakes fall from the unsealed opening.

"Here, we're going to build a giant natural stone fireplace that spans two floors."

"Straight above the fireplace hangs the Roosevelt stag antlers."

Su Wei turned around and spread his arms to gesture a huge area.

"And in front of the fireplace, at the center of this area, sits the 600-kilogram Kodiak brown bear specimen."

"Its posture does not need to be docile; it should present the posture of a domineering ruler standing on a giant rock, looking down on its territory."

Matt listened quietly, his breath turning into thick white mist in the cold air.

Even this old-fashioned foreman's heart was racing at the sight of this insane scene.

"Two hundred square meters on each of the left and right sides of the first floor."

"Aside from the atrium, the second floor has five separate spaces."

Suwei lowered his arm and looked directly at Matt's face, which was red from the cold.

"These five spaces correspond to the deer herd, the river, the ocean, the sky, and the woodland, respectively."

"It covers the entire ecosystem of Kodiak Island."

"Matt, this isn't a matter of simply putting up a few expensive leather sofas, glass coffee tables, and abstract paintings on the wall to appease a wealthy person."

"I want each exhibition area to be a complete miniature ecosystem scene."

"For example, in the river exhibit, the ground needs to be covered with pebbles from the Kodiak River, and real, moss-covered driftwood needs to be placed."

"The marine exhibit requires rough and sharp reefs, as well as driftwood that has been eroded by the waves for decades."

"I want them to smell the stench of the wilderness the moment they step into this place."

Matt took a deep breath and reached up to wipe the snow powder off his face.

The leather work gloves rubbed against his stubble-covered chin, making a rustling sound.

"Miniature ecological scenes — bringing the real Kodiak wilderness into a heated house."

Matt muttered the word, his rough voice tinged with awe.

"I'll build the skeleton for you. Five days."

"I will do my best to provide you with the highest standards in terms of hardware systems, including windproof, waterproof, heating, dual power supply, and solar array on the top floor."

Matt unfolded the blueprints again and flicked off the snowflakes.

"But to be honest, Suwei, these ecological landscaping projects are completely beyond my scope of engineering."

"My men only know how to mix cement, rivet, and operate excavators. Asking them to do art is like killing them."

Su Wei nodded slightly.

This was within his expectations; asking these construction workers to complete intricate natural art landscaping was, in itself, asking too much of them.

Matt rolled up the blueprints and slapped the workwear pocket on the outside of his thigh with a loud thud.

"It's okay, I just need you to set up the framework."

"As for the scene setup, I have my own methods."

Su Wei's reply was decisive.

He turned and left the construction site, braving the increasingly heavy wind and snow, and walked towards his log cabin.

Push open the heavy solid wood door.

The warmth, mixed with the aroma of charred firewood, wafted over, keeping the chill away.

The embers in the fireplace were still radiating heat.

"Waaah"

A white shadow emerged from the thick wool cushions of the sofa, and Cotton Candy ran happily to Suwei's feet.

The little guy's fluffy tail wagged wildly, its front paws skillfully resting on Suwei's down jacket and trouser legs, and it tilted its chubby fox face up, letting out a long whimper.

Su Wei's expression softened when he saw the little guy.

He bent down, slipped one hand under the soft armpit of the marshmallow, and lifted the chubby white fox up.

The little guy took the opportunity to lick Suwei's rough gloves twice, the warm little tongue bringing a ticklish sensation.

Suwei placed it on the wool rug near the fireplace and rubbed its head.

"Stay put, it's cold outside."

I took off my black windbreaker, which was covered in frost, and hung it on the solid wood coat rack by the door.

Su Wei walked straight to the desk, sat down, and opened the black-covered strategic planning book.

Preparations must begin immediately.

The skeleton was completed five days later.

With a high-end renovation team on site and Matt's efficiency in overseeing the work, the hard decoration can be completed in a maximum of half a month.

The specimens at Old Hope's place are also being prepared day and night at an accelerated pace.

Once the specimens arrive, the museum must be ready for a perfect display.

Su Wei pulled out his pen and quickly sketched a floor plan of the exhibition hall on the paper.

Charles, a top figure who controls billions of dollars, has seen far too many so-called luxurious industrial custom-made products.

If you use your membership fees to order expensive, mass-produced solid wood furniture from Europe and place it next to a brown bear specimen that exudes a primitive and oppressive aura, it will only look ridiculous.

That's not wildness, that's just a nouveau riche's farm stay.

The privileges of the polar wilderness require ruggedness and authenticity, and cannot have any trace of meticulous industrial assembly line.

He needed to recreate the edge of a real river, a woodland covered with fresh moss, and natural rocks capable of supporting the weight of a giant beast indoors.

Go buy ready-made landscape props?

The idea was rejected by Su Wei as soon as it came to mind.

The mass-produced fake tree trunks and plastic moss would be immediately exposed by the discerning eye of someone like Charles.

This would completely destroy the prestige of privilege.

What if you made it all by hand?

Real rocks were transported from a private forest on the back mountain, and fallen giant trees were personally felled and carved into furniture and bases using the most primitive methods.

This may seem crazy, but Su Wei's greatest confidence comes from the support of the system panel.

Concentrate your mind.

A semi-transparent blue light screen appeared in the dimly lit study.

【Life Module Iv4 (0/800)】

[Skillful Hands: Increases efficiency by 5% and improves finished product quality by 5% when operating without tools.]

[Basic Woodworking LV1: You have a basic understanding of wood structure. When using simple tools for woodworking activities, efficiency is slightly increased by 5%, and the sturdiness of the finished product is slightly increased by 5%.]

My gaze shifted downwards, landing on the most crucial skill.

【Process Module Iv2 (15/300)】

[Effect - Blessing: The specimens you create will randomly trigger a special blessing.]

Su Wei stared at the few lines of data that emitted a faint blue light.

Last night, the food he cooked himself had the nourishing effects of courage and a raging spirit.

That soul-stirring heat instantly shattered the billionaire's psychological defenses and completely won over the discerning Charles.

Since cooking works, by the same token, handcrafted items, as long as they are of a sufficient level, can also trigger additional buffs granted by the system.

Suwei's breathing gradually became heavy.

Imagine that scene.

If all the wooden display stands, lounge chairs, log coffee tables, and even the huge, visually striking log bar counter in the exhibition hall were all handmade by him, piece by piece.

With his dexterity and basic woodworking skills, as long as he grinds to improve his proficiency and level up, the finished products he makes will definitely reach or even surpass the level of those master craftsmen.

But this is not the most important.

The core business value lies in the system's hidden beneficial attributes.

Charles paid his $300,000 membership fee and arrived in Alaska, exhausted.

He sat with a glass of strong liquor in his hand, on a chair made of Sitka spruce wood that Suvi had personally cut and carved from the snow, admiring the huge brown bear specimen.

The moment he sat down, the rugged wooden chair triggered systemic properties such as relieving fatigue, calming the mind, and even slightly focusing energy.

Physical fatigue vanished instantly, and the soul was cleansed.

This is the ultimate privilege that money can never buy in the secular world, and it cannot be replicated.

Snapped.

The pen tip drew heavily on the paper, leaving a deep ink mark that even pierced through the paper.

The plan has been finalized.

He personally made all the display stands and key components of the landscaping in the core areas of the exhibition hall.

Time is of the essence, and there is no time to lose.

Currently, the basic woodworking skill is only at LV1, which means you can only make the most basic wooden items, and it's very difficult to even reach the threshold for triggering attributes.

To transform a piece of abandoned log rotting in the snow into handcrafted furniture with top-tier system attributes, he now has to grind proficiency at an insanely high intensity.

Su Wei closed his notebook and stood up.

He strode to the storage room on the right side of the entrance hall and pushed open the wooden door.

On the heavy black iron tool rack in the corner, various wilderness survival and demolition tools he had purchased were neatly arranged.

Without hesitation, Suwei drew a long-handled logging axe that weighed at least four pounds.

The ash wood handle of the axe felt substantial in the hand, and the double-edged carbon steel axe gleamed with a dangerous metallic luster under the light.

Then, he picked up a small but sharp Scandinavian-style wood carving knife and casually stuffed it into the side pocket of his jacket.

Finally, he hung the serrated Alaskan harpoon survival knife that had accompanied him in killing bears on his waist.

Fully armed.

He pushed open the wooden cabin door again, and a cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed towards him, instantly invigorating him.

Su Wei did not walk toward the Raptor pickup truck parked not far away.

Instead, he strode forward, his long legs crunching through the ankle-deep snow, toward the dense private woodland behind the cabin.

That area belonged to his legitimate territory.

Vast stretches of Sitka spruce and Alaskan cedar stood silently amidst the blizzard, like silent guardians.

"Eek—"

Marshmallow was excited to follow us out the door, but as soon as her chubby front paws touched the snow on the steps, the little guy shivered and shivered twice from the cold.

It cowered back into the warm house with its tail between its legs, leaving only its little head peeking out from the crack in the door.

Su Wei strode into the edge of the forest area.

The dense, tall canopies of coniferous trees layered upon each other, blocking out the already faint sunlight, and the forest suddenly became dark.

The wind was torn apart in the forest, and all around were the sounds of cold wind rubbing against the branches and the cracking of work boots breaking through the snow.

When practicing woodworking, the first choice should never be a living tree, but rather a dead but not completely rotten fallen tree.

If a living tree has too much internal moisture, it will inevitably crack and deform severely during the subsequent natural drying process if it is forcibly carved or made into furniture.

With a slight thought, a glint of light flickered in his eyes.

The gathering module LV2 is activated instantly.

A faint green scanning light wave, visible only to Su Wei, rapidly spread outwards from him within a radius of thirty meters.

On the retina, rows of data prompts appeared like a waterfall.

[Sitka spruce. In good condition, but with excessive moisture content, unsuitable for direct processing.]

[Birch tree. Healthy condition.]

Suwei remained expressionless, ignoring the healthy, living trees that represented life, and continued to venture deeper into the snow forest.

As they ventured deeper, the surrounding tree trunks grew increasingly thick, some requiring two people to encircle them.

The terrain also began to show obvious tilting and undulation.

After walking for about twenty minutes, my strength began to be rapidly depleted in the freezing cold.

Suddenly, the green scanning beam stopped abruptly in front of a slope completely covered by snow.

A huge, elongated ridge lay across the snow, like a frozen giant python.

Su Wei strode over, not even bothering to put on gloves, and plunged his hands directly into the snow, forcefully clearing away the top half-meter-thick layer of snow.

As the snow was cleared away, a thick tree trunk was revealed.

Its bark is grayish-white, and most of the bark has naturally fallen off over time, revealing the tight, metallic-looking wood structure inside.

[Dead birch wood. Naturally air-dried for three years, with extremely low internal moisture content. The wood is dense and highly resilient, making it ideal for wood carving and high-end furniture making. Potential value: Medium.]

Lock on the target.

Birch wood is tough and has a fine texture.

In the high-end customization circles of Europe and America, it is often used to make high-end handmade customization projects and expensive custom shotgun stocks.

This is a superb material hidden by wind and snow.

Su Wei walked around the fallen log, becoming more and more satisfied with what he saw.

The log is six meters long and over sixty centimeters in diameter.

This is practically a natural raw material for a bar counter.

But the weight is astonishing, with initial estimates suggesting it weighs no less than two thousand pounds.

With the current manpower, it is simply impossible to drag it out of this snow forest intact.

He took two steps back, took a deep breath of the cold air, and reached behind him to take the long-handled logging axe hanging from his waist.

He bit down on the edge of the thick, windproof glove with his teeth and ripped it off, revealing his well-defined knuckles.

He gripped the rough axe handle made of ash wood tightly with both hands, one in front of the other.

Adjust your breathing rhythm.

The -20 degree Celsius cold air rushed into my lungs through my nasal cavity, bringing a sharp, cutting pain, but this pain excited my brain.

With legs slightly bent, he firmly planted his feet on the frozen ground, instantly tensing and engaging his core muscles.

The passive effect of being skillful and dexterous quietly activated, and a strange sense of enlightenment flowed through my body.

The muscles in both arms work in coordination, concentrating the body's violent power into the axe blade.

With a sweeping swing of his arm, the heavy double-edged logging axe drew a cold, metallic arc in the dim air.

boom.

With a loud crash, the axe blade struck a third of the fallen log.

Hard birch shavings scattered and flew everywhere, hitting Suwei's down jacket with a crackling sound.

The powerful recoil force traveled along the axe handle to the palm, making the tiger's mouth feel hot.

Su Wei's arm muscles suddenly contracted, dissipating the impact.

He didn't pause at all.

He pulled out the axe, raised it high above his head, and with a burst of power from his waist, brought it down violently again.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

In the once quiet depths of the snow-covered forest, the rhythmic yet violent sounds of chopping echoed continuously, startling several snowbirds perched on distant pine branches.

With the help of his skillful hands, the angle of each axe strike is determined by his brain with almost superhuman speed, without any unnecessary loss of strength.

A perfect, smooth V-shaped notch rapidly widened on this thick tree trunk.

Even in the extreme cold of minus twenty degrees Celsius, a fine layer of sweat still seeped from Suwei's forehead.

Sweat dripped down his cheeks and onto the snow, creating small craters.

Fifteen minutes later.

Crack—Boom.

With a dull snapping sound, the thick, dead birch tree was cut off at one-third of its length.

Suwei planted the heavy axe firmly on the snow, his hands gripping the handle.

His chest heaved violently, his breathing quickened, and the white breath he exhaled resembled thick fog.

The intense physical exertion brought muscle soreness, but also a great sense of exhilaration.

The location of the wood was determined, and it was then divided.

Suwei didn't foolishly start moving things directly, even though the place wasn't far from the wooden house.

However, he didn't need to carry it by hand.

Su Wei first returned to the garage, then rode his snowmobile back to where the wood was located.

Then they pulled up the timber and returned to the porch of the cabin.

Suwei got out of the car and threw the thick birch log below the wooden steps.

boom.

The giant log landed with a dull thud, and even the solid wood steps of the cabin trembled.

A hundred meters away, a large-scale framework construction site.

Matt was yelling as he directed the crane to perform the final mounting of the main beam.

Upon hearing the sudden commotion, Matt immediately stopped giving instructions and turned to look in the direction of the cabin.

Visibility was somewhat blurred amidst the swirling snow.

But he clearly saw that their boss was like a madman.

At this moment, however, he maintained the style of a lowly lumberjack, casually sitting on the snow-covered steps, holding a short blade in his hand, fiddling with a piece of wood.

This extreme contrast shocked Matt's perception.

"My God—a monster that cannot be predicted by common sense."

Matt pulled up the collar of his windbreaker to block the cold wind from getting into his neck, looked at the back of the figure, and muttered something under his breath.

He had seen nouveau riche who squandered their money, but he had never seen a wealthy person who would pocket millions and then work as a laborer in the snow at minus twenty degrees Celsius.

Several workers who were tying steel bars followed the foreman's gaze and were immediately kicked onto the scaffolding by Matt.

"What are you looking at! What are you spacing out for?"

"Who do you think that is? That's God who pays your wages! Get back to work."

Matt's roar pierced through the wind and snow.

The workers immediately looked away, startled, and quickened their pace.

At the porch of the wooden house.

Su Wei completely ignored the noise from the construction site in the distance and sat down cross-legged on the slightly damp wooden plank to rest.

He first picked up a birch branch about the thickness of his wrist from the side, intending to practice his skills.

The birch wood was left outside, and he went into the cabin.

He sat down at the table and took out a small knife.

The blade is short and compact, with a single-edged blade. The edge is finely hand-polished and gleams with a sharp gleam. It is a tool specifically designed for intricate wood carving.

Most of the tools and knives in the storage room were left by his parents.

Now, he has inherited it.

Suwei knew very well that the best way to improve his basic woodworking experience was not to blindly chop, but to continuously produce items with complete forms.

He held the birch branch firmly in his left hand and placed the blade of the wood carving knife flat against the rough surface of the wood with his right hand.

Press your thumb firmly against the back of the blade, control the force, and push outward to cut.

呲.

A pleasant, soft sound.

A thin, translucent piece of wood fiber, curled beautifully, fell from the blade.

The dense, smooth interior of the birch wood, with its pale yellow veins, is revealed in the cold air.

A unique, slightly sweet, plant-like fragrance, characteristic of dried wood, wafted through the air.

Suwei took off his gloves and gently ran his warm fingertips across the cut surface of the wood, feeling its hardness and grain.

In my mind, the basic structural knowledge imparted by Simple Woodworking LV1 surfaced as if by instinct.

The essence of woodworking lies in following the natural grain of the wood, rather than relying on brute force to force it against.

He decided to start by carving a basic wooden vessel—a traditional wooden cup that polar hunters often hang on their waists.

The frequency of the cuts gradually became stable and rhythmic.

Sizzle. Sizzle. Sizzle.