There can't be a Harvest Moon in the RimWorld.

"System notification: The colonist has successfully tamed the female cheetah and named her Cheetah 1 (success rate 21%)."

Chapter 286 Transforming Wisdom into Emptiness

The cheetah, which had been leaping into the air, suddenly stumbled and veered off course from its intended landing point, inadvertently becoming a cheetah skin painting on the wall, while simultaneously sending up a flurry of dust from the roof.

For the agile cheetah, these problems were no big deal. It quickly extricated itself from the predicament, swiftly turned around, arched its back again, and let out a piercing screech.

But suddenly the situation became deadlocked again.

At that moment, on one side was a cheetah, its fur bristling, baring its teeth and threatening me fiercely. It had a piece of smoked salmon in its mouth, drool dripping down its chin. Finally, it simply tilted its head back and swallowed the fish whole, its roar abruptly halting.

How should I put it... it's like running off to eat halfway through a street argument, it's really hurtful.

On the other side, I was watching the leopard with amusement. I had already dropped my guarded stance, leaned against the doorway, and let the hand holding the axe hang freely. I casually brushed the dust off my clothes, completely ignoring the enemy so close at hand.

After the cheetah finished eating, it seemed to want to yawn contentedly, but then it suddenly remembered that it was in enemy territory. It quickly turned its head and glared at me fiercely, but its eyes involuntarily drifted to the smoked salmon hanging on the wall.

With a mysterious smile, I took another palm-sized piece of smoked salmon from the wall, held it to my nose, and smelled it with an expression of pure delight. Then, holding the salmon in my hand, I slowly reached out and offered the food to the cheetah.

The cheetah took a step back, seemingly wanting to avoid me, but the temptation of the food made it hesitate. In the end, it didn't take a step forward and instead unconsciously moved closer to me.

As the cheetah opened its mouth wide and bit into the smoked salmon, I grabbed the cheetah's back fur with one hand, holding this ferocious animal, which weighed over a hundred pounds, close to me and firmly controlling its waving claws.

I gently grasped the cheetah's forehead and slowly combed its oily fur from front to back. I could hear a continuous, soft gurgling sound coming from the cheetah's throat, as if there was a small motor inside its body.

When I looked at the cheetah's face again, it had a very subtle expression:

(≡ω≡)!

"Good boy, as long as you listen to me, there will be plenty of fish and meat."

I patted the cheetah on the back with satisfaction, but this action seemed to make it sense something was wrong. It suddenly realized that it was right next to this dangerous creature and quickly tried to jump away.

But I grabbed the cheetah's front paws with both hands, and with a swift movement, I brought this stubborn and tenacious animal back with me.

The cheetah sensed its authority had been undermined and tried to roar again, but just as it opened its mouth, a piece of smoked salmon was shoved into it.

(→←)!

This animal is really easy to please. As long as there is food in front of it, this cheetah's intelligence is practically zero and can be completely ignored!

I sighed inwardly, put the cheetah back on the ground, and nodded in satisfaction.

I only dared to do this because I happened to figure all of this out—a blind spot in my thinking before was about the cheetah's motivation.

The fact that a cheetah would risk sneaking into my home in such a hot environment is undoubtedly because it's hungry and looking for food.

However, by nature, whether due to cognitive limitations or physical size constraints, cheetahs, as carnivores, primarily prey on small to medium-sized ungulates, including Thomson's gazelle, Grant's gazelle, impala, and wildebeest. When food is scarce, they will also attack zebras. Ostriches are also a frequent target for cheetahs.

In other words, this cheetah's target has never been a dangerous creature like me!

I boldly guess that the cheetah's hunting plan was probably disrupted by me, and it had been starving for several days since that day, which is why it risked tracking me to find food.

Due to hunger, it no longer had the strength to hunt wild horses and had to abandon these ready targets and go inside the house to find food.

And I, as a dangerous target, am certainly not within the hunting range of this leopard.

Because the colonizer system has its own unique judgment method, it can automatically select nearby targets to activate the counterattack mode based on factors such as murderous intent, purpose, and risk.

This hungry, listless leopard had neither the intention to attack me nor the ability to threaten my life, so the colonist system chose to remain silent without hesitation.

After deducing this from the anomalies in the colonist system, I began testing. Luckily, my animal taming skills have been almost always accurate lately, and this cheetah was hungry and wanted food; it shouldn't resist...

The result was that I cast out a smoked salmon and caught a leopard!

"Open your mouth!"

I patted the cheetah's furry face, signaling it to lie down. It turns out that a hungry cheetah doesn't become a cunning and treacherous predator like a wolf; instead, it humbles itself and transforms into a big cat, sticking out its tongue and wagging its tail in front of me, extremely adept at rolling around and acting cute.

Of course, I can't guarantee whether this phenomenon is due to instinct or the colonists' ability to tame wild beasts. If an ordinary person encounters such a hungry beast, they should run as far away as possible.

I patted the cheetah's head with satisfaction. It seemed that once the system determined it was tamed, the animal's guard was gradually crumbling. Just half an hour ago we were mortal enemies, but now we were like cat owner and big cat, living in harmony.

...If only the colonist system's taming ability could be used to tame people, that would be wonderful. Give me ten days or half a month, and I could raise a brave and fearless army that obeys orders without question, and fight my way from Asia Minor to Alaska!

"Meow-chan, where were you hiding before?"

I crouched down and began petting the cat. This big cat had glossy fur, a lithe body, and looked full of power, like a sleek spring that, whether compressed or released, would be astonishing!

Most people have probably never petted a cat like this!

With this big cat, my personal safety is much more guaranteed. According to the colonist system, tamed animals will become my helpers. After training, depending on their intelligence level, they can accompany me on activities, be ridden, provide rescue, fight, and carry goods. They will not attack colonists.

I have complete trust in the colonizer system in this regard; after all, in important matters, it always exceeds my expectations and has never let me down!

With this leopard around, my activities in the vicinity are basically safe. Even if it encounters danger and can't win, it can still escape. It is a species that belongs to the top of the food chain.

Right now, I feel like a free-to-play player who has collected all the SSR cards of the Five Tiger Generals, and I'm incredibly lucky!

However, there's still one lingering problem that hasn't been dealt with, so I need to act quickly and decisively...

"Big Cat, lead the way. Where are you hiding? Are those two cheetahs dead?"

I brandished the smoked salmon in one hand and raised the axe in the other, using both soft and hard tactics to drive away the traitorous collaborators, heading northwest.

Chapter 287 Hideout

When I arrived at the scene, there was only a computer... no, only a long-dead leopard and a sickly, dying beast.

The cheetahs weren't far from my residence, which was within my expectations. They probably ran three kilometers that night and hid in a natural cave in a remote mountain valley.

This is probably one of their many dwellings. Scattered outside the cave are fragments of animal bones and fur, as well as some dried, blackened bloodstains, but the inside of the cave is exceptionally clean. Felines are known for their high regard for hygiene; they don't eat, drink, or defecate inside their dwellings.

Inside the cave now, there was only a cheetah lying belly up, long since dead, its eyes wide open but lifeless, a pool of congealed blood around its mouth. This cheetah must be the unfortunate creature I struck with the back of my axe; despite its ruptured internal organs, it persisted in moving, ultimately bleeding itself to death in the dark cave.

Even before it died, the leopard was still trying to eat to replenish its rapidly dwindling life force.

The headless iguana next to it proves this point.

Judging from their food reserves, these three leopards only managed to hunt some small rodents and this iguana in five days. Even then, the dying leopard only managed to get a taste before abandoning the hunt. I can tell it's a venomous iguana; its back and body have venom glands that rupture rapidly shortly after death, soaking its entire body in venom.

Beside me lay a listless cheetah. When it saw me crouch down and enter its territory, its first reaction was to try to stand up and bristle, but its muscles twitched for a long time and it couldn't support its body. It could only lie on the spot and laboriously stretched out its front paws to wave as a warning from the territorial owner, using its remaining strength to maintain its dignity.

I glanced at the pretentious leopard with disdain.

You're about to die, what are you pretending for?

Can you beat me with seventeen cards?

Then I'll just eat this dead leopard right here and now!

...Never mind, it's not appropriate to exploit the dead (referring to the leopard).

As soon as I approached, the leopard opened its mouth wide, revealing a ferocious expression, warning me not to move.

Seeing that there was no possibility of peaceful communication, I had no choice but to bring in the cheetah that I had successfully tamed from outside. I grabbed its back and shoved it in front of its kind, then threw it a piece of smoked salmon and gestured for it to handle everything.

The two leopards locked eyes and seemed to enter into a silent communication. Ignoring what was happening behind me, I stepped out of the cave and stood on the slope of the ravine, gazing at the vast Gobi Desert in the distance, my heart filled with emotion.

I don't know if it's the burden this desolate place places on my soul, or the emotions revealed among the animals that move me, but in this place where life is fading, I'm increasingly appreciating the preciousness and fragility of life.

The wild horses formed small groups, firmly united, defending themselves against external attacks while searching for food, helping each other wander across the wilderness. Even when chased and intercepted by cheetahs, they circled around, trying to rescue their companions.

The three-cheetah family—I suspect they are a related group—also hunted with all their might, seizing every possible opportunity to succeed. After a failed hunt, the uninjured cheetahs scurried outside the den, rummaging for food on the parched ground to help their wounded companions survive.

The cheetah lying dying in the cave was severely injured five days earlier when it was used as bait, shielded from the horse's hooves. The joint between its hind leg and buttocks was swollen, likely indicating serious damage to its bones and muscles. Such complications, in the harsh wilderness, would have been a certain death sentence.

Whenever I see them in need, I can't help but reach out and help them.

This is just a drop in the ocean for me, but it is a miracle of life for them.

If this idea were put into human society, I would probably be riddled with criticism—that's just being overly sentimental!

But in this lawless wilderness, who can utter a single word of reproach upon me? If I didn't have these precious animals, engaging in the bare minimum of communication with me, I might already be lost in endless loneliness and confusion.

If I were to have a cigarette butt in my mouth and some stubble on my chin, and say melancholy, "Actually, I want to be a good person," I would...

That's absolutely heartfelt acting from an Oscar-worthy actor!

Saving one or two leopards wouldn't have moved me this much—my ranch has plenty of things far more dangerous than this. Have you ever seen a translucent water elemental? Or a deep-diving creature two stories tall?

We, the *******, are not just a name without substance. Our slogans of containment, inactivation, and escape resound throughout the multiverse!

A sudden realization dawned on me.

Living in this place, you don't need to think about repaying kindness with kindness like in Mineral Town. Instead, you should adapt to the situation and make various different responses!

Being passively attacked is never a good idea, and a true predator should not take the initiative to attack, wasting energy on a long-distance raid.

What I should do is lie low in this desolate place, unite the most allies, eliminate the most enemies, not be bound by short-term camp relationships, and use my own methods to bind people to my war chariot, leaving them with no choice!

I can bribe wild horses and cheetahs with dates, agave berries, and smoked salmon, so if someone happens to pass by, I can use the same methods to arouse their curiosity!

"Let's stop here for now," I said, and my aura suddenly changed!

...Okay, actually, I've been deep enough, and I'm ready to do something.

I crawled into the hole, ignoring the two cheetahs still staring at each other, took out a palm-sized piece of smoked salmon, and without saying a word stuffed it into the injured cheetah's mouth. Then I climbed onto the cheetah's back and held its mouth shut.

"Chew it now!"

"Aww...woo...woo..."

Just as the cheetah was about to roar, I punched its wound with my left gauntlet, causing the roar in its throat to turn into a pitiful whimper. Its eyes seemed to be filled with tears, and it looked at the cheetah opposite it with questioning eyes: "Why are you just watching!"

Then the house cat turned its head away guiltily.

Not long after I swallowed the food, a system notification popped up again.

"System notification: The colonist has successfully tamed the female cheetah and named her Cheetah 2 (success rate 21%)."

Hmph, if you had cooperated earlier, wouldn't everything have been fine? You only bow your head when you've suffered.

Afterwards, I pushed the two leopards aside, finished the last task, and then carried the immobile cheetah on my back and strode home.

Soon after, near the bushes where the injured wild horse was tied up, a leopard was also hoisted up in the same position, striking a unique pose reminiscent of a horse trampling a swallow.

Not long ago, the two animals were predator and prey, but now they stared at each other, the wild horse trembling with fear and the cheetah silent.

"It's one thing for you to be afraid, Mustang... but what's a cheetah afraid of?"

"You animals' thinking is too hard to understand!"

I watched this scene from a leopard-skin cloak and said this.