To avoid encountering other orcs, the expeditionary hunting party always ventured into the mountains and forests.

The four of them, including Bai Da, found them near dusk the next day and were quickly assigned to the team to work with them.

Remember when Bai Niu saw the four of them? He didn't say a word and had a blank expression, which scared them half to death. They obediently accepted the tasks assigned to them by the team and dared not have any objections.

After several more days of trekking, the group had almost run out of food, so they began to divide the work of setting traps to capture live animals.

In the heavy snow, not only do they need to hunt, but other animals also need to find food. Snares made of vines are placed in the paths that animals must cross. Orcs, of course, cannot walk directly through these areas, for fear of leaving their scent.

Animals are very alert in winter; they will flee at the slightest sign of danger. What hunting teams need to do is set traps from the trees downwards. Often, next to a clearly visible trap, there are several hidden spare snares, taking the practice of casting a wide net to its extreme.

In less than half a day, they caught a pheasant, a goat, and a lame wolf.

In this world, there is a fundamental difference between beastmen and other animals. Before they take human form, beastmen are no different from other animals and need the full protection of their beastman parents. It is only after they take human form that the dividing line between beastmen and animals is established. If a young beastman is lost or deprived of protection before reaching adulthood, and lives in hunger and cold, he may remain a beast for his entire life, with an intelligence level and physical size no different from that of a hunted animal.

Orcs can transform into beasts or other animals, but other animals can never transform into orcs. This is the most amazing thing about this world.

Therefore, many beastmen are reluctant to capture animals that resemble them in their youth, fearing that some might be lost offspring that they wouldn't be able to distinguish. However, nature is cruel; what they are unwilling to capture, other beastmen don't share this concern. In their view, as long as it hasn't transformed into human form, it's all edible.

Orcs with this mindset are a minority. Most orcs still have at least a basic conscience, but it is limited to animals of the same origin as themselves.

The snow-covered mountains and forests were filled with snowdrifts, where one could easily fall in. The hunting party included an orc named Whiteball, exceptionally skilled at surveying the environment; his sharp eyes immediately revealed his intelligence.

As mentioned before, the fox clan doesn't have ugly beastmen, so White Ball already had a stable mate and a litter of children. This trip was to get some food for the children.

"Brother Xiong, there's a valley ahead with a frozen pool at the bottom. Judging from the current weather, the ice is likely more than two hands thick. Should we chisel a hole here to catch fish, or continue on?"

White Ball breathed on the fire and explained the situation to the people warming themselves around a bonfire, finally letting White Bear make the decision.

He had been walking for several days, and his strength was almost gone. Most people, like him, wanted to find something to eat here so they could get through the winter.

The polar bear has been leading hunting parties for years, so he knows how to prioritize. This year, the team has added many new members, and so far, they haven't encountered any danger, which is fortunate. According to his calculations, after crossing another mountain, they'll reach another rabbit colony. However, that place is too close to the lion tribe; if they risk going there, they might encounter lion-men, inevitably leading to a fierce battle. At that point, even leaving safely would be a problem.

However, if a mountain is located very close to the lion clan's settlement, then this valley isn't actually that safe. If the lion clan beastmen return from hunting, will other beastmen not come?

Moreover, in the polar bear's mind, distance and proximity were judged entirely by feeling. If he felt something was near, even if it was a hundred miles away, it would still be near. Everyone trusted him, so he didn't want to take any risks.

"Leave a few people to keep watch and set traps around the area. A few young men will stay here to guard the food. The rest of you, come with me to break through the ice and fish. If we catch enough, we should be able to head back by tomorrow morning."

"Awooooo!"

The crowd cheered, especially the young orcs who were venturing out for the first time, looking eager to try. They were somewhat dissatisfied with the task of guarding the food, but under the watchful eyes of the older orcs, they dared not voice any objections.

As evening fell, he stood on the edge of the valley and looked out to the other side: Did the pool in the valley lead to the sea?

At the same time, a suspicion began to form in her mind: perhaps the Lion Clan found salt by setting out from here and discovering a natural salt field by the sea. If that were the case, returning like this would truly be a bit of a disappointment.

What's most infuriating is that she activated the "Living Map" skill herself, but the stingy system simply abandoned her.

"Youngest, what are you thinking about?"

Having been beaten up, Bai San, who had become somewhat docile, now only felt resentment towards Xiang Wan: after all, she was the younger brother he had raised (among the group, he was the one who played the original owner the most badly; doesn't his conscience hurt when he says that?), yet she conspired with the eldest brother to punch him right in the eye socket, and even did it symmetrically on both sides.

God knows how devastated he must have felt the next day when he couldn't open his eyes, thought he was blind, and almost lost the will to live. In the end, the youngest brother applied some herbs and he recovered. From then on, he had no more temper with his younger brother. At least he knew how to handle those herbs; if his spouse had children in the future, he might still need the youngest brother's help. In the tribe, who wouldn't respect and revere someone with such a skill? And this person was his brother; he was definitely closer to him than others, wasn't he?

Having figured everything out, Bai San inexplicably lowered his attitude by three points, making Xiang Wan feel uneasy: Had this third brother been beaten senseless? Or was he plotting something bad?

Having gotten used to Bai San's occasional sarcastic remarks, his sudden change in attitude is bound to raise suspicion.

Bai Sanyi knew from Xiang Wan's gaze that she wasn't buying it, so he couldn't help but widen his eyes and said irritably, "What's wrong with your third brother asking you a question today? Do you have to treat me like a thief?"

Phew, that's more like it!

"It's alright, Third Brother. We've been out here for so many days and haven't encountered anything. Aren't you curious what's at the end of the stream? I heard there's a place that's incredibly rich. How was it described again?" Xiang Wan frowned and thought for a moment, then clapped her hands. "Oh, right, it's called 'Beating roe deer with a stick and scooping fish with a ladle, pheasants flying right into the cooking pot.' If we could really find a place like that, would we need to go through all this trouble hunting everywhere?"

Bai San was surprised for a moment, looked around, and asked in a low voice, "Who told you this? I've never heard of it before. Also, I've eaten fish and pheasants, but what is a rice pot? And what is a roe deer? Why doesn't it run away when it's being hit by a stick? Are you sure you can eat such a stupid thing?"

Xiang Wan could only chuckle. She didn't actually know what a roe deer looked like; she was just describing it to pique Bai San's curiosity and get him to go for a walk with her.

Why can't this third brother focus on the important things?

Taking the third sister out like that, are you sure it's not going to be a hindrance to her?