Thinking about this, I felt a chill run down my spine. I felt like a frightened rabbit, and I quickly ran towards the nearest poplar trees.
There's a reason I didn't immediately choose the easier-to-climb pine tree. The bark of the pine tree is very rough, making it easy for me to climb, and even easier for the tiger.
Pine bark can better increase the friction between tiger paws and the tree, allowing them to climb trees quickly.
The relatively smooth poplar tree doesn't have this problem, and even if it wanted to climb it, it wouldn't be so easy. In addition, the poplar tree has a straight trunk, and it can easily grow to a height of fifteen meters or even higher in three or four years.
All I need to do is find a tree of a suitable size; a large predator like a tiger can be completely kept out of its reach under the tree.
I chose a poplar tree that was about the size of a bowl. Since the food on my back had decreased by more than ten kilograms over the journey, I estimated that I would still have about twenty-five or twenty-six kilograms left.
Even with only a load of about 20 kilograms, climbing the smooth poplar tree was quite difficult. I threw all the torches I had made into my basket.
Then I found some thicker vines nearby. I tied the two loops of the basket together with the vines and poplar branches, using the same icicle knots I used to make the tree bed to prevent slipping.
Another advantage of this type of icicle knot is that when subjected to downward force, it acts like a one-way ratchet, firmly gripping the tree trunk.
When force is applied from bottom to top, the knot can slide upwards if the tensioned rope is loosened even slightly.
This way, I can use my hands and feet to hold onto the one-way climbing system and use my head to support the basket on top to move steadily upwards in sections.
Unlike other tree species, poplar trees have their crowns concentrated at the very top, unless they are very large. Otherwise, their branches and twigs are generally quite thin, which is the secret to their rapid and tall growth.
I estimate that this tree is at least 20 meters tall, and even ignoring the very top of the canopy, it's still about 17 or 18 meters high.
By the time I climbed the tall tree, I was soaked in sweat. Seeing that I was more than ten meters above the ground, I finally felt relieved.
After resting on the icicles for a while, I continued to climb towards the higher canopy. However, just as I was about to reach the top, a cry from the tree dissuaded me from doing so.
The chirping wasn't from birds, but from a group of gray-furred monkeys. I hadn't noticed before that there were monkeys in this tree, but now that I'm closer, I can finally see them clearly.
These monkeys are sturdy with sharp canines. They are about two-thirds the size of a domesticated country dog, and adult individuals weigh over 20 kilograms.
A macaque! I recognized this monkey at a glance. These monkeys are very intelligent; they have a strong learning ability and can use some simple tools.
They are notorious robbers in many parks and zoos, but I think they are still somewhat afraid of me.
I saw some of the bolder monkeys trying to get closer to my basket; they probably smelled the aroma of meat coming from inside.
I know monkeys are vegetarians, but they are actually omnivores. They generally won't refuse meat when it's available.
After all, this was the first time these monkeys had seen such a huge creature as me; in their eyes, I was just an oversized monkey. The animal world's perception is quite simple: whoever is bigger is more intimidating.
The monkeys in front of me tried to reach out and grab my basket, but when they saw me, they were afraid and made wary noises, pacing back and forth on the branches. They clearly regarded me as a powerful opponent.
I knew I couldn't show weakness at this moment, so I swung my wooden spear and struck the branches to make noise, then let out a low, threatening roar like a tiger.
This trick worked wonders on the naive monkeys; they immediately scattered in a chaotic frenzy, leaping up to other trees as if fleeing. They were somewhat bewildered; this was clearly a large monkey, yet its roar sounded as terrifying as a tiger's.
Many monkeys were perched on branches not far from me, shaking their heads and looking at me, while others were scratching their ears and cheeks, looking quite confused.
Looking at his sneaky appearance, which was a mix of anxiety, fear, and persistent curiosity, I found it somewhat amusing.
These monkeys are rather simple-minded. If they were to encounter the bandit monkeys of Mount Emei, they definitely wouldn't fall for my tricks.
They'll definitely rob me of everything in my basket first, then jump over and give me two big shovels, hitting me while pointing their fingers at my nose and cursing, "You little devil, you're playing tricks on me!"
Seeing that they didn't bother me, I was happy to have some peace and quiet. When dealing with these primates, you can't be lenient with them; you have to intimidate them.
Once these clever creatures realize you're not much of a fighter and are easy prey, you're in trouble. They'll relentlessly rob you of everything you own; after all, they're much more agile than I am in the trees.
With no suitable foothold, my arms and legs were getting numb from clinging to the tree. I had no choice but to take out some ropes from my basket. These ropes were made by twisting vine fibers with wild boar fat, and they were very strong.
Next, I took out the six torches from the basket and tied them around the tree trunk with a cross knot. I also used icicle knots to prevent slipping at the bottom of the torches, and then roughly wrapped the remaining rope around them.
Before long, a temporary resting platform was erected in the tree, and the monkeys watched me do it with astonishment the whole time. This complicated task seemed magical to them; they probably thought that the big monkey looked very clever.
Some of the younger monkeys were imitating me, fiddling with branches in the tree, seemingly very curious about what I was doing.
I have to say that monkeys are really bold and curious animals. They haven't been around me for long, but some of the curious monkeys couldn't resist touching me again.
Seeing that I posed no threat to them, one of them quietly jumped from another tree to the top of my canopy. I naturally noticed its little action, but I didn't make a fuss and decided to teach it a lesson.
I pretended to look elsewhere, and the monkey fell for it. It quickly and stealthily crept up to the vicinity of my basket. I could feel the sound getting very close, and at the same time, I prepared to strike with the wooden spear in my hand.
Just as the monkey was about to reach out and lift the banana leaf I had placed on my basket, I swiftly and decisively stabbed it in the rear with the wooden spear in my hand.
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