I am now certain that those giant dung balls I encountered on the riverbank were probably left by these wildebeest.
I had considered hunting some larger prey, but this thing that came out was a bit too big, and I might lose my life if I'm not careful.
Don't underestimate these animals that usually seem kind and docile, just slowly grazing. When they get angry, even predators have to back down.
The humans who die each year in Africa from attacks by wild animals are not predatory lions or leopards, but rather seemingly less ferocious animals such as buffalo, hippos, and other temperamental herbivores.
Now I'm in a bit of a dilemma. These large prey in front of me are indeed very tempting. But the risks of hunting them are also very high, though that's not my biggest concern.
My concern is that the prey is too large, and transporting them all back will be a difficult problem.
Furthermore, there are many predators nearby, and the bloody smell I emit when I dismember this giant animal will surely attract them here.
I was caught in a dilemma. On one hand, there was enough meat to last me a month, and on the other hand, I had to deal with the perilous jungle.
The coexistence of huge profits and huge risks is a very troublesome problem; no matter which option you choose, you won't feel good.
In the end, I left the decision to fate. I casually picked a wildflower from a patch of grass in front of me. I silently vowed that if the number of wildflowers was even, I would go; if it was odd, I wouldn't.
I began to count the petals one by one.
One, two, three... eleven...
Thirteen!
I opened my eyes and saw it was an odd number? No way, it doesn't count, it has to be best two out of three to be accurate.
I switched to a different variety of flower and continued counting; this time it was an odd number again.
I……
I was completely exasperated. I had one last chance. If it was still an odd number, I would turn around and go home, and never hunt here again.
Perhaps heaven heard my sincere plea, because this time it wasn't an odd number.
Sigh... I knew I couldn't go back empty-handed. Since fate has sent me to hunt one, I'll reluctantly give it a try.
Given the current situation, I certainly wouldn't dare to make any rash moves. To plot against so many wildebeest in their territory would be tantamount to courting death.
These massive creatures, if they're ever in a bad mood, can surround me like African buffalo, and in this hilly area, there's nowhere to hide except for those trees.
The prerequisite is that I have to be fast enough to climb the tree before those meter-long sharp horns poke my butt, otherwise Top and I will not fare much better than if we encountered the Sand Beast.
So I decided to be the sixth one and climb a big tree first to save my own life.
Although the trees in this area are not as dense as those in the rainforest, probably because they are sparse, they are still tall and straight, so there is no need to worry about the wildebeest breaking them.
Top and I chose a tall, slightly sloping tree and climbed it. The view from the tree was expansive, allowing us to take in the entire herd of wildebeest.
This shocking scene shattered my worldview once again; this herd of great antelopes numbered at least three hundred!
What does three hundred mean?
A typical African bison herd consists of only fifty or sixty individuals, which means that there must be at least five or six such large herds of African bison here.
Damn, that's really insane! I was too lenient with the Sand Beast earlier. I want to take back what I said earlier about being scared.
With such a terrifying numerical advantage, the sand monsters didn't run away immediately when they arrived, so I performed a handstand while washing my hair.
To the best of my knowledge, besides humans, probably only one other animal living in western Central Africa can form such a large population.
The mandrill, also known as the ghost baboon, is the largest primate in the monkey family that still exists in our world.
They are over one meter tall and weigh over thirty kilograms. They typically rule their own territory, and a large mandrill population can reach one or two hundred individuals.
Large predators generally dare not venture into the territory they manage. These mandrills have fangs that are nearly eight centimeters long, making them comparable to tigers and other ferocious beasts.
Furthermore, they act in groups, appearing in large swarms. Therefore, the hilltops occupied by mandrills are not because there are no tigers in the mountains, but because even tigers would avoid these madmen.
They are truly the uncrowned kings of this mountainous region.
However, even a fierce primate like the mandrill would be less than worthy of carrying the shoes of the great antelope in front of it.
Thinking about this, I couldn't help but swallow hard for my previous thoughts, and suddenly felt that life is sometimes a very beautiful thing.
But I won't easily give up on things I've already decided on. These animals, no matter how powerful, are nothing more than brute force compared to the extinction of large animals by humans.
The few hundred wildebeest here seem rather insignificant, considering that humans didn't just defeat a few species, but directly wiped out multiple apex predators in the food chain.
We don't have sharp teeth and claws, yet we still strike fear into the hearts of large animals. Our brains are designed for sophisticated killing.
No animal on Earth is intelligent enough to surpass humans. All species that are outmatched in terms of sheer combat power are ultimately outmaneuvered and reduced to slavery by humans.
The most representative of these animals is the elephant, which is the largest land animal ever conquered by humankind.
I'm thinking about the current situation and how to separate some individuals from this large population so that we can effectively hunt and kill the lone individuals, just like lions do.
To ensure my safety, the wildebeest kept a distance of at least thirty meters from me.
Before climbing the tree, I collected some egg-sized stones and put them in my basket. Now that we're high up, the stones will likely fly further in a parabolic arc.
I stood at the highest point and threw a stone at the herd. I saw the stone fly out in a parabola and hit the edge of the wildebeest herd, but it was still at least a few meters away from hitting them.
At this distance, I could use a crossbow to shoot, but at this distance, it would be fine if I could just kill one of the wildebeests with a single arrow.
If I let it escape wounded, the trail of blood will attract countless predators, and all my efforts will be in vain.
Those wildebeest seem to have a very keen sense of smell. I was probably more than 60 meters away from them when I was at the bend in the promontory. Plus, I was walking close to the rock wall, so the chances of them spotting me with their eyes were not high.
There is only one possibility: when I arrived at the cape, the mountains on both sides surrounded it, concentrating the wind into the cape.
The wind was blowing towards the wildebeest at the time, so they found me by my scent.
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