Chapter 24: First time hunting blue sheep alone Xu Nian: People's Education Edition Snow Leopard...
Xu Nian is a snow leopard from the People's Education Edition who knows how to judge the situation, is very obedient, well-behaved, studies hard, and loves life. He just occasionally tells a little lie to survive.
After witnessing how Kaie "left" reluctantly, Xu Nian became even more obedient.
He obediently followed Los back to the den, sniffing the scent of the mountain goat. Just as he was about to take a lick, he heard Los ask, "Why are you unhappy?"
"I don't have any." Xu Nian immediately sat up straight, shook his furry head, and said sincerely: "I have food, drink, and shelter. What else can I not be satisfied with?"
Los narrowed his eyes slightly, obviously not believing Xu Nian. After all, the other party's tail was not wagging. But Xu Nian's beautiful eyes looked at him, making Los think for two seconds before saying anything.
Kaie, who had rolled all the way down the mountain, climbed out of the snow pile with great difficulty. A Tibetan fox happened to see the snow leopard's joke, and a hint of hesitation appeared on its square face.
These days I always see some inexplicable snow leopards.
"Roar, woooo--" Kaie roared at the Tibetan fox in anger, then got up, held his tail in his mouth and walked away cursing.
"Are you sick? Kick me!"
"I was just about to tell you that Luo Yin is here. Very well, I won't tell you about this!"
"I told you that none of our kind are good snow leopards!"
…
It held its tail in its mouth and limped along, leaving claw marks of varying depths on the snow. It decided that it must avoid the two snow leopards in the future, as any encounter with them would be bad news.
Xu Nian naturally didn't know how innocent Kaie was. He just held his tail in his mouth obediently and did whatever Los asked him to do. He was even considerate enough to make some space for Los during breaks, although he would unconsciously take it back when Kaie fell asleep. After a while, Los simply lay down a little further out to avoid being squeezed out.
A few days passed quickly, and the blue sheep were eaten, but the heavy snow continued, and the two snow leopards still had to continue looking for food to sustain their lives.
Last time, Los said that Xu Nian would be the one to hunt this time. Now that he had said it, Los was ready to see if Xu Nian's hunting skills had improved.
"Am I the only one?" Xu Nian thought for a moment and asked strugglingly.
"I'll intercept it for you, but you need to learn to hunt animals like blue sheep on your own. Otherwise, relying solely on rabbits and the like won't cut it." Los paused, then added, "Your strength will only improve through combat."
Xu Nian opened his mouth and finally let out an unwilling whimper.
He realized that Los was determined, so he had no choice but to follow Los to hunt mountain goats. The weather had improved a little in the past two days, and the mountain goats had to come out to look for grass to fill their stomachs.
Originally, Xu Nian was planning to hunt in a place he was familiar with, but Rocky suddenly remembered something and took him to another place. The cliffs in this place were steeper and the terrain seemed to be higher.
"Why not in the same place as before? I... I'm more familiar with that place." Xu Nian stretched out his claws, gently touching Los's body, and bargained: "Let's take it slow. First, catch the blue sheep in the place I'm familiar with, and then challenge this difficulty. Is that okay?"
In the past, Los would have agreed, but now, he shook his head and said, "I'm here, you don't have to be afraid."
After all, the place where they hunted before had the scent of Luo Yin. Although Los covered up the other party's scent, he could not guarantee that the scent there had disappeared completely.
As for why he had to think so much, Los didn't consider it. As a snow leopard, he did whatever he wanted.
In fact, Xu Nian secretly thought that he could catch a few more rabbits and try to win by quantity, but when his eyes moved to Los's serious snow leopard face, he swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth.
In fact, the courage to challenge is also the nature of snow leopards!
Following Los around the snow-capped mountains, we soon found a blue sheep. The blue sheep was lowering its head to look for something to eat. It didn't look very big.
"Lucky." Los glanced at the mountain goat and said, "Follow my example. First, lower your body, then slowly approach. When you're within a pounce distance, pounce on it immediately."
"What if I don't get it..." Xu Nian asked, "How can I tell if I'm close enough to it to get it?"
He swore that he was asking seriously, wanting to confirm what he should do. However, after saying this, Los thought for a moment, which was rare. After a moment, he said, "As long as you can control it, you can go for it. You will know when the time comes."
Xu Nian understood immediately that this was purely the innate skill of wild snow leopards, but the problem was that he was a human education version, and this skill was almost non-existent for him. Xu Nian's ears twitched slightly, and he looked at his furry paws in embarrassment, feeling that the success rate of this matter seemed to be low.
"You will stop it, right?" Xu Nian asked cautiously, to prevent himself from failing and missing a mountain goat, which would be a pity.
"Yeah." Ross nodded.
In the end, Xu Nian embarked on a journey of hunting blue sheep alone. His big furry paws stepped on the snow on the rock wall. He was completely different from his previous trembling appearance. Now he could walk on the snow, and he imitated Los's appearance, crouching down, looking like a well-behaved, experienced hunter.
The ibex had not yet noticed the approach of the snow leopard, but the sound of the vulture made it subconsciously raise its head, but it soon continued to lower its head to nibble on the grass. Compared with other animals, this kind of prey that likes to walk between rock walls is already very safe. After all, neither bears nor wolves can chase them between rock walls.
Their biggest natural enemy is the snow leopard.
Snow leopard?!
The ibex seemed to have suddenly discovered something and turned its head stiffly, facing Xu Nian who was walking towards it very cautiously. It raised its hoof and ran away almost instantly. Xu Nian was too close and was almost kicked in the face by its hind hoof.
However, he had no time to be afraid. When he saw the ibex running away, he immediately chased after it reflexively. This kind of pursuit seemed to be the nature of the beast. Xu Nian suddenly understood why Los said, "Don't worry about it, just chase it, you will know how to chase it." When he was running, his whole body could feel very light. He sprinted quickly, trying his best to close the distance between him and the ibex.
This mountain goat was too young and had no idea that there were such things as "traps" in the world. When it was chased to the cliff by the snow leopard behind it, it jumped directly and landed on a protruding part of the rock wall below.
However, just after it landed and before it could stand firmly, the foothold under the sheep's hoof suddenly collapsed. The mountain goat suddenly lost its strength and felt like it was floating in the air. When it was frantically looking for the next foothold, it was grabbed by the throat by Los who rushed over from the side.
Xu Nian braked abruptly at the junction of the cliff. He was running so fast that when he braked, he used all four claws to exert force, his tail was tense, and every hair on his body was trying to prevent him from falling.
Fortunately, he was stuck on the edge. He had used so much force that he had shoveled out a pile of snow in front of his front paws, and his paw pads were broken. He had stopped, but his heart was still pounding, and he didn't dare to look at how high the cliff was under his paws.
After a while, he licked his paws, pawed carefully twice, and when he reached the safe area, he felt relieved and turned to chase in the direction of Los.
Los was holding the blue sheep in his mouth. He raised his eyelids and glanced at Xu Nian who was rushing towards him with a happy face. However, just when he reached Los, Xu Nian restrained himself. He walked over honestly, squatted in front of Los, and said softly, "Caught... caught it."
Although it was not a direct throat chokehold, and although Leopard and Los had the advantage of timing and location, and although Los had help, but rounding it off, it can still be considered as catching the mountain goat, which is worth celebrating.
"You asked me if I could intercept it. Is that your idea?" Los asked.
Xu Nian carefully distinguished the tone of Los's words, looked around, and finally subconsciously lowered his head to look at the ibex, and met the ibex's dead eyes. The eyes stared at Xu Nian with gray eyes, which scared him so much that he immediately lowered his eyes and stared at his two front paws.
He pressed his ears back slightly and explained in a low voice, "I'm only now catching rabbits, but this is my first time catching mountain goats. I always fell when I tried to catch goats before, and was even knocked away by an argali. I was scared, so I've been walking around here lately. I know there's a pika burrow here, and it's empty, so I figured I could pretend to chase it, lure it over here, and then fall down. Then you can catch it directly... so... it can be considered a successful hunt... right..."
The last word was said reluctantly and full of temptation.
"I know this is a piece of cake for you. After all, you're so powerful. You can catch it with just a fly and bite its throat in one go. Hunting is easy for you!" Xu Nian immediately wagged his tail and turned to the familiar track. His eyes sparkled as he said, "Who can be as powerful as you?"
There was no change in Los's expression, but his tail had already started to wag. Xu Nian watched Los's tail slowly curl up. Considering that he and Los had slept together for such a long time, Los should be in a good mood now.
Xu Nian breathed a sigh of relief.
In fact, Xu Nian felt that he was progressing fast enough, but obviously this speed was not enough in Los's eyes.
"Only this time, next time you have to hunt by yourself." Los emphasized.
"I understand, I understand." Xu Nian nodded immediately and replied, "I understand. I will definitely work hard to learn the skills of a leopard hunting alone. I know snow leopards live alone and should be independent. I know that once I learn it, I will live alone..."
"What?" Los's tail suddenly dropped down, as if it had fallen off suddenly. Xu Nian was stunned. He had never seen a snow leopard with such erratic emotions. However, before Xu Nian could say anything, Los said unhappily, "You want to leave?"
"Ah?" Xu Nian pondered for a moment and said, "I...I...I didn't."
So Los slammed his tail against the snow, then walked uphill with the mountain goat in his mouth, mumbling as he went, "Spring is the best time to learn about hunting."
Xu Nian tilted his head slightly and looked at Los's back, not understanding why the other party changed the subject so quickly. But when he looked down, he saw a small hole in the snow made by Los' tail. He immediately took a breath and was a little surprised.
Los changed his decision three times a day and his mood was very volatile. Xu Nian began to wonder if all big cats were like this, or if only snow leopards were like this, or in other words, if only Los was like this.
But he didn't dare to ask, and chose to remain silent, pretending nothing had happened, and continued to do his job like an obedient leopard leg.
When he returned to the den, Los had just put down the mountain goat in his mouth and turned his head to see Xu Nian beside him, who was climbing up with difficulty, holding his tail in his mouth.
"You were just chasing, how did you make such a mess?" Los looked at Xu Nian in shock. The originally furry snow leopard now had its fur standing up everywhere, looking a little disheveled. Its body was also gray, not to mention the dust on its face. It was completely different from the way it looked when it came down the mountain in the morning.
"I'll just lick it later." Xu Nian thought that Los was disgusted by his dirtiness, so he quickly lowered his head to lick his paws, then turned his head to lick his side and said, "The fur is a little easy to get dusty."
"..." Los was silent for a moment, and then he said in a cryptic way, "Don't you know how to clean your fur?"
"I know, I'm licking it." Xu Nian said honestly.
Luo Si looked Xu Nian up and down, finally frowning, and said, "You... Luo Yin asked you to lick your own fur, so you think that's cleaning it?"
Now that things have come to this, even if Xu Nian is slow-witted, he knows that the way a snow leopard cleans its fur is definitely not by licking it, or at least it should be more than just licking it.
Los's casual question made Xu Nian rack his brains to answer. He chuckled twice, squatted on the ground, and subconsciously and nervously stepped on the snow alternately with his two front paws. Thoughts turned rapidly in his mind, and he racked his brains to think of a reasonable explanation.
Finally, he raised his paw and gently placed it on Los's paw, saying earnestly, "Because... you forgot, Luo Yin didn't teach me how to hunt. How could I have fallen, and how could I have gotten dirty? In Luo Yin's eyes, I have always been a clean snow leopard."
Ross choked and his face darkened.
God knows how Xu Nian noticed from the snow leopard's furry face that Los's face had turned black. He immediately complimented him, "But since I was born, I've never been raised the best. Not only do I have food and water, but I can also hunt on my own. I have a den that can shelter me from the wind and snow, and I have such a powerful snow leopard to protect me."
But this time the method of coaxing the snow leopard seemed to be of little use. Los lowered his head and looked at the blue sheep he had dragged up with great effort, then glanced at Xu Nian's messy fur, wondering who had raised Xu Nian better between him and Luo Yin.
"Look at me now." Xu Nian tried to stretch his body. He showed Los the muscular lines he had developed during this period. Although they couldn't compare to Los's, and only with effort could they be revealed, it was better than nothing. Because of this effort, the base of his tail was raised high. He said, "I am no longer the same person I was a month ago."
"I know, it's you one month later." Los frowned. He didn't want to look at the tip of Xu Nian's tail, but the tip of the tail was about to stick up and hit his face.
So it had no choice but to stare at the tip of its tail for a while longer.
Xu Nian paused, then cleared his throat. He realized he couldn't beat around the bush with wild animals and had to speak directly. He immediately praised, "You taught me well."
His eyes were full of admiration when he looked at Los.
The snow leopard, somewhat bewildered by the coaxing, hummed softly, then lowered its head to lick its paws, its tail wagging slightly behind it. It said, "Stay with Luo Yin. That loser can't teach you anything."
It thought for a moment, then added, as if to disguise itself: "I can also give you prey. It's very simple."
Xu Nian just nodded like a chick pecking at rice. He knew very well that as long as Luo Yin didn't come, as long as he was tough enough, his lies would not be exposed, at least not yet.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to sit here peacefully and enjoy this mountain goat.
Dragging a blue sheep up is not an easy task. If there was not a somewhat useless snow leopard to raise, Los would choose to eat it on the spot.
Of course, the most important thing is that Luo Yin's breath is always lingering at the foot of the mountain. When it thinks of this, it becomes a little irritated.
The two snow leopards each had their own thoughts and looked away from each other guiltily.
They are just snow leopards, how bad can they be?
"Shall we rest after eating?" Xu Nian asked tentatively to see if the topic had passed.
However, Ross usually nodded, but this time he hesitated. The large cat, who was a bit of a germaphobe, looked Xu Nian up and down, and after a mental struggle, he said, "Come with me."
Xu Nian didn't know what Los was going to do, but he followed him anyway. When they reached a relatively flat slope, Los raised his chin slightly and said to the slope, "Just roll over on the snow a few times. It will help you clean the blood and dust off your body."
The main reason is that Xu Nian is so dirty now that it is unbearable to look at. Los couldn't help but sigh.
"Oh--" Xu Nian dragged out the last word, and finally understood why the other snow leopards were so clean. Why did he still feel something was wrong even though he had licked his fur so hard? It turned out that the problem lay here.
He nodded immediately and followed Los's instructions, rolling in the snow like Los. Los said, "The slope here is relatively flat and the snow is thick, which is perfect for cleaning fur. After rolling for a distance, get up and walk up, then roll down again. Just do this back and forth a few times and you'll be good to go - Xu Nian!!"
Before Los could finish his words, he saw the snowy owl, which had been circling here for who knows how long, pounce on him. When Xu Nian was about to lie down, the snowy owl pounced on him and kicked him hard.
Then Xu Nian, who was squatting on the landslide, slid down the slope very smoothly. Los couldn't catch him and could only watch Xu Nian rolling down the slope.
Los had no time to seek revenge on the Snowy Owl, he just wanted to stop Xu Nian quickly. It pounced on him and bit Xu Nian's body, but because the force of the fall was too great, biting it forcibly would only hurt Xu Nian. Los had no choice but to hold the other party and roll down the slope with Xu Nian.
Then it fell on Kaie who was foraging for food.
Kaie felt that at that moment, his leopard life was almost over.
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