Chapter 21: Operation Beast Hunt

  Rumors have been circulating for a long time, and it took me a lot of effort to make them believe that I still like women. Alas, how easy is it to stop the mouths of the masses?

  The village chief also looked at me with a strange gaze and said, "Young man, this old bone of mine can't take it anymore, you'd better find a younger man to go." At that time, I was completely dizzy.

  He probably sensed my anger, so Dick didn't dare to show up in front of me for days. Until he was sure that my temper had more or less subsided, he came out again with a sly smile, and then I gave him a good scolding.

  The hunting action is also being prepared in these few days. In the face of the large amount of delicious food and crops brought by Lievman this time, as well as the exquisite furniture, all the strong men in Ahhat village are mobilized to set up ambushes, dig traps, and work with great enthusiasm, leaving the main characters who came this time aside.

  Our plan is to dig a large pit on the ground in a narrow section, just enough to hold a person's weight, and then lure wild beasts here. When people pass by safely, the beasts will fall into the pit, and inside the deep and slippery hole, there is also a big net that catches it as soon as it enters.

  However, this method is still not very safe for some animals, so each of the ambushers holds a bow with an arrowhead in their hand. If things don't go as planned, they shoot it over. The medicine applied to the arrow is said to be able to knock down an elephant, but I haven't seen an elephant, so I don't know if it works or not.

  The biggest problem with this trap is who will be the bait. When I raised this question, everyone suddenly looked at me in unison, making me feel depressed and regretful for not just going out to catch a few more fish instead of setting up this trap.

  Crack, a snapping sound of a branch breaking came from under my feet and became the only sound in this area. I had walked several miles into the depths of the forest, but still no wild beasts came to attack me. How come it's so peaceful here today? Won't those carnivores all go back to rest or something?

  Hiss, a rustling sound came from the grass thicket in front of me on the left, I raised my vigilance, ready for any possible danger at any time. Suddenly, the grass thicket split open, and a chubby arrow pig rushed out, geez, it scared me for nothing.

  The sudden change occurred when I let my guard down, and a clump of wild grass next to the arrow pig suddenly moved. A big mouth full of sharp teeth pounced on the unsuspecting arrow pig, its sharp fangs quickly tearing at its body.

  The arrow pig cried out and struggled, but it couldn't shake off the cluster of rapidly changing colors that clung to its body. Finally, after a sharp scream, its four legs stopped moving.

  As I watched this animal's color change rapidly to golden yellow, I knew what it was - the jungle's invisible killer, a leopard. This leopard had grown up, its sturdy and majestic body covered with golden fur, its four limbs full of explosive muscles, sharp claws, and two green eyes on its head that were as still as dead water, revealing no emotion, while its long canine teeth were tearing apart the tender flesh of the arrow pig.

  As soon as I saw the demonic leopard, I knew that trap was useless. The demonic leopard's speed would definitely allow it to escape in the instant the trap collapsed. Looks like I'll have to take matters into my own hands after all.

  Since we need to capture it alive, that big knife can't be used. And my hunting bow has been replaced with an iron-reinforced one, which would likely create a hole as large as a bowl if I were to shoot an arrow, so it's also unusable. Apart from using my bare hands, I really have no other way to deal with this demonic leopard.

  "Hey! You ugly big flower cat, running into me today is your misfortune." I cracked my knuckles and provocatively shouted at the animal that was gnawing on a wild boar's throat. However, it didn't understand what I said, and simply glanced at me casually, probably thinking that a human couldn't do anything to it.

  Today you were wrong, pay the price for your underestimation. I suddenly exerted my strength, and with a speed like lightning and thunder, I charged towards the magic leopard. The mud and wild grass flew behind me, and the leaves and bushes on both sides of the path shook violently as if they had encountered a fierce wind.

  That demonic leopard was greatly shocked, flipped its body and jumped away from the arrow pig's body, narrowly dodging my extended iron claw. It then swiftly climbed up a nearby large tree, changing the color of its body as it moved.

  "Damn it!" I didn't expect the demon leopard's reaction to be so fast, and after missing a grab, its body had already rushed forward. By the time I stopped, all I saw was the demon leopard flashing by on the left side of that tree, blending in with the branches and leaves.

  But I wasn't too disappointed, and with a thorough search, I found out that the magical leopard that seemed to have run far away was actually hiding in the tree crown not far from me, waiting for an opportunity to launch a fatal attack on me.

  Hmph, no matter how cunning you are, don't think you can hide from me. I pretended to be unaware and walked slowly towards the side of that tree, with seemingly relaxed movements but actually had my muscles tense, ready for its sneak attack at any moment.

  That leopard's endurance was quite good, when I had already walked to its right below, it still lay in wait there without moving a single thread, just like one of the tree's branches. It seemed that if it didn't attack me from behind, it would rather give up the opportunity, so be it as you wish.

  I took a few more steps, and my back was completely exposed to the demon leopard's attack range. The attack came in an instant, and the demon leopard pounced on my back with lightning speed, its huge mouth about to bite my neck.

  Just as it was about to land its paws on my clothes, I turned my body like a eye on my back, and with a swift side spin, I tightly grasped its paws in my hand. Taking advantage of the momentum, I came up with a big throw, and the demon leopard let out a miserable cry as it was slammed heavily to the ground, producing a dull thud.

  If it were a human, this blow would have been enough to break his bones and tendons, but this demonic leopard was after all a well-known strongman in the Lost Forest, and this heavy blow only made it slightly dizzy.

  "Rooooaaaar!" The demonic leopard stood up straight, its claws tearing out fiercely as it tried to escape from the human who had brought it pain. It knew clearly in its heart that it was facing an overwhelmingly powerful existence that it could not resist.

  The leopard's lithe body shot towards the trees like an arrow, its powerful limbs already airborne. Just as it thought it had escaped, a massive and irresistible force came from its tail, and with a terrified cry, its body was brutally pulled back, spinning wildly before crashing heavily to the ground.

  I grasped the demonic leopard's tail, which was as tough as a steel whip, and swung its body back and forth towards the ground. Its body emitted a whooshing sound from rubbing against the air, and each heavy crash was accompanied by a mournful howl.

  Finally, by the seventh blow, it no longer had the strength to cry out, and its bodily struggles ceased. Oh no, I thought, looking at the golden-colored magic leopard lying on the ground, "Isn't it dead? Then I've been fighting it for nothing?" Fortunately, after a careful examination, I found that its chest was still heaving, and it had simply fainted.

  The crowd that had been lying in wait saw that I had gone for so long without any movement and was already a bit uneasy, worried that I would encounter some danger. Just as Dick and Gill were about to come find me, I dragged the demon leopard out into their line of sight.

  "Oh my god, I alone actually caught a demonic leopard, it's truly unbelievable!" Compared to Gil and the others who didn't understand the danger of the demonic leopard, the villagers of Ahart were all astonished that I was able to single-handedly capture this extremely dangerous forest killer.

  "Hey, Weite, you little guy has become so strong now, even this thing you can catch, I'm convinced by you." Even Dick, who always compared hunting skills with me in the past, also showed admiration for my harvest.

  The happiest one was probably Lievman. He ran over with a big smile on his face, even the fat on his body was shaking with laughter.

  "Wow, what a beautiful fur! Look at those strong muscles and that wonderful curve, it's simply too beautiful." Lieveman kept circling around the tightly bound Magic Leopard, I suspect his eyes had already turned into gold coins.

  After a while, the demon leopard slowly came to its senses and found that it was bound and unable to move. It immediately struggled with all its might. Unfortunately, although its strength was great, it could not break free from the layers of tight bindings on its body. In the end, it had no choice but to be locked into the cage we brought with us.

  The subsequent hunt was also very smooth, and under my enticement plus violence, two saber-toothed beasts and a violent ape were locked in an iron cage. The captured ones kept hitting the arm-thick iron bars with their efforts, but their powerful strength that could kill people finally lost to steel, and they could only be taken back to the camp with painful and helpless howls.

  Today's harvest can only be described as bountiful, a color-changing magic leopard, two fierce and violent beasts that constantly collide with the iron pillar, and a violent ape that keeps pounding its chest and howling. It can be foreseen that this trip will definitely make us rich beyond our wildest dreams.

  Apart from making money, the change in the villagers' attitude towards me is even more satisfying. Previously, they at most just saw me as someone who didn't quite fit in but had decent martial skills. However, now that they've seen me effortlessly capture those ferocious beasts that even the night creatures dare not provoke, they're completely stunned by my incredible abilities. Especially those girls who previously didn't give me a second glance are now looking at me with eyes full of admiration, making their boyfriends extremely jealous. But no one dares to challenge me, after all, the roaring beasts in the iron cage in front of us have already proven my strength.

  In the next two days, we caught three saber-toothed tigers, two horned deer and two giant apes. I reckon that within a radius of ten miles around here has been thoroughly searched by us.

  When hunting, even I have encountered danger. Once I accidentally entered the territory of an iron python, and in a moment of carelessness, I was entwined by this giant snake with a body thicker than a water bucket. The force that could crush steel almost suffocated me. Fortunately, I used all my strength to finally create a gap from its incredibly strong coils, then pulled out my guandao and cut it in half. Even after being split in two, the python's vitality was still astonishingly strong, struggling for nearly half an hour before dying. The area where we fought was left in shambles, with several large trees that could be hugged by multiple people knocked down by its tail, a testament to the python's incredible strength. Although it was a terrifying creature when alive, the meat of the iron python is actually quite tasty after being cooked.

  After three days of hunting, our cages were full, and the cries of various beasts echoed through the camp, especially the rhythmic calls of those violent orangutans, which sounded like cries for help. Worried that the night would be long and dreams many, we set off immediately to return to Wiedton.

  All the way, the villagers were escorting us, and their enthusiasm made me suspect that even the village chief had not received such treatment. But the expectant look in their eyes was more about anticipating the delicious food we would bring next time than our next visit itself.