Chapter 4

Every profession has its own rules and jargon.

These days, even bandits have their own rules and slang, and hunting is no exception.

For example, previously, two hunting dogs chased a wild boar over hills and ridges, crossing two mountain ridges.

The fight continued along the way, stopping and starting as they went. Just by stopping, if the hunting dogs could force the wild boar to halt, it was called "setting the nest" in the hunt.

If the wild boar ran away after setting the nest, the nest was called a "false nest."

But if the hunting dogs could force the wild boar to stay in the nest, it was called a "dead nest"!

In the hunt, once the wild boar was in a dead nest, it was time for the hunter to step in.

Actually, there was no need for Li Baoyu to shout. As soon as the wild boar ran towards the fallen log, Zhao Jun had already moved.

He circled around to the back of the wild boar, holding a knife in one hand and climbing with the other. With a push of his feet, he climbed onto the fallen log.

By this time, the wild boar was already terrified by the hounds. It pressed its buttocks against the fallen log, allowing the two hunting dogs to leap and attack from all sides.

The wild boar only swung its head from side to side, forcing the two dogs to retreat, but its buttocks never left the fallen log.

Zhao Jun squatted on the fallen log, with the wild boar sitting right in front of him. Its posture was like a dog sitting, with its hind legs on the ground and its front legs stretched out.

The wild boar's hearing was not weak. It had already heard Zhao Jun climbing onto the fallen log.

However, it wasn't just the wild boar that heard the noise.

Zhao Jun's and Li Baoyu's two dogs, the brindle dog being a nearly five-year-old hunting dog and the yellow dog a three-year-old hunting dog, had worked with the hunters for many years. Although they couldn't speak, they understood very well.

They knew that once the hunter approached, it was time for the final battle. So the two hunting dogs mustered their remaining strength and launched a more intense attack on the wild boar.

As a result, the wild boar could only struggle to deal with the two dogs and had no time to pay attention to Zhao Jun behind it.

Seeing this, Zhao Jun steadied himself, slightly rose, bent his body, and crouched. He turned the water birch stick in his hand, making the blade point forward and the edge downward.

The blade flashed, and it pierced the flesh.

The blade was so fast that it made no sound when it entered the flesh.

The spot where the blade pierced was the same as where the yellow dog had bitten the wild boar several times before, which was the soft flesh behind the left front elbow of the wild boar, equivalent to the area under the armpit and connected to the ribs in humans.

When he thrust the blade, Zhao Jun bent his waist and leaned forward.

The blade pierced the boar, and in the next second, he pulled back and stood up. When he pulled out the blade, Zhao Jun was already standing on the fallen log.

Pfft...

A jet of blood spurted out with the blade.

The wild boar let out a mournful cry, feeling a surge of strength being drained from its body.

Zhao Jun leaned forward again and thrust the blade once more.

The follow-up stab was in the same spot, but this time, Zhao Jun did not pull the blade out.

Instead, he pressed his body forward, with only his feet firmly planted on the fallen log, the rest of his body hanging in the air. All his strength, combined with the reaction force from his feet, was channeled into the stick and the blade, forcing the wild boar to lean forward.

Seeing Zhao Jun's move, the two hunting dogs became even more frenzied, pouncing from both sides. The yellow dog bit the wild boar's left ear, and the brindle dog bit the right ear. The two dogs, using all their strength, pulled the wild boar forward.

"Oooh..." The wild boar cried out, struggling and shaking its head, but its ears were held tightly by the two dogs, and with Zhao Jun's full weight pressing down, it was pinned in front of the fallen log.

"Brother, don't worry, Baoyu is here!"

Suddenly, a voice came from the side, and Li Baoyu ran over.

He had somehow retrieved Zhao Jun's hand axe and, rushing to the wild boar, swung the axe at its neck.

At this moment, the wild boar's front half was firmly pinned in front of the fallen log, and its body twisted violently from the waist down, but it could not break free.

The sound of the axe cutting through flesh and bone echoed.

The wild boar's cries of pain grew weaker, and it gradually lay on the ground, convulsing.

Zhao Jun, leaning on the blade, slowly moved his feet from the fallen log and stood steadily on the ground. A burst of laughter rang in his ears.

Li Baoyu, covered in pig blood, laughed loudly, "Hahaha... So satisfying! So satisfying!"

Zhao Jun, who was used to Li Baoyu's strange remarks, felt a sense of familiarity.

Suddenly, Zhao Jun felt a bit dazed, unsure if he had really been reborn. He wondered if this was all just a dream.

As a gust of autumn wind blew, scattering the yellow leaves on the hill, a withered leaf was blown in front of Zhao Jun. The veins on the leaf were clearly visible, and scenes from his past life flashed before his eyes.

Zhao Jun's mind was filled with thoughts, but his mind became increasingly clear.

He looked at Li Baoyu, his best friend in this life and the last, and then at the brindle dog and the yellow dog, still tearing at the dead wild boar.

Zhao Jun smiled faintly and handed the blade to Li Baoyu, saying, "Gut it!"

Li Baoyu was slightly taken aback but then loudly replied, "Got it!"

He took the blade from Zhao Jun, holding the blade in one hand and the water birch stick in the other. He twisted his hands in opposite directions, separating the blade from the stick.

Li Baoyu threw the stick aside, then chased away the brindle dog and the yellow dog. He stuck the blade into the ground, grabbed the wild boar's right front leg with one hand and the right hind leg with the other, and pulled it over, flipping the boar onto its back.

Then, without letting the blood drain, he gutted the boar. He inserted the blade under the boar's neck and cut downward, being careful not to puncture the intestines.

After gutting the boar, Li Baoyu turned to look at Zhao Jun, who was standing nearby.

Meeting Li Baoyu's gaze, Zhao Jun said, "Give me the intestines."

After receiving the entire string of intestines from Li Baoyu, Zhao Jun hung them on a nearby tree. Seeing Zhao Jun's actions, Li Baoyu quickly stood up, showing respect.

This was the hunter's offering to the mountain god.

After hanging the intestines, Zhao Jun bent down, grabbed some dry yellow leaves to wipe the grease off his hands, and told Li Baoyu to "feed the dogs." Then he walked to the fallen log and sat at one end.

While Li Baoyu was gutting the boar, the brindle dog and the yellow dog were wagging their tails anxiously but did not cross the line.

When Zhao Jun told Li Baoyu to feed the dogs, the two dogs seemed to understand. The brindle dog wagged its tail excitedly, and the yellow dog pushed Li Baoyu's leg with its mouth.

Li Baoyu cut the boar's heart in half with the blade.

He first picked up the larger half and, ignoring the yellow dog by his side, handed it to the brindle dog.

This was the treatment for the lead dog!

The brindle dog happily stood up but did not rush to eat. Instead, it carefully tilted its head, bared its teeth, and gently took the heart from Li Baoyu's hand, then ran to the side to tear it apart.

After feeding the brindle dog, Li Baoyu gave the remaining half of the heart to the yellow dog. The yellow dog did not move far, lying down by Li Baoyu's feet to eat.

Seeing the yellow dog devouring the heart, Li Baoyu stroked its neck.

The yellow dog, not guarding its food, seemed to enjoy it, savoring the delicious heart and the affection from its young master.