Wilderness Survival with Druid System

The next day, Chen Wen slept until nearly noon.

However, after waking up, his energy had returned to its peak.

”The Golden Eagle and Snow Leopard aren’t here, have they gone hunting?”

Looking at the empty cave, Chen Wen rubbed his face to wake himself up.

He didn’t concern himself with the Golden Eagle and Snow Leopard.

After getting up, he placed the pot on the earth stove and heated last night’s Tibetan Mastiff meat and yak innards over the fire.

After having breakfast, Chen Wen sat outside and zoned out for a while.

About ten minutes.

Chen Wen stood up, feeling full of energy.

”Today’s task isn’t hard, but it’s going to be long; today, I need to start processing the wild yak meat!”

Speaking of his task, Chen Wen picked up the dagger and started processing the wild yak meat.

Processing yak meat is mainly for convenience in drying it later.

And the first step in processing yak meat is cutting!

Following the grain of the meat, cut the yak meat that was deboned yesterday into long strips.

Rectangular strips approximately two centimeters thick and fifteen centimeters long.

Doing this is to increase the surface area to speed up drying.

Cutting the strips took Chen Wen a large amount of time and energy.

That day, besides going out to fetch water, he was almost entirely in the cave cutting yak meat strips.

Despite spending such a long time, Chen Wen only managed to process three-quarters of the yak meat strips.

The remaining quarter had to wait until the next day to start again.

The next day arrived.

Chen Wen hastened and continued cutting strips.

Finally, approaching noon, Chen Wen shook his sore hand and finished cutting the yak meat strips.

”I’m exhausted!”

Chen Wen rubbed the joints of his hands, his eyes full of fatigue.

This fatigue wasn’t just physical; it was psychological too.

After cutting out all the yak meat strips, this was only the first step in making jerky.

The second step was to cook the meat.

Cooking the meat is to remove the gamey taste and to make it more palatable, and it’s also to kill parasites, making it easier to consume later.

But before cooking the meat, Chen Wen had to wash the yak meat and remove the sinew and fat.

Sinew and fat are unlike raw meat in that they can spoil easily.

If the jerky is to be consumed in a short period, then you don’t have to worry about this.

But if it’s meant for long-term storage, it’s better to remove these.

Considering the long distance to the lakeside.

Chen Wen originally planned to transport the pot directly to the lakeside to wash and cook the yak meat there.

But considering the nearby carnivorous animals, Chen Wen had to give up this very risky idea.

If it attracts some carnivorous animals and leads them over, it would be a grave loss.

He took three ration bags and packed the yak meat strips inside.

Then Chen Wen took the three bags of yak meat to the lakeside to wash them.

Washing one bag at a time, after removing sinew and fat.

Chen Wen carried the bags back to the camp.

He stacked the washed meat on a cleaned stone, having Snow Leopard guard it.

Next, he took the remaining yak meat batch by batch to the lakeside to wash.

This washing took another whole day.

...

The next day.

After being busy for two days, Chen Wen finally officially started the second step: cooking the meat.

These days, Chen Wen also ate most of the Tibetan Mastiff meat; the remaining meat was divided among Snow Leopard and Golden Eagle last night by Chen Wen.

Today, Chen Wen cleared out the iron pot.

Adding water, putting in the meat.

A pot full of yak meat was placed on the stove by Chen Wen.

As the fire heated the pot, it didn’t take long before a layer of blood scum appeared on the water’s surface.

Chen Wen used the spoon from the military ration to skim off the blood scum.

Add salt, continue simmering.

Watching as the meat was almost cooked, only then did Chen Wen scoop out the yak meat.

The boiled yak meat was arranged by Chen Wen on a drying rack made from transformed tables and chairs, beginning the drying process.

For the second batch of yak meat, Chen Wen waited for the water to cool a bit and after adding some lake water, continued simmering.

An entire yak’s worth of meat took Chen Wen a full three days to cook!

It wasn’t until the fourteenth day of survival.

Chen Wen finally finished cooking all the yak meat and hung it up to dry in the valley.

Looking at the valley full of meat strips.

He took a deep breath and slumped at the cave entrance.

Nothing else, just too tired!

These days, merely cooking meat left Chen Wen utterly exhausted.

But thanks to Chen Wen’s diligence, none of the yak meat went bad; all was cooked to medium-rare and hung inside the valley.

The weather today was quite good, clear skies with strong winds.

This weather is the best for making dried yak meat.

Chen Wen lay at the valley entrance, resting for a while.

At this time, Snow Leopard also strolled over.

As time went by, Snow Leopard gradually started showing signs of giving birth.

To let Snow Leopard deliver peacefully, Chen Wen even used Tibetan Mastiff skins and some hay to make a cozy little nest for Snow Leopard.

Allowing it to deliver without worry.

Lately, Golden Eagle has also been busy hunting pika from afar, bringing them back to the nest as reserve food for Snow Leopard.

One could say, apart from Snow Leopard, both Chen Wen and Golden Eagle were prepared to welcome new life.

Snow Leopard lay down beside Chen Wen, leaning its body against him, gazing at the sky outside.

Golden Eagle also walked over, standing on Chen Wen’s other side.

”Should we go out for a walk in the morning?”

Golden Eagle said, ”We can try that thing you mentioned earlier.”

Chen Wen pondered for a bit and said, ”Hunting that group of ravens, might be worth a try.”

Upon hearing Chen Wen and Golden Eagle were going out, Snow Leopard immediately expressed its desire to accompany them.

But it was firmly refused by Chen Wen.

He instructed Snow Leopard to guard the valley, looking after it by not allowing movement while it was about to give birth.

Upon hearing this, Snow Leopard unwillingly lay down.

But such things couldn’t be determined by its willingness; with Chen Wen’s insistence, Snow Leopard was still left in the valley.

...

After leaving the valley, Chen Wen instructed Golden Eagle: ”Fly a few more rounds in the next few days, see if you can catch more pika, I feel Snow Leopard will give birth within these two days, she’ll need a lot of food post-birth for nutrition, best not to let her out.”

Upon hearing this, Golden Eagle nodded.

With so many days of companionship, it has fully accepted Snow Leopard.

Therefore, reserving some food for Snow Leopard is completely fine for it.

”Additionally, there’s the raven hunt.”

Standing on the slope, Chen Wen watched the distant raven flock, his eyes simmering with a hint of killing intent.

Yesterday.

This raven flock seemed to have found Chen Wen’s valley.

While he was drying meat, they swooped down violently, snatching two or three strips of yak meat.

Therefore, this hunting was both for the game and a form of revenge on the ravens, teaching them a lesson.

Moreover, yesterday Golden Eagle wasn’t there, Chen Wen tried a long spear, finding it hard to hit ravens.

Their speed and agility were high, completely beyond the reach of the long spear.

Golden Eagle looked at the ravens, its eyes brimming with killing intent as well.

If they weren’t birds, it might flinch a little.

But the ravens are birds, and smaller than Golden Eagle.

Toward these creatures, Golden Eagle has no fear.

It spread its wings, suddenly leaping into the air and flew high up while circling.

And Chen Wen took out the trap he prepared meticulously for the ravens—a bunch of yak sinew and fatty scraps, scattering them across the open ground below the slope.

Then carrying a long spear and a bone spear hid away.

Flying ravens are hard to hit; the ones landing on the ground are a different story!

And with Chen Wen actively ambushing, the tag [Highland Ghost] triggered, and he gradually vanished from the ravens’ sight.

The white sinew and fat were very eye-catching.

The ravens, seeing no danger, soon had some movement.