Wilderness Survival with Druid System-Chapter 513 - 12: Discovering the Black Bear

"The visibility isn’t great; this slope pretty much blocks the view of what’s behind. If any animals come over from there, my eyes are basically useless—I can hardly see anything beyond it."

As Chen Wen spoke, he deliberately walked a circle around the slope.

Indeed, there’s nothing visible.

If it’s up to him, he can only rely on hearing and smell.

But later on, he can tame some animals himself and may find some special animals.

If that happens, it would help compensate for the lack of visibility.

Plus, [Territorial Consciousness] can enhance perception, and [Red-Nosed Rudolph] can improve smell.

They would help compensate as well.

Additionally, there’s another flaw in this place.

"There aren’t many big trees around here; if danger arises, it’s hard to climb a tree for refuge quickly."

The closest tree capable of supporting Chen Wen’s weight is about fifteen meters away.

This distance is very risky!

If it were a pack of wolves or a grizzly bear, they would hardly give a human the time to run fifteen meters.

"The advantages are obvious, but so are the disadvantages; it’s a double-edged sword, really."

Chen Wen said, somewhat hesitant.

He quite likes the place, but the inherent risks make him hesitant until he has enough traits and has tamed enough animals.

Oh well, might as well take a gamble.

Chen Wen made up his mind.

With the good luck granted by [Forest Sprite], he wanted to take a chance.

As long as no animals come attacking within the first five, no, the first ten days, this place would unquestionably be a treasure trove.

"Here it is, then!"

Chen Wen stopped hesitating, directly deciding this area as his campsite for the next hundred days.

...

Chen Wen’s choice.

It was unexpected, yet somehow within reason.

Lin Jiawei knew very well; his boss wasn’t a person to stay put.

In his very bones, he’s still a survivalist who likes to make high-risk, high-reward decisions.

However, to others, this choice seems inappropriate.

Especially to the monitor.

Years of work made him quite knowledgeable about survival.

Therefore, upon seeing Chen Wen’s choice, he instinctively shook his head.

Thinking Chen Wen wouldn’t last long.

This person is just a name without substance.

The third camping spot is so much better, very reliable indeed.

Solo wilderness living isn’t an adventurer’s game; only the most steadfast survivors can win.

Guess he’ll be among the top three to be eliminated.

The monitor’s expression was caught by Greg overseeing the scene.

Curious, he switched the screen to Chen Wen’s side and saw Chen Wen clearing the surrounding ground, instantly understanding Chen Wen’s idea.

A risky choice, but also a confident one. Yes, worthy of the person I favor.

Putting it in local slang: win or go home.

Overall, this choice is extraordinary.

Greg chuckled as he thought.

...

After deciding on his campsite, Chen Wen quickly sprang into action.

Using an axe to simply clear the surrounding shrubs, piling them on one side of the camp.

Then, picking up his axe and long spear, he headed out of the forest.

Following the route from memory, he found the previous place where he’d stored tools and boxes.

Chen Wen hoisted the boxes and tools leisurely to the campsite.

Sorting the items, the fishing net, trap line, and solid salt, which were temporarily unnecessary, were placed into the box by Chen Wen.

The remaining weapons and pot were pressed on the left side of the tarp.

While the right side of the tarp was pressed with two boxes.

"Let’s just make it like this for now."

Chen Wen said, stopping his actions.

Standing to rest for about a minute, Chen Wen was also contemplating his next plan.

In early-stage wilderness survival, without exception.

All revolve around four aspects.

Water, fire, food, shelter.

With these four things, as long as you don’t get attacked by wild beasts or fall ill.

Surviving is no problem.

But precisely because these four things are difficult to obtain, many end up dead in the wild.

Back to the point.

These four survival elements, though equally important, often have their priorities.

For instance, in the desert, water is naturally the most important.

In wilderness with many beasts, fire is more important.

Currently, for Chen Wen, water isn’t a concern.

Great Slave Lake is only about three to four hundred meters away from here, easily accessible.

Shelter can’t be rushed, need to take it slow.

Hence, fire and food are relatively more important.

Fire, this thing is easy to deal with.

Before coming here, Chen Wen already had a plan in mind.

So later on, he’ll follow the plan, step by step.

As for food, don’t rush it either.

His energy reserves in the early days are quite abundant.

Expending large amounts of energy on hunting, something he’s least skilled at, is a waste.

So that’s not being considered.

Therefore, the main focus is on fire.

Once he sorted out his thoughts, Chen Wen decided to search for fire-starting materials first.

He picked up his weapon and said, "Soon I need to get the fire going; for now, I plan to go to the lake and fetch water, meanwhile checking if there’s an opportunity to find fire-starting materials."

"Since I didn’t bring a fire starter, I plan to use a friction method to start a fire. In friction fire-starting, the key item for me is tinder. As everyone can see, it’s located near the Arctic Circle here, the daily evaporation is small, and it just rained a few days ago, everything is damp."

"For someone trying to start a friction fire like me, this is really not good news."

Chen Wen’s words also echoed Lin Jiawei and others’ previous concerns.

If there’s no fire on the first night.

The cold night and wandering beasts will be Chen Wen’s most deadly threat.

So whether Chen Wen can establish himself at Great Slave Lake depends on whether the fire can be successfully lit.

...

Once Chen Wen decided to act, he took his weapon and pot, planning to go to Great Slave Lake for water and simultaneously search for fire-starting materials, that is, tinder.

People were quite curious about what Chen Wen would choose as tinder.

Even Lin Jiawei hadn’t heard Chen Wen mention it before.

But as Chen Wen continued walking, the monitor and Lin Jiawei gradually saw some clues.

And the director Greg, constantly watching Chen Wen, also chuckled: a smart choice.

Forest by the lake.

Chen Wen walked towards the lake, looking up and peering between branches and twigs.

Strange, why isn’t there any?

After exiting the forest and reaching the lake slope, Chen Wen was puzzled.

But he shook his head, thinking to himself: maybe this area doesn’t have any, oh well, let’s fetch water first.

As Chen Wen lifted his head observing the lakeshore.

On his left-hand side, about three hundred meters away, a dark shadow instantly caught Chen Wen’s attention.

American black bear!

Chen Wen’s pupils contracted, with a faint golden glow in his eyes.

[Extreme Vision]allowed him to clearly see every strand of fur on the bear’s body.

This is a very strong adult black bear, though a female, not very large, but certainly weighing around three hundred pounds.

After all, it’s the time for black bears to pack on weight for fall, their weight is much heavier than usual.

Most people seeing a black bear this close would panic.

But not Chen Wen.

He instinctively took out his long spear, bent down to grab some loose dirt from the ground, straightening up to slowly sprinkle it on the ground.

The wind is blowing from the bear’s direction!

I’m downwind, so the scent won’t go over!

An opportunity for hunting!

Chen Wen’s mind was working swiftly.

In the sensory organs of an American black bear, eyesight is the weakest.

After all, it’s a forest animal, relying mainly on smell and hearing.

But now being downwind, and the wind is pretty strong.

This gives Chen Wen the opportunity to approach.

At present, Chen Wen’s javelin skills are fairly decent.

Random throws about a hundred meters, fifty percent accuracy at eighty meters, eighty percent at seventy meters, if he could get close to fifty meters, he has a ninety to even a hundred percent chance of hitting the target.

If on the first day he can hunt a black bear, that would be an incredible feat!