For bait, Chen Wen used a rather pungent pike fish.

Earlier, he had set aside some pike fish meat. In the morning, Chen Wen slightly boiled these pieces of pike and cut them into small chunks for ease of fishing.

He waited for about half an hour.

Sitting on the wooden stool covered with rabbit fur, Chen Wen took out the canister storing the bait.

He struggled to pry off two pieces of pike meat, warming them in his hands with his body heat, and then accroched them to the fishhook.

"Let’s start fishing!"

Chen Wen’s eyes lit up, as he gently lowered the fishing line into the drilled hole.

To avoid the vibrations on the ice surface alerting the fish below, Chen Wen also asked the red fox, that had been playing with the eagle for a while, to stay put beside him.

At this moment, both the eagle and the red fox were curiously watching Chen Wen, and what he was holding.

"Is this what you call fishing?"

The red fox asked.

Chen Wen nodded slightly and softly explained, "Fishing is actually all about using a fishing line and hook to bring up fish from the water, quite simple isn’t it?"

The red fox nodded, "Simple, but watching you, I always feel..."

Considering Chen Wen’s feelings, the red fox didn’t directly express its skepticism.

The eagle, however, had no such reservations.

After tilting its head and scrutinizing for a while, it straightforwardly said, "Stop wasting time. I don’t think this thing can catch any fish."

Black lines appeared on Chen Wen’s forehead.

The eagle had been spending a lot of time playing with the Wolverines, and its personality had been slightly influenced by them.

From being initially reserved, it had turned into this carefree nature.

While shaking off the reserve is a good thing, turning into the Wolverine’s kind of personality...

Chen Wen sighed and said, "In the shelter, it’s just sleep and rest. Why not have some fun here? If you get bored, you can go check out the islands in the distance."

In the depths of the lake in front of Chen Wen, there were many islands, including some large ones.

There were quite a few islands in Great Slave Lake.

As Canada’s second-largest lake, Great Slave Lake could almost be called Canada’s Thousand Island Lake.

Hearing this, the eagle immediately became interested.

Adventure!

It loved it!

With its innate flying ability, the eagle immediately said, "Then I’ll go have a look. You wait for me here!"

"Remember to come back before dark."

Chen Wen reminded, though feeling slightly uneasy, added, "Be careful. If you encounter danger, remember to come back to find me. I have weapons to protect you guys."

The eagle glanced at the long spear quietly placed by Chen Wen’s feet and nodded.

It was well aware of the lethality of that thing.

But just as the eagle prepared to explore, the red fox declined the exploration.

It glanced at Chen Wen, then said, "I’ll just wait here, I don’t really like exploring."

The red fox was relatively cautious by nature.

Plus, noticing Chen Wen’s bit of loneliness, it decided to stay and keep him company while fishing.

It was also somewhat curious about what fishing was all about.

Hearing this, the eagle didn’t say much more.

It flapped its wings, skimming over the frozen lake surface, and went off to explore the islands.

Chen Wen tenderly looked at the red fox. "Then let’s wait here for it, and fish at the same time."

"By the way, tell me about your past. Since you joined me, we haven’t really talked."

Hearing Chen Wen’s words, the red fox tilted its head and glanced at him.

The past...

"Then I must start from a long time ago."

"Hey, are we in a rush?"

Chen Wen’s rhetorical question ignited the red fox’s desire to share.

Thus, Chen Wen fished while listening to the red fox narrate its past stories.

In fact, to animals, their lives are quite monotonous.

Like the red fox, for instance.

Before meeting Chen Wen, its life was simple.

Eat, sleep, hide, escape.

Four words summarized its entire life before meeting Chen Wen.

But as he listened to the red fox talking about the berries and animals it ate, tree holes and bushes it slept in, predators and dangers it encountered, and times it narrowly escaped its enemies.

Chen Wen felt quite touched inside.

He engaged with the red fox at just the right moments, and after it finished its story, he started sharing his own survival experiences.

"I was in a place quite far from here, a land called Yukon. Probably last winter, I also encountered some magical animals like you, and all sorts of stories there..."

Chen Wen spoke with a reminiscing expression on his face.

As the red fox listened to Chen Wen’s experiences in Yukon, a peculiar light flickered in its eyes.

A wonderful sensation suddenly surfaced in its heart.

Very complex.

The red fox felt as though it had been to Yukon, experiencing those stories with Chen Wen, even though it had never been there.

Like the sheep being knocked off a cliff by its companions, terrifying glaciers, endless river valleys...

The red fox couldn’t resist communicating with Chen Wen, asking about the details of those stories.

Chen Wen responded one by one.

The distance between the man and the fox shrank further as they shared their past experiences.

After finishing the stories of Yukon.

Chen Wen suddenly thought of something he once discussed with Lv Guocheng.

To people, each person’s experiences form a complex storybook in their heart, rich with variety and serving as a companion in the final stages of life for their own reflection.

For these special animals he had encountered, however.

Before meeting him, their storybook resembled simple diaries, maybe having ups and downs, but always appearing monotonous.

But after meeting him, their storybook transformed from diaries into genuine storybooks.

Their experiences with him comprise the most exciting Chapters of their storybook.

Suddenly, Chen Wen realized that he shouldn’t treat special animals merely as utility beings, or, utility animals like this again.

He shouldn’t coax them into joining solely for their entries.

Some emotional connection needs to be cultivated.

As Chen Wen reflected, suddenly, he felt tiny movements in the fishing line in his hand.

Chen Wen paused, instinctively pulling his attention back.

And as he focused his attention on the fishing line, he confirmed it.

"Come on, quietly, have a look."

Chen Wen suggested, signaling to the red fox to come closer.

The red fox cautiously observed the fishing line in Chen Wen’s hand, a hint of curiosity flashing in its eyes.

"The line is moving!"

"Yes, I’ve got a fish!"

Chen Wen said excitedly, and then pulled the line with effort.

Under the water, bubbles quickly rose, and at the same time, tension came from the other end of the line.

But this tension seemed noticeably weak and sluggish.

Compared to videos of anglers wrestling with big fish in warmer areas, the fish Chen Wen encountered felt practically like it was exhausted.

There was some strength, but it wasn’t substantial.

"Wow, just as the locals said!"

Chen Wen rapidly reeled in the line, exclaiming with animation, "During ice fishing, the fish below have poor alertness due to the ice cover, making it easy to get bites. Moreover, the low water temperature often means the fish are less active and have less struggle strength. It truly is an angler’s paradise!"

As he finished speaking, Chen Wen squinted his eyes and saw the fish being pulled up.

A pike...

Honestly, it’s a pretty big one, an adult pike.

But Chen Wen felt a bit helpless.

Can’t it be some other fish?

The taste of pike is really awful!