Live Strong in the Wilderness-Chapter 249: First Skill Trial

A sheep was hanging in a noose, constantly wriggling.

Upon seeing Xu Yi and Lu Ke, it became even more frightened and tried to escape.

However, one of its legs was tied in mid-air, making it impossible to run away.

"What kind of sheep is this? Looks pretty big," Lu Ke remarked, feeling that the sheep being held up was larger than the goats and tree sheep they had encountered before, almost as big as a fallow deer.

"Not sure, probably a species from this planet. Pity it’s not a reindeer," Xu Yi initially thought it was a reindeer, never expecting to have caught a sheep.

But, this turned out to be a good thing.

"We can bring it back to raise, and kill it when we need to eat," Xu Yi said happily, as living creatures are valuable, especially herbivores.

Now, their first floor was fenced and relatively safe; they could tie it up downstairs to raise it, and pull it out to slaughter when needed.

If winter comes, having a live sheep would be a significant advantage.

"Lu Ke, go untie the rope, then make a noose, and we’ll take it back with us," Xu Yi said as he walked over, took off his basket, and lunged towards the sheep to pin its head down.

Lu Ke went over to untie the rope, making the sheep’s leg touch the ground immediately, and it started struggling furiously, attempting to flee for its life.

However, its head was held down by Xu Yi, and his body was pressing down on it, so it couldn’t break free.

Lu Ke quickly came over, untied the rope on the sheep’s feet, and made a noose.

Still, Xu Yi felt it wasn’t enough, so he taught Lu Ke to tie up the front legs too, like those nooses used for dogs, making it more secure.

After managing to do that, Xu Yi released the sheep.

It had been trapped there for a while and was struggling desperately, so it didn’t have much energy left.

Xu Yi put his basket back on his back, then took hold of the rope.

The sheep still seemed like it wanted to run, but where could it run now?

"Lu Ke, I think we caught a dairy sheep," Xu Yi said to Lu Ke, having noticed the sheep’s rather developed mammary glands when pinning it down; it seemed to be a dairy sheep.

"A dairy sheep? Then we could have sheep milk to drink regularly?" Lu Ke exclaimed, surprised, and indeed, that would be great.

Sheep milk is even more nutritious than cow milk and can supplement calcium.

"Hmm, we’ll know when we get back and try milking," Xu Yi chuckled, saying that having sheep milk would indeed be an extra boon.

They’re constantly growing stronger, and their nutritional needs are considerable.

Meat’s nutrients are relatively singular, so they need to find vegetables and fruits.

Having sheep milk is undoubtedly a good thing.

"Such luck, catching a dairy sheep means we can milk it daily. No, drink milk every day, right?"

"Looks quite plump, surely it has milk; they’re lucky indeed."

"Maybe not, sheep milk can be quite gamey; not everyone can drink it."

"This is an alien species, might not be like ours here."

"You all say it’s a sheep, but it doesn’t look like one to me; its legs are so long, and its bleat isn’t like a sheep’s."

"Whatever kind of creature it is, so long as it eats grass and produces milk, it’s good."

In the live chat, everyone was delighted with Xu Yi and Lu Ke’s harvest, even happier than when they hunted the Black Scale Lion.

After all, if this animal could produce milk, it would provide a sustainable source of nutrition!

Towing a light/cubic-foot animal back was time-consuming.

However, the two still picked some shepherd’s purse to take back.

By the time they returned to camp, it was already getting dark.

They led the sheep to the first floor, tied it in a corner, giving it two meters of space to move.

"I’ll fetch some water to boil; you start the fire," Xu Yi said, picking up two water buckets to go out. He felt he might need to make a couple more buckets, as only two were a bit insufficient.

After all, water wasn’t directly led in but about three meters outside the camp.

Being too close would risk softening the surrounding soil with water, affecting the stability of the stilt house.

If a chicken is to be killed without hot water, it would be difficult to clean off the feathers, unless the skin was directly peeled off. However, Xu Yi felt the skin tasted good, so it’s better to treat it with hot water.

After fetching water and returning, Lu Ke had already lit the fire.

The two newly made clay pots were also put to use, filled with water to boil.

Xu Yi picked out two pieces of wood, preparing to carve them to extend the handles of the clay pots, which could also prevent his hands from getting burnt.

"Xu Yi, I’m going to try milking the sheep," Lu Ke said, taking a clay bowl over.

"Do you know how to milk?" Xu Yi couldn’t help but ask, wondering if she had any experience.

"Probably, saw it on a show," Lu Ke’s face flushed as she spoke and walked over.

The sheep became restless upon seeing Lu Ke approach.

"Big White, don’t be afraid, we won’t hurt you. If we were to hurt you, we would have done so earlier, right?" Lu Ke said, reaching out to stroke the sheep’s neck.

The sheep, of course, couldn’t understand Lu Ke’s words but could sense her lack of strong ill intent.

So, it calmed down a bit.

Xu Yi looked over, hesitating whether to try his taming skills.

Eventually, Xu Yi put down the knife and wood and walked over.

If tamed, it wouldn’t be as afraid of them anymore. Although it couldn’t be used as a mount, it would still be great for producing milk.

As Xu Yi approached, the sheep retreated a few steps, appearing somewhat afraid of him.

When Xu Yi touched it, it flinched.

However, Xu Yi scratched its head.

After a while, it seemed to find it quite comfortable and even actively pressed its head into Xu Yi’s hand.

At this moment, Xu Yi triggered the skill.

The feeling was like suddenly exerting force.

But it wasn’t a physical exertion; it was mental exertion.

From start to finish, Xu Yi didn’t hear any notification sounds.

However, he had a feeling, an instinctive feeling.

He failed, unable to tame the sheep successfully.

With only a 0.1% success rate, succeeding on the first try would be too improbable.

So, Xu Yi proceeded to release the taming skills again.

And failed again, but Xu Yi wasn’t surprised.

If it doesn’t work once, try again.

However, by the third attempt, Xu Yi obviously felt some fatigue.

His brain seemed frozen, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Thus, he realized he could only release the skill thrice at once. To use it more, he likely needed to enhance his spiritual power.

It’s uncertain whether this spiritual power could be continuously improved through practice?