Chapter 105: Chapter 105: Strangling the Deer

Three Ma Lu, two large and one small—a family of three.

The old saying goes, "A deer lives a thousand years, yet every step is filled with worry."

Deer are exceptionally vigilant creatures.

Compared to an eagle’s eyes or a bear’s nose, a deer’s most sensitive feature is its pair of ears.

The three Ma Lu had been foraging in the gully, digging through the snow to eat the dried grass beneath. But the moment they heard a sound from the top of the slope, they took off running.

At this point, the six dogs hadn’t even entered the gully yet.

However, deer have a very strong, gamy scent, and the six dogs gave chase as soon as they caught the smell.

Normally, in this world of ice and snow, it would be impossible for dogs to catch a Ma Lu.

But for some reason, the smallest of the three Ma Lu tripped on something as it ran. It tumbled to the ground, its head plunging into the snow.

Being small with short legs, it couldn’t keep up with its parents and had already fallen to the back of the group.

Now, after that stumble, although it wasn’t seriously injured, the hard fall had left its leg a bit lame.

Meanwhile, its parents had long since vanished without a trace.

It was left all alone, surrounded by the six hunting dogs.

The little Ma Lu fought as it retreated. In the ensuing struggle, it sent a Yellow Dog flying and crippled a Hua Gou.

Just then, Wei Lai and Li Dong sensed something was wrong. If it were a wild boar, it wouldn’t be moving this fast.

Besides a wild boar, what other big game could there be in these mountains?

Tigers hadn’t been seen for years, and a bear couldn’t run as fast as a wild boar.

The two experienced hunters said in unison, "A big one!"

After speaking, the two men gripped their guns and quickened their pace up the slope.

They both knew that dogs normally couldn’t catch a deer. Although it was unclear how their dogs had managed to corner this one, it was a godsent opportunity. How could they possibly let it go?

The little Ma Lu was still locked in a desperate struggle with the hounds. The six dogs that had been besieging it were now five.

The Hua Gou, its leg broken by a kick, had retreated from the fight. But the Yellow Dog that had been sent flying earlier seemed largely unharmed and had rejoined the attack.

Kicking, bucking, headbutting, and ramming, the little Ma Lu barely managed to break through and galloped away on all four hooves.

But up ahead lay a Turtle Pit, about a meter deep. It was covered by heavy snow, but the ground was still visibly lower than the surrounding area.

The little Ma Lu saw the pit as it sprinted forward and leaped.

Its front legs landed outside the pit, but its hind legs sank into it. It tried to stand and climb out, but the deep pit and thick snow trapped it.

Just then, the five hounds caught up and leaped into the pit after it.

Thrashing through the snow inside the pit, they quickly closed in on the little Ma Lu and pounced on it.

Two black dogs latched onto its ears, one from the left and one from the right. A Yellow Dog bit its neck, while another black dog and another yellow dog bit its body.

The five dogs pinned the little Ma Lu down in the snowy pit.

The little Ma Lu struggled desperately, letting out mournful cries, but the five dogs held it fast, preventing its escape.

At that moment, Li Dong, Wei Lai, and Li Dagua arrived. Seeing that his Hua Gou’s left leg was broken, Wei Lai’s heart ached. He knelt before the dog, preparing to untie his own leg wrappings to splint its injury.

"Brother Li," Wei Lai said to Li Dong, "You go finish it off."

"Right." Li Dong raised his gun and walked forward, but he saw that the little Ma Lu’s lower body was buried in the snow, and all five dogs were already on top of it.

Li Dong knew he couldn’t shoot. It would be too easy to hit the dogs.

"Elder San!" Li Dong called to Li Dagua.

"Coming, big brother," Li Dagua replied, running up from behind to Li Dong’s side. "What’s up?"

Li Dong said, "Get the rope."

Hearing this, Li Dagua took the hemp rope from his shoulder and unwound it.

Li Dong stuck his gun in the snow, took one end of the rope from Li Dagua, and said to him, "Let’s go over and strangle the deer."

"Alright."

So, Li Dong and Li Dagua went down into the pit from opposite sides. While the deer was pinned by the dogs and unable to move, they wrapped the rope around its neck once.

Then, they pulled hard on the rope from both sides.

The little Ma Lu let out a piteous cry, but its voice grew fainter and fainter. Soon, its tongue lolled out.

On the hillside, Zhao Jun sighed softly at the sight, shook his head, and prepared to call Li Baoyu and Zhang Yuanmin to leave.

But just then, he saw a brown shadow charging down from the top of the opposite slope with unstoppable force. Its hooves kicked up snow like billowing dust wherever it passed.

"Oh no!" Zhao Jun exclaimed softly, then hurriedly shouted to the men on the other side, "Look up! Look up!"

"Someone’s there!" Hearing the voice, the three men on the opposite slope all looked up and scanned their surroundings.

Suddenly, the dogs around Li Dong and Li Dagua started barking and charged forward in unison.

A massive Ma Lu was charging down fearlessly.

This Ma Lu was taller than an ox, with a pair of antlers on its head, each with eight tines.

It thundered down the slope, as fast as lightning!

The five dogs rushed toward the Ma Lu, skidding to a halt to engage it in a fight.

But the great Ma Lu didn’t stop at all. Its massive body charged forward, stirring up wind and snow with the force of splitting bamboo.

Intimidated by its sheer presence, the five dogs didn’t dare to block its path and scattered.

The great Ma Lu’s charge remained unbroken as it headed straight for the Turtle Pit where its young had perished.

"Elder San! Run!" Li Dong yelled, turning to flee.

But in the Turtle Pit, the snow was nearly a meter deep. Scrambling out in a hurry was no easy task.

Yet if they didn’t get out, the charging Ma Lu would surely trample them to death in the pit with its immense weight.

Li Dong and Li Dagua scrambled desperately out of the pit. In the distance, Wei Lai forgot about bandaging his dog’s leg, grabbed his gun, and ran forward.

But before he could even raise his gun, the great Ma Lu had already leaped over the Turtle Pit. Right in front of it was Li Dong, who was trying to get to his own gun.

When Li Dong had gone down into the Turtle Pit to strangle the little Ma Lu, he had stuck his gun in the snow. He had only seen the one small Ma Lu when he came down from the gully, never imagining it had a father—a father who would actually come back for it.

And so, he was completely unprepared!

Now, it was too late to grab his gun!

The great Ma Lu caught up to him in an instant, right on his heels.

Wei Lai, on the other side, wanted to shoot, but he didn’t dare!

Because Li Dong was right in front of the Ma Lu. If the shot hit Li Dong, it would be a disaster!

Just as Wei Lai hesitated, the great Ma Lu that had caught up to Li Dong lowered its head, thrust it forward, and flicked it upward.

Li Dong, who weighed over one hundred and sixty pounds, was sent flying!

After tossing Li Dong aside, the Ma Lu’s charge didn’t falter as it headed straight for Wei Lai.

The five hounds, determined to protect their master, gave chase relentlessly from behind. But this Ma Lu’s legs were uninjured; there was no way the dogs could catch it.

BANG!

Wei Lai fired a shot. The bullet grazed the Ma Lu’s side, carving a bloody furrow along its right flank from which blood instantly began to flow.

Hearing the gunshot, the Ma Lu was terrified. Its desire to avenge its calf vanished in an instant. Not daring to advance any further, it spun around and fled.

And a hundred meters in front of it, Li Dagua was about to help Li Dong up.

Suddenly, he heard Wei Lai shout, "Run!"

Li Dagua looked up to see the Ma Lu charging straight for him.

He wanted to dodge, but Li Dong had already passed out.

As for Wei Lai, he was using a 16-gauge shotgun. After firing one shot, he hadn’t had time to reload!

"AH!"