Chapter 276: In the Forest

Baifeng's ability to distinguish between donkeys, horses, and mules basically boils down to looking at their ears; donkey ears are long, horse ears are short. Many people might think donkeys are only gray, but that is not the case. Donkeys come in many colors, both white and black, and larger ones are easily mistaken for horses.

Baifeng did not see any living creatures, so he could not be certain; he had to see them in person to know what they truly were. Previously, some tribes said they wanted to trade these horses with the Baifeng tribe, but there is still no news from those tribes now. Baifeng is very afraid they have already been wiped out by the Suiren clan.

Baifeng never thinks he has enough of treasures like horses; he would be happy to trade even one ox for one horse. Oxen should be used more as labor, not for war. Although the armed Ox Cavalry looks very majestic and terrifying now, there is certainly a reason why they have not been used as war mounts for thousands of years in history. But since they have not experienced actual combat yet, they are not sure what the reason is.

For something that could change the fate of the tribe, it is very difficult for Baifeng to stay calm and continue to stay in the tribe leisurely; that is not Baifeng's way of doing things.

Unfortunately, it is getting a bit late, so there is no way to set off immediately. However, Baifeng has already arranged for a group of hunters and others to drive a small boat to the upstream area where they found the horses early tomorrow morning to take a close look.

At night, the two children heard the conversation between their father and mothers, and they were also very curious about what the "horse" their father mentioned was, and why he valued it so much.

Baifeng held one son in each arm and began to tell a bedtime story. While he called it a story, it was actually imparting knowledge about this world; he also hoped his children could fully receive the things he had not yet forgotten.

Perhaps many, many years later, he will completely integrate into this world, with everything centered on the thoughts and behavioral standards of a savage, and everything he brought with him will be forgotten completely.

Therefore, Baifeng is also afraid. Although he has already changed a tribe of tens of thousands of people and moved their thinking away from the primitive, in reality, he is still very far from the level he wants.

Baifeng told them: "A horse is a very beautiful, very powerful animal. Their running speed on land can be said to be unmatched by many things. Of course, the things that can outrun them cannot be ridden, or are too small to be ridden."

"As for those that can be ridden, they are not as fast as horses. Just like our oxen, they look very mighty, and they are comfortable to ride, but they don't run fast enough."

"Father, I want to ride a horse!"

Changle has already started imagining what he looks like riding a horse, but Baifeng has never ridden a horse either; he has only seen them from afar, though he has ridden a donkey.

After much effort to coax the two children to sleep, Baifeng's sleepiness also became very severe. He really could not hold on any longer, so Baifeng lay on the bed and fell fast asleep.

In the morning, he was woken up by the chickens that every household in the tribe keeps. The time they crow is basically the same; they start calling as soon as the sky is just beginning to brighten. The biggest benefit of using chickens is that they can jump freely between summer and winter; anyway, chickens only look at the sunrise and don't look at what time it is.

Because using a Large Ship is really too troublesome, their group only piloted two small boats, which contained not only Weapon equipment but also prepared Dry Rations.

They took turns rowing along the way and reached the place where the carcass was found at the fastest speed.

However, when Baifeng went over, the bones at the site were already in a mess. Baifeng only thought the hunters were a bit violent in order to take the head, but he really had no right to criticize them; what they did could be said to be very good, and the most important thing was that they brought the skull back.

Baifeng did not show any dissatisfaction, but the hunters had sharp eyes and noticed Baifeng's sense of loss when he saw the messy bones from the very beginning. However, they really, truly had not messed with the bones.

So they carefully checked the surroundings, including the bones, and finally they determined that a bear had come here; it probably didn't find enough food and rummaged around to satisfy its craving.

It is not a big deal to find that a bear had come, but it would be if they found that the bear had just come, and might be hiding nearby, waiting for an opportunity to attack them.

Baifeng knows there are bears on this land, but because they are sparsely distributed, he has never seen a live bear.

Baifeng felt a mix of fear and excitement; the new Weapon could finally be put to use. However, the Soldiers did not think this was interesting at all; a bear could cost a person their life.

The Soldiers surrounded Baifeng the moment they sensed something was wrong, for fear that he would suffer the slightest harm.

Baifeng also felt the tense atmosphere. Fighting a bear is really not a joke. Now they already know the bear is nearby, but they haven't found where the bear is.

This feeling of being in the light while the enemy is in the dark is really not good.

However, they did not intend to just stay in a stalemate; instead, they quickly equipped their weapons. Half of the people had a Knife tucked at their waist, which could be grabbed in one motion, while in their hands were Long Bows or Crossbows, aimed in all directions. The other half held Knives, ready for close-quarters combat at any time.

Everything around was quiet, without a sound. Baifeng would not just wait there and let the tribesmen protect him; after all, he is one of the most powerful fighters in the entire Baifeng tribe, and his Weapon is not just for show.

He held a Crossbow in his left hand and gripped the handle of his Knife with his right. He was fully capable of firing an Arrow and then dropping the Crossbow to switch to the Knife.

Everyone observed one direction, but they still did not find any trace of the bear. Baifeng wondered if everyone was being a bit too nervous.

However, the hunters did not agree with Baifeng's view. Their intuition and ability to perceive danger were far superior to Baifeng's; otherwise, it would have been very difficult for them to roam freely in this wilderness. Now Baifeng regretted not bringing the dogs.

Since the hunters said there was definitely a bear nearby, Baifeng remained on guard, either waiting for the bear to come out on its own or waiting until they went out to search.

The hunters all said they were feeling more and more uneasy, that the bear must be getting closer and closer, and they all had this feeling, not just one or two people, which made Baifeng's scalp tingle.

He looked around but could not find the shadow of the bear. Now the grass and trees had not yet completely withered and turned yellow; only the leaves of the deciduous trees and shrubs were turning red and changing color, hanging precariously. The bear should not have been that hard to spot.

The bears that could exist at this latitude should be brown bears or black bears. Placed here, where it is still basically green, they should be visible at a glance, but they had not been seen yet, and everyone had a very ominous premonition.

Baifeng also felt this premonition; a sudden chill made his scalp tingle.