Chapter 71

Chapter 71

The White Lion Really Likes Wooden Houses

The zebra was fighting fiercely, its upper body reared straight up, both front legs flailing wildly without any rhythm.

If it had gotten even two meters closer to the white lion, it could have landed a full combo attack.

Lin Qianyu: “……”

It had all the momentum, and its hind legs were putting in real effort.

It was shaking on its legs but still refused to move forward even a step. The branches under its feet were full of thorns, and Lin Qianyu could tell it was uncomfortable just standing like that.

The white lion silently watched it at first, but by the end, couldn’t even be bothered to look.

Lin Qianyu pinched the bridge of her nose. Under the white lion’s gaze, she suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.

In the end, it was Chasing Wind who gave in first. Its front legs hit the ground, and it started punching the air in place like it was doing military drills, exhausting itself completely.

In a way, it did manage to intimidate the white lion.

【What a dirty survival tactic.】

【If I die of exhaustion first, no other animal has the chance to bite me to death!】

【Hahahaha the look on the white lion’s and Lin-jie’s faces is killing me.】

【Don’t even mention it. My mom walked in just now and I instinctively flipped my phone over. I didn’t want her to find out I’m watching a zebra kicking air—she’d mock me for a whole year!】

…

Lin Qianyu stood on the left, the white lion was on the right seemingly deep in thought, and the zebra huddled under the tree, refusing to move.

As Chasing Wind’s heavy breathing began to quiet down, the surroundings fell into silence.

Although Lin Qianyu had walked along this path, to the white lion, she had essentially barged into its territory. So, she took the initiative to say, “Um… sorry, I was just passing through your territory.”

After a pause, Lin Qianyu felt that calling it a territory wasn’t quite accurate, since the white lion’s territory couldn’t possibly be just this pile of wood—it was likely the entire stretch she had crossed when she changed paths earlier.

—No wonder it had been so quiet.

In claimed territory, predators don’t dare make much noise while hunting. If they draw the white lion’s attention, not only would they lose their prey, they’d get hunted down themselves—not worth the risk.

Lions are extremely territorial. Even during a hunt, if they sense someone approaching their turf, they will roar angrily without hesitation.

Let alone the fact that Lin Qianyu had already walked deep into the territory—and judging by the wooden framework, this was meant to be the white lion’s future home.

The white lion looked at her but didn’t show any surprise at understanding her words. It also didn’t express much emotion upon hearing her apology—seeming calm and composed.

It turned and walked toward its “house.”

More accurately, just a pile of wood.

Lin Qianyu thought for a moment, then suddenly said, “How about I help you build a wooden house? Like the one I made.”

She hadn’t seen the white lion around, but it must have seen her building the house, or at least seen the one she built nearby—hence the pile of gathered wood.

Compared to sleeping in shrubs or on open high ground, a wooden house had obvious advantages.

Wind and rain protection were just the basics."How about it? I can build you a really big one. This one right now is a bit dangerous—if you sleep under it, the wood might fall and hit you." When Lin Qianyu chopped trees before and had Chasing Wind help drag them, even those logs were fewer compared to what the white lion had gathered.

There was so much wood here—no need to collect any more. If all of it were put to use, there’d even be plenty left over.

Lin Qianyu patiently explained to it, “This isn’t stable. Even if there’s no weight on top, if you roll over in your sleep and bump into something, there's a risk of it collapsing.”

She smiled with her eyes slightly curved. “You like my little house, don’t you?”

The white lion slowly blinked, as if seriously contemplating the feasibility of what Lin Qianyu said.

Its eyes were blue, with a thick fluffy white coat. Its appearance seemed gentler thanks to the coloring—exquisitely beautiful, like a piece of natural craftsmanship.

As beautiful as it was, its danger couldn't be denied.

To be able to survive on this grassland, hunting successfully despite its coat color not being suited for camouflage, and to keep its fur so immaculately groomed—it was surely stronger than most lions in this area.

Most importantly...

From the start until now, Lin Qianyu had only seen this one white lion.

It had no pride.

Lions are social animals. A lioness will drive out her male cubs when they’re around two years old.

Those ousted young lions can join other prides, or—if unlucky—remain as wanderers if no group accepts them.

Once they mature, the strong ones will challenge pride leaders. If they win, they become the new leader. If they lose, they continue wandering.

A white lion that owns such a large territory couldn't possibly be a loser driven into exile—it had to be powerful.

Lin Qianyu noticed it staying silent for a long time, so she just decided for herself. “If you’re not saying anything, I’ll take that as a yes. I’ll come here tomorrow to build your house, okay? I'm leaving now.”

As she waved and added playfully, “See you tomorrow.”

“Chasing Wind—” She turned to look for the zebra, only to find it had quietly walked far away at some point. She hadn't even heard it move, so it must’ve tiptoed away step by step.

Before the white lion could react, Lin Qianyu had already run toward the zebra.

The white lion, who had been standing, silently sat down and fixed its gaze on her figure as she left. Only when her silhouette disappeared did it hesitantly turn away, glancing once at the pile of wood it had stacked, then hopping up onto a slab of stone nearby to lie down on its side.

—Excluding the seaside and the white lion’s territory, the remaining area nearby that could serve as hunting grounds for the grassland wolves was now quite obvious.

Dragging the reluctant Chasing Wind along, Lin Qianyu headed in the direction she had deduced. “Look how scared you were.”

Chasing Wind pouted. Even after walking far away, it kept glancing back now and then, like it was terrified the white lion would suddenly chase after it for a bite.

【Sigh, the white lion is so good-looking that I subconsciously forgot how dangerous it is.】

【You’re not being careless because it’s pretty—you’re only admiring its looks because you’re not there in person. If you were, you’d be running like Chasing Wind too.】

【I saw a white lion once in an African documentary, but it didn’t look this white. The African ones are more off-white, kind of yellowish.】

A pure white lion in the wild is indeed extremely rare.

Although this is an island, and not technically full wilderness,

the white lion living here wasn’t raised or fed by humans—wasn’t raised by hand. Putting aside the controlled environment, this was a wild white lion that had never been cared for by humans.

Lin Qianyu nodded, “It really is very white. Wait, you guys can see the lion’s color? Isn’t the livestream night vision all green?”【Manually turned off.】

【Just kidding—when I saw the white lion, I already turned off night vision. No way I was going to miss it.】

Turning off night vision made things look blurry, but fans were still determined to see the white lion’s true colors.

“Awoo—!”

Before reaching the spot Lin Qianyu had in mind, she already heard the howling of a grassland wolf.

It wasn’t the voice of the little wolf, but this was definitely where they were hunting.

No need for Lin Qianyu to say anything—the zebra instinctively dropped to the ground the moment it heard the sound. The movement was swift and clean, like it feared being throat-locked by a grassland wolf if it was even two seconds too slow.

Lin Qianyu was half a beat slower than it when she crouched down.

“Help me see if the little wolf is over there.” Lin Qianyu pointed toward the open grassland. “Remember to turn on night vision.”

With only one flashlight, she could only make out black shapes darting around ahead. If the little wolf didn’t make a sound, she couldn’t tell which shadow it was.

When wolves go hunting, the whole pack joins, but only one to three wolves initially engage in the chase.

The prey ahead, charging at full speed, wasn’t clearly visible—just a vague outline with horns.

Two dark figures followed behind it.

During a hunt, wolf packs first observe, and once the target is confirmed, they strike at the right time. They don’t aim to bring it down immediately—instead, one to three wolves take turns chasing until the prey is utterly exhausted. Only then does the full pack rush in for the kill.

Tactical hunting like this is the strength of group predators in the animal kingdom.

Watching the scene unfold, Lin Qianyu judged they were in the second phase. The two grassland wolves were still in pursuit.

The prey, sensing something, didn’t flee in a straight line—it changed direction mid-run, a risky move.

Looking closer, there were wolves hidden in every patch of darkness.

It seemed like just two wolves were chasing, but in reality, the entire area was already surrounded.

From the moment it was targeted, that prey’s death had already been decided.

Eventually, as the wolves closed in and the prey could no longer run, it collapsed.

Lin Qianyu had arrived a bit late but still managed to witness the hunt. She whispered, “Isn’t this thrilling?”

That coordinated chase, that wordless synergy—she herself couldn’t clearly see the wolves’ fully extended forms while running, but the livestream viewers could see it all.

【So thrilling!!!】

【Watching this in the middle of the night got my blood pumping. I was so excited I ran downstairs with my phone and crashed into my mom. Got a scolding, but it didn’t kill my hype at all.】

【Let me in—I wanna run with them!】

...

The prey died silently.

Yet the successful wolf pack didn’t immediately feast—instead, they stepped away from the fallen prey.

Wolves follow a strict order when eating: strongest to weakest. The one who contributed the most to the hunt and held the highest rank in the pack would eat first, followed by the others in descending order of status. The weakest would eat last.Although this brutal system may result in some weaker wolves starving due to lack of food,

this rule ensures that the strong wolves in the pack can replenish their strength, maintain their physical fitness, and continue to lead the pack in future hunts—guaranteeing the survival of the group.

This is the rule of the wolf pack.

There was no shortage of food on the grassland. As far as Lin Qianyu knew, there weren’t any thin or weak wolves in the little wolf’s pack. She didn’t know how skilled they were at hunting, but judging from their builds, every one of them seemed well-fed.

Lin Qianyu wrapped her jacket tighter. The bottom hem of her shirt had been torn by the car, and even with the jacket closed, she still felt a draft at her waist.

It was quite chilly in the middle of the night.

While the wolf pack was already eating, the livestream chat was still speculating which one was the little wolf.

Some even started to wonder if Lin Qianyu had found the wrong pack and the little wolf wasn’t there at all.

But Lin Qianyu only lay at the edge watching for a while before getting up and heading over once she was sure.

The wind blew straight toward her, so her scent wasn’t carried to the wolves. Earlier, when she crouched behind the bushes to watch the hunt, her scent wasn’t exposed, so it didn’t affect the wolves at all. But now… since they hadn’t caught her scent, the wolves didn’t know who was approaching.

A grassland wolf standing on top of the prey jumped down and let out a low growl in her direction.

It was a warning not to come any closer.

The head wolf next to it seemed to sense something and snapped at that wolf, “Growl!”

The scolded wolf shrank its neck.

“Little Wolf.” As soon as Lin Qianyu opened her mouth, she sneezed. Even with her jacket pulled tight, it didn’t help much.

Upon hearing her voice, the grassland wolf instantly dropped its snarling expression. Ignoring the fact that it had barely taken a bite of dinner, it ran straight toward her.

“Whimper!” The little wolf dashed to Lin Qianyu’s side at full speed, its wagging tail barely keeping up.

It circled around her, rubbing against her excitedly.

Lin Qianyu patted its head. “I saw you all went out hunting and hadn’t come back, so I came to check on you.”

They had gone out hunting later than usual. Normally, she’d go with them, but earlier that day, she was busy administering an IV to the thylacine.

Last night they’d eaten a sheep during the day, so they didn’t need to hunt at night.

Thankfully, they were naturally nocturnal predators, so nighttime hunting was even more to their advantage.

Lin Qianyu rubbed the little wolf’s tail, then led it toward the prey. “Go on, you all eat first.”

“Awoo…”

The little wolf turned back and said something to the pack. The grassland wolves that had been standing motionless just moments before now stepped forward one after another, each taking a spot and biting into the prey.

In the wild, the sound of wolves tearing and devouring prey at night could be quite terrifying.

But Lin Qianyu, already used to seeing all kinds of fluffy creatures eat, wasn’t fazed at all. She wrapped the little wolf in her arms, rested her chin on its furry head, and rubbed against it. She casually stroked its belly. “Aren’t you going to eat a little?” It seemed the little wolf had eaten very well back at the rescue station.

The grassland wolf just kept snuggling against her, completely ignoring the blood-scented prey.

Instead, it attracted nearby vultures.

Vultures usually search for food during the day, circling at altitudes of 200 to 500 meters to scout for meals.They are scavengers. Although they prefer fresh meat, if they can't find any, eating carrion won't cause them food poisoning—they can even eat carcasses of animals that died from diseases like cholera or anthrax.

At the moment, it wasn’t even the time for vultures to be out foraging.

They were likely drawn over by the scent of blood nearby.

The vultures perched on a tree not far away, not daring to approach recklessly, as if weighing whether this midnight snack was worth a direct confrontation with the grassland wolf pack.

The little wolf in Lin Qianyu’s arms glanced in the direction of the vultures but didn’t move.

Vultures were quite large—almost the size of a big marmot.

If a flock flew over to snatch food, they could probably be defeated, but it would be annoying to deal with.

Flying vultures could interfere with the wolves' eating, and although vultures were real birds of prey, compared to raptors like tawny eagles, goshawks, or peregrine falcons, they really weren’t much to look at.

“They won’t dare come over,” Lin Qianyu said, ruffling the little wolf’s fluffy neck fur. She wondered if the fur around its neck would grow even thicker when the temperature dropped—if so, the texture would definitely feel even better.

The grassland wolf licked its mouth and placed a paw on Lin Qianyu’s knee.

With the head wolf present, the rest of the pack ate peacefully.

The vultures in the distance were staring intently in this direction, but for a pack of wolves, devouring a deer was no difficult task.

If they didn’t make a move now, there’d likely be only bones left by the time the wolves were done.

Even so, the vultures didn’t dare to come forward. Maybe they had already eaten well during the day and, not being too hungry, weren’t willing to take the risk.

Still, they didn’t leave either.

Lin Qianyu said, “They’re probably waiting for the grassland wolves to finish and leave, then they’ll come pick off any leftover meat.”

With their hooked, sharp beaks, vultures could pick meat from between the bones.

That was fine by her—she had no intention of bringing the leftover carcass back anyway.

Once the wolves finished, one of them picked up a whole chunk of meat that had been torn off earlier—this was to be brought back for the pups.

Whenever the pack went hunting, they would always bring food back to the wolves staying behind to care for the pups. Since none had stayed back today, the meat would be for the little cubs.

“All done eating?” Lin Qianyu asked as she stood up. “Then let’s go.”

“Awoo—!”

The entire pack raised their heads and howled in unison.

Perfectly synchronized.

Lin Qianyu paused in surprise, then the little wolf at her side wagged its tail. “Awoo!”

“Alright, awoo awoo,” Lin Qianyu smiled and called to the pack as she turned around. “Let’s go—time to go home.”

Author’s Note: [All animal-related facts and data in this chapter are sourced from online materials.]

Good night, sleep early, love each and every one of you.