SPLASH!
The lake's surface churned as a large, brownish-green fish covered in pale white spots was dragged from the water by the hook. It looked to be at least seven or eight pounds.
A lake trout.
The largest and most common fish in Gem Lake.
The flesh of this fish was tender and delicious, with no fishy smell or fine bones. You didn't even need to scale it before eating.
Feng Shan gripped the fishing rod tightly, dragging the exhausted lake trout to the shore. Seeing his chance, he grabbed it by the gills and, with a powerful fling, tossed it onto the grass.
Out of the water, the lake trout thrashed violently on the grass.
Coca-Cola immediately pounced on the trout like a little tiger, trying to pin it down with his body. But he was met with the trout's large tail mercilessly slapping him in the head.
After a few smacks from the fish's tail, Coca-Cola was left dazed on the spot.
Feng Shan chuckled to himself as he rescued Coca-Cola from under the tail. He pulled out his Hunting Knife and plunged it firmly into the fish's gills. The trout instantly went still. Then, Feng Shan pressed his Witchcraft Bone Ring against the trout's carcass to collect its Soul Power.
A faint, warm current flowed into his body, and the blood-red pattern on the Bone Ring deepened slightly.
Next, Feng Shan began to clean the lake trout. He bled it and removed the guts, which he kept to use as bait later.
MROW!!
Having recovered his senses, Coca-Cola's fur stood on end. He snarled at the dead trout, baring his teeth and periodically batting at the fish's head with his paws.
'All bark and no bite.'
Feng Shan scorned Coca-Cola's posturing. He baited his hook, cast his line, and continued fishing.
Before long, another five-pound White North Salmon was on the hook.
The White North Salmon, also known as whitefish, has fine scales, few bones, and snow-white flesh. It was exceptionally tender and tasted even better than the lake trout. In any case, all the roughnecks on the radio loved this fish.
Collecting Soul Power, killing fish, catching more fish...
Despite the repetitive, tedious actions, Feng Shan didn't feel bored at all. In fact, he was enjoying himself.
He had to admit, Gem Lake's water wasn't just crystal clear; it was also teeming with life.
Before long, his catch on the Tundra Grassland by the lake had grown. More than ten large fish over five pounds each were cleaned and processed. A few of the lake trout even exceeded ten pounds. He had thrown many of the smaller fish he caught back into the lake.
Coca-Cola was hugging a whitefish, feasting on it with relish. This was so much better than that mushy canned fish.
The weather in the Far North Tundra was as fickle as a girlfriend's mood. One moment it was sunny and bright, the next it was battered by wind and snow. Right now, a thick layer of lead-gray clouds was drifting in. A biting wind howled across the tundra, carrying flurries of snow, and the calm surface of the lake began to ripple with waves.
'The weather's turning!'
Feng Shan reeled in his fishing rod, broke off some willow branches from a thicket by the lake, and threaded them through the fishes' gills.
Transportation was one of the major challenges of life in the Far North.
Food wasn't actually scarce in the Far North Tundra; you could find it if you tried. There were large animals like reindeer and moose, for instance.
The Tundra's remote location and harsh environment meant there were no roads. Normal vehicles could hardly get through, making transporting hunted game the biggest problem.
If you had to rely on carrying things by hand, you could manage 50 kilograms at most. The rest of the kill would have to be left behind, a free meal for bears, wolves, and foxes.
Of course, while transportation was a problem for others, it wasn't for Feng Shan.
He tied the fish with the willow branches, dividing them into two bunches. Feng Shan then took out a wooden pole he had prepared earlier and threaded it through the branches.
The dozen or so large fish weighed at least a hundred pounds in total.
Previously, Feng Shan would have barely been able to lift this. But after collecting Soul Power with the Celestial Witchcraft Bone Ring these past few days, his body had been significantly enhanced. While he couldn't yet lift cauldrons and uproot mountains like his ancestors in his dreams, a hundred-odd pounds was no problem.
He shouldered the pole, squatted slightly, and pushed up with his legs, slowly straightening his body.
Hoisting the catch, Feng Shan started walking step by step toward his camp. As for Coca-Cola, he was unwilling to let go of the whitefish in his mouth. His body dangled straight down in mid-air, claws digging tightly into the fish, swaying from side to side as Feng Shan walked.
「Back at the camp.」
Without taking a break, Feng Shan got busy making smoked fish.
Sleet had begun to fall from the sky. Although the cold weather would keep the fish from spoiling for now, leaving it too long would affect the texture. Smoking it into dried fish early would also prevent the fishy smell from attracting carnivores.
He tied the cleaned salmon with willow branches and hung them on a wooden pole inside the smokehouse. Due to the smokehouse's size, he could only smoke five fish at a time.
After hanging the fish, he started a fire in a shallow pit prepared in the smokehouse, then covered the flames with fir branches and leaves he had cut earlier. For smoking meat here, you had to use fresh fir. Only fresh branches would produce thick smoke when burned, completing the process in three hours. His grand-uncle's diary said that fish smoked this way would have a better aroma.
Unfortunately, there wasn't enough salt at the camp. With plenty of salt, combined with the cold, dry weather of the Far North Tundra Region, he could have made cured fish that would last longer and taste even better.
As white smoke billowed from the smokehouse, the faint, fresh scent unique to the wood began to spread. The key to smoking meat was this thick smoke; without it, you couldn't call it smoking.
It was a shame he was short on seasonings. If he could have marinated the fish for an hour or two with cooking wine, soy sauce, ginger, chili peppers, and green onions, the smoked fish would have been even more delicious.
'Because I built the smokehouse too small, the larger fish from this trip will take four separate batches to smoke completely. This is what I get for being lazy. I should have just built it bigger from the start.'
As for the remaining smaller fish, Feng Shan couldn't be bothered to smoke them. After cleaning them, he used sticks to prop open their bellies and hung them directly on the meat-drying rack to air-dry. Whether they'd turn out well or not was up to fate.
WHIRRR!!
Just then, a strange sound echoed from the sky.
Feng Shan looked up to see a plane breaking through the thick clouds, flying unsteadily toward his camp.
'Someone's here?'
'Lawyer Frank? It's not the appointed time yet.'
Seeing the plane again, Feng Shan felt an inexplicable excitement. He quickly slung his rifle over his back and strode toward the tundra runway.
By the time he reached the runway, the plane had already landed. Lawyer Frank and Tom, the pilot who had flown him here the first time, were hauling cardboard boxes out of the cabin.
When they saw Feng Shan appear, dressed in leathers with a rifle on his back, looking every bit the part of a Tundra Hunter, Lawyer Frank gave him a meaningful smile.
"Buddy, it looks like you've adapted to life in the Far North. Or should I say, you've made your decision."
The corners of Feng Shan's mouth turned up as he nodded without a word.
"Dammit, what are you two, gaylords? Hurry up and help me move this stuff! I still have to cover the plane with a tarp. If the engine freezes, you two can warm it up with your bodies," Tom roared impatiently.
Feng Shan just chuckled, set down his rifle, and went to help.
They had brought a lot of things this time—more than ten cardboard boxes of various sizes, some light, some heavy. After they had unloaded everything, Feng Shan picked up one of the boxes and heard a whining sound coming from inside.
'What's this?'
Lawyer Frank, standing nearby, heard the sound too. He smiled and said, "It's a gift for you. The little fella doesn't like dark spaces. Go on, buddy, let him out for some fresh air."
'A gift?'
'An animal?'
Feng Shan set the box on the ground and opened it. A small puppy wriggled out. Feng Shan couldn't tell what breed it was, but it didn't look particularly bright. It had black and white fur, a pattern like three flames on its forehead, triangular ears, and a pair of ice-blue eyes that glared with indignation.
The puppy leaped out of the box, trotted over to a willow thicket by the runway, and lifted a leg.
A steaming stream of liquid arced through the air and landed on the willow branches.
This stream of piss lasted for a full thirty seconds.
So much so that when it was done, its leg was numb and wouldn't come down, causing it to stumble and fall over sideways.
HAHA!!
Feng Shan and Lawyer Frank burst out laughing, their mouths wide open.
Whether from embarrassment or annoyance, the puppy yapped and barked at the two of them.
...