Forest Ranger, starting from Picking Up a Lynx Girl-Chapter 283 - : Two-legged Beast, Thank You for Bringing Me to Seize Territory

Chapter 283 -283: Two-legged Beast, Thank You for Bringing Me to Seize Territory

Chen Ying had no expertise in turtle research, and without internet access, he couldn’t look anything up.

But they still knew that the grass turtle was protected by Second Nation’s laws.

The otter’s main source of food was fish, but in some waters, they would also hunt amphibians and birds.

Seeing how easily the otter hunted the turtle suggested that it had lived in an environment where turtles were abundant.

While the three were talking, the otter came over again; this time it dragged a fish onto the shore and started to eat.

Upon seeing the turtle in Chen Ying’s hand, it happily stood up, twirled in a circle, thinking Chen Ying liked to eat this hard-shelled thing, dropped the fish, and moved to find him more turtles to eat.

Chen Ying quickly stopped it.

“Little cutie, I really don’t eat this. If you’re not going to eat it, how about I put them back?” he said.

The otter stood up, its little paws dangling in front of its chest, and stared at Chen Ying without blinking for about ten seconds, then chirped twice and went back to gnaw on its big fish.

Chen Ying hurriedly picked up the three turtles and walked toward the water’s edge.

Not knowing where the otter had caught them, he found an appropriate spot, put down the three turtles, and then stepped back to observe.

Two of the healthy grass turtles, sensing the safety of their surroundings, shuffled their little short legs and burrowed into the grass by the bank.

The other grass turtle, which had appeared to be dead, suddenly poked its head out, just when Chen Ying was about to give up on it.

It seemed to be still waking up; it stretched its neck out for a good while before slowly crawling towards the grass.

So, this guy was perfectly fine, just extremely slow to react?

Chen Ying took a video of the three turtles, planning to edit it and share it online for his fans to enjoy when he got back.

After sorting that out, the three of them packed up and prepared to set off.

The otter climbed onto Chen Ying’s backpack, resting its head on his shoulder, curiously looking around all along the way.

This time, they were progressing along the valley, and while the route wasn’t difficult, it wasn’t easy either—any carelessness and they could tumble into the water.

Fortunately, the river in this valley had a gentle flow and didn’t seem deep; on the side they were walking on, there was a river valley beach that meandered along with the river.

They quickened their pace and finally reached the spot marked on the satellite map.

This area was considered by experts to be suitable for the giant panda’s habitat in the northern mountains.

They planned to stay here for four to five days to collect information on the surrounding forests and water sources and to investigate the distribution of wildlife.

“I think this spot is good, we have easy access to the river, and there’s a natural cave, so we won’t have to worry even if it rains and the water rises.”

The mountainside opposite them had denser tree cover, but their side was more sparse, primarily shrubby woodland.

After deciding on the campsite, the three worked together and quickly erected their tents, and also built a simple stone stove.

After eating something casually and resting for about an hour, Chen Ying asked Brother Chi and Ying Bo to start collecting routine data, while he decided to take the otter to check out the lake marked upstream on the map.

According to the terrain, the most likely place for the otter to live would be at that mountain lake.

Most of the lakes here were dammed lakes, formed as a result of geological disasters.

There were many such lakes, but the most famous should be Diexi Lake.

The lake they were at wasn’t large, and the depth of the water was unknown, but many signs of animal activity could be seen in the shallow areas around it. freёnovelkiss.com

The water here flowed slowly, the water was clear, and the surrounding vegetation was lush, making it very suitable for otters.

Chen Ying brought the otter to the lakeside and, after checking carefully through binoculars for a while, spotted a structure near a tributary that looked like an “architecture” of an otter nest.

Chen Ying, with the otter in tow, walked around the lake for a bit. They couldn’t get very close to the nest, but as he passed by, an otter cautiously poked its little head out from the air hole situated above the water’s surface to observe his movements.

Seeing that the nest had an owner, Chen Ying surmised that the otter was not a native inhabitant of this area.

Aside from the sea otters that hunt in groups, river otters usually live a solitary life, appearing in pairs only during the breeding season.

Their river territory ranges from one to five kilometers, with river otters in the mountains having larger territories than those in the plains.

Although he hadn’t found the otter’s territory, Chen Ying thought it would be okay to have it greet the local otters and perhaps stay for a while, or it could leave from here to find its own territory.

Having a companion around meant that the local otter ecological chain was intact.

The otter seemed interested in its fellow otter, and without a word, it dived into the water and rushed over.

The peaceful greeting Chen Ying imagined didn’t happen. Instead, violent splashes and waves appeared on the surface.

Very soon, the battle between the two otters moved from outside the nest to a nearby rocky area.

Chen Ying stared, dumbfounded, as the two otters fought, biting and scratching each other. He wanted to stop them, but they were out of reach.

The fight lasted nearly ten minutes, and in the end, the little otter triumphed.

The other otter made a swift escape from the lake, fleeing through another tributary.

Chen wiped his face and pressed his hands together in apology to the fleeing otter.

He wasn’t there to help the little otter take over the territory; he just wanted it to join the local otter family!

Well, never mind, otters have another name—”water dogs”—and fighting fiercely is in their nature.

The little otter, now in control of the lake, swam happily for a while before diving and coming back up with a lively big fish in its mouth.

Chen was somewhat surprised as he watched the fish through his binoculars; thankfully, it wasn’t a protected species, but it was still rare to see a fish of this size in a high-altitude wild water body.

There’s not as much food in wild streams as in man-made lakes, and there’s no fisherman feeding them; it’s quite uncommon to see a twenty-centimeter-long fish.

Knowing Chen didn’t eat fish, the little otter found a large rock by the water, climbed up, and began to show off its catch, occasionally looking up and calling out to Chen, as if urging him to hurry back and eat.

Otters rarely move around during the day. The other otter had been sleeping soundly in its burrow only to wake up to find its home taken.

After the little otter finished eating and cleaned its fur, it jumped into the water and swam towards the stolen burrow.

Another’s burrow would not be as comfortable as one made personally, so the little otter eagerly decided to tidy it up before settling in for a good sleep.

Seeing the little otter begin its diligent work, Chen didn’t disturb it and returned to the campsite downstream to tell Brother Chi and the others about what happened at the upstream lake and the otter’s battle.

“It’s a shame the footage isn’t clear; you can only see the splashing water and the fleeing otter’s silhouette.”

Ying Bo looked over Chen’s phone several times before reluctantly handing it back.

“What’s the matter, do you like this little guy?”

“Yeah, it’s very cute.”

“That’s nothing; if you have a chance, I’ll take you up north to see sables, especially the snow sables and purple sables; now, they are truly cute.”

“I think otters are pretty cute.” Ying Bo wasn’t too interested in the two small animals Chen mentioned, “Especially when it fights, the fearless look is particularly beautiful.”

Chen paused in surprise and chuckled; it seemed that Ying Bo was actually a proponent of martial valor.

Their current location was around 2300 meters in altitude.

This terrain was in a gradual uplift zone; the mountains might not look tall, but the peak was often above 4500 meters.

“Tomorrow morning, I’ll go up the mountain with Brother Chi to set up the infrared camera at around 3000 meters and also collect some plant samples. Ying Bo, you stay back and guard the tents but remember to ensure your safety first in case of danger.”

After checking their defensive equipment one more time, Chen and Brother Chi arranged their duty schedules and let Ying Bo go to sleep first.

Ying Bo’s duty at the camp might seem more relaxed, but it’s actually the most exhausting. He had to check for animal droppings, observe the movements of birds and small animals, and keep a lookout for predator attacks.

You could say it required staying on edge all day, a tremendous drain on his stamina.

To complete their survey as quickly as possible, they planned to set out early, reaching their destination before daylight.

After all, wildlife is most active at dawn and dusk; if they arrived late, all they would find would be droppings…

Soon after Chen and Brother Chi left, Ying Bo, who was sitting outside the tent rubbing his face and about to boil some water to cool for drinking, thought he heard something unusual with his sharp hearing.

It was still pitch dark around him; when he looked up, he could only dimly see the flickering of faint lights from Chen and Brother Chi as they climbed upward.

Ying Bo rubbed his ears, uncertain if he’s heard correctly, and his body, which was about to stand, shrank back down. He leaned against the tent door, vigilantly watching his surroundings.

He added some more dry wood to the fire, which flared up a bit, the crackling embers popping in the air, offering a small deterrence to any animals lurking in the dark.

They had thoroughly scouted the area the previous afternoon and were certain there were no traces of dangerous predators like wolves, leopards, and tigers; otherwise, they wouldn’t dare leave Ying Bo alone.

Ying Bo wasn’t faint-hearted; he took the ancestral waist knife from his backpack and laid it across his legs.

The waist knife provided more emotional reassurance than practical defense.

It was a reward his grandfather received from their clan when he was young, representing the identity and honor of a warrior.

For this mountain trip with Brother Chi and Chen, his grandfather entrusted him with this waist knife, hoping the spirits of the clan’s warriors would protect him and ensure his safe return.

He sat stiffly until dawn, and when the sun shone from the mountain peaks, dispelling the gloom of the woods, Ying Bo finally breathed a sigh of relief and stood up to stretch.

There were no signs of any formidable animals nearby; the sounds in the dark might have been small foraging animals or early-rising birds.

Ying Bo made a round of the camp to check thoroughly, then let out a breath of relief and casually thumped the tree beside him.

People scare easier than ghosts; one more night like this and he might scare himself to death.

Suddenly, he felt a shiver from deep within and slowly looked up, locking eyes with a pair of amber eyes just half a meter above his head.