Song Wei’s days on the grassland were nothing short of carefree.
When hunting, she would take the wolf pups and Little Boss along.
Watching Little Boss eagerly retrieve the downed prey, the wolf pups quickly learned to imitate him.
Sometimes, several of them would charge forward with excited yelps, only to end up fighting among themselves before even bringing the prey back, forcing Song Wei to step in and separate them.
The little ones feasted on minced meat and drank goat’s milk, growing noticeably chubbier than before.
Their plump, pudgy bodies were especially satisfying to hold.
After meals, she would stroll over to the territory of the Pallas’s cat family.
The mother cat had already recovered enough to go hunting, and the kittens had grown increasingly familiar with Song Wei. At the sound of her call, they would scramble out of their burrow.
They’d wobble their way to Song Wei to eat, and after filling their bellies, they’d even roll over to expose their soft tummies for rubs.
When Song Wei took out a brush to groom them, the little ones were uneasy at first but soon grew to enjoy it.
Who wouldn’t love the feeling of being free of tangles?
Their initial discomfort was only because their loose fur was so matted that brushing hurt.
But once the knots were gone, it felt wonderful.
Even the mother cat now loved being groomed by Song Wei.
After spending some time with the Pallas’s cats, Song Wei would ride her horse wherever she pleased, as long as she could make it back by nightfall.
Lately, she’d been craving the taste of mutton.
If she couldn’t eat the sheep from the pastoral area, wild blue sheep would have to do.
She remembered that snow leopards particularly favored blue sheep, so there had to be some near the mother snow leopard’s territory.
Riding her horse in that direction, she spotted the blue sheep before she even got close.
On the steep cliffs, the blue sheep stood firmly, nimbly navigating the perilous terrain with effortless leaps.
Song Wei marveled at the sight.
The structure of their hooves was truly remarkable—they could hop along near-vertical cliffs without falling.
Perhaps because the mother snow leopard had left and the territory was no longer under threat, a surprising number of blue sheep had gathered there.
But what delighted Song Wei even more was the sight of a herd of wild yaks—massive creatures that promised an abundance of meat!
Since arriving in this world, she’d only eaten beef once.
Her eyes practically gleamed with excitement.
At this point, who cared about sheep?
The grassland was truly wonderful—it even had large herbivores like wild yaks!
Her usual slingshot was clearly inadequate for tackling such formidable prey.
She tucked it into her belt and instead picked up a large, jagged rock.
Domesticated cattle might seem docile, but that was only because they had nose rings.
Without them, an enraged bull could be far more destructive than a wild boar.
And these were wild yaks.
Cattle were actually hot-tempered herbivores, and on the grassland, wild yaks were nearly invincible thanks to their size and sturdy horns.
Even snow leopards and wolf packs hesitated to take on an adult yak within a herd—only lone stragglers were considered fair game.
The yaks paid Song Wei little attention as she approached, not even bothering to move.
But when she got close and provocatively hurled a small stone at one particularly robust adult male, the hot-tempered beast charged at her in fury.
With each thunderous step, the ground seemed to tremble.
As the yak barreled toward her, Song Wei braced one hand on its head, using the momentum to flip herself onto its neck. Then, gripping the rock tightly, she smashed it down with all her strength.
“MOOOO!!!”
The yak let out a pained bellow, drawing the attention of the rest of the herd.
Struck by the rock, the yak thrashed in pain, even ramming into nearby boulders in its frenzy.
Song Wei smashed down with the rock again.
This time, the stone in her hand split apart from the force.
“Sorry about this—I’ll make sure to enjoy every bite of your meat.”
Before the rest of the herd could even process what was happening, the massive yak collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.
The other yaks froze in shock.
Song Wei didn’t rush to haul the carcass away. Instead, she swiftly slit the yak’s throat to drain the blood, then retreated before the herd could react.
A shame she hadn’t brought a container to collect the blood—but leaving it to coagulate would ruin the meat’s flavor.
She wasn’t running out of fear, just avoiding unnecessary conflict with the rest of the herd.
The dead yak was a full-grown adult, weighing at least 700 to 800 kilograms.
Even after removing the organs, the sheer amount of meat would last her a long time.
She wasn’t greedy—even if she could take down a few more right now, this one was more than enough.
Most herbivores had fairly detached social bonds. Unless it was a mother protecting her calf, they rarely intervened when a predator attacked one of their own.
Animals like yaks and sheep would simply watch from a distance as their companions were hunted down, then carry on grazing once the danger passed.
The dead were quickly forgotten.
So Song Wei wasn’t worried.
Up on the cliffs, the blue sheep craned their necks, wide-eyed, like a bunch of curious onlookers.
The yaks nudged at their fallen companion, lowing in confusion over its sudden death.
Once they confirmed it was truly gone, they glanced around, failed to spot Song Wei, and promptly resumed grazing.
Soon enough, they even wandered off to another patch of grass.
After waiting a while, Song Wei emerged from her hiding spot and cheerfully dragged the yak’s carcass away.
It was heavy, but her excitement and strength made the weight feel trivial.
Along the way, the scent of blood attracted foxes, jackals, and even eagles circling overhead.
But would Song Wei let them have a bite?
Not a chance—she’d beat back any scavenger that dared approach. Any eagle bold enough to swoop down would find itself plucked bald!
“Let’s go, Dahei. Time to head home.”
There was no way Dahei could carry such a massive load, so Song Wei had to drag it the whole way.
A trail of small carnivores lurked behind them, sneaky but too wary to get close.
Since this area had once been the territory of snow leopards and wolves, no large predators were around.
Progress was slow—especially with such a hefty prize in tow.
But the promise of all that beef kept Song Wei patient.
She didn’t dare take the yak straight back to camp, not with all those scavengers tailing her. The blood trail would only lure more.
So she sent Dahei ahead to fetch help.
Tucking a note into a pouch strapped to the horse, she patted its rump.
“Go back to camp. Find Lin Zhen.”
Dahei was smart, but who knew if it really understood?
At the very least, it could find its way home.
Every so often, Song Wei paused to meticulously clean up the bloodstains left behind.
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