King of the Wilderness

Chapter 308: Chapter 205: Ecological Chain Slaughterhouse (Multiple Images, Highly Recommended)

One fish, two fish, ten fish, twenty fish... As more parts of the fishing net were pulled out of the water, the stunning scene became more complete.

Countless Arctic Red Spot Salmon, some weighing half a pound, others over a pound, frantically struggled and bounced within the net. Their silver scales reflected thousands of dazzling points of light under the grey-white sky.

Their writhing bodies slapped against the icy surface, creating a dense ”pop-pop-pop” sound that intertwined with the sound of wind and snow, composing a symphony of harvest.

Amidst this ”Milky Way” were several larger, darker silhouettes—three massive Lake Trout!

They were firmly trapped in larger net holes, their bodies writhing vigorously. Each struggle set off a tremor in the net, showcasing their incredible power.

Lin Yu’an exerted all his strength to pull the fishing net backward while his mind raced to comprehend the incredible scene before him.

His gaze swept over the fish caught in the net, and a crucial detail instantly enlightened him.

He noticed that most fish didn’t swim straight into the net from upstream but got caught at various chaotic angles; some from downstream swimming upstream, others entangled sideways!

Breathing heavily, he explained to the camera intermittently: ”Guys... the trap I created might have turned into a chaotic slaughterhouse!”

When the last part of the fishing net was finally pulled onto the ice, Lin Yu’an released the rope.

On the fifteen-meter-long stinging net, almost every viable grid contained a fish. In an instant, the ice surface was covered in a layer of still-leaping silver.

He didn’t cheer immediately; instead, he blinked and locked his gaze firmly on the haul before him. Walking step by step along the edge of the net, his eyes repeatedly scanned every detail within the net.

He needed to confirm and verify with his eyes the crazy theory that flashed in his mind as he collected the net.

”Look here.” He crouched down, extended his fingers, white at the knuckles from exertion, to brush aside a still-bouncing Red Spot Salmon, revealing a tighter entangled white fish below.

”And this white fish, its scales have been embedded into its flesh by the netting, its gill covers jammed tight. It was clearly among the first to hit the net, and its struggle marks are completely different from the surrounding Red Spot Salmon.”

Lin Yu’an stood up, walked a few steps forward, crouched again, and pointed to another scene that made his pupils contract.

”And this.” He pointed to a Red Spot Salmon caught in the net, its twisted mouth still clutching the tail fin of a half-eaten white fish!

”It crashed into the net while attacking that already trapped white fish, moving so fast it didn’t have time to swallow its prey.”

”These are all evidence of chain predation. Everything started with my Scent Bomb. It attracted the first victims, those sharp-nosed white fish and other small bottom-dwelling fish. They were the first to crash into the net, getting caught there.”

”Their dying struggles and released pheromones were like countless bait emitting alarms in the water! Coupled with my Scent Bomb, then came Act Two...”

He pointed at several tightly wrapped, noticeably smaller white fish and continued explaining: ”Then, groups of Arctic Red Spot Salmon, stimulated by this dual trigger, completely ignited their predatory instincts! They plunged into a frenzy of competitive feeding!”

”In this state, the intelligence of the fish school drops sharply, with aggression and competitiveness overshadowing everything. Their target was those white fish already caught in the net, easily accessible!”

”As they recklessly charged in to snatch these feasts, amidst the impact and chaotic pushing, they too plunged headlong into this almost invisible stinging net!”

”One Red Spot Salmon would get caught, and its struggles would further exacerbate the chaos in this water area, releasing more stress signals that attracted more of its kind into this crazy cycle!”

His gaze finally fell on those massive Lake Trout, a hint of excitement appearing on his face.

”And when the number of Red Spot Salmon on this wall reached its peak, the ultimate ’harvesters’ appeared! These big guys—the Lake Trout, attracted by the unprecedented, high-density school of Red Spot Salmon in this water area.”

”For them, this was a grand buffet! When they opened their jaws to charge at the immobile Red Spot Salmon caught in the net, their fate was sealed!”

”So, it wasn’t just over forty fish that happened to crash into the net; it was a perfect predator-prey trap developed from big fish eating little fish!”

Lin Yu’an continued to survey the scene, continually confirming his theory. He noticed many Red Spot Salmon had fresh bite marks and scratches left by other fish, marks only left during intense competition within a high-density fish school.

Some fish didn’t hit the net headfirst but were violently pushed by their chaotic companions, squeezed sideways into the grid, stuck motionless.

Then, his steps halted before those massive Lake Trout. The visual impact brought by these big guys was unmatched.

The largest one, with its giant mouth lined with fine reverse barbs, was fiercely biting into the belly of a Red Spot Salmon.

The Red Spot Salmon’s body had been bitten through, with dark red innards and fish blood seeping out from the wound, staining the surrounding ice a small patch of murky red.

This Lake Trout’s head had passed through several stretched-out net holes, but its broad gill covers and thick pectoral fins were tightly squeezed by the tough nylon lines. Every time it struggled, the nylon cut into its flesh.

”Predator-prey trap...” Lin Yu’an murmured to himself, his voice so low it was almost inaudible.

He reached out, touching the icy body of the Lake Trout, feeling the realness through the gloved fingertips.

This made his emotions incredibly intense! As if he saw the championship throne beckoning to him again!

After a long while, he slowly stood straight, not looking at the camera immediately but closing his eyes, taking a deep breath of the air mixed with blood and snow scent.

A few seconds later, he opened his eyes, facing the camera. There was no ecstatic smile on his face but an almost dazed, disbelief expression.

He seemed to want to say something, but opening his mouth, he only let out a meaningless soft laugh, then shook his head as if mocking his previous worries and tensions.

”Guys, I did it! I really did it!” He repeated, this time in a much louder voice, full of unshakable certainty!

All the suppressed tension, anxiety, and uncertainty about the future were utterly shattered at this moment by the scene before him!

He started to laugh, initially just a slight curl of his mouth, but then the smile grew larger, spreading uncontrollably across his entire face.

Laughing, laughing, he finally jerked his head up!

He spread his arms, as if to embrace this ice-sealed world, then the emotion built up to its peak, finally burst into a roar echoing across the icefield!

”Ah—!!!”

In that roar were the exhaustion from draining physical strength, the tension of risking everything, the ecstasy of a plan succeeding, and the satisfaction of conquering nature and mastering destiny!

He had won; these over forty fish, rich in quality protein and fat, were his strongest guarantee for survival in this ice-sealed world for the coming days.

He never again needed to worry about food and fat, having won the greatest benefit that would sustain him here for many days through a perfect gamble, albeit at the cost of all his Hairy Scale Fish!

————

(2:03, today’s update is here, a bit late.)

(4 days left until the draw, remember to vote for the monthly ticket to qualify for the phone draw. You can also receive a Survival Bracelet for 15 monthly votes. Magnesium Rods are quite fun; I’ve successfully sparked a fire.)