The Evolutionary Path of the Lion

Chapter 54 Where Chen Fei is

Sandstone platform.

Chen Fei had already finished reading it.

The lights in their tents went out one by one twenty minutes ago, leaving only one night watchman's lamp still on. Its orange light shrank into a tiny dot in the darkness three kilometers away, as if the grassland had borrowed a bit of human presence and placed there as a decoration.

He didn't move on the sandstone platform.

Big Head was already asleep, his head resting on his back, and a small, even sound of airflow coming from his nose, very regular, about once every four seconds.

Chen Fei slowly turned his ears around, separating the different layers of sound in the night wind.

The wildebeest herd was about two kilometers to the northeast, quiet and showing no signs of breaking up.

The wandering armor's aura is stable in the northeast corner;

There were no abnormalities on the south side.

He brought all his senses back and mentally reviewed the day's events.

The survey team will change its route tomorrow.

He knew they would change.

Moving to the east side, with its open grassland, provides better conditions for deploying equipment. This is a reasonable choice for advancing, and he himself would have done the same.

The problem is that the east side is the main hunting ground, and his activity traces are most concentrated on this side.

The better the equipment they bring, the less room for error they have.

Chen Fei considered this variable in his mind for a moment, then put it aside, deciding not to rush into it.

They won't arrive until tomorrow, so he'll sleep tonight.

There's one thing on the grassland that Chen Fei has come to completely understand after living for so long:

Not every threat needs to be addressed tonight.

Most problems will still exist after a good night's sleep, but you'll be able to figure them out by then.

He rested his head on his front paws and closed his eyes.

I could hear Big Head breathing behind me, every four seconds, very steady.

The night wind blew in from the east, carrying the scent of wildebeest herds, the stench and damp heat of distant hyena packs, and the scorching heat of sandstone that had absorbed the sunlight all day and was now slowly releasing outwards.

Chen Fei identified each of the scents one by one, then placed them in the background and ignored them.

The night watchman's lamp, three kilometers away, was still lit.

He didn't look at it again.

[Host: Chen Fei]

[Identity: Sub-adult male lion]

[Energy Points: 876↑]

The next day, early morning.

The sky was not yet fully bright; there was only a thin orange line on the eastern horizon, like someone had struck a match at the edge of the grassland, which could go out at any moment.

Chen Fei has woken up.

When he got up, Da Tou was still asleep on the sandstone platform. Just now, when Chen Fei stood up, Da Tou's head slid off his back and hit the sandstone with a thud. Da Tou twitched his ears but didn't wake up.

Chen Fei glanced at him and walked away.

In the direction where they landed, Sel had already woken up. She was walking along the edge of the bushes with the little one. The cub circled around her front paws, then stepped on a dry branch with a snap, startled by its own movement. Sel glanced down at her and continued walking.

Meimei returned from the western meadow, her body smelling of dew. The morning mist had just dissipated, and her fur was a deep yellowish-brown in the morning light. She walked very steadily, always placing her feet down before shifting her weight, without swaying.

Chen Fei glanced at her, and Mei Mei was also looking at him. They exchanged glances for about a second, and then Mei Mei walked towards where she was going without stopping.

Chen Fei turned his gaze to the east.

There was already activity at the survey team's camp three kilometers away.

The generator was off, and the tent lights weren't on yet, but he could see figures.

Someone was walking around the perimeter of the camp; it was Kaller, who had been on watch until now. Kaller stood at the edge of the camp for a while, then went back, probably to wake the others.

We set off at 6:00 AM, advancing along the eastern side.

Chen Fei estimated the time; it was about 5:30.

They had about half an hour.

He glanced around the main hunting grounds to the east; the sandstone platform was just high enough for him to see the general terrain of the hunting grounds.

Low grasslands, scattered acacia trees, and two intersecting dry-season riverbeds still contain water, though not much, about three or four meters wide, but enough.

That area contains the wandering A and B, as well as the wildebeest skeleton I hunted last night.

That location is at the northernmost end of the eastern hunting grounds, clearly marked, and the traces are fresh. If the survey team advances from the east, they will most likely prioritize setting up equipment in that vicinity.

He turned and glanced at Big Head.

Big Head had just opened his eyes and was standing up groggily on the sandstone platform. He stepped on his front paws and almost fell down again. After finally regaining his balance, he tilted his head back, yawned, and revealed a set of small teeth that had not yet fully developed. He then glanced in Chen Fei's direction.

Chen Fei gestured to him, pointing towards the hunting grounds to the east.

Big Head blinked and began to try to understand the instruction.

He took about three seconds to understand, but still didn't quite grasp it. However, he displayed a well-trained professional spirit, took a step forward, and followed.

The main hunting ground on the east side, at the northern end.

Daylight had broken, and the sunlight pressed in from the east, turning the low grassland a golden-bronze color.

The wildebeest skeleton is there, left from last night after the vultures cleared the area. The ground around the skeleton is trampled and messy, with a ring of claw marks of varying depths and arcs left by vulture wings as they swept across the ground.

The wanderer A was lying on the low grass about thirty meters east of the skeleton, his gaze steady. He glanced at Chen Fei but did not get up.

Chen Fei stood on the west side of the skeleton, turned his gaze away from the skeleton, and glanced to the north.

The survey team's two off-road vehicles have already set off.

He could see the metallic reflection on the roof.

Two vehicles, traveling at a slow speed and about two hundred meters apart, were heading towards the northern end of the hunting grounds, one in front of the other.

Chen Fei stood still, without moving.

He doesn't need to move.

All he needed to do was see where they placed the first piece of equipment.

Big Head lay down next to him, resting his chin on the grass, his ears twitching as he listened to the engine of the off-road vehicle, his expression very serious, as if he were involved in something very important.

Then he smelled the scent of wildebeest skeletons.

His nostrils twitched.

The head slowly turned towards the skeleton.

There wasn't much meat left on the skeleton, just a pile of bones, but the smell was still there.

Big Head stood up.

Chen Fei didn't look at him.

Big Head moved two steps toward the skeleton.

Chen Fei still didn't look at him.

Big Head walked to the skeleton, sniffed it, and then began to use its paws to turn over the pile of bones, trying to find any parts still attached to the meat.

He turned the ribs off the skeleton one by one, scattering them on the ground and raising a small cloud of dust.

Not a single one.

He flipped the entire skeleton over, made sure it was clean, and then looked up with a very clear sense of regret in his expression.

Then he turned back to look at Chen Fei.

Chen Fei remained motionless, his eyes still fixed on the off-road vehicle to the north.

Big Head stood beside the skeleton for a while, then made an independent decision: since there was no food, he would rest. He lay down beside the skeleton, rested his head on the largest rib, and entered a semi-sleep state.

They used a wildebeest rib as a pillow.

Chen Fei glanced at the scene, his expression blank.

The SUV stopped at the northern end.

Marcus jumped out of the car and began unloading equipment from the trunk.

Ella stood beside the car, glanced at the surrounding terrain, noticed the wildebeest skeleton, took a few steps in that direction, squatted down, looked at the paw prints for a while, and then waved to Morris.

Maurice walked over and squatted down next to her.

Ella pointed to several claw marks next to the skeleton and said something, which Chen Fei couldn't hear, but he could see the gesture.

Ella traced the edge of the claw mark with her finger, then pointed to the west.

West side.

Chen Fei is currently on the east side, in the low grass about two hundred meters away from the skeleton, and has not moved.

His fur color was almost identical to the color of the low grass in the morning light.

Marcus has already set up the first instrument, pointing it directly east of the skeleton.

Then he paused, turned due west, and readjusted his angle.

It aimed at the direction of the low grassy area where Chen Fei was.