Chapter 261: The Clever Da Hei
At this moment, the way Da Hei and the pack of dogs were behaving was extremely similar to a wolf pack hunting.
Because the running speeds of wolves and dogs are basically the same, when a wolf pack chases prey and cannot immediately catch up, they simply keep running after them.
This is because wolves are animals with incredible endurance!
According to old hunters, a wolf can run dozens of miles on an empty stomach without any problem at all.
Furthermore, wolves generally only carry out the final kill when they are absolutely certain of success.
Wang An and his two companions were completely exhausted, so they could only walk as fast as they could.
Wang Li panted heavily as he walked, saying, "Brother Si-si, what... what's going on today? How can these roe deer run like this?"
Based on the footprints, the three of them deduced that the pack of dogs had encountered a herd of roe deer and were chasing them; they hadn't even considered that it might be deer.
Mu Xueli wasn't so exhausted that she lost her will to bicker. "Right? This is freaking killing me."
Wang An didn't even glance at the two of them. Holding his breath, he spoke quickly, "Both of you shut up, or you'll lose your breath."
After a while, once Wang An had taken several deep breaths, he added, "Fuck, this is freaking exhausting!"
Meanwhile, the pack of dogs continued their pursuit, and the distance between the three groups of dogs gradually widened.
The deer were currently on a half-slope between a ridge and a hollow, and Da Hei and the other eight dogs were in the same position.
Four yellow dogs had begun running along the ridge, while three green dogs crossed the hollow and ran along the half-slope on the other side.
In the mountains, the ridges are the most suitable for running and walking, whether for humans or animals, because there are fewer trees and thinner snow.
In the hollows, not only are the trees denser and the snow deeper, but the fallen leaves beneath the snow are also thick, and the temperature is slightly higher than on the half-slopes and ridges.
Deer, like roe deer, are very timid and easily frightened.
Therefore, when they panic, they always dive into the forests or shrubbery.
In truth, if they ran along the ridges, the dogs would never catch up, but that is their nature—they always prefer to hide or conceal themselves.
The four yellow dogs, running along the ridge, grew faster and faster.
As the deer herd ran, they came upon an area of dense forest and shrubs; such places are common in the woods and can be found everywhere.
Previously, when the dogs chased the deer and encountered such areas, the deer would detour up to the ridge and then come back down.
This time, the deer herd wanted to detour upward again, but there were now four yellow dogs running on the ridge.
Deer are very intelligent animals, so since they couldn't pass through the dense forest and shrubs, they ran toward the hollow.
At that moment, Da Hei let out a few "Woof woof woof woof" barks. The four yellow dogs continued along the ridge without hesitation, completely ignoring the deer herd that had run into the hollow.
Da Hei and the other eight dogs continued to chase from behind. A few seconds later, the deer herd and the eight dogs ran straight into the hollow.
Then, Da Hei barked "Woof woof woof woof" again. The three green dogs, who had been on the left half-slope, shifted slightly down the slope and continued forward.
Whether it was the deer or the dogs, their speed slowed down once they were in the hollow, because the snow and the fallen leaves beneath it were thick and soft.
However, it must be said that even in the hollow, the deer were still faster than the dogs.
Finally, Da Hei and the eight dogs chased the deer herd past the area of dense forest and shrubs.
When the deer herd tried to leave the hollow and return to the slope, there were three green dogs on the left slope, and now four yellow dogs had appeared on the right slope.
The four yellow dogs that had been running on the ridge had long since come down and occupied the path on the slope.
Helpless, the deer herd could only continue running in the hollow.
Da Hei barked "Woof woof woof woof" once more. After he finished, Er Hei and San Hei ran up the left slope.
Subsequently, Da Hei led five puppies up the right slope.
However, Da Hei's barking became more frequent, letting out a couple of "woofs" from time to time.
Thus, the deer herd ran through the deep snow of the hollow, with three green dogs on the left slope and four yellow dogs on the right slope.
On the back-left slope were two black dogs, and on the back-right slope, one large and one small black dog led four spotted dogs.
And so, following the previous incident where the dogs drove a herd of pigs, another even more eerie scene played out in these mountains: a pack of dogs driving a herd of deer.
It was unclear how long the deer and dogs had been running; they simply kept going.
Comparatively, the deer herd was at a great disadvantage because the dogs were running where the snow was shallow, while the deer were running where it was deep.
Although deer can run and are fast, the difficulty of running in such deep snow, with thick layers of leaves underneath, was unimaginable.
Moreover, a deer's legs are very thin, and they are ungulates.
Consequently, the deer herd grew slower and slower, while Da Hei barked "Woof woof woof woof" occasionally, ensuring his companions maintained the same speed as the deer.
It had to be said that Da Hei was becoming increasingly intelligent, actually being able to lead the pack in this method of surround-hunting.
In comparison, a pack of dogs with Da Hei in it was basically identical to a wolf pack's hunting style.
In reality, although dogs are perceptive of human nature, they are far less intelligent than wolves when it comes to hunting.
Wolves are born hunters, whereas dogs have been domesticated.
Furthermore, while it is simple for a dog to transition into a hunting dog, becoming a hunting dog like Da Hei is truly no easy feat.
If an old hunter saw Da Hei doing this, he would certainly believe Da Hei was a wolf rather than a dog.
As for Wang An and his two companions, they had stopped running because they were completely spent; they were now just walking at a normal pace.
Wang An said, "To hell with it, whatever happens, happens. I'm not running anymore. If I run any longer, I'll drop dead from exhaustion."
"Yeah, this sprint was too much! I really can't take it," Mu Xueli said, pursing her dry lips.
Wang Li was beyond words and simply trudged forward in silence.
In these mountains, basically at the edge of every hollow—specifically in the higher parts of the hollow—there is a gully carved out by rainwater.
These gullies vary in depth, and many contain water, and in that water, there are fish.
In these mountains, wherever there is water, there is a 99% chance there are fish.
Of course, in this season, the water had long since frozen into ice.
Then, the pack of dogs chasing the deer herd ran smoothly right into one of these gullies at the edge of the hollow.
The gully wasn't particularly deep, only about one to two meters.
However, this depth was measured from the surface of the snow, so once the deer herd ran in, they were perfectly trapped.
Da Hei hadn't known about this situation either, so he watched with wide eyes as the deer herd ran into the snow pit, leaving only their heads and backs exposed.
Then, Da Hei was bewildered and began barking wildly at the deer.
A few puppies standing at the edge of the gully tried to jump down, but they were scared back by a few of Da Hei's roars.
Immediately following that, the entire pack of dogs began barking at the deer trapped in the snow pit.