Chapter 59: The Pigeon Caught in the Net Was Eaten

Hunting large eagles might sound thrilling, but in reality, only those who have done it know how tedious it is. From setting up the nets until before nine o'clock, and staying until twelve-thirty noon, not a single large eagle was spotted in the crisp autumn sky.

At this time, there were no entertainment devices like mobile phones. Yue Feng peered through the gaps in the pine-needle roof to observe the surroundings. Once he was certain there was no raptor activity nearby, he crawled out of his shelter.

He stretched his arms and legs, then went to the bushes behind to relieve himself. After taking care of his personal business, Yue Feng slung his bag over his shoulder and wandered off to check the other four auto-drop nets.

The first three nets showed no movement, but from a distance, he noticed something happening at the last one.

As Yue Feng approached, he found that the net panel on the southern side had fallen, but there was no eagle in the net bag. The pigeon tied in the middle of the net had been eaten by something unknown; the pigeon's head, neck, and breast meat had been completely devoured, leaving nothing but a floor covered in feathers and a skeletal spine devoid of flesh.

This was the downside of using auto-drop nets to hunt eagles. When a person isn't present, it saves effort, but it comes at a price. Besides raptors, animals like bobcats, foxes, or other small predators would scavenge the bait.

Yue Feng took another spare pigeon from his backpack, tied it on, rehung the net panel, added some fresh water to the bait in the middle, and then returned to his shelter.

He waited again, but there was no movement for the entire afternoon.

Time passed unnoticed until it was around 4:30 PM. Just as Yue Feng thought the day was a wash, Hula, perched on the pole at the entrance of the shelter, suddenly became tense.

In a relaxed state, Hula was actually quite a lively bird; when idle, it would preen its feathers, smooth its plumage, or peck at the rope around its neck out of boredom—all normal behaviors.

But at this moment, Hula went from perfectly normal to suddenly tucking its wings and retracting its neck, sitting motionless on the pole as if encountering a natural enemy.

With just one glance at Hula, Yue Feng knew something was happening. He peered through the gaps in the shelter toward the sky.

About seventy or eighty meters up in the air, a dark shadow could be seen circling overhead.

Because of the backlight and the great distance, it was normal not to be able to see the eagle's patterns or colors. Forget the human eye; even a mobile phone camera would likely produce poor results unless adjusted to professional mode.

Seeing this, Yue Feng immediately pulled the bait in the middle of the net with one hand and gripped the net-pulling rope tightly with the other.

The state of tension lasted for about ten minutes before Hula returned from its defensive, neck-tucked posture to a relaxed state.

Yue Feng knew the eagle in the sky had likely flown far away.

This was a common occurrence when hunting large eagles. The Goshawk is actually a forest-dwelling raptor, usually active within the woods; it only takes to the high altitudes on thermal currents during migration seasons.

When hungry, a Goshawk in the high sky might dive down to hunt, but since it isn't their primary hunting method, the number of times they lock onto prey to attack is far fewer than the total number of passing raptors.

As the sun began to set, around five o'clock, Yue Feng decided to head down the mountain. The mountain wind was cold at night, and there was still a long way to go home, so he had to leave early.

Yue Feng removed the bait and took the bait out of two of the nets.

Many animals are active in the mountains at night, from small weasels to large badgers, all of whom would mess with the bait. Therefore, Yue Feng would not leave all the pigeons overnight on the mountain.

He left two baits and took two away; this ensured the risk was controlled while allowing him to try his luck early in the morning, as dawn is a prime hunting window for raptors.

With good luck, he might arrive on the mountain to find a large eagle caught in an auto-drop net, allowing him to complete his task early and head straight home.

At four in the morning the next day, Yue Feng rose early and headed up the mountain. He didn't even eat breakfast, just grabbed a few steamed buns and some pickles from the stove to serve as his lunch for the day.

By the time he reached the top of Hutou Mountain, it was already broad daylight. From over ten meters away, Yue Feng saw the site of the auto-drop net he hadn't collected last night. The four surrounding nets had not been triggered, but the bait tied inside had been eaten again!

It was the exact same "crime scene" as yesterday: a large patch of pigeon feathers on the ground and the remaining scraps of carcass.

Damn! What kind of ghost is targeting my bait!

Yue Feng could accept the net falling without catching anything or the bait being scavenged—after all, auto-drop nets aren't infallible, and it was normal for them to fail to hold certain things once triggered.

But all four nets were perfectly intact, forming a tight perimeter, yet the bait in the middle had been ravaged in the exact same way!

With five-finger-wide mesh, small animals like weasels could barely squeeze through, but the probability of them entering and exiting without triggering the nets was too low.

Yue Feng cleaned up all the feathers and remains on the ground, took the last spare pigeon from his backpack, and tied it on. After checking everything to ensure nothing was missed, he walked toward the next auto-drop net where he had left bait.

From a distance, Yue Feng saw that the net had been triggered; an eagle was tangled in the net on the ground.

Yue Feng's heart leaped with joy as he hurried forward.

As he approached, he discovered a large, old Common Buzzard, weighing over three and a half catties with brownish-yellow feathers, tightly entangled in the net.

This large buzzard's scientific name is *Buteo*, a closely related species to the ordinary buzzard that Zhu Erhai had traded a goose for, but it was a size larger. Judging by the color of its feathers, Yue Feng estimated this "big treasure" was likely over five years old.

As an eagle hunter, Yue Feng knew deeply how difficult it was for these raptors to survive in the wild.

In later years, Yue Feng had seen foreign statistics: the probability of a juvenile raptor leaving the nest and surviving its first winter to molt its juvenile feathers was less than half; the probability of surviving three years, establishing a territory, and finding a permanent mate was less than 10%.

The vast majority of raptors were eliminated by the cruelty of nature. Those who could survive to four or five years old were the elite of the elite within their species.

It was because of the love and awe he held in his heart for these beautiful creatures that, even though this large buzzard weighed three or four catties and could provide a meat meal for his family if slaughtered, Yue Feng had no intention of killing it to take home.

An adult "big treasure" like this, if released back into the mountains, could produce a brood of chicks every year. The death of every adult bird was a loss to the natural ecosystem.

Although Yue Feng loved money, and although his family's life had only just begun to improve, his original intention of loving raptors had never changed. He would only take what was necessary and cause no unnecessary destruction.

Putting on his gloves, he removed the eagle net from the buzzard's body. After checking to ensure there were no injuries, Yue Feng gripped the buzzard's two talons, lifted the bird, and threw it forcefully into the air.

(End of Chapter)