Why Do All the Beasts Want Me?

Chapter 11

Eating, while it sounds easy, is actually far from simple when searching for food in the vast Arctic.

Qiao Qixi had been hungry before; for instance, right now, they had spent a long time traversing the coniferous forest, heading towards the last ice-covered sea.

Here, they encountered more and more polar bears busily foraging for food.

With the ice no longer very thick, a polar bear could stand up and smash its paw down to create an ice hole, then grab the prey beneath the ice.

Even Audiss couldn't easily catch something.

He broke a sheet of ice, but the prey escaped, and he chased it all the way until it swam into the deep, ice-free sea and made its getaway.

Qiao Qixi stretched his neck; he had no way to navigate this vast expanse of white ice and surging seawater.

Audiss stared blankly in the direction the prey had gone, breathing slightly, but he quickly reoriented himself and continued to search for other prey.

The seawater, about to engulf this area, crisscrossed the ice, and two hungry polar bears advanced with wet limbs.

Qiao Qixi noticed a dark shadow on a rather distant ice floe opposite them—it was definitely a Seal.

But it was a bit far.

If they swam over with great effort and the other party ran away, it would truly be a futile effort.

Audiss apparently shared his thought; although he stopped to gaze at the Seal across the way, he made no further move.

Perhaps the Seal on the other side had also spotted them, but due to the distance, the two could only stare at each other from afar, each complaining silently in their minds.

Seal: You little rascal, if you dare come over, I'll make you run for nothing.

polar bear:

Generally, polar bears act rather than talk; if they find they can't act, they turn and leave—after all, this isn't the only Seal in the Arctic.

That's right.

Qiao Qixi, with great backbone, carried his little yellow bucket and followed Audiss's graceful steps, continuing to search for other prey on the ice.

As he walked, he realized that he and Audiss had almost circled around the Seal.

This position made it easier to approach the Seal without startling it.

Audiss submerged himself in the water, and Qiao Qixi waited obediently on the shore, not making a sound.

On the deep blue sea, a polar bear silently swam towards the opposite bank.

The Seal sunbathing did not notice the danger quietly approaching.

The cunning and calm polar bear, during the hunt, came ashore from the snowdrift behind him, then poked out most of his body.

The restless sea provided the polar bear with an opportunity to hide himself, and he had enough patience to wait for the opportune moment.

The Little Polar Bear in the distance, at this critical moment, didn't even dare to twitch an ear.

He held his breath, like a sculpted bear, watching the battle from afar.

Eating or going hungry—it all depended on this moment.

If he could catch that considerably heavy Seal, Qiao Qixi swore he would eat two more bites of greasy fat.

Yes, this was a male Seal, weighing almost double that of a female Seal.

A polar bear needs to eat at least 40 Seals to survive a year.

If they could catch it during this last short period before the glaciers melted, Audiss and Qiao Qixi would be at ease.

Relying on the energy provided by this Seal, they could endure until winter without so much hardship.

Audiss was always very patient when hunting prey; it was still far from what he considered the right moment, but a small interlude occurred: he smelled the scent of another polar bear.

An uninvited guest, before he arrived, Audiss prematurely ended his observation period and finally launched an attack on the sunbathing Seal.

The other party heard the movement, immediately flicked his tail and plunged into the sea, Audiss followed him closely, diving into the seawater together.

Of course, the Seal was more agile in swimming, and Audiss easily lost his chance in underwater combat.

However, he still bit the Seal, and as he shook his head, his entire fur formed a swaying state in the water.

Due to water resistance, the polar bear's power exerted underwater would be affected, so he desperately pulled the prey towards the shore.

At this point, his thick limbs played a significant role; as long as the Seal's body was bitten, it was difficult for him to swim away.

On the shore, Qiao Qixi waited anxiously.

Audiss had gone underwater, making it difficult to observe the situation below, which made him uneasy.

Suddenly, the uninvited guest that Audiss had anticipated arrived late.

Its appearance startled the Little Polar Bear on the shore, because at this very moment, the distance between them might be less than 50 meters.

This was a rather dangerous distance.

So Qiao Qixi, after a brief consideration, chose to sprint and jump into the sea, swimming towards Audiss.

Audiss, who was hunting, burst out of the water with a splash, holding the still-not-quite-dead prey in his mouth.

The giant polar bear, soaking wet, immediately killed the prey after coming ashore.

Then he pinned it under his paw before looking up to check on the cub.

However, he did not find the familiar figure on the shore; instead, he saw a strange polar bear.

Audiss was not surprised; he quickly glanced away from the other polar bear and then stared intently at the Little Polar Bear swimming in the seawater.

The yellow plastic bucket on Qiao Qixi's head was exceptionally conspicuous on the deep blue sea, resembling a beautiful scenic line.

He swore he had never swum so fast before.

And the reason he swam so fast was not because there was food ahead, although he was indeed quite hungry.

The reason he swam so swiftly was because if he didn't swim faster, he would become food for that strange polar bear.

Audiss shook the seawater off his body, and after confirming that Qiao Qixi could swim over by himself, he refocused his attention on the other polar bear.

At this moment, his aura was exceptionally domineering.

As if speaking to the invading polar bear across the air, 'This place is already taken, get away from here, and I won't kill you with my bite.'

Animals with keen senses distinguish friend from foe through scent, and at the same time, they can also discern the strength of the other party through scent.

That polar bear knew Audiss was young and strong, so he didn't dare to act rashly, but the smell of blood tantalized the hungry polar bear, making him very covetous.

He didn't leave, perhaps he was waiting for a feast abandoned by the other party.

But he didn't even consider that this male Seal was enough for Audiss's family to eat for several meals.

In this season of scarce food, Audiss would not possibly eat only one meal and then abandon this Seal.

The saying 'looking at the mountain makes the horse run to death' is not an exaggeration to describe Qiao Qixi's current situation.

Seeing Audiss swim so easily, he thought he could do it too.

But he couldn't.

It's not that he couldn't keep going, he was just tired.

Qiao Qixi effortlessly raised his paws, took off the little bucket from his head, turned it upside down, and the hollow bucket became a natural buoyancy artifact, used to support his chin.

Although this seemed insignificant for his weight as a bear, it could at least lighten his burden a little.

Anyway, it was better than wearing it on his head to no avail.

Audiss probably would have been anxious to death seeing such a dawdling cub.

He would have wished he could jump into the water himself and carry the Little Polar Bear over.

If Qiao Qixi were to say, he and Audiss—one slow-paced, the other fiery—could live in peace purely because of their language barrier.

Otherwise, Audiss would educate him every day, making a perfectly good home restless.

On this side, Audiss waited patiently for a while.

The dawdling Little Polar Bear and his plastic bucket slowly arrived at the shore.

Qiao Qixi first tossed the bucket up, then lifted his legs to climb ashore.

Before entering the sea, he was a pure white and handsome Little Polar Bear; after entering the sea, he was a gasping white rag, looking utterly disheveled.

The tired Qiao Qixi lay on the ice resting, and Audiss, worried about him, came over to sniff his nose.

The large paw, capable of stunning a Seal with one blow, gently pressed on the Little Polar Bear with restraint.

Qiao Qixi, lying on the ice floe, couldn't help but emit grunting sounds of enjoyment.

He knew Audiss wasn't massaging him; after all, where would a simple polar bear know about massage?

Seeing him so tired and giving him a health check or something... sigh, stop right there, but having his sore muscles pressed after swimming was indeed quite comfortable.

As for Audiss's true intention, it was probably to see if he was dead.

To prevent the other party from worrying, Qiao Qixi got up and shook off the water with a rustle.

Actually, he wasn't that tired.

It was just human inertia.

Before coming here, they had been fasting for a long time, and their bodies urgently needed food intake.

Audiss waited for the safe and sound Little Polar Bear, and he and the Little Polar Bear ate together; as usual, this giant polar bear always let the Little Polar Bear eat first, and he followed later.

This way, he could be vigilant of the surroundings, in case any special circumstances occurred.

Moreover, there was a polar bear with ulterior motives standing on the opposite bank, ready to swim over and snatch food at any time.

Qiao Qixi devoured his meal, and then it was his turn to stand guard while Audiss ate.

The mischievous Little Polar Bear, abandoning his usual naughtiness, became serious.

Because he was a bit worried that the remaining Seal meat would attract more polar bears to fight over it.

However, they were very lucky; their location was like an island in the middle of a lake, a place easy to defend and difficult to attack, a strategic point for military strategists.

Even if ten polar bears surrounded them, they could throw the prey out, letting those ten bears fight among themselves, while he and Audiss took the opportunity to slip away.

The polar bears in this icy land probably never dreamed that in their lifetime, they would encounter a polar bear who had studied sun tzu's art of war.

Qiao Qixi: Just read it, just read it.

Audiss ate very quickly and very much, because he was indeed hungry; he could eat 100 pounds of food in one go.

This is a polar bear in peak condition.

Moreover, Audiss is far from being in peak condition; his room for improvement is still considerable.

After eating enough food, the white giant bear licked the bloodstains from his mouth and his paws.

A polar bear's paws are very hard, but they can also be damaged, and if injured, they should be treated promptly.

Whenever Audiss finished hunting, Qiao Qixi would check his teeth, some conditions of his mouth, and his paws.

There had been such cases before.

A polar bear's paw was pierced by a thorn that was never removed, causing the entire paw to swell and fester, unable to heal.

As a cub with many bad habits, Qiao Qixi could freely inspect Audiss's paws, because Audiss had grown accustomed to his antics.

Although the other party didn't understand why the Little Polar Bear liked to bother his paws, he would still patiently indulge him.

But Audiss didn't like having his mouth checked; whenever Qiao Qixi tried to pry open his mouth with his paw, even if he didn't get angry at Qiao Qixi, he would still dodge.

For example, now, this full and energetic Little Polar Bear was extremely interested in his paws and mouth.

This made Audiss want to hide.

Unfortunately, the area of this ice floe was limited, so he couldn't hide.

To be honest, teeth and claws are so important to a polar bear's life; not only should they be checked after every hunt, but it would actually be better to brush them every day.

If possible, Qiao Qixi hoped Audiss would live longer, even if he couldn't hunt when old, he would still have him, a companion a few years younger.

He would work hard to hunt and provide for Audiss, so he needed to protect his teeth well.

There are no ready-made toothbrushes in the wild, but rubbing with the fur on a bear's paw can achieve a cleaning effect.

Seawater is a natural mouthwash and also has a sterilizing effect.

It only takes a few minutes each day to protect dental health and avoid the predicament of not being able to chew meat in old age.

The current situation is that, as a fake bear with thoughts, Qiao Qixi insists on brushing his teeth every day.

After relieving himself, he also rubs his butt on the snow, and daily rolling in the snow is also indispensable.

Under the constant harassment of this energetic Little Polar Bear, Audiss simply lay on his side on the ice, hugging his head and burying it in his belly.

Qiao Qixi was helpless against him and could only wait for the next opportunity.

Author's Note: I saw a reader say that the Little Polar Bear doesn't do anything now and just waits to be fed. Little Polar Bears are actually like that; they have to wait until they are three years old to hunt, and their milk teeth aren't even sharp yet. When he grows up, he will naturally become formidable.