The Evolutionary Path of the Lion

Chapter 45 Machinery

The three paw prints, deep enough to penetrate the sand, exceeded the depth to which any known large feline would indent in its natural state.

The weight of the claw, amplified by heat, doesn't leave claw marks in the sand; it's a matter of physics.

Chen Fei didn't spend much time considering this matter.

He turned and walked towards his spot. After taking a dozen steps, he heard Big Head's heavy footsteps following behind him. Big Head walked up to him and stood side by side.

After walking for a while, it stretched its head over and nuzzled Chen Fei's shoulder.

Chen Fei walked on, without stopping or pushing it away.

The wind on the grassland comes from the east, blowing the low grass into waves. Wildebeest herds move slowly in the distant morning light. The grassland is still the same grassland.

In the northeast corner, three guns lay quietly in the grass, their chambers still unused.

The vultures were the first to arrive.

When the first one landed, the sky in the northeast corner was still a clear blue.

By the time the fifth and sixth came circling down, the sky was no longer clean.

Chen Fei lay on the sandstone platform on the east side, his super vision fully extended, and could see the area three kilometers away clearly.

The way vultures land is quite interesting. They don't just swoop down; instead, they circle above their target again and again, each circle lower than the last, as if repeatedly confirming that the thing really hasn't moved.

Occupational disease.

Chen Fei mentally evaluated them.

He had seen this scene countless times in BBC documentaries in his previous life, but seeing it with his own eyes was a different story.

The vulture's feathers reflected a matte sheen in the sunlight high in the sky. Its wingspan was larger than he had imagined when it was spread out. The moment it landed, its wings folded back cleanly, like an umbrella being closed.

The first one landed, and the rest followed.

The bushes obscured the rest of the scene.

Chen Fei's ears twitched, catching faint tearing sounds and occasional shouts and squabbles in the distance.

He did not approach.

There's no need to get close; scavengers do this better than any cleaner, so he doesn't need to be involved or supervise them.

All he needs is time.

The grassland got warm in the afternoon.

The spot is backed by low shrubs, sheltered by grass on three sides, and has a wide view to the east. This terrain provides it with a shady spot where it can barely breathe in the midday heat of the grassland.

Sel lay on the edge of the bushes, her chin resting on her front paws, while the stingy little devil curled up asleep on her belly.

When the little rascal sleeps, his mouth moves slightly, as if he's chewing something, and his four little paws occasionally curl up and then relax.

Sel's tail slowly swept across the sand, pushing away the pebbles and dead leaves around the stingy creature. The movements were small, but they never stopped.

Chen Fei returned from the east side, walked to Sair's side, and lay down three steps away from her.

Sel looked up and glanced at him.

There was something in that look in his eyes; it wasn't a question, but more like confirmation.

Chen Fei lowered his head for a moment, then raised it again.

Sel put his chin back on his front paws.

The little miser stirred on its side, letting out a faint, almost inaudible whimper, and then fell silent again.

Big Head emerged from behind the bushes, something dangling from his mouth.

It was half a bone that had been picked up from somewhere, with no remaining flesh on it, white and clean, probably the remains of some wildebeest left behind during the last dry season.

It carried the bone in its mouth, walking with an air of inexplicable pride, its tail held high, and every three steps it would raise its head, as if showing off some major victory.

It walked to the center of the landing spot, put the bone down, pressed it down with its front paws, and began to gnaw.

I took two bites, but it had no taste.

It raised its head, looked around, and found that no one was paying attention to it.

Sel closed his eyes.

The stingy guy is sleeping.

Chen Fei was looking northeast.

Big Head lowered his head, picked up the bone, changed his angle, and started gnawing on it again.

It still has no taste.

It put down the bone, pushed it with its paw, and the bone rolled half a circle on the sand before stopping.

Big Head stared at the bone for about ten seconds, then picked it up, walked to Chen Fei's side, and pushed the bone to Chen Fei's front paw.

Chen Fei looked down at the bone fragment, then looked up again.

Big Head waited for a while, and seeing that the other party did not react, he took the bone back and went to find the stingy guy.

The stingy one is sleeping and has no interest in the bones.

Big Head carried the bone back to the back of the bushes. The sound disappeared for about fifteen minutes before it reappeared, its mouth empty. The thick scab on the old wound on its left shoulder gleamed with a dark brown sheen in the sunlight. When it walked, its right side still weighed slightly more than its left, but its limp had narrowed somewhat compared to three days ago.

It found a spot next to Chen Fei, lay down, yawned, and started to sleep.

Meimei returned from patrol in the afternoon.

She circled around from the south side of the landing site, walking a little faster than when she started. When she reached the western edge of the landing site, she stopped next to a rock, pulled her hind legs together, and sat down.

She didn't lie down to rest immediately, but instead tilted her head to the south and twitched her nose a few times.

Chen Fei turned his ear in her direction.

The scent that Meimei brought back from the south was mixed in with her fur and could only be identified at close range—a hyena.

It wasn't a large group, but rather scattered individuals, possibly scouts who had been active on the southern edge of the territory.

Chen Fei got up, walked to Mei Mei's side, and sniffed her scent.

The hyena was coming from the southeast. The scent was not fresh; it had been there about three or four hours ago.

Meimei turned her head and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, her tail twitching slightly.

Chen Fei looked to the south side for a moment, then returned to his original position.

The hyena reconnaissance activity on the south side has been intermittent since it was confirmed by Ch40 night vision; it is not a new situation and does not require immediate action.

But it's important to remember that it's still there.

What truly helped him get back on his feet was the change in wind direction at dusk.

The wind on the grassland will change direction once between afternoon and evening. This is driven by thermal circulation. It is not a special weather phenomenon, but a routine occurrence that happens every day.

The east wind turned into a northerly wind.

Something brought by the northerly wind made his nasal passages pause for a moment.

The smell of machinery.

It's not the kind of smell that any animal on the grassland could produce; it has a metallic smell and some kind of volatile liquid—it's fuel oil!

Three kilometers away, in the north direction.

The location is roughly the same in direction as the area where the poachers were located in the northeast corner.

Chen Fei stood on the eastern edge of the landing spot, his nose pointing north, trying to dissect the scent.

The smell of fuel means machinery, machinery means vehicles, and vehicles mean—

He was no ordinary passerby.

Ordinary tourists and passing caravans wouldn't go in that direction; there are no roads or water sources in that area, and in the experience of grassland guides, it's a worthless blank space.

Only one type of person will go that way.

They are looking for something.

[Host: Chen Fei]

[Identity: Sub-adult male lion]

[Energy Points: 861↑]

His super vision began to show slight color shifts in the evening light. The night vision system had not yet fully taken over and was in the window of transition between the two systems. The image three kilometers away had a thin layer of graininess.

But it's clear enough.

A thin trail of dust rose on the northeastern horizon.