To smoothly get through the later stages, 20 kilograms of game per day was the target Bi Fang set.
There was less than half a month until the perpetual darkness descended, roughly fifteen days, and during that time there could be another blizzard, combined with other unforeseen events, plus building a shelter; the actual days that one could go out hunting and gain a yield might only be about a week.
A healthy adult male typically consumes about three jin of food a day, which adds up to forty-five kilograms a month, and for three months, that would require at least one hundred thirty-five kilograms.
In the Arctic, this amount needed is even greater.
About one hundred fifty kilograms of food reserves would be relatively safe.
Two puffins, plucked of feathers, might not even amount to eight jin, or four kilograms, meaning today’s task was completed by less than one-quarter. Find your next read at Freewebnovel
[Isn’t this too difficult? Twenty kilograms, I couldn’t finish that much meat in a month]
[But you don’t eat meat as your staple food]
[Not all of it can be eaten, like bones with attached meat, and lean meat, eating lean meat in the Arctic is definitely a losing business, right?]
[I finally understand why Master Fang didn’t get bitten by sharks when he was surviving at sea, it’s because he had too much lean meat, eating more of it and you could starve to death (jokingly)]
Continuing along the riverbank, Bi Fang frequently dug through the snow to check the conditions underneath.
When the frequency of moss on the ground noticeably increased, Bi Fang knew he was not heading in the wrong direction.
"Under the influence of Earth’s rotation, the entire world has a dominant wind pattern, meaning that most of the time, the wind is blowing in one direction."
"On Greenland, under the influence of air pressure belts and prevailing wind belts, the wind direction is from west to east. Isn’t someone checking the weather forecast? You can look at the weather forecast for the past week, see if it’s all westerly winds; even if not, they are mostly southwest or northwest winds."
Some of the more curious Shuiyou immediately left the live broadcast and searched for the weather forecast in Greenland, finding it to be true indeed.
Over the past week, and the coming one, more than half of the winds were westerly, with the remainder being southwest winds and a small portion of northwest winds; the main wind direction is westerly.
[Amazing]
[Impressive]
[What if you don’t know the wind direction?]
"If you can’t determine the wind direction based on geography and climate, that’s fine, look at the snow ridges." Bi Fang pointed at the high snow ridges on the distant snowfield.
Snow is stickier than sand grains, but under the action of the wind, it also forms dune-like snow mounds.
Under the force of prevailing winds, the ridges on the snow mounds, without exception, are neatly facing towards Bi Fang; this also means that Bi Fang is now in the leeward.
"The direction I’m walking in isn’t chosen at random; it’s partly following the river and partly following the direction of the wind."
Being leeward is disadvantageous for capturing animals, but it’s incredibly helpful for finding a forest.
"Do you remember what I said before? On the sea, small islands below a certain area are unlikely to grow trees, mostly shrubs, because the wind on the sea is too strong, and the saplings might get broken by the wind before they can grow."
"It’s the same in the Arctic, if a place wants to grow a forest, it must be a valley; only with mountain ranges to block the airflow can the trees grow normally."
"Following the wind direction, if there are even shorter ridges to block the fierce wind, plus a stream, flipping over, it’s very likely to be a forest."
[Couldn’t you go against the wind, in theory?]
[If you go upstream, the river and wind directions are inconsistent, reducing the criteria by one.]
[Oh, I remember now.]
"In fact, I saw a rising hill here before I set out this morning, and now we’re heading in its direction, not sure if we can reach it before dark."
Half an hour later, the appearance of a low hill confirmed that Bi Fang’s choice was very correct, and it was closer than he had previously estimated.
Bi Fang prepared to climb over the low hill with an excited heart, thinking that there must be a forest on the other side.
The wildlife management system in Greenland is outstanding; every year, people who get hunting licenses come here through various channels to hunt reindeer and Arctic musk oxen, which are also the main targets for hunters here.
All signs indicate that there is no shortage of large animals in the Arctic; if that were the case, they wouldn’t be able to sustain giant carnivores like polar bears.
"But before we climb over, we have one more thing we need to do."
Bi Fang looked at the obliquely setting sun in the distance. It was not at the highest point it had reached today, but had moved further on, coinciding with the peak of the day’s temperature, which was warmer than the day before, possibly above minus twenty degrees Celsius.
He began to strip off his clothes, removing his coat one piece at a time and then throwing it onto the snowy ground.
"Since we’re going against the wind, if we climb over, my scent might alert the animals. So, I need to take a bath before that, a snow bath."
"Trust me, the effect of a snow bath is quite remarkable. The porous structure of the snowflakes makes it a very absorbent material, effectively removing any odors."
Having said that, Bi Fang was now shirtless, proceeding to unbuckle his pants.
The skin was fully exposed to the cold air, and under the intense stimulation, capillaries began to flow more rapidly. Soon Bi Fang’s upper body turned a slight red, much like the flush one gets from drinking.
[Hiss, a bath?]
[Speaking of which, Old Fang indeed hasn’t bathed for a week (dog head).]
[Seems his body’s marinated at this point.]
[Bathing once a week in winter is normal, right? Not to mention in the Arctic (sweat).]
"Cherish this moment. Once the polar night arrives, the temperatures will drop even lower, making it even more challenging to find a suitable moment to bathe."
"Even though it’s the Arctic, when the temperature and weather allow, it’s still good to take a bath, and then bask in the sunlight. Ultraviolet rays and clean air have miraculous effects on the skin, body, and spirit."
Bi Fang took off the last piece of clothing, burying it in the snow, and with only shorts remaining, he dived directly into the snow, crawling and rolling around.
In the face of the cold environment, the human body produces heat in a short time by consuming glycogen through expanded capillaries.
During this process, brief exposure to the cold not only doesn’t feel cold but instead gives a sense of exhilaration.
Bi Fang grabbed a handful of snow, carefully scrubbing his body, making his skin turn red, feeling as refreshing as after a bath.
At this moment, exposed to sunlight and with no wind, Bi Fang could even feel a trace of warmth.
Ten minutes later, his body began to feel the cold. Bi Fang immediately climbed out of the snow, scattered the clinging snowflakes from his body, dug out the clothes he had buried earlier, and dressed from inside out, one piece at a time.
"Feels as if I’ve washed away the fatigue, feeling light." Bi Fang’s eyebrows rose with joy.
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