Mountain Looting: Targeted by a Leopard at the Start
Chapter 284 - 283: You Call This a Red-crowned Crane?

Chapter 284: Chapter 283: You Call This a Red-crowned Crane?

[Is this really a Red-crowned Crane? Old Xu, what kind of international joke are you making?]

Netizens exclaimed upon seeing the small bird in the bushes.

Red-crowned Crane chicks are quite small, with brownish feathers that make them look almost like chicks.

They look nothing like Red-crowned Cranes.

So when Xu Yang said it was a Red-crowned Crane chick, the netizens were skeptical.

[Is this a Red-crowned Crane? Isn’t this just a wild chicken?]

[The difference is too huge!]

[The feathers are all brownish, not white at all. How does this resemble a Red-crowned Crane?]

[Do you think we can’t recognize a Red-crowned Crane?]

The comments kept scrolling.

Xu Yang couldn’t help but smile wryly.

This was indeed a Red-crowned Crane.

The chicks simply looked like this.

Xu Yang explained,

"It really is a Red-crowned Crane. The chicks look like this, and it takes time for them to undergo transformation."

"Bird characteristics are quite peculiar, a bit ugly when young, bare-skinned, but they look quite good when grown."

"Let’s not talk about this for now. I need to check the situation."

"This guy looks in a bad state, might already be in the ’death throes.’"

These so-called ’death throes’ are like a dying fantasy, which usually occurs more with anime characters.

Xu Yang took a few steps forward, carefully cradling the Red-crowned Crane chick.

It indeed looked very weak, its eyes barely open.

Anyone who has raised chicks could tell, this was a sign of approaching death.

"I need to feed it something quickly."

"Let me think what Red-crowned Crane chicks eat."

Xu Yang looked at the Red-crowned Crane and began to think.

Netizens seeing this scene immediately responded:

[I know what it eats, Crane Crown Red!]

[Hahaha, the divine Crane Crown Red.]

[Red-crowned Crane: I thank your entire family!]

Xu Yang then said, "Regarding raising Red-crowned Cranes, usually we feed the chicks bloodworms, and when they grow a bit, then small eels."

"But feeding raw meat works almost as well, needs to be cut into smaller pieces."

"Let it eat something first."

"Having food increases its chance to survive a bit."

Xu Yang looked around.

He found a moist patch of soil and dug with a shovel, soon unearthing some small insects.

Xu Yang never liked insects, but now he couldn’t be choosy.

And since he was wearing gloves, it didn’t matter.

Thus, Xu Yang found a particularly small insect and fed it into the Red-crowned Crane chick’s mouth.

"Eat up, you need to eat."

"If you eat, you can survive."

Xu Yang continued comforting the little Red-crowned Crane.

Currently, it appeared that the chick was weak from hunger.

There were no other apparent illnesses.

The worry was that it wouldn’t eat.

However, sometimes fate intervenes; the Red-crowned Crane chick merely opened its mouth, and the little insect crawled in on its own and was swallowed.

Xu Yang then dipped his fingers in water, dropping a few drops into its mouth.

The little guy opened its mouth and drank the water, finally showing some signs of life.

"For now, this is all we can do. Saving it isn’t going to be easy."

"We’ll have to see how it goes."

Xu Yang held the Red-crowned Crane chick, scanning the surroundings.

No sign of any Red-crowned Crane activity.

He then bowed his head, looking toward the shallows.

Not even a Red-crowned Crane footprint.

"No Red-crowned Crane footprints; there really are no signs of Red-crowned Crane activity here."

"The adult Red-crowned Cranes might have encountered some misfortune," Xu Yang surmised.

"This little guy also isn’t well, hasn’t been fed for a long time."

"If not treated, it will die."

"I need to call the Forestry and Grass Bureau."

Then, Xu Yang contacted the Forestry and Grass Bureau and reported the situation.

After reporting, they stated that Xu Yang could rescue, and later the Forestry and Grass Bureau would send someone to follow up, similar to before.

Now some people breed Red-crowned Cranes, so the protection level for Red-crowned Cranes isn’t exceptionally high.

Xu Yang agreed.

"This Red-crowned Crane chick is my responsibility for now, the Forestry and Grass Bureau staff will follow up later."

"When it’s grown, it will be released."

"Then it’s up to where it flies."

Xu Yang informed the netizens about this.

[Old Xu has a new catch today!]

[Hahaha, how many animals have you bred by now!]

[This really is a Red-crowned Crane!]

[Raise it big, I want to see the farm’s Red-crowned Crane!]

The netizens got excited too.

The scenery in the mountains always offers something unique; it’s also quite interesting to watch.

Just then, the Black Kite swooped down from the sky.

It perched on Xu Yang’s shoulder, looking down at the Little Red-crowned Crane in Xu Yang’s hand.

"This is not a snack for you."

Xu Yang quickly shielded the Little Red-crowned Crane.

He really hoped the Black Kite wouldn’t mistake it for a snack.

Seeing Xu Yang’s protective action, the Black Kite understood it couldn’t eat the crane and continued to preen its feathers.

Xu Yang planned to take the Little Red-crowned Crane back with him.

To tell the truth, the crane looked rather ugly at this stage.

It was brown, lacking a lively spirit, only noticeable for its long neck and pointed beak.

It lay quietly in the palm of Xu Yang’s hand.

Whether it could survive was still an unknown.

Xu Yang held it and thought about the Treasure Compass, which still had six uses left, so he triggered another Treasure Hunting Task.

[Treasure Hunting Task Triggered: Skimming Stones!]

[Task Description: Please complete a skimming stone challenge, with at least ten skips.]

[Task Reward: Vitality Pills*10, an internal medicine for rescue, suited to stimulating vitality within animals.]

The second Treasure Hunting Task seemed interesting too.

It was skimming stones.

Like when Xu Yang was a child, he often engaged in this activity.

Skimming stones, making them slickly skip across the water, he was exceptionally good at it.

So this task might be difficult for others, but for Xu Yang, it was like taking candy from a baby.

He looked around for a bit and soon found a thin stone.

For skimming stones, a thinner stone is preferable, as its "shaving" force is stronger and the water’s elasticity is greater.

If you use a round stone, managing three skips is impressive.

Xu Yang placed the crane aside and spoke,

"This stone looks good, great for skimming. I often played with these when I was young."

"Since I’m here, I’ll perform a bit for everyone."

"You guys can also guess how many skips I can make."

At Xu Yang’s words, the netizens became interested.

[Old Xu is so skilled, I bet he can make 5 skips!]

[What is skimming stones?]

[This is interesting, I used to play this as a kid, I could generally make six or seven skips!]

[Old Xu must be making at least ten!]

The comments kept rolling.

Xu Yang glanced at the comments and without wasting words, he squatted, put strength into his right hand, and with a horizontal force, threw the stone across the surface of the lake.

As he threw, he also spun the stone with his index finger, giving it a rotating force.

The stone immediately hit the water surface, and the next second, a burst of white spray sprang up.

Before everyone’s eyes could catch up, the second white splash appeared.

Then came the third, the fourth...

The skips were like bullets hitting the water surface, continuously creating splashes.

The netizens counted, 1, 2, 3, 4...

Unknowingly, the stone had already bounced seventeen or eighteen times.

When everyone counted to 20, the skipping finally slowed down and the stone sank into the lake.

The world record for skimming stones was 88 skips, using a natural, unpolished stone.

Xu Yang casually threw it twenty times, and although far from the record, it was already very impressive.

[Holy crap! 20 skips, did I see that right?!]

[Did Old Xu imbue the stone with Chakra or something?]

[So powerful, such an effect with a casual throw!]

[The key is he didn’t even appear to be trying hard, just so leisurely tossing, and the stone skipped that many times!]

[Is this what being at the Foundation Establishment Stage is like?]

The netizens teased, heating up the atmosphere in the live stream.

Xu Yang just smiled.

The task was completed, and it was time to go back.

Today’s two tasks were quite interesting, one was rescuing a Red-crowned Crane, and the other was skimming stones.

After the success of the skimming stones task, Xu Yang also got the Vitality Pills needed to rescue animals.

This medicine could stimulate the vitality inside animals, making it easier for them to survive.

Xu Yang specifically found out that it was suitable for use on young birds.

After finishing all this, it was about time for Xu Yang to head back.

"Actually, I was originally planning to stay in the mountain for a day to look for Wild Ginseng."

"But, plans can’t keep up with changes."

"One reason is that Wild Ginseng has become a First Level protected plant; another is encountering an injured Little Red-crowned Crane."

"Changbai Mountain has a specialized animal rescue center, it’s a yard in the mountains, and they have rescued many animals there."

"My farm also has the capacity to rescue animals, so I can rescue this crane."

"I’m going to take it back with me now," said Xu Yang.

Then, he picked up the Little Red-crowned Crane and headed toward the farm.

The road was somewhat long, especially with a small bird in hand, making it often inconvenient to travel fast.

For example, when encountering cliffs or steep slopes.

Xu Yang could only slow down.

He puffed out his upper garment pocket and placed the little fellow inside.

Just right.

He only needed to be a bit careful when moving.

Xu Yang tried to keep as steady as possible, also worried that shaking too violently might be too torturous for the Little Red-crowned Crane, causing it to choose not to live.

That would have been a major loss.