Wilderness Survival with Druid System-Chapter 381 - 50: African Bullfrog

As Chen Wen kept moving forward, he encountered many animals he had not seen before.

The river was still filled with various groups of hippos.

He even spotted a herd comprised of single male hippos, where fights could break out at any moment.

Chen Wen avoided such hippo groups from afar and continued his journey.

Next, he encountered a pride of lions.

But these lions were across the river, and quite far away.

Chen Wen observed for a while. The pride was led by a mature male lion, with about five lionesses and two cubs he could confirm, although some cubs were hard to see.

"This is a pride on the rise; best not to approach or provoke them."

After memorizing the location and making notes, Chen Wen continued onward.

Shortly after, he came across a herd of African elephants once more.

This herd of African elephants had dominantly occupied the river, forcing all the Nile crocodiles to the shore.

After watching for a bit, Chen Wen left.

He didn’t want to interact with the elephant herd at the moment.

Then, after walking for about ten more minutes.

Chen Wen arrived at a small patch of the swamp.

He stepped on the unexpectedly soft mud, planning to circumnavigate the swamp and walk overland.

But as he lifted his foot, the reeds by the swamp were gently swayed by the wind.

Something peculiar appeared in front of Chen Wen.

[Extreme Vision] has a strong ability to seize opportunities.

Chen Wen let out a hiss and stopped in his tracks.

"If I’m not mistaken, there seems to be a turtle among those reeds!"

A turtle, edible and breedable!

Moreover, it’s not dangerous and easy to catch!

Chen Wen was instantly tempted.

He planned to catch the turtle and see if he could tame it.

If possible, he’d tame it; if not, he’d eat it.

...

It’s not difficult to catch a turtle.

But if the turtle is in the mud-coated swamp and can perform Lightweight Skill on the mud at any time.

That’s a different story.

Rummaging through his tools, Chen Wen decided against using gear.

A spear could work from afar, but spearing a turtle is a bit comical.

Missing the vital spots would be a waste.

An axe can crack a turtle shell, but it’s not as effective at a distance.

Chen Wen remembered that, historically, there was something called a throwing axe, though he hadn’t encountered one yet.

He had to give up.

No need to mention a machete; its purpose with Chen Wen was largely food prep and doubling as a dagger.

"Fine, I’ll go directly."

Holding the spear like a trekking pole, Chen Wen decided to enter the swamp and catch the turtle by hand.

After a brief observation of the turtle, confirming it had no intention of escaping and was leisurely basking in the sun.

Chen Wen left most of his tools outside the swamp, holding the spear as he cautiously bent over and entered the swamp.

Walking in the swamp is not like walking on land.

The soft mud drags at your legs like the hands of wandering spirits, requiring extra effort with every step.

In deeper areas, it’s even more troublesome.

If you don’t get stuck, all is well; but if you do, without enough experience, you might be sucked deep into the swamp.

After long ages, becoming part of the swamp.

Chen Wen lacked swamp experience but had learned how to deal with swamp terrain.

This was both a hunt and a test of what he learned.

"While walking through the swamp, it’s best to use a wooden stick as a trekking pole to probe the path ahead."

Chen Wen murmured, plunging the spear into the mud.

A moment later, he felt resistance through the spear.

Chen Wen said, "When your hand feels the trekking pole meet something solid, you’ve hit bottom."

"Some might just move forward then, but to be safe, it’s better to probe a few more times nearby to prevent unexpected situations."

As he spoke, Chen Wen continued poking the mud with his spear.

After about four repetitions, he started moving forward.

"This ensures safety and confirms solid ground ahead rather than mud-hidden obstacles; seemingly redundant actions like these often save lives."

"After all, we’re facing an entirely unknown swamp, and caution never hurts."

Chen Wen continued probing, ensuring safety before advancing.

After moving about five meters through the swamp, Chen Wen noted, "This swamp isn’t deep or large; likely not dangerous, with mud around thirty centimeters deep."

With this assumption, Chen Wen slightly increased his pace.

Though still slower than a normal walking pace on land.

Midway through, Chen Wen gradually fell silent, focusing intently on the sunbathing turtle in the reed patch...

He couldn’t tell what species the turtle was, but it seemed quite large.

Further ahead, the mud became more damp, with some standing water.

"This path requires even more caution."

Chen Wen intensely watched the surroundings; passive ability [Intimidation] was fully fired up.

The high body temperature state was activated too.

With abilities covering him, Chen Wen felt confident enough to continue, "Such environments attract snakes and amphibians, and Africa houses a notable variety of poisonous snakes and toxic amphibians..."

He was cut off mid-sentence.

To his left-front, in the reed area.

The reeds suddenly tilted, swept by something unseen.

A dark shadow leaped from the reeds, aiming straight at Chen Wen.

The abrupt occurrence made Chen Wen flinch, rapidly thrusting his spear towards the shadow.

Yet the shadow apparently lacked speed or was too large, or perhaps bothered by hangnail.

It staggered mid-leap and fell into a mud pit.

Squinting carefully, Chen Wen’s eyes widened.

"Holy cow! Bullfrog!"

In the mud pit, a massive bullfrog was scrambling in the muck, trying to stabilize its body.

Faced with a bullfrog exposing itself.

Chen Wen responded with no mercy.

He quickly grabbed his spear, aimed, and threw it!

With the force exerted by Chen Wen, the steel spear shot rapidly forward.

A few meters vanished in a flash.

Accompanied by a bullfrog’s painful croak, the spear pierced it easily, pinning it in the mud pit.

The noise startled the sunbathing turtle.

The turtle turned tail, fleeing upon sensing the commotion.

Its legs sped mightily; in a blink of an eye, it submerged into swamp water.

It swiftly glided through swamp channels, quickly entering Kuanduo River.

Watching the turtle’s retreating figure, Chen Wen was speechless: "I swear, if the tortoise and hare had raced in rivers, the hare wouldn’t catch the tortoise even if it stayed awake!"

But he didn’t bother with the turtle.

You can lose a monk, but not the temple.

Turtles can’t stay underwater indefinitely, and there’s still opportunity.

The bullfrog’s the priority now.

Chen Wen turned toward the impaled bullfrog.

Though its body still quivered and struggled, that bullfrog was definitely dying.

Chen Wen carefully approached the bullfrog, examining its form.

After matching it with his knowledge, he declared, "Folks, though I missed the turtle, I caught an African Bullfrog instead, a name unfamiliar to some, but it’s widely known as ’African Bullfrog’."

"It’s edible, and we just stumbled upon one, hehe..."