First, test the water quality of the stream.

But the flowing stream looks much better than stagnant water.

Chen Wen reached out, scooped up a handful of stream water, brought it to his nose, and sniffed: "No smell, just a faint mineral water scent."

Then, under everyone’s expectant gaze, Chen Wen stuck out his tongue and licked the stream water.

After sampling the taste, Chen Wen nodded to the eagerly awaiting Fred: "It’s drinkable!"

Upon hearing this, Fred didn’t wait any longer.

He hurried to the water’s edge, drinking small sips.

Before long, Fred sighed contentedly: "So refreshing!"

The others also gathered by the water’s edge, sipping the stream water.

Since the stream flows from an underground river, the temperature is relatively low.

The cool stream water dispersed the heat and warmth accumulated on everyone, leaving no trace.

"This feels amazing!"

Chen Wen couldn’t help but exclaim.

At this moment, both the Taipan Snake and the whistling kite joined at the water’s edge, enjoying the rare coolness.

After filling their water bottles, everyone had completed their rest.

Seeing the others still resting, Chen Wen decided to pick up his long spear and take a look around to see if he could find something to eat.

...

By the stream.

Chen Wen kept walking along the stream, his gaze occasionally scanning the shrubs growing by the stream.

To be honest, the vegetation here is quite abundant.

Chen Wen was very concerned about what might be hidden inside.

Therefore, as he walked, he concentrated almost all his attention on the shrubbery.

And it was this focus that led Chen Wen to discover something very peculiar.

"This thing... green and black, what kind of bird egg is this?"

Chen Wen used his long spear to poke the bushes, revealing the item inside.

Then he gasped, quickly stepped forward, and stood before the object.

"An emu egg!"

Chen Wen said with absolute certainty.

He was very sure of the true identity of the thing in front of him—a unique species of Australia, an emu egg!

The emu, also known as the Australian ostrich.

They are quite large, reaching up to 1.8 meters in height and over 2 meters in length.

They can weigh between 36 to 41 kg.

The male and female look slightly different, and the female is slightly larger.

Their eggs are very unique.

Unlike ordinary chicken or ostrich eggs, emu eggs mostly have a dark blue-green color.

A single nest can produce 9 to 12 eggs, and the eggs are slightly smaller than ostrich eggs.

However, the emu egg in front of Chen Wen was only one and was in a cracked state.

He took a closer look; this emu egg seemed to have been stolen by some predator.

The egg liquid inside the shell had been entirely consumed.

In theory, such an eggshell has no use.

But Chen Wen discovered a critical piece of information from the eggshell—the eggshell was fresh!

Although the liquid on it was gone, when he pinched it, he could clearly feel the hardness of the eggshell.

This indicated that the emu egg was definitely not transported from far away; rather, it was brought from a very nearby place by the predator!

And this meant there was definitely an emu nest nearby Chen Wen!

In the emu family, male emus are responsible for incubating the eggs.

Therefore, as long as the nest can be found and staked out, catching an emu is guaranteed!

In Australia, although the emu is a national bird, it is allowed to be hunted.

Chen Wen immediately went back to inform everyone of the news.

Hearing that there might be emus around, everyone immediately got excited.

Unlike kangaroos, emu meat also has a strong wild taste.

But it’s much better than kangaroo meat!

Plus, since they’re right by the stream, they can use the water to boil off the blood of the emu, further reducing the gamey taste.

So, after receiving the news from Chen Wen...

Everyone started looking for traces of the emu.

...

"Everyone, pay attention: when male emus are incubating eggs, there are no other emus around, and male emus generally won’t leave the nest. Even if they do, they only move nearby. So once you find the emu nest, it’s as good as finding the emu!"

"Also, if you encounter an emu, try to take it down immediately! These creatures are also fast runners!"

"A mature emu can run at a speed of up to 48 km/h, with a stride of about 2.7 meters! Trying to catch up to it is like climbing to the sky! And the surrounding area is densely vegetated, making it even more challenging! So, you have to take it down in one go!"

"Moreover, emus can swim; when it’s hot, they even soak in water. You can use this trait to find them."

"Also, the whistling kite is tired now, it’s already found water for us, so we won’t trouble it to find emus. So we’ll have to rely on ourselves for the emu hunt!"

Before leaving, Chen Wen instructed everyone, giving them a general understanding of emus.

Standing nearby, Dennis scratched his head after hearing Chen Wen’s words.

Well, Chen Wen seems to understand emus even better than him, a native Australian!

Is this the world of a scholar?

...

On Hua Yun’s side.

After a simple rest, Hua Yun had recovered significantly.

She held a bow and arrow in one hand and a sharpened wooden stick in the other, looking for traces around.

After walking for about ten minutes or so.

Hua Yun lightly frowned and crouched down.

She heard some unusual sounds.

Water sounds!

It seemed like something was moving in the water!

And its size was definitely not small!

Hua Yun gently raised the wooden stick and pushed aside the shrubbery that blocked her view.

After clearly seeing what was in front of her, Hua Yun gently took a deep breath, covering her inner excitement.

Emu!

She found it!

A not-so-tall but standard adult emu!

At the moment, that emu, just as Chen Wen said, was soaking in the water.

Occasionally, it would lower its head to drink water, and then lift its head vigilantly to observe the surroundings.

Hua Yun gently restored the shrubbery to its original state.

The distance between her and the emu was certainly not far; she estimated it to be around fifty meters.

The emu was in the middle of the stream, with no shrubs around to provide cover, granting a wide-open view.

While she was in the shrubbery, which was her natural cover.

Time was in their favor; it was daytime, perfect for archery.

Location was in their favor too.

And the human factor was also in their favor.

Because Hua Yun had already noticed that on the opposite side of the stream, someone was quietly moving in as well.

That person’s movements were equally agile; he was even bare-chested, using his clothing to cradle a big bunch of round items.

That person was none other than Chen Wen!

Chen Wen had already found the emu nest and harvested all its eggs!

...

Across the river.

Chen Wen hissed lightly.

Just now, he found the emu nest about ten meters from here.

The emu’s nest was easy to identify.

The nests they build are platform-like and quite large.

They are made of twigs, leaves, and bark.

In the presence of the farsighted Chen Wen, their nests stood out like stars in the night sky, allowing him to easily spot them.

Seeing that the emu wasn’t in the nest, Chen Wen decisively got his hands dirty and stole all the eggs.

There were still five eggs left in the nest, but from the traces around, it wasn’t difficult to assert that the original number of emu eggs should have been about eight.

After Chen Wen stole the remaining eggs, he couldn’t help but shake his head: This emu father is still too young!

But no matter, as long as I can find it, I can mature it in just a few dozen minutes!