Volume One, Chapter 12: Unerring Shots

"That's true," Lin Hu played with the blade of grass between his lips and continued, "So, tell me, what things are actually worth money these days? Let's have a think together."

Heidan nodded and started listing, "A small pheasant goes for one and a half yuan, a bigger one two yuan. Rabbits are about two or three yuan each. But if you want to talk real money, it's got to be wild boar. Last month, Li Fourth and the others from our village took their dogs into the woods and managed to bag a wild boar—over two hundred jin! They sold it to a county restaurant for more than four hundred yuan. Made a fortune!"

"Wild boar?" Lin Hu suddenly tensed.

Indeed. In these times, pheasants and rabbits weren’t all that rare, but wild boar fetched the highest price. Pig farming just couldn’t scale up back then; in rural areas, it took at least a year to raise a pig just for some meat at New Year's. Even then, with feed so scarce, a pig might only reach a hundred jin in weight—showing just how long the cycle was.

But an adult wild boar weighed at least two or three hundred jin, sometimes even three or four hundred. Catching one meant striking it rich. Yet few truly understood the terror of these "mountain cannons." The saying went: "First the boar, then the bear, then the tiger"—not just empty talk. In a hunter’s eyes, wild boar were even more dangerous and harder to hunt than black bears or Siberian tigers.

Especially a lone male boar—wounded but not killed, it would surely seek revenge. It could charge at up to forty kilometers per hour, strong enough to snap trees as thick as a bowl. If a hunter’s shot didn’t hit a vital organ, a deadly counterattack was almost guaranteed, flipping you over like a rag doll.

“How am I supposed to take down a wild boar with just a slingshot?”

“Even with a few beginner skills under my belt, I’m not ready for a wild boar—probably not even a wolf!” Lin Hu looked sheepish holding the slingshot; for now, he’d be lucky to hit a sparrow, let alone a pheasant.

If only he had a hunting rifle. But a rifle cost five or six hundred yuan, a year’s salary for a working man, and you needed a license. Otherwise, it was an illegal gun, and if reported, it’d be confiscated.

What to do? The slingshot’s range was limited, no matter how much he improved it.

Just then, inspiration struck Lin Hu.

"That's it—a bow!"

"Heidan, doesn’t your family have a horn bow? I remember seeing it at your place."

Lin Hu recalled Heidan’s grandmother once mentioning that Heidan’s grandfather was Manchu, who'd come to the northeast during the great migration. He had a family heirloom horn bow that no one in the village could even draw.

"Yeah, that one. My grandpa left it behind. Grandma always said our family survived thanks to Grandpa hunting with that bow. Who’d have thought that after he died, the family just fell apart..." Heidan's voice turned somber. Having neither father nor mother, who could truly understand such loneliness?

"Cut it out—don’t you still have me?" Lin Hu gave him a light knock, sharing in the sentiment. "Now, go home right away and bring me that bow!"

"Huh?" Heidan hesitated. "Are you sure? My grandma treats that bow like a treasure. She polishes it every day—I’m not sure she’d let me have it."

Lin Hu offered a plan, "Just tell her we’re going to hunt pheasant for her. If that doesn’t work, sneak it out for me. Either way, this mission must be accomplished."

"Hunt pheasant?" Heidan was skeptical. "Brother Hu, it’s not that I doubt you, but you can’t even hit a sparrow with a slingshot—how are you going to draw a horn bow and hunt pheasant?"

"Don’t believe me?" Lin Hu glanced around and spotted a flock of sparrows about twenty meters away. "Heidan, I’ll show you right now. Your Brother Hu isn’t all talk."

He raised the slingshot.

Pulled it back to the limit.

Aimed carefully.

Released!

Whoosh—

The movement was fluid, seamless.

To Heidan, it seemed casual, even careless.

But then, to his shock, the pellet struck a sparrow with a snap, knocking it from the willow branches.

"Aiya! You actually hit it!"

In these days, fish were easy enough to catch—the real challenge was birds, especially pheasants and rabbits, animals with real meat on them. Even if sparrow meat was scant, it was still meat—roasted, it was a real treat.

Heidan, like a stray dog spotting a bun, dove into the thicket to search for the sparrow.

After a long search, he finally found it and snatched it up.

"Brother Hu, you must be faking it. If you hit another, I’ll believe you!"

...

[Your shot, under the effect of 'unerring within a hundred meters,' hit the target's neck. Precision skill proficiency +5.]

Lin Hu saw his skill proficiency increase and stood up slowly.

"Fine. Let’s treat this as practice for my skill. And get this kid some meat to eat."

He knew Heidan was half-doubting, half-starving for meat. Sadly, there were no large birds nearby.

No choice—he’d have to settle for a few sparrows to satisfy the craving.

With that, he aimed again at a nearer willow branch.

Aimed!

Fired!

Whoosh—

Bang!

The noisiest sparrow fell flat on its back, startling the rest into flight.

[Your shot, under the effect of 'unerring within a hundred meters,' hit the target's chest. Precision skill proficiency +4.]

"Unerring within a hundred meters—this is truly remarkable!"

After two trials, Lin Hu realized: as long as he fully drew the slingshot and aimed at his prey, he couldn't miss!

Damn. If only he could draw that horn bow—its range was said to reach up to five hundred meters...

Who needs a hunting rifle then!

"Wow! Brother Hu, you’re amazing! You hit it again!"

Heidan cheered and rushed over, rooting through the grass for the bird.

"Brother Hu, do it again—over there!"

Following Heidan’s pointing finger, Lin Hu repeated his smooth, practiced motion.

Bang!

A startled cry, a flutter of wings—

One more bird down, the rest scattered. A hundred percent hit rate, unerring every shot!

[Your shot, under the effect of 'unerring within a hundred meters,' hit the target's head. Precision skill proficiency +3.]

"Incredible—even tracks moving targets?"

Lin Hu discovered that as long as he fired while aiming, even if the bird took off, the pellet would somehow find its mark.

"Good, good. Even curves in mid-air—this is extraordinary!"

Delighted, his confidence soared.

"So, Heidan, what do you say? Did Brother Hu trick you?"

"Do you believe it now?"

Heidan dove back into the willow thicket, seized the plump sparrow, wiped his nose on his sleeve, and stuffed all three birds into his pocket.

"Brother Hu, you’re amazing! Can you teach me? I can’t even hit one!"

Seeing there were no birds left nearby, he hurried over to Lin Hu, eager to learn how to hunt birds as easily, so he wouldn’t have to eat fish every day.

"You’re still in elementary school—wait a couple years and I’ll teach you. For now, go home and bring me that bow. I’ll hunt birds for you here. Stick with me, and I’ll buy you new clothes and get your grandma’s eyes treated!"

Lin Hu wasn’t just boasting; everything he wanted in the future depended on that horn bow.

"Really?" Heidan’s eyes lit up. With the promise of meat, learning could wait.

"Have I ever lied to you?" Lin Hu gave him further assurance. "Not only will I make sure you have meat every day, I’ll see your grandma is plump and well-fed too, with meat at every meal."