Watching the rabbit, its foot still twitching, Wang Mu was momentarily speechless.
"What's wrong?" The village chief patted Wang Mu's shoulder. "Mu Guy, you still have a lot to learn. A bow and arrow isn't absolutely necessary. As a Hunter, as long as you can observe your prey's movements, keep up with its speed, and deliver a decisive one-hit kill, that's all you need."
"The bow and arrow is just one method of training."
Wang Mu nodded.
"This is the first point I'm teaching you," the village chief said earnestly. "You see, when you possess speed that far surpasses a rabbit's, and you're familiar with its movements, you can easily catch it even with your bare hands!"
"You need to strive in this direction."
"Enhance your observation and speed. As long as you improve in these areas, you'll be able to hunt prey no matter what."
"Got it," Wang Mu nodded. "Then how should I train?"
The village chief said, "Observation is simple. Just aim with the bow and arrow without shooting."
At this point, he paused, a somewhat mysterious smile suddenly appearing on his face. "As for speed, that's easy too."
"Moreover, it's of utmost importance, so you must focus on training it. After all, it doesn't matter if you can't hit the prey, but it would be troublesome if you become the prey and can't escape."
Wang Mu nodded repeatedly.
"As for the training method, stay right here and don't move. I'll be right back."
Having said that, the village chief left.
Wang Mu held his breath and concentrated, waiting quietly while observing his surroundings. After half a year of fishing and nurturing his nature, Wang Mu's spiritual perception was excellent; he could clearly sense any rustle within a ten-meter radius. For things too far away, however, he could only rely on his vision to deduce. Besides, unless they were insects, small animals were rarely foolish enough to approach humans.
「A moment later.」
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble.
Wang Mu was startled. An earthquake?
Immediately, Wang Mu looked towards the source of the tremor.
The village chief was sprinting towards him like a gale!
And behind him, a black-striped giant tiger over four meters tall and at least six to seven meters long was charging madly!
A Fierce Beast?
This black-striped giant tiger exuded a menacing aura. Its eyes blazed with a ferocious light, and its movements caused localized tremors, creating an overwhelming sense of pressure!
The village chief's speed was extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, he was already near Wang Mu. Seeing Wang Mu still standing there in a daze, he immediately shouted, "What are you standing around in a daze for? Run!"
"This is a Tiger King from the Divine Wood Forest, one of the most powerful Fierce Beasts. It's on the verge of cultivating into a Demon Beast. You won't last long in a head-on confrontation!"
Wang Mu was speechless.
What the fuck. Is this your idea of training?
Without a second thought, Wang Mu bolted!
"If you want to become a Hunter, first you must experience being the hunted," the village chief caught up, weaving through the trees with Wang Mu. "By experiencing what it's like to be chased, you'll understand how prey thinks when fleeing. It will also give you a more profound understanding of these creatures."
"During the chase, your physical skills will see the greatest improvement."
"Isn't this too dangerous?" Wang Mu glanced at the giant tiger behind him. The fierce light in its eyes felt like machine-gun fire on his back, sending a chill down his spine. "What if it runs into the village?"
"It won't."
"It won't?"
"As long as you keep running, it will keep chasing you until it's exhausted. Why would it go to the village?"
"What if I stop running..."
"If you stop running, you'll be eaten. After a full meal, why would it bother going to the village?"
Wang Mu was speechless again.
Makes sense!
For a moment, Wang Mu found himself unable to refute.
The Divine Wood Forest had complicated terrain, overgrown with dense undergrowth and towering ancient trees whose branches intertwined like spiderwebs. The ground beneath his feet alternated between soft and hard, making it extremely difficult to run smoothly.
At least, that was the case for Wang Mu.
Sometimes, while running, he would encounter another Fierce Beast, and then... then he would end up being chased by it too.
The village chief was also running.
But for him, he could leap easily through the woods. If Wang Mu hadn't known this was the Immortal World of a game, he would have sworn the village chief had come straight out of Fire Shadow. The tree trunks seemed to become his springboards; with a casual leap, he could easily shake off the pursuing Tiger King. One such leap could cover tens of meters. It seemed more impressive than the Qinggong of martial arts novels, and he looked so effortlessly relaxed while doing it.
The village chief must be a superhuman among superhumans... Those attributes are insane.
On the ground, Wang Mu couldn't care less about such things. He had thought today he would be practicing with a bow and arrow. Turns out, his first day involved being chased by a Fierce Beast.
For the Tiger King, the Divine Wood Forest was its home turf; it knew it like the back of its paw.
Wang Mu ran for who knows how long. Several times, the Tiger King got so close that its gaping maw was only three or four meters from Wang Mu's back, capable of pouncing and knocking him down with a single leap.
Fortunately, Wang Mu had excellent stamina. Combined with his Ten Layers of the Turtle Breath Cultivation Method, though initially a little panicked, he soon adjusted his breathing and focused completely. Whenever the Tiger King closed in, he would execute a sharp turn, rapidly changing direction to pull away.
Before he knew it, Wang Mu's feet grew hot, and he lost track of how long he'd been running.
Luckily, my stamina is decent...
By regulating his breathing with the Health Care Method, Wang Mu felt his speed gradually increasing.
As he continued to run, he even lost track of time, multitasking by memorizing the surrounding terrain while remaining vigilant of the Tiger King and the pack of Fierce Beasts it had attracted.
In the forest, the thudding tremors were unceasing.
Up in the trees, the village chief watched in amazement. This kid's stamina is incredible... and he's only been Mining for two months!
He glanced at the sky.
It was already noon.
He had thought that, given Wang Mu's condition, lasting an hour under the Tiger King's pursuit would be impressive. After all, it was Wang Mu's first time in the Divine Wood Forest, he wasn't familiar with the area, and he had never been chased by a Tiger King like this before. He should have been caught quickly. He had planned to rescue him when the time was right and then share some wisdom...
But unexpectedly...
The more he watched, the more surprised he became.
This kid has been Chopping wood for half a year, so he's very strong. He's been Fishing for half a year, his concentration is impeccable, and he entered a state of flow almost immediately. Moreover, with such a strong spirit, he won't easily succumb to fear. Ordinary people, when chased by this Tiger King, would have panicked long ago and been unable to use their full strength. But it didn't affect him in the slightest. He even occasionally has the presence of mind to check my position... But to have such stamina after only two months of Mining... Even with good aptitude, without diligent daily training, he wouldn't possess such a robust physique. No wonder Tie Hu wanted him to learn Hunting from me first to hone his skills. He was worried Wang Mu might be killed by a Demon Beast suddenly appearing in the mines. His foundation is too good. I wonder if he has any talent for archery. But even if not particularly talented, with such a solid foundation, by training his body, he could eventually fight these Fierce Beasts head-on using pure physical strength.
「Until the sun set.」
Wang Mu finally stopped running.
He felt he could still run.
It was mainly because the Fierce Beasts chasing him couldn't keep up anymore.