HLM -Chapter 1174 Saving the Calf

After the calf opened its eyes, Wang Bo noticed that its pupils were a violet-blue color, and its lips and the tip of its tongue were also violet-blue. Combined with its long, shaggy coat, it looked extraordinarily beautiful.

“What kind of cow is this?” he wondered. It was the first time he’d ever seen one, and it felt completely unfamiliar.

When he glanced at his phone screen, he discovered that the live chat had exploded once again:

“Musk ox! Holy crap, a musk ox! That’s a musk ox!”

“Damn it, Wang is screwed! Zhuang Ding caught a musk ox!”

“Let’s talk this out, guys—don’t call the cops!”

“Idiot, call the police now! Otherwise the musk ox herd will come for revenge and Wang and the dogs will be in serious trouble!”

From the comments on the screen, Wang Bo already knew the animal’s name—it was a musk ox. And judging by the flood of messages, catching a musk ox was definitely not a good thing.

There was still a signal out here, so Wang Bo quickly went online to look up information about musk oxen.

Musk oxen are a species unique to the Arctic tundra. They live in extremely desolate, barren regions of the Arctic tundra in Alaska, northern Canada, Greenland, Norway, and other places.

In fact, despite how Alaska in winter looks like a frozen wasteland devoid of all life, summers there are actually quite warm, with plenty of animals—lemmings, foxes, wolves, rabbits, and all kinds of nesting birds.

But when winter arrives and the land is buried under ice and snow, those animals leave. Most migrate south to warmer areas, and only a few stubborn species, like musk oxen, remain behind.

Musk oxen are incredibly tough. They can endure hunger and thirst and are extremely resistant to the cold. Their thick, dense coats allow them to withstand Arctic temperatures as low as minus fifty degrees Celsius.

This has everything to do with their special fur structure. Musk oxen have two layers of hair: the inner layer is extremely thick and dense, capable of blocking out any cold or moisture, while the outer layer consists of long, coarse hair that protects against rain, snow, and strong winds.

Wang Bo also noted that musk oxen prefer to inhabit rocky, barren terrain. They are highly social animals, brave by nature, and never retreat or flee in the face of powerful enemies. Whether it’s a pack of wolves or a polar bear, they have the courage to fight.

Moreover, they fight with tactics. When danger appears, musk oxen immediately form a defensive formation: adult bulls stand on the front line, while calves are enclosed safely in the center.

Because both bulls and cows have horns, as well as tough hides and powerful physiques, even polar bears dare not act recklessly when facing a herd of musk oxen.

So how on earth did Zhuang Ding manage to drag out a calf? This puzzled Wang Bo greatly.

There was no doubt that Zhuang Ding’s combat ability was formidable, but Wang Bo would never believe it could be compared to a polar bear. And even for a polar bear, as fierce as it is, dragging a calf out of a musk ox herd would be nearly impossible.

Unless… the calf had fallen behind or become separated from the herd.

But even that didn’t seem likely. Musk oxen have a strong sense of teamwork. When they move, they keep their calves in the middle, and if a calf falls behind, they will spread out to search for it.

It was precisely this unity and collective survival strategy that prevented musk oxen from being wiped out during the mass slaughter by white settlers in the nineteenth century.

Of course, their survival also owed much to the protective laws enacted later on—otherwise, they would have long since been exterminated.

The entire musk ox is valuable. Its wool was once top-tier fur prized by the upper classes of Europe and America; its hide was premium material for making boots and belts; its meat was fragrant and delicious; and its horns were even more valuable.

According to what Wang Bo read online, white hunters had highly efficient methods for killing musk oxen—efficient enough to wipe out an entire herd at a time.

Typically, hunters would first send hunting dogs to chase the musk oxen. Once the enraged animals formed a defensive circle and prepared for a fight to the death, the hunters would then shoot them one by one.

Because musk oxen do not flee but instead choose to stand their ground to the very end, they were often slaughtered to the last animal.

This kind of killing was terrifyingly efficient. Around 1865, musk oxen became extinct in Alaska. By the early twentieth century, musk oxen in Canada and Greenland were also on the brink of extinction.

Later, in 1917, the Canadian government passed laws banning the hunting of musk oxen. In 1930, the U.S. Congress allocated funds to transport thirty-four musk oxen from Greenland back to Alaska for reintroduction.

Under protection, musk oxen reproduced rapidly. There are now about 3,000 musk oxen in Alaska and roughly 80,000 worldwide, and they are no longer considered endangered on a global scale.

However, even though they are not globally endangered, musk oxen in Alaska are still on the protected species list. If Zhuang Ding had killed this calf, Wang Bo would be facing serious legal trouble.

Fortunately, the calf wasn’t dead yet. Wang Bo hurriedly took out bandages to stop the bleeding, then hooked it up to a saline drip and began emergency treatment.

The viewers in the livestream were stunned:

“He even brought a first-aid kit—respect!”

“Bringing a first-aid kit is normal, it’s for people and dogs. What I really respect is Zhuang Ding—how the hell did it manage to get a musk ox?”

“Wang, be careful. The herd will come looking for it. They’re very good at tracking their own kind by scent.”

Wang Bo had no time to watch the livestream. He received a call from the event organizers—clearly, it wasn’t just the audience paying attention to him.

“Wang, how did you capture a musk ox?!” the caller asked.

Wang Bo quickly explained, “Sorry, sir. My dog accidentally injured it, but please rest assured—I’ll definitely treat it and make it better!”

“Then stay where you are and focus on treating the musk ox. If you don’t think you can handle it, don’t touch it. Our expert team will head out immediately.”

Wang Bo agreed. Since even the organizers had been alerted, he had even less time to worry about the livestream viewers’ opinions.

The most important thing right now was saving the calf. He hadn’t expected Zhuang Ding to be this fierce—one outing, and it dragged back a protected animal.

Zhuang Ding was quite clever. Seeing that Wang Bo not only failed to praise it but instead rushed around saving the “prey,” it instinctively sensed trouble. It quickly crawled into the tent, sticking only its head out, pretending to be a well-behaved dog.

Wang Bo had no time to settle accounts with it. After a flurry of work, he finally managed to save the calf.

The vitality of musk oxen was truly astonishing. Once he had wrapped its wounds and given it medicine and spiritual spring water, the calf was able to prop itself up, though it still couldn’t stand—it had one leg crippled by Zhuang Ding.

A gust of wind blew past, and Wang Bo caught the smell of something burnt. Only then did he remember that he hadn’t eaten dinner yet—and the pot of beef soup he’d been cooking had already dried into charcoal.

After scrubbing the pot with snow water and cooking again, he finally managed to drink a steaming bowl of hot beef soup.

The organizers’ expert team hadn’t arrived yet. While sipping the delicious beef soup, Wang Bo called them and told them there was no need to send anyone—he had already taken care of the calf.

After checking the calf’s condition via video call, the organizers finally breathed a sigh of relief and recalled the experts who were already on their way.

The night was cold and grim. Wang Bo turned in early and crawled into his tent to sleep.

Half-asleep, he suddenly heard the dogs outside erupt into furious barking!