Chapter 364 - 251: Snow’s Inn
Chapter 364: Chapter 251: Snow’s Inn
"So this is Hokkaido?" Li Xiang stood atop a high mountain, gazing into the distance. Thick snow covered everything he could see.
Behind him, even the Soya Strait was frozen over, but it was not motionless.
Huge ice floes, some three to four kilometers in diameter, formed a wondrous matrix. In the frigid northern wind, over thirty degrees below zero, they performed a slow and magnificent ballet of ice. Crescent-shaped ice pans interlocked and then separated, again and again. Prismatic ice ridges flashed with blue light as they collided. Occasionally, a ringed seal would leap from the water, creating dark gray ripples between the floes.
Li Xiang had crossed over by stepping on these giant floes. He should now be in Wakkanai City, at the northernmost tip of Hokkaido.
A massive brown bear appeared in his line of sight.
Brown bears are supposed to hibernate in the winter, but their hibernation isn’t as deep as a snake’s; it’s more of a semi-conscious state. If threatened—by a ferocious beast or a nearby human, a destroyed den, or extreme weather—they can quickly become fully active and may even attack.
Li Xiang didn’t know why this brown bear had come out during a heavy blizzard. Perhaps its den had collapsed, it was too hungry, or the extreme cold had woken it, sending it out to find food or just to move around.
But now, it had become Li Xiang’s prey.
’A brown bear this large, if it’s a potential Mutated Creature, its Tier must be high—at least Tier Twelve or above!’ The thrill of the hunt filled Li Xiang. His figure flickered, and he appeared beside the massive brown bear. And then...
He was disappointed.
’Damn it, the system is silent. No notification at all. This means it’s just an ordinary brown bear.’
"What a waste of your size," Li Xiang sneered. He was about to leave when the hulking bear roared and lunged at him.
"Oh? Courting death, are you!"
Perhaps the brown bear had never met a worthy opponent and thus didn’t take Li Xiang seriously.
With a flick of his hand, Li Xiang stuffed it into his system warehouse. The brown bear was still quite valuable. Its hide, gall bladder, and four plump paws were all rarities.
Besides, the meat wasn’t half bad either.
In Russia, brown bear meat is considered tough, gamey, and high in fat, requiring vodka to be edible. But in Japan, bear meat is considered an alpine delicacy. When cooked properly, it isn’t gamey at all; instead, it’s tender and soft, similar to beef but even softer.
In Japan, there are also many ways to prepare bear meat, with braising and grilling being very popular methods.
According to Japan’s own statistics, there are tens of thousands of brown bears in Japan, with a particularly high population in Hokkaido of over ten thousand. The Hokkaido brown bear is sometimes referred to using an ancient Chinese term for the animal.
Furthermore, the number of Japanese black bears is also very high.
Sika deer, on the other hand, were a downright plague, numbering over four million.
Besides bats, Li Xiang had come specifically for these sika deer.
’Over four million of them! What a massive source of meat.’ Wild sika deer were a Class I protected species in China, but here they were everywhere, even on the streets.
Venison is good stuff, especially in this icy weather. A pot of stewed venison would warm you right up.
Brown bears and black bears hibernate, but these sika deer do not.
Li Xiang walked through the mountains and forests of Hokkaido, harvesting any herd of sika deer he came across. His Extreme Speed was 5.5 Mach. What sika deer could possibly escape his grasp?
After a single day, Li Xiang had harvested over 300,000 fresh, plump sika deer.
To his disappointment, out of all those sika deer, not a single one had Extraordinary potential.
’What the hell is going on?’
Li Xiang refused to believe it. He hunted in Hokkaido for two days, acquiring over 700,000 sika deer—nearly wiping them out. He also swept through several warehouse supermarkets in Sapporo City, cleaning out all their supplies.
Still, he hadn’t encountered a single creature with Extraordinary potential.
However, there were quite a few good things here, such as horse oil skincare products, lavender essential oil, soaps, and candles. Hokkaido’s horse oil skincare products, in particular, were famous for their moisturizing and restorative properties, making them suitable for dry and sensitive skin.
Li Xiang specifically looted a warehouse of horse oil skincare products belonging to a zaibatsu, planning to take them back as casual gifts. He figured the girls would love them.
The salmon, snow crabs, and scallops were also quite good.
Shiroi Koibito chocolate cookies were also quite famous. A classic dessert made with Hokkaido milk, they had a crispy outer layer and a rich filling. They were a must-buy souvenir for many tourists and also on Li Xiang’s list of things to loot.
In truth, Li Xiang was already holding back. It wasn’t as if he was implementing a "Three Alls Policy"; he was merely plundering the supplies of the zaibatsu. The paltry possessions of ordinary people were beneath his notice.
What Li Xiang was now paying back was not even one percent of the suffering from all those years ago.
「Two days later.」
Li Xiang crossed the Tsugaru Strait and arrived on Japan’s largest island, Honshu.
Honshu is home to three major metropolitan areas: the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, the Osaka Metropolitan Area, and the Nagoya Metropolitan Area. The majority of Japan’s population, famous corporations, and universities are concentrated in these three areas.
Honshu itself is divided into five regions: Northeast, Kantou, Central Region, Kansai, and China. Together with the three islands of Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku, these make up Japan’s eight major regions.