The Evolutionary Path of the Lion

Chapter 102 Broken Ear

As evening fell at our stop on the grassland, twilight slowly enveloped the land.

Chen Fei lay lazily under the shade of the acacia tree, quietly listening to the sound of an off-road vehicle engine coming from the east.

The sound gradually faded away, eventually disappearing completely at the edge of the grassland.

Big Head slowly approached from somewhere, resting his heavy chin on Chen Fei's back, and together they looked up towards the east.

Big Head's hearing had long since deteriorated, and all he could hear now was the constant howling of the wind.

Chen Fei's ears twitched slightly, keenly catching every subtle movement around him.

The off-road vehicle slowly drove onto the dirt road in the distance, its wheels kicking up clouds of dust.

The dust, tinged with orange-red by the setting sun, slowly drifted away and disintegrated.

The vast grasslands have returned to emptiness and silence.

Only the cold, oppressive aura from the south continued to slowly creep towards this area.

On the other side, the vanguard of the split-mouthed hyena pack had already stepped onto the edge of the high ground ridge.

They cautiously probed forward, taking a small half-step.

The hyena vanguard lingered on the ridgeline all night.

From beginning to end, there was no reckless advance that crossed the boundaries.

Chen Fei knew perfectly well that the hyenas were waiting for the right opportunity.

Before the dry season arrives, hyena packs will not easily expend a lot of energy to launch a frontal attack.

They are waiting for the water source to continue to shrink and dry up.

The scarcity of water forces all prey and competing beasts to a fixed water source.

By then, they will be able to stay near the water source, wait for the opportune moment, and enjoy the advantages.

This is the inherent survival logic of hyena groups.

This survival method is highly efficient and reliable, and it can function steadily in most environments on the grasslands.

But there is a key issue right now.

Chen Fei knew the location of that core water source even earlier than they did.

Before the dry season arrives, the receding of water sources follows a fixed pattern.

The main river channel will shrink and dry up first, followed by the drying up of tributaries of all sizes.

Scattered seepage points on the ground will disappear one by one as the terrain rises and falls.

The last remaining usable water sources all have a stable underground supply.

These water sources are mostly hidden in low-lying, densely vegetated areas with few traces of wild animal activity.

The scarcity of animal activity does not mean that no wild animals know about this place.

Instead, all living beings who are aware of the situation will tacitly choose to avoid it.

They deliberately preserved this water source as a last resort to get through the dry season.

This is the unspoken understanding of survival among all things on the grassland.

Chen Fei never rigidly adheres to this unspoken understanding.

He simply identified and marked this crucial water source earlier than all his competitors on the grassland.

The bend in the upstream river channel is two kilometers to the northwest.

There lies a natural depression, surrounded and concealed on three sides by dense bushes.

The ground in this area remains moist year-round, and even as the dry season approaches, groundwater continues to seep from the surrounding sandy soil.

Two weeks ago, Chen Fei personally explored this area.

The moment his foot touched the ground, he could clearly feel the continuous moisture beneath the soil.

That wasn't shallow water residue on the surface; it was living water seeping up from deep underground.

Now is the best time to seize this water source.

[Host: Chen Fei]

[Identity: Sub-adult male lion]

[Energy Points: 1038↑]

At dawn, he took the initiative to find the one-legged man.

There was no roar or call out.

He simply walked slowly to the edge of the one-legged creature's territory, stood quietly for a moment, and patiently waited for the other to show itself.

When the one-legged creature appears, it is usually accompanied by two close lieutenants.

Every time a formal meeting is held, it brings an accompaniment, a habit that Chen Fei has long been familiar with.

Ignoring the two wary hyena henchmen, he fixed his gaze on One-Legged, took a few steps slowly toward the northwest, stopped, and turned back to look at them quietly.

The one-legged man stared at him intently for a long time.

In the end, he slowly followed.

The short two-kilometer journey took nearly forty minutes.

The journey itself wasn't that far; the delays were all due to the one-legged man.

It moves slowly, stopping frequently halfway through its journey to carefully sniff the ground, its steps becoming increasingly cautious and vigilant.

It wasn't that it distrusted Chen Fei; it was simply using its own methods to verify the safety of the route and confirm the actual value of the destination step by step.

Chen Fei waited calmly throughout, without urging him in the slightest.

A row of low shrubs grows on the periphery of the low-lying area.

After passing the bushes, there is an open sandy area.

The sand here is darker in color than the surrounding area, and a faint dampness lingers on its surface.

Near the center of the depression, there are several shallow pits filled with clear water.

The water supply isn't abundant, but with the dry season approaching, it's more than enough to support all members of the alliance and help them get through this most difficult transition period.

The one-legged creature stopped at the edge of the sandy ground, lowered its head, and sniffed and explored the ground for a long time.

It raised its head and glanced at Chen Fei.

Chen Fei blinked and casually flicked his tail. It meant nothing more than that he understood.

He turned and walked back the way he came, stopping after two steps and turning back to his two deputies, letting out a low growl. Chen Fei recognized the tone; it wasn't a command, but a confirmation. The meaning was simple: remember this place, we understand.

The integration depth has been pushed down another layer.

Upstream, there are three small prides, totaling less than twenty lions. They are all losers in territorial disputes, marginalized and vulnerable groups. They were never on good terms with each other, but with the dry season approaching, survival is more important than fighting, so their hostility has temporarily subsided.

Chen Fei knew this matter needed to be addressed. He spent two days on it.

Chen Fei didn't know the name of the male lion in the first pride. He named it "Broken Ear," because nearly a third of its right ear was missing, the edges of which were covered by old scars that had been scabbed over for a long time. Broken Ear's first reaction upon seeing Chen Fei was wariness; it circled him, neither too close nor too far, neither approaching nor running away. This was a common tactic of savanna lions, testing the other's strength.

Chen Fei didn't follow the path; he simply sat down directly in front of the severed ear. He turned off his aura disguise, letting his scent dissipate completely, and then remained motionless, just sitting there.

Isn't this signal strange?

Without any aggressive posture, without roaring to declare its territory, it doesn't follow any of the rules when male lions meet; it just sits there and lets the other smell it.

The broken ear spun around twice before finally stopping three meters away, bowing its head and taking a few deep breaths towards the ground.

What did it smell in Chen Fei's scent? Chen Fei wasn't sure. But at that moment, its shoulder line noticeably loosened a bit.

The second integration took less time, but the third was a bit more troublesome. The lead lioness, with four cubs, immediately pushed the cubs behind her and charged forward herself upon smelling the unfamiliar scent.

When the lioness charged two meters away, Chen Fei let out a roar that sounded like a lion king.