Tang Xiaoguo screamed when she saw the Malayan bear: “This guy must be in cahoots with that wretched chicken!”
But Shen Bing said in a deep voice: “Don't jump to conclusions. We won't wrongly accuse a good person, but we also won't let a bad person off the hook! Come, let's take a careful look at the scratches on it...”
Seeing Lu Zhe, the Malayan bear weakly stretched out its tongue, looking completely worn out.
Lu Zhe wondered: Did this bear attract the cassowaries here?
It doesn't seem so!
What Lu Zhe was most concerned about now was the whereabouts of Ning Shu and Qian Qian. If they didn't come back before dark, they could be in danger!
"Hey buddy, have you seen two girls around?"
The Malayan bear let out a lifeless “Aoo”.
"What do you mean?"
Lu Zhe also shook his head: "Don't know!"
"It can't talk!"
"No point asking it!"
"What should we do?"
Lu Zhe and Shen Bing examined the footprints on the ground!
The huge claw prints were like a velociraptor invasion, mixed with bear paw prints.
Lu Zhe understood that the battle between the cassowaries and the Malayan bear had taken place at the campsite!
Lu Zhe chopped off one of the cassowary's feet and compared it to the other footprints. He discovered that it was slightly smaller than the footprints on the other side!
Shen Bing murmured: “There were two?”
Lu Zhe nodded: “The monitor and Qian Qian killed one. The other was originally fighting with the bear. When it saw its companion being killed, it abandoned the bear and went to attack the monitor and Qian Qian...”
As he spoke, he picked up a torch and searched along the footprints, looking up at the deep jungle in the distance: “The two of them couldn't get back up the tree. To avoid the cassowary's attack, they had no choice but to run into the woods...”
Jiang Yao wondered: “So this bear is on our side?”
Lu Zhe said: “At least it seems that way in this matter!”
"I see... so it's actually a good bear?"
"How good could it be!"
Tang Xiaoguo sneered: “Some bear you are. You can't even beat a chicken and still have the nerve to mix with other bears!”
Whether or not the Malayan bear understood, it let out a lifeless “Aoo” and listlessly banged its head against a tree.
"Lu Zhe, what should we do now?"
After thinking for a moment, Lu Zhe said: “The sun has already set. Next the woods will become pitch black. The leaves will block out the stars. If they still haven't found the campsite, they may easily lose their sense of direction in the woods and end up wandering in circles.”
Jiang Yao couldn’t help but shiver: “Just thinking about it is scary!”
Lu Zhe went on: “So I suggest we split into two groups. One group stays at the campsite waiting for them to come back, the other goes into the woods to look for them."
Shen Bing nodded: “Should I go with you?”
Lu Zhe shook his head: “No, you have to stay here! It turns out our campsite still isn't very safe up to now! If you run into any trouble, Yao Yao and Guo Er might not be able to handle it. I can go alone!”
"No no, we won't feel at ease with you going alone!"
After thinking about it, Lu Zhe said: “How about I take Guo Er with me?”
Tang Xiaoguo felt a warmth in her heart: As expected, I'm still more important than that obsessive-compulsive Yao Yao!
But Lu Zhe's next words were: “With this unreliable person accompanying me, at least there'll be less trouble for you!”
Tang Xiaoguo punched Lu Zhe: “Who's unreliable!”
Lu Zhe had on a grave face: “Don't fool around. Right now, the monitor and Qian Qian may be in danger!”
Tang Xiaoguo made a very aggrieved “Oh” sound.
Shen Bing took out a gun and said: “Ning Shu and Qian Qian each took a gun. There's still one 52 and one 92 left. The 92 is bigger, you should take it.”
“Okay!”
Shen Bing briefly explained how to use the handgun. Lu Zhe was a very quick learner. After Shen Bing explained it once, he could use it proficiently!
Lu Zhe took the gun and strapped it to his belt.
“What should we do with this bear?”
Shen Bing said: “Leave it to me. I'll tie it up in a bit! It'll be fine if it cooperates. If it goes crazy I'll kill it!”
Tang Xiaoguo nodded: “Yeah, a bear not even as tall as me that can't beat a chicken probably won't be very destructive!”
“Don't underestimate it! This guy's bite force is comparable to a grizzly over seven to eight times its size. Its combat power is far from fully utilized! Let's go. You two take care!”
“You must be careful too!”
“Got it!”
Lu Zhe took a red rope, tied one end around Tang Xiaoguo's waist, and the other end around his own waist. Holding hands, the two of them entered the woods!
Jiang Yao looked at the Malayan bear: “Sis Bing, what should we do with this thing?”
“Tie it up first!”
“How do we tie it?”
“Don't forget, we have a specialized rope for tying up bears!”
Jiang Yao's eyes lit up: “That's right!”
She brought out a set of collar and ropes. Shen Bing carefully slipped the collar around its neck!
The Malayan bear had a listless look, and didn't bite anyone.
But bears aren't like dogs. Their necks are thicker than their heads. While they managed to get the collar on, the bear slipped right out of it with a tug.
Now what?
Even Shen Bing was stumped.
Just then, Jiang Yao saw the instruction manual: “There are all kinds of binding methods here!”
Shen Bing exclaimed: “It's just what we needed!”
“Could this really be... for tying up bears?!”
“Maybe... I guess so!”
But that wasn't important!
What was important was that following the manual, they truly succeeded in tying up the bear! Finally they pulled out a rope from its back and tied it to a tree. This restricted its ability to attack the camp, but didn't affect its ability to move around where it was—perfect!
Next, the two of them started plucking the chicken.
Back to Lu Zhe's side. Carrying a torch, he entered the deep woods!
At this time of night, the woods were pitch black, but Lu Zhe understood that the animals that would be out and about now might be even more than during the day!
Such as the Malayan bear and clouded leopard, which sleep soundly during the day and come out at dusk to look for food!
Ning Shu and Qian Qian were now in much greater danger than usual!
Lu Zhe added another 20 points of potential to his perception, which would ensure he could clearly see every detail of the night, and also hear and smell any information related to Ning Shu and Qian Qian!
There was one more thing he needed to do!
Lu Zhe handed a whistle to Tang Xiaoguo:
“Guo Er, your task is to continuously blow the whistle! If Ning Shu and Qian Qian hear it, they'll give us a response!”
“Will it attract monsters?”
“Possibly, but there's no need to worry. We have a torch. And if a monster really comes, I can talk to it.”
“Oh...” Tang Xiaoguo started blowing rhythmically with the spoon.
Most of the creatures in the woods chose to hide or flee when they heard the whistle sounds.
Occasionally some wanted to approach, but seeing the torch and Lu Zhe, they gave up the idea of ambushing.
Lu Zhe carefully searched for traces of footsteps left by Ning Shu and Qian Qian. Next he discovered that someone had done something admirable!
In the course of their escape, someone had wet their pants again.