Everyone immediately turned their heads to look at where the man was pointing, only to see a small hill sized dark shadow standing among the rows of tree shadows, making everyone's scalp tightened.
"Is it... is it a bear?"
"The bear has really come?"
"No… Don't ah ......"
The people who didn't believe they had brought a bear over subconsciously stepped back, huddling together like hamsters keeping each other warm. Compared to Li Wenling who had only seen the horror of the bear once, those of them who had traveled along the way and seen a corpse actually understood the horror of that bear even more. Fear in their hearts was even greater, which made them even more unwilling to believe the idea that they had brought the bear.
It was simply too terrifying!
Song Juyao took two steps forward, looking fixedly at the black shadow for a while and said, "That's not a bear."
Just the shadow of a shrub.
"Ah… it really doesn't seem to be, it's not moving."
After realizing that it was just an illusion, and not a bear, all of them breathed a sigh of relief, and realized that their backs were cold, and their clothes were soaked with cold sweat.
"I told you, we can't bring the bear here, how can this be possible?"
"Juyao, what do you think?" Li Wenling asked, and when Song Juyao didn't reply, she became uneasy. This villa looked so beautiful and cozy, but the thought of a bear made it instantly feel insecure. Could the fragile floor-to-ceiling glass windows withstand an attack from an adult male bear that was over two meters long and weighed more than 500 kilograms?
"Let's prepare for the worst." Song Juyao said.
When Song Juyao said this, their hearts thumped. Li Wenling and the others looked at Wen Zhulian with some dissatisfaction in their eyes. They had only just gotten out of danger and they actually brought the bear over!
Seeing this, Wen Zhulian felt bad, wondering what happened? In such a short period of time, had Song Juyao already subdued them? With a sense of crisis bubbling up in her heart, Wen Zhulian instantly reddened her eyes, chagrined and blamed herself, "I'm sorry, it's all our fault ......"
"Are you blaming us?" The young man - Chen Ruo said immediately. He was the bassist of a rock band with relatively low popularity, and he had ridden on the fame of the former lead singer this time. Because the former lead singer was an orphan, these few former band members that he grew up with as a child were regarded as his family - even if these people kicked him out of the band after it became famous.
It was probably because of this that they wanted to hug Wen Zhulian's thighs, hoping that she would write them a song and bring them back to the top. Even if it seems like they had been cheated by the Fanxing Group, they still thought that Wen Zhulian was the chosen one, and being with her would give them a better chance of survival than others.
They were together with her and encountered corpses along the way, but they didn't meet any bears. Instead, those corpses were people who were not with Wen Zhulian and blindly ran off on their own.
"Regardless of whether the bear is really following us or not, even if it is following us, we have to lure it away and can't let it come here, right?"
"If you were so capable, you should have told us from the beginning, how would we know what to do without you telling us? Also, this base belongs to everyone, anyone can come here okay?" A band member said.
"Alright, stop it, let's just follow the expert's advice." Former lead singer and now solo rocker Pan Yue said. His face was pale and he held his stomach, looking extremely uncomfortable.
"Ah Yue, how can you be like this, all the way Zhuzhu has been taking care of us, how can you ......"
"What do you guys mean? You guys brought us into danger, and now you're still acting so self-righteous." Li Wenling couldn't believe they still had the nerve to argue,, and immediately spoke out in displeasure. She was really fed up with the Wen family. Wen Yingting had killed her son, and now Wen Zhulian and the rest of them might have brought the bear. It made her feel suffocated. How could she have befriended these kinds of people in the past? Was she blinded by shit?
"Just apologize for doing something wrong, no one is going to kick you out. But now you're trying to shirk any responsibility. Whether you know it or not, you've put others at risk," Evans said sarcastically.
Wen Zhulian cried, Chang's mother felt extremely sympathetic. Li Xin, the mom, hadn't even uttered a word, she immediately defended, "What are you guys doing? Bullying a little girl? Are you not aware that ignorance is not a crime? Where's the bear? Why don't I see it? A group of people bullying a little girl, don't you have any shame?"
The scene was noisy, the live broadcast screen was also noisy, some people thought that Wen Zhulian and they did not know, that is, those who do not know are not guilty, some people thought that ignorance that harms others is a sin. Not only that, but the ignorant group was also refusing to take responsibility. There were also those who believed that it was uncertain whether the bear had really followed them. Song Juyao started guiding others in blaming Wen Zhulian, so she was suspected of taking advantage of her abilities to bully others...
Chang's mother did not know that Chang Zhenzhen, who had already "died", was also watching the program.
Although they faced death, after leaving the Survival Island Paradise, it felt like having a terrifying dream. Upon waking up, it was as if the fear had dissipated, and they hadn't been left with any deep emotional scars.
Originally, Chang Zhenzhen had just a little bit of grudge against Wen Zhulian, who had clearly promised to protect her a moment ago, but then let go the next moment. Even though this was probably a conditioned reflex for everyone, she still had a little knot in her heart.
But it was just a small knot.
Until now, when she saw Chang's Mother so fervently defending Wen Zhulian, not blaming her at all. Li Wenling's son died, and she immediately turned on the whole Wen family, yet her mother actually still cherished Wen Zhulian so much. The contrast was really too stark, and it made Chang Zhenzhen very uncomfortable.
She originally thought that although her mother liked Wen Zhulian, she would naturally love her own daughter more. But now, it seemed like her mother loved Wen Zhulian even more.
This made her harbor some resentment towards both her mother and Wen Zhulian. She felt like she had seen something clearly.
On Survival Island Paradise, in the glass villa stronghold.
During the argument between the two sides, a heavy rain began to pour from the sky. Wen Yingting immediately said, "It's raining; the rain will wash away the scent. Even if the bear is looking for us, it probably won't find us. If it had been following them very closely, they would have noticed it, so it should be fine."
As soon as Wen Yingting spoke out, it was as if they had found something strong to rely on, "If Big Brother Yingting says so, then it must be fine."
Song Juyao lightly glanced at Wen Yingting and turned to go upstairs with Evans.
That seemingly casual glance didn't seem to have much emotion, but Wen Yingting suddenly felt very uncomfortable and also doubted his own judgment. But when he thought again, he couldn't find any fault in his judgment. With such heavy rain, their scent would undoubtedly be washed away.
Li Wenling and her group, on the other hand, rolled their eyes quite noticeably, not believing Wen Yingting's judgment. He had never been right in his judgments. Two nights ago, he had made them wait for Wen Zhulian for half an hour, and the result was that the wolves came in less than two minutes. And when they should have run away, he told them to retreat slowly, letting them miss their escape time, which led to Li Quan's death. Where did he get the nerve to speak now? What a half-baked wobbler.
"At this point, believe it or not, but if you end up dragging us down later, don't blame us for not being polite," Li Wenling said sternly and went upstairs with her husband, following Song Juyao.
Li Quan who was watching the live broadcast outside nodded vigorously. Yes, Mom and Dad, following Yao Jie must be the right choice! Stay away from those idiots! In the wilderness, one can't afford any delusions. Even survival experts in the wild need to be very careful, caution is key.
Stanley also didn't hesitate to take Addison up the stairs to follow, Li Dada didn't want to stay here, also followed to get up. Wen Zhulian was surprised and called out to her, Li Dada paused for a moment, but still went up.
Li Xin opened her mouth but didn't say anything in the end, choosing to stay with her real family.
Looking at it this way, most of the people were still on Wen Zhulian's side, which relieved her. As for the bear, she held onto a glimmer of hope, thinking they shouldn't be that unlucky, and the bear wouldn't necessarily really come looking for them.
On the other hand, Li Wenling and the others followed Song Juyao and Evans all the way into her room.
"Juyao, what should we do if the bear really comes?" Li Wenling asked. Her son was still sick, and it wasn't appropriate to take him on a run. However, this house might not necessarily be able to withstand a bear, so they had to come up with a plan.
Song Juyao said, "If it were just my brother and me, I'd immediately take him out of here."
"So?" Li Wenling looked at her expectantly. By saying "if it were my brother and me," she was implying that she was now including their safety in the equation as well; she wouldn't leave them behind and take her brother away.
"We are now at the lower reaches of the river. There are mangroves here, proving that we are very close to the sea. If we follow the river, the only possibility is that it will lead us to the sea. This is more dangerous than staying on the island – we might die at sea."
Song Juyao took out a paper and pen, calmly sketching a rough map she had deduced in her mind. They were right at the edge of the island, and a bit further out was the beach.
"It's hard for us to find another river stream to cut off the scent in a short time, and even if we do, there's only one way out is to the sea, which poses a greater death threat than the bear. So if that bear does come, and we don't want to sit and wait to die or keep enduring the threat of it chasing us after us, our only option is to kill it before it kills us."
It didn't have to be so troublesome, but Wen Zhulian's group left traces along the way, giving the bear clues to track them down.
"Kill it? That bear?" It's so huge, is it really possible to be able to kill something so huge?
"It's extremely difficult. Even hunters armed with guns can have a tough time dealing with a bear in the wild. Sometimes, even if several bullets hit the bear, it can't stop its movements."
The words sent a wave of helplessness and despair through the people; not even a gun could always kill a bear, let alone the fact that they didn't have one at all. They had already searched the villa inside and out a long time ago, and there were no weapons. The only thing that was somewhat lethal was probably the kitchen knives and fruit knives in the kitchen, but with these two contraptions, it was feared that they would already be torn apart by the bear before they could even stab it.
"It's not like there's no way." Song Juyao said, "I have a plan, but it depends on whether the bear can give us enough time."
Song Juyao's plan to kill the bear caught the attention of the entire audience.
[Killing the bear?! So exciting! Can that bear really be killed by humans? It's so huge; it's almost like a monster!"]
[I'm curious about Song Juyao's plan. Is she going to set up traps? Digging a hole and placing hidden stakes at the bottom?]
[That bear is so huge; how big of a hole would they need to dig? Besides, such traps are too risky. You don't know where the bear will appear from, and how to lure it into the trap. I don't think Song Juyao, with her intelligence, would go for such a high-risk plan.]
[??? Why are you all being so serious and solemn? What if the bear doesn't show up, wouldn't that be embarrassing?]
......
Rain fell throughout the night, and the next day, the ground was damp from the continuous drizzle.
Having safely passed the night, plus the daylight, those who were frightened last night started to feel safe and gradually lowered their raised guards.
Song Juyao assigned tasks to Li Wenling and the others, and they all were about to take action after breakfast.
Li Wenling was unwilling to be taken advantage of by these annoying people, so she said to those eating breakfast in the dining area: "Just in case, we're going to make preparations for killing the bear, do you guys want to join us?"
When she voiced out, the others exchanged glances in confusion and disbelief.
Chen Ruo asked: "What should we do?"
"My husband and I are tasked with going to the beach to collect shells. Stanley and Addison are to dig for sulfur. You guys can choose whether you want to come with us or with Stanley and the others."
"Ah, we need to go out......" They were a little hesitant, although they said that they didn't believe that the bears had followed them, but in their hearts, they were actually still afraid. When they thought about the possibility that the bear was hiding in the forest, they didn't want to leave this building.
Chen Ruo laughed and said: "Kill the bear? Kill that bear? How do we kill it?"
Li Wenling heard his disdainful tone and frowned, "It's none of your business how others plan to kill it. Are you in or not?"
"Sister Ling, don't argue." Wen Zhulian hurriedly stood up and said, "Is it Juyao's plan? How does she plan to kill the bear? If we're all going to act together, she needs to explain it to us clearly, doesn't she? We are all taking pretty big risks, so it's only right that we discuss it together."
"Yeah, we can't just do whatever she says."
"Our plan is to go to sea, is it possible to stay here and wait for death? Who knows what Fengxing Group wants to do to us?"
[These people really don't have the slightest bit of self-awareness, don't they weigh what they know and are they qualified to discuss with Song Juyao?]
[I used to like Wen Zhulian, but now the more I look at her, the more unbearable she seems]
[I just want to ask Wen Zhulian, besides being a songwriter, what other charms she has in her personality?]
[Go to sea? They're probably just wanting to die, don't tell me they think they can drift across the ocean on a bamboo raft.]
[Please search online how much charity work Zhuzhu does every year, and what did she say wrong? Is Song Juyao the leader? Even if she is, she should discuss her plans with her teammates, right?]
[She wants people to risk their lives without a clear explanation. Can she take responsibility if someone dies?]
[Juyao and Evans have already left. Forget it, if you don't want to do it, then just don't do it!" Li Wenling regretted it. These people were all fools. Discussing? Did they have anything in their empty brains to discuss with Song Juyao?]
At the same time she suddenly remembered that she was also one of these annoying people before, discriminating against Song Juyao, looking at her every move with malice, and being biased in favor of Wen Zhulian. She realized how obnoxious she was back then, but Song Juyao was really kind and didn't hold it against her.
"Wait, I'll go with you." Pan Yue stood up. His complexion still wasn't great, but he had taken medicine last night, so he was fine.
Pan Yue also took a basket and followed them outside.
Chen Ruo coldly scoffed, "Pan Yue, this guy is still the same."
Wen Zhulian said: "Let's...just wait for Juyao to come back in the evening and ask her about her specific plan. We all have to act together after all, and it's important to understand each other's thoughts. Does anyone need to wash the sheets? There's a washing machine over there, bring them over to wash together - the sun is shining."
Many people didn't even have time to shower last night and just collapsed on the bed. So when Wen Zhulian mentioned it, a few people brought their sheets over.
Wen Zhulian and the others set up ropes outside the villa to hang the sheets. In the sunlight, the beautiful girl and the white bedsheets, along with the lush forest, made the scene look as fresh and beautiful as a manga.
Chang's mother and Li Xin along with the attentive Chen Ruo came forward to help. The four of them worked joyfully, and even the men who were watching from the sides found the scene very beautiful.
Chang Youqing finally got rid of the fever, and he felt rejuvenated. After escaping death once, he felt that his state of mind had changed – the bottleneck he had always faced was finally broken through. Perhaps he could accept that drama role he didn't dare take before - now he had confidence he could even win awards through that drama.
He stepped out and greeted these people. Seeing his mother in high spirits, he smiled, "Mom."
"Son!!" Chang's mother was overjoyed to see her son out of bed, and immediately checked him over thoroughly before running to bring him the congee she had cooked, and only after finishing all this did she go out with a beaming smile to find Wen Zhulian.
"Zhuzhu, look at my son. He's so healthy and strong - young people are really different." Chang's mother said. Chang Youqing was 34, while Wen Zhulian was only 18. Chang's mother had always wanted her son to marry Wen Zhulian, and was worrying Chang Youqing's age would make Wen Zhulian's family disapprove, so she kept emphasizing how young her son still was.
Wen Zhulian smiled somewhat awkwardly, but inside she was very proud that Chang's mother liked her so much.
"Xiaoxin ah, Zhuzhu is really outstanding. You guys are right to choose her, if it were me I would have also chosen her." Chang's mother said.
Li Xin's expression immediately darkened - this woman truly has no emotional intelligence. What nonsense is she saying? This peasant woman knows nothing about gratitude. Without Song Juyao, these two mothers and son would have died long ago.
Chen Ruo: "I agree!"
A gust of wind suddenly blew through the forest, sweeping one of the white sheets high into the sky. Falling leaves and rustling branches filled the air.
They subconsciously raised their heads to look at the sheet that was lifted off the ground, and in just such a moment, something unexpected happened.
The spoon in the hands of Chang Youqing, who was eating congee in the restaurant, fell into the bowl. His expression was horrified and his pupils were trembling.
Everyone looked in the same direction in horror. All other sounds in the world disappeared, leaving only the frantic pounding of their hearts and blood rushing wildly through their veins.
Accidents happen without warning.
That brown bear, just suddenly without any warning, walked out of the forest and appeared in front of everyone's eyes.
The viewers in the live broadcast were so startled that the chat screen went blank for a moment.
"Ah!" Someone screamed in terror, and those who were outside immediately rushed into the villa, Chen Ruo immediately ran up, but tripped over a rock and fell to the ground.
Wen Zhulian and Li Xin were stunned dumb with fear until Wen Yingting rushed out and pulled them along, only then did they run up in a hurry.
Chang's Mother, however, was left standing in place. She was old and didn't react fast enough. She stood frozen as the bear charged toward her.
Seeing the bear, as massive as a small hill , pouncing towards her, Chang's mother's mind went blank. She didn't come to her senses until she was suddenly pushed away and escaped from the bear's mouth.
She got up from the ground, turned around, and her world spun.
Chang Youqing was bitten by the neck and hung from the bear's mouth, swaying. The bear bit its prey. Seeing Chen Ruo, who had fallen and then climbed up again not far away, the greedy bear lunged at him and swatted him with a paw. The impact shattered Chen Ruo's shoulder instantly, and his entire arm was torn off. He let out a horrific scream.
Just then, Wen Yingting rushed out with a fire extinguisher and sprayed it crazily in the bear's face. The bear was terrified and crouched down, turned, and ran away while dragging Chang Youqing, leaving behind a pool of blood that stretched into the forest.
"Aaahhhhhh..." Chang's mother let out a scream full of pain and helplessness. Her eyes seemed ready to pop out of their sockets. However, the people hiding inside the villa couldn't offer her any help, including her beloved Wen Zhulian.
[Ahhhhhhhhh!!!]
[Visuals Movie Emperor is done for!!!]
[Damn it, even though there is a mosaic, the scene in my mind is even scarier!]
[Serves her right! It's for her ingratitude! She brought this upon herself, and now consequences fell onto her son!]
[Wasn't she fond of Wen Zhulian? Didn't she trust her and not believe Song Juyao? Wasn't the bear not following them? Are you shocked or not?]
The people in the villa were all in shock. The bear came and went quickly, but the fear left behind hung over like a dark cloud that was slow to dissipate. Has Chang Youqing been dragged away just like that? They couldn't help but think of the corpses they saw on the way – will Chang Youqing end up the same way, disemboweled and eaten by the bear until only some parts are left that the bears disliked……
"The bear... the bear was really brought here by us..."
......
Unaware of the tragedy unfolding at the villa, Song Juyao was in the forest with Evans and Li Dada, digging for potassium nitrate (saltpeter). Li Dada felt a bit uneasy in the deep and secluded surroundings, especially behind the tall trees and bushes.
"Do you not trust my sister?" Evans asked coldly when he noticed she wasn't focused on her digging.
Li Dada was stunned for a moment and shook her head. "Of course I believe her, but ……I can't help feeling a bit scared. You guys didn't see how terrifying that bear was."
"Sister said it won't appear on our side." Evans said, compacting some of the soil in Li Dada's backpack, and shoveling several more shovels into it. Being a model, Li Dada, who was quite skinny, was immediately pressed so hard that her shoulders almost shattered.
[Steel straight man Evans]
[Except for my sister, no other women are real women·jpg]
[Hahaha so deserved to be single]
Song Juyao walked over from the front, saying: "There's a bat cave ahead, let's get some bat guano (partially decomposed poop)."
"Sister, she doesn't believe you." Evans took the opportunity to sue.
Li Dada was shocked and hurried to say: "That's not true, I was just a bit psychologically affected; that bear was just too scary!"
Song Juyao gently smiled and reassured, "I understand. It's okay, don't be afraid. What Wen Yingting said also makes sense. Heavy rain will wash away our scents, and with the high humidity in the air right now, it can also affect the bear's sense of smell. It won't be so easy for it to find us."
Listening to her soothing voice, Li Dada relaxed and nodded.
Song Juyao's eyes curved into a smile as she led them towards the bat cave.
– unless, of course, a large group of people gathered together to produce a relatively strong scent, causing the bear with a keen sense of smell to follow the scent in the air to find them.