Chapter 115: Mirage

At 2 p. m., it was the hottest time of the day.

Yet even so, Qin Yun's perceived temperature was only five degrees—colder than yesterday.

Under the drone's lens, he walked ahead with a backpack on his back, a rope tied to his arm, the other end looped around a bharal's neck, trailing far behind.

This harmonious scene of man and sheep had lasted for two or three hours already.

Only now had he regained his course toward the northeast, stepping onto the path of survival.

Along the way, he encountered no danger at all—only endless emptiness and occasional gusts of swirling sand.

Though only three days had passed, in this environment, Qin Yun's appearance had changed somewhat. Beneath the wind and sand, his hair and skin had dried out considerably.

Thus, he walked, paused, and continued until past six in the evening, when he reached a low cluster of badlands.

Pointing at the badlands ahead, Qin Yun pulled down the sunshade cloth from his face and smiled: "This place is sheltered from the wind and offers an open view—we'll camp here tonight."

He began gathering fuel and lighting a fire.

The moment the flames ignited, the bharal was startled, bleating frantically and nearly dragging Qin Yun down with its sudden surge of strength.

Only after a good beating did it quiet down.

Over this journey, the bharal had lost count of how many times it had been punched—any disturbance to Qin Yun meant a beating.

"Hahahaha, still got no sense, got another beating."

"Qin Ye's learned the art of punching."

"This sheep is truly stupid."

"Laughed to death—just watching Qin Ye beat the bharal is pure entertainment."

"Officials are taking notes; as soon as Qin Ye arrives, they'll settle accounts with him. Guys, what's the penalty for assaulting a Class II protected national animal?"

"Relevant authorities: …"

After lighting the fire, Qin Yun built a shelter, using local materials to construct a windbreak leaning against the rock wall.

Only after finishing the shelter did he begin roasting meat for dinner.

As for the bharal…

Qin Yun simply filled a sunshade cloth with water, hung it aside, and let it drink. As for dinner—it had nothing to do with him.

The meat was wolf meat, tasteless, but on a freezing night, having something hot to eat and a sip of warm water felt incredibly comforting.

Humans are like that—desires are endless, but once reduced to extreme simplicity, even small things can bring great satisfaction.

"I know it tastes awful, but watching Qin Ye eat still makes me hungry."

"Qin Ye should consider switching to food streaming—it's got real potential."

"Before, he ate insects to survive; now he eats wolf meat."

Qin Yun bit into a piece of wolf meat and said calmly to the camera: "Don't envy me. Stay home, enjoy your air conditioning, order takeout, and just watch my stream. Survival? Leave it to me—you just need to hit like."

"Damn it, how do you know I'm eating takeout? (ಥ﹏ಥ) Fuck."

"Wilderness survival isn't for everyone. Just the dangers Qin Ye faced these past few days—any one of us would be dead already, probably picked apart by wolf packs."

"As Qin Ye says, leave this to the professionals—we just shout '666.'"

Qin Yun ate until seven-tenths full; the remaining wolf meat would last him through tomorrow. He added more firewood and prepared to rest.

As he tidied up, night fell, the cold wind grew stronger, and the temperature plummeted almost vertically.

Qin Yun huddled inside the windbreak, leaning against the earthen wall, while the fire crackled outside.

"Friends, I'm Qin Yun, a temporary wilderness survival enthusiast. It's currently 7:30 p. m., November 11th. The sun has set—I believe tonight will be a quiet night."

"Damn, the moment Qin Ye plants that flag, I'm staying up in his livestream tonight."

"Hahaha, no surprises—there'll be surprises."

"Qin Ye doesn't even need to stage drama—it always finds him anyway."

"I also think something will happen tonight. Let's all stay up."

Reading these comments, Qin Yun couldn't help but laugh and sigh.

"Can't you all wish me well?"

"We can't wish you well—you're eating wolf meat in the desert while I'm eating takeout at home."

"Just survive properly. Don't worry about us."

Watching Qin Yun's flickering face in the firelight on the screen, Su Huan paused, then posted a comment.

This was Su Huan's first comment since Qin Yun started livestreaming.

"Xiao Huanhuan: Qin Yun, stay safe."

Qin Yun's gaze had been fixed on the comment section; seeing this, his heart skipped a beat, as if through the screen he'd glimpsed the familiar face on the other side.

"I know. Go to sleep early. Goodnight."

With that, he ended the livestream.

Viewers thought his words were meant for them—but only Su Huan knew that in that moment, their gazes had met across the void.

After charging the battery, Qin Yun wrapped himself in wolf fur, his thoughts slightly tangled.

In truth, he'd only been divorced for two months—he'd never considered starting a new relationship.

Even now, even with all Su Huan had shown over these two months, it still hadn't moved him to respond in any way.

His years with Song Ya—from courtship to marriage to its end—were not so easily erased. Even though his feelings for Song Ya were gone entirely, the memories refused to fade so quickly.

He didn't reject the idea of a new relationship, but in his plan, two or three years from now would be the right time.

Now?

He shook his head, dismissed excessive worries. He didn't reject Su Huan—he was selfish in his heart, so let it be like this…

Before sleeping, he went to check on the pregnant bharal.

Whether from lack of hunger or indifference, it lay still now, seemingly unaffected by the cold, occasionally lifting its head and shaking it, scanning its surroundings with alertness.

After ensuring it was safe, Qin Yun added more firewood and covered himself with the wolf pelt to sleep.

Night deepened; the night in Qaidam was biting cold, wind whipping sand and gravel against the stones of the windbreak shelter, and only after a long while did Qin Yun drift into drowsy sleep.

If the stars overhead were filmed with a slow-motion lens, the beauty of the Milky Way would be clearly visible.

Beneath this beautiful night sky, a sleek black shadow darted out from behind a dune like a ghost, its slender form exploding with immense power.

The bharal seemed to sense something—its head, previously lowered with closed eyes, snapped up abruptly, ears rigidly erect, eyes glinting faintly in the dark, nostrils flaring as it emitted a low, wary bleat.

"Pata—!"

A sound so low it was nearly silent struck the bharal's ears like thunder.

The bharal smelled the predator's scent; the odor made it shudder instantly, and without hesitation it tried to rise and flee—but it forgot its neck was still chained to a rock on the other end.

"Bang—!"

The immense force could not snap the umbrella cloth; instead, its entire body was yanked violently to the ground with a heavy thud.

"Bleat—! Bleat—!"

A piercing, trembling cry ripped through the night; Qin Yun's eyelid twitched and he jolted awake from shallow sleep.

He shot open his eyes, muscles taut, springing upright in one motion, flinging off the wolf pelt and charging out, still wrapped in cold air.

At first glance, the night was pitch black as ink.

The earlier fire had burned to ash, leaving only a faint red glow, not a single spark of light remaining.

But in an instant, the Milky Way descended, and his vision slowly adjusted.

Qin Yun's pupils contracted—he instantly caught the black shadow lunging from the darkness, moving with shocking speed, straight toward the nearby bharal!

He snatched the dagger from his waist without even pausing to start his livestream, a low growl bursting from his throat: "Wicked beast, get lost!"

The shadow clearly startled by the shout, twisted mid-air and landed lightly beside the edge of the badlands, limbs slightly crouched, eyes locked fixedly on Qin Yun.

Only then did Qin Yun clearly see its form.

Light gray fur speckled with dark spots, eyes glowing with cold, eerie green light, sinister as a hunter risen from hell.

"Lynx!"

Qin Yun's heart tightened, but his steps didn't pause—he charged straight forward.

With a sharp flick of his wrist, the dagger sliced through the air, a flash of cold light aimed straight at the lynx's face!

The lynx reacted with uncanny speed, sidestepping lightly—the dagger plunged "puff" into the sand behind it, leaving only the hilt exposed.

Almost simultaneously, Qin Yun closed the distance.

The lynx, fully enraged, leapt into the air to strike, claws slicing through the air toward his arm, eyes blazing with ferocity.

Qin Yun had anticipated this—he sidestepped smoothly, then drove his right leg forward, kicking hard into the lynx's soft abdomen.

He held back his strength.

Both were Class II national protected animals; the lynx was merely following its instinct to hunt. Killing it outright would be trouble.

Even with restraint, the lynx let out a piercing shriek, its body flung airborne and crashing heavily onto the sand.

It curled for an instant, then rose again, eyes fiercer, panting as it lunged once more.

Qin Yun knew this beast's nature well—clever, agile, but unable to endure prolonged combat.

He avoided direct clashes, using the night, the dunes, and the windbreak shelter to weave and dodge, striking precise kicks only in gaps—never killing, never wounding, yet pressing forward relentlessly.

After several rounds, the lynx's breathing grew erratic, its movements noticeably slower.

After another kick from Qin Yun sent it reeling, it finally realized this man was not to be trifled with. It glared at him fiercely, then turned and vanished into the dark dunes, gone in moments.

Qin Yun exhaled slowly, then turned to check on the bharal.

He scanned it up and down—not a single hair lost.

He burst out laughing in irritation, raising his hand to slap the beast squarely on the face—not hard, not soft.

"Fucking hell, you're always causing me trouble! Screaming like you're about to die—I thought you'd been gutted!"

The bharal took the slap without protest, instead rubbing its head against his pant leg, clearly acting like "I'm scared, protect me!"

Qin Yun: "..."

The night wind swept sand grains across his skin, cold instantly piercing through his clothes.

He couldn't be bothered to argue with the bighorn sheep any longer, turned and hurried back into the windbreak, rewrapping himself tightly in the thick wolf pelt.

But after that disturbance, falling back asleep was no longer easy.

The next morning, Qin Yun still felt tired, but daylight had broken and sleep was gone. He rubbed his throbbing temples, pushed aside the wolf pelt, and stepped out—just as he stretched his stiff body, his gaze drifted unconsciously toward the distant horizon, and he froze.

His breath caught.

At the edge of the Qaidam Desert, where sky met earth, a hazy, radiant mist slowly spread.

Not sand. Not steppe. Not barren badlands.

But a vast, rolling range of Qingshan, wreathed in clouds and mist, peaks layered with emerald green, as if lightly brushed onto the horizon. Beneath the mountains lay a shimmering lake, steam rising, reflecting the sky, and along its banks stood dense forests—lush, vibrant, teeming with life.

"Mirage!"

Qin Yun snapped to attention, dashed back into the windbreak, inserted the battery into the drone, and immediately started the livestream.

When viewers who joined saw the drone's footage, they were stunned.

"Holy shit, did Brother Qin leave the desert?"

"Damn, a mirage—Brother Qin actually saw a mirage."

"666, pavilions and towers, white walls and black tiles, faintly visible, like a fairyland."

"Thank you, Brother Qin, for this gift."

Qin Yun said nothing. In all his life, he had never seen such a clear, such a magnificent mirage.

"Qingshan and green water? You're telling me this is Qaidam?"

"Holy shit, where is this? Did Brother Qin get transported?"

"So beautiful—how can this be a desert? Isn't this a projection of a fairyland?"

Qin Yun gazed silently at the distant, illusory and breathtaking scene; the exhaustion of these consecutive days seemed, in this moment, soothed by the rare wonder appearing before heaven and earth.

After a long while, Qin Yun softly exhaled a breath of stale air, his voice hoarse: "They say the great desert is barren, but sometimes, it lets you glimpse the gentlest dream."

As the sun rose higher, golden light spilled across the dunes; the mirage gradually faded and blurred in the morning light, finally vanishing entirely, leaving only an empty, boundless expanse of desert.

……

This lifetime, the author has never seen a mirage, except in videos.