Chapter 173: Wilderness Survival: Qin Ye

January 1st, morning.

The production crew of "Survival in the Wild" delivered each contestant's required gear on time.

The clothing, from inner to outer layers, was high-tech: lightweight, warm, unimpeding movement, and never bulky in appearance.

Qin Yun's chosen three items—dagger, rope, and bow—were also delivered to his room.

The bow was not a modern compound bow, but a traditional hunting bow: its grip was solid wood, the limbs made of carbon fiber; no sight or stabilizer, yet its feel in hand was exceptionally comfortable.

Traditional hunting bows carried a rugged aesthetic that perfectly matched Qin Yun's taste.

As for the rope and dagger: the dagger was half a foot long, capable of piercing a person with a single thrust; the rope, made of a special material the thickness of a thumb, resisted even his dagger's cut—no mark, no fray, maximum strength.

"Beep—!"

A shrill whistle sounded; contestants still in their rooms quickly dressed, secured their gear, and stepped out.

When they reached the vast training field, ten helicopters had already landed—no one knew when.

"Heh, hope you last through day one, Chinese." As Qin Yun walked through the crowd, a white man beside him sneered mockingly.

Qin Yun glanced back, ignored him. The man was Jack, also American, a fellow streamer on the same platform as Gerard; the two didn't get along. Ever since Jack grew close to Gerard, he'd viewed Qin Yun as an enemy.

Jack's few friends had similarly formed their own camp.

In this training camp, although Americans dominated, they were not unified; many were too lazy to make friends and went solo, some openly discriminated against Black and Asian contestants, and others clashed due to their self-media connections.

Thus, nearly thirty Americans could be roughly divided into seven or eight factions.

From Qin Yun's perception, at least thirty percent of the trainees held hostility toward him—mostly Asians. Aside from the Thai man Kun Tai, other Asians' animosity toward him far exceeded that of Europeans and Americans.

Seeing Qin Yun ignore him, Jack sneered.

"Qin Ye, this outfit looks amazing on you." Guo Yao's eyes lit up upon seeing Qin Yun.

Qin Yun was already good-looking with an excellent physique; the custom-fit clothing accentuated his clean, sharp aura, making him exceptionally eye-catching.

"Hahaha, same to you."

Just then, Gerard, Emily, and Michael arrived.

The moment Emily saw Qin Yun, if this were an animated film, her eyes would have bulged into hearts.

She sprinted straight toward him, arms wide open to hug him—her fangirl antics made Guo Yao suppress a laugh.

Deep down, she too wished for Emily's courage to express herself openly, but she couldn't do it.

"Qin, you're so handsome, let me hug you."

Qin Yun's face darkened; he reached out and pressed his hand against her head, halting her advance.

"Emily, keep your distance."

Emily flailed wildly but couldn't break through his iron grip; finally, she gave up, looking pouty.

"Qin, men are all fickle. Your girlfriend won't ever know what we do."

"Heh." Qin Yun didn't look at her; his gaze settled on Gerard and Michael.

Their clothing colors differed from his—not just theirs, but all fifty contestants' outfits, at a glance, were all distinct.

Women's outfits were slightly lighter green, with unique patterns; men's were darker, each with individualized textures.

After a brief greeting, Michael spoke first: "We must hold out until the end, become one of the final ten."

"Exactly," Gerard chuckled. "The champion depends on luck, but surviving the first round—I think everyone here can manage."

"I hope so," Emily wasn't as optimistic. She dropped her playful tone. "But the checkpoint setup probably won't be easy—might be far from our drop zones, requiring days to reach."

Guo Yao frowned. "What if we don't reach the checkpoint? Do we get eliminated directly? Director Danny didn't mention this yesterday."

Qin Yun shook his head. "He did. Yesterday, Danny said each cycle is seven days—you must reach the checkpoint to activate your next week's eligibility. No visit means automatic disqualification."

Guo Yao finally understood. She stuck out her tongue, embarrassed—she'd missed such vital information.

As they spoke, crew members appeared.

Onstage stood fifty cardboard boxes; their packaging clearly indicated they were recording equipment.

"Clap! Clap!"

Danny clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention, then shouted: "Ladies and gentlemen, you've all seen the button on your chests? Press it, and rescue teams will arrive in the shortest time possible—so press it only if truly necessary. Also, do not remove your suits for extended periods. These suits monitor vital signs in real time—we can observe your condition. If vitals drop below a critical threshold, you're automatically eliminated. Maximum time without the suit: two hours. Exceed that, and you forfeit."

Qin Yun touched the raised button on his left chest. The design was clever: pressing directly did nothing—you had to first release the safety lock. This prevented accidental activation from falls or impacts.

As for not removing the suit—in this hellhole of Atlin Lake, they wouldn't dare take it off anyway.

So this show was still unfriendly to women—who knew if any female contestant happened to be menstruating during this wilderness survival?

Danny held a tablet: "When your name is called, come up to collect your recording equipment, then board your helicopter to your drop point. The moment you leave the helicopter, the show officially begins."

"First… Owen, Helicopter One."

"Second…"

Danny moved swiftly, calling names one by one; contestants rushed forward, grabbed their equipment boxes, and sprinted toward the helicopters.

"Gerard… Helicopter Five; Emily… Helicopter Six…"

Gerard exchanged fist bumps with the group, then ran up. Emily fist-bumped Michael and Guo Yao, then opened her arms to hug Qin Yun.

Qin Yun sighed internally—damn, still trying to take advantage at a time like this.

But this time, he didn't refuse—she hugged him tightly.

"Qin, you've got this—you'll win the championship!"

"Thanks. Stay safe."

Emily nodded, climbed onstage, grabbed her box, and ran to the helicopter.

"Guo Yao… Helicopter Three."

"Qin Ye, I'm off," Guo Yao took a deep breath.

"Mm. Prioritize safety. Don't be reckless."

"I will."

As the number of people in view dwindled, Qin Yun finally heard his name.

"Qin Yun… Helicopter Nine."

Entering the helicopter, he glanced at the other four. One was unmistakably the Japanese man, Yamamoto Kazusuke; the other three, he'd had no prior contact with.

Soon, the helicopters powered up, lifted slowly, and flew toward Atlin Lake.

…

January's Atlin Lake was a world of glass—under extreme cold, an endless ice plain stretched out, unreal in appearance. Around the lake, dense coniferous forests, coated in rime ice, loomed darkly; ice crystals on branches refracted scattered light, making the entire world shimmer.

Looking down at this scene, Qin Yun's interest stirred. Such an environment existed in China only in high-altitude regions like Xinjiang—but compared to those, the surroundings of Atlin Lake in Canada were far more primitive.

Few people lived abroad, so even fewer resided here.

Only ice, forests, distant mountains, and vast, silent stillness.

Not entirely…

"Roar—!"

A charging mountain lion, and a fleeing moose.

The helicopter slowed to a stop. A voice came through Yamamoto Kazusuke's earpiece: "Yamamoto Kazusuke, you have reached your drop point. Exit the helicopter immediately."

A rope ladder descended. Yamamoto removed his earpiece, grabbed his box, walked to the helicopter door, and as he grasped the ladder, he turned back and spoke in Japanese: "Chūgokujin, bet on it—you'll be eliminated on day one. Press the rescue button."

The ladder whisked him down; in an instant, he vanished into the trees.

Qin Yun raised an eyebrow, nearly laughed. The man's meaning: he'd be eliminated on day one, and should press the rescue button.

As a legendary wilderness hunter, Qin Yun didn't lack confidence. If he chose, he could live here indefinitely. Had this show not changed—had more variables not emerged—he'd already pocketed half the two million dollars.

The helicopter flew another half-hour. Qin Yun estimated they'd traveled nearly two hundred kilometers—this distance made it nearly impossible for him to encounter Yamamoto Kazusuke.

"Qin Yun, you have reached your drop point. Exit the helicopter immediately."

The voice in his earpiece sounded. Qin Yun secured the earpiece, grabbed his box, gripped the rope ladder, and as it reeled in, his body dropped swiftly.

Moments later, after a forty- to fifty-meter descent, Qin Yun landed firmly on the coniferous forest floor.

He tugged the rope ladder; it retracted automatically, and the helicopter sped away.

Qin Yun didn't rush to open the box. He quickly scanned his surroundings: he was surrounded by coniferous forest. Though daytime, the woods remained dim.

Not an ideal drop point.

From the helicopter, he hadn't seen the ice surface of Atlin Lake—he didn't know how far he was from it. But he estimated no more than twenty kilometers.

After confirming safety, he swiftly opened the box, assembled the drone and camera, and powered them on.

Inside the box, besides equipment, were only batteries and a map.

The map showed a red dot and a star: beside the red dot, "PEP"—the checkpoint; beside the star, "Bp"—the drop point.

The map clearly marked the distance from his location to the checkpoint: 70 KM. Terrain features were distinct, north-south orientation clearly labeled—anyone who could navigate outdoors wouldn't find it hard to reach.

He briefly studied the drone: same as during training—DJI, with live-stream display, though no comments visible. Two modes: fully manual, fully AI-autonomous.

He activated full AI-autonomous mode, pointed the drone's lens at himself, and began the official live stream in fluent English: "Hello, I'm Qin Yun, a temporary wilderness survival enthusiast. I'm now in the coniferous forest near Atlin Lake, Canada. Checking the map, the checkpoint is seventy kilometers away—a distance that's neither long nor short. For many, ten kilometers a day is already the limit. But those who know me know I once traveled one hundred and forty kilometers in a single day across a snow-blown, uninhabited highland."

He adjusted the lens, capturing some empty scenery footage: "Still, in the wild, one must maintain deep respect for nature. So today, my first task is to find a suitable spot to build shelter and acclimate to Atlin Lake's environment."

He packed the map and batteries, slung the rope and bow over his shoulder, strapped the dagger to his waist, and set off.

At this moment, wilderness survival fans worldwide had already been waiting for hours on the official website, Douyin, or TikTok before the livestream began.

As the screen lit up, fifty clear-split livestreams appeared simultaneously, each labeled with the contestant's name and nationality.

In China, countless netizens quickly found Qin Yun's livestream and clicked in.

Upon hearing the familiar line—"temporary wilderness survival enthusiast"—they erupted in mockery.

"Hahaha, Qin Ye is hopeless—still calling himself temporary?"

"Temporary worker saving the world."

"Great! I thought this survival show was pre-recorded—turns out it's live. The crew's got guts."

I like it—this way I can watch the show live, way more thrilling than recorded broadcasts.

This puts immense pressure on the contestants; if they're eliminated on the first day, not only will they be humiliated, but their entire country's reputation will suffer.

I hope Guo Yao can hold on a little longer.

Aren't you worried about Qin Yun?

Hehe, Qin Yun has started his jungle clear.