Chapter 268

The blurred figure under the blazing sun was indistinct, but even its silhouette radiated a terrifying aura—the exclusive dominance of the King of the Grasslands.

“Lion! Holy shit, finally saw a lion!”

“Brother Qin, go take it down!”

“So badass! Brother Qin, hurry over and take a selfie!”

“Badass, but somehow also looks kinda desperate.”

“Can’t see clearly—Brother Qin, get closer!”

Qin Yun stared at the drone’s feed and said dryly, “You’ve had enough—it’s a lion, not a kitten. Even if it’s a lone lion, its condition clearly isn’t that of an old one, but a fully grown adult male.”

“If it were an old lion, I might have some confidence—but a healthy adult male lion? I’d only have a 70% chance. I’m not doing anything that dangerous.”

Was Qin Yun afraid of lions? Of course not.

After he’d taken down a brown bear alone, his confidence had soared to superhuman levels. Facing a pride, he might hesitate—but a single lion? With his current physical condition and combat ability, as he’d said, he still had a 70% chance.

But the risk-reward ratio was terrible, utterly unnecessary. And he faced a high chance of injury—adult male lions were terrifying creatures indeed.

“666, Brother Qin doesn’t even need to draft his bragging.”

“I don’t believe it—unless you try it.”

“Qin, kill it.”

“Brother Qin, you said it yourself—it’s a lion, not a kitten. Why does it sound like you’re going to beat up a dog?”

“70% chance? Why not say you can kill it easily?”

The netizens’ skepticism broke through their defenses, all declaring disbelief—but they took it as a joke, none seriously expecting Qin Yun to fight a lion.

Qin Yun smiled.

“Brothers, if you’re unlucky enough to face an adult male lion on the grassland with no vehicle, pick a comfortable position—makes it easier for the lion to take its bite.”

“An adult male lion weighs over 200 kg, runs at up to 80 km/h—far beyond human capability, its explosive power crushes ours. One swipe can shatter a skull; one bite to the throat means certain death. And its hide is thick—your dagger might not even pierce it.”

“In direct confrontation, I’m certainly no match. But I have weapons—there are still ways to deal with a lion like this.”

Qin Yun watched through the drone as the lion drew nearer; the antelope, sensing danger, had long fled. The baboons hiding in the tree trembled, silent and cowering in one corner.

Soon, the lion in the camera’s view became clear.

Judging purely by appearance, this male lion was fully mature—broad shoulders, tight muscles, thick dark-brown mane, and a distinctly youthful look.

Qin Yun’s eyes narrowed slightly—he’d initially thought it was a defeated lion king, but it turned out to be a young male.

After a brief assessment, he spoke: “This male is about four years old—just entered adulthood. I suspect he was driven off by his own parents.”

“Why drive him off? Don’t animals understand ‘strength in numbers’?”

“Why would the pride expel him?”

“Can’t understand.”

Qin Yun explained: “On the Serengeti, once a male lion reaches sexual maturity and grows his mane, he becomes a threat to his father’s rule. The lionesses won’t protect their grown sons, and the father won’t hesitate. The father will viciously bite and drive him out; the lionesses will watch coldly, even join in intimidating and driving him away. He’s driven out again and again from the home he grew up in.”

“Look—his mane edges are messy, his neck bears fresh scratches, still scabbed but recent. His eyes radiate visible fury. This newly matured male hasn’t fully grown yet—he must survive alone for a while before becoming a true adult male.”

“Damn, that’s brutal.”

“Animals really are animals.”

“Wait… didn’t ancient imperial courts work the same way?”

“Lions are kings of the grassland—basically royalty, haha.”

“Made me think of Simba—this isn’t how it was portrayed, those father-son bonds were so sweet. Streamer’s full of BS.”

“Top comment, go get your brain drained—it’s swollen.”

Qin Yun was far enough from the baobab tree, so he wasn’t worried about being spotted. If this lion truly wanted to attack him, his dagger wasn’t useless.

But as long as the lion didn’t come after him, he wouldn’t approach.

“This lion’s probably thirsty—smelled the baobab tree’s scent.”

As the lion neared the baobab, it circled the trunk once, then raised its paw to scratch the bark. After scratching for a while, it leaned in to gnaw and suck at the trunk, struggling hard before finally drinking.

But after drinking, it urinated right there, then lay down to rest.

Seeing this, the netizens burst into laughter.

“Brother Qin, what now? Go over?”

“Haha, the lion took the baobab—Brother Qin’s gonna die of thirst.”

“Damn, maybe we should detour.”

“We finally found a baobab, and now the lion’s claimed it.”

Qin Yun grimaced and shook his head helplessly.

“No choice—I don’t want to clash with an adult male lion. If he won’t leave, I will.”

But after walking two hours, the sun had reached its fiercest heat. He planned to wait under this acacia tree until the heat passed.

He shook his water bottle—it held less than a hundred milliliters, barely enough for two sips.

He cast a greedy glance at the distant baobab tree, then lit a fire on the spot, planning to eat the Cuoshe . It wouldn’t quench thirst, but at least replenish some moisture and energy.

As the flames rose, the aroma soon drifted out.

The drone kept locked on the distant baobab tree. When the snake meat’s scent spread, viewers immediately saw the lion snap its head up, staring straight at Qin Yun’s direction. Everyone’s heart tightened instantly.

“Brother Qin, run! The lion smelled it!”

“Damn, climb a tree! Lions can’t climb!”

“…”

Qin Yun glanced over and smiled calmly: “Don’t worry—this lion already smelled my scent. Lions can detect odors from five kilometers away, their hearing is far beyond imagination, and their vision is excellent—they can spot silhouettes from one or two kilometers. But lions generally don’t attack humans.”

As Qin Yun finished speaking, the lion in the frame indeed lay back down.

“Holy shit, that’s terrifying.”

“But Brother Qin is way too calm—what if the lion charges? Only three hundred meters away—it’d catch him in two strides.”

“That’s exactly what ‘reckless fool’ means—our streamer.”

“666 sent ten Carnival gifts—looking forward to Qin Yun wrestling a lion.”

“Hou Sai Lei sent the streamer…”

After thanking the gift-giving fans, Qin Yun quickly swallowed the snake meat. With bird eggs and roasted snake, it truly had a unique flavor. In just a few bites, the water in his bottle was gone, consumed with the food.

After eating the Cuoshe meat, Qin Yun leaned against the acacia tree, chatting casually with fans, quietly waiting for the heat to subside.

After chatting for over an hour, a netizen suddenly shouted:

“Brother Qin, something’s moving!”

“Check the drone!”

“The lion’s standing up!”

Qin Yun immediately turned to the monitor: on the secondary camera’s feed, the lion had risen, its nostrils flaring wildly, eyes locked on the northeast, mane slightly bristling, gaze filled with aggression—as if it had scented something.

Seeing this, Qin Yun raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

“For an adult male lion to react this strongly? Rare. Even if this lion isn’t experienced, it was raised in a pride—only other adult males, packs of spotted hyenas, or the undisputed king—the elephant—could make it this wary.”

“Here, encountering one lone lion is already lucky—impossible to meet another. So the most likely cause is that this lion smelled the distinctive stench of spotted hyenas—the sour, rotting odor.”

“Spotted hyenas dare attack lions?”

“Don’t they have that little courage?”

“Yeah, spotted hyenas are just weaklings compared to lions.”

Qin Yun shook his head: “Anyone who’s watched Animal Planet wouldn’t ask that.”

He stood up, watching the monitor.

“One spotted hyena wouldn’t dare challenge a lion—but five or more? They’ll gang up and kill a lone lion. Their bite force is terrifying—they can crush lion bones. Their stamina far exceeds lions’. Most importantly, they’re pack animals.”

“Just like we saw this morning—they appear in groups of seven or eight at minimum, sometimes dozens.”

“I need to find somewhere to hide—see if it really is hyenas.”

He scanned the surroundings, searching for cover. Soon, he spotted a massive rock hidden in the grass.

He didn’t rush over. Instead, he scooped up a handful of ash from the extinguished fire and slapped it onto his body.

“Grrr—!”

Suddenly, a low, muffled roar echoed from afar.

In the instant the lion’s roar faded, seven or eight “Woo-ho” sounds rose in succession—low, sticky, foul—drawing closer.

Qin Yun’s expression changed.

“It’s definitely spotted hyenas!”