Chapter 275: Taking Chestnuts from the Fire

“Look, those two zebras seem to be drinking water?”

In the distance, a large and a small zebra continuously licked their long tongues.

Qin Yun quickly controlled the drone to zoom in, magnifying it about ten times, clearly seeing water droplets dripping from the zebras’ mouths—undoubtedly drinking.

A look of delight appeared on his face.

“I didn’t expect this area to have water—I need to go take a look.”

Saying this, he left the drone hovering in place while he hurried toward the zebras. He kept the drone stationary because its rotor noise was loud and could easily provoke the rock bees.

As Qin Yun drew closer, the two zebras immediately lifted their heads, staring at him, then nervously stamped the ground, their nostrils flaring as if warning him not to approach.

But two mere zebras? Qin Yun paid them no mind and accelerated his pace.

Startled, the zebras instantly turned and fled, putting great distance between them and him.

Qin Yun laughed heartily: “Turns out my name, Qin Ye, echoes across the Serengeti—even these little zebras dare not face me head-on and must retreat three miles!”

Seeing his smug expression, netizens immediately erupted.

“Damn it, Qin Ye, do you even have shame?”

“What name do you even have?”

“Laughed to death—Qin Ye’s shameless face is right up my alley.”

“6666”

“Qin Yun is hilarious!”

As he neared, Qin Yun quickly spotted a water pool in the rock crevice—a stone basin roughly one cubic meter in size, now half-filled with water.

Viewers, watching through his head-mounted action camera, all sighed in regret over his luck.

Qin Yun pointed to the granite ahead, walked around to its backside, and saw fine droplets seeping out, slowly trickling down the rock face to converge into the stone basin.

“I’ve actually witnessed rock seepage,” he said, patting the granite and smiling. “There’s a water source beneath this massive granite. Under the midday sun, moisture seeps from its shaded side—this is the purest freshwater, safe to drink without hesitation.”

He shook his head: “Too bad the zebras already fouled the water. After they drank it, bacteria and parasites are surely in there. I’m too lazy to start a fire now—I’ll wait until tonight.”

Hearing this, his livestream fans were astonished.

“Qin Ye, didn’t you say you’d cover more ground today? You’ve barely walked five kilometers—actually, you’re behind schedule, lost because you followed the rock bees off course.”

“Yeah, Qin Ye, if you don’t walk more today, you’ll have to cover even farther tomorrow or the day after.”

“Just grab the honey and get out fast.”

“I’m the beekeeper—clearly Qin Ye plans to harvest honey tonight. That’s correct, because when night falls, all rock bees return to the hive.”

Qin Yun returned to where the drone waited, glanced at the comments, and smiled: “The beekeeper brother’s right—wasting a day for ten kilograms of honey is worth it. I wait until night to harvest because I can’t touch it during the day.”

He continued: “During the day, all worker bees are out foraging, none are in the hive. If I act now, every rock bee will attack me. I’d have to sprint away. Even though I’m as fast as them, this is the grassland—if I get trapped in some danger, it won’t be worth it.”

“But at night, all rock bees are back in the hive. I can use smoke to successfully harvest the honey.”

“How? If you smoke them, won’t they all fly out?”

“Yeah, right now they’re scattered—you can run fast. But at night, they’ll swarm in droves—you’ll be dead meat.”

“Still me, the beekeeper: when rock bees return to the hive, Qin Ye can use smoke to harvest safely. Smoke makes them collectively gorge on honey. Once their bellies swell from honey, they can’t sting or fly—they temporarily lose all attack capability. Once Qin Ye takes the honey, all’s well.”

“666, so that’s how you do it.”

“Qin Ye really knows everything.”

Qin Yun smiled: “Just basic knowledge—anyone can learn it by observing daily life. Now I need to confirm the hive’s exact location. Among this thousand-square-meter granite cluster, rock bees nest in only a few spots—I’ll eliminate them one by one and find it fast.”

Saying this, Qin Yun entered the granite cluster again, leaving the drone outside.

He moved quietly—too many rock bees surrounded him; any sudden motion might trigger their hostility.

Minutes later, he stood before two massive granite boulders, their gray-white layers stacked high, covered in weathered cracks and uneven grooves. A narrow vertical fissure sloped inward, where rock bees flew in and out densely.

He didn’t get too close, observing carefully.

The fissure was half a meter wide, extending one or two meters inward, untouched by sunlight. The comb hung vertically along the rock’s fissure, deeply embedded in the stone. A quick glance told him the comb contained at least twelve cells.

Viewers, through his action camera, saw this scene clearly.

“666, that’s a huge lump.”

“Qin Ye’s got a treat coming.”

“They say honey never spoils—why?”

“Beekeeper brother, explain.”

“Here we go: natural honey doesn’t spoil because it has extremely low moisture, extremely high acidity, and naturally contains antibacterial agents. In the wild, it won’t rot for years, decades—even millennia.”

“Sounds impressive even if I don’t get it.”

“…”

Having confirmed the hive’s location and comb count, Qin Yun returned satisfied to the drone’s position.

Now came the wait. Though he’d wasted a day, harvesting honey made it worthwhile.

Sitting beneath the acacia tree, Qin Yun gathered dry grass and dead branches, then leaned back calmly against the acacia.

“With this many rock bees as guards, danger nearby is nearly impossible. Such a massive swarm deters even the fiercest wild animals—this is a natural no-go zone. Only honey badgers dare come.”

“Honey badgers—‘Flathead Brother.’ They eat honey exclusively, with thick skin, dense fur, and loose hide; stings don’t even hurt them. But there aren’t many flathead brothers in the Serengeti.”

…

As dusk fell, Qin Yun wrapped a piece of bark over his face, fully covering his head and neck, then twisted the dry grass and dead shrubs he’d prepared into a torch as thick as his thigh.

“Darkness is coming—look, the foraging worker bees are almost gone. Soon, all rock bees will return to the hive. That’s when I act. First, I’ll smolder this torch.”

As he worked, night deepened. After full sunset, his massive torch was thoroughly smoldering, thick smoke billowing upward.

“Cough—cough!” Qin Yun stood up. “Brothers, time to take the chestnuts from the fire—follow me.”

Saying this, he dashed toward the hive.

At the fissure, he shoved the smoldering torch inside—instantly, thick smoke filled the narrow crevice.

The Serengeti rock bees never imagined a human would come to their grassland—they were unprepared. The smoke triggered their instinct to gorge on honey.

Qin Yun listened closely—the buzzing faded noticeably, then ceased entirely, save for a few stragglers fleeing out. Seeing Qin Yun, they immediately attacked.

Fortunately, Qin Yun was fully covered—his head wrapped in a hat and bark, his only exposed hands tucked inside his sleeves. The rock bees couldn’t find a single spot to sting.

After three or four minutes, Qin Yun grinned, tossed the torch aside, and the drone swiftly descended from above.

“Brothers, success—we’re harvesting honey.”

As he leaned his head into the fissure, the livestream camera switched to his head-mounted view.

On the massive comb, countless rock bees clung densely—now, even sensing him as an enemy, they couldn’t move, no matter how furious they were.

The entire interior of the fissure was packed with bee bodies on the comb.

Qin Yun pulled out his dagger and began cutting.

“We only need the upper part of the comb—the lower part holds pupae and larvae. I’m still kind.”

In moments, three combs were cut free. He left the rest untouched—even during the entire process, he killed not a single rock bee.

Holding the three combs, Qin Yun didn’t hesitate—he yanked them away.

“Wind’s up—let’s scram!”

…………

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