Chapter 290: Serengeti Depression (Third Chapter, Requesting Support)

The Serengeti is vast, so vast that apart from the main roads, 99% of its land remains purely natural.

These areas, except for occasional patrol vehicles passing through and helicopters flying overhead, are largely free of human interference; the regions affected by human presence are in fact minimal across the entire Serengeti.

Still, 90% of the land remains untouched by humans, and every day these places witness nature's purest struggle for survival.

For example, right now!

Directly ahead, beneath a slope in a depression, a pride of lions is hunting a wildebeest.

Qin Yun and Dahuang sit and lie quietly, watching the distant scene, with two drones circling beside them.

He gently patted Dahuang's head and said to the camera: "This is a mature pride—two adult male lions, likely brothers; nearly ten adult lionesses; six subadult lions; and five cubs."

"Lions are cooperative animals, so a pride isn't ruled by just one adult male. Most males are driven out before adulthood, and these expelled males usually roam together, then challenge other prides once mature to earn breeding rights."

"Dahuang probably became solitary due to some issue. A lone lion has a low survival rate on the savanna—just like nearly all animals here, except rhinos, hippos, and elephants."

The comment section immediately flooded with replies upon hearing this.

"Qin Ye, why does the lion king drive away lions nearing adulthood?"

"Yeah, father and son united, their strength can sever gold—this way the pride grows stronger."

"Maybe he fears being challenged—after all, youth prevails over age."

"666…"

Qin Yun laughed at these comments: "It's not that complicated. Fear of challenge is only part of it—the main reason is instinctual genetics. Lionesses stay in their birth pride for life, meaning one male lion who takes over a pride mates with all the lionesses in it."

"Similarly, if the old king is defeated by his own son, and the son takes over, he too will mate with all the lionesses—do you get it? If subadults don't leave, after a few generations, the entire pride becomes inbred, leading to high cub mortality, smaller body size, deformities, and so on."

"That's why no pride can endure indefinitely."

Upon hearing Qin Yun's analysis, netizens erupted.

"Holy shit, lions are wild."

"The old king mates with his daughter lioness, then mates with his granddaughter lioness—damn."

"Animals are animals—they don't have human morals. Basic stuff."

At this moment, the pride's hunt of the wildebeest ended with the wildebeest collapsing.

But the exhausted lionesses could only watch helplessly as the dominant males and their brother moved in first, claiming the best parts—the belly, organs, and thigh meat—ripping them into bloody shreds.

Younger lions and cubs trying to approach were growled away.

One subadult lion, overcome by hunger, dared to bite into the wildebeest's leg—only to be slammed to the ground by the king.

After the two adult males finished eating, the lionesses took their turn—but even among lionesses, feeding order was strict and hierarchical.

Subadults came third; cubs came last.

"Holy shit, cubs have zero status in a pride."

"No wonder they challenge the king after growing up—you treated me like shit as a cub, I couldn't even get enough to eat."

"It reminds me of that movie, The Hunger Station—by the end, only scraps remain; just getting something to eat is a miracle, let alone fullness."

"Being king is so easy—no hunting, just lie back and wait for food."

"This is survival of the fittest—those lacking vitality get eliminated at this stage."

After watching this raw, unfiltered animal world, Qin Yun and Dahuang turned and slipped away quietly, without disturbing them. Though Dahuang was eager to act, that pride had two adult males guarding it—he stood no chance alone.

So after his agitation, Dahuang calmed down.

The man and the lion continued forward.

Along the way, they encountered herds of zebras, witnessed massive migration herds racing toward the Grumeti River's water source, occasionally spotted hyenas hunting, endured a lone warthog's provocation, and felt the cold gaze of a leopard watching from a tree branch.

Along this journey, Qin Yun fully revealed nature's cruelest face to the camera.

On this day, August 13, at noon, after passing through a sparse stand of flat-topped acacias, the man and the lion stopped.

Looking ahead, a broad open woodland appeared in view—each flat-topped acacia, with its umbrella-like canopy, stood like a sun-baked, cracked giant, casting mottled shadows on the ground.

"That patch of shade over there is bigger—we'll head there to rest."

Qin Yun licked his lips, spoke to the drone, then led Dahuang toward the woodland. Inside, occasional low clumps of thorny acacias dotted the ground, and numerous large-animal tracks wound away into the distance.

He chose a relatively dense acacia tree and plopped down.

Then he twisted open the cap, gulped down a large mouthful, and handed the mineral water bottle to Dahuang's head—when Dahuang opened his mouth, he poured several hundred milliliters inside.

"We're getting closer to the Grumeti River—the water sources along the way have become much more abundant, so no need to be so frugal."

Saying this, he pulled two hind legs from behind him—the legs of the warthog that had provoked them.

He tossed one leg to Dahuang, then started a fire to prepare the other.

"Warthog meat tastes pretty average—even worse than wild boar—it's too dry. Only roasting makes it tolerable."

Watching Qin Yun prepare the warthog meat while complaining about it, netizens grew furious.

"Holy shit, you're surviving in the savanna and still have such high standards?"

"Have you ever gone without food on this trip? All I've seen is you eating nonstop."

"You weighed 85 kg before departure—come back and you're 90 kg. You gained weight."

"Hahahaha."

Qin Yun snorted: "Survival is survival, but survival doesn't mean you have to eat crap. I can eat meat every meal—that's my skill. Next time I go on a survival trip, I'll definitely bring seasonings—otherwise it's too bland."

At this moment, a netizen suddenly brought up something he'd mentioned before.

"Qin Ye, is your promise to take us on a survival trip still valid?"

Qin Yun read it, thought for a moment, then replied: "Of course it's valid. After this Serengeti livestream ends, I'll start planning—I aim to include it in the next livestream."

"Good, looking forward to it."

"Hope I get picked."

"Go ahead and send a Carnival—on the basis of money, Qin Ye, pick me."

"I'm the luckiest guy—I'm guaranteed a spot."

"Qin Ye, how many slots are there?"

"Is it drawing only from China, or globally?"

Qin Yun said: "Five people. For the first time, we won't draw globally—just five within the country."

"Qin Ye is mighty!"

While chatting with netizens, a large chunk of warthog leg meat vanished silently into his stomach.

After finishing lunch, the man and the lion rested in the shade for over two hours, rising again around three o'clock to continue their journey.

After walking nearly half an hour, Da Huang suddenly let out a low growl.

Hearing this, Qin Yun looked up ahead and faintly heard sounds carried by the wind.

He patted Da Huang's head to calm him, then walked a few hundred meters further—the sound grew clearer.

Deep, heavy, desperate, agonizing.

These were the qualities in the sound. Qin Yun carefully judged it, his face subtly shifting.

He looked at the drone: "Did you hear that? It sounds like an elephant's sobbing."

"Elephant? Could an elephant be under attack by a beast?"

"Unlikely—what animal on this vast grassland could challenge an elephant?"

"Maybe it was bitten by a venomous snake."

"Qin Ye should go see for himself."

Qin Yun hesitated little; he pushed through a dense thicket of thorny acacia shrubs, and the scene before him abruptly changed—the once-flat open woodland gave way to a marshy depression.

The marsh's surface was crusted with a thin, hardened layer of yellow earth, appearing solid ground—if one ignored the two elephants trapped within it.

The drone flew over, and viewers in the livestream clearly saw the thick, tar-like mud swallowing two elephants, one large and one small.

"It's a quagmire!"

Qin Yun's face was grave. He did not rush forward; after careful observation, his gaze settled on the elephants in the marsh.

…………

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