Chapter 340: Shen Mengsan, the One Who Poked the Bear

“Nonsense! Get into position and ambush! My life may now be in your hands!”

Hearing Hong Liu’s words, Shen Mengsan immediately cursed angrily.

At this moment, both Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu knew that poking a bear’s den was far more dangerous than poking a wasp’s nest.

If a black bear truly lurked inside the den right now, at such close range, a single misstep could mean death.

Therefore, the person who enters the den now is almost certainly facing nine deaths and one chance of survival.

Hong Liu believed this situation was his own fault for dragging Shen Mengsan into it, so when life-or-death time came, he must step forward himself.

But Shen Mengsan still held onto his soldier’s nature.

In moments of danger, as team leader, he would never let his men rush ahead of him into harm’s way.

“Captain, I, Hong Liu...”

“No more talk. This is an order. We’re both soldiers—you know military orders supersede everything.”

Hong Liu still wanted to say more, but before he could finish, Shen Mengsan cut him off.

Seeing Shen Mengsan’s tone, Hong Liu truly wanted to retort, “We’re already discharged.”

But seeing Shen Mengsan’s stern expression, Hong Liu ultimately said nothing.

After all, every discharged soldier still carries within him a faith-like devotion to the barracks—even after discharge, he remains a soldier.

As for Shen Mengsan, he also understood Hong Liu’s concerns, worries, even guilt, and quietly offered reassurance.

“You’re a crack shot. I remember you’re ambidextrous. My marksmanship truly isn’t as good as yours—so from that standpoint, you’re the best choice for taking cover and shooting.”

“Now, I want you to shed any psychological burden. Go! And the storm’s coming—if we keep dawdling here, we’ll be left exposed to the blizzard and freeze to death.”

Saying this, Shen Mengsan walked toward the bear’s den with the branch in hand; with every step, he could hear his own heartbeat.

Seeing the actions of Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu, online viewers, unable to hear their voices, grew curious, wondering what they were arguing about.

“What were Captain Shen and that guy just discussing? Any lip-reading masters here who can translate?”

“What’s there to translate? I don’t get why they’re dithering! The blizzard’s coming—just go into the den!”

“Right! Even if the entrance’s small, give it a try! If you can get inside, your survival odds are far higher than being out in the blizzard!”

“You’re all just talking big! Can you just walk into a wilderness den like that?”

“Damn it! I just went to the main livestream and asked Bei Ye—he said Captain Shen’s group likely encountered a bear’s den, and this season, there’s a high chance a hibernating bear’s inside.”

“No way! This is a bear’s den? No wonder Captain Shen’s being so cautious!”

“Hearing ‘bear’ made me instantly think of Xiao Shen—if Xiao Shen were here, he’d never be this careful!”

“Exactly! If it were me, Xiao Shen might just crawl right into the den and have a nice chat with the black bear inside.”

“Captain Shen has no choice now—even if there’s a bear inside, he must risk it. The super blizzard’s coming.”

“Why is Captain Shen using a branch? Why not use his gun? That’s safer!”

“You underestimate how twisted bear dens are—they have bends. Even if you shoot, you might not kill the bear. If you miss, the bear gets spooked and stays hidden inside—then Captain Shen and his partner are truly done for.”

……

……

At this moment, Shen Mengsan had no idea what the online viewers were discussing—he was carefully advancing toward the bear’s den.

In fact, Shen Mengsan could feel his heartbeat accelerating rapidly.

There was probably no one in this world, except that freak Xiao Yi, who wouldn’t feel their heart race under such circumstances.

Meanwhile, Hong Liu, after witnessing this, gritted his teeth and pulled his sidearm, searching for the optimal shooting position.

But once prepared, he realized his hand was trembling slightly.

Sensing his condition, Hong Liu couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

He knew a shooter must not let emotion interfere—otherwise, things could turn even worse.

As for Shen Mengsan, he now reached the bear’s den and slowly extended the branch into the hole.

With every inch the branch sank deeper, Shen Mengsan’s grip on it tightened unconsciously.

Of course, those worried about Shen Mengsan weren’t just the online viewers—Li Yong and others in the control room were also sweating as they watched.

“I hope Captain Shen makes it out safe!”

“Right! I hope it’s just an abandoned den.”

“If there really is a bear inside, won’t Captain Shen be in serious danger?”

“Shut up!”

While the livestream crew was tense, some couldn’t help whispering among themselves.

When the murmurs grew louder, Li Yong finally snapped.

Hearing Li Yong’s voice, everyone in the control room fell silent again.

They feared provoking this volatile senior officer into another outburst.

Meanwhile, Li Yong, watching Shen Mengsan probe cautiously, felt cold sweat forming on his forehead.

When he first saw Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu discover the den on their way back,

Li Yong had secretly sighed in relief—even whispering to himself, “We’re saved.”

That silent “we’re saved” might have been meant for Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu—or perhaps just for himself.

After all, due to the sudden snow disaster, the rescue team had split into three groups with Xiao Yi.

But what worried Li Yong most was the lost pair: Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu.

If Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu truly got into trouble, the consequences for Li Yong would be enormous.

After all, this was happening live, under tens of millions of eyes—any incident would be impossible to cover up.

So deep down, Li Yong was determined to guarantee Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu’s absolute safety at all costs.

Of course, Li Yong also harbored some resentment toward Xiao Yi—why had he handed the drone to Shen Mengsan?

But under these circumstances, no matter how many thoughts or grievances Li Yong had, he could only stare helplessly—and pray for a miracle for Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu.

And the appearance of the den was, for both Shen Mengsan and Li Yong, a miracle.

But joy quickly turned to dread—some experienced rescue team members at base quickly analyzed that the den was likely a bear’s den.

Li Yong wasn’t a wilderness novice—he instantly understood what Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu might soon face.

After all, the probability of a bear being inside the den at this time was simply too high.

Of course, Li Yong did acknowledge their capabilities.

Under normal conditions, with guns in hand, Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu working together could handle a single bear without much difficulty.

But now was different—the time left for them to respond was far too short, far too short.

According to the base’s meteorological department’s estimate, the blizzard would reach Shen Mengsan’s location in at most eight minutes.

So within these eight minutes, Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu had to not only deal with the possible black bear inside the den, but also quickly crawl inside to shelter from the approaching blizzard.

Time was critical—they could only risk their lives for a sliver of hope.

And this risky scene wasn’t what Li Yong wanted to see—but he had no choice but to accept it.

……

……

At this moment, Shen Mengsan, watching the branch nearly swallowed by the hole, felt even more anxious—but also a flicker of relief.

The branch had sunk four-fifths of its length and still hadn’t reached the bottom—meaning the den was deep enough for both of them to crouch and shelter from the blizzard.

But since the branch hadn’t reached the end yet, it was nearly gone—he’d soon have to risk extending his arm into the den.

“Huff! Huff!”

Shen Mengsan’s breathing had grown rapid—the branch was gone, yet he still hadn’t probed the den’s deepest point.

Of course, Shen Mengsan’s serious expression was broadcast to every viewer.

Seeing his expression, everyone’s heart sank with a silent “Oh no.”

“Captain, pull back! Let’s find a longer branch!”

At that moment, Hong Liu, still on ambush duty, shouted urgently.

“Stop talking nonsense! Stay focused!”

Shen Mengsan took another deep breath and barked.

He knew there was no time—during the probing, he’d already wasted nearly three minutes.

His face, battered by the wind, felt like it was being sliced by knives—he knew there was no time to search for another branch.

“I’m going all in!”

With a roar, Shen Mengsan thrust his arm holding the branch deep into the den.

To his slight embarrassment, even with his entire arm inside, he still didn’t hit any obstruction.

But more than embarrassment, a chill settled in his heart.

Hong Liu, noticing the change in Shen Mengsan’s expression, shouted out.

“Captain, still no bottom?”

“No.”

Shen Mengsan, hearing Hong Liu’s question, sighed inwardly.

Hearing this, Hong Liu gritted his teeth and shouted.

“Captain, this might really be an abandoned den—no need to probe further. Let’s just crawl in—I’ll go first.”

Hong Liu had his own plan—he knew if they probed further, only Shen Mengsan’s body could enter the den, and that was far too dangerous.

In fact, Hong Liu had already prepared to die—if the den truly held a bear, he was willing to risk entering first.

If a bear was inside, he could use his own body to block half the den, at least giving Shen Mengsan a chance to survive.

“No, you stay there and guard it!”

At this moment, Shen Mengsan firmly refused, then shot a fierce glance toward the bear den.

His instinct told him there was definitely a dangerous beast inside—this intuition had saved his life before.

After saying this, Shen Mengsan crawled again into the bear den.

“Captain!”

Seeing this, Hong Liu couldn’t help shouting, then gripped his pistol tightly, eyes locked on Shen Mengsan.

But this sight instantly triggered gasps from everyone in the live stream.

“Is Shen Captain trying to kill himself?”

“Damn, I thought I was bold, but after seeing Shen Captain’s move today, I realize there are bigger fools out there!”

“Shen Captain is being way too reckless this time!”

“You say that lightly, but in this situation, recklessness might kill you—but if you don’t take the gamble, you’ll freeze to death.”

“I hope this is just an abandoned bear den!”

“Right, I hope there’s no bear hibernating inside. I hope Shen Captain comes out safe this time.”

……

……

After seeing this, most netizens in the live stream began praying for Shen Mengsan, hoping his luck wasn’t that bad.

At this point, Shen Mengsan had already shoved more than half his body into the den, leaving only one arm outside to help him push off and escape.

In fact, the moment Shen Mengsan entered the den, that sense of danger doubled.

“Huh! Something? Soft!”

At that moment, the stick in Shen Mengsan’s hand suddenly touched something—he muttered to himself, then broke out in cold sweat.

This made Shen Mengsan realize his stick had likely touched a hibernating black bear.

Fortunately, the hibernating black bear didn’t wake from the light touch of the stick.

But not waking up wasn’t good for Shen Mengsan either.

Everyone says you shouldn’t touch a tiger’s ass—the same goes for a black bear’s—but now he had no choice but to poke it.

“Three”

“Two”

“One”

At that moment, Shen Mengsan silently counted in his mind—even if he shouldn’t poke it, he had no other option.

Then he thrust his stick forward with all his strength and swiftly pulled himself out of the den.

“Roar! Roar!”

“Hong Liu, get ready to shoot!”

A bear’s roar erupted across the sky and earth, drowning out even the wind.

At the same time came Shen Mengsan’s shout—he feared Hong Liu would miss the chance.

Shen Mengsan had now fully exited the den, but as he pulled out, he caught a foul, fishy stench.

Shen Mengsan knew the beast was about to charge out—if not for the stick blocking it, he might not have escaped alive.

But right now, Shen Mengsan had no time to think—he only wanted to flee as fast as possible.

After all, the beast’s reaction speed was terrifyingly fast!