Chapter 139: Chapter 136 Compassion

In the towering dust, nobody could see what was happening.

A huge shadow fiercely crashed onto the dune, then tumbled down the slope.

The dust was carried away by the wind.

Bi Fang clung tightly to the camel’s neck, his body violently rubbing against the coarse sand and gravel, scraping trails of blood.

The camel struggled desperately.

It was merely curious about the commotion and came to check it out, never expecting to suddenly have its neck clamped, making it extremely difficult to breathe.

Driven by its instinct for survival, the camel twisted its body, repeatedly crashing down on the dune, trying to shake off Bi Fang, who stuck to it like adhesive plaster.

This was a dromedary camel, weighing up to five hundred kilograms!

Such a massive weight crashing down almost sent Bi Fang to heaven, but his arms instinctively contracted, wrapping even tighter.

At this moment, Bi Fang was like a wounded cheetah, making its last stand!

He knew this was his last chance; if he let go, he would lose everything.

A strong will to survive grew wildly in Bi Fang’s heart; he tightened his hold even further as the camel became increasingly frantic, its hooves constantly kicking in disarray.

The two were engaged in a primal test of strength on this stretch of desert!

Loser dies!

It was madness!

Countless viewers swallowed nervously, not knowing why Bi Fang had suddenly made his move, but now seeing him pinned under the camel, even being dragged along, they couldn’t help but feel frightened.

How painful must that be?

The fresh blood on his left arm stained his white T-shirt, Bi Fang’s lips were as pale as a dead man’s, all his muscles were shaking uncontrollably, but he just wouldn’t let go.

He was afraid that if he did, he would completely lose the chance to walk out of the desert, marking the first failed mission.

What would happen then?

Would the System give up on him?

Or would it eliminate the host as described in the novels?

He wanted to see more of the world, to experience more adventures, to traverse the Amazon alone, to climb Mount Everest alone, to see vistas that most people would never witness.

Humans have their limits, but the System could help him break through those limits and reach even higher peaks.

It was the best tool, the best ally, which was why he would go into the cave at all costs, undertake missions, and strive to improve himself.

He didn’t want to give up like this; that would be a huge blow!

He couldn’t just hand over what he’d worked so hard to achieve!

“Ah!”

The veins on his forearm bulged twistedly like snakes, and Bi Fang let out an angry roar.

He wanted to stand atop the highest peak and see the views that no one else could.

How could he… give up!

In the desert, billowing clouds of dust rose, followed by continuous roars that rolled and thundered.

But the camel’s muscles were too strong and its power too great; on the incline of the dune, it tried frantically to stand up, but slipped down again and again, knocking Bi Fang onto the sand and raising large clouds of dust.

Even though it was sand, such pain was unbearable for ordinary people.

This situation repeated itself countless times.

Blood kept flowing, half of his clothes already soaked with its crimson shade.

His strength was long exhausted, and the tenacity that had kept him going was slowly draining away with the blood.

Bi Fang felt dizzy, the pain becoming less and less distinct. A numb sensation enveloped him as though his body were wrapped in heavy brocade, a fatigue that seemed to drain him of everything.

With another collision, Bi Fang felt a sweet taste in his throat, as if a string in his brain had suddenly snapped, and his muscles let out a pained cry; the body that could barely hold up finally collapsed entirely.

An unmatched weakness washed over him, followed by an endless darkness.

He was just too tired.

After fighting a monstrous fish to the death, then digging through yellow sand for nearly half an hour, how could he have the strength to subdue a beast of over five hundred kilograms?

In a daze, Bi Fang seemed to return to his childhood—weak and helpless, with someone gently holding him from behind. That serene and distant warmth.

Bi Fang murmured something softly, more unconscious mumbling than anything.

The dust rose again, and his hands fell powerlessly.

“Please, don’t go…”

Bi Fang fell to the ground, his vision blurred, he made a final plea, but could only watch the camel’s silhouette getting farther and farther away.

His fragile body protested, blood rushing back to his brain, Bi Fang opened his mouth but no words came out; he felt a thick surge of a sweetly metallic taste rising from within, then everything turned black.

He lost consciousness entirely.

The wind and sand blew over, and Bi Fang lay motionless on the ground.

As if he were a dead man.

Seeing Bi Fang like this, the viewers panicked.

[It’s over, what happened to Master Fang?]

[Is he okay?]

[Did something really happen?]

[Doesn’t look like it, seems he’s still breathing, probably just fainted.]

[It’s all gone to hell, Old Fang really screwed up]

[Master Fang has it tough, just finished fighting that freaky fish, dug sand for so long, how could he possibly catch the camel?]

[What ‘Wilderness Survivalist’? Might as well watch Shark’s Lu Wentao next door]

[Your paid trolls have no mothers!]

[Damn, go to hell, I wouldn’t earn this petty cash even if you paid me!]

In front of the screen, Bi Fang’s friends were extremely anxious.

Nothing like this had ever happened before!

No matter the difficulty, this man seemed to always pull through, but to be left unconscious was a first!

Passing out in the wild meant being at the mercy of the elements, right?

What if some animal came by?

“What should we do, Old Gu! Think of something.” On the train, Song Vanning panicked upon seeing this scene.

“Captain Zhao, aren’t we going for the rescue?” Gu Qingyuan was also extremely anxious.

“He hasn’t called for help yet.” The rescuers still refused, “He was conscious in the end, but still didn’t send out a distress signal. I think we should wait a bit longer.”

“Wait for what? If we wait any longer, he may lose his life!” Gu Qingyuan urged in panic.

At these words, Captain Zhao hesitated, but after struggling for a while, he still decided not to act rashly, to avoid making a bad move out of good intentions: “It’s 5:17 now, and it’s getting dark. Let’s wait for another three hours. If he doesn’t wake up in three hours, we will move out.”

Three hours was Captain Zhao’s consideration; during this time, the temperature would still be suitable, avoiding the dangers of dehydration and hypothermia.

If he didn’t wake up after three hours, they would have to carry out the rescue for his safety, regardless of his true intentions!

The cold wind whipped across the land, and the yellow sand filled the sky.

The drone, set to follow automatically, quietly landed on the sandy ground, the scene almost coming to a still.

Countless people called out in anxiety, but Bi Fang did not respond at all.

Ten minutes later.

Some in the audience started to leave; they had their own lives and jobs, and wasting time was pointless.

Twenty minutes later.

Even more viewers left, feeling bored, as they were just strangers who came to watch the live stream for entertainment.

Bi Fang still hadn’t woken up at this time.

The enormous sun was setting, the dim sunlight casting vast shadows of the sand dunes in the desert. Countless trillions of sand grains sparkled with the sun’s last brilliance, shining brightly.

Another half an hour passed.

The sunset took away the last of the twilight; night enveloped Bi Fang as if a screen had been drawn over him, the dark, boundless heights studded with drifting golden stars, with no top or wall in sight.

The audience, like crabs on a beach at nightfall, retreated, leaving barely a thousand people in the live stream room.

Those who were going to leave had left, and only a few wished to wait.

They hoped for a miracle, having no other option.

In between, people came in, but after not seeing the scene they wanted, they quickly left again.

Nobody wanted to watch a person unconscious for hours.

Two hours later, a faint noise suddenly arose, some of the audience sharply aware, but many others oblivious.

Until this sound grew louder and closer, everyone heard it.

Something was approaching!

Goosebumps rose, and a chill spread through the hearts of the viewers.

But at this moment, the drone was stationary next to Bi Fang, and nobody could see what creature was coming closer.

The sound was getting near, and the viewers increasingly afraid.

Fearing that some dangerous creature was approaching and that Bi Fang was being viewed as prey.

Crunch.

The clear sound of sand being crushed rose to the ears.

A familiar hoof appeared in front of everyone, followed by a few loud snorts.

Then two, then three.

As more hooves stepped over the drone, the audience could finally see who was approaching.

It was the camel!

It had come back!

“Quick, go for the rescue!” In the train, Gu Qingyuan’s pupils shrank as he rose to his feet, grabbed Captain Zhao by the collar, and started shouting like a madman, “Animals have a sense of vengeance. If the camel has returned, it must be to seek revenge on Bi Fang. It’ll be too late if we don’t act now!” “What!?”

A few rescue team members on the train were startled and just about to move when, suddenly, Song Vanning stopped them.

“Wait! Old Gu, look, the camel doesn’t seem to be here for revenge!”

Under the starlight, the camel approached Bi Fang, but instead of acting out of revenge as Gu Qingyuan had suggested, it lowered its head to sniff him, nudged Bi Fang, and realizing that there was no response, it lifted its head to look around and then started pacing back and forth, seemingly worried about something.

Several minutes later, as the temperature dropped lower and lower.

The camel nudged the unresponsive Bi Fang again and then sat down beside him, using its body to block the cold wind!

It was keeping Bi Fang warm!

Everyone was taken aback, having not expected such a development.

Seeing this, Song Vanning said with a chuckle, “It looks like we don’t need to carry out the rescue anymore.”

Three hours later.

The moon had risen to its highest point, the temperature also dropping to single digits.

Bi Fang felt as if he had a dream, where he was running on a wilderness, chased by a tiger, exhausted to the point of coughing blood, and then suddenly the world turned upside down, and he found himself falling into an ice cave.

He was wading in the bone-chilling river, with a dense fog covering the surface, the cold piercing into his marrow like needles.

But soon, the temperature rose again, so hot that he was sweating profusely as if in a steam oven. He wanted to escape but was too tired until a familiar voice rang out.

Bi Fang turned his head abruptly, a colossal mountain of snow blocking out the sky, the world propped up by it, but now it was slowly collapsing toward him.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the side mission.]

The electronic tone sounded, Bi Fang awoke with a start, sat up abruptly, only to be blocked by a tuft of coarse fur. He looked up.

A huge camel was silently watching him.

Is this… still dreaming?

Am I still in the desert?

Bi Fang held his forehead, his memory hazy, but in that very long dream before he awoke, he vaguely sensed warmth, allowing him to continue sleeping peacefully.

Bi Fang looked at the enormous camel in front of him, as memories bubbled up like bubbles in water.

He remembered it all.

It really had come back, hadn’t it?

Bi Fang’s expression turned complex, and he couldn’t help but stretch out his hand to touch the camel’s head.

Why would it show such kindness to a human?

Bi Fang pressed his forehead against the camel’s head and whispered with closed eyes.

“This is Nature’s mercy towards me.”