Chapter 64

Qi Ping felt that he had done what he should have done, which was to help the black bear drive away those wolves. Qi Ping believed that what he did was right, after all, those wolves were notorious, and they also bullied the weak with their numbers!

As for the talk about disrupting the rules of nature, Qi Ping really didn't care. He was just being himself, and in this matter, he was undoubtedly in the right.

Heaving a sigh of relief, he felt a great sense of accomplishment; this could be considered helping the weak and suppressing the strong, helping the black bear drive away those powerful predators. Moreover, this was Qi Ping's first true hunt of a wild animal, a wolf; even though it took three bullets to achieve this result, it was still his first large prey, a relatively powerful beast!

Feeling a great sense of accomplishment, Qi Ping suddenly felt something was wrong. After driving away the wolves, the black bear seemed to have no more movement, and it was already lying on the ground, breathing with great difficulty.

Holding the hunting rifle, he cautiously approached. Although he didn't know what trouble the black bear was in, it clearly had suffered severe injuries. However, Qi Ping didn't think that a few wolves could bring down such a forest dominator so easily; it shouldn't just give up like this.

Qi Ping approached cautiously, still worried that the black bear might be feigning death. But as he got closer, the black bear only let out a low, weak moan. It was indeed severely injured, and the attacks from the wolves had drained its last bit of energy. It looked like it was at the end of its life.

Seeing the black bear covered in blood, Qi Ping felt truly uncomfortable; especially when he saw the helpless look in the black bear's eyes, he suddenly felt a lump in his throat, and he really wanted to cry. Now, he had no sense of accomplishment left, only sadness. Although he had done what he should have done, it seemed he wasn't omnipotent.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh!"

Just as Qi Ping was feeling sad, Jingang suddenly jumped up beside him. The others also looked in the direction Jingang was pointing, with a hint of alertness.

Qi Ping's first reaction was that the wolves hadn't gone far, but he soon realized something was off. At the edge of the forest, on a large fir tree, a small black cat-like creature was perched. The furry little thing hugging the tree trunk was inconspicuous, and during the battle, Qi Ping hadn't noticed its presence at all.

"Is this the mother bear?" Qi Ping recognized it. Although the little thing was hugging the tree trunk, this furry, round-headed little creature was looking down at the large black bear on the ground, calling out helplessly in a babyish voice.

"Jingang, go and bring the cub down. Be careful not to let it fall or get scratched by the cub." Qi Ping felt a mix of emotions. If he had known it was a mother bear with a cub, he wouldn't have hesitated and would have acted earlier.

The mother bear no longer had the strength to struggle, but when she saw Jingang running towards the cub, she used her last bit of energy to roar. This was the instinct of a mother bear, and of all mothers.

"I have no ill intentions, really. We will protect it, you can rest assured." Qi Ping approached the dying mother bear cautiously, putting down his hunting rifle and spreading his hands to show his good intentions. "You can rest assured, I will find the best home for it."

Jingang quickly climbed the tree, which was easy for him. However, getting the cub, which was about the size of an adult cat, down wasn't simple. Jingang, being a chimpanzee less than a year old, had limited strength, and the cub seemed a bit scared.

The others were no longer in a fighting stance; they circled around Qi Ping, showing their good intentions. Jingang, now ignoring the mother bear, stood at the base of the tree, trying to coax the cub down. The mother bear couldn't hold on any longer, and Qi Ping hoped to give the mother and cub more time together, especially for their last moments.

"We are all good people, we will protect you. Come down, it's okay!" Qi Ping tried to smile more kindly, and not just him, but Jingang, who had climbed the tree, was also trying to communicate with the cub.

The cub finally came down, partly because it chose to trust Qi Ping and Jingang, and partly because it saw its mother lying on the ground and wanted to go to her. Jingang helped the cub down, and as the chubby little thing slowly climbed down, Qi Ping heaved a sigh of relief. He quickly carried the cub to the mother bear's side, no longer caring about the danger; time was the most important thing. Qi Ping already felt regret and self-blame for not acting sooner; now, he didn't want to leave any regrets for the mother and cub.

Watching the cub fussing in front of the mother bear's head, pushing her head with its little paws, and licking her with its pink tongue, Qi Ping couldn't hold back his tears. Clearly, the cub also sensed something, making a final effort to get its mother to stand up. The mother bear, though with some regret, waited for her child, waited for the last kiss before leaving.

Seeing the cub running around the mother bear's massive body, calling out in a frightened and anxious babyish voice, Qi Ping's heart ached. This scene was truly unbearable.

The mother bear had left, there was no doubt about it. Qi Ping now needed to consider what to do next, such as finding a final resting place for the mother bear. He also needed to think about how to take care of this innocent little black bear.

Qi Ping had heard before that mother bears were extremely protective of their cubs, often being single mothers. To protect their cubs, mother bears were always very cautious; the cubs had many enemies, the biggest being male bears. To force single mothers to enter the mating season sooner, male bears would kill the cubs.

Clearly, this mother bear had been severely injured a long time ago, but in her last moments, she still tried to escape with her cub. When there was no place to run, she let the cub climb the tree to escape, while she chose to fight the powerful enemies.

Holding the grieving cub and looking at this respectable mother, Qi Ping suddenly felt he had discovered something, and he was thoroughly angry.

The mother bear had many wounds, some from fighting the wolves, but the severe injuries were due to other reasons, namely the 'old wounds' on her body, which explained the dark red bloodstains seen earlier.

Gunshot wounds, not just one, but several!

Qi Ping was furious. He didn't oppose hunting, and he even participated; when he encountered a desirable prey, he wouldn't be merciful. However, he knew that mother bears, especially those with cubs, were rarely hunted. This wasn't just a basic moral code for hunters but was also regulated by some hunting laws!

As for accidental injuries, that was impossible. According to some hunting laws in the United States, hunters must give prey a chance to escape. Usually, it would be just one shot, but this mother bear had at least five gunshot wounds, which indicated a problem. Since the hunters could hit the mother bear with five shots, they had no reason not to notice the poor cub!

Qi Ping was truly enraged. He was already sad because of the respectable bear mother's departure, and now, discovering the culprit behind her severe injuries and this tragedy, he would never forgive those people!