Chapter 9

Sitting in the speeding off-road vehicle, Gao Yang was lost in thought, the opportunity to return home had suddenly arrived, unexpectedly.

Gao Yang was certainly no stranger to riding in vehicles, but for Kusto, the rapid car ride was quite terrifying, and he clung to Gao Yang's arm, unwilling to let go. However, it didn't take long for Kusto's curiosity to overcome his fear.

The camera in the hands of the photographer named Daniel never stopped, and it was unclear what kind of footage he could capture in the bumpy vehicle.

Gao Yang had so many questions he wanted to ask, and he finally had the time to do so. But just as he was about to speak, the professor beat him to it.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Buck Rodney, and the beautiful lady beside me is Kathleen Taylor. Please forgive me, but I am very curious. Who are you? Where did you learn English? If I may be so bold, you don't seem to be of the same race as the true natives."

"It is an honor to meet you. My name is Gao Yang. I am from China. I survived a plane crash and was rescued by the Acuri tribe. I have lived with them for about three years."

Everyone in the car was even more curious about Gao Yang than Kusto was about the car. Now that their doubts were finally answered, they all exclaimed in unison, "Oh!"

"Good heavens, you are indeed fortunate. Could you tell us about your experiences? They must be quite remarkable."

"I am happy to share my story, but right now I am very worried about the chief. We have lived together for three years, and he is like family to me. I can't talk about anything else right now. I am very sorry."

"Ah, I apologize. My curiosity was ill-timed. May God bless you, and may your chief be alright."

After the professor expressed his apologies, he suppressed his intense curiosity, and the group continued in silence. The place where Gao Yang hunted was not far from the professor's camp, only about a twenty-minute drive. Slowing down the car, Gao Yang and Kusto quickly confirmed that they had arrived.

When Gao Yang led the group to the chief, the chief was lying motionless on the ground. Big Bali and Little Bali sat beside him with tears in their eyes, driving away the flies that swarmed around him.

Gao Yang's heart sank. He was afraid the chief was already dead. He stood in front of the chief, hesitant to approach and confirm. At this moment, the doctor with the medical kit ran quickly to the chief's side, felt his carotid artery, and loudly announced, "He's still alive. Let me examine him."

The doctor put on rubber gloves, examined the wound on the chief's neck, checked his pupils, and then took out a set of instruments to check his blood pressure and breathing. Big Bali and Little Bali stood by, tense and hopeful, their concern for their father surpassing everything else.

Soon, good news came from the doctor.

"He is lucky. The leopard's teeth missed the major blood vessels. It only bit through two small ones, but his condition is still serious. He has lost at least two pints of blood and needs a transfusion. I need to check his blood type. If anyone here is O-type and willing to donate, please let me know."

Gao Yang was not O-type, and the chief's blood type was quickly determined to be A+. Gao Yang's blood type was B, so he could not donate to the chief. The others present also shook their heads, indicating they were neither O-type nor A+.

Fortunately, Big Bali and the others were the chief's children, and their blood types should be the same. Gao Yang called them together and told them that the white witch doctor needed their blood to save the chief, and only a small amount was needed.

As the doctor was testing the blood types of Big Bali and the others, Kathleen stepped forward with a smile and said softly, "I am O-type and willing to donate. Ivan, you can start with my blood."

The doctor, with a serious face, said, "Kathleen, you must understand that I only have equipment for human-to-human transfusions. Although I can ensure the equipment is clean and safe, human-to-human transfusions are very dangerous. It is difficult to control the amount of blood during the transfusion, and there have been cases of people dying during the process."

"That's fine. I must save him. I can't stand by and do nothing. You can start with my blood while we wait for their blood types to be confirmed."

Kathleen was young, around twenty-three or twenty-four, about 1.7 meters tall, with short brown hair and delicate features. She looked very beautiful. Her extraordinary courage and compassion made her even more radiant. At that moment, in Gao Yang's eyes, Kathleen was an angel.

The doctor connected a soft tube with two needles to Kathleen's and the chief's arms. After warning Kathleen to tell him if she felt dizzy, he began to clean the chief's wound. Cleaning the wound would cause more bleeding, so the doctor had to clean it while transfusing blood.

Gao Yang was extremely grateful to Kathleen but didn't know what to say. After hesitating, he bowed deeply to her and said, "Miss Kathleen, on behalf of the entire Acuri tribe, I thank you for your help. According to Chinese and Acuri traditions, I will repay you. I promise."

At this moment, the blood types of Big Bali and the others were also confirmed. As expected, they were all A+. The doctor happily announced that if four people donated blood, the chief could be saved, and the donors would be safe.

After the four donors had each donated blood, the doctor put away the transfusion tube and announced that the transfusion could stop. If there were no complications, the chief's life should be saved.

Just as the doctor announced the end of the transfusion, the chief woke up. The atmosphere finally relaxed. After the doctor treated the chief and Big Bali's minor injuries and gave them antibiotics, declaring everything was over, an excited Gao Yang began to hug and thank everyone who had come.

When the excited Gao Yang finally hugged Kathleen and thanked her, he realized he had hugged her a bit too tightly and stepped back awkwardly, smiling. Fortunately, Kathleen was not angry.

Although the chief and Big Bali and the others could not communicate with Professor Buck and his team, they still tried to express their gratitude and offered their most sincere blessings. Just as everyone was celebrating, the professor's walkie-talkie suddenly crackled to life.

"We are under attack. We are under attack at the camp. Professor, leave here quickly and don't come back. They have killed everyone."

The sudden voice, accompanied by gunshots, brought the celebration to a dead silence. The professor grabbed the walkie-talkie, about to press the transmit button, when it crackled again.

"Oh God, Charlie is dead. They are catching up to me. There are many of them. Help! No, don't come back. This is planned. They will kill everyone. They might come for you. For God's sake, run. Leave this damned country. Oh God, save us..."

The voice on the other end of the walkie-talkie was urgent and chaotic, interspersed with rapid gunfire. Finally, with a gunshot, the crying voice abruptly stopped.