??Chapter 66: Chapter 63: Can’t Get Tanned_1
Chapter 66: Chapter 63: Can’t Get Tanned_1
The newly captured five-step viper had completed its scientific mission and was then released back into the mountains by Steve. The release site wasn’t far from where the snake was captured.
“Be sure to be careful when releasing the snakes, don’t get bitten.”
Steve also told Feng Yi and the others about his near-miss experience with being bitten during a snake release.
“Every year there are incidents of people getting bitten during releases, regardless of whether the snakes are venomous or not, care must be taken. I won’t even speak of the venomous ones, but with non-venomous snakes like the king ratsnake, especially the larger ones, one careless bite can tear off a chunk of flesh!”
In addition to asuring the snakes’ physical characteristics and various other data, it was also necessary to asure the water temperature and quality. Water samples were collected from the ditches and streams where silver ring snakes and five-step vipers were found, and soil samples were needed as well.
All along the way, regardless of whether snakes were discovered or not, samples had to be taken from many places. Special attention was given to sampling where reptiles were found.
“There used to be many tourists here,” Professor Zhou said, looking at the map in his hands. “There are hotels along the outskirts of the reserve, where people co to escape the sumr heat, and in other seasons they would enter the forest to play and enjoy the scenery.”
Professor Zhou had reviewed historical docunts and was acquainted with Nan Chong Nature Reserve.
“However, most of Nan Chong Reserve is uninhabited, and even before, only a small part was open to visitors. Even those areas that were opened weren’t ventured into by tourists, as there were even more snakes here before the abnormal climate period.”
In the forest, many snakes are adept at hiding and lying in wait, natural born hunting machines.
Professor Zhou had emphasized many tis that when conducting scientific research to find snakes, one must be very patient. As ti passed day by day, people in the team really felt the anxiousness of not finding their target.
After entering the forest, you not only have to face the frustration of not finding your target, but also directly confront the power of nature.
The complex terrain and climate of the forest often lead to various teorological changes in this area.
The erratic winds weaving through the mountains could suddenly lift soone’s hat off their head.
The unpredictable weather could catch you off guard, and even the forest rangers in the reserve, with decades of experience, could not foresee it.
Walking in the woodland, you might experience the alternating assaults of torrential rain and scorching heat within just a few hours.
Sotis what you think is an insignificant amount of moisture can settle down to form raindrops, and sotis when you think it’s about to rain, it quickly disperses, bringing the heat down on you again.
Nature is indeed miraculous.
After experiencing this marvel, Feng Yi found that he had beco increasingly sensitive to changes in humidity.
From being caught off guard at first to being able to sense those changes and make more accurate predictions, it took him two weeks.
After two weeks of exposure to wind, sun, and rain, without the ti or facilities to take care of themselves, everyone’s skin darkened several shades, except for Feng Yi.
So people are not only handso, but they don’t even tan!
Isn’t that frustrating!?
Cheng Si touched his own face.
Two weeks into the mountains, and his face had definitely roughened up.
As soone who often needed to be in front of the cara, even though he was an outdoor live-strear by nature, attracting more female fans required him to take care of his appearance. Even if he wasn’t strikingly handso, he at least had to not be off-putting. A suitable haircut along with personal charm can still attract a lot of female fans.
If everyone in the team was in the sa state, it wouldn’t matter much, as he was prepared for the hardships when he decided to join the scientific expedition, expecting it to be more arduous than his usual outdoor streaming, ready to sacrifice his appearance and wait until after the expedition to properly repair it.
But now!
Cheng Si looked at Feng Yi beside him.
How the guy looked when he entered the mountains, he still looked the sa… oh no, to be exact, Feng Yi looked even better than when he first arrived, beaming with energy and vitality!
Not at all affected by the damp and hot environnt!
Just by appearance, Feng Yi indeed resembled the kind of pretty-boy star that’s hot in the entertainnt industry.
But now!
Who in the team still considers him a delicate pretty boy?!
This guy’s efficiency in catching snakes was even higher than Steve’s!
While Steve was eyeing a green tree viper basking in the sun on a rock, Feng Yi had already captured another one that was sleeping in a tree!
It wasn’t until Feng Yi brought down the snake that everyone realized there was a green tree viper hidden in that tree.
Compared to Feng Yi, Cheng Si felt like he was blind.
Not only did this man have keen eyesight, he also ate a lot and had great strength!
Every ti they reached a supply point, Feng Yi would stuff his bag full of compressed biscuits. Initially, everyone was worried he might waste them or that carrying too much would slow them down.
However, there wasn’t!
Carrying a large pack of compressed biscuits, he walked faster than anyone!
“Don’t you sweat?” Cheng Si wiped the sweat off his face and looked at Feng Yi with puzzlent in his eyes.
All he carried was his own small set of equipnt, and he was sweating profusely. The humid and hot air in the forest was truly uncomfortable.
But Feng Yi, with a big pack on his back, had only a thin layer of sweat on his face and didn’t look as disheveled as he did.
“I do sweat, but not as much. Different physique,” Feng Yi said naturally, as if he was discussing sothing utterly ordinary.
Actually, he was not calm inside.
If he hadn’t followed this scientific expedition into the mountains, he wouldn’t have known that his physique had changed so much! It wasn’t just increased strength and so strange reflexes, but also less sweating and not getting dark easily.
Rembering his freshman year of college when they had military training, it didn’t take long for him to turn from a “pale scholar” to a “bronzed hunk.”
However, having followed the expedition team into the mountains for two weeks, sotis working under the scorching sun to collect samples, Feng Yi lent a hand as well, so surely he got plenty of sun. He did get a little darker, but the change was not very noticeable.
“Everyone’s physique is different. However, Feng Yi, if you consistently sweat less, you still need to pay attention, and you must speak up if you notice anything wrong with your body.”
Professor Zhou looked at him with concern: “Also, if you really don’t tan at all no matter how much you’re in the sun, you should be cautious. You might have less lanin in your body and a weaker defense against the sun’s ultraviolet rays. If that’s the case, too much sun exposure could lead to issues. You just stay in the shade when we collect samples later, and keep your hat on.”
They all wore hats when going into the mountains, which could not only block the sunlight but also act as a line of defense. Otherwise, when moving through the forest, what would they do if a bug or snake suddenly appeared and attacked their foreheads?
Shortly after.
While Professor Zhou and the others went to collect samples, Feng Yi discovered another green bamboo viper coiled up and sleeping on a tree. This one was slightly larger than the previous two they had found.
“There’s quite a number of green bamboo vipers here,” Teacher Lei said as he ca over with his cara.
The green bamboo viper might have been either stretching its mouth muscles or yawning. Feng Yi decided to think of it as yawning. Its two large fangs moved independently of each other, not in unison.
Feng Yi waited until it finished yawning before he caught it from the tree.
“Another green bamboo viper?” Cheng Si was a bit disappointed. “Are there really no pythons in this area?”
The truth was, Cheng Si disliked these venomous snakes, especially the ones that were extrely hard to detect, yet highly poisonous.
But pythons were of interest to many people. For instance, many who were normally afraid of snakes would head to the python section in a zoo when visiting the reptile exhibits, curious yet frightened by the sight of pythons heavier than an adult.
Upon returning from collecting samples and hearing Cheng Si’s words, Professor Zhou glanced at the distribution map of signals recently sent from the base and replied, “The tagged and released pythons with chips, indeed, there are none. As for native pythons, you need to look carefully, and finding one will depend on luck.
“A long ti ago, this reserve definitely had them. News reports from thirty or forty years ago often ntioned them, including those that wandered into cities. The pythons captured near the Nan Chong Reserve were usually released here.”
Cheng Si was curious: “I’ve only seen small pythons in the wild, and the impression wasn’t that strong. The big pythons in zoos seem quite docile. Are the large pythons in the wild more aggressive?”
Professor Zhou laughed: “The pythons you see in zoos are usually fed already dead prey, like rats or farm-raised chickens, which are killed before being fed to them.
“If they were given live ‘feed,’ it might struggle violently. That would agitate the python, making them aggressive, which is dangerous for the staff.
“So many of the large pythons in zoos can never be returned to the wild, as letting them go ans certain death. First, their size is already so large that it’s hard for them to find a safe habitat; secondly, their competitive edge in the wild has been diminished, they have grown accustod to be fed directly, and their living environnt has been overly clean and comfortable, with so even receiving assistance throughout the shedding process. If they were switched to a wild environnt, they would not be able to adapt.
“When so project teams decide to release animals back into the wild, the way they feed them from a young age is different, and the environnt they create for their growth is also different. They just wait for the right ti to release them back into the wild, and their survival rate is much higher.
“Take snakes for example, those who truly understand snakes will notice a clear difference in the aura and eyes between wild and captive snakes.”
Steve felt this deeply: “Snakes aren’t as expressive as cats or dogs. To many people, their eyes seem cold and indistinguishable. But if you really encounter one, I can feel the difference in them. So dosticated snakes show it more obviously, demonstrating a closeness to people. If not close, they at least aren’t too scared, while wild ones are more vigilant, possessing higher survival wisdom. There’s a significant difference between pets and wild animals.”
Feng Yi suddenly said, “So, beastliness, in a sense, could be considered an innate survival trait?”
Professor Zhou smiled in response: “Of course. Let’s not discuss the philosophical concept of beastliness; just consider the survival wisdom passed down genetically. If we interpret beastliness as the natural instinct of a wild animal, for them, it represents survival wisdom. For instance, predators masking their scent for hunting, or migratory birds flying south for the winter, those can be seen as examples of beastliness. If a migratory bird is kept by humans for too long, forming a habit, forgetting how to migrate, then once the human stops caring for it, its survival would be left to fate.
“Therefore, so snakes confiscated due to illegal rearing can’t be released right away; they have to be observed and trained for a while, or sent directly to zoos or other places for centralized care.”
Feng Yi then asked, “What if beastliness existed within humans?”
Professor Zhou shook his head, “That would be within the realm of philosophy and beyond my area of expertise.”
Feng Yi: “…”
Alright, I’ll contemplate it on my own!
Powerful people discern the aning of life through their own insights!
Who knows, I might have an epiphany at any mont!
Brain, give
so strength here!
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