King of the Wilderness

Chapter 333: Chapter 213: The Bureaucrat’s So-Called ”Natural Selection” (Ten-Thousand-Word Combined Chapter) Part 3

Its hind legs appeared particularly weak, and with each step, its body would tilt to one side, needing to claw desperately at the snow with its front paws to steady itself.

A series of urgent yet weak ”hum hum” noises emerged from its throat. The sound was hoarse and faint, filled with an intense craving for food, mixed with the pathetic inability to be loud due to its weakness.

Lin Yu’an’s heart was deeply gripped by this scene.

He took out three pieces of Red Spot Salmon frozen as hard as stones from the bucket, but didn’t throw them directly over. Instead, he slowly backed up a few steps and placed the fish at the entrance of the shelter.

This was his final test, also the ultimate diagnosis of the little Polar Bear’s condition.

The little cub seemed to have a glimmer of light in its eyes when it smelled the nearer, richer scent. It hesitated for a moment; instinctive fear made it wary of approaching the towering human figure.

But the burning hunger in its belly eventually overcame everything, and it hobbled with a drag of its hind legs to the door, sniffing vigorously at the frozen fish with its nose.

Then it picked up one of the fish and began to gnaw laboriously with its unerupted, tender milk teeth.

Lin Yu’an just watched quietly, and the GoPro on his chest faithfully recorded this heartbreaking scene.

He heard the thin and clear sound of teeth scraping against the frozen fish skin, ”creak... creak...”, a sound full of futility and helplessness.

The little cub used all its strength to shake its small head, trying to tear a piece of meat from the fish, but to the cub, that fish was like an immovable iron rod.

After gnawing for a long time, it got nothing except for leaving a shallow row of almost invisible tooth marks and some of its own saliva on the fish.

It seemed a bit restless and confused, stopped its actions, lifted its head, and gazed at Lin Yu’an with those pure and helpless eyes.

That gaze seemed to ask: ”Why? Why is the food right at my mouth, but I can’t eat it?”

Lin Yu’an did not step forward immediately, but spoke to the GoPro on his chest: ”Its hunting ability is zero; its milk teeth can’t break through the frozen fish, and its jaw strength is severely inadequate.”

”This proves it is still entirely in the lactation period, utterly unable to handle solid food. Giving it protein now is pointless and may accelerate its death.”

His gaze was fixed on the uncontrolled trembling of the little cub’s body.

”It’s been shaking continuously; this trembling isn’t out of fear but is its body trying to generate heat through involuntary muscle contractions to maintain core temperature.”

”This is an extremely dangerous signal, indicating its energy reserves are nearly exhausted, and its heat production cannot keep up with heat loss.”

”Every second it stays outside means its life is counting down; mere food, even if it could eat it, couldn’t immediately convert to heat to fight hypothermia.”

”The priority in saving it now is not ’feeding,’ but ’rewarming.’

”The rescue plan must proceed in two steps; it must now be immediately moved to a warm environment for passive rewarming to prevent a further decline in core body temperature.”

”Then, once its body temperature begins to stabilize, provide it with high-calorie, high-fat liquid food to replenish energy.

This calm analysis seemed to prove he was not an ordinary person overwhelmed by sympathy but a doctor formulating a rescue plan.

Looking at the little Polar Bear’s watery eyes, it completely broke down the final defense in Lin Yu’an’s heart, which was built by the ’no-contact rule.’

No longer hesitating, he stepped forward slowly and extremely gently. This time, the little cub merely looked at him weakly, not even having the strength to retreat.

Its body trembled uncontrollably in the cold wind, the white fur sullied by snow and dirt, clinging tightly to its frail frame.

Lin Yu’an crouched down, reached out, and gently held the little cub’s body in his arms. At the moment his palm touched the cub, an icy coldness instantly transmitted, startling him.

This was not the body temperature a Polar Bear should have; this was a signal that life was swiftly slipping away! This corroborated all his previous judgments; the situation was even worse than he imagined.

He wasted not another second, carefully carrying the little creature, which weighed only about ten kilograms, like he was cradling the most precious piece of porcelain, into the warm shelter.

He placed it on his sleeping bag by the fireplace, and the warm glow immediately enveloped its small body while the dry, warm air of the shelter gradually dispelled the sharp chill from its body.

Perhaps the sudden warmth and sense of security that it had never experienced caused the little creature’s tense body to miraculously relax, and it emitted a satisfied, milk-like hum from its throat.

It even awkwardly stretched its hind legs and buried itself deeper into the soft sleeping bag.

The small red dot on the GoPro lens was recording this tender scene that transcended species.

Lin Yu’an knelt by the sleeping bag, reaching out simply to adjust its position to bring it closer to the flame.

But as his palm approached, the little cub instinctively, gently, and tentatively rubbed its furry little face against his warm and dry palm.

The movement was light, carrying a hint of hesitation, as if it was confirming that this large creature had no ill intent.