I put you in charge of the child, and you raised a monster!

The ewe turned and ran away.

Zhao Lei took off after him, but after running a few steps, he suddenly stopped and looked down at his feet.

There was a very thin hemp thread there.

The hemp rope clung to the grass roots, extending from below the fence all the way to the back of the spare yurt.

Zhao Lei did not step on it.

He stood frozen in place, his expression gradually becoming serious.

Shen Ling'er watched him from afar.

"What's wrong?"

Zhao Lei did not answer.

He squatted down and gently brushed aside the grass leaves next to the hemp thread with the wooden spoon in his hand.

Beneath the hemp thread, three sharpened bamboo skewers were pressed down.

The bamboo skewers were not long, but they all faced upwards.

Zhao Lei gasped.

There's something here.

Shen Ling'er walked over and glanced down.

"Um."

"I almost stepped on it again."

"You saw it this time."

Zhao Lei smiled.

"This time, I can finally say I figured it out myself, right?"

"Calculate."

Zhao Lei's smile had just begun when Shen Ling'er continued:

"But you found it while you were chasing the sheep."

"That's what I discovered too."

"Um."

"And I didn't step on it."

"You just stopped."

"Stopping is a skill."

Shen Ling'er nodded.

"Yes, for bamboo skewers."

Zhao Lei looked down at the sharp bamboo skewers and silently put the wooden spoon back into his cloth bag.

"I suddenly realized that sheep can be quite dangerous sometimes."

"The sheep doesn't have bamboo skewers."

"It has horns."

"This one doesn't have it."

The ewe seemed to hear them talking, turned around, and bleated at Zhao Lei.

Zhao Lei immediately took a step back.

"Look, it's threatening me."

"It's looking for salt."

"I felt its tone wasn't very friendly."

Shen Ling'er ignored him.

She reached out and pinched one end of the hemp thread, then walked along the end of the thread towards the back of the spare yurt.

The hemp rope wasn't buried very deep; in many places, it was even sticking out of the grass. However, the hemp rope on the grassland was grayish in color and wet from the rain, so if you didn't look closely, it would almost blend into the soil.

When she reached the back of the yurt, Shen Ling'er stopped.

There stands an old wooden pillar.

The wooden post was wrapped with many ropes of different colors, including red, black, white, and blue ropes that had faded to gray.

The other end of the hemp rope was tied to the very bottom of the wooden post.

A broken wooden box sat next to the pillar.

The lid of the box was not locked, but it was being held down by a stone.

Zhao Lei stood behind her and asked in a low voice, "Could there be any poisonous plants inside?"

"Won't."

How did you know?

"There was no medicine powder on the edge of the wooden box."

"What if there's a knife?"

"The knife will leave an oily smell."

"Will we have any money?"

"The money won't just disappear on its own."

Zhao Lei nodded.

"There should be... inside."

Shen Ling'er raised her hand.

Zhao Lei immediately shut up.

Instead of opening the wooden box, she first walked around the wooden pillar.

There was a ring of polished marks at the bottom of the wooden pillar, and the grass next to it lay neatly flat, as if someone often passed by here, but always deliberately avoided the same stone.

Shen Ling'er squatted down and reached out to touch the stone.

A soft sound came from under the stone.

Zhao Lei's expression tightened.

"Another door?"

"no."

"What is that?"

"Box."

Shen Ling'er moved the stone aside.

A palm-sized iron box was revealed beneath the soil.

The iron box was unlocked, but the lid was held in place by three thin copper wires intertwined. One end of each wire was connected to a rope on a wooden post, while the other end was threaded through the bottom of the broken wooden box.

After looking at it for a while, Zhao Lei couldn't help but ask, "Do we need to pick the lock this time?"

"This is not a lock."

"What is that?"

"remind."

"What reminder?"

Shen Ling'er stretched out her finger and gently flicked the copper wire.

A clear bell rang out immediately from the broken wooden box.

Ding ding ding.

The sound wasn't loud, but it was loud enough for people nearby to hear.

Zhao Lei's expression changed.

"Is there a bell in the box?"

"Um."

"The bell will ring when someone opens the box?"

"Um."

"Isn't this a mechanism?"

"Yes."

Zhao Lei instinctively stepped back.

"You just said it wasn't a lock."

"A mechanism is not necessarily a lock."

"What if I had just opened it directly?"

"The bell will ring."

"and then?"

"They will come."

"Who?"

"The person who rings the bell."

Zhao Lei looked at the empty grassy slopes around him, and the expression on his face gradually became complicated.

"Did he deliberately let us find it?"

"Um."

Why?

"Let's see who's going to touch it."

Zhao Lei immediately put his hands behind his back.

"I didn't touch it."

"You tried to touch me just now."

"Thinking about it doesn't even count as touching it."

"You've already asked."

Asking questions doesn't count as touching.

Shen Ling'er glanced at him.

"Stay away from it."

Zhao Lei quickly took two steps back.

Just then, the sound of a car engine came from afar.

The production crew's off-road vehicle drove up from behind the campsite. After the vehicle stopped, a middle-aged man wearing glasses got out first, followed by several staff members carrying equipment.

The director quickly went to greet him.

"Professor Lin, we've finally arrived."

The middle-aged man took off his glasses and looked up at the rolling mountains in the distance.

"We were delayed on the way."

The director smiled and said, "It's good that you're here."

Zhao Lei stood beside the wooden crate and whispered to Bai Sisi, "Who is he?"

Bai Sisi shook her head.

The director had already turned around and said to everyone:

"Let me introduce you to Professor Lin Yanlin, an expert in wilderness ecology and primary forest research. Next, our crew will enter the northern forest for a three-day nature survival experience."

The scene immediately fell silent.

Yang Mi frowned slightly.

"Entering a primeval forest?"

The director nodded.

"That forest was rarely visited before, and it has preserved a very intact natural environment. The production team had already contacted the local forest rangers in advance and prepared a professional rescue team."

"Wouldn't it be too dangerous?" Zhou Chen asked in a deep voice.

"There is indeed danger."

The director did not shy away from the topic.

"But this is also the most important challenge for the show."

The guests looked at each other.

Chen Hao asked in a low voice, "Do the children want to go in too?"

"We will only enter the outer area; we will not go deeper."

Professor Lin adjusted his glasses.

"However, I must first clarify that virgin forests are different from grasslands. There are no obvious roads inside, the weather changes rapidly, the ground is slippery, and there are traces of large animals in some areas."

Zhao Lei immediately asked, "How big are 'large animals'?"

Professor Lin looked at him.

"Black bears, wild boars, wolf packs, and occasionally leopards."

Zhao Lei's face gradually turned pale.

"What about small animals?"

"Snakes, centipedes, poisonous spiders."

Zhao Lei then asked, "Are there any animals that are completely harmless?"

"have."

"What?"

"Ant."

Zhao Lei breathed a sigh of relief.

Professor Lin added, "Some ants can bite."

Zhao Lei's face turned pale again.

The director quickly said, "Everyone, don't worry too much. This is mainly an experience. All routes will be planned, and experts and rangers will accompany you throughout."

Shen Ling'er stood to the side, but her gaze did not fall on the director.

She looked at the deep green forest to the north.

At the edge of the grassland, the mountains rise like a slowly undulating black ridge. The tree canopies merge into one, so dense that the ground beneath is invisible. The wind blows from the depths of the forest, carrying the scent of damp, decaying leaves.

Shen Ling'er hugged the giant dolphin tightly and suddenly asked:

"When are we going in?"

The director was taken aback.

"Tomorrow morning."

"today."

Professor Lin looked at her.

"Little friend, you can't just go into the primeval forest."

Shen Ling'er turned to look at him.

"You've been inside?"

"certainly."

"Which way did you go in?"

"Southeast side."

"How far have you gone?"

"About seven kilometers."

"What have you encountered?"

Professor Lin paused.

"Wild boars, a troop of monkeys, and a giant python."

Zhao Lei swallowed.

Shen Ling'er asked, "Which wild boar did you pass by?"

Professor Lin was taken aback.

"What?"

"Wild boar."

"The distance was quite far at the time."

"How far?"

"About thirty meters."

Why didn't it chase you?

Professor Lin adjusted his glasses.

Wild boars generally do not attack people unless provoked.

Shen Ling'er shook her head.

"Yes, a sow with piglets."

Professor Lin's expression changed slightly.

Shen Ling'er pointed to the equipment bag behind him.

"There are bite marks on your bag."

Everyone looked over.

There was indeed an irregular tear on the right side of the equipment bag, with dark brown mud stains on the edges.

Professor Lin glanced down at it.

"That was left over from before."

"no."

"Why not?"

"The marks are still fresh."

Shen Ling'er took two steps closer, but did not touch the equipment bag.

"There's pine resin in the mud. The pine resin hasn't dried, which means it happened yesterday."

Professor Lin lowered his head and smelled it, his expression gradually becoming serious.

Shen Ling'er continued:

"The one gnawing on the bun wasn't a wild boar."

Zhao Lei asked in a low voice, "What's that?"

"Bear."

A collective gasp filled the air.

Professor Lin's expression also changed.

Are you sure?

"If it were a wild boar, the tooth marks would be shorter."

Shen Ling'er pointed to the edge of the breach.

"There are two long tooth marks here, wider than those left by a wild boar. It didn't bite through because there was no food in the bag."

Professor Lin crouched down and carefully examined the wound.

After a moment, he raised his head.

"It really does look like something a bear left behind."

The director's smile froze on his face.

Zhao Lei immediately asked, "So, are we going in again tomorrow?"

Shen Ling'er looked at him.

Are you scared?

"I'm not afraid."

"Then what did you ask?"

"I just wanted to confirm whether the production team had made preparations for compensation."

The director quickly explained, "Professor Lin will replan the route to ensure safety."

Shen Ling'er didn't look at the director again.

She walked over to the broken wooden box and gently touched the lid with her toe.

The lid of the box remained untouched.

However, the blue rope tied to the wooden post tightened slightly.

Shen Ling'er looked up at the forest.

A very soft bird song came from the woods.

It wasn't an ordinary cry.

There were only two sounds, with a very short interval between them.

Shen Ling'er's gaze fell on the dense shadows of the trees.

There are people in the forest.

Professor Lin's expression darkened slightly.

Are you sure?

"Um."

"Forest ranger?"

"no."

How did you know?

Shen Ling'er did not answer.

She reached out and picked up a leaf that had been blown by the wind from the ground.

There is a fresh crease on the back of the leaf.

Half a blue fiber was sandwiched in the crease.

Same as the one on the copper coin.

Zhao Lei looked at the blue fiber, and his voice unconsciously lowered.

"Those same people again?"

Shen Ling'er turned the leaf over.

There was a little white powder on the leaf surface.

She touched it lightly with her fingertip and placed it near the tip of her nose.

"Not from the same batch."

Zhao Lei was stunned.

"Are there other people?"

"Um."

The director's expression finally completely disappeared.

"Miss Shen, have you discovered something?"

Shen Ling'er handed him the leaf.

"Your forest route cannot be taken from the southeast side."

Why?

"There are bears there."

Professor Lin frowned.

"Then let's switch to the north side."

"No, not either."

What's on the north side?

Shen Ling'er looked towards the distant forest.

"Someone is waiting."

Zhao Lei hugged the wooden spoon tightly.

"Is someone else waiting?"

Shen Ling'er nodded.

"Um."

"Who are we waiting for this time?"

"Wait for the production crew to go in."

The director fell silent.

After a long while, he finally asked:

"So, are we still going in or not?"

Shen Ling'er looked at the leaf in her hand and casually handed it to Yang Mi.

"Enter."

Yang Mi asked softly, "Ling'er, is there any danger?"

"meeting."

Zhao Lei immediately said, "Then why are we still going in?"

Shen Ling'er hugged the giant dolphin tightly and calmly looked at the primeval forest.

"People only hide things when there is danger."

Professor Lin's expression turned serious.

"What do you want to look for inside?"

Shen Ling'er turned around.

"Find what they don't want others to see."

Zhao Lei followed cautiously behind her.

"What do I need to prepare?"

Shen Ling'er looked at him.

"Put the wooden spoon away."

Zhao Lei looked down.

At some point, he stuffed the wooden spoon into his clothes again, with the handle sticking out.

He quickly took it out.

"Can't we bring wooden spoons into the forest?"

"Yes, you can bring it."

Zhao Lei breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's good."

"But it can't be left lying around."

Zhao Lei immediately stood up straight.

"This time I will definitely—"

Shen Ling'er stopped in her tracks.

Zhao Lei swallowed the rest of his sentence.

After a moment, he said seriously:

"I will remember."

Shen Ling'er nodded.

"Remember this first, then go in."

Zhao Lei, holding the wooden spoon, turned and walked towards the wooden shelf.

After taking a couple of steps, he suddenly stopped and looked back at the forest.

Something seemed to flash by in the depths of the tree shadows.

high speed.

They arrived so close that no one saw them except for Shen Ling'er.

Shen Ling'er did not chase after her.

She simply looked down at a small trail of wet mud on the grass.

Mud prints do not belong to shoes, nor to animals.

It's more like a muddy cloth being dragged along.

The trail stretched all the way to the edge of the forest.

There, next to the last mud imprint, was a thin white bone stuck in the ground.

The top of the bone was shaped into an arrowhead.

Shen Ling'er walked over and reached out to pull out the white bone.

A strand of blue thread was wrapped around the end of the bone.

She looked up into the depths of the forest, her eyes still calm.

"Go in tomorrow."

The wind blew from the forest.

The leaves swayed in layers.

That strange bird call rang out again.

This time, it became a third tone.