Closer to Revealing My True Self
Chapter 117 - 103 Snake Luck_1

Chapter 117: Chapter 103 Snake Luck_1

The route the convoy chose was relatively smooth, and Feng Yi studied several electronic materials on the road.

It was Huang Ye who had passed them to him; they contained an overview of their destination and some relevant key points.

Feng Yi had no experience with catching snakes on the plateau, and he didn’t know the habits of the snakes there during this season. He relied on instinct and perception for snake catching—others’ experiences might not work for him, but it was always good to learn more.

The convoy took several breaks along the way. During the rests, Huang Ye would ask about things concerning Team 6 from the Nan Chong scientific expedition. The others in the team were also curious about the Nan Chong Team 6, as their work had similarities, except they were looking for snakes on the plateau while Team 6 searched in the mountain forests of the Nan Chong range.

There were more types of snakes in the Nan Chong mountain range, while the plateau only had a few, with only two species discovered above four thousand meters, and they were elusive.

After a rest they set off once more, with Feng Yi driving this time, while Huang Ye made a call home.

It was only upon taking the driver’s seat that Feng Yi noticed the hanging ornament in the car.

The pattern on the ornament depicted a Buddha in meditation at the bottom, with a huge cobra above it.

Once Huang Ye finished his call, Feng Yi asked him, "Does this hanging decoration in your car have any special meaning?"

Huang Ye glanced at it, "Oh, that, there’s no special meaning. I just hope for good luck, that I could get a shot of a snake."

"Do you believe in Buddha?" Feng Yi asked.

"Not quite, some people in my family do, but I’m not a real believer. Do you believe?" Huang Ye knew that some people were quite wary of such symbols.

He had many relatives who were Buddhists, but while some wore jade Buddha pendants, others believed that Buddha images should be enshrined and placed with respect, and wearing them was sacrilege. They had argued more than once about it.

Different people, different beliefs.

He bought the ornament merely for psychological comfort, hoping to photograph a snake on each trip without giving it much other thought.

"I’m not religious," Feng Yi said. "I just found your ornament rather unique, it’s my first time seeing someone hang this in their car."

"Ah, it’s just for a bit of psychological comfort. You know, after the period of climate anomalies, many snake species declined in number; sometimes you might spend ten days to half a month without finding one, often returning empty-handed. We always ask the locals for information before searching for snakes, and we’re lucky if we find them; sometimes, no matter how hard you search, you come up empty-handed."

Huang Ye explained, "I’ve heard so many mythological stories, and the only one able to flick its tongue above the Buddha’s head is the snake. Heh, even though the stories talk about a snake king protecting the Buddha."

As he talked, Huang Ye suddenly remembered something, "Oh shoot, I almost forgot, I had someone bring me the Fuxi and Nüwa ornament!"

Feng Yi: "...Fuxi and Nüwa?"

Huang Ye laughed awkwardly, "Yeah, in the myth, Fuxi and Nüwa have human heads and snake bodies. I figured a bit more psychological comfort couldn’t hurt, maybe it could bring even better snake luck."

Feng Yi didn’t say anything.

Huang Ye went on babbling about his new car ornament still unopened in the trunk.

Seeing that Feng Yi hadn’t spoken for a while, Huang Ye thought that he, not being religious, probably had no interest in mythological tales.

"Ahem, actually, it’s okay to listen to mythological stories, but don’t take them too seriously. Things from millions of years ago—who knows what really happened.

"We’re now in the information age; something that happens in the morning can have 800 different versions by the afternoon. Think about millions of years ago; the discrepancies in those versions would be even larger, so don’t take it too seriously, just let it go."

"Mm-hmm," Feng Yi responded.

When driving in the afternoon, they encountered a herd of yaks, and the convoy stopped for a while to let them pass.

Feng Yi’s gaze went through the car window.

A herder rode a horse behind the yak herd, and a big black dog wandered around the edge of the herd, working with an easy proficiency.

As it passed by the convoy, it seemed to sense something; the big black dog looked at Feng Yi’s vehicle, then stepped back away from it, watchful.

Only after following the yak herd at a distance did the big black dog relax, as if the alarm had been lifted, its steps lightened, trotting briskly at the edge of the herd.

Feng Yi wondered, did the big black dog pick up on his presence?

He had tried his best to keep his aura concealed.

It might have been that the big black dog was particularly sensitive, or perhaps Feng Yi was approaching a crucial point in evolution, making it impossible to hide some of his aura?

Fortunately, it did not affect his normal life.

The convoy didn’t reach their destination until the next day, having encountered several bouts of rainfall along the way, each lasting only about ten minutes.

This time Feng Yi wasn’t cycling, so he didn’t have to get wet in the rain and could stay comfortably in the car.

When they arrived at their target location, there was another team preparing to leave.

Huang Ye looked at the group message and explained to Feng Yi that the other team was investigating big cats, and their team leader was now inquiring for information."

"Big cats?" Feng Yi asked.

"Like snow leopards, jaguars and such."

"There’s quite a bit of scientific research activity nowadays."

"That’s right, with sufficient funding and adequate equipment, and being able to attract people, the surveys are more frequent. But it’s also tough work—this time, they came to replace a camera they had set up in the wild after it was damaged by a big cat."

After a short while, the convoy set off again, heading to their base camp.

Feng Yi learned from Huang Ye that the leader of this investigative team had also come in July and managed to photograph a red-spotted pit viper. They came again now in response to reports that another had been seen elsewhere.

Three visits in a year to collect data from different seasons, but this was Huang Ye’s first time joining. He hadn’t caught up with the team’s July visit.

Once they arrived, Huang Ye was in a state of excitement. Before resting at night, he was still chanting:

"Feng Yi, do you think we’ll find the red-spotted pit viper this time?"

"Yes."

Feng Yi had already sensed the presence of snakes, and there were far more than just a few, all of small size.

But Feng Yi wasn’t planning to uncover all of them; he’d see which was closest tomorrow and catch that one.

Unlike Huang Ye and the others, who were in a state of eager anticipation, Feng Yi only went out at night to look at the starry sky for a while, then continued to sleep soundly. The Compass was effective, and he could pinpoint accurately, so he slept soundly.

The next day, the sun hung high, and Feng Yi put on his hat and sunglasses and set out with the team.

"The locals say that one was spotted recently over there."

Huang Ye pointed to a hillside not far away, "I don’t know if it’s gone, but hopefully, it hasn’t run far."

Huang Ye was not allowed to catch snakes; he had little experience in snake-catching, and even if he dared to, the team leader wouldn’t permit him to do so.

Red-spotted pit vipers were already small in size and, being pit vipers, venomous. Inexperienced people could easily harm themselves or the snake in a panic.

Therefore, if Huang Ye spotted a snake, he could only call someone else to catch it.

Huang Ye had originally followed a few experienced snake catchers in the team, but noticing that Feng Yi hadn’t moved and didn’t follow the team over, Huang Ye walked a few steps out and then came back.

"Aren’t you going with them?" Huang Ye asked.

"There are enough people going that way," Feng Yi stood there, feigning a look around and checking the terrain and data. After a while, he raised his hand and pointed to a hillside not far away, "I’ll go check over there."

"You... think there’s a snake over there?"

"Yes! Let the team leader know for me, I’m going to have a look there," Feng Yi started walking in that direction.

He hadn’t added the other team members’ contact information, so he asked Huang Ye to relay the message. Since he joined the team temporarily, he still had to report his solo activity.

Huang Ye was utterly confused by Feng Yi’s actions.

He didn’t think Feng Yi was just making things up. Anyone picked by Team South Sixth must be outstanding. But what was the basis for his judgment?

Looking at Feng Yi and then at the others, Huang Ye gritted his teeth and followed Feng Yi. It wasn’t so much trust in Feng Yi as in South Sixth Team’s eye for picking people.

Of course, even if they didn’t find a snake, he wouldn’t think any less of Feng Yi’s abilities.

In Huang Ye’s view, snakes were always elusive; looking for them in such places was not easy, it did indeed rely on luck sometimes.

Before he left today, he prayed to all the Buddha figures Fuxi and Nüwa, hoping for good snake luck.

The team leader was aware that Feng Yi hadn’t followed them, but to them, Feng Yi was just a passerby. They were merely giving him a lift, not requiring him to always follow the team, so the team leader didn’t bother about him.

After receiving Huang Ye’s message that he was heading up the hill with Feng Yi, the team leader agreed as well.

It was good to split up; the chances of finding snakes were higher. The hillside had enough people searching.

Huang Ye walked behind Feng Yi, taking pictures of the surrounding landscape as he went.

"The weather is pretty good today, the temperature is nice at this time. I hope the local red-spotted pit vipers feel like coming out to sunbathe; otherwise, if they’re hiding, no one can find them... Feng Yi, why have you stopped?"

Huang Ye didn’t pay attention and almost bumped into him.

Feng Yi raised his hand and pointed towards a spot, "Over there."

"What?"

"Is that what you’re talking about, the red-spotted pit viper?"

"Where!"

Huang Ye squinted, following the direction Feng Yi was pointing. It was a bit far, and he didn’t find anything at first glance.

Then he adjusted his camera, zoomed in with the lens, and finally saw it clearly.

Huang Ye’s breath caught, and then it became rapid; he felt his blood flowing faster!

He had come to this plateau over four thousand meters high just for this! He had even prepared himself to return empty-handed!

"My snake luck today is off the charts! I didn’t expect to find one as soon as we got out here!"

Huang Ye didn’t dare get too close, adjusting his camera to take a few shots with the professional camera first.

Then he took a picture with his phone and boasted in the team chat group:

[Off to a good start! Got one!]

As expected of someone South Sixth Team was interested in, Feng Yi’s snake luck was indeed great!

Thinking this, Huang Ye moved his gaze away from the phone screen to look again, and in just the short time it took to send the message, Feng Yi had already rushed over.

"Hey, don’t get excited!"

Huang Ye was worried that Feng Yi might handle the snake too roughly and hurried to follow, prepared to remind him to be careful not to exert too much force or get bitten. But before he could speak, Feng Yi had already caught the snake.

Seeing the snake unharmed and Feng Yi uninjured, Huang Ye grew excited again and started snapping photos vigorously with his camera.

He had to take the photos quickly; once the team leader arrived, he wouldn’t have such a good opportunity anymore.

Huang Ye’s voice trembled with excitement, "I finally saw it! The highest-dwelling venomous snake in the country! So beautiful! And look, even those tiny nostrils are adorable! Look at those two pits!"

Feng Yi: "...Those are pit organs."

"I wonder how toxic this moth-eating snake’s venom is."

Feng Yi glanced over, "Not much."

The other team members hadn’t found any snakes yet. When the leader saw Huang Ye’s message, he rushed over immediately.

Feng Yi handed over the red-spotted pit viper to them, and he didn’t participate in any more data collection.

After wiping his hands, he sat on a stone on the hillside and basked in the sun.

He could sense that in this nearby area, the meadow, hillside, and some easily overlooked corners had some snakes out sunbathing, while others were still hiding in their burrows.

He wouldn’t disturb them anymore. The other people from the team would probably catch another one; two snakes would be enough for data collection.

Feng Yi had caught this snake to thank the vehicle team for giving him a lift; he had come to see these snakes that live above four thousand meters in altitude for himself.

In such harsh conditions, they were adapting very well.

Feng Yi moved to another spot, lay on the hillside, not minding the hard rocks.

Behind the sunglasses, his pupils constricted as his gaze pierced the bright sky, seeing the stars hidden behind the light.

After activating the "Compass" system, he could see the star clusters during the day, though not as clearly as at night. However, it was enough to determine his bearings.

He thought that if he lived here, he too would adapt very well. Expansive land with few people; any anomalies would go unnoticed. But the air here was thin, the atmospheric pressure low, and the oxygen scarce; the plateau had its own ecological rhythm.

He needed to find a suitable hatching ground for his egg!