Live Streaming: Great Adventure in the Wilderness-Chapter 848 - 844: Teaching the Clumsy Cheetah

Bi Fang quickly finished his white rice and handed his utensils over to the recycling area before dashing out of the restaurant and onto the main road.

Fortunately, as a tourist area, there were plenty of taxis available; Bi Fang got into one before fans nearby recognized him and quickly headed to Wolf Fang Headquarters.

Liu Qian didn't say much on the phone, just briefly outlined the situation.

All Bi Fang knew was that someone from the Kenya Wildlife Rescue Center was looking for him, not because they were in any trouble, but because there was a special matter they wanted Bi Fang to be involved in.

They didn't specify what it was, only that it related to cheetahs.

To know more details, it would be better to discuss in person.

Many animal conservation centers are scattered across the African Savanna, but the most famous and largest one is the Kenya Conservation Center.

This place is known as the "Cradle of Humanity," where human skulls dating back over 2.5 million years have been unearthed.

To protect the continuity and diversity of species, this conservation area has completely banned hunting and has become a natural paradise cherished and protected by tourists and charitable organizations worldwide.

The center has done many remarkable things, arguably the most famous of which was the protection of the world's last male northern white rhino.

On March 20, 2018, Huaxia time, the last male northern white rhino on Earth, named Sudan, was euthanized by doctors in Kenya.

He was once the most famous rhino in the world, as well as the last male northern white rhino.

The Kenya Conservation Center went to great lengths to protect him, removing his horn artificially to prevent poaching, deploying a 40-person armed team to guard him round the clock, and providing him with the world's best veterinary and animal care specialists.

For the white rhino, death was liberation.

But for humans, it was yet another species observed helplessly as it moved towards extinction.

In just the past 40 years, the world has lost 90% of its rhinos, with over a thousand still falling to poachers each year. All this, just because of people's infatuation with rhino horns.

The male white rhino "Sudan" carried the last hopes of the northern white rhino population.

But with his passing, only a mother and daughter remained, unable to naturally reproduce.

In just a century, a species that had survived on Earth for 50 million years marched towards extinction.

It's worth noting that in 1973, when "Sudan" was born, there were still around 1,000 of his kind roaming the African Savanna, and the numbers were even larger a decade ago.

They were extremely docile, never bullied the weak or challenged elephants for no reason, and unlike other rhinos, they weren't solitary—often moving in groups of twenty or more.

Unfortunately, in the last few decades, Sudan was a lone rhino, his only companions were the dozens of heavily armed soldiers.

On top of this, there were many other similar occurrences, including deadly encounters with poachers.

If a map marking poaching activities around the world with red dots were drawn, it would show several areas nearly covered in red, almost all of which were in Africa.

This was an animal's paradise, yet it attracted swarms of flies.

Poaching activities in Kenya peaked in 2012, with over 33,000 elephants killed annually from 2010 to 2012 – that is, one elephant died every 20 minutes.

Since then, intense crackdowns have drastically reduced poaching, but issues surrounding illegal hunting persist.

Ah, paradise for animals.

Elephants, black rhinos, lion prides, cheetahs, wildebeest herds, Nile crocodiles.

Bi Fang had always wanted to witness it for himself, but he just hadn't found the right opportunity.

Although he had traveled across the Sahara previously, which included areas of grassland, those were just small and narrow green belts between deserts, not the true African Savanna.

Therefore, hearing that someone from Kenya had come looking for him, Bi Fang was naturally excited.

Nearly two months had passed since his last livestream, and if a good opportunity presented itself, it would be great to take a trip directly to the African Savanna.

Upon meeting, Bi Fang was somewhat surprised because the representative from the Kenya Wildlife Rescue Center turned out to be an Asian, not very tall, wearing glasses, and emitting a scholarly vibe.

Unexpected as it might be, it was not exactly shocking.

After all, the Kenya Conservation Area is so renowned, and the pressure to protect animals so great, that it has continually received donations and man-power from around the world.

Many retired special forces soldiers and animal protection activists from various countries choose to come here to protect animals, so seeing someone from Huaxia was not too startling.

Upon seeing Bi Fang enter, the man immediately came forward to shake hands, looking quite excited as he introduced himself.

"Master Fang! I have long admired your reputation; I'm Huang Hongxiang."

"Hello."

Bi Fang nodded and then sat down with Huang Hongxiang on a sofa nearby.

"Let's get right to the point; I want to hear more details about what you mentioned."

"Of course, no problem. That's exactly why I'm here," Huang Hongxiang said with a hearty laugh.

It was already late, Wang Yongbo had gone home, and only Liu Qian was sitting to the side, acting as an intermediary.

The three of them sat in the reception room as Huang Hongxiang began to recount the entire story in detail.

The key to the matter was a cheetah.

At the beginning of last year, while on routine patrol on the African Savanna, staff members of the Kenya Wildlife Rescue Center happened to hear a "meow."

Ordinary people might think it was just the cry of a domestic cat, but those who had worked in Kenya immediately recognized it as the call of a cheetah.

Indeed, cheetahs sound almost identical to cats. The noises they make are more like piercing chirps or bubbles and compared to cat calls, they resonate with additional innocuousness.

This was somewhat incongruous with their image.

Just like how the bald eagle of Ugly Country has a screeching and squawking voice, and all the impressive calls of eagles are actually produced by the red-tailed variety.

While the two staff members expected to encounter the graceful hunter that is the cheetah, they ended up finding only a skinned carcass, already swarming with flies.

Beside the bloodied flesh, there was just one small cheetah, the very one that had uttered the sound, crying out in a milky voice.

No predator plucks its prey's fur completely clean while hunting.

The instigator behind the incident was obvious at a glance.

The flies on the body also indicated that the perpetrator had long since fled.

The newborn cheetah clearly couldn't survive alone on the harsh African Savanna, so the staff naturally brought it back to the rescue center to raise it.

Bi Fang picked up on a keyword, "This happened last year, so it's been about a year now, hasn't it?"

"More than that, we found it last spring, and now it's eighteen months old—it's considered an adult."

Bi Fang nodded.

The life cycle of a cheetah can be divided into three stages: cubs from birth up to 18 months, sub-adult from 18 to 24 months, and the adult phase after 24 months.

"Because it's now an adult, we plan to release it back into the wild, but we've encountered a problem—that cheetah doesn't know how to hunt at all."

"Doesn't know how to hunt?"

Bi Fang raised an eyebrow, somewhat curious.

Huang Hongxiang nodded helplessly, "Right, this guy grew up in the rescue center and became a 'giant baby.' It does nothing but cling to the staff all day. Unless we keep raising it, its only fate would be a zoo, which is something we really don't want to see, especially since big cats are the least suited to zoo life among felids."

A baby cheetah typically weighs 240 to 300 grams, and it takes two to three days before they start crawling. Their eyes open after four to fourteen days, and they begin to eat after twenty-one to twenty-eight days. They are weaned at two months.

By nine to ten months, the female cheetahs reach sexual maturity.

Male cheetahs usually reach sexual maturity around fourteen months of age, so in the first few months after birth, the female ones tend to hide their cubs in the grass.

It was after weaning at three months that cheetahs still follow their mothers.

At this time, they learn hunting, survival, and how to escape predators from their mothers.

It is only after 1 to 1.5 years that young cheetahs start living independently, with males typically setting off on their own while young females may remain with their mother.

By around one year of age, they begin to hunt on their own.

But it was clear from Huang Hongxiang's words that this cheetah had not learned hunting skills after losing its mother.

Contrary to what many people think, the hunting skills of many felids are not innate.

Huang Hongxiang's gaze was earnest, "All of our principles are aimed at ensuring that wild animals can live freely and without human threats in the wilderness."

Bi Fang had some inkling about the other's intent, "So the reason you sought me out is?"

"We want you to retrain Harley, to help it adapt to life in the wild and become a real cheetah!"

Bi Fang didn't respond directly but instead asked, "Harley, is that the cheetah's name? Is it a boy?"

"Yes," Huang Hongxiang sighed, "In fact, we've done this before—rescuing young wild animals and releasing them when they can live on their own. Our staff often teach them how to hunt. Most animals are quite talented and pick it up after a few tries. But Harley seems denser than most; our usual methods just don't work."

Humans, of course, cannot hunt like a felid, and our teaching methods are quite rough.

But given the innate talents of animals, even without their mothers' instruction, just observing a few times is generally enough for them to grasp the skill easily.

Harley was like the poor student among the animals, needing a more advanced teacher.

"So, you've chosen me?"

"Yes." Huang Hongxiang smiled, "It may sound a bit like flattery, but I've watched your live streams and I admire what you do. Most crucially, your hunting is practically an art. I've only seen such efficient and fascinating hunting in tigers!"

"Yeah, definitely charmed, it's like brute aesthetic, especially the muscles moving, a real feast for the eyes. Every time, it reminds me of tigers or lions," Liu Qian also spoke up in praise.

"Exaggerated."

Bi Fang felt a bit proud inside, but he modestly spoke otherwise.

However, he had his doubts about Huang Hongxiang's words, waiting to see if Harley truly was a poor student.

Bi Fang would rather believe that the Kenya Wildlife Rescue Center actually wanted to capitalize on his fame for a joint publicity stunt than the fact a felid was a poor student.

Such speculation wasn't due to Bi Fang being thick-skinned.

Rather, his fame had indeed grown so large– with peak stable traffic of ten million fans and a global fan base of over a hundred million, all proof of his strength.

His own Wilderness Club also enjoyed international fame, with hordes of foreigners visiting every day, hoping to catch a glimpse of Bi Fang.

Whether it was a genuine need for help or a desire for collaborative publicity, Bi Fang himself wouldn't refuse.

The latter would be doing a good deed, after all, the Kenya Conservation Center had indeed done a lot of good, and Bi Fang was happy to be in demand.

And it was a no-cost favor.

For both parties, it was a process of mutual achievement.

So Bi Fang didn't hesitate, and after a brief consideration, he agreed to Huang Hongxiang's request on the spot.

This wasn't any lucrative cooperation, just a mutual assistance without any contract demands, and there was no need to be too cautious.

"Then, I'm really grateful!"

Huang Hongxiang couldn't contain his joy upon getting Bi Fang's agreement; his face flushed slightly, and he grasped Bi Fang's hands tightly, "Has Master Fang eaten dinner yet? If not, please allow me the honor of hosting– you pick the place, don't be shy."

"You're too polite, but as it happens, I had just finished dinner when I got the call and took a taxi over. To be able to see the African Savanna is also my dream."

Hearing this, Huang Hongxiang felt a bit embarrassed, "Actually, I wished to contact Master Fang sooner, but my flight was delayed, and I'm rather impatient. I came looking for you right after landing, my apologies. In any case, once we're in Kenya, I insist on playing host– Master Fang must not refuse."

"No problem, once in Kenya, I do want to taste the local cuisine."

"Definitely."

Huang Hongxiang seemed very solemn, as if this was some significant agreement, which actually made Bi Fang a little embarrassed.

After some pleasantries, Huang Hongxiang left the reception room.

Seeing this, Liu Qian approached to ask, "So, shall I start working on the publicity plan for this trip?"

"Yeah, now that it's decided, the next broadcast will be from the African Savanna."

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The Kenya Conservation Center wasn't just having Bi Fang come over to train a cheetah and leave, to make it interesting, they certainly had to link it with the savanna.

So, the goal this time was to have Bi Fang survive in the savanna while teaching Harley hunting, as a theme for the live broadcast.

After leaving Wolf Fang Headquarters, Bi Fang casually searched online for Huang Hongxiang, and quite surprisingly, he discovered something interesting.

This young man, who seemed only in his twenties, had a rather impressive past, and could even be called a minor celebrity.