"It’s been almost half an hour. You don’t think something happened to Yang Qi, do you?"

Wang Gu said, staring toward the ravine where Yang Qi and the clouded leopard had disappeared. He couldn’t hold it in any longer.

"What are you talking about!" 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

The moment Chen Ze heard this, he immediately shot back, his tone full of displeasure, "Brother Qi went to help it. The clouded leopard asked *him* for a favor. How could anything possibly happen?"

"I don’t want anything to happen to him either."

Wang Gu explained, "But a clouded leopard is a predator, after all. They’re wild and untamable. What if..."

"There is no ’what if’!"

Chen Ze cut him off, his tone exceptionally firm. "Nothing will happen to Brother Qi!"

"That’s not it..." Wang Gu tried to argue.

"That’s enough!"

Deng Lei barked, cutting off their heated exchange. "Let’s not hear any more of that."

Though he had put a stop to it, an undeniable thread of worry was knitted into his brow.

Professor Tang was in charge of the search, but Deng Lei was responsible for everyone’s safety. If something really happened to Yang Qi, a formal reprimand would be the least of his worries.

To be honest, Deng Lei was already regretting it. ’Why didn’t I insist on going with him?’

’Even if I had to follow in secret!’

"Professor Tang."

Deng Lei took a deep breath and looked at Tang Ji. "Yang Qi has been gone a long time with no word," he said gravely. "I’m getting worried. How about I take two men and go look for him?"

"..."

Professor Tang was quiet for a moment. He looked out at the silent mountain forest, then nodded. "Alright, go find him. Be careful."

"Understood!" Deng Lei replied.

"Take Big Black with you," Uncle Cai chimed in from the side.

"Thanks, Uncle Cai."

Deng Lei didn’t refuse the offer of the hound. He immediately called out names, "Li Rui, Wang Xiaochao, grab your gear and come with me! Qiao Fei, you stay here and protect the professor and the others."

"Brother Qi will definitely be fine!"

Seeing this, Chen Ze still held to his opinion, but a hint of anxiety inevitably crept into his eyes.

Deng Lei led Li Rui, Wang Xiaochao, and Big Black, carefully making their way toward the ravine.

They had only gone about thirty meters when Big Black suddenly stopped. Its ears perked up, and it let out a few barks directed toward the far side of the ravine—not a warning, but something more like an alert.

"WOOF WOOF~"

"It’s Yang Qi!"

Li Rui’s eyes lit up. He spotted a figure rounding the far side of the ravine and walking steadily toward them. "He’s back!" he exclaimed happily.

PHEW—

Deng Lei let out a breath, his tense expression softening. "Good, he’s back. As long as he’s back."

Wang Xiaochao turned his head and shouted to Professor Tang, Chen Ze, and the others behind them, "Yang Qi’s back! He’s okay!"

"Haha! See? I told you Brother Qi would be fine!"

Hearing the news, Chen Ze was instantly beaming with delight and burst out laughing.

"Thank goodness he’s okay." Qiao Fei also let out a visible sigh of relief, patting her chest.

"Truly incredible," He Shengnan murmured, watching Yang Qi return unharmed.

"That kid is amazing." A relieved smile appeared on Uncle Cai’s face.

"Wait..."

His initial joy passing, Li Rui suddenly spoke with a mix of surprise and confusion. "Captain Deng, look. Is Yang Qi carrying something?"

"Carrying something?" Deng Lei froze for a second. A possibility occurred to him, and his gaze locked onto Yang Qi.

Sure enough, as Yang Qi drew closer, Li Rui couldn’t help but gasp. "It’s a cat! No... look at the markings! It’s the Little Clouded Leopard! Yang Qi brought back the Little Clouded Leopard!"

"What?!"

Hearing this, Professor Tang, Wang Gu, He Shengnan, and the others behind could no longer contain themselves and hurried over to where Deng Lei’s group stood.

Professor Tang was the most excited of all. He practically jogged forward and immediately saw the little leopard curled up in Yang Qi’s arms, letting out weak, mewling cries like a kitten.

"Professor Tang, the Little Clouded Leopard is sick. It’s not in good shape. Quick, take a look and see how we can treat it."

When Yang Qi saw Professor Tang, he quickened his pace to meet him, carefully handing over the little leopard, which still felt hot to the touch.

"Xiaowang, Sheng Nan, get the first-aid kit open, now!"

Professor Tang shouted, his voice urgent. Then, as if handling a fragile treasure, he carefully took the Little Clouded Leopard from Yang Qi’s hands.

Wang Gu and He Shengnan didn’t dare to delay. They quickly opened the first-aid backpacks they were carrying and gathered around Professor Tang.

Zhang Zhi also moved in closer to help with the examination.

Seeing this, Yang Qi silently took a few steps back, giving the professionals space.

"You okay?" Deng Lei walked over and patted Yang Qi’s shoulder, his tone filled with concern.

"Thanks for your concern, Captain Deng. I’m fine."

Yang Qi smiled. Although the high-speed dash had consumed some of his Magical Power, he was in high spirits.

"See? What did I tell you! Brother Qi is a Druid. In these mountains, he’s the boss. How could anything happen to him?" Chen Ze came over, his face full of pride, as if sharing in the glory.

MEOW~

Xiaojiu, who had been in Chen Ze’s arms, leaped gracefully and landed precisely back on Yang Qi’s shoulder, nuzzling his cheek affectionately.

Yang Qi stroked Xiaojiu’s head and chuckled. "It’s not that dramatic. Let’s just say the mother clouded leopard who asked for help was very smart. She knew I was trying to save her cub."

At this, Deng Lei, Qiao Fei, and the others exchanged a smile and didn’t say anything more.

Actions speak louder than words. The scene before them was far beyond any logical explanation, and a few humble words from Yang Qi couldn’t change that.

Yang Qi knew he couldn’t explain it anyway, so they all just left it at a tacit understanding.

Meanwhile, Professor Tang, Wang Gu, and He Shengnan worked quickly, giving the Little Clouded Leopard a rapid but thorough examination.

"Its temperature is very high. It’s clearly running a fever."

"There’s something abnormal about the gaps between its claws and its oral mucosa..."

"Slight swelling in the abdomen...

Soon, they reached a preliminary conclusion.

Professor Tang’s expression was grim. "The little one fell into water and caught a severe chill, which is bad enough. But what’s more troubling is that it also seems to have been poisoned, most likely from ingesting some kind of toxic wild fruit. This combination of factors is extremely dangerous!"

With that, he made a firm decision.

"We have to get off the mountain as soon as possible!"

"Our resources here are limited; we can only provide emergency treatment. The Little Clouded Leopard needs a full examination, detoxification, and professional supportive care."

"But..." Qiao Fei glanced at the sky.

"Do as the professor says!"

Deng Lei cut her off. Saving the animal’s life was the top priority right now.

"I’ll lead the way."

Uncle Cai stepped forward. "I know a shortcut out of the mountains near here. It’s not an easy path, but it will save a lot of time. If we hurry and get through it before dark, we can cut almost half a day off our journey."

"We’re counting on you, Brother Cai," Professor Tang said gratefully, holding the weak Little Clouded Leopard.

Uncle Cai raised a hand, said nothing, and turned to take the lead at the front of the group.

The others quickly packed their gear and hurried to follow.

...

With the experienced Uncle Cai leading the way, the team made it out of the inner mountain and into the outer area before dark.

High-powered flashlights lit up the mountain forest.

A little after eleven at night, the team exited Cangshan from the nearest mountain pass.

Outside the entrance, the vehicle they had called for in advance was already waiting.

The group got into the vehicle and headed straight for the Zoo.

It was nearly one in the morning by the time the vehicle passed through the Zoo’s main gate.

[Host has brought back an untamed "Lightning Leopard" cub, strengthening the sect’s foundations. Contribution Points +655]