Chapter 54: The Bizarre Truth

Chapter 54: The Bizarre Truth

Chu Ye felt some regret over what he had done earlier, but what was done was done, and there was nothing he could do to change it. Besides, those wild dogs had ambushed their pride first!

Once Chu Ye reasoned this through, he no longer felt any regret. After all, killing that small wild dog was entirely justified. Who told the wild dog pack to ambush their lion cubs in the first place?

However, Chu Ye was still somewhat puzzled as to why Maomao was still alive and actually up in this large tree.

He could not figure out how Maomao managed to climb up the tree. It didn't know how to climb trees! How on earth did it get up there?

"What on earth is going on? How did Maomao manage to climb up this tree?"

Standing at the base of the tree, Chu Ye turned this question over and over in his mind, but no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't make sense of it.

"Hey, it looks like Maomao has seen me too! Why isn't it coming down from the tree?"

Chu Ye felt that when Maomao looked at him just now, it seemed as though it wanted to come down from the tree. Yet, it didn't dare. It was merely leaning its body forward from the tree fork, simply lacking the courage to climb down.

"Ah! It seems Maomao only knows how to climb up a tree, not how to climb down. Although it managed to get up the tree, it's trapped and can't get back down."

Chu Ye analyzed the situation first, concluding that Maomao must have climbed up the tree by itself, but having only the ability to ascend, it found itself stranded.

However, after coming to this conclusion, Chu Ye pondered further, "Wait, why would Maomao want to climb a tree in the first place? Could it be that it wanted to be like me, practice tree climbing, and then once it got up there, it couldn't get down?"

Faced with Maomao up in the tree, Chu Ye could only come up with this explanation.

"But when Maomao was still with the pride, it never practiced tree climbing on its own! If it wanted to learn how to climb trees, why would it sneak out all alone to practice? It could have practiced within the pride, so why run all the way outside by itself?"

Chu Ye tried to figure out why Maomao would appear in this large tree, but the more he analyzed it, the less sense it made.

Consequently, Chu Ye tried thinking along a different line and felt he had finally stumbled upon some reasons.

"Oh! I get it. Maomao must have been wandering outside alone when it accidentally ran into some predator. Terrified, it was forced to climb the tree. Even though Maomao hadn't practiced tree climbing, lions are felines, and climbing trees comes to them naturally. Of course, practice makes it more proficient, but regardless, a dog cornered will jump over a wall, and a lion cub in a desperate situation will climb a tree."

After another round of analysis, Chu Ye felt his reasoning this time was exceptionally sound. He was convinced this must be the exact reason.

"Alright, that has to be it. Maomao has been stuck in the tree for a whole week, wanting to come down yet lacking the courage to do so."

"Good grief! Maomao stayed up in that tree for a whole week without a single bite of food or a drop of water, and it's still alive and kicking. The survival skills of these lion cubs are truly formidable."

Chu Ye reckoned that the only reason Maomao had survived was due to its incredible resilience; even going without food or water for a week wasn't enough to pose a fatal threat.

"Animals naturally possess astonishing survival capabilities. I was foolishly comparing a human's survival limits to an animal's."

With this realization, Chu Ye concluded that Maomao surviving in the tree for a week was actually quite normal. After all, Maomao was a genuine lion cub.

"Alright, it's clear Maomao can't get down on its own. I need to go help it."

With this thought, Chu Ye prepared to climb the tree, believing that once he reached the upper branches, he could help Maomao get down.

"This is wonderful! I actually found Maomao. Lisa will be so happy; she's bound to think I'm very capable."

Thinking of how he had successfully located the missing Maomao, Chu Ye felt a surge of elation. He felt he had done another great service for the lion pride.

As he thought this, Chu Ye began scaling the tree.

Standing in the fork of the tree, Maomao watched Chu Ye climb upward and felt a surge of joy as well. It believed it would finally be able to get down from the tree and return to the lion pride.

However, just as Chu Ye was about to reach the fork and arrive at Maomao's side, a sharp screech suddenly rang out from the upper branches.

"Ah!——"

Startled, Chu Ye froze. As he looked up, the fur all over his body stood on end.

He saw an adult female baboon rapidly scrambling down from the treetops. Reaching Maomao in an instant, she snatched the cub away.

Baboons moved through the trees as if they were walking on flat ground. From the crown of the tree down to grabbing Maomao took barely a second.

Before Chu Ye could even react, the baboon had already taken Maomao away.

After seizing the cub, the baboon quickly vanished back into the foliage of the canopy. Everything happened so fast that it was as if nothing had occurred at all, making the Maomao Chu Ye had seen moments ago feel like a mere illusion.

"What the hell, where did a baboon suddenly come from? Now we're doomed. Maomao stayed safe and sound in this tree for a whole week, and now disaster strikes."

Chu Ye felt that Maomao's chances of survival were now slim to none. Once snatched away by a baboon, could it possibly still live?

Yet, when Chu Ye had watched the baboon grab Maomao just now, the cub hadn't shown any signs of fear, nor had it wailed; it had behaved as though everything was completely normal.

"What is going on? Maomao doesn't seem afraid of that baboon at all! That's strange. Maomao is only a six-month-old cub, and its size is only half that of an adult female baboon. It's certainly no match for an adult female baboon, so why isn't it scared?"

This question left Chu Ye momentarily baffled once again.

"Wait a minute! This is baboon territory, and this tree is a baboon home! For Maomao to have lived safely for a whole week right in the middle of baboon territory—isn't that completely abnormal?"

Suddenly, Chu Ye found himself unable to comprehend this puzzle. Maomao's sudden appearance had already been bizarre, and now it had been abruptly snatched away by a baboon, making the situation increasingly absurd.

Even with his human soul and high intelligence, these bizarre events were beginning to overwhelm Chu Ye's brain.

"What is going on? What is the actual truth behind all this, and how on earth could Maomao live safely in baboon territory for a whole week?"

Chu Ye turned the puzzle over and over in his mind, but he simply could not figure it out. He could not explain how Maomao managed to survive for a week in baboon territory without facing any mortal danger.

Just as Chu Ye was pondering this, the baboon that had fled earlier suddenly returned, still clutching Maomao in its arms.

The baboon stood atop a thick branch near the top of the tree, holding Maomao to its chest and gazing down at Chu Ye with curious eyes.

Maomao rested quietly in the baboon's arms, showing no trace of fear. The baboon showed no intention of harming the cub whatsoever, occasionally using its paw to stroke Maomao's back with an air of profound tenderness.

"What the—what is going on here? It looks like the baboon has adopted Maomao as its own child!"

Looking at the tender maternal scene unfolding before him, Chu Ye found it utterly impossible to believe his eyes—a female baboon was actually raising a lion cub as if it were her own offspring.

Unless witnessed firsthand, no one would ever believe such a miraculous thing could happen in the animal kingdom.

Yet, as this scene repeated itself before him, a flash of insight struck Chu Ye's mind, and the entire truth of the matter suddenly became clear to him.

"Oh, so that's how it is!" Chu Ye experienced an epiphany.

"No wonder Maomao was able to live in this tree for a whole week without any danger to its life; it was rescued by the baboon and then adopted as a child. That's the only reason the lion cub was able to live safely within the baboon family."

At first, Chu Ye assumed the baboon had saved Maomao before adopting it, and a wave of gratitude toward the baboon welled up in his heart.

"I am so grateful to this baboon; it is truly Maomao's savior."

Gazing at the baboon atop the tree, Chu Ye couldn't help but thank it silently for saving Maomao. If not for the baboon's compassion, Maomao would likely have been devoured by other baboons long ago.

However, a sudden second thought crossed Chu Ye's mind, telling him that things couldn't possibly be that simple. The actual truth might not be as heartwarming as he had just imagined.

"No, it's impossible that this baboon saved Maomao. It must have stolen Maomao. It snatched the cub away. Maomao couldn't possibly have climbed this tall tree by itself; this baboon must have snatched it from the ground and brought it up into the canopy."

As Chu Ye looked closely at the female baboon, she suddenly seemed rather familiar. Thinking back, he realized this was the exact same female baboon he had observed earlier when watching the troop—the one obsessed with trying to steal other female baboons' babies.

"Oh, I understand now! This female baboon's own baby must have been killed by the Kut wild dog pack, leaving her consumed by the grief of losing her child. First, she tried snatching other baboons' babies. When that failed, her maternal instincts apparently twisted into something bizarre, driving her to steal a lion cub to raise as her own child instead."

Having recognized the female baboon before him, Chu Ye suddenly understood the whole story.

Once he figured this out, Chu Ye lost any inclination to thank the female baboon. Not only did he no longer feel grateful, but he now wanted to teach her a lesson.