POLAR BEAR ARC CHAPTER 12

Compared to other polar bears, Otis and Qiao Qixi were the luckiest of the lucky ones.

First, during their two months at the rescue station, they had ingested enough food to become strong and plump.

Second, humans chose a suitable release location for them, with abundant food resources and less harsh competition.

However, as temperatures rose daily and glaciers gradually melted from south to north, polar bears had to venture out to chase the remaining ice layers to gain more fat energy.

Once the ice layers on the sea surface dwindled, their adventure truly began.

In the north, the ice had melted, leaving only some small islands. Summer was barren and desolate, with no food for survival.

At that time, polar bears would swim south to the coast. Despite stopping on some islands along the way, the distance between the two areas was daunting.

They would have to swim two to three hundred kilometers at the shortest, and up to five hundred kilometers at the longest.

Many years ago, the ice on the Arctic Ocean's surface didn't completely melt until late July, which was beneficial, as it meant the polar bears had ample time to store energy for the summer.

But with global temperatures rising, this year, the time left for them had shortened by a full month.

At this moment, this was the last piece of ice.

Qiao Qixi heard the sounds of ice breaking and icebergs collapsing every day, looking wistfully at the drifting chunks of ice. He felt melancholic because only on the ice could they hunt seals.

Fortunately, their mission for the year was almost complete. Once they finished eating this seal, they could migrate south.

However, the polar bear lingering on the shore wasn't so lucky. It didn't look as strong as Otis, and its fur was yellowing, indicating it was over ten years old.

Qiao Qixi worried about that polar bear, wondering if it had stored enough fat.

But what could he do? He could only offer moral support since he still needed Otis to feed him, let alone having extra food to help other polar bears.

As Qiao Qixi feared, the scent of food indeed attracted a mother polar bear with cubs.

It might have been the family of three they encountered in the coniferous forest. The cubs looked only about two months old. It was hard to imagine that in half a month, they would have to cross the sea with their mother to find food in the south.

If the cubs were lucky enough to survive the first year, they would follow their mother back and forth twice, remembering this journey to pass it on to their offspring or make it alone.

Earlier, Qiao Qixi felt compassion for the older polar bear, and now he pitied the mother with cubs.

He thought, if only he were a butcher, he could help them.

Despite the food's temptation, the mother polar bear knew she couldn't snatch food from a male polar bear. That was wishful thinking.

So, the clever mother soon took her cubs out of Qiao Qixi's sight, heading elsewhere to find food.

As the family of three left, the familiar sound of ice cracking echoed from the nearby ice sheet.

It meant that another part of the ice-covered sea had decreased.

Qiao Qixi felt the entire floe shaking, indicating they were on the brink of melting.

What to do now?

Qiao Qixi looked at Otis, his innocent, round eyes asking: "Buddy, should we run?"

It wasn't too far to return to shore now; they still had time.

Otis lay sideways on the floe, merely stretching his neck to look at the polar bear moving further away. He had no other reaction.

His calm gaze seemed to say: "It's just a spontaneous trip, nothing to be scared of."

Seeing his partner so calm, Qiao Qixi thought, "If the ice drifts, so do you."

After another two minutes, they were even further from the shore, seemingly their last chance to decide.

Qiao Qixi thought: "Are we really not going?"

It seemed so. Otis had his plans and didn't care about the drifting ice. He even continued sleeping, looking like a bear on a big mission.

But then again, his actions meant they had only one option—when the ice melted, they had to start their southern migration immediately.

Following Otis for food, Qiao Qixi had no concept of southern migration, unaware of the 200 to 300-kilometer swimming marathon ahead of him.

The optimistic young bear retrieved his little yellow bucket to prevent it from falling into the sea.

By mid-June, this soon-to-melt Arctic ice layer was under the scrutiny of many polar researchers.

High-quality drones conducted aerial photography over the Arctic 24/7.

By chance, a drone captured an amusing scene.

On a vast sea, a ten-meter-wide floe carried two polar bears and a half-eaten seal. And, notably, a yellow plastic bucket.

People found this image amusing for no specific reason, just a random sense of humor!

"These two polar bears are quite white and plump?" a researcher remarked, "Weren't we saying this summer was particularly tough for polar bears? The previous photos showed them all dirty and thin."

"Yeah, they are pretty white and plump," said a young voice, "These are the most good-looking polar bears I've seen this year. Show this to the professor."

The professor saw the photo, pushed his glasses up, and laughed, "Who photoshopped this picture to fool me?"

The young man said, "It's not photoshopped. It's real."

The professor was stunned, pointing to the larger bear: "This is a male polar bear. Judging by its weight, it's at least six or seven hundred kilograms."

The young man nodded, "I can tell."

"Tell my foot," the professor scolded, pointing to the smaller bear, "This is an immature cub, about two years old. It shouldn't be living independently from its mother..."

"It looks too big to be just two years old," the young man interjected.

"Anyway, it's still a cub," the professor said. "It shouldn't be with an adult male polar bear. Have you ever seen a male polar bear with a cub?"

That's why he suspected the photo was doctored.

"True," the young man scratched his head, "But professor, this photo is definitely not edited. We captured it with the drone. If you're interested, we can continue to track these two polar bears."

"Hmm, they're drifting on the sea, probably preparing to migrate south," the professor speculated.

"Most likely," the young man agreed.

After a serious discussion, the young man posted the picture on a professional forum, sparking many comments.

"Haha, these two polar bears are impressive, traveling with food."

"Nothing matters more than bringing food."

"Wow! They seem to know how to live well, with their white and plump figures, haha."

"What's with the yellow plastic bucket?"

"Marine debris, thought-provoking."

"The image is humorous but also thought-provoking."

"Life is tough for polar bears, living in the Arctic with human garbage."

Little did humans know, that yellow bucket was Qiao Qixi's private property.

He found it, so it was his.

Qiao Qixi never imagined that he would suddenly debut, with his photos spreading among polar researchers.

Moreover, he was involuntarily part of a real bear reality show.

As an extraordinary cub, he wanted to stay low-key, but his talent didn't allow it.

When people see a lone polar bear on a floe, gazing helplessly at the vast ocean, they feel lonely, desolate, and melancholic.

But in another scenario, seeing two white, plump polar bears cuddling on a solid floe, basking in the sun, and eating seal meat...

Melancholy? Desolation?

Not at all.

They had each other, food, and were white and plump.

Some might say, some people were worse off than these bears.

Why?

According to the latest drone footage, the adult polar bear and the cub were indeed companions, not predator and prey.

Initially, people were worried the cub might be the adult's reserve food.

But they realized it wasn't.

The adult polar bear treated the cub well.

After drifting on the ice for over ten hours, Qiao Qixi woke from a hazy sleep, finding sleeping on a drifting ice floe quite comfortable.

Awake and feeling hungry, Qiao Qixi nudged Otis lying beside him. He wondered if Otis was hungry.

Hello, want to share some seal?

Otis squinted his eyes, licked the young bear squirming in his arms, then pressed his head on him, continuing to sleep.

Qiao Qixi was impressed. Not hungry, but what about the cub?

Determined to eat, the young bear wriggled out from the heavy pressure, crawled to the seal, and started eating.

Otis glanced at Qiao Qixi, resting his head on his paws, continuing to sleep. He wasn't very sleepy but was conserving energy, reducing unnecessary consumption. They had a tough journey ahead, and he needed to stay in top condition.

Polar bears in a state of partial hibernation could go without eating, drinking, or excreting.

Otis was in this state.

Qiao Qixi didn't know this. He ate until he was 70% full, leaving the rest for Otis.

Satisfied, the young bear licked his mouth, looked around, and was alarmed.

Surrounded by water.

Oh no, Qiao Qixi started to feel his legs cramp.

Oh no, when the ice melts, can they reach the shore?

Qiao Qixi quickly measured the floe's size and was even more alarmed. It seemed to have halved since

they started.

This meant that in at most ten hours, the floe would be completely melted.

Yes, the floe would shrink to the point where it couldn't bear their weight, even if it didn't completely melt.

Qiao Qixi dragged the seal to the center, ensuring the essential asset's safety, along with his yellow bucket.

Otis! Wake up!

Qiao Qixi shouted internally, hurry up and eat the seal before it falls into the sea.

The drone footage showed a round, busy little polar bear on the floe.

He was seen dragging food, grabbing his bucket, and running to the adult bear... cuddling?

Qiao Qixi: Tsk! I was giving a warning!

Revised ✔