Otaku Translation: Honey Badger's Streaming Life C130

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Chapter 130: Meeting a Fan?

The flashlight beam danced through the darkness, accompanied by the murmur of voices. This time, they were speaking Mandarin, and Wang Ping could understand every word.

“I’m telling you, Captain, heading into the woods at night like this is reckless. What if we run into a bear? You can’t shoot it, but you will have no other way to defend yourself…” A young man’s voice broke the silence, his words punctuated by heavy breathing.

“You never stop complaining!” The reply came from a man with a deep, slightly teasing tone—clearly the “captain” the first speaker referred to. “I’d rather wait for daylight too, but poachers don’t wait. Neither does the safety of hostages. If these guys slip away again, the chief will have my head.”

“Are the police here?” Wang Ping thought to himself, a flicker of excitement crossing his mind before he quickly pieced things together.

No wonder the guy he’d been chasing had bolted into the river like a spooked deer—it seemed he recognized them as cops. But whether that guy was part of the group the captain mentioned remained unclear. Setting aside their opposing sides, Wang Ping couldn’t help but admire the man’s quick thinking and reflexes.

Earlier, during the fight with the black bear, this clever bastard had used the moment he was flung into the air to hide underwater instead of resurfacing. Only after his accomplice was dead and the bear severely wounded did he sneak out and make his escape. And now, faced with the police, when most people would either flee back or dive deeper into the forest, this guy chose to stay submerged in the river—a decision that made perfect sense. With the cover of darkness and the natural assumption that no one would bother checking the water thoroughly, there was a good chance he might evade capture entirely.

“Too bad for you—I’ve got relatives who are otters, known as masters of the current!”

Just as the officers were about to round the bend of the riverbank, Wang Ping sprinted to where Damuge had entered the water. Without hesitation, he plunged in with a splash, swimming silently beneath the surface toward Damuge.

Submerged in the cold river, Damuge could hear nothing but the faint rush of the current. He relied solely on the occasional sweep of the flashlights across the water to track the movements of the approaching officers. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his rear end.

“Gurgle… gurgle…”

Damuge twitched involuntarily, his mouth opening instinctively, allowing a mouthful of river water to flood in. His backset nearly slipped from his grasp, carried away by the current. Believing he must have sat on some jagged rock or branch, he cautiously shifted forward a few inches and cautiously lifted his head above the surface to catch his breath.

Before he could steady himself, another jolt of pain struck his lower back. Something sharp had pierced him—not just grazing the skin but digging deep into his flesh.

“Cough… ugh…”

Choking, Damuge quickly ducked back underwater, freeing one hand to grope behind him. Meanwhile, Wang Ping marveled at how easy it was to hold his breath underwater. Despite all the activity, he felt no urge to gasp for air, as though his lungs were bottomless.

But now wasn’t the time for such musings. Wang Ping’s underwater vision was far superior to Damuge’s. Spotting the man’s hand reaching blindly toward him, he kicked hard with his hind legs, darting around to the other side of his adversary. With precision, he jabbed at the arm holding the basket.

“Splash!”

The sound drew immediate attention. Flashlights swung in unison, beams cutting through the dark water like spotlights.

“What was that?”

“Something moved in the water! Right here!”

More lights converged on the spot. At that precise moment, Wang Ping surfaced directly beneath Damuge and delivered a swift kick to the back of his head.

“Glub… cough… cough, COUGH!”

This time, Damuge was truly caught off guard. Sputtering uncontrollably, he emerged from the water, face contorted in shock.

“Who’s there? Come out!”

Shouts erupted from the shore, followed by the unmistakable click of guns being cocked. Damuge froze under the glare of the flashlights, squinting against the brightness. His expression hardened as he released the basket and turned to swim toward the opposite bank.

“Bang!”

A warning shot rang out, echoing dramatically across the night sky—far louder than any shotgun fire Wang Ping had heard before. Birds scattered from the trees in panic, their wings flapping wildly.

“Raise your hands and stand up! First warning!”

“Second warning!”

“Third warn—”

“Splash!”

Spitting angrily into the water, Damuge reluctantly stood, blood mixing with the river’s flow and staining the surface crimson. In a final act of defiance, he kicked the basket containing evidence of his crimes, sending it drifting downstream.

“Hands up high! Walk slowly to the shore!” an officer barked coldly.

Damuge hesitated, dragging his feet as much as possible. When the policeman repeated the command, he finally raised his arms and began shuffling toward the shore, moving slower than an octogenarian.

After wading two meters closer to land, he instinctively glanced back at the floating basket. To his astonishment, instead of drifting downstream, it was now moving sideways against the current—faster than he was walking. While he dawdled, the basket was practically racing to shore.

Underwater, Wang Ping cursed silently. That basket contained all the evidence of Damuge’s poaching activities. If it floated away, everything Wang Ping had worked for would be for nothing.

“What the fuck!” Damuge growled in frustration, lunging toward the basket. But before he could reach it, someone else dashed over, snatching the basket and placing it safely on the shore. Two gun barrels immediately trained on Damuge’s head.

“Is this fate coming for me? Fine, I give up,” Damuge muttered bitterly, utterly baffled by how the basket had defied physics and returned to shore.

Then, illuminated by the flashlights, he saw a small figure emerge from beneath the basket, shaking water droplets from its head. Wrapped in tattered cloth, it looked almost comical.

“Ah!”

A woman’s startled cry rang out. Wang Ping, raising his dripping head, found himself staring at the barrel of a gun.

“Uh…”

Instinctively, he raised his tiny, wet paws in surrender.

“It’s you!” Damuge spat venomously, only to be shoved to the ground and handcuffed moments later.

“Who?” someone echoed, confused.

“An animal?” another voice chimed in, equally surprised. Blinded by the flashlight glare, Wang Pin suddenly realized something.

“Oh right! I’m an animal. Why am I even raising my paws?”

He dropped his paws with a sense of relief, shaking his head. Then, he grabbed his tail and gave it a quick twist to wring out the water.

“Pfft!”

A laugh bubbled up—undoubtedly from the same woman who had gasped earlier.

Wang Ping glanced up curiously.