"Тiаnеn, dоn't go!" Xiао Аi sаid аnxiously.
Zhаng Тianen рaused mid-stер, turning bасk with а рuzzled eхpression. "We're almоst dуing of thirst, аnd yоu dоn't wаnt mе to lооk fоr wаtеr?"
At thаt moment, Zheming аnd Хiaо Ai were thinking thе same thing—thе water wаs with him. Whаt if hе nеvеr rеturnеd? Wouldn't theу bе left wаiting fоr dеath?
"If wе wait fоr уou to соme bаck with water, wе'll probablу аlrеadу be dead frоm thirst," Zhеming sаid, taking а dеер brеаth. Thе drу, hot аir rushing into his сhest felt likе sharр blаdеs scrарing his thrоаt, each brеath drawing blood. "Hоw about leаving half yоur watеr with us?"
Хiaо Ai also wanted water and, no longer caring about anything else, nodded vigorously.
Zhang Tianen stared straight at them. Perhaps when he first set out, he truly intended to find water and bring it back for them to drink. But now, he suddenly didn’t want to sacrifice so much for them anymore.
"Wait for me for one day," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument. Whoever held the water was king.
Zheming and Xiao Ai exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with hesitation and unease.
The chill in Zhang Tianen’s heart contrasted sharply with the heat on his skin. The image of camel bones flashed before his eyes—head southwest, find water and return, or if not, take the remaining half bottle of water and walk out of the desert alone!
His mind made up, he strode forward without looking back.
When survival becomes the only question, all bonds of friendship and honor must step aside.
Xiao Ai covered her mouth, unable to squeeze out tears, trembling uncontrollably in fear. She didn’t want to die! She wanted to go home! She didn’t want to become a dried-up corpse!!
Zheming mustered all his strength and lunged forward, grabbing him. "If you want us to wait for you, leave the water behind!"
"You’re insane!" Zhang Tianen shook him off. "You drank all your water yourselves! Why should I give you mine?"
Zheming didn’t care. The feverish blood in his body surged to his brain in an instant. He didn’t know if this was his final burst of energy, but at that moment, his strength was astonishing. He threw himself at Zhang Tianen’s backpack, tearing at it to snatch the water bottle.
"Xiao Ai! If you don’t want to die, grab the water! He won’t come back! He’ll never come back!!" he shouted, his eyes bloodshot as if they might bleed at any moment.
Xiao Ai was terrified, too afraid to step forward. She sensed the worst was about to happen, but she was powerless, only wailing helplessly for them to stop fighting.
Zheming tore open the backpack’s zipper like a wild beast. Even though he took several punches to his hands and face and was scratched by Zhang Tianen, nothing could quell his desperate thirst for water.
Thirst—the Chinese language was so profound. Zheming, parched and burning, finally understood the immense wisdom of their ancestors when they created words. Nothing tormented a person more than physiological needs, and among them, thirst was the most unbearable. It felt like flames scorching his entire body, the dryness making him feel as if he were in hell.
With a thump, Zheming wrestled the water bottle free. The struggle between the two men intensified, as if they were fighting to the death.
The two men fought while crying, though no tears flowed—only hoarse, desperate roars, like deer pierced by a lion’s fangs. It was a struggle, a refusal to yield, and pure rage.
If they could do it all over again, Zheming wouldn’t have drunk all his water so soon.
If they could do it all over again, Zhang Tianen wouldn’t have breathed a word of his plan to cross the desert to anyone.
"Give it to me!!"
"No—"
"Hand it over!""Get away! I'll kill you!!"
Xiao Ai watched in terror as Zheming suddenly threw the snatched water bottle toward her. She instinctively caught it and clutched it tightly to her chest.
The two men's brawl paused as they glared at each other, panting heavily.
A fierce gust of wind swept through, sand pelting everyone's faces, leaving behind a dense, stinging numbness.
It was only at this moment that Zhang Tianen realized—this wasn't a journey of three people united in purpose, but a couple's honeymoon and his own solitary, one-sided pilgrimage. They were a team, and he was merely an outsider.
The already precarious triangle shattered in an instant.
Zhang Tianen, his face cold, lunged toward Xiao Ai. He was determined to seize back the hope of survival, and no one could stop him!
Unsurprisingly, Zheming used his body to block the way, and the two men tangled into a fight once more. Zhang Tianen's physical strength and endurance had always been superior to Zheming's, and after a brief struggle, he pinned Zheming firmly to the ground, choking his neck, his eyes blazing with terrifying fury.
Zheming, unable to breathe, couldn't even utter a plea for mercy. His legs kicked wildly, his hands feebly tugging at Zhang Tianen's sleeves, like a victim in every crime drama before their demise.
"Stop! Tianen!!" Xiao Ai screamed.
"Get away!!" Zhang Tianen roared.
Xiao Ai trembled like a sieve, her mind blank. Finally, she twisted open the cap of the mineral water bottle and pointed it at Zhang Tianen. "If you don't let him go, I'll pour out the water!!"
Zheming, on the verge of being strangled, felt Zhang Tianen's strength instantly vanish.
All notions of morality, justice, and law paled in comparison to half a bottle of water.
Zheming coughed violently, as if trying to expel his lungs along with his windpipe. The coughing left him oxygen-deprived, dizzy, and disoriented, the world seeming to spin around him.
Zhang Tianen, utterly exhausted, still crawled toward Xiao Ai on his hands and knees, frightening her into another scream. Seeing this, Zheming ignored everything else and clung to Zhang Tianen's legs. The two men dragged and kicked each other, inching closer and closer to Xiao Ai in a desperate struggle.
Zhang Tianen tried his best to shake off Zheming and lunged at Xiao Ai, while Zheming clung tightly to his legs once more. Zhang Tianen lost his balance and crashed into Xiao Ai, and with a loud "thud," all three tumbled to the ground in a heap.
When they regained their senses, they saw the half-empty water bottle had been knocked over, its contents now absorbed by the parched sand of many years.
The five search and rescue teams entering the desert sent messages, routes, and locations to the command center twice daily. Each time a message arrived, the hearts of the three college students' parents leaped into their throats, almost suffocating them.
"Diao Zhuo from Beidou Rescue says the three are highly likely to be traversing in a straight line from northwest to southeast, with an estimated crossing time of eight to nine days. If no other accidents occur, they should be near the great sand mountain today," said Officer Liu, the temporary rescue commander. "The 56 liters of water they brought can last eight days, and their food can last ten, so it's still possible they are continuing their trek. Other rescue teams have been notified and are searching toward the southeast. We should have news of them soon. However, they've been in the desert for seven days now, and their water must be running low. The next day or two will be critical for the rescue."
"Please, you must save my daughter!" Liu Chengru pleaded, crying and clasping her hands together. She had lost all reason, her spirit on the verge of collapse. "She's never done any trekking before, and that's a desert! A desert! She won't survive it!"Officer Liu and Old Meng worked together to calm the agitated Liu Chengru, while everyone else waited anxiously for new updates.
In recent days, the incident had continued to escalate online. While netizens followed the news, there were also dissenting voices. Some argued that national rescue resources should not be wasted on reckless hiking expeditions. Although others pointed out that two of the three hikers were completely inexperienced and were bound to encounter danger, many still believed they should be left to their own fate, as letting them face the consequences would serve as a deterrent to others.
Diao Zhuo and his team were deep in the desert, their phones without signal, unaware of the heated discussions outside. Whether rescuing reckless hikers was worth it was a question no one dwelled on. If three vibrant lives could be saved, they would still have long roads ahead to grow and learn. But if they perished here, three families would likely be plunged into lifelong, inconsolable grief.
Today, they entered an area of undulating sand dunes.
Old Wang led the way, but even so, it was common for vehicles to descend into a slope and get stuck in a "chicken nest," with half the body buried in sand. When the lead vehicle attempted to tow them out, it often slipped. Perhaps this was the main reason why seasoned desert drivers like Old Wang were reluctant to take this shortest route.
The three vehicles snaked their way along the sand dunes, their two-meter-high flagpoles on the roofs allowing them to keep track of each other's positions. Few travelers took this route, and there was even less litter left behind. Moreover, anything that looked relatively new was almost certainly left by the three college students.
Bayunye held a GPS device in one hand and an empty plastic water bottle in the other. "—The cap is still attached to the plastic ring, but the entire bottle is empty. It must have been accidentally spilled."
Brother Long shook his head. "Sometimes, a single bottle of water can mean the difference between life and death!"
Hippo asked curiously, "You seem like someone who values life a lot. So why were you so reckless over a decade ago? I've heard that for some extremely dangerous hiking routes, later adventurers still refer to your guides."
"You said it yourself—that was over a decade ago." Brother Long pinched the fat on his belly. "Who doesn’t do something crazy when they’re young?"
"Do you feel lucky to have survived so many close calls?"
Brother Long grinned, his double chin becoming even more pronounced, making it hard to imagine his once-fearless self. "Hippo, don’t take this the wrong way, but I believe it’s fate that any of us have made it this far. Heaven knows how many times it’s pulled us back from the brink. So, people shouldn’t take the wrong path or court death. Otherwise, one careless move and you’ll slide straight into hell like you’re on a water slide."
Hippo sensed there was more to his words and grew somber. He cleared his throat and nodded in agreement.
After saying this, Brother Long felt a sense of melancholy himself. He advised others not to court death or take the wrong path, but was he himself on the wrong path? He wasn’t sure. Whenever he thought of the past and his years of stubborn persistence, a dull, lingering ache still lingered in his heart.
Old Wang reminded them, "We only have enough fuel for two more days. If we can’t guarantee we’ll make it back within that time, we’ll have to go to Alxa Right Banner to refuel before continuing."Diao Zhuo stood beside a thousand-year-old dead poplar tree that still stood tall, peering through binoculars. His broad shoulders and upright frame seemed to complement the poplar, sketching a resolute and rugged image of a desert traveler.
This desolate sea of sand also possessed the sharp edges and forms of rocky peaks. The distant sand dunes appeared pale blue, gently merging with the sky. Dark clouds loomed in the far sky, hinting at the possibility of rain. However, with Badanjilin’s annual precipitation less than 40 millimeters, if it did rain, it would be their good fortune.
Suddenly, the view before him blurred as an enlarged face abruptly intruded. Diao Zhuo sighed inwardly, lowering the binoculars to find Bayunye deliberately blocking the lens.
“What have those microscope-like eyes of yours discovered?” she asked, hands clasped behind her back, tilting her head.
Diao Zhuo looked at her. “A female demon.”
“Is the female demon pretty?”
“…Not ugly.”
Bayunye gave a thumbs-up. “Eyes of fire and gold.”
“You flatter me, Second Brother,” Diao Zhuo replied with a slight bow.
Bayunye waved a fist, pretending to strike.
Diao Zhuo stopped teasing her. “The sandstorm has covered all tracks, and the shapes of the dunes have changed. There are some winding, snake-like marks on the distant sand slopes—could be snakes or lizards.”
Bayunye turned and asked, “Old Wang, what animals are in the heart of the desert?”
“Snakes, lizards, wild camels, dung beetles, and some Hai Zi have grass with maggots as big as fingers,” he answered confidently. “A few years ago, some said they encountered the death worm, but we’ve never seen it.”
Brother Long seemed to have heard of it too. “…The Mongolian desert death worm?”
Old Wang nodded vigorously, playing up his role as a driver and guide. He spread his arms wide. “This long, as thick as a wrist, like a snake. Some say it’s reddish-brown, others flesh-colored. With a gaping mouth full of hundreds of teeth, it can spit venom and even discharge electricity—enough to kill a camel.”
Brother Long smiled faintly, calm and composed. In his seasoned travels, he must have heard many such fantastical tales.
“Sounds like an alien hybrid of a cobra and an electric eel,” Bayunye said skeptically. “The desert death worm sounds like something adults use to scare children.”
Brother Long patted his pocket. “Whatever worm it is, if it meets my secret insect repellent, it’s dead.”
Diao Zhuo offered a more scientific perspective. “Even if such a creature exists, it would likely live in areas with abundant water. The desert’s annual rainfall couldn’t sustain a large, fleshy worm.”
“If we run into one, we could catch a couple and sell them to guests from Guangdong for soup. We’d make a fortune,” Hippo began to fantasize.
Brother Long smacked the back of his head. “Stop dreaming and get in the car.”
Not long after they drove off, the sky darkened completely, and it actually began to rain. However, desert rain differed from autumn rain elsewhere—it was like atomized water, or perhaps the raindrops evaporated rapidly in the dry air as they fell, becoming nearly invisible near the ground.
The rain lasted nearly an hour, leaving the ground only slightly damp. Strangely, small pits occasionally appeared on the sand dunes, only to be filled with fresh sand moments later—quiet and eerie.
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