Chapter 26.2

Major Chang hurriedly reassured her, “Of course, there’s no need to take any risks. You and the animals just need to stay in the car and help guide us. There’s no need for them to charge into battle. As long as we’re efficient, Operation Mountain Clearing will wrap up quickly.”

Hearing this, Mu Ling breathed a sigh of relief. She smiled and nodded, “No problem then. Shall we head out now?”

Major Chang replied, “The sooner, the better.”

Mu Ling glanced at the time, “Can you give me 15 minutes? I need to feed them breakfast and change their bandages.”

Major Chang agreed, “That’s fine.”

Without wasting time, Mu Ling dashed toward the door, shouting, “Qilin! Lightning! Let’s go!”

In the next moment, the two ferocious beasts, who had been quietly sulking, sprang into action, charging toward Mu Ling with powerful leaps.

After they disappeared from sight, Major Chang turned to Colonel Song and Xiang Bie, commenting, “Director Mu has a clear and sharp mind.”

Colonel Song nodded, “She does.”

Xiang Bie, after a brief moment of hesitation, glanced in the direction Mu Ling had left, then followed her to offer a hand.

Ten minutes later, Mu Ling reappeared with Qilin and Lightning in tow.

They boarded the specialized car prepared by the military. Given the unstable mental state of the two beasts, the car was equipped with a medical kit, including tranquilizers and emergency medications.

As the car started moving, the three other beast tamer captains, who were in the same car as Major Chang, grew increasingly uneasy. “Should we… turn on the surveillance system?”

Mu Ling’s car had a camera system installed, as the retired war beasts posed a significant risk. No one could guarantee they’d behave the entire time. If something triggered them and they attacked Mu Ling, the team would be able to intervene in time.

After a brief hesitation, Major Chang activated the surveillance system.

All four men crowded around the small monitor, watching intently as one woman and two beasts appeared on screen.

The inside of the car was spacious, but Qilin and Lightning seemed uncomfortable. They sniffed the air constantly, scraping the doors with their claws.

Mu Ling quickly intervened, “Hey, come here.”

Lightning, the mama’s boy of the two, immediately obeyed her command. It leaped onto the seat beside Mu Ling, pressing its face close to hers.

Mu Ling stroked its head, and the black panther immediately calmed, folding its ears back and resting its body on her lap.

She rubbed its ears and called out, “Qilin.”

Qilin hesitated at the door for a few seconds, then slowly approached, growling softly.

Mu Ling leaned down to kiss its forehead and asked, “Are you uncomfortable?”

Qilin licked its lips, its eyes scanning the interior of the car nervously.

Mu Ling hugged its neck and reassured it, “You might be picking up on the scent of other war beasts. This is a military car that Major Chang arranged for us, but it should’ve been cleaned thoroughly. I can smell the cleaning products. Can you still smell something?”

Qilin took another step forward, then buried its head under Mu Ling’s chin, sniffing her scent until it finally settled down.

Mu Ling held it close, kissed its face, and patted its side, “Sit down now.”

The tiger obediently sat down, its wet nose pressed against her skin, refusing to move.

Mu Ling let it be. She continued patiently soothing both beasts, whispering to them now and then. Eventually, Lightning dozed off with its eyes half-closed, and Qilin’s tense muscles relaxed. Mu Ling knew they had finally calmed down.

Meanwhile, in the other car, Major Chang and the other three men were glued to the screen. One of them muttered, “Damn it, why does this feel oddly sweet?”

The first beast tamer captain grumbled, “My Joy never lets me hold her like that.”

Another chimed in, “If Sky doesn’t smack me with his tail, it’s a good day.”

The third sighed, “Ever since my Mighty got a mate, he barely listens to me anymore. All he does is follow her around.”

Feeling increasingly bitter, the three commanders turned to Major Chang and said, “Turn it off. This is boring.”

Major Chang was speechless.

Their military car was an all-terrain amphibious model, capable of traveling by land, sea, and air. Once they left the city, the car switched to hover mode, speeding up.

By 8:30 a.m., they had reached the western entrance of the Bi Ke Forest.

Soldiers were stationed at the perimeter, guarding the area. As Mu Ling got out of the car, she saw war beasts of various species being unloaded from other military cars. These beasts, clad in imposing armor, were being led by well-trained soldiers. Among them was a camel, its two humps comically protected by helmets.

Mu Ling couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight, and she watched, “They all look so impressive.”

Suddenly, something wet touched her cheek. She turned to see Lightning leaning out of the car, nudging her with its nose.

Mu Ling chuckled awkwardly, then hugged its head and kissed it, “Not as impressive as you and Qilin. You’re both way bigger than them. You’re obviously the most impressive ones here!”

She wasn’t exaggerating. Though there were tigers and leopards among the war beasts, none matched Qilin’s ferocity or Lightning’s sharpness. To Mu Ling’s eyes, her two beasts were undeniably the most striking of the bunch.

Just then, Qilin leaped down from the car, followed by Lightning. The two beasts flanked Mu Ling, one on each side.

At first, Mu Ling thought they were just looking for affection, but then she noticed their eyes were fixed on the forest, one watching the left, the other the right. Their keen eyes darkened, and their claws slowly extended from their paws.

Major Chang was approaching to speak to Mu Ling when the three beast tamer captains quickly stopped him, signaling him to stay still.

When Major Chang saw the intense focus in Qilin and Lightning’s eyes, he asked, “Are there other mutant beasts nearby?”

The first team’s captain replied gravely, “It seems so. This confirms that there are quite a few mutant beasts in the mountains, and they cover a wide area. We need to move quickly.”

Major Chang nodded, “Bring their car around.”

Soon, Mu Ling, Qilin, and Lightning boarded a specialized military off-road car. The rough terrain made for a bumpy ride, reminding Mu Ling of her first terrifying day at the Bi Ke Zoo in a similar car. Compared to these treacherous mountain paths, the zoo’s roads now seemed like a smooth highway.

At a fork in the road, Lightning suddenly let out a fierce growl toward the right.

Mu Ling stroked its head and instructed the driver, “Head right.”

The driver complied, and the convoy followed. Shortly after, the A-class war beasts in the trailing cars began to stir restlessly.

Looking back, Mu Ling saw several A-class and B-class war beasts leap from their cars and race into the forest, with soldiers in hot pursuit. Despite the challenging terrain, both beasts and soldiers moved with practiced ease, testament to their rigorous mountain training.

Mu Ling observed Qilin and Lightning, who remained steadfast in their leading position. Unlike the other beasts, they stayed focused on their task, their sharp eyes scanning the forest while their ears and noses tracked the movements of mutant beasts in the area.

From 9:00 to 10:30 a.m., the A-class and B-class war beasts behind them repeatedly left and returned, each time with soldiers carrying bags of captured mutant beasts for research. These specimens were sent down the mountain while the assault team pressed deeper into the forest.

At 11:00 a.m., Qilin suddenly let out an earth-shattering roar, louder than any sound it had ever made before.

Mu Ling barely had time to cover her ears when Lightning suddenly leaped through the window, vanishing into the forest.

“Lightning!” she cried out, but before she could react further, Qilin broke open the door and followed in the same direction.

“Qilin!”

Mu Ling was frantic. Seeing this, Major Chang quickly jumped into her car and ordered the driver, “Follow them!”

Meanwhile, back at the Bi Ke Zoo…

Qingjiao, as usual, had taken the wolf cub to drink water by the mountain stream.

Not far behind them, Gus, who had been following them all the way, was panting with its tongue out, lying on a rock and watching them from a distance.

The wolf cub still had the bandages from before wrapped around it. Because the medication hadn’t been changed, the bandages were quite dirty.

However, judging from the cub’s movements, it was no longer particularly unsteady when walking, indicating that the wound had healed considerably.

“Splash!” The wolf cub suddenly tumbled head-first into the stream.

The gray wolf with scarlet beast eyes immediately grabbed its head in its mouth and dragged it out.

After getting ashore, the cub stood with its four legs splayed out, quickly shaking the water from its fur.

Qingjiao lowered its head to lick the water from the cub’s head.

As it was licking, Qingjiao suddenly raised its head, its deep eyes looking towards a certain direction in the distance.

The cub, feeling less uncomfortable, wanted to go drink water again, but its mother suddenly grabbed its head again, dragging it back.

Qingjiao dragged the cub all the way into the forest.

Gus in the distance immediately stood up. Watching the gray wolf approach, it tentatively wagged its tail, stretching its neck towards Qingjiao’s direction.

Qingjiao stopped in front of Gus with the cub in its mouth. Gus was extremely excited and was about to approach, but in the next second, a small wolf was thrown in front of its paws.

Gus looked down at the cub, then at Qingjiao, and gently licked the cub’s head fur.

The cub finally managed to stand steadily and wobbled towards its mother, but Qingjiao pushed it back with its nose, then turned and ran towards the distance.

After running several meters, the dark snow wolf looked back at the cub once more, then ran away again.

Its speed was as swift as the wind. In no time, only the swaying grass and leaves remained in the dense thicket, its figure having vanished without a trace, destination unknown…