Chapter 61.2

Mu Ling hurried forward. “Director Tian.”

Director Tian studied her solemnly before letting out a deep sigh. “What you did today was far too dangerous.”

Clearly, he had already learned about Mu Ling’s actions from the police.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Mu Ling gestured at her clothes. “I wore a bulletproof vest before getting in the car, so it wasn’t that dangerous.”

She quickly added, “Oh right, I need to return the vest to its owner.”

After removing and returning the vest, she asked, “Director Tian, how is Feifan doing?”

The director’s assistant responded, “It’s been transported back to the zoo. Feifan has a gunshot wound to the leg. The police have taken the bullet as evidence, and we’ve compensated those injured by its claws. However, the truck driver who died was undocumented. The police suspect something’s not right and are investigating further.”

Mu Ling frowned. In the interstellar era, population registration was meticulously maintained, especially on a major planet like Four Bays Star. Even poachers would have used forged documents. For someone to be completely undocumented likely meant one thing:

Rebels..

Mu Ling’s expression darkened.

What she had realized, Director Tian undoubtedly understood as well. Looking weary, he said, “Enough. Go back to the hotel and rest. We were fortunate to have you today. As for Feifan, the sedation was heavy—it won’t wake for about fifteen hours. Come see it tomorrow.”

Mu Ling touched the small creature in her arms and explained, “Lingren has a condition where it metabolizes sedatives too quickly, so its sedative collar needs double the normal dosage. It’s good to let Feifan rest longer. But I can’t return to the hotel yet—I still need to visit Monty Zoo.”

Director Ge must be worried sick waiting for her.

Director Tian checked the time. “Let the driver take you.”

Mu Ling smiled and bowed sincerely. “Director Tian, thank you so much. You’re as kind as my grandfather.”

Director Tian paused, giving her another deep look before smiling wryly. “I don’t have such a troublemaking granddaughter. Off you go.”

It was already six in the evening when Mu Ling arrived at Monty Zoo. As expected, Director Ge was still waiting. Upon seeing her, he immediately said, “I saw your monkey calls trending! Are you alright after that Purple Lightning Baboon incident?”

Mu Ling laughed and shook her head. “I’m fine. How’s Ji Xiang? Still not eating?”

Director Ge sighed. “No. Following your advice, we returned it to its enclosure, but it hasn’t relaxed at all. It’s been pacing for hours now. Looks like it might collapse again.”

Mu Ling considered this for a moment. “This behavior, like its refusal to sleep for several nights, is a type of stereotypic behavior – a psychological condition. Dr. John must have mentioned this to you?”

Director Ge nodded. “He did. Usually when big cats show such repetitive behavior, it’s because their living space is too confined, leading to hormonal imbalances and suppressed instincts. But we’ve given it an enormous enclosure—big enough for a hundred leopards, with an entire hillside!”

Mu Ling pressed her lips together. “But it’s still an enclosure.”

Director Ge fell silent.

Not wanting to discourage him further, Mu Ling suggested, “Let’s take a look. Maybe I can coax it to eat something.”

Director Ge nodded and opened the car door, asking casually, “How will you coax it? By imitating leopard sounds?”

Mu Ling: “…”

She didn’t imitate animal sounds for everyone she met!

The leopard enclosure was indeed massive, equipped with numerous activity facilities to ensure adequate exercise. The living environment was excellent, with flowers, trees, and artificial hills simulating a natural mountain forest setting.

Despite all this, Mu Ling immediately spotted Ji Xiang moving sluggishly in the evening light, its steps weary and forlorn.

Sensing human presence, the leopard retreated deeper into the woods without looking back.

Director Ge pulled up the surveillance feed on his light-brain, showing Mu Ling the footage. Even in the woods, Ji Xiang continued its aimless pacing, occasionally stumbling before rising to continue its endless walk.

“Could I have a protective suit?” Mu Ling asked.

Director Ge quickly had staff bring one over.

After donning the suit, Mu Ling stopped Director Ge from following. “It showed a preference for me before. Better if I go alone.”

Inside the enclosure, it didn’t take long to find Ji Xiang. The leopard turned to look at her this time, but seemed not to recognize her. It sniffed the air without reaction.

“Ji Xiang, remember me? You helped me catch a mutant beast before.”

The leopard lowered its body slightly and growled, assuming an attacking posture—though its weakness made the threat seem feeble.

Mu Ling crouched down and beckoned. “I remember how amazing you were then. Truly incredible. Without you, that mutant beast would have escaped.”

The words “amazing” and “incredible” seemed to strike a chord. The leopard processed this with its sluggish mind, confusion evident in its eyes.

Seizing the moment, Mu Ling positioned Lingren, the white fox in her arms, to face the leopard. “This is Lingren. It’s also an incredibly amazing war beast. Right, Lingren?”

She kissed Lingren’s forehead and scratched under its chin. The white fox immediately purred contentedly, nuzzling against her face.

Ji Xiang watched their interaction, its confusion deepening.

Mu Ling continued showing affection to Lingren right in front of the leopard—stroking, kissing, and burying her face in its fur. The leopard tilted its head slightly, brown eyes blinking.

Lingren clearly enjoyed the attention, wrapping all four paws around Mu Ling’s head and thoughtfully licking her hair, making soft sounds: “Ying~ Ying~”

The leopard watched, memories stirring. Someone had treated it this way before, speaking in that same gentle tone…

Uncertain, it took one cautious step forward, then another, stopping three steps from Mu Ling. It stretched its neck to smell her.

Mu Ling extended one finger. The leopard sniffed it carefully, then glanced at the white fox still nuzzling Mu Ling’s chin. Hesitantly, it copied the behavior, turning its head with ears laid back to gently rub its forehead against her finger.

Encouraged, Mu Ling scratched the leopard’s tawny nose. Finding it pleasant, Ji Xiang looked at Lingren again, saw it licking Mu Ling’s chin, and mimicked the action with a tentative lick to her finger.

Mu Ling opened her palm and scratched the leopard’s neck. Finally, Ji Xiang sat down, lying tiredly on the ground. Watching Lingren snuggled against Mu Ling’s face, the leopard hesitated before rolling over to expose its spotted belly, giving her an innocent look.

Ten minutes later, Director Ge stood smoking while watching the surveillance feed, his expression complex.

The leopard’s keeper exclaimed suddenly, “It’s eating! Ji Xiang’s eating the freeze-dried food she’s offering!”

Director Ge mused, “Because it saw Lingren eating and wanted to compete. Perhaps food tastes better when shared? Should we try housing Ji Xiang with others?”

The keeper quickly protested, “No! We tried that once—it almost ended in disaster!”

“What about with other war beasts? I heard from Director Harry that Lingren is usually very possessive. Yesterday when Director Mu petted a red fox, Lingren threw a fit, but now it seems fine with Ji Xiang. Perhaps war beasts are naturally more tolerant of each other?”

The keeper shook his head. “But even at Changshan Zoo, the free-ranging war beasts keep to themselves. Forced grouping never ends well.”

Director Ge raised an eyebrow. “What about Bi Ke Zoo? Their animal dormitory houses multiple war beasts together successfully.”

The keeper was speechless. “That’s… that’s Bi Ke Zoo. There’s only one Bi Ke Zoo in the entire Federation!”

Director Ge watched the screen silently before saying, “Let’s observe a while longer. If nothing else works, we have one last option.”

“What option?”

“Send Ji Xiang to study at Bi Ke Zoo. See if Director Mu would take it temporarily until it recovers.”

The keeper’s eyes lit up. “Does that mean I could go to Bi Ke Zoo too?”

Director Ge: “…”

Why are you so excited?

You’ll end up working for Bi Ke Zoo while I still pay your salary.

Plus, I’ll be covering Ji Xiang’s boarding, food, and medical expenses.

What a mess.

Meanwhile, as Mu Ling continued coaxing Ji Xiang at Monty Zoo, events were unfolding elsewhere.

Near an old factory in the southern district of Four Bays Star, Luo’en had just returned. The moment he entered the monitored area, he sensed something was wrong.

The air was thick with the metallic scent of blood.

He immediately drew his pistol and carefully pushed open the door.

The sight before him made him freeze.

Blood pooled at the entrance, and two bodies lay covered with white sheets near the door.

Frowning, Luo’en bent down and lifted one of the sheets.

Beneath it, he recognized the faces of two researchers.

“You’re back.” A weary female voice came from inside.

Luo’en looked up to see Fei Ni, a lab technician. Her arm was in a sling. Pointing at the bodies, he demanded, “What happened?”

Fei Ni hesitated before responding, “The Purple Lightning Baboon… escaped.”

Luo’en’s pupils contracted as he pushed past her and rushed inside.

The scene within was chaos—broken medical equipment littered the floor, and researchers in white coats were tending to each other’s wounds.

When they saw Luo’en, everyone fell silent, standing awkwardly in place.

The irritable researcher who had been responsible for feeding the baboon had already shrunk into a corner.

Luo’en stormed to the empty holding cell at the back, confirming the baboon’s absence. He marched back out, fury in his voice. “What happened?”

No one spoke until Fei Ni, head lowered, finally said quietly, “The baboon somehow got out and attacked us all. We’re researchers, not fighters—we couldn’t handle it with guns. We don’t know how it—”

“Stop with the useless details!” Luo’en snapped through gritted teeth. “Where did it go? Why didn’t anyone chase it?”

“We did chase it. Zhou took the car after it, but…”

“But what?”

Fei Ni’s hands trembled as she opened her light-brain to show him the trending headlines:

「Purple Lightning Baboon Kills Truck Driver in Broad Daylight」

「Traffic Chaos Caused by Purple Lightning Baboon」

「Police Successfully Capture Purple Lightning Baboon」

As Luo’en scrolled through the news, his fists clenched tighter, his breathing becoming ragged.

Then, his eyes caught a familiar figure in one of the reports—a young woman standing beyond the police cordon, holding a backpack with a snow-white fox peeking out.

Luo’en’s gaze fixed on the image. He immediately scrolled for more information.

After reading everything, his face turned cold as ice, each word dripping with venom:

“Again. It’s. Her.”

Bi Ke Zoo.

Mu Ling.

Again, it’s her.

*

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