Chapter 20: Another Successful Cuteness Attempt

Three hunters, dressed like humans, carefully approached. They gripped their weapons tightly, observing their surroundings.

The man in gray clothing furrowed his brow. “It seems the mutant beast ran off. I suspect it must have noticed us.”

“Then we should hurry and chase it. Maybe it hasn’t gone far,” said another person.

The man in gray noticed the tree that had been split in half and analyzed, “Then let’s split up and chase. If we find it, signal with flares immediately.”

The other two quickly nodded in agreement. To capture the mutant beast as quickly as possible, the three didn’t waste any more words, immediately splitting up to pursue, completely unaware of the large rock in the corner.

Ji Wuxiu let out a sigh of relief and instinctively glanced at the black panther.

The panther’s vertical pupils held a coldness, but most notably, there was no madness.

Since its mutation, it was no longer the same black panther that blindly sought revenge without assessing the dangers or risks.

The black panther flicked its tail and let out a low growl.

“Roar—” Ugly creature, let’s go.

Ji Wuxiu was taken aback, but he didn’t say anything else, nodding in agreement.

As the days passed, Ji Wuxiu quickly forgot about that day, until today when the black panther went hunting. However, by the afternoon, it still hadn’t returned.

Ji Wuxiu became restless, feeling that something was off.

Suddenly, a black fur ball squeezed through the tree hole, its fur seemed singed, and it let out a sharp, distressed squeak.

“Chirp!” The black creature is in trouble!

Ji Wuxiu panicked and quickly pulled the black fur ball over to ask what happened.

The black fur ball rolled around nervously, and after a few words, managed to explain the situation.

It turned out that the black panther went hunting today, planning to catch a rabbit to bring back. The black fur ball naturally followed along.

However, on the way, they encountered three humans. The weapons the humans were holding shot fire, capturing the black panther. The black fur ball, small in size and naturally gifted at escaping, hurriedly ran back to report the news.

Ji Wuxiu’s mind went blank. He suddenly remembered the three humans he had encountered a few days ago.

This was a big problem.

Ji Wuxiu hurriedly asked the black fur ball to lead the way. They walked through the forest for a while.

“Chirp!” The black fur ball hopped a few times, signaling that the destination was not far.

Ji Wuxiu told the black fur ball to stay hidden there and not move while he quietly crept forward to assess the situation.

Not far away, the black panther’s shiny fur was burnt over a large part, but it seemed like the injuries weren’t too severe. It was still roaring fiercely, full of life.

Ji Wuxiu felt relieved but couldn’t help but feel shocked.

The three humans had surrounded the black panther tightly, constantly throwing fire-spitting weapons at it.

Even awakened mutant beasts still instinctively feared fire.

The black panther dared not face them head-on, only relying on its agility to desperately dodge, occasionally using its lightning abilities to strike at the humans.

Unfortunately, the humans were prepared and quickly used their own abilities to block the attacks.

For a moment, the three humans and the black panther were at a standstill, unable to do anything to each other.

Ji Wuxiu, seeing this, grew anxious and conflicted.

He assessed the combat abilities of the three humans and felt that he wouldn’t be able to take them on head-to-head.

Seeing its attacks repeatedly fail, the panther grew increasingly angry, roaring louder. Its claws would occasionally lash out in surprise attacks, as if it wanted to rip the humans apart.

After several rounds, the situation remained at a deadlock, but the tip of the panther’s tail had been burned off by accident.

The panther roared in greater fury: “Aww!”

—Damn humans, my fur— Aww!

Ji Wuxiu twitched his mouth, nearly choking on his breath.

Anger made the panther even more enraged, and its powers became stronger with each passing moment. Soon, the three humans also started to show some injuries.

Ji Wuxiu’s eyes lit up, and he quickly used the skill 【The Sound Wave Is So Strong, If You Don’t Sway, You’ll Fall To The Ground】 on the three humans.

In the blink of an eye, the three humans immediately became dizzy, the world spinning around them. They clutched their heads in agony, falling to the ground in a disheveled heap.

A few seconds later, the three could no longer bear the sensation and began to vomit uncontrollably.

Ji Wuxiu finally popped his head out and waved at the black panther.

The black panther ran over, quickly flicked its tail, and nervously shouted: “Aww!”

— Ugly creature, let’s run!

Just as Ji Wuxiu was about to nod, the system, which had been silent for a while, suddenly prompted: 【Ding! It is recommended that the host stay and use your looks to earn points.】

Ji Wuxiu paused, staring at the three humans, feeling a bit tempted.

【Ding! If danger arises, you can also use skills to escape.】

Ji Wuxiu hesitated for only a second before deciding to follow the system’s suggestion. He quickly pulled the black panther away, hiding in the shadows, and told the black panther to stay hidden and not show itself.

The black panther stared at Ji Wuxiu, howling anxiously.

—What about you, ugly creature?

Ji Wuxiu patted the black panther’s head and made a few soothing sounds.

—I’ll stay here.

The panther suddenly widened its eyes and gave Ji Wuxiu a furious roar: “Aww! Aww!”

—Ugly creature, are you crazy?

Ji Wuxiu felt moved, but he couldn’t really leave. After all, it was rare to encounter humans, and he needed to make the most of the opportunity to earn points.

The clueless black panther shook its head desperately.

The ugly creature is so weak, staying here would get it killed.

Ji Wuxiu glared at the black panther, slapped its head, and shouted, “Aww!”

—You need to listen to me, understand? Otherwise, no more rabbits to eat in the future!

The black panther, feeling wronged, withdrew its head and weakly growled, “Aww—”

Only then did Ji Wuxiu nod in satisfaction, patting the black panther’s head and calling out, “Awoo, woo?”

—From now on, you have to listen to the boss, understand?

The black panther tilted its head, looking confused, “Aww?”

—What’s a boss? Is it tasty?

Ji Wuxiu slapped it again, roaring, “Awoo! Woo?”

—Stop asking about food, the boss means you have to listen to me from now on, eat my food, and be a good little follower, understand?

The black panther processed this, flicked its tail, and then focused on something else.

“Aww, aww, aww— Aww?”

—If I listen, will I get meat?

Ji Wuxiu twitched his mouth, and under the black panther’s eager gaze, he firmly nodded, “Mm!”

The black panther immediately walked away, then paused, as if remembering something, and turned its head to shout, “Aww!”

—Boss, I’m leaving!

Ji Wuxiu waved his paw, looking exasperated.

—

Meanwhile, over there.

The five-second cooldown had already passed, and the three humans finally regained their senses. Their faces were filled with fear and alertness as they cautiously surveyed the surroundings. Only when they confirmed there was nothing unusual did they relax.

“What just happened?” The man in gray clothes forcefully suppressed his shock, still lingering with unease.

Just thinking about the dizziness they had just felt made him want to throw up.

“Not good, it looks like the panther ran away,” one of them suddenly exclaimed.

The three of them quickly got up, choosing not to search for the panther, afraid of experiencing that feeling again.

“It might have been the panther’s doing!” one of them suddenly guessed.

The other two agreed, feeling it made sense.

Once they identified the culprit, the fear in their hearts quickly dissipated by half.

“Damn it, we have to catch it!” The man in gray said with a fierce expression.

Ji Wuxiu felt a bit relieved that he had sent the black panther away upon hearing this.

【Ding! Host, please don’t be careless! I believe in you!】

Ji Wuxiu snapped back to his senses, nodded, and took a deep breath.

He was determined to perform well from now on and work hard to earn “cuteness points.”

—

The three of them briefly discussed and decided to expand their search area nearby to catch that annoying panther.

At this moment… there seemed to be some rustling coming from the thick bushes in the corner, as if something was inside.

The three immediately became alert, carefully approached, and prepared for an attack.

However, when they parted the bushes, their expressions froze.

What the heck is this thing?!

In the grass, a round, chubby black-and-white creature jumped in surprise and suddenly looked up.

The three stared in disbelief: how could something look this strange?

The black-and-white creature had dark circles around its eyes, giving the impression that it was very sad, with a pensive expression. Its entire body screamed “round and cute.”

The three were shocked: What kind of creature is this?!

The chubby ball of fur silently curled itself up, wearing a sorrowful expression, and let out a faint sound.

“Awoo~”

The three of them heard the soft, almost coquettish sound, and involuntarily shivered, their minds going blank.

【Ding! Your natural cuteness has made these three humans’ hearts flutter, leaving them speechless and thinking, “How can there be such a strangely adorable creature in this world?” You’ve earned +9 cuteness points.】