Chapter 35.1

Mu Ling had been watching for quite a while, observing Moonlight finish an entire bowl of fish meat.

However, despite finishing its meal, the voice from above kept urging, “Moonlight, eat your food.”

Hearing the command, Moonlight continued to lick the bowl. When it was completely clean and there was nothing left to lick, it reluctantly gripped the edge of the bowl with its mouth, lifted its head, and showed the empty bowl to the “sister” in the sky.

Mu Ling was speechless.

Realizing what was happening, Mu Ling quickly changed the command from “eat” to a children’s audiobook.

Only then did Moonlight drop the bowl and wander back to its corner.

Half an hour later, Xiang Bie came to call Mu Ling for dinner. As soon as he entered, he heard her practicing her speech.

Her voice was soft, with a sweet, coaxing tone:

“Moonlight, don’t move, okay? You can’t attack people, okay?”

“Moonlight, don’t scratch yourself, or your skin will tear, okay?”

“Moonlight, we’re going to get a shot now. Close your eyes, and you won’t be scared, okay?”

Xiang Bie was taken aback.

“Knock, knock.” He gently tapped on the door.

Startled, Mu Ling immediately turned her head. Seeing Xiang Bie, her face flushed red with embarrassment. “Uh, I was just… with Moonlight…”

Mu Ling: “…”

“Time for dinner,” Xiang Bie said plainly.

Mu Ling, still embarrassed, had no choice but to follow him to the dining room.

Tonight, it was just the two of them for dinner. Zhao Fang had gone to protect the workers reinforcing the protective fence and wouldn’t return until after 10 p.m. Wei Li had taken Lin Xuan and Li Yan up the mountain to feed the animals earlier in the afternoon, and by the time they finished their rounds, it would likely be midnight.

So, for now, it was just Xiang Bie and Mu Ling at the dinner table.

“Ahem.” Mu Ling served herself some vegetables, sneaking a glance at Xiang Bie before muttering, “Um, I noticed that Moonlight seems to respond better to exaggerated voices, so I’ve been practicing. I thought if I could soothe him, we wouldn’t need to use tranquilizers every time we treat him…”

Xiang Bie glanced at her without much reaction. “Mm.”

Mu Ling took a small bite of rice and asked, “Does it sound strange, the way I talk?”

“No,” Xiang Bie replied, still focused on his soup. “It’s not much different from how you usually sound.”

Mu Ling stared at him, the words “emotionally dense” flashing through her mind.

You call that “not much different”? You wouldn’t be one of those guys who can’t tell the difference between heavy makeup and a bare face, would you?

But on second thought, his insensitivity was comforting. At least Mu Ling didn’t feel as awkward now.

Relaxed, she focused on her meal.

Xiang Bie glanced at her again, then returned to his dinner as well.

After they finished eating, Mu Ling went back to the veterinary station and found that, unsurprisingly, the animals in the ward were full of energy—likely from sleeping too much during the day.

The little wolf, in particular, was causing trouble, climbing onto its mother’s head.

Mu Ling, at her wit’s end, decided to let them all out for some exercise, hoping to tire them out.

So, when Xiang Bie came out of the kitchen after washing the dishes, he saw Mu Ling playing ball with the little wolf on the open field, while Qingjiao watched nearby. Qilin and Lightning had gone toward the mountain path, likely heading to the woods for a break.

Xiang Bie paused, took out his light brain, and snapped a photo.

After sending the picture to a group chat, he closed the chat tab and went to the supermarket to restock the shelves with the afternoon delivery.

Meanwhile, the group chat he’d just posted in was buzzing with activity.

Colonel Song: “Is Xiang Bie taking them for a walk? I don’t see Pimi.”

Colonel Song: “@Xiang Bie, did Pimi eat and take its medicine properly today? Can you take a photo of Pimi?”

Colonel Val: “I can only see Qilin’s back. Can we see the front?”

Colonel Val: “@Xiang Bie, Xiang Bie, Xiang Bie.”

Lieutenant Hermann: “@Xiang Bie, I don’t see Lightning. By the way, that video from the other day of Lightning taking a bath was incredible! I was really surprised, I could hardly imagine Lightning having such a docile and calm side. Thanks to Director Mu for taking care of Lightning. Can we see a photo of Lightning?”

Lieutenant Hermann: “@Xiang Bie, sorry, I didn’t see clearly just now. The black mass next to Qilin is actually Lightning. I thought it was Qilin’s shadow.”

Colonel Val: “@Lieutenant Hermann, your Lightning is too dark.”

Lieutenant Hermann: “Yes, and with the sky being dark too, it’s even harder to see clearly. Xiang Bie, could you take an indoor photo of Lightning? As long as we can see its eyes and nose, it’s fine. Anytime is okay, thank you very much.”

Colonel Yun Li: “What kind of group is this?”

Colonel Yun Li: “How did I end up here?”

Colonel Yun Li: “I just got pulled in five days ago while I was on the front lines; my light brain was sealed off then. I never joined this group.”

Colonel Val: “The group owner has you listed as Colonel Yun Li. Are you the Colonel Yun Li from the Horda Star Cloud Family Army?”

Colonel Yun Li: “Yes, that’s me. Are you Colonel James Val?”

Colonel Val: “Yes, if you look at the picture above, you’ll understand why you were added to this group.”

A few seconds passed.

Colonel Yun Li: “That’s Qingjiao.”

Colonel Yun Li: “I see Qingjiao.”

Lieutenant Hermann: “@Colonel Yun Li, did you just unlock your light brain today? Haven’t you seen the StarNet recently?”

Colonel Yun Li: “Yes, I’m in the hospital getting bullets removed. I only got my light brain an hour ago. I was originally contacting colleagues when this group suddenly popped up.”

Colonel Song: “@Colonel Yun Li, if you have internet access, you can go on StarNet and search for keywords like “Bi Ke Zoo”, “Qingjiao”, “wolf cub”. After reading, you’ll understand. This group was created by Xiang Bie, a keeper at Bi Ke Zoo. Because our war beasts all have some physical issues to varying degrees, Xiang Bie added us to a group. He occasionally shares photos of our war beasts, mainly to ask about their previous living habits and such. It’s convenient for communication.”

Colonel Yun Li: “Alright, I’ll go take a look now.”

Half an hour later, Colonel Yun Li appeared again.

Colonel Yun Li: …

Colonel Yun Li: “Qingjiao actually had a baby… and it even took a bath…”

After Xiang Bie finished stocking the newly arrived goods, he finally opened his light brain to take another look.

There were many mentions of him, which he quickly scanned through. Most were requests for more photos.

Xiang Bie looked outside the supermarket. By now, Qilin and Lightning had returned from the mountain. Lightning was playing rough with Qingjiao, while Qilin seemed very interested in the wolf cub’s rubber duck. It was holding down the duck with its large paw, and no matter how the wolf cub tried to pull, it couldn’t get it out.

The wolf cub was already very afraid of Qilin. Unable to retrieve its rubber duck and not daring to bark, it ran back dejectedly and burrowed into Mu Ling’s arms.

Xiang Bie watched as Mu Ling laughed heartily, lifting the wolf cub up and kissing its head.

He opened the camera and captured this moment.

Then, after a pause, Xiang Bie turned the lens to other areas and took a few more photos before heading to the veterinary station.

In the group chat, Colonel Yun Li was still in disbelief, while Colonel Song, Colonel Val, and Lieutenant Hermann, being more experienced, were kindly helping this female colonel sort out her confusion.

Just then…

“Ding dong.”

An alert sound rang out, and the system displayed a message: General Milo has joined the group.

Colonel Song: “I guessed we’d be inviting this person soon.”

Lieutenant Hermann: “@Colonel Song, do you know this general?”

Colonel Song: “I don’t know him personally, but this morning when I was still at Bi Ke Zoo, I checked Moonlight’s previous owner. His name is Jon Milo, a general.”

At this moment, General Milo, who had just discovered he’d been forcibly added to an unfamiliar group and was about to leave, saw the words “Moonlight” and inquired:

General Milo: “Moonlight?”

Colonel Song: “@General Milo, S-class retired war beast, the silver snow bear Moonlight, was your previous war beast, right?”

General Milo: “Yes.”

Colonel Song: “That’s right then.”

Colonel Song was about to continue explaining.

At this time, bam bam bam bam, seven or eight photos were sent into the group in quick succession.

The members immediately stopped talking and hurried to open the photos.

Colonel Val saw Qilin, bandaged up and bullying the little wolf.

Colonel Song saw Pimi wearing a pink and blue diaper, licking its paws.

Colonel Yun Li saw Qingjiao playfully wrestling with Lightning.

Lieutenant Hermann saw Lightning, belly up, being groomed by Qingjiao who was pinning it down.

General Milo’s pupils constricted as he saw the white bear he hadn’t seen in nearly six months.

In a sterile cage lined with clean sheets, the white bear sat in the corner, scratching its foot and gazing upward.

Because it was looking up, its features were clearly visible – small black eyes, a pointed snout. Its expression wasn’t fierce, nor were its movements agitated. Despite its well-known inability to tolerate confinement, it now sat in the cage, appearing somewhat relaxed.

Although not completely at ease – it was still huddled in a corner – even this level of calmness was beyond General Milo’s imagination.

Was this really Moonlight? It looked identical, but how could this possibly be Moonlight?

He remembered that Moonlight, when confined, would always resort to self-harm.

After Major General Milo sent Moonlight to Bi Ke Zoo, he rarely heard any updates. Every time he contacted the staff there, he received the same regretful response: “Sorry, we can’t find Moonlight.”

“We’re sorry, it’s too wary of humans.”

“We’ve tried our best, but it avoids people.”

General Milo had comforted himself, thinking, “No news is good news.” Moonlight’s temperament was stubborn. The fact that he was still alive is a miracle—he shouldn’t expect more than that!

But today, he’d actually seen Moonlight again.

And this time, it was a Moonlight that was entirely different from the one he remembered six months ago.

Suddenly—the group owner also spoke up:

Xiang Bie: “@General Milo, has Moonlight ever shown sensitivity to sounds in the past?”

Major General Milo kept looking at the photo, hesitating to download it, until he finally noticed the question. He quickly replied.

General Milo: “Sounds? Moonlight isn’t particularly sensitive to sounds; it has an especially strong sense of smell. Before it was injured, it would rely on smell to detect the presence of mutant beasts.”

Xiang Bie: “Did it ever interact with women? Did it ever show preference for a certain female voice?”

General Milo: “Probably not. The team was mostly male.”

Xiang Bie: “And in its younger years, in the Beast Academy, was there a female instructor who looked after it?”

General Milo: “As far as I know, its instructor was male. Even as a cub, large war beasts are heavy, and few female instructors can manage them.”

Xiang Bie: “Understood.”

After that, Xiang Bie fell silent, as if he had gotten all the information he needed.

The other beast owners in the group saved pictures of their own animals. When they looked back, Xiang Bie was already gone, which wasn’t surprising. Colonel Yun Li, however, hadn’t had the chance to speak to him yet and felt slightly disappointed. She watched the videos online, realizing that the change in her beast, Qingjiao, had come after a new director had taken charge at the Zoo. She really wanted to speak with this new director.

Today was just a brief opportunity for her to use her light brain. Once she was discharged, she would be heading back to the front lines. She didn’t know when she’d have the chance to meet Director Mu.

Meanwhile, after questioning General Milo, Xiang Bie put down the light-brain and sat on the veterinary station’s sofa, turning to glance at the ward area once more.