Chapter 56: Accusation—Please Cooperate with the Investigation

*Wuwu, a Humanlike Rat*

She spread her energy evenly across her palm, then gently cupped the wounded area, holding it there for over ten seconds before letting go. The gruesome wound had stopped bleeding, and the torn flesh had contracted, though a bit of serum still seeped out.

Looking at her blood-soaked hand, Bian Changxi asked, a little uneasy, “How do you feel?”

She could tell she hadn’t damaged any tendons or bones, but she was still worried. If the future number one powerhouse got hurt on her watch, she’d feel terribly guilty.

Gu Xu shrugged his shoulder, but instead of answering, he said, “I always thought wood-type powers were just good for healing. Didn’t expect they’d be so strong offensively too.”

Bian Changxi replied with some pride, “Of course! Otherwise, how could I have just charged into the train station like that?”

She was confident in herself.

Though she often felt dissatisfied with her abilities, she knew she was doing pretty well—especially since she’d once overdrawn her powers. She felt her abilities had grown a bit stronger and were now easier to use.

The power behind that whip strike just now—she couldn’t have managed it even yesterday.

As they talked, both of their eyes were fixed on the dark, plump lump nearby.

“What is that thing?” Gu Xu stepped forward to take a look, and Bian Changxi followed. “Careful, I think it’s a rat. Let’s make sure it’s dead first—”

Before she could finish, the black, fat thing suddenly sprang up and bolted in the opposite direction. Gu Xu’s eyes flashed coldly; with barely a movement, a small knife shot out, pinning the creature to the ground.

They hurried over and saw that it was indeed a rat—not quite as big as a washbasin, but still two or three times larger than a normal one. Its fur was black, thick, and filthy, making it hard to look at. Curled up, it looked like a trembling bowling ball.

Gu Xu’s two knives were perfectly placed—one had pierced up through its lower jaw, straight to a vital spot, and the other had pinned its right hind leg to the ground. Blood oozed from the rat, but even so, it wasn’t dead yet. Its front paws scratched at the ground, and it turned its head to whimper, its beady black eyes blinking as two tears rolled down its face. The sight was almost comical.

Bian Changxi and Gu Xu exchanged glances—they’d never seen such a humanlike rat before.

And weren’t rats supposed to squeak? What was with the “wuwu” crying?

“This rat is pretty interesting,” Gu Xu remarked, though a flame danced in his hand, ready to burn the creature to death.

The rat’s eyes brimmed with grief and indignation as it glared at Gu Xu, its face full of accusation and misery. Then it turned anxiously to Bian Changxi, waving its paws, finally squeaking in agitation as if trying to explain itself. But the movement tore its wounds open, making it whimper in pain, tears streaming down its face in utter misery.

“Don’t kill it yet!” Bian Changxi said quickly.

She suddenly remembered something: rumor had it that some people could tame mutant beasts as pets. The “Capital Editorial Department,” always quick to coin terms, had borrowed a word from old cultivation novels and called them “spirit beasts.” But when did those rumors start? Around five years after the apocalypse, and even then, spirit beasts were rare. Yunhua Base was remote, far from the capital’s Tengyang Base, where most of the real powerhouses and all the gossip gathered. Naturally, those who could tame spirit beasts were there too. In her previous life, Bian Changxi had only glimpsed a spirit beast twice, from afar.

They were truly top-tier existences.

Spirit beasts, as the name implied, were intelligent—almost humanlike. The tech fanatic Qu Yi had once said that this was the basic requirement for taming: high-level mutant beasts were all smart, but true intelligence was something else entirely.

Watching the rat’s comical display, Bian Changxi couldn’t help but have a ridiculous thought.

“Do you think it’s begging us for mercy?”

Gu Xu glanced at it—clearly, it was. But in his eyes, after the apocalypse, with zombies everywhere and even ants and cockroaches biting people, seeing a rat that was afraid of death and could cry for mercy wasn’t all that surprising. He didn’t understand why Bian Changxi found it so remarkable.

“I think this rat is unusual. It’s mutated, but it doesn’t seem like the crazed, man-eating kind. Can we not kill it, at least for now?” Bian Changxi said as she crouched down. Gu Xu grew wary. “Careful it doesn’t scratch you.”

The rat seemed to understand him, rolling its eyes at Gu Xu before pitifully pawing at Bian Changxi, whimpering softly, its wet eyes blinking, looking utterly pathetic.

Bian Changxi couldn’t help but laugh. Had she really found a treasure?

But even five years into the apocalypse, spirit beasts were incredibly rare, and rumor had it they were all extremely proud—barely one in a hundred could be tamed. The rest were either too powerful for humans to handle or would rather die than submit. And now, on just the sixth day of the apocalypse, one had appeared? And it was such an ugly, spineless, fat rat?

She asked the rat, “You want me to let you go?”

“Wuwu.”

“You understand me? If I let you go, will you hurt us?”

“Wuwuwu.”

Well, Bian Changxi couldn’t really communicate with it, but she felt the little thing understood her. She waved a finger in front of its eyes, but it didn’t lunge or bite. Instead, its gaze was soft, and it nuzzled her finger as if begging, its eyes full of sincerity.

Bian Changxi’s heart softened. Gu Xu, on the other hand, frowned—the rat’s face was just so filthy.

Seeing the rat’s wound still bleeding, Bian Changxi hesitated, then reached out to gently stroke its head. A green light seeped in, and she could feel the rat consciously absorbing her wood-type energy, directing it all to its worst injuries. Its condition stabilized a bit, and it rubbed against her palm contentedly, though its eyelids drooped as if exhausted, only to open again and gaze at her longingly.

After a few rounds of this, Bian Changxi sighed. “Let’s let it go.”

She would have liked to take it back, but who knew if it was really a spirit beast? Even if it was, what if it had bad intentions? Judging by how tough it was, it must have some skills. If it turned on them, it’d be hard to guard against.

Bian Changxi was self-aware—she wasn’t cut out to keep pets, especially not a genius like this. Besides, it seemed like the rat had come straight for her, which was suspicious. She didn’t think she was that charming.

Could it be because of her rebirth?

As Bian Changxi’s thoughts wandered, Gu Xu watched her interact with the rat and said, “If you’re not going to kill it, let’s just take it back. Better to keep an eye on it than wonder when it’ll show up again.”

Bian Changxi’s eyes lit up. With Gu Xu’s approval, things would be much easier. In her previous life, Gu Xu had a spirit beast too—a giant ice-type snow wolf. That meant he had the potential to keep pets. To tame a spirit beast, you needed not just strength, but also a certain quality that made spirit beasts like and accept you.

With Gu Xu around, there shouldn’t be any trouble if the rat tried anything, right?

Gu Xu deftly pulled out the knife, making the rat yelp in pain. It bared its teeth at him, then crawled toward Bian Changxi for comfort. Gu Xu grabbed it, lifting it by the scruff, not minding its filth or ugliness, and supported its hindquarters with his other hand. Suddenly, he paused. Bian Changxi asked, “What’s wrong?”

Yesterday, “I Want to Stay Calm” lost their cool and shouted in the comments section, basically saying I shouldn’t abandon the story and even gave me several middle fingers. I broke out in a cold sweat—when did I ever say I was going to drop the novel?

What I meant was, for those readers who do drop it, let’s part ways amicably. I’ll work hard to improve, and hopefully, we’ll meet again in my next book. But I never said I’d stop writing this one! Maybe my wording was ambiguous.

PS: Thanks also to Zhu Yiyin, Zihanxue, and all the other readers who are still enjoying and supporting this story!

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