23: Chapter 23 Breaking News! Dark Race!

"Woof, woof, woof!"

The bark of the Qinglan Hunting Dog suddenly rose in the livestock shed, which was filled with the sound of rain and the smell of blood. It held its head high, staring fixedly at the direction outside the shed that was plunged into darkness by the rainstorm, baring its teeth, with a continuous warning sound rolling in its throat.

Zhang Zhi stood up, the gravity on his face almost dripping with water.

He cast a quick glance in the direction the Qinglan Hunting Dog was alerting him to, then quickly withdrew his gaze and landed it on Lin Chen, his voice lowered extremely low, but his speaking speed was fast:

"Judging from the scene, it is indeed a slaughter. The methods are cruel, the wounds are messy but deep, and it is definitely not for predation. The pet beast that did this is extremely ferocious and highly aggressive."

While speaking, he pointed the flashlight beam toward the corner of the livestock shed.

There were a few shallow footprints there.

The footprints were not large, about the size of an adult's palm, with a peculiar shape; the front seemed to have forked toe marks, deeply embedded in the mud, showing that its owner had amazing explosive power.

Zhang Zhi frowned tightly: "Looking at the footprints, the size shouldn't be particularly large, but it is very lean and fierce, with sharp claws."

Lin Chen squatted down, leaned in to look at those few footprints, and nodded thoughtfully.

"Zhuifeng." Zhang Zhi clapped his hands, temporarily drawing the attention of the Qinglan Hunting Dog back, "Did you smell something? Can you track it?"

The Qinglan Hunting Dog barked twice shortly towards the direction outside the shed, then immediately ran back to Zhang Zhi's feet, rubbed its head against his leg, and made a whimpering sound in its throat.

It did indeed smell something unusual, but the rain was too heavy, washing away the scent too severely, making it almost impossible to connect.

Therefore, it only had a rough, vague direction.

Zhang Zhi sighed, his expression slightly solemn: "Damn it, this crappy rain..."

He quickly walked to Old Liu, who was comforting Uncle Wang, and whispered a brief report of the findings at the scene and his own judgment.

Old Liu listened quietly, his wrinkled face expressionless, only those slightly murky eyes shining with thoughtful light in the dimness.

He first looked up at the rainstorm outside the shed, which showed no signs of stopping; the loud noise of the rain hitting the asbestos tiles almost drowned out the sound of human voices.

Then, his gaze swept over Uncle Wang, who was pale and trembling with excitement and fear, and then passed over Lin Chen, who was standing quietly to the side.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Old Liu made a decision:

"I have a general idea of the situation. Old Wang is frightened, and the scene also needs to be protected. In that case, Xiao Zhang, you take the Qinglan Hunting Dog and follow that scent, try to explore in that direction."

"Be careful, focus on reconnaissance. If you find anything unusual, do not act without authorization; report it immediately."

"I will stay here and continue to understand the situation in detail with Old Wang, and by the way, see if I can find any other clues. Xiao Lin." He looked at Lin Chen, "You stay too, and give me a hand."

Zhang Zhi's expression turned serious, and he nodded immediately: "Understood, Brother Liu!"

He didn't delay any longer, pulled his raincoat hood down hard, and rushed into the white rain curtain outside the door with the Qinglan Hunting Dog.

The figures of the man and the dog were quickly swallowed by the dense curtain of rain.

Lin Chen watched them leave, a trace of worry flashing through his heart.

The rain was so heavy, the situation in the mountains was unclear, and the opponent was extremely dangerous.

"Don't worry."

Old Liu seemed to see through Lin Chen's thoughts and smiled slightly: "His strength ranks high in the entire bureau, and it's estimated that he will be able to challenge for Advanced Beast Tamer in a few years."

"This situation is nothing."

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen's heart settled slightly.

Indeed, he was just an Apprentice Beastmaster, lacking experience in such extreme weather and facing unknown dangers; following rashly would most likely be a hindrance.

And as a half-step Advanced Beast Tamer expert, it was safer for Zhang Zhi to track alone.

The three returned to the house.

The wet and cold clothes sticking to their bodies were very uncomfortable, but no one cared about that at the moment.

Old Liu pulled Uncle Wang to sit down by the square table, poured him a cup of hot water, and began to ask for more detailed information, such as whether he had heard any unusual sounds recently, whether he had seen any suspicious shadows appearing nearby, whether other livestock at home had any abnormal behavior, and so on.

The tone was peaceful, like chatting, slowly guiding Uncle Wang to recall and narrate.

Lin Chen did not sit down; he leaned against the door, his gaze through the crack of the door, still watching the courtyard shrouded in the rainstorm and the direction of the livestock shed in the distance, his thoughts gradually drifting away.

What kind of wild pet beast would commit such a malicious act?

A pure outburst of ferocity?

Or was it provoked by something?

He suddenly remembered the few words his father occasionally mentioned.

The relationship between the Donghuang Federation and the surrounding pet beast nations had never been very harmonious, and border frictions and small-scale conflicts occurred from time to time.

And the Duanshan Mountains to the north of Qinglan City had experienced a large-scale wild pet beast riot many years ago, which impacted the city's defense line and caused significant casualties and losses.

Over the years, relying on border patrol teams and defensive fortifications, a superficial calm had barely been maintained.

Could it be that something had changed deep in the mountains?

Could this kind of cruel attack incident be a precursor to the resumption of large-scale conflicts?

These thoughts cast an even deeper shadow over Lin Chen's heart.

"Ouch! Look at my memory!"

Uncle Wang suddenly slapped his thigh, interrupting Old Liu's questioning.

He glanced at the old wall clock, stood up quickly, his face showing annoyance: "I was so busy talking about this, I almost forgot the important thing. It's time, I have to go deliver food."

"Deliver food?" Old Liu was puzzled.

"Yes."

While explaining, Uncle Wang walked quickly to the simple kitchen and took out a coarse grain rice bowl filled with minced meat and vegetable soup from the side of the stove:

"A few days ago, I don't know where a Songsong Dog ran from, it was slightly injured. I saw it was pitiful, so I helped it build a doghouse and let it stay near my house for the time being."

"This little guy looks weak, but it's very spiritual."

"These past few nights, it would bark incessantly at the slightest disturbance, helping me chase away two wild pet beasts that wanted to steal chickens!"

"If it hadn't been barking urgently at the livestock pen this morning, I wouldn't have discovered the incident so early..."

Songsong Dog?

Lin Chen knew this kind of pet beast.

The Songsong Dog is common on the edge of forests, usually has a relatively gentle temperament, and is the first choice for many wealthy families to watch over their houses and courtyards.

But its combat power is generally not high, and its racial rank is only Low-level Extraordinary.

"I see."

Old Liu nodded and also stood up: "Then we will go with you to take a look."

The three put on raincoats, Uncle Wang walked in front carrying the food bowl, Old Liu and Lin Chen were slightly behind on the left and right, stepping into the rainstorm again.

The flashlight beam pierced the curtain of rain, but visibility was still very low, only able to illuminate a range of a few meters ahead.

They went around to the back of the main house and walked toward an old shed where miscellaneous items were piled up.

The shed appeared precarious in the rainstorm, and an extremely simple little nest was built next to it with a few wooden boards and plastic sheets.

But before they got close, a burst of intense fighting sounds quickly came, mixed with the roars of pet beasts.

"Not good!"

Old Liu's expression changed, he gave a low shout and quickened his pace.

Lin Chen's thoughts flashed like lightning, a dazzling summoning light lit up in the rainy night, and the figure of the Flame Claw Beast appeared instantly.

The cold rainwater poured onto its heat-radiating fur, stirring up large swaths of white water vapor, making a hissing sound.

"Gagu..."

The Flame Claw Beast shook its head hard in discomfort, trying to shake off the rainwater on its body.

No fire-type pet beast would like this kind of weather.

"Old Wang, don't go over there yet, wait here."

Old Liu grabbed Uncle Wang, who was subconsciously wanting to rush forward, blocked him behind him, and then gave a wink to Lin Chen. The two and the pet beast lightened their steps, lowered their figures, and cautiously crept toward the shed.

The flashlight beam trembled, trying hard to penetrate the heavy curtains of rain.

The edge of the light beam quickly captured two figures that were fiercely fighting, biting, and pouncing.

One of them was smaller, less than half a meter long, covered all over with fluffy short fur in off-white and light brown, looking somewhat like a puppy, with a pair of alert ears standing on top of its head, and a circle of brown fur like a scarf around its neck.

This was exactly the Songsong Dog Uncle Wang mentioned.

However, at this moment, this Songsong Dog, which should have been gentle, displayed astonishing ferocity.

Its movements were as fast as lightning, nimbly dodging and moving on the muddy ground, constantly making low roars in its mouth, sometimes pouncing, sometimes tearing with its claws that carried a faint light.

"Aooo!"

But there were already several scratch marks on its body, its white fur stained with mud and spots of blood, and its movements were slightly sluggish due to injuries and physical exhaustion.

And the other figure fighting it made Lin Chen's pupils shrink suddenly.

That was a creature one size larger than the Songsong Dog, shaped like a weasel, and Lin Chen instantly recognized its identity.

Race Name: Gale Weasel

Attribute: Wind

Racial Rank: Mid-level Extraordinary

This is a wind-type pet beast known for its speed, quick-witted nature, and usually does not actively attack humans.

But this Gale Weasel in front was very wrong.

The fur that should have been gray was now faintly showing a layer of dark, dull black light, as if from dried filthy blood, under the illumination of the flashlight.

The most heart-stopping thing was its eyes—crimson as blood, filled with madness and violence, with not a trace of reason to be seen.

Its movements were so fast that they almost left afterimages, bringing up bursts of fishy wind, with chaotic and sharp wind-type energy wrapped around its claws and teeth; every pounce was vicious and tricky, clawing deep grooves into the ground and the wooden boards of the shed nearby.

[Ding!]

[Task Content: Puppy Beast has been discovered, please acquire it as soon as possible.]

[Task Reward: EXP x10, double exp card x1, Puppy Roar Move Learning Machine x1]

[Ding!]

[The shadow of the Dark Species crisis has surfaced, and the curtain shrouding the world is slowly being pulled back.]

[Task Content: Kill the first Dark Species.]

[Task Reward: EXP x15, double exp card x2, badge of light]