Care Guide to Raising a Max Level Leaf in Apocalypse - 45
TheOctopus
Accompanying them are a B-rank Hunter and an A-rank Hunter, responsible for staying by the coast to provide assistance.
The ship, repaired with the replicated parts by An Guoguo, needs to be transported by the supernatural ability of the B-rank Hunter.
There are no single rooms in the ship’s cabins, so they have to share two by two.
Because there are seven people, Yixiao can only stay in a room by himself.
His facial features are very deep, and his sunken eye sockets carry a hint of a Western Region style. His whole aura is excessively sharp. He doesn’t like to talk most of the time and sometimes goes unnoticed.
Ji Jiu has been leaning against the railing, gazing longingly at the calm sea ever since he boarded the ship.
Yu Feichen walks over to join him, appreciating the glistening sea, and he says, “It’s beautiful. Actually, I’ve wanted to see the sea for a long time…”
Before he can finish his sentence, Ji Jiu’s eyes light up as he excitedly points to the sea and said, “Fish!”
A massive, ugly Angling fish suddenly leaps out of the water. For some reason, the mutated Angling fish from the deep sea are all coming up. Their four thick limbs appear more like some kind of repulsive frog with surface patterns, and the fleshy protuberance on top of their heads is typically used to emit light to lure prey. However, they have now grown shapes resembling human faces on them.
It’s like a fish hanging a human face, and that human face emits a piercing scream.
Yu Feichen silently swallowed all his praises for the sea.
Okay, it seems the sea isn’t as calm as it appears.
Ji Jiu couldn’t take his eyes off and exclaimed, “Fish.”
Yu Feihen rubbed the goosebumps on his body and says, “I won’t eat something that ugly.”
The Angling fish disappeared into the sea with a tail flick, leaving behind a string of unpleasant screams.
The next moment, a tentacle with suckers grabs the Angling fish from below and lifts it out of the water. Then, it slammed the fish hard on the surface.
Once, twice, several times, until the ugly fish is completely knocked unconscious, the owner of the tentacle dragged the Angling fish into the water, making it disappear.
The fish was gone.
Ji Jiu’s little furry head on top is hanging low. He says with a pitiful tone, “Fish…”
Si Yin Yuan just came out of the captain’s room and saw this scene. He frowned, walked over, touched Ji Jiu, and then sharply looked at Yu Feichen, “Did you bully him?”
Like an unreasonable, overprotective elder.
Yu Feichen had a question mark over his head and felt very wronged as he explained the whole situation from beginning to end.
He was just one step away from rushing into the sea to point out the spot where the huge tentacle had disappeared.
Si Yin Yuan calmly nodded, saying, “I see.”
Half an hour later, the gigantic octopus, larger than the ship itself, was brought onto the dining table.
Yu Feichen felt numb.
Si Yin Yuan wiped off some blue octopus blood that had accidentally splashed on him and then changed into a fresh set of clothes. He looked casual, as if he had just bought a palm-sized octopus and wasn’t the one who had single-handedly butchered the sea’s king in this area.
This octopus wasn’t particularly special, except for its enormous size. It relied on brute strength and tentacles powerful enough to easily strangle a whale to capture prey, making it easy to eat.
The only downside was its sheer size, so they had to sacrifice a portion of it, throwing most of it back into the sea.
When the octopus carcass fell into the water, it attracted numerous small, mutated creatures to feast on it. They greedily devoured the natural bounty.
A wisp of black mist sneakily entered the sea when no one else noticed, expanding a hundredfold and directly surrounding the entire octopus. It swallowed the small fish, shrimp, and the enormous octopus body.
Little Grass: *Burp.*
Although everyone knew his ability was “Devour,” he was happy to hide his real desires when it wasn’t necessary.
The huge octopus was prepared as sashimi and poached octopus, filling a large table. The fresh octopus was delightfully chewy.
Semi-Sugar Person hesitated for a moment and asked, “Should we call Ji Ning to eat with us?”
He was really afraid of the sunlight. During the past few days on land, he would hide inside the car completely whenever it was daytime. Now that they were on the ship, he hid in his room and didn’t come out at all.
However, as soon as it got dark, he would voluntarily come out to stand watch, fully living up to his nocturnal tendencies. He even ate meals separately from the others, never sitting with them.
Ji Jiu, who was attentively eating the octopus, perked up his small ears vigilantly and silently increased his eating speed.
Li Chao asked with surprise, “Don’t you know about his ability?”
Semi-Sugar Person was puzzled and shook his head.
Ji Ning was an eccentric member of the guild, but there were many peculiar individuals in the Hunter’s Guild. He rarely appeared in the guild during the daytime, leaving many people knowing of his existence but having no idea what his ability was.
Li Chao put down his chopsticks and explained, “It’s my mistake for not explaining clearly. His ability is somewhat unique, and it also affects his physical condition, so he can’t eat normal food.”
“So what does he eat?” Semi-Sugar Person was puzzled.
Ji Jiu, silently slowing down his eating speed, thought to himself that, well, it’s a pity he can’t eat normal food. He could help eat it for him.
Diao Xiao, who was eating quietly nearby, suddenly hoarsely said, “Blood.”
This answer made Semi-Sugar Person unable to conceal his surprise and asked, “Blood?”
Li Chao nodded, “Yes, his ability is ‘Vampire.’ This ability has changed his body, allowing him to get infinitely close to the legendary creatures of vampires. He has also become afraid of sunlight and only likes to act at night. However, his strength and regenerative abilities are infinitely close to those of the legendary vampires, so it’s a powerful ability.”
The Hunter’s Guild treats various abilities equally, and it’s said that Ji Ning initially faced obstacles during his application to the Judiciary Department, which gradually led to his reclusive personality.
Ji Jiu covered his neck, recalling the day when his owner, drunk, had been leaning over him, feeling his pulse. He stammered in fear, “My, my blood isn’t something to eat.”
Little Grass looked frightened.
The instigator, Si Yin Yuan, completely forgot about that day and coaxed, “He doesn’t drink human blood.”
Ji Jiu hurriedly took a large bite of the poached octopus to calm his nerves.
Yu Feichen secretly quipped in his mind: Who would dare to suck your blood? It’s more like that person will be enjoying Si Yin Yuan’s neck-twisting service directly.
Li Chao added, “He usually only drinks the blood of farmed animals and mutated creatures.”
Moreover, he only needs a little, so there’s a clear distinction from true vampires. He can’t bring himself to drink human blood directly, nor is he as easily tempted as those portrayed in movies.
Ji Jiu, curious, remembered the portrayal of vampires in TV shows and asked, “Does he also fear garlic and crosses?”
He briefly imagined the scene where someone unexpectedly took out garlic during a battle, and Ji Ning collapsed as a result.
Li Chao shook his head, saying, “Other than fearing sunlight, he doesn’t have any other weaknesses.”
Semi-Sugar Person, more thoughtful, mused, “So can he consume the blood of this octopus?”
The octopus had blood; it was just blue in color, which looked somewhat bizarre.
Surprisingly, Li Chao and Semi-Sugar Person considered it seriously. “That seems reasonable.”
So, they contemplated sending a bowl of it to him.
Yu Feichen thought to himself, “Is there anyone normal left on this ship?”
Perhaps due to the presence of the octopus carcass, some unusual fish-like mutated creatures ventured over. Si Yin Yuan had caught quite a few little things to alleviate Ji Jiu’s boredom.
There were octagonal starfish, some peculiar-looking small seashells, and several mutated sea urchins with long, spiky changes.
While playing with these little things, they all ended up in Ji Jiu’s stomach.
When questioned, Ji Jiu didn’t feel guilty at all. He replied, “I released them.”
He released them right into his stomach.
Dinner consisted of octopus as well, something quite rare to find in the post-apocalyptic world. Everyone enjoyed it to the fullest, cooking it on a barbecue grill with cumin and pepper. It felt like a seaside vacation while watching the slowly setting sun.
When the moon came out, Ji Ning left his room. He was responsible for ensuring that the ship stayed on course during the night.
Losing direction in the vast ocean could pose a life-threatening situation for everyone.
Si Yin Yuan and he exchanged brief words before heading back to their room.
The bunk beds in the shared room were something Ji Jiu saw for the first time. Unable to contain his curiosity, he climbed to the top bunk without waiting for his owner and cheerfully exclaimed, “There are two beds!”
However, Si Yin Yuan couldn’t share the same enthusiasm. It was Ji Jiu who initially insisted on sleeping together, but now he had entirely adjusted to sleeping with a warm and soft Ji Jiu. He momentarily considered going up to pull him down and ask why he wasn’t obedient.
But then, he remembered what Li Chao had said.
【As a guardian, you shouldn’t be too restrictive with the one under your care. Giving each other space is good for both parties; otherwise, it may lead to the child’s rebellious phase.】
So, he hesitated and stopped in his tracks, clenched and released his fists, and lay stiffly on the bottom bunk like a stone.
Ji Jiu, who was sleeping on the top bunk, was completely unaware of his guardian’s turmoil. He spent some time up there, then his eyelids started fighting each other.
Despite not needing sleep in his true form as Little Grass, he got tired on time in his human form. So, on the bottom bunk, a completely neglected Chief Si suddenly received a sleepy Ji Jiu.
Without hesitation, he hugged him and tucked him into the bed.
Ji Jiu nestled in Si Yin Yuan’s arms without realizing anything, rubbing against his chest in contentment before peacefully drifting into slumber.
Si Yin Yuan’s once-shadowed eyes quickly dispersed, and he couldn’t help but hoarsely say, “You got yourself into this.”
He didn’t realize how strong his possessiveness had become, far beyond the boundaries of just a “guardian.”
…
Ji Ning, with a vacant expression, stood up and walked from the control room to the deck. The moonlight highlighted his emptiness even more.
His canine teeth started to elongate, indicating his transition into an attack mode.
As if subconsciously engaged in a fierce battle with something, his hands made upward movements, yet there seemed to be a mysterious force preventing him from raising his hands, resulting in a frozen moment.
Finally, his canine teeth retracted, he ceased raising his hands, and his gaze became utterly vacant, like a lifeless marionette being manipulated as he walked into the first room. That room belonged to him and the semi-sugar person, but only the latter was inside, sound asleep.
The ship moved forward slowly.
The moonlight gently filtered through the partially open door into the room.
Expressionless, Ji Ning stood beside the bed, ominously gazing at his sleeping companion.