Care Guide to Raising a Max Level Leaf in Apocalypse - 48
Ate it
Si Yin Yuan gently touched his head and chose not to reveal what the little ostrich had done in his embrace.
Ji Jiu made a soft “um” sound and suddenly raised his head, looking alertly at the sea outside. A sharp, bluish-gray claw reached out and struck the black mist, creating a massive wave. The owner of the song had just been injured by the uncontrollable black mist and couldn’t hide anymore.
However, the black mist, which was intangible, was strong enough to resist even the powerful strike that could tear through the brain of a mutant elephant, so it quickly reformed, mocking them by surrounding the sea monster.
Li Chao was surprised and said, “Is that the mutant?”
Yu Feichen was even more shocked and said, “This… isn’t that a sea monster!?”
As the black mist dispersed, the true form of the mutant was revealed. It had humanoid hands, and its body was covered in fur. You could faintly see its icy-cold, sharp teeth crowded together in its mouth. Its huge tail was bluish-gray, emitting a deathly aura.
Upon closer inspection, its hands were not quite human; they had an extra joint and sharp nails that were about five centimeters long.
“How can there be sea monsters in the world?” Ji Ning also came out from his room.
With no sunlight, his tone and posture were completely different from his weak appearance during the day. His pale skin and crimson lips appeared even more eerie in the moonlight.
Yu Feichen restrained himself and couldn’t help but mockingly say, “Do you know how strange it is for a vampire like you to be so sure that sea monsters don’t exist in this world?”
After pondering for a moment, Ji Ning surprisingly found some truth in his statement.
The sea monster below the ship couldn’t understand their words, but it could feel that it was being ignored. It opened its mouth and emitted an angry and piercing sound.
Other than Ji Jiu, no one else could hear it, but their brains truthfully received the message that they were under attack.
Yu Feichen covered his head and face, his expression full of pain, “Darn!”
He raised one hand, which transformed into a gun, and fired five shots at the sea. The sea monster was incredibly agile underwater and easily avoided Yu Feichen’s bullets. It tauntingly opened its mouth toward the people above.
The next moment, it was hit from behind.
Yu Feichen gestured friendly at the sea monster below the ship, “My ability allows the bullets to automatically track the target!”
Simultaneously, he secretly assessed the strength of this mutant. His bullets, empowered by his ability, were several times more powerful than regular bullets and could penetrate most mutants. Surprisingly, the sea monster’s skin was thick enough to withstand the bullets, and if it were a regular combat gun, it would probably only leave shallow marks on its body.
The sea monster glared at the raised middle finger, becoming even more furious.
Five bullets were embedded in its back, leaving only one bullet sticking out.
The pain drove it mad, and as its bluish blood flowed into the sea, it emitted a foul and pungent odor. Several fish that had managed to escape the black mist were killed outright by this blood.
It lunged up, attempting to tear open the bottom of the ship. Its sharp nails could effortlessly rend through iron.
The black mist didn’t let it succeed, blocking its path.
The sea monster let out a sharp sound from its mouth, and invisible soundwaves intercepted by the black mist, which was threatening to devour it.
At some point, golden flames joined the chaotic battle.
The golden flames and black mist coiled together but didn’t interfere with each other, continuously attacking the sea monster.
Both sides possessed extremely domineering abilities, unable to touch each other; otherwise, their lives would be taken or consumed.
The sea monster could only retreat step by step, trying to escape into the sea. The black mist and golden flames spread seamlessly.
Yu Feichen murmured, “Your abilities are quite brutal.”
He had initially thought that Si Yin Yuan’s “Vitality Extraction” was dominant, but now it seemed that Ji Jiu, who appeared soft on the outside, was equally formidable.
He remembered the first time they met when he mistakenly thought Ji Jiu was just a pretty boy and felt like going back in time to slap his ignorant self.
The sea monster was powerless against the two’s coordinated attacks, like they were teasing a cat with a mouse. The golden and black attacks alternated between front and rear.
It failed to notice, and the golden flames touched its arm.
In an instant, flesh and bone were separated, revealing the stark white bones. With a rapid response, it chopped off its right hand with almost no pause, tearing apart its arm with the left hand, including the muscles and bones.
Next, its tail was bitten by the black mist, losing a significant chunk of flesh. More blood flowed into the sea, bringing many fish to the surface, floating belly-up.
The sea monster opened its mouth, emitting a wailing, blood-like sound. Ji Jiu understood it. It was actually calling for its companion.
Were there more of its kind nearby?
There were two thudding sounds as heavy objects fell to the ground, and Ban Tang and Ying Xiao, who should have been lying in the nutrient compartment, emerged.
They walked barefoot on the deck, their eyes vacant, lifting their hands towards their former comrades.
Si Yin Yuan was the first to sense something was wrong and avoided Ban Tang’s attack while embracing Ji Jiu, who brightened up, saying, “Ban Tang!”
The “Tang” ability allowed him to turn his body into a candy-like substance. It wasn’t true candy but a type of syrup that he could freely change the hardness and shape of. He could even melt himself into a puddle of syrup and go wherever he wanted. When he attacked someone, the syrup he flung out could, in the moment before hitting the target, transform into rock-hard sugar cubes or instantly turn into syrup at a scorching 98 degrees. He could even change the form of the syrup to restrain people, similar to a large lump of glue.
Ji Jiu looked longingly at Ban Tang and said, “Sugar…”
Si Yin Yuan held him even tighter, not to protect him from getting hurt, but to prevent him from suddenly rushing over to bite into Ban Tang. Teammates who lost their sanity were even more troublesome than the sea monster itself. They didn’t dare to use excessive force for fear of injuring their companions.
Ying Xiao grew enormous wings on its back, continuously circling in the air, waiting for the right moment to swoop down and attack.
Li Chao’s elbows sprouted crescent-shaped bone spurs, and he struggled to block the repeated attacks.
Yu Feichen ran frantically, holding his head. The scene became chaotic.
The victorious sea monster, with its injured tail, tried to escape but was blocked again by the black mist and golden flames.
Si Yin Yuan carried Ji Jiu and said, “Ji Ning, handle Ban Tang!”
Ji Ning nodded and in an instant, his canine teeth lengthened, his eyes turned blood-red like a vampire’s. He caught Ban Tang, who melted himself and tried to escape. The fighting power of a vampire was not to be underestimated; no matter where Ban Tang fled, there was a way to catch him.
The sea monster couldn’t sing anymore and evaded with difficulty, trying to escape the gradually shrinking circle controlled by the golden flames and black mist, but was ultimately trapped.
On the ship, Ban Tang and Ying Xiao stood motionless like puppets without strings, with no reactions.
Si Yin Yuan personally captured the sea monster. Out of the water, the sea monster instantly lost all its fighting power, and its mouth opened and closed as if it would die from lack of oxygen in the next second.
Its fur covered its eyes, nose, and most of its body. It was only up close that they realized it wasn’t really human-like. The hair on its head was more like a lion’s mane.
Yu Feichen managed to find a stick and used it to gently part the fur, revealing the entire head. He couldn’t help but exclaim, “Is this a Manatee?!”
The mutant sea monster, with its fur parted to show its complete form, was hard to identify, but it still showed a bit of the pre-apocalyptic Manatee’s appearance.
Ji Jiu’s black mist rose from the sea, gathered into a clump around the mutant, and he poked his owner, asking, “What’s a Manatee?”
Si Yin Yuan removed his wet clothes without bothering to change into dry ones, revealing his well-defined muscular contours.
Ji Jiu had poked his abdomen.
Si Yin Yuan grabbed the tiny poking hand, explaining mildly, “It’s a type of marine mammal, and it’s said to be the prototype of mermaids.”
Now it looked more like a sea monster specializing in preying on passing ships than a mammal.
Ji Jiu wasn’t particularly interested in mermaids and simply responded with an “Oh” before squatting down obediently.
A small ball of golden flames and black mist played around next to him. The two entities that had been dominant in the sea now reduced to the size of a palm and seemed entirely harmless.
The Manatee gradually stopped struggling and had a defeated look in its eyes. After being out of the water, it didn’t have much time left to live. Even if left alone, it would soon die. This was in addition to the serious injuries it had sustained.
Li Chao tied up Ban Tang and Ying Xiao to chairs. With the loss of their singing control, they just sat there, eyes wide open and unresponsive.
After making sure that the Manatee wasn’t causing any trouble, Si Yin Yuan walked over to Li Chao and asked, “How are they doing?”
Li Chao shook his head and said, “They still haven’t regained their consciousness.”
Yu Feichen turned to say something but quickly noticed the wound on Si Yin Yuan’s arm. He immediately put his question aside and exclaimed, “Boss, are you injured?”
He then looked at Si Yin Yuan’s right hand and hissed, “Bitten by a mutant?” However, the round tooth marks didn’t look very menacing.
Si Yin Yuan raised an eyebrow and nodded, “Yes, bitten by a little guy.”
What kind of little mutant could bite Si Yin Yuan?
Yu Feichen furrowed his brows in confusion.
Suddenly, Ban Tang and Ying Xiao, who were tied to chairs, groaned in pain. Gradually, they began to show signs of consciousness.
Li Chao quickly asked, “Are they waking up?”
Soon after, both Ji Ning and Yu Feichen clutched their heads in pain as their false memories were revealed, and they remembered injuring their companions under someone’s control.
Both men exchanged a shocked glance.
It turned out that the reason the singing had stopped and Ban Tang and Ying Xiao couldn’t regain their consciousness was because they were given Manatee’s blood during the night.
Once they were exposed to the Manatee’s blood, they became its puppets, remaining in a coma when the Manatee wasn’t singing.
So, covering their ears during the chaos had been of no use.
Si Yin Yuan noticed something was amiss, quickly returned to Ji Jiu’s side, and indeed, the Manatee that had been on the deck near death had now disappeared.
Furthermore, the small, seemingly obedient black mist from earlier had transformed into a massive beast and promptly shrunk again upon seeing him.
It was quite clear where the Manatee had gone.
Ji Jiu whispered, “I didn’t steal a bite; it died by itself.”
He had patiently squatted here, waiting for the Manatee to die before releasing the black mist to consume it. When the Manatee died, its hypnotic influence and suggestions on people through its singing naturally vanished.
Si Yin Yuan pinched Ji Jiu’s face and said, “Eating recklessly, so I’ll make you go without strawberry-flavored nutrient liquid tomorrow.”
Ji Jiu’s expression turned from shock to a sudden tearful one, as if he had been seriously bullied.
Si Yin Yuan added, “You can have one tube.”
Ji Jiu was still sad.
Si Yin Yuan said, “Don’t repeat this again.”
Ji Jiu immediately brightened up, with his eyes turning watery and resembling an innocent fox, his previous sadness nowhere to be seen.
He excitedly rubbed against his owner.
Si Yin Yuan raised an eyebrow, “What’s this?” After saying that, he plucked out a small yellow lump from his back.
Ji Jiu happily replied, “It’s my starfish!”
It turns out that during the recent intense battle, the little starfish hadn’t run away; it had been clinging to Ji Jiu’s clothes.
Si Yin Yuan indulged his pet in keeping this non-threatening little creature and gave it back to him.
Ji Jiu patted the starfish, delighted that it hadn’t escaped during the ordeal.
For the starfish, which had no real means of escaping: …Is this some sort of dark humor?