26: Chapter 26 Angewomon Must Not Be Lost!

A Tier 1 Dark Species actually gives six experience points?

And is the badge of light in the mission rewards the same badge he's thinking of? What effects does it have?

As various doubts surfaced, Lin Chen temporarily suppressed his urge to investigate and pulled his attention back to reality.

His gaze fell upon the dead Gale Weasel before him. His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, and his lips moved slightly as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he made no sound.

Generally speaking, the priority when dealing with wild pets is to drive them away, use persuasion, or employ non-lethal control; fatal measures are not taken unless necessary.

However, the system had explicitly told him he had to kill it to get the reward, and this strangely-behaving Gale Weasel had displayed extreme danger.

“Ah Chen, you did the right thing,” Zhang Zhi's voice rang out at the right moment, steady and affirming.

While having the Qinglan Hunting Dog stay alert to their surroundings, Zhang Zhi turned his gaze toward Lin Chen.

“You don't need to carry any psychological burden at all.”

Zhang Zhi walked a few steps closer, his clear voice echoing in the silent woods.

“You saw it too; this Gale Weasel's state was very wrong. It didn't seem like a simple burst of ferocity; it looked more like its mind was being controlled by something.”

“It brutally slaughtered three innocent Kapok Sheep with cruel methods and heavily injured that Songsong Dog. Just now, it showed clear aggression toward us.”

“Killing it in this situation was the only correct choice to eliminate the threat, prevent it from harming other lives, and end its own suffering.”

He paused, looking at Lin Chen's young but already resolute face, his eyes flashing with undisguised admiration.

He had long known Lin Chen had outstanding talent as a Beast Tamer, but the decisiveness and composure the youth had just shown still surprised him.

Defeating a pet and killing a pet are two different concepts; the difficulty and danger of the latter are far, far higher.

Lin Chen hadn't acted like a young Beast Tamer who had never seen blood; he was more like a player casually crushing a minor mob in a game.

Hearing Zhang Zhi say this, the hesitation in Lin Chen's heart completely dissipated.

He nodded. “Thank you, Brother Zhang. I understand.”

“It's good that you understand.”

The smile on Zhang Zhi's face gradually faded, replaced by a deeper seriousness.

His gaze turned toward the north, as if he could pierce through the layers of night and mountain forests to see something distant and heavy.

“To be honest, I think being able to maintain this kind of clear-headed ruthlessness when facing special circumstances and wild pets is a very precious quality.”

“When you go to university later, you'll see the Wall of Eternal Night with your own eyes, and you might even enter the areas north of it. Then you'll understand that the struggle between us Beast Tamers and wild pets is far more direct and cruel than you can imagine.”

He sighed softly. “In those moments, hesitation and mercy come at the cost of one's life.”

“The Wall of Eternal Night?”

Lin Chen's heart stirred.

He had certainly seen this term in history and geography textbooks, but the descriptions were mostly vague, only stating that it was a magnificent barrier standing on the northern border of the Donghuang Federation, stretching for hundreds of kilometers and considered a miracle.

Legend had it that its history could be traced back thousands of years, built by some indescribable great power.

The Wall of Eternal Night was like a wall of sighs lying between the Donghuang Federation and the northern pet kingdoms, greatly obstructing large-scale southern invasions by the northern pet kingdoms.

But the textbooks never detailed what exactly it was like on the other side of the wall, nor did they mention the details of the struggles between humans and pets.

“Yeah, the Wall of Eternal Night—that is the place that truly tests a Beast Tamer.”

Zhang Zhi murmured, then realized he had strayed a bit far. He shook his head, pulling back his drifting thoughts and refocusing on the present.

He stepped forward, crouched down, and carefully observed the Gale Weasel's corpse, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter.

The Qinglan Hunting Dog also leaned in to sniff, then let out a sneeze and backed away two steps, a growl of obvious disgust vibrating in its throat.

“Ga-gu?”

The Flame Claw Beast swaggered over to look at its defeated opponent, but it soon seemed to sense something extremely revolting. It waved its claws and retreated repeatedly.

Lin Chen frowned.

Er Huo was showing a physiological disgust toward the Gale Weasel's corpse.

“Something's not right.”

Zhang Zhi reached out. His fingertips didn't touch it directly but hovered just above the corpse, as if he were sensing something.

Soon, his expression turned rather grim. “There's an aura on it that makes me feel very uncomfortable.”

He continued to inspect it for a long while, but aside from this instinctively repulsive residual aura, he found no other specific clues.

Standing up, Zhang Zhi brushed the dust off his hands, his expression solemn. “The situation here is a bit strange. I need to report to Director Li first.”

“Alright.”

Lin Chen nodded, then maintained a safe distance while observing the Gale Weasel's corpse.

He was very curious about what the system called the Dark Species. Were these the things that had triggered the Dark Crisis shrouding the world?

After observing for a while and combining it with the Gale Weasel's previous combat performance, he mentally summarized the preliminary characteristics of these so-called Dark Species:

First, blood-red eyes, a loss of sanity, and extreme aggression.

Second, an ominous black light flows over their bodies when they use skills.

Third, they seem to completely ignore pain and their own injuries, fighting in a frenzied manner regardless of the cost.

Fourth, their energy nature seems to have undergone some sort of twisted mutation, emitting an uncomfortable negative aura.

The more he observed and summarized, the deeper Lin Chen's brow furrowed.

Clearly, these creatures known as Dark Species were extremely disgusting and difficult to deal with.

A moment later.

Just as Zhang Zhi finished reporting the situation here to Director Li Haotian, Old Liu, who had stayed at the farmhouse, called.

“Hello, Brother Liu. Yes, yes, it's all resolved.”

“What? The injuries have worsened? Okay, I understand. We'll make arrangements immediately.”

Hanging up the call, Zhang Zhi looked at Lin Chen, his speaking speed increasing. “Brother Liu says that Songsong Dog's injuries are more troublesome than expected. Simple first aid can't stop the deterioration. There are signs of internal bleeding, it's been unconscious, and its body temperature is rising abnormally.”

He took a deep breath. “It must be sent to the town's Pet Treatment Center immediately. We can't delay any longer.”

Lin Chen's heart tightened, and he stood up abruptly.

Angewomon must not be lost!

The Flame Claw Beast looked at Lin Chen suspiciously. “Ga-gu?”

Lin Chen was actually paying attention to something other than money. Something was wrong, very wrong.

Zhang Zhi looked at Lin Chen and spoke quickly. “Ah Chen, you head back first. Take that Songsong Dog to the treatment center in town. Give them the institute's name and use the emergency channel.”

“I'll stay here to protect the scene. Oh, and have Zhuifeng escort you back; it knows the way.”

Lin Chen didn't hesitate and nodded immediately.

He knew Zhang Zhi's strength; the Qinglan Hunting Dog wasn't his strongest pet. It was very safe for him to stay here alone.

By going back, he could not only take the Songsong Dog for treatment but also complete his mission along the way.

Led by the Qinglan Hunting Dog, Lin Chen and the Flame Claw Beast hurried back toward the farmhouse.