Chapter 33
Qi Yu finally understood. He returned to the basement, transformed back into human form, and put on clothes before coming out. “Thank you, Brother Qin, and Brother Liu. I promise that from now on, I’ll do whatever you ask me to do. I won’t go west if you ask me to go east. I will definitely follow your orders!”
Qin Jiulin wanted obedient and useful followers. Qi Yu seemed good, but he still had one final test. If he could pass it, Qin Jiulin would officially accept him as a partner.
As for Liu Zhongyuan, Qin Jiulin’s feelings towards him were complicated. In terms of strength, Liu Zhongyuan was undoubtedly the strongest among them, even ranking high in the future city rankings. If he could be a trustworthy partner, Qin Jiulin would be happy. However, Liu Zhongyuan’s unpredictability and the fact that Qin Jiulin couldn’t fully suppress him raised some concerns.
In this lifetime, the encounters with Liu Zhongyuan were different from the previous one. In the past, Liu Zhongyuan took care of Qin Jiulin and even expressed affection towards him. They had known each other for a long time and had cooperated for a considerable period.
Qin Jiulin often tried to maintain a certain distance from Liu Zhongyuan, but Liu Zhongyuan would ignore it every time, getting close and saying things that seemed ambiguous.
Just like now, Liu Zhongyuan appeared to be paying attention to Qi Yu, but whether it was intentional or not, he directly sat next to Qin Jiulin. “Hmm… this kid looks promising. It’s not a bad idea to let him follow us.”
Qin Jiulin thought, “Do I need your opinion?”
The next few days were Qi Yu’s adaptation period. It was best not to go out casually. Qin Jiulin and Liu Zhongyuan were responsible for going out to hunt and bring back prey, just like before.
Fortunately, this suburban villa area had plenty of creatures on the ground, in the air, and in the water. They could easily obtain various resources. Perhaps due to becoming beastmen, they now preferred meat and weren’t interested in vegetables. However, if they found fruits outside, Qin Jiulin would pick some to satisfy his cravings.
The only issue was that even after so many days, they hadn’t discovered where the creature that infiltrated the villa area was.
After Qi Yu’s adaptation period successfully passed, Liu Zhongyuan suddenly said, “The military contacted me. In about three days, they will be waiting for me at the north side’s highway entrance.”
Qin Jiulin was puzzled, “And then?”
Liu Zhongyuan replied, “As long as we assist them in clearing the city area, we will be granted many privileges. Of course, after establishing stability, we will also have a share in the currency.”
Qin Jiulin added, “The most important thing is to showcase our strength in front of the military.”
Liu Zhongyuan smiled with narrowed eyes, “Exactly, so are you joining the mission to clean up the city half-beastmen? Of course, Qi Yu too. If he goes along, he can leave an impression with the military and might even be heavily utilized. After all, the beast form Snowy Owl of the different species beastmen is excellent for aerial reconnaissance, which is a valuable asset for the military.”
Qin Jiulin replied, “I will go. As for Qi Yu, ask him yourself.”
Liu Zhongyuan immediately walked to the kitchen door, “How about it, Qi Yu? Did you hear what we just said? Are you going?”
Qi Yu thought for a moment, “Sure, why not? There are many benefits. I don’t know if after restoring some order in the future, free beastmen can form their own teams. We can create a team then, right?”
Liu Zhongyuan blinked, “Wow, that’s a great idea. I was thinking the same. Didn’t expect you to say it first.” He looked back at Qin Jiulin, who appeared indifferent on the sofa.
“What do you think? Are you willing to join?”
Qin Jiulin said, “If we can really form a team later, of course, I’ll join.”
However, clearing the entire magic city area and some outskirts would take time. When that time came, Qin Jiulin didn’t know if Liu Zhongyuan and Qi Yu would still be with him.
For now, it was best not to speak too soon.
Liu Zhongyuan treated it as if he agreed, “Alright, it’s settled. In three days, we’ll meet them at the designated location. I’ll pass on the information of the three different species of beastmen here to them.”
Qin Jiulin suggested, “In these few days, let’s go out and train Qi Yu.”
Liu Zhongyuan proposed, “How about going out at night? The Snowy Owl is a nocturnal bird anyway, so hunting at night should be fine, right?”
Qin Jiulin replied, “Snowy Owls are active during the day, but it’s not a problem at night. After all, he’s a different species of beastmen, different from ordinary Snowy Owls.”
Liu Zhongyuan smiled, “That’s right. Shall we go out tonight then?”
Qin Jiulin said, “We’ll go out for a few hours every night for the next three days. Sleep time shouldn’t be delayed, and we must return by around 1 am.”
Liu Zhongyuan, “No problem.”
Qi Yu thought the same, “I have no problem, Qin Ge. By the way, we can eat meat now, I’ve prepared it.”
After everyone had a satisfying meal, Qin Jiulin and Liu Zhongyuan didn’t have much to do, but for Qi Yu, it was quite exciting. Tonight was his first time going out for a hunt.
He wondered if he could do well, especially when they were in beast form and couldn’t speak. Could they communicate smoothly by making some sounds? How did Liu Zhongyuan and Qin Jiulin communicate during hunting in beast form? Maybe he should ask them now. But would they be able to answer him?
Qin Jiulin looked at Qi Yu with some surprise, “You’re asking how we communicate in beast form during hunting?”
Liu Zhongyuan also came over and answered instinctively, “Do we even need to communicate in that situation?”
Qi Yu, “Huh?”
Ignoring Qi Yu, Qin Jiulin let Liu Zhongyuan explain.
Liu Zhongyuan sat between them, pushing Qi Yu aside before he could react, and said, “There’s no need for communication at all.”
Qi Yu, “Then… how do we coordinate with each other?”
Liu Zhongyuan, “Isn’t it simple? Just wag your tail or shake your head, can’t that work?”
Qi Yu, “Tail?”
Could he wag his tail? No, his tail couldn’t be wagged randomly during flight, right?
Shake his head? Could they see him turning his head in the sky?
Qi Yu, “How do I coordinate with you then? I’m likely to be on reconnaissance while flying. What if I find prey or there’s danger?”
Liu Zhongyuan, “Isn’t that easy? If you find prey, just circle clockwise; if you find danger, circle counterclockwise in the sky. Isn’t that enough?”
Qi Yu, “Oh, oh, I see…”
Qin Jiulin, “This method is good.”
Qi Yu smiled, “Alright, let’s go with that.”
Qin Jiulin, “Checking the time…”
Before he could finish speaking, a woman’s scream and a man’s horrifying scream came from outside. The three of them sat up straight.
Duan Qiufeng, “What is that? Run, run!”
He didn’t even see what attacked them. He only saw Zheng Yi, who was just in front of him, being knocked down into a room by a shadow about half a meter tall.
He didn’t dare to go over and see, just turned and ran, with Qi Jinglan behind him.
Qi Jinglan, pulled by him, ran frantically, “What’s going on?”
Duan Qiufeng didn’t have time to answer her. When he saw Wang Boming and Lin Yuzhe coming down the stairs, he sighed slightly in relief, “Brother Wang, Brother Lin! Over there, just now Zheng Yi was attacked by something. I didn’t see clearly what it was!”
Wang Boming’s face turned serious, “How’s Zheng Yi now?”
Duan Qiufeng had no idea about Zheng Yi’s situation! All he knew was that he needed to hide now! But even in the midst of escaping for his life, he didn’t forget to pull Qi Jinglan along. It’s probably true love?
Seeing Duan Qiufeng like this, Wang Boming knew he was useless, “Forget it, you guys hide yourselves. We’ll go and take a look!”
Duan Qiufeng nodded quickly, then pulled Qi Jinglan to hide somewhere. Meanwhile, Wang Boming and Lin Yuzhe transformed into their beast forms, slowly approaching the scene after crawling out of their clothes.
In their beast forms, they could hear sounds they couldn’t hear before. Crunching sounds, as if bones were being crushed. Zheng Yi was now silent, probably dead.
Wang Boming, in his beast form, became more sensitive to the smell of blood. Now he could smell a strong, bloody scent, as if fresh blood had been placed right under his nose.
Wang Boming quietly approached the door. Blood had already flowed out from the other side of the door. Just as he was about to confirm the situation inside, Zhang Liao and Zhang Wei came back from outside, carrying water from the river.
“We’re back!”
At the same time, Zhou Yiyi and Fu Jingjing, hearing the commotion in the living room, came downstairs to check the situation.
“What happened? What strange sound did we just hear?”
While others couldn’t sense it, Wang Boming and Lin Yuzhe indeed heard the faint sound of bones crunching a moment ago, which was now gone!
Both of them felt their scalps tingling at the same time. Without hesitation, they immediately found the nearest glass and, without a second thought, Red Fox smashed through the glass and fled. Pigeon followed suit, flying out through the broken opening. They escaped to a nearby elevated area, only exhaling a sigh of relief after ensuring their safety.
Meanwhile, the people in the villa were left puzzled. They might not have known exactly what happened, but seeing Red Fox and Pigeon fleeing for their lives, it was clear that something dangerous was inside the villa.
Someone, with a shrill voice, shouted, “Run!”
