CH 132

This special team swiftly passed through the jungle and crossed over blue stones, tree roots, and bushes. Two small, short-legged Shu Shuishui moved quickly, a furry bundle of astonishing agility, keeping up effortlessly with a group of enormous gray rats.

As they moved rapidly, Shu Shuishui occasionally checked Gu Langu on his back, just in case his jumping might send Gu Langu flying. “Gu Gu, if you feel queasy, let me know. It’s okay; I used to get airsick too. There’s no shame in it.”

“Airsick?” Gu Langu was mildly surprised.

Shu Shuishui nodded lightly. “It’s a mode of transportation, an airplane. I don’t think you have them here anymore.” Shu Shuishui’s few airplane experiences were always with Shu Bao, but he would stay obediently in his cage, surrounded by a bunch of animals, and among those animals, there were always a few cats and dogs. This had once made Shu Shuishui very averse to airplanes. Therefore, he usually chose to travel by slower means of transportation, like trains, which suited the leisurely style of a dormouse.

Gu Langu breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to pat Shu Shuishui’s head. “I don’t get airsick. Shui Shui can run with confidence.”

And so, after nearly thirty minutes of rapid running, the gray rat team finally came to a stop. Along the way, they naturally encountered many creatures, including mutant animals and plants, as well as ordinary ones.

However, none of these creatures could make the gray rat team stop, as the strength of these mutant creatures clearly did not belong to the core.

Until now, in front of them stood a tiger, a giant mutant tiger, twice the size of an ordinary tiger. Its thick claws made it appear exceptionally stable, giving the impression that it was immovable.

It seemed like the tiger had already received news of this special team’s entry into the jungle and was waiting for them right here.

Among the lush branches and leaves of the jungle, several brightly colored parrots perched, curiously watching from above.

Shu Shuishui glanced up and was not tempted by the several feathered outfits, instead fixing his gaze on the large tiger in front of him. Although Shu Shuishui was afraid of cats, he wasn’t afraid of tigers that looked a lot like cats. After all, tigers don’t eat mice, which would damage their image as kings of the forest.

The gray rats huddled together, surrounding Shu Shuishui and Gu Langu in the middle.

The mutant tiger’s gaze swept over them, a look that seemed devoid of special emotions but still awe-inspiring. After a moment, the tiger let out a deafening roar that echoed through the jungle.

Gu Langu, who had not been put down, reached out to cover Shu Shuishui’s furry little ears. Shu Shuishui’s ears twitched and brushed against Gu Langu’s palm, a sensation that was addictive.

Just as Shu Shuishui was pondering whether the tiger’s roar was a warning, an announcement, or a greeting, a voice suddenly came from above.

“Hello! Hello!”

The voice sounded somewhat strange, as if someone was speaking with their nose pinched, and the pronunciation was a bit stiff.

The gray rat team subconsciously looked up and saw the parrots perched on the branches. One of them flapped its wings and flew to a slightly lower branch. “Hello! Hello!”

The gray rats were… surprised. They hadn’t expected mutant creatures to come equipped with translators. Their gazes instantly turned to their only translator: Shu Shuishui.

Shu Shuishui’s response was also swift. To show goodwill, he walked out of the gray rat encirclement and stood in front of the team. He glanced at the tiger and then at the parrots, saying, “Hello.”

The parrot tilted its head and seemed to have learned quickly. “Hello! Hello!”

The tiger, appearing impatient, roared again. Gu Langu subconsciously wanted to jump down from Shu Shuishui’s back to shield him but was stopped by Shu Shuishui.

Shu Shuishui gave a slight bow. “Hello, Mr. Tiger. We’re a team that has come to discuss an alliance. Could we have a few minutes to explain?”

The tiger flicked its long tail and its gaze swept back and forth over the gray rat team, as if contemplating the truth of Shu Shuishui’s words.

The parrots on the tree branch seemed delighted to see these new faces. “Give a few minutes, give a few minutes…”

Upon hearing this, Shu Shuishui immediately felt a strong liking for the feathered outfit translator on the tree branch.

The mutant tiger only paused briefly, then turned and took a few steps into the depths of the jungle. When it realized that Shu Shuishui and his team hadn’t followed, it turned back and let out a low roar.

The parrots on the tree branch immediately flapped their wings and followed suit, all speaking at once.

“Keep up!”

“Hurry up!”

“Charge!”

“Let’s go!”

Shu Shuishui suddenly felt that one translator was enough for situations like this, and the others could just be feathered outfits.

Surrounded by the colorful parrots, the gray rat team followed the mutant tiger’s footsteps.

Once the team caught up, the tiger transitioned from a leisurely stroll to a sprint. Its enormous body displayed astonishing speed, leaping nearly ten meters in a single bound and causing the ground to tremble upon landing.

Such power and speed were enough to establish its dominance in the jungle. The mutant tiger’s speed increased steadily, and the gray rats and Shu Shuishui had to give their all to keep up. Seeing this, Gu Langu, after observing the terrain of the jungle for some time, whispered softly in Shu Shuishui’s ear, “Shui Shui, please put me down; I can keep up.”

Shu Shuishui hesitated for a moment but ultimately obediently set Gu Langu down.

After this brief acceleration, Gu Langu caught up with the gray rat team.

In this manner, they continued their rapid run until they reached the side of a small stream where the mutant tiger finally came to a stop. There, several other mutant creatures, all exuding a formidable aura, were lying down. Leopards, lions, snakes, pythons, elephants…

Almost all of them were species at the top of the food chain, and besides animals, there were also several mutant plants.

These mutant creatures were waiting in various postures, and at their center was a deer, a deer with white lotus flowers growing on its antlers.

This deer had clearly undergone mutation as well, growing to a massive size with an all-white body that seemed to emit a faint glow in the shade of the trees, giving it a very sacred appearance. Its antlers had also mutated into pure white jade-like structures, enormous antlers resembling a tree made of white jade, branching out extensively but lacking leaves.

Shu Shuishui’s gaze was instantly drawn to those white palm-sized lotus flowers blooming on the antlers, which appeared to contain pure spiritual energy, emitting a radiant glow in the shape of petals.

The gray rats were also taken aback, likely because they had never seen such a peculiar and beautiful creature before.

The mutant deer seemed quite out of place among these fierce beasts, yet its inherent aura left no room for doubt. It seemed like it should naturally be the leader of this group of predators.

The chattering parrots had ceased their chatter as they flew closer and each settled on a branch, behaving obediently.

Shu Shuishui, now back to his senses, approached and performed a gentlemanly bow. “Hello, Mr. Beautiful Deer.”

The gray rats looked at each other nervously, then stayed put, as they couldn’t immediately mimic Shu Shuishui’s style of greeting.

The mutant deer appeared quite curious about Shu Shuishui. It took a few steps forward as if wanting to get a closer look at this talking mouse.

But as the mutant deer moved, someone else was even quicker, standing in front of Shu Shuishui in a defensive posture – it was Gu Langu.

Other mutant creatures also stood up, equally vigilant.

The mutant deer halted its steps, still emitting a faint glow, expressionless on its face, and it scrutinized Shu Shuishui and his group.

Shu Shuishui patted Gu Langu’s shoulder, signaling him not to be nervous. “It’s okay, Gu Gu. Don’t be nervous.”

Just as Shu Shuishui finished speaking, a somewhat deep and elegant male voice sounded, and the source of the voice was none other than the white deer. “Who are you, and what are you doing in the jungle?”

Shu Shuishui was briefly surprised but quickly regained his composure. After all, there were so many magical creatures; speaking wasn’t that strange. “We’ve migrated from the Southern Hemisphere. These are my friends, mutant gray rats.”

He pointed to the ten gray rats behind him and then pointed to himself. “I’m a dormouse.”

Then, he pointed to Gu Langu. “This is Gu Langu.”

Gu Langu: “…”

The gaze of all the mutant creatures immediately focused on Gu Langu, filled with suspicion. They clearly didn’t believe it.

Most of the mutant creatures seemed to be unable to speak, with only the parrots arguing.

“Liar! That’s clearly a person!”

“What kind of mouse is Gu Langu?”

“That’s a human! That’s a human!”

“Human! Human!”

The white mutant deer clearly didn’t believe it either. “We’ve all seen humans.” Implicitly, Gu Langu, in his appearance, seemed like a human.

Shu Shuishui nodded. “You’re very clever; you’ve all guessed correctly.”

The mutant animals and plants: “…”

Shu Shuishui’s open admission left the mutant creatures unsure, especially when he transformed from a furry dormouse into a normal-sized human in the blink of an eye, following the introduction of Gu Langu.

Perhaps because there was a “Gu Langu” as a precedent, the mutant creatures surprisingly didn’t become aggressive immediately. Instead, they remained still.

Only the startled parrots took flight. They kept screaming, “It’s a transformation! It’s a transformation!” Their hoarse cries made it seem like something sinister was happening.

Shu Shuishui paid no attention to the feathered outfits above his head and continued, striking while the iron was hot. “I am a dormouse, but I can also transform into a human. If you’re willing, you can too. If you’re interested, please listen to my advice.”

This statement was like a bomb that exploded among the mutant creatures, and they communicated in a way they could understand each other. Although they didn’t have much affection for humans, they couldn’t deny that transforming into humans would bring them significant convenience and advantages.

The mutant creatures eventually turned their gaze to the mutant deer, seemingly waiting for its decision.

The mutant deer’s gaze shifted between Gu Langu and Shu Shuishui for a moment before it finally spoke. “What is your relationship with this Gu Langu, and what is your connection to humans?”

Shu Shuishui replied candidly, “Gu Gu is my partner. I have no connection to humans, but I have some friends who are humans.”

To the simpler-minded mutant creatures, this response might have seemed like a grammatical error, but the mutant deer understood it and was quite satisfied with the answer.