After Raising Monsters, I Was Loved by Everyone in the Wasteland – CH12

Chapter 12

On Sunday, the commercial street was much livelier than on weekdays. Coincidentally, several stores were celebrating their anniversaries, offering many promotional activities. The streets were filled with people out shopping.

Unfortunately, both of them were the type to go straight to the point; after buying what they needed, they planned to head back home.

Walking along the road, looking at the large shopping bags in Wen Xin’s hands, Tang Qi clicked his tongue. “I almost thought you were here to restock your inventory.”

Wen Xin had basically bought all long-lasting, hunger-suppressing convenience foods. He was very thoughtful in preparing for future needs, buying different flavors so that when he got tired of one, he could switch to another.

Under his persistent recommendations, Tang Qi also bought a lot, but compared to Wen Xin, it was still a drop in the bucket.

Tang Qi said, “Did you see the news from City H? That thing about the rabid person biting people on the street, killing several?”

Store employees had previously discussed this matter, and Wen Xin remembered. “I saw it.”

Tang Qi shrugged. “My mom heard some rumor from somewhere, saying that the people who were bitten escaped from the hospital overnight to other cities. She told me to be careful recently and to run immediately if I see any abnormal people nearby.”

“Come on, why would sick people run out of the hospital? Do they want to die faster? She said similar things before, like how takeout food uses gutter oil, barbecues are made of rat meat, and even that global warming has increased ultraviolet radiation, causing radiation sickness from too much sun exposure. Give me a break.”

Hearing Tang Qi talk about his mother, Wen Xin was momentarily lost in thought.

He had never met his own mother in person, but he had a necklace left by his father, which contained a family photo.

In it were his stern and rigid father, his kind and gentle mother, and in the center, embraced by them, smiling recklessly and flamboyantly, Wen Jinfeng.

Although it was a family photo, because it was taken when his mother was still alive, naturally, it didn’t include him, who hadn’t been born yet.

Wen Xin said, “Actually, it’s not a bad idea to listen to what your mom says.”

Tang Qi’s mother was a typical strong urban woman, employed in the news media industry. Nearly fifty years old, she was still a leading figure at the station.

The news industry filters through countless real and fake gossip every day. Wen Xin felt that with Tang Qi’s mother’s qualifications and experience, she wouldn’t believe some false rumors.

“Pfft.”

Seeing the young man’s serious expression, Tang Qi suddenly felt a sense of affection like an older brother, and couldn’t help but reach out to ruffle his hair, laughing. “Why are you so good, big baby?”

Having spent time together these days, Tang Qi had long discovered that Wen Xin was a very pure person. Although he appeared unapproachable on the surface, he was actually easy to talk to and listened well.

Nowadays, who doesn’t have some dark thoughts? Even the cheerful and enthusiastic Tang Qi sometimes had thoughts of overthrowing the world when things didn’t go his way.

But only Wen Xin seemed to remain unchanged.

So Tang Qi especially liked being around him.

Wen Xin’s hair was messed up, and carrying his things, he couldn’t free his hands to block, so he helplessly shook his head. “Don’t fool around.”

Knowing that Wen Xin wasn’t really angry, Tang Qi laughed heartily, then took out his phone and played a recorded video of his Ragdoll cat, Huanhuan.

In the video, the little cat was stretching and yawning, its body elongated like a noodle, tail high in the air. Its big, moist blue eyes stared directly outside the camera, simply melting people’s hearts.

Seeing that Wen Xin couldn’t take his eyes off it, Tang Qi said proudly, “Isn’t my baby super cute!”

Wen Xin nodded.

Receiving his affirmation, Tang Qi was even happier than if he had been praised. He immediately started chatting. “Let me tell you, don’t just listen to what they say about long-haired cats shedding a lot. While it’s true they shed more, short-haired cats shed a lot too! But do they feel as good to pet as long-haired cats? Definitely not!”

Wen Xin listened with amusement. Seeing someone approaching ahead, he pulled Tang Qi aside.

In just that moment, Tang Qi had already started talking about the entire process of falling in love with his cat at the pet store.

“At first, they said long-haired cats are hard to groom, and I almost missed out on Huanhuan. Luckily, in the end, I had keen eyes…”

Wen Xin agreed. “Yes, Huanhuan is very cute. You have a good eye for cats.”

“Right, right! If you ever want to get a furry friend, remember to pick one with big, watery eyes, a gentle temperament, and very clingy. It’ll definitely heal all your day’s irritations from work.”

Wen Xin thought that both of his furballs did have big eyes, but they might never be associated with a gentle temperament in this lifetime.

“So, when you meet a cute, obedient, and affectionate furry one, don’t hesitate to take it home, like this fox. Look at its pink paws—so cute!”

Wen Xin said, “Yes, pink paws are very cute. A fox…”

Wen Xin suddenly froze. What fox? Where did the fox come from?

He looked again at Tang Qi, and wasn’t the other holding a pink-furred fox in his arms?

Tang Qi’s eyes were vacant and unfocused, as if utterly smitten with this fox. As the fox made soft “woo” sounds, he gently scratched its chin. “So cute, simply a miracle of creation…”

Even if Tang Qi really liked small animals, normal people wouldn’t use words like “miracle of creation.”

Seeing his obsessed expression, Wen Xin felt a chill run down his spine in broad daylight.

He quickly locked onto the source of the abnormality—the pink-furred fox in Tang Qi’s arms. Disregarding the items dropping to the ground, he urgently reached out to grab it. “What did you do to him?!”

The pink-furred fox lifted its moist, large eyes to look up.

In an instant, Wen Xin felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

A blinding white light swept through his mind; buzzing noises sounded in his ears. After just a few breaths, the distorted noise finally subsided, and the black-and-white world regained its color.

And all that had felt extremely incongruous just now suddenly became logical.

His hand, which had been frozen in mid-air, moved again, but this time he gently stroked the fox, saying, “You’re so cute.”

At the bus stop behind them, a blond boy wearing a hat was standing. Seeing this, he walked over directly and took the pink-furred fox into his arms.

He first petted the fox, then looked at the dazed pair without any emotion, saying, “Let’s go.”

Although Tang Qi was carefree, Wen Xin beside him was very vigilant, occasionally looking around.

The Canary and his friends had followed them all the way until now, finally finding a chance to act.

Hearing the Canary’s command, Tang Qi had no objections, while Wen Xin asked, “Where are we going?”

This made the Canary look at Wen Xin more carefully.

Being able to still think under the Illusion Fox’s enchantment—among the humans he had encountered so far, Wen Xin was the only one, indicating that his willpower was very strong.

The Canary touched the brim of his hat and still gave a perfunctory reply, “We’ve been traveling for a long time and are a bit tired. We want to borrow your place to rest for a while. After we find the person we’re looking for, we’ll leave. We won’t harm you.”

The little pink fox suddenly whimpered softly.

“Ah Jiu, they have the scent of the Tyrannosaurus and the Venomous Viper on them. Isn’t it dangerous to directly enchant them?”

The Canary reassured it, “Don’t worry. Regardless of what the Tyrannosaurus thinks of humans, the Venomous Viper hates humans to the bone.”

“These two humans can’t possibly know them. At most, they’ve bumped into each other and picked up their scent.”

Thinking of what humans had done to mutants in the base, and those rumors about the Venomous Viper biting people indiscriminately, the little fox believed the Canary’s speculation.

Even if it were him, he wouldn’t have a good impression of humans.

They were discussing, completely unaware that while picking up the dropped items, Wen Xin’s fingers trembled, and a fleeting look of struggle flashed in his hollow pupils.

Wen Xin couldn’t understand the little fox’s whimpering, but he could hear the blond boy’s words.

Tyrannosaurus, Venomous Viper—the scent on his body…

Were they talking about Xiao Hei and Ah Lü?

They continued in silence.

The Canary said he was very tired, which was not a lie. In just a day and a half, traveling all the way from distant City H to City G, they had hardly slept.

Moreover, without identification, they could only take unlicensed cars, not only having to transfer over a dozen times but also needing to be extra careful to avoid being discovered, consuming a huge amount of energy.

As they walked, the Canary’s steps faltered slightly. Before he could react and steady himself, a hand caught him in advance.

The young man pointed to the dark circles under his eyes and asked with concern, “Are you tired?”

The Canary was stunned for a moment, and looked down at the little fox in his arms, thinking that Wen Xin had been manipulated by it.

But the little fox raised its head, giving him the same sleepy and confused look.

In less than two seconds, the Canary realized that the young man wasn’t being controlled by the Illusion Fox but was acting subconsciously under its influence, to help him.

In other words, this person was genuinely kind; it wasn’t something that could be faked.

…Could there really be such rare individuals among humans?

Using terms like “species” because the Canary, who had witnessed how cruel humans could be, fundamentally didn’t believe that there could be such kind-hearted humans.

But the facts were in front of him, unless the Illusion Fox’s ability suddenly failed.

The Canary lowered his eyelashes, suppressing the strange feeling rising in his heart.

With Wen Xin and Tang Qi covering for them, although passersby were curious about the blond boy holding an unknown pink creature, they didn’t say much. Soon, they were approaching the residential community where they lived.

The closer they got to the entrance of the community, the slower Wen Xin walked, subconsciously resisting letting Xiao Hei and the others be discovered by the Canary.

In the end, even enduring a splitting headache, he had to stop.

The Canary noticed Wen Xin’s abnormality.

He wasn’t worried that the other could break free from the Illusion Fox’s control. After all, the mental power of an A-class mutant was not something an ordinary human could contend with.

But if Wen Xin kept resisting like this, he might damage his brain.

The Canary frowned and urged him, “Relax and don’t resist, and you won’t suffer.”

Before he finished speaking, a chill rose from behind the Canary.

The little fox in his arms was even more sensitive, letting out a cry, directly rolling onto the ground, hugging its tail and shivering.

Not far from them, Xiao Hei stood upright by the railing.

He withdrew his gaze from the controlled young man and slowly focused on the blond boy and the pink-furred fox.

No longer with the gentleness he showed when looking at Wen Xin, his golden vertical pupils were tinged with blood-red, like thunder filling the sky.

Number One Tyrannosaurus, the most powerful mutant to date—perfectly modified, with top-level genes, ranked No.1 in lethality—even the researchers who created him were in awe and fear.

No one knew the full extent of the Tyrannosaurus’s power, because no mutant could make him use his full strength.

And now, the Canary was experiencing the unreserved pressure of the Tyrannosaurus.

With a thud, he collapsed to the ground, as if he had fallen into a thousand-year-old glacier, his entire skeleton shivering from the cold. Blood gurgled from his mouth and nose, dripping down.

At this moment, the Canary couldn’t even muster the thought of escaping. His mind was filled with an extreme fear—

The Tyrannosaurus was enraged.