Besieged

Time quickly passed to the morning of the seventh day since the transformation. Lan Mu was peacefully absorbing the scorching solar energy.

This day was already September 4th. According to their agreement, Fang Moqi should have returned to the country in the early hours of the morning.

"Glibberish! Glibberish!"

Suddenly, noisy sounds erupted from the foot of the mountain. This immediately made Lan Mu unable to sit still. He propped himself up on the mountaintop and looked down.

A dense crowd had entered the depths of the jungle. Besides some villagers, the others were dressed extremely professionally and safely. Among them, more than ten police officers could be seen.

"The trouble has indeed arrived... There are even police..."

He knew this was the worst possible consequence of saving people, but he felt no regret.

Lan Mu calculated the time. He had less than ten hours left before he could transform back into a human.

"Ten hours left to turn back into a human..."

"Malai police... I'm bored anyway. I'll play with you all today."

Lan Mu maintained his beast form, his nine tails dancing freely. He ran down from the mountaintop, heading straight for the dense jungle.

His tails were too conspicuous and were immediately spotted. The police officers pointed at him and exclaimed in various ways, seemingly unable to believe that what the villager said was true.

The shock of seeing a Nine-tailed Fox with their own eyes was no less than witnessing a divine manifestation.

These police officers were from the nearby city of Kuala Lumpur. They had come after receiving a report from the indigenous people within the nature reserve.

They initially didn't believe in such nonsense as a Nine-tailed Fox, but the Malai police had to take reports from the indigenous people in the reserve seriously. This was part of their national policy.

While they might be inefficient with the main ethnic group, the police had to consider the feelings of the villagers.

Especially that guy named Saisibin, who had even notified the media. If the police didn't respond, the media would spread rumors that day about police discrimination against ethnic minorities.

So, regardless of the reason, the police, along with the media, entered the depths of the jungle to search for the so-called Nine-tailed Fox.

But they never expected that it was actually real. There really was a White Nine-tailed Fox in the world!

"Glibberish!"

Unable to understand what this group of people was saying, Lan Mu saw the police officers draw their guns and begin climbing the mountain to intercept the Nine-tailed Fox.

Seeing the fox appear and disappear on the mountain, one police officer, from a distance, directly opened fire.

It was clear that this shot missed, but it also made Lan Mu cautious. He hid his body behind a large rock.

"They actually opened fire!"

"A Nine-tailed Fox can't withstand the attack of firearms. I absolutely cannot let myself enter their firing range."

Just as Lan Mu finished thinking this, a bizarre charm appeared. The Malai police officers didn't even react to what was happening before they lost self-awareness.

An invisible domain enveloped the mountainside. No matter what equipment you wore, humans and animals alike fell into a trance.

The charm created a beautiful illusion in their hearts. Everyone was immersed in the temptation of the most beautiful object they could imagine.

If you liked beautiful women, then the Nine-tailed Fox was the most captivating beauty. If you liked men, then the Nine-tailed Fox was the most charming man. Even if you liked dogs, the Nine-tailed Fox would appear as the cutest dog in your eyes!

In short, this illusion would always use the object you were most infatuated with to ensnare you. Combined with some special subconscious guidance, almost no one could resist the power of charm. It was an illusion that directly affected the depths of the brain, plunging people into a dazed state of consciousness.

Without a doubt, Lan Mu, transformed into a Nine-tailed Fox, was a super temptress whose entire skill tree was invested in charm.

Over this period, with increasing practice, Lan Mu's charm had become more powerful. It was almost his only strong point.

The charmed police officers, halfway up the mountain, inexplicably felt dizzy and fell into the illusion. Their feet slipped, and they rolled down the steep slope.

The villagers dared not move rashly, watching from the foot of the mountain. The little boy, Bolanggu, was among them. He was shouting anxiously about something, but unfortunately, Lan Mu couldn't understand.

The dozen or so police officers, however, had strong psychological fortitude. After regaining their senses, they showed no fear.

They charged forward one after another. This time, they decisively opened fire, suppressing his hiding spot with a barrage of bullets. They thought that by doing so, they wouldn't lose consciousness like before.

"Bang bang bang..."

Bullets rained down, and Lan Mu didn't even dare to show his head.

The police were ferociously trying to kill him, leaving him no room to retreat.

It was easy to understand the human acceptance of the异类 (yìlèi - other/different kind).

It was either panic, fear, and rejection, or discrimination. Or it was calls to kill and endless greed.

Only in very rare circumstances would humans develop good feelings towards the 异类, leading to worship and superstition.

However, in the eyes of these people, Lan Mu's Nine-tailed Fox form at this moment probably didn't fit their image of a god.

On the contrary, they considered Lan Mu a demon, an evil spirit.

Most Malai people believed in Christianity, some believed in Buddhism and Hinduism, and some indigenous people had their own primitive beliefs.

And none of these would consider Lan Mu in his Nine-tailed Fox form an auspicious omen.

Anger grew from fear, and finally came deep malice.

"A Nine-tailed Fox... must it die?"

Indifferently waiting for the police to get closer, a thought charmed them all. This time, it wasn't just to make them fall, but to lure them closer.

After charming them, Lan Mu stood on the stone platform, his aura completely different.

Seeing that the colleagues didn't attack the fox, the two police officers at the foot of the mountain aimed their guns at Lan Mu.

At this moment, Bolanggu rushed out from the crowd, hugged a person who looked like a police officer, and pulled his arm to stop him from firing.

"Glibberish! Glibberish!" Lan Mu couldn't understand Bolanggu's language, but he knew what he was doing.

Lan Mu looked at Bolanggu stopping the police in surprise, and was eventually pulled back by his family.

Shaking his head, Lan Mu's mind was made up.

"Little guy, you can't change the deeply ingrained thoughts of adults..."

He muttered, and as the police climbed in front of him, he coiled his tail, drawing a surge of potent energy from the policeman's body. It felt incredibly satisfying, and the energy settled into his second tail.

"Human essence is so much richer... and... even more satisfying!"

Lan Mu marveled. Although the Nine-tailed Fox instinctively had no desire to eat humans, the human essence was undoubtedly the richest supplement he had ever encountered. One person was equivalent to absorbing over thirty wild chickens!

After the essence was stripped away, the police officers suddenly stopped moving and collapsed powerlessly, slumping like mud.

In just a moment, they became gaunt, with dark circles under their eyes, as if all their essence had been plundered. They died quickly from extreme weakness.

"Glibberish! Glibberish!"

As the police officers fell one by one, the two officers at the foot of the mountain were terrified and fired their handguns wildly.

"Ridiculous, trying to hit me from over a hundred meters away?"

Lan Mu hid behind the stone platform. Although the police couldn't hit him, he didn't dare to rush down. If he were hit by a stray bullet, it wouldn't be a minor injury for the Nine-tailed Fox's fragile physique.

Over a dozen police officers had fallen on the mountain! Whether they were dead or not was unknown, but it was still big news.

Reporters were contacting their colleagues in the city, and the police were also contacting their superiors for reinforcements.

The police blocked the foot of the mountain and waited for about an hour before more professionals finally arrived.

Experts and professors in suits, fully armed police reinforcements, and reporters who were not afraid of making a scene.

Lan Mu wasn't afraid of any of them. He hid in the shadows, secretly observing the enemy.

Reporters were filming the mountain, interviewing villagers who had seen the Nine-tailed Fox, and more often asking people who looked like scholars.

As for the person who looked like a scholar, upon learning that the Nine-tailed Fox had indeed appeared, he was so excited that tears welled up in his eyes.

He shouted to himself in Malay: "Nine-tailed Fox!"

Lan Mu couldn't understand Malay and ignored him. Even if he could, he wouldn't show himself. If he were shot, it would be troublesome, as the Nine-tailed Fox's defense was too low.

"There really is a Nine-tailed Fox! And it's in our Dahan Mountain Nature Reserve."

"This is a mythical beast popular throughout East Asia, a legendary creature. I never thought our country had one!"

The expert scholar was filled with emotion. Although he hadn't seen the Nine-tailed Fox with his own eyes, he firmly believed it in his heart and constantly searched for its tracks with his eyes.

"Send more personnel, surround this mountain tightly!"

"We absolutely cannot let the Nine-tailed Fox escape. This is a gold mine! A huge gold mine!"

"No matter what, we must capture this Nine-tailed Fox alive. It's a Nine-tailed Fox."

The expert excitedly directed the police officers. He repeatedly fantasized about capturing the Nine-tailed Fox himself, as if his wish would come true.

If he really caught the Nine-tailed Fox, its value would be immeasurable, and he, an unknown nobody, would become famous.

It could even be considered one of the greatest discoveries of the century. The Nine-tailed Fox was crucial for scientific research.

Thinking of this, the expert couldn't help but chuckle. His desire grew, and his eyes revealed astonishing greed.

"I swear, creature of myth... I will definitely capture you!"