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Not only their offspring, but also many fox cubs in the Fox Clan in the same situation, they also desperately need this fruit.

Meeting the longing and expectant gazes of her kin, the Red Fox sighed softly and said, "Mmm..."

--I understand you are anxious, and I do know the source of the fruit, but I need to go to the mountains and forests to discuss it with the old chieftain before I can decide what to do next. I hope you can understand.

The foxes nodded in agreement.

This fruit is so effective, it must be extremely rare. Whether they try to steal it or trade it, it will require a significant number of the Fox Clan, and there will definitely be casualties.

Given the gravity of the situation, it's understandable that Red Fox is being cautious. Wanting to go and discuss it with the old clan leader is perfectly reasonable.

After the Red Fox went into the mountains, the foxes gathered together and chatted.

"That fruit is useful for the sick and weak fox cubs, but what about the old chieftain? Can this fruit cure his illness?"

--Wait until we bring the fruit back and give it to the old chieftain? We'll see.

--Yes, yes, let's bring back more then.

--... Such precious fruits must be scarce, how come you all say they're everywhere, like we can just take them as we please?

--That's hard to say, what if there are a lot?

Achoo!

After finishing lunch, Tao Qiu was about to go out for a stroll, to digest her food while on patrol, when suddenly she sneezed for no apparent reason.

He frowned.

Oh no, who's cursing him? Could it be that group of humans again?

Tao Qiu didn't know what had happened at the human base. Not long after Lou Yu returned, a group of humans came to his territory and then inexplicably fainted in front of him when he appeared.

Tao Qiu initially didn't understand the situation. Although he noticed another group of humans hiding not far away, secretly observing them, out of curiosity and a bit of sympathy for humans, he still landed nearby to investigate.

He didn't restrain his oppressive aura, so as soon as he approached, he found that the "fainted" human on the ground was trembling uncontrollably, almost as if he had carved the words "I'm so scared" onto his body.

And although he was covered in blood and his clothes were tattered, he was pretending to be seriously injured.

But Tao Qiu wasn't blind; he could tell whether someone was truly injured.

Tao Qiu extended its paw and gently flipped the human who was pretending to be unconscious over.

"Aaaaaah, don't kill me!"

The "severely injured" human screamed and jumped up, then screamed and ran away, tumbling and crawling, falling several times in the process.

Startled, Tao Qiu: "..."

He was a little speechless.

Tao Qiu initially thought the first time was accidental, until the second and third times it happened. Some people would even actually injure themselves to try again, just to make it more realistic.

Tao Qiu quickly realized that they seemed to be Lou Yu, wanting to be taken in by him as well.

Of course, they didn't dare actually lure the mutated monsters to chase them. If Tao Qiu hadn't intervened and their companions hadn't come to their rescue in time, their lives would have been in danger.

Tao Qiu's speechlessness reached a new level.

Putting aside the fact that taking Lou Yu back was out of necessity, he no longer has that need, and many of his secrets are hidden in the valley, which he hasn't even told Lou Yu, so how could other humans discover them?

Every time those disguised humans see him, they act like they've seen a ghost, so terrified they almost faint. If he were to arrest them, he'd probably scare them to death.

Tao Qiu recalled that before he regained his human memories, the people at the base noticed that he was relatively friendly towards humans and tried to get close to and tame him.

His actions weren't excessive; he simply drove them away. As for those who disrespected him and tried to force him, he tore them to pieces and threw them out. They were likely to be picked up and eaten by other mutated monsters, eventually becoming fertilizer for plants.

Now that those people see him getting along well with Lou Yu, they're probably rekindling their old desires.

Lou Yu is in the base, so he must know about this. He might even have given them some "guidance," otherwise these people wouldn't have acted in such a coordinated manner.

However, Tao Qiu didn't blame him for not stopping these people, because judging from their actions, they probably only knew the surface reason why Lou Yu was saved by him, and none of his secrets were revealed.

However, he could understand. Humanity had been trying to save itself and wanted to win over his faction. And coincidentally, he treated Lou Yu differently. Lou Yu was being questioned by the people at the base, and if he didn't give a clear answer, he might be in trouble.

Lou Yu may have fabricated some seemingly plausible but ultimately false statements to fool them, which is why he has recently exhibited these behaviors that Tao Qiu sees as somewhat absurd art performances.

These people only dared to linger on the edge of his territory, not even daring to get close. To be honest, they didn't have much of an impact on Tao Qiu. At first, he thought that if he ignored them, they would get bored and leave on their own.

However, some details that were discovered later made Tao Qiu change her mind.

He needs to resolve this matter today.

Hearing Dad sneeze, the baby birds playing nearby all gathered around.

Eldest Cub: "Chirp chirp?"

Is Dad sick?

Second child. "Chirp, chirp."

--Is this the flu, as they say in the cartoon?

Third Cub: "Chirp, chirp, chirp?"

--The cartoon says you need medicine when you're sick, but what if we don't have any medicine?

The little birds have already finished watching that cartoon and learned a lot of life tips from it, but not all of them can be applied to them.

Tao Qiu chuckled softly, squatted down, and patted their heads, saying gently, "Thank you for caring about Dad, but sneezing doesn't necessarily mean it's the flu. It could just be an itchy nose. Besides, your dad is perfectly healthy; he won't catch the flu."

"Chirp chirp." Erzai nuzzled Tao Qiu's hand.

--It's good that Dad isn't sick.

Tao Qiu's face was full of a gratified smile.

Let the kids play at home by themselves. Tao Qiu grabbed a large rock and flew out of the valley. Sure enough, he saw a group of humans on the edge of the territory.

More than one group of people came to do this. Some tried it once and stopped when they found it didn't work, while others were like a persistent leech, coming every few days. Tao Qiu recognized their faces.

Upon noticing the Snow Bird flying towards them, the group was initially quite excited, thinking they had finally won over the Snow Bird's heart and it would soon offer them prey.

But when the Snow Bird got closer, they realized that what it was holding in its Snow Bird was a rock, a boulder by their standards.

There's no prey, but they can have plenty of stones.

"The Snow Bird is going to kill someone again! Run!"

"My car! I rented it for a fortune!"

"Forget about the car, your life is more important, run!"

"Help! My legs are weak, someone help me!"

Tao Qiu ignored the humans scurrying about on the ground like ants. He flew above them, estimated the distance, and released his grip.

With a loud "bang," the stone fell and smashed into the ground, creating a crater.

The edge of the rock was pressed against the car, just a hair's breadth away from smashing it to pieces.

Those people ran even faster.

The Snow Bird's angry scream was high-pitched and piercing, causing several of the weaker humans to kneel down and instinctively cover their ears.

The Snow Bird's cries terrified the humans and also drove away the mutated monsters that were eyeing them menacingly nearby.

Ever since these humans started frequently coming to Tao Qiu's place to put on plays, mutated monsters that covet human flesh and blood have also come attracted by the aroma. If it weren't for the fact that the humans were in the Snow Bird's territory, they would have already rushed up and killed them to fill their bellies.

Tao Qiu understood that even if these people died, it was their own fault and had nothing to do with him, but he still didn't want them to get into trouble because of him, especially right under his nose.

Because of his special identity, he cannot simply stand on the side of humans or mutated monsters to judge who is right and who is wrong.

Even if the two sides were to fight to the death, it wouldn't be his problem; just don't cause trouble in front of him.

After issuing the warning, Tao Qiu turned and flew away.

Although those people fled joyfully, they didn't actually dare to leave the Snow Bird's territory.

Seeing the Snow Bird leave, and waiting for a while without seeing any sign of it returning, they sheepishly went back to their original spot.

Seeing the huge rock beside the car, they understood what the Snow Bird meant.

If he comes again next time, he won't miss with his stone.

These people weren't researchers, but ordinary people from the base who had simply heard about Lou Yu and wanted to seek an opportunity.

Instead of getting the opportunity he hoped for, he almost lost his life.

After returning home, this group of people, unafraid of losing face, recounted their experiences.

After hearing that the Snow Bird had already lost their temper, many people who were eager to try their luck gave up the idea.

And indeed, as Tao Qiu observed, because they frequently gathered near the Snow Bird's territory, many mutated monsters had already set their sights on them.

Several teams encountered mutated monster attacks on their way to and from the base and Snow Bird territory, resulting in significant casualties.

From then on, the once-vigorous "begging the Snow Bird for mercy" campaign completely died down, and even the researchers gave up after a few attempts.

Just as Captain Lou said, he has a unique personal charm that makes Snow Bird like him; no one else can.

Some speculate that Snow Bird's closeness to Lou Yu is likely because he is a superhuman, given that other man-eating mutated monsters are also quite interested in him.

However, Snow Bird is different from others. It doesn't want to eat Lou Yu, but rather... it likes him more and treats him better than ordinary people.

But acquiring superpowers is too difficult; this path is impassable, and ordinary people can only indulge in it in their dreams.