Chapter 44

The snow leopard, being embraced from behind by Xiayu, stretched out, her long, sleek form appearing even more elongated, giving her an illusion of exceptionally long legs.

She even delivered a couple more kicks to the brown bear for good measure.

The brown bear, rubbing its paws, stayed put. After stealing a few glances at the snow leopard, it slowly inched away, its fluffy face showing a mix of slight grievance and overwhelming longing.

Longing for the food on the table.

Holding the hefty, fluffy snow leopard in her arms, Xiayu felt a mix of love and the strain of carrying such a weight.

The snow leopard turned to nuzzle Xiayu's cheek, then jumped down from her embrace. Its long tail brushed against Xiayu's calf as it cast a sideways glance at the brown bear.

At first, the brown bear was unsure. But after locking eyes with the snow leopard and recalling its previous mischief, it took a cautious step back.

The snow leopard snorted softly in her mind, gracefully trotting back to her blanket den. Her long tail waved gently by her side, its tip flicking back and forth.

Jiang Nan is Cheng Zhiyan's senior by nine years. Unlike Cheng Zhiyan's background, Jiang Nan comes from a loving family with both parents present, having grown up in a proverbial 'honey jar.'

This upbringing endowed Jiang Nan with a gentle and amiable nature. He got along with everyone, and despite coming from a civilian class, he thrived in the First Legion.

It was well-known in the First Legion that he was an ardent fan of Baihu (White Tiger).

Ever since his days in the military academy, Jiang Nan had his sights set on the First Army. Once he joined, he aspired to be among the Marshal's personal soldiers. Step by step, he seized opportunities, becoming a student under Lu Jiu Zhu, and ultimately securing a position as the Marshal's Deputy.

While Lu Jiu Zhu was forthright and flamboyant in his actions, Jiang Nan was a master of diplomacy, always greeting people with a smile, shielding Lu from many troubles.

Jiang Nan was to Lu Jiu Zhu what Wei Cheng was to Lu Ying Huai, a deeply trusted confidant to whom one could entrust their life.

But the main reason Cheng Zhi Nian would attack the brown bear upon sight was because during the latter stages of his mental disorder, he'd often isolate himself in the training room, lost in thought. Fan Yu Xin and Jiang Nan would often tease him. The last scene Cheng remembered before his hibernation was Jiang Nan replacing one wall of the training room with a huge poster of Cheng.

When Cheng Zhi Nian went into hibernation, he felt suffocated. The moment he opened his eyes and saw that familiar shade of chocolate, his instincts prompted him to lash out.

However, instead of retaliating, the brown bear covered its head, displaying an unusually good-natured and submissive demeanor. This made Miss Snow Leopard question the mental state of her senior fellow.

Coupled with the earlier news that the brown bear had specifically ventured near the white tiger's territory, did it mean Jiang Nan retained human consciousness even after entering the reserve?

How could that be possible?

What was on Miss Snow Leopard's mind was precisely the question in Lu Ying Huai's heart. Looking at the brown bear, he clearly saw the clarity of a human in its dark pupils.

Xia You didn't bother with such convoluted thoughts. After calming the little tiger and cuddling the protective black panther beside him, he curiously and tentatively approached the fluffy bear-like figure not far away.

In just a few moments, the brown bear seemed to have identified the leader of the group. It shook its massive body, rubbed its belly with its paw, and let out a low growl.

Xia You: "Uh..."

"Would you... like to join us for a bite?"

Such an invitation might be premature for most animals, but for the brown bear, it was just right.

—Because the next second after hearing this, the chocolate-colored furry giant stood up and confidently walked over to sit next to the table.

Their table was set up by a stream, and with only two humans in the team, there were naturally just two tables. Yet, for the bear's height, sitting on the ground aligned perfectly with the table.

Xia You blinked and, while returning to his seat, sneakily petted the brown bear's back fur.

Ah... the fur of a bear did feel different than that of a big cat.

After Xia You sat down, Lu Ying Huai had already silently placed a large bowl in front of the brown bear.

The claws of the brown bear differ from those of big cats. They can't retract into their paw pads, and compared to big cats, their claws are more blunt, a reflection of their different hunting methods.

The food on the table clearly wasn't enough for an additional bear guest. Xia You thought for a moment and pulled out two hind legs he had previously sliced from his prey from the spatial knot.

The initial plan had been for a barbecue that evening, but they'd forgotten about it, leaving the leg preserved in the spatial ring.

Xia You used his mental thread to slice the leg into large chunks and placed them in a bowl, setting it silently beside the brown bear.

Yet, the bear hardly glanced at it, his gaze firmly fixed on the cooked dishes on the table.

Both Xia You and Lu Yinghuai were somewhat bemused, but as neither of them were particularly hungry, and Xia You having just absorbed some energy stones, they decided to place all the food in front of the bear.

Seeing this, the bear let out a soft purr of gratitude and started to devour his meal.

The black panther, uncharacteristically, settled beside Xia You, eyes fixed intently on the bear next to him.

The young tiger drew near, watching the bear with curiosity.

Miss Snow Leopard, seemingly embarrassed by the bear's enthusiasm, buried her head, as if trying to block out the sight.

Contrary to his imposing size, this bear dined rather elegantly. While not displaying the refinement of a noble, he wasn't messy, using his long claws like forks, ensuring no sauce stained the fur on his chest.

Xia You, fascinated, retrieved a broadcasting sphere from his spatial ring, activated the live-stream, and remarked with a grin, "This amusing sight must be documented."

After all, dining with a fully-grown brown bear isn't an everyday occurrence!

Absolutely cool!

Lu Yinghuai looked like he wanted to say something but held back.

Miss Snow Leopard's ears twitched, and she wrapped her tail around herself, pretending she wasn't familiar with the bear.

The bear, engrossed in his meal just moments ago, suddenly looked up, eyes wide at the floating broadcast sphere, frozen in place.

The viewers, accustomed to Xia You's erratic streaming habits, often hung around in the chat room, or asked friends to record the stream in their absence.

However, the sight of a bear heartily eating took everyone by surprise.

Where did this massive bear come from?

Wait… Could this be the bear they'd mentioned before, the one chased by a tiger?

There weren't many with a brown bear spirit form. Older viewers instantly recalled the ever-smiling yet fiercely combative Deputy Marshal.

[Major Jiang Nan?]

[Absolutely. I vividly remember the white V mark on the chest of Major Jiang's spiritual entity...]

[Story upstairs?]

[More like a mishap. It was a live combat training, and Major Jiang Nan's spiritual entity went berserk. I happened to be nearby when a bear slapped my mech, sending it flying. I was knocked unconscious in the cockpit for several seconds.]

[Whoa...]

[Do you think Major Jiang Nan earned his position as Deputy Marshal by being all smiles and diplomacy? He's ferocious in a fight!]

[Moreover, Major Jiang Nan's fighting style is truly unique. His mech seems custom-made, not particularly offensive, but highly resilient. I heard that when Marshal Lu Jiu Zhu fought against him, it took more than 20 minutes to breach his defenses.]

[Major Jiang Nan is quite low-key. The newer soldiers might not know much about him. However, there's a thread on the military academy forum about him being the champion of his batch in the rookie mech tournament. Worth checking out.]

The barrage comments might be invisible to the bear, but it clearly recognized what this small, round object was.

Pausing for two seconds, the bear looked down at the shrimp in its paw, seeming indecisive about whether to eat it or not.

Lu Yinghuai hid his smile behind his hand and turned away.

The panther raised its paw to its face, pretending nothing happened.

Xia You asked worriedly, "Why aren’t you eating?"

The bear should have a large appetite; it seemed starving just moments ago, so it couldn't possibly be full after just a few bites.

The snow leopard couldn't stand it any longer. It took a few steps, its sharp claws snapping out, skewering a piece of raw meat and thrusting it into the bear's mouth.

——Good stuff, eat up!

The bear, which had initially shown distaste for raw meat, was now forced to eat. Moments later, its eyes lit up as it began to devour the meal voraciously.

The snow leopard licked its paw, modestly downplaying its kind act.

Xia You: “?”

Lu Yinghuai: “.”

Thankfully, the live stream is only authorized for access within the First Legion...

Otherwise, based solely on these live stream videos, the image of the First Legion as valiant, mysterious, and formidable would have undoubtedly shattered.

[Is the shape of this meat piece... a signature touch of the Marshal's wife?]

[Is the Marshal's wife's psychic ability of the healing type?]

[No healing ability has ever been used this way before; it must be a unique power. Let's wait for the official announcement.]

[Is it just me, or does Major Jiang Nan's spiritual entity seem less like a bear and more like a person in a bear's guise?]

[+1, hard to disagree.]

Minutes later, the bear had consumed everything edible on the table and then turned its expectant eyes towards Xia You.

Xia You, who didn't know how to cook, looked towards Lu Yinghuai.

Silently, Lu Yinghuai retrieved over a dozen packs of instant noodles from his space node.

As they began boiling water and adding noodles to the pot, Xia You occasionally threw in some vegetables and meat.

The bear sat nearby, holding its bowl, waiting eagerly.

Fifteen minutes later—

They cooked one pot and ate one pot until all the instant noodles from Lu Yinghuai's space node were gone. Only then did the bear rub its belly, head over to a nearby stream to drink, wash its mouth and paws, and then leisurely return to sit across from Lu Yinghuai and Xia You.

Xia You was taken aback.

Hold on, after finishing the meal, what does it mean for it to sit in front of them?

Recalling the sudden attack on the bear by the snow leopard earlier, and the bear's lack of resistance, Xia You paused and turned to look at Lu Yinghuai, whose expression showed no surprise.

"Your Highness, is this bear... a friend of the snow leopard?"

Frankly speaking, the idea of a snow leopard being friends with a bear is even more bizarre than a lynx being friends with a snow leopard.

Since bears are omnivores with strong adaptability, many of them in treeless, fruit-scarce highland areas often choose to snatch prey that snow leopards or other large cats have laboriously hunted.

After all, a fully-grown bear, when extremely hungry, might even snatch food right from a tiger's mouth.

Yet Xia You had come to terms with the fact that the animals in the reserve were exceptionally intelligent and exhibited certain peculiarities that seemed to defy logic.

Lu Yinghuai... Lu Yinghuai nodded with a stoic expression.

Xia You stared intently at Marshal for over ten seconds, and just when Lu Yinghuai was about to say something, she suddenly smiled: "I see. Since he's a friend of the snow leopard, I'll help with the check-up."

Lu Yinghuai quietly let out a sigh of relief.

To be honest, at least until they left the snow mountain reserve, he didn't wish to explain this matter in front of Xia You.

He could sense that Xia You was growing suspicious, but Lu Yinghuai found it impossible to stand before her with the black panther while sober and admit that "Yuan Yuan" was his spiritual entity.

For now, it would remain this way. Once they left the snow mountain reserve, someone would inevitably tell Xia You...

Just not him.

For the first time, the Marshal felt what could almost be described as a desire to retreat and evade.

The bear was massive, and its paw weighed quite a bit.

Xia You could hardly support it with one hand and had to use both, involuntarily looking up into the eyes of the bear that happened to glance her way.

Within the bear's eyes, Xia You perceived an almost human-like contemplation and scrutiny.

She glanced at Lu Yinghuai, who was cleaning the table, let her gaze drift over the gigantic black cat sitting beside her, and then lowered her eyes with a faint frown.

The sudden speculation that arose in her mind was so bizarre and outlandish that it was hard for Xia You to digest.

Humans are humans, and animals are animals. How could it be possible that...

Nevermind. She needed to focus on the task at hand.

Xia You centered herself and sent her psychic energy probing into the bear's body.

She had just treated the snow leopard, so her psychic energy wasn't exactly at its peak. She just wanted to see if the bear had a similar condition to the snow leopard and lynx. But the moment her psychic energy touched the bear's inner self, she softly exclaimed, "Oh?"

In the live broadcast, viewers initially assumed the feed would be cut off. However, the Marshal merely glanced at the streaming orb and allowed Xia You's treatment of Major Jiang Nan to be broadcasted.

This was the first time the live stream openly showcased the concept that "spiritual entities can be treated."

The live broadcast's viewer count surged instantly, and it continued to grow rapidly.

Even His Majesty, residing within the Royal Palace of the Capital Star, set aside his imperial duties to sit attentively and earnestly in front of the live stream screen.

Yet, no comments flew across the top of the video, creating a silence so profound it felt like everyone was holding their breath in tension.

Xia You's soft exclamation drew the attention of both Lu Yinghuai and the snow leopard, making them turn to look at him.

For the first time during the examination, Xia You opened his eyes, pondered for a few seconds with his head lowered, then retrieved two energy stones from his dimensional link, placing them on his lap. He then delved once more with his psychic tendrils into the bear.

Minutes later, the energy stones on Xia You's lap turned to dust and cascaded down, and he released the bear's warm, solid paw.

Instead of retracting, Xia You's little psychic tendrils sprawled out on the table, exuding an utterly drained and petulant demeanor.

Lu Yinghuai shifted slightly to block the camera view of the live streaming orb and reassuringly caressed the small tendril.

Feeling Lu Yinghuai's gesture, Xia You's lips curved slightly. Clearing his throat, he allowed his psychic tendril to seek the comfort of His Highness after exerting itself, as he seriously stated, "Your Highness, the gray substance inside the bear is significantly less compared to Qu Qi and the snow leopard."

Pausing momentarily, Xia You emphasized, "Much less."

Not to mention the severe case of the snow leopard, when Xia You first encountered the lynx, almost every part of its body was coated with that gray substance.

But this massive creature before him only had minor gray matter accumulations around its blood vessels and limbs, though the buildup in its brain was similar to the lynx's.

Lu Yinghuai understood; this probably explained why Jiang Nan could remain lucid.

But... why was it so?

Those diagnosed with psychic disarray syndrome, leading to a tangible manifestation of their psychic essence, reached a state where they couldn't control their psychic energy.

Lu Yinghuai remembered Jiang Nan's condition.

Indeed, he was one of the last in his group to succumb to the sleep, but his psychic levels did exceed his body's tolerance threshold, which caused him to enter a dormant state and have his psychic essence placed in the reserve.

After pondering for a while, Lu Yinghuai, observing Xia You covertly braiding the bear's fur, decisively reached out and switched off the live stream feed.

Live stream chat: [!!!]

Simultaneously, the computer of the Chamberlain next to His Majesty started to flash frantically with red alerts.

The Chamberlain glanced at the flurry of incoming messages, casually silencing them with a single tap.

His Majesty the Emperor: “…”

After a moment of contemplation, His Majesty the Emperor resisted the urge to communicate with Lu Yinghuai at that moment and instead continued to address state affairs.

After a while, he suddenly instructed, “Keep an eye on Lanxing. If Cheng Zhi Nian awakens, have her return to the Imperial Star with Fan Yuxin for debriefing.”

“They should have had a title conferment ceremony back then. Now that she's awake, everything due should be given.”

“Understood.”

***

Inside the sanctuary, Lu Yinghuai stored the live-streaming orb into the spatial node, whispering, “Xiaoyu, if the brown bear fell ill long before the lynx and snow leopard, but its symptoms are much milder, what do you think is the primary reason for this discrepancy?”

Xiaoyu hadn't expected such a question from Lu Yinghuai. After a deep thought, her expression seemed conflicted.

Lu Yinghuai chuckled, “The stream has been turned off; it's okay to be wrong. It's just a research direction.”

Xiaoyu sighed in relief and said, “Upon comparison, although both the brown bear and the big cats are predators, there's a distinct difference.”

“All the big cats are carnivores, while the brown bear isn't.”

The brown bear's eyes flickered for a moment.

“Previously, the gray substance in Yuan Yuan and La Tiao kept reoccurring. I've observed that every time it resurges, it's after their hunting sessions.”

“Even if Yuan Yuan doesn't participate in the hunt, as long as he eats, there would be some accumulation of the gray substance in his body.”

This discovery initially troubled Xiaoyu. The big cats obviously couldn't stop eating or become herbivores due to this, as it goes against their natural instincts.

Lu Yinghuai, who had been rhythmically tapping on the table, suddenly halted.

Initially, spirits didn't need to eat. It was only discovered that hunting alleviated their pain, so this method persisted.

But if, from the very beginning, this approach was mistaken…

Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment but voiced her deeper suspicion: “Your Highness, have you ever considered that the gray substance's goal might be to make these animals turn on each other, and through... cannibalism, birth the strongest of them all?”

Xiaoyu wasn't just speculating; this was the process by which a Zombie King was born in the post-apocalyptic world.

In the apocalypse, the most terrifying existence isn't the hordes of zombies, but when zombies in a city begin to cannibalize each other, significantly reducing their numbers, subsequently giving birth to a Zombie King.

The birth of every Zombie King signifies a looming assault on the survivors' stronghold.

With a creak, the sturdy table groaned under the force of the bear paw and snow leopard claw.

Lu Yinghuai took a deep breath and gently tapped the table.

The eavesdropping snow leopard withdrew its paw from the table edge, picked up its tail, and turned away.

The brown bear, with an innocent expression, shifted its bear paw away.

However, in the next moment, the table abruptly collapsed, scattering the teacup and teapot shards everywhere.

Xiaoyu: "!"

The brown bear quickly raised its paws, gesturing by its ears as if to say it wasn’t its fault.

Lu Yinghuai, who momentarily lost control of his strength after hearing the conversation: "..."

Meeting the subtle and direct glances coming his way, Lu Yinghuai, with an unperturbed demeanor, simply gathered the mess into a corner of the spatial node.

Xiaoyu: "Your Highness…?"

Without looking up, Lu Yinghuai pinched the small psychic tendril wrapped around his wrist.

Xiaoyu immediately fell silent.

Sneaking a glance at the mountain-like brown bear next to him, Xiaoyu's vague suspicions began to clarify.

*

Having consumed an excessive amount of energy stones today, Xiaoyu started feeling drowsy.

The gentle sound of a babbling stream, distant chirping of birds, and the nearby purring of a large cat intermingled. Gradually, Xiaoyu's eyelids grew heavy, and he finally drifted off to sleep under a tree, wrapped in a blanket.

Most feline creatures are nocturnal by nature, finding solace in daytime naps.

Xiaoyu nestled into the warm fur of the panther's belly, wrapped in his blanket, holding onto one of its paws.

Although the winter afternoon sun hung warmly in the sky, there was still a nip in the air. However, beside Xiaoyu lay not just a continuously warm furry cushion, but also a young tiger, shielding him from the cold breeze.

Lu Yinghuai walked over, placing another thick blanket over Xiaoyu, taking care to brush aside the black panther fur that had settled on Xiaoyu's face.

By the time he turned back, both the snow leopard and the brown bear had lined up beside him, awaiting their briefing.

Lacking any sort of neural interface, both spirit bodies relied on more direct methods of communication. Lu Yinghuai enlarged the holographic screen and presented it to the bear and leopard.

The brown bear looked at Lu Yinghuai and began inputting messages on the screen with its claw.

[At first, I indeed went through a period of disorientation, but one day, I just suddenly became lucid.]

[As the healer earlier speculated, once I entered the sanctuary, my spirit form seldom hunted animals and primarily consumed plant-based foods.]

After regaining his human consciousness, the idea of consuming raw meat became inconceivable.

That is to say, ever since Jiang Nan entered the sanctuary, he had maintained a vegetarian diet.

Lu Yinghuai's expression grew colder as he recalled Xiaoyu's speculations about the spirit forms resorting to cannibalism.

The brown bear's face took on a contemplative and solemn look.

The atmosphere grew tense. The snow leopard glanced at the brown bear and input:

[Even if you stick to a plant-based diet, shouldn't you have eaten enough not to be that emaciated?]

The once serious expression on the brown bear's face quickly transformed into one of embarrassment.

As it locked eyes with Lu Yinghuai, it anxiously scratched the ground with its claws, leaving visible marks on the hard stone.

It's fair to say that, when human consciousness inhabits these spirit forms, certain personality traits tend to get magnified.

These traits are often facets of their personality that weren't overtly visible during their human lives.

The brown bear's gaze was filled with grievance: [After regaining consciousness, I genuinely tried to return but was always unable to.]

[Then I remembered my teacher's spirit form was in bad shape when entering the sanctuary. Given that both sanctuaries are adjacent, and as a bear I could thrive anywhere, I moved over.]

[Things were fine initially. Some time ago, I found a cave to hibernate in. Suddenly, my teacher found me. At first, I thought she had regained her senses, but then...]

The brown bear sat on the ground and let out a deep, world-weary sigh.

[She's been relentlessly chasing me for almost a month now. I haven’t even had a chance to sit down for a proper meal.]

Instead of showing sympathy for his senior's plight, the snow leopard laughed so hard that even the tip of its tail quivered.

However, Lu Yinghuai suddenly spoke, "Did you sense our psychic energy and come to find us on purpose?"

The brown bear paused. A realization seemed to dawn on him, and the expression on his furry face changed in an instant.

[No, I'm not that sensitive to psychic energy. I was being chased by my teacher and happened to move in this direction, only then stumbling upon you all...]