Chapter 274: Ferocious Beasts Inside
Translator: BeetleBarker Editor: Tennesh
After sorting out Curly Hair’s file, Wa Kaning excitedly said, “Let’s go see the other one!”
Although they had been a little intimidated by Curly Hair, they still had one other purpose for this trip, and it was something their compiling department considered important. This was the first case of a sea slug with extraterrestrial genes, so they would have to spend more time to carefully study it.
“Beautiful! It’s so pretty!” Wa Kaning looked at the pure white “rabbit.” It’s external appearance actually seems quite different from the choppy-hair variety.
“After all, it has half choppy-hair genes. It is only natural for there to be some differences,” Muto said.
Wa Kaning took out a pair of gloves from his case. “Begin.” There were sensors on these gloves that would transmit all sorts of data when it came into contact with the sea slug.
Of course, there were other methods of examining it, but Wa Kaning’s reason for choosing to use gloves to examine it was actually because he wanted to touch it personally.
Fang Zhao had already given them a copy of this sea slug’s record, and the information on it was even more detailed. There was no need to ask much, but…
“What’s its name?” Muto asked Fang Zhao when he saw the blank space there.
“Not yet named,” Fang Zhao replied.
Fang Zhao’s reply made Wa Kaning and the others dazed for a second. Generally, it was alright for owners of ornamental fishes or other ornamental aquatic pets to not give a name for their pets, but this sea slug before their eyes was the only one in the entire world. To the people from PET, this sea slug had a much higher value than Curly Hair and it could even glow. How could it even be considered an ordinary ornamental pet?
“How about giving it a name? After all, it’s the only one in the world,” Wa Kaning suggested.
Fang thought about it. That made sense. This sea slug was actually rather smart, so giving it a name was not a bad idea.
“Call it Big White,” Fang Zhao said.
Muto wasn’t in favor of it. “It’s so small—calling it Big White? A few days back, we went to make a record of a great white shark that had been successfully bred. The owner named that great white shark ‘Big White’.”
“Than how about Little White,” Fang Zhao offered.
Now it was Wa Kaning who didn’t approve. “It’s so big yet you are calling it Little White? Although there are other such sea slugs this size, for the choppy-hair variety, it is already considered large. Even if it is an extraterrestrial variant of the choppy-hair variety, it is very big already.”
Yan Biao’s lips curled. Too much b*llshit! If you talk about size, the one in the water tank can be taken out and made into stew, unlike those native choppy-hair varieties that would barely be a morsel. However, Yan Biao was also very certain that if that actually happened, because this little thing was poisonous, he wouldn’t even dare to eat it.
Actually, Wa Kaning wasn’t finding fault. He was trying to get Fang Zhao to think about it more and give it a more classy name—not like Curly Hair, whose name sounded like it had been picked randomly!
A dog with a value more than 100 million being called “Curly Hair”? Just hearing it made their hearts ache.
Looking at the pure white ball of fluff that was the “rabbit,” Wa Kaning felt his heart aching again. Rabbity is so cute, how can it have such a vulgar name?
But even if his heart ached, he did not have any other complaints. This was somebody else’s pet, and the final decision was in the hands of the owner. Wa Kaning could only keep his objections to himself.
“Than call it Spiky Hare,” Fang Zhao said.
Wa Kaning wanted to advise Fang Zhao to change the name again. This name sounded awkward, and people who did not know much would think that it came from the crossbreeding of a hedgehog and a hare. However, they had already denied two names previously, and if they were going to reject yet another name given by the owner, that would really be impolite.
Immediately, the room became quiet again.
“Wasn’t there some sort of animal called a Spiky Hare in ancient stories?” Zuo Yu suddenly asked.
“That was Red Hare. 1 It was the name of a horse,” Fang Zhao corrected.
“Right, the horse named Red Hare. Since a horse can be called ‘hare,’ then so can a sea slug! I feel that the name boss came up with is really great,” Zuo Yu said.
Fang Zhao had originally wanted to explain, but after considering it, he felt there wasn’t a need to waste his breath. He would let Zuo Yu read up on it himself after this matter was settled.
Yan Biao, who had been standing to the side, secretly thought to himself, Zuo Yu, this *ss-kisser!
Yan Biao thought back to his first day on the job as a bodyguard. On that day, Zuo Yu had spoken to him. “A qualified bodyguard need not be smart, but he definitely needs to be devoted. It’s simple, really: whatever the boss says is absolutely right!”
Thinking back, Yan Biao shuddered internally. He immediately seconded what Zuo Yu had said. “Well said! The ‘hare’ in its name doesn’t have to mean it is a hare. The ‘spiky’ in its name doesn’t have to mean it is a hedgehog. Calling it Spiky Hare gives it a really profound image. I also feel that it is really great!” If the boss called it a hare, then it shall be called a hare. Furthermore, it looked like a hare anyway.
Wa Kaning looked at them disdainfully. These two bodyguards are just lackeys!
Noticing Muto looking over, Wa Kaning bit down and nodded. So be it. Spiky Hare it shall be. What else could they do?
Watching the name being recorded down, Wa Kaning stared at the water tank, sighing in his heart. Oh darling, this is all I can help you with. At least you don’t have to share a name with a great white shark.
“What hobbies does it have?” Muto asked Fang Zhao.
“Eating,” Fang Zhao replied.
Muto asked again. “Er… do you have any additional things to add?”
“It can eat a lot.”
“…Got it.”
Having settled on a name, Muto looked through the information Fang Zhao had furnished and proceeded to update the record. As for Wa Kaning, he was preparing to touch the sea slug and have the sensors on his gloves obtain some data.
Putting on the gloves and checking there were no problems and they were not leaking, he extended his hands into the water tank. In a bit, he would be touching the first ever hybrid sea slug with extraterrestrial genes in the entire world. Wa Kaning was overwhelmed with emotions as he kept his gaze firmly fixed on that sea slug.
Fang Zhao warned him once more. “It is very poisonous. You have to be careful.”
“Trust us, we are professionals. This time, I’m even wearing extra-thick gloves, and the sensors have been upgraded. Our preparations are sufficient, don’t worry…”
Wa Kaning had not even finished speaking when he felt a sharp pain in his palm.
“Ahhh!” Wa Kaning shouted.
A series of beeping warnings sounded from the gloves, but everything had happened too quickly. Wa Kaning hadn’t even had time to react before he had been affected by the venom.
Wa Kaning quickly withdrew his hand out of the water tank before removing his gloves, and he found his entire palm was swollen like a bear’s paw.
Muto couldn’t be bothered recording down the information. Watching Wa Kaning’s hand that had rapidly swelled up before his very eyes, he nearly screamed like a chicken.
“Doctor! I’ve been poisoned!” Wa Kaning wailed.
The other vet in the party, who was a sea slug specialist and was meant to provide treatment for anyone stung by one, had already reacted quickly and taken out all sorts of antidotes and diagnostic equipment.
When Wa Kaning had just taken off the gloves, only his palm had been swollen. Now, it had extended to his entire arm.
Wa Kaning’s entire body was trembling uncontrollably. “I… I don’t need… an amputation, do I?” Every word that came out of his mouth seemed like it was falling apart. All he felt was a painful burning sensation in his entire arm, and his palm had gone completely numb.
As the vet was checking on Wa Kaning’s arm, Yan Biao calmly answered, “No need, it’s not life-threatening. Spraying some medicine on it will cure the swelling after a while.”
“After a while?” Wa Kaning was ashen faced. Whether it was from the poison or because he was scared sh*tless, nobody knew.
Muto and the others wore looks of surprise as well. They knew that the medicine used to counteract the toxins from the choppy-hair variety would normally reduce the swelling immediately. Now, they were told that it would need a while?
How long was “after a while”?
How many minutes? How many hours?
Wa Kaning was apprehensive. “Is it really… really alright?”
The vet spoke. “It’s fine.” Although it was unknown how long Wa Kaning would take to recover, they could at least confirm that it wasn’t serious. It just looked terrifying.
Muto was puzzled. “Didn’t you wear extra-thick gloves? How was it still able to pierce through? Furthermore, the toxicity is too high. Is it normally fed with venomous feed?”
“Mr. Fang, can we see what this sea slug eats?” the vet asked.
“Sure.” Fang Zhao took out the box of feed from the cupboard below and handed it over. “It doesn’t contain toxins.”
The Vet’s smile seemed a little awkward. “I know, I’m not suspecting you.” Actually, he also knew that there wouldn’t be a problem with the feed and that the reason was most likely because of its extraterrestrial genes. Its toxicity would not be the same as the choppy-hair variety they were familiar with.
As if he had realized something, the vet asked, “According to the rumors, when it was still on planet Baiji, a bodyguard of Leizhou’s senior master Zaro was stung by it?”
“That happened,” Fang Zhao replied.
The vet nodded his head. Looking at things today, it seemed like they had lucked out. If he had not worn such thick gloves or if Fang Zhao had not been feeding it this sort of mild feed but something more toxic, he reckoned that Wa Kaning would not only have a swollen arm, his life might even be in danger!
Wa Kaning opened his mouth to say something but decided to swallow his words. He made a gesture to Muto with his healthy arm. Muto added a remark to the file: “HD.”
In their archives, “HD” was an abbreviation for “Highly Dangerous.”
As for the vet, he held up the pair of gloves that had been pierced, his heart filled with layers of doubts.
How had these gloves meant for specialized use been so easily pierced? Watching from the side, the “hairs” of the sea slug in the water tank looked rather soft. Only at the moment when Wa Kaning had touched it had the hairs stood up. And at the point where it had triggered its defense mechanism, it had expressed some offensive intent.
But still, it shouldn’t have pierced through the gloves. Why exactly had that happened?
“Mr. Fang, normally, when you interact with it, what sort of gloves do you wear?” the vet asked.
Fang Zhao took out a pair of gloves from the cupboard below. These were the sort of ordinary gloves sold at ornamental aquatic pet stores. Fang Zhao had asked Spiky Hare’s breeder, Professor Denzel, before and been told that these gloves were usable, but only limited to him. Fang Zhao had also mentioned this to Wa Kaning.
Wa Kaning felt wronged. He had dropped some of his vigilance after seeing those gloves of Fang Zhao’s. Fang Zhao’s gloves were so thin, while theirs were especially thick and should have provided 100% protection. Unfortunately, they had still been pierced!
The vet examined the pair of gloves that Wa Kaning had taken off, examined the fine and tiny holes in it that were hard to detect, and did not understand at all. Finally, all he could conclude was that it probably had something to do with the sea slug’s extraterrestrial genes.
No wonder many extraterrestrial breeds were so tightly regulated. They were really dangerous!
On the file of Spiky Hare, Muto added an “Extremely Dangerous” behind the “HD.”
Ten minutes later.
Wa Kaning could feel sensations in his palm again, but his entire arm still remained swollen. As before, the burning pain remained. All they could do was increase the speed of the recording process and not ask too many unnecessary questions.
After the cameraman had snapped a few photos, the five of them bade their farewells. They still had to rush to the hospital. Wa Kaning’s arm still needed thorough medical aid and other sorts of medicine. Delaying it for too long would not end well.
“In our next edition of PET, we will have an estimation of the two pets you own. Do remember to look out for it, Mr. Fang.”
Before leaving, Wa Kaning stopped as he was stepping out and turned to talk to Fang Zhao. “Mr. Fang, I suggest you put a sign outside your door to warn others. Generally, for houses that contain pets that are extremely dangerous, it’s best to remind your surrounding neighbors or visitors so as to avoid any unnecessary incidents. When you bring Curly Hair out, you must remember to leash him, and the leash must be the most sturdy kind.”
Fang Zhao accepted Wa Kaning’s suggestions.
After the few of them left, Fang Zhao pasted a sign outside his door that read: “Ferocious beasts inside, please keep away unless invited!”
