"It's really a cub... and it's alive!" Chen Yan's voice was filled with astonishment.
"Viviparous... it's actually viviparous..." Liu Feng also felt a chill run down his spine. The reproductive method of this creature was beyond their understanding.
"Alright, let's get it out."
Han Ning reminded them, and together with Chen Yan, he endured the disgust and reached into the slimy abdominal cavity, carefully avoiding the sticky tissues as they worked together to pull out the small Crocodile Lizard cub wrapped in its fetal membrane.
The cub was covered in mucus and blood. Once dragged out, it seemed to sense the stimulation of the outside environment, weakly struggling and letting out an extremely faint hiss.
Han Ning rummaged through his backpack and found a relatively clean plastic sheet originally used for wrapping food. He wrapped the small Crocodile Lizard in it, leaving only a small opening for it to breathe.
Then, he stuffed it into his backpack.
The backpack couldn't fully accommodate such a "large" creature, so half of its body remained outside while the other half was inside.
"Done." Han Ning zipped up the backpack, securing the Crocodile Lizard to prevent it from falling out.
Finally, he cut some meat from the smaller Crocodile Lizard and placed it in a plastic bag he carried with him, intending to use it for experiments.
"Let's go. The smell of blood here is too strong. You guys stay alert, and I'll carry him." Zhou Wan reminded them again, effortlessly carrying Lu Minghu on her back.
The five of them didn't dare to delay any longer.
They moved at their fastest speed, retracing their steps through the murky water and avoiding areas where floating debris might hide dangers.
Fortunately, they didn't encounter any other Crocodile Lizards on their way back.
These creatures weren't so numerous that they'd run into one every few steps.
When the five of them, drenched, covered in blood, and exhausted, reappeared at the fourth-floor stairwell, Crew Cut Man Qiangzi and the others who were guarding the area immediately rushed over.
Seeing their disheveled state, especially the unconscious Lu Minghu with his shoulder heavily bandaged, Qiangzi and the others' expressions changed.
"Feng-ge, what happened?"
"Stop the nonsense and help carry him inside!" Liu Feng sharply interrupted him.
...
Han Ning politely declined Liu Feng's invitation to rest on the fourth floor and returned to his new home on the eighth floor.
After locking the door securely, he immediately headed to the bathroom and placed the cloth-wrapped Crocodile Lizard cub on the floor.
Han Ning had always given thought to the choice of an Animal Companion.
Creatures like cats or dogs from before the apocalypse might have been cute, but they lacked any combat capability and were only good as pets.
In this world leaning toward the apocalypse, cuteness couldn't put food on the table.
The Crocodile Lizard cub in front of him might look terrifying, but if he could truly make it his own, it would undoubtedly become a powerful ally.
As long as its stats were high and it obeyed commands, that was all that mattered.
The small Crocodile Lizard was less than eighty centimeters long, its body covered in grayish-white Scales that hadn't fully hardened yet. Its slender tail twitched unconsciously.
Its form was a perfect blend of crocodile and lizard, with a sharp snout, fangs, thick and powerful limbs, and sharp claws.
.
No sooner had it regained its freedom than it let out a faint yet piercing hiss.
The yellow vertical pupils, encased in a murky mucus, held none of the innocence typical of an animal cub. Instead, they gleamed with a fierce malice.
"Hiss!"
It suddenly twisted, attempting to bite Han Ning's hand with its still toothless mouth.
"Quiet!" Han Ning glared and slapped it to the ground.
"Hiss—roar!" The cub's struggle didn't cease immediately. On the contrary, Han Ning's strike only fueled its frenzy.
Like a rabid dog being pinned down, it scraped its claws against the floor tiles, leaving chaotic white streaks in its wake.
"This thing is as uncontrollable as an alien," Han Ning muttered with a frown.
The cub's ferocity far exceeded that of a normal animal, as if slaughter and destruction were instincts carved deep into its genes.
"Let's see if I can form an Animal Companion Contract first."
According to the skill description on his panel, once a contract was established with an animal, the target would obey the contractor.
If he still couldn't control it, then destruction was the only option.
Recalling the knowledge about Animal Companions, Han Ning pressed one hand against the Crocodile Lizard cub. A faint green light seeped from his fingertips, coalescing into a shimmering sigil.
Just as the energy attempted to delve into the cub's body to establish a preliminary mental link—
A cold, destructive intent surged back through the connection.
The intent was weak, yet it carried a terrifying, pure malice, as if it sought to devour everything.
"This is…"
Han Ning's expression turned grave.
He immediately intensified his Spiritual Power output. The emerald glow flared brightly, forcibly suppressing the destructive intent.
Suddenly, his Spiritual Power penetrated the cub's brain, and he inexplicably "saw" an image.
Deep within the relatively simple structure of the cub's brain lurked a wisp of eerie, smoke-like energy—faint yet unmistakable.
"This doesn't seem innate to it. More like a contamination… or a curse?"
"Could it be the Black Tide's influence?!"
Words like "Erosion Tide" and "madness," described in the indigenous intel, flashed through Han Ning's mind.
It was highly likely that the Black Tide's downpour had seeped into these otherworldly creatures.
"Let's see if I can dispel it."
Han Ning mobilized nearly all his Spiritual Power, channeling it slowly into the cub's body, targeting the strand of destructive Black Qi entrenched in its brain.
Druidic energy represented the vitality and order of nature, diametrically opposed to the pure destructive aura.
The moment the Black Qi encountered the life-rich Druidic energy, it reacted like ice water splashed onto scorching metal.
Under Han Ning's Spiritual Pressure, it thrashed wildly, resisting desperately.
But the wisp of Black Qi was too feeble, like water without a source. Under Han Ning's assault, it quickly dissipated.
As the Black Qi was suppressed, Han Ning immediately sensed a change in the cub beneath his hand.
Its struggles weakened abruptly. The threatening hisses in its throat morphed into confused gurgles.
The ferocious glint in its yellow vertical pupils vanished, replaced by the bewildered gaze of a naive young beast.
Well… naive it might be, but this little creature was far from cute by nature.
"Hiss?"
It tentatively flicked its forked tongue, licking the sweat-beaded back of Han Ning's tense hand.
"Good…"
Han Ning rubbed its sticky head and continued with the contract ritual.
Earlier, he had merely helped the Crocodile Lizard cub disperse the negative energy in its mind. Now was the true beginning of forming the contract.
[You are sending a soul companion contract invitation to an 'Unknown Creature.' Awaiting response.] Faint, illusory text flashed at the bottom of the panel.
The cub seemed to sense this energy brimming with affinity. It tilted its head slightly, its vertical pupils revealing a hint of hesitation.
Without the maddening interference of the destructive Black Qi, its remaining instincts filled it with goodwill toward this life-filled energy.