It had been sixty years since the apocalypse began, and almost everyone knew the two criteria for a mutated creature’s evolution: physical size and energy levels.

This little rat was a tiny bit smaller than before, but the difference wasn’t obvious. As for its energy... Gu Xi frowned slightly.

The energy inside the rat was fluctuating wildly and was extremely unstable. This situation... felt strangely familiar to Gu Xi.

In the next instant, a small green sprout shot out from Gu Xi’s fingertip, instantly growing to over ten feet long and binding the Mutated Rat King that was frantically digging a hole.

The captured Mutated Rat King seemed stunned for a moment. Its small, red, bean-like eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a look of confusion. But it quickly came to its senses and started squeaking nonstop at Gu Xi.

Unfortunately, no one could understand the language of rats.

Qi Xiang came running over from a distance, yawning. She glanced at the rat, which was clearly frenzied as if it were on steroids, and asked lazily, "What’s wrong with Bai?"

"Who’s Bai?" Liu Hao, who was standing nearby, turned his head and asked.

"It is," Qi Xiang said, pointing at the bound little rat. "I named it after my Da Hong at home. Look at its golden fur..."

At Qi Xiang’s words, everyone’s gaze fell in unison on the filthy rat. It was true; the rat’s golden fur had once been glossy and smooth, but now...

"That’s not the right name," Shen Yue said, chewing on half a raw sweet potato. He pushed his way through the crowd, leaned lazily against a nearby tree, and raised an eyebrow in the little rat’s direction. "By your logic, it should be called Goldie."

"What kind of naming sense is that?" Qi Xiang shot him a disdainful look as soon as she heard the awful name. "Goldie? That sounds like a dog’s name..." ’How could that possibly sound as nice and pleasant as my Bai?’

The crowd fell silent. ’Is there really any fundamental difference between Goldie and Bai?’

But everyone knew Miss Qi was sharp-tongued... oh, wait, that wasn’t it. A gentleman doesn’t argue with a lady. So, Bai it was.

Only Wei Heng, who had followed along, gave the two a speechless look before silently walking over to Gu Xi’s side.

Qi Xiang huffed softly and continued with her previous topic. "...Look at its golden fur, which sets off those two wisps of white whiskers on its snout so perfectly. How lively and elegant..."

Qi Xiang explained the origin of the name Bai with great passion and expression.

Everyone followed her gaze. Hmm... they had to admit, looking at it that way, the name Bai was actually quite fitting.

Only Shen Yue let out a lazy scoff. "Fine, call it Bai if you want." ’But did the little rat agree to be called that?’

Qi Xiang walked up to the Mutated Rat King and raised her hand, as if to pat its head. But faced with a head full of muck... Qi Xiang just couldn’t bring herself to do it. She resorted to a verbal command instead. "Bai, give me a squeak."

The little rat squinted its small, red, bean-like eyes and shot her a glance. Then, it wobbled, flopped onto the ground, and shoved the front half of its body into the hole it had dug earlier, leaving only its round, filthy rump facing Qi Xiang.

Qi Xiang: "..."

Everyone: "..."

Only Shen Yue raised an eyebrow smugly. "Looks like it doesn’t really like that name..."

"Nonsense," Qi Xiang said, telling a blatant lie as she pointed at Bai. "Can’t you see it’s so happy it got shy?"

Before Shen Yue could retort, Qi Xiang walked over to Gu Xi and hooked her arm. "Gu Xi, you try calling it Bai..."

Gu Xi: "...Bai."

A faint "squeak" came from inside the rat hole.

Qi Xiang immediately lifted her chin to look at the crowd, her face full of pride. "See? Bai really does like the name. It answered as soon as Gu Xi called it."

Everyone: ’So that’s what you call "liking" it? It’s more like intimidation. Given how cowardly that little rat is around Gu Xi, it would answer to any name she called it.’

After the name Bai was settled, Qi Xiang looked up and asked Gu Xi, "Gu Xi, what’s wrong with Bai?"

Gu Xi slowly shook her head, pulled Bai out of the rat hole, and took out a handful of sparkling Crystal Cores from her space, placing them in front of it.

But this time, the little rat, which had previously shown an intense craving for Crystal Cores, didn’t even glance at the ones in her hand.

Gu Xi frowned slightly, lost in thought. She then switched to a few un-Purified Crystal Cores from a mutated fish monster... This time, Bai reacted. As if it had gone mad, its eyes turned red and it began to writhe frantically, trying to lunge for the gray Crystal Cores in Gu Xi’s hand.

’Just as I thought.’ Gu Xi tossed the Crystal Cores back into her space, stood up, and explained to the crowd who were all looking at her, "I think... this is happening because it absorbed too much of that energy in a short period and couldn’t digest it, so its mind is a little muddled?"

Everyone thought about it and agreed that made a lot of sense. After all, everyone in the camp had seen for themselves how gluttonous Bai was.

"So what do we do now?" Qi Xiang asked, propping her chin on her hand. "We can’t just ignore it and let Bai dig holes all over the camp all day, can we?"

Gu Xi looked up in the direction beyond the miasma and asked in return, "I think... in a situation like this, it would be best to hand it over to the researchers."

Qi Xiang instantly recalled what Gu Xi had said to Chen Jia in front of everyone in the research team last time, and she grew thoughtful. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

’So Gu Xi hadn’t just made preparations on two fronts, she was also planning to add more fuel to the fire.’

And Bai, as kindling, had clearly arrived at the perfect time.

Qi Xiang’s gaze fell on Bai, who was still oblivious to its fate. She smiled, her expression especially charming. "How about I personally deliver Bai over there?"

After all, she was familiar with this kind of thing; she was the one who delivered the strange fish last time.

Gu Xi shook her head. "I’ll go." Bai’s condition was a bit unstable right now; Qi Xiang probably couldn’t control it.

Just then, Ye Junhan walked over. "I’ll go."

Gu Xi glanced at him.

Ye Junhan looked at her without speaking. After Bai was delivered, someone would have to watch over it for a long time. Given Gu Xi’s status, it wouldn’t be appropriate.

Gu Xi thought for a moment. Ye Junhan was indeed more suitable for this kind of task, so she handed Bai over to him.

Nearby, Liu Hao watched Bai being taken away and said with a look of pity, "Falling into the hands of those researchers... our poor Bai..."

The others: ’Before you say that, could you wipe that gloating look off your face?’

After Bai was taken away, the group was about to leave when they saw Gu Xi walk up to one of the rat holes. Everyone couldn’t help but stop.

"Gu Xi, what are you looking at?" Qi Xiang walked over and crouched beside her, following her gaze to the hole in the ground. The opening wasn’t large, about the size of a bowl, but it looked very deep. It was pitch-black inside, and nothing was visible to the naked eye.

Gu Xi stood up, dusted off her hands, and shook her head. "Nothing, just looking around." ’A moment ago, she had sensed the aura of that little tadpole from this rat hole, but the aura had vanished in an instant.’

Before leaving, Gu Xi gave the rat hole another discreet, thoughtful look.

...

That night, Gu Xi was resting by the campfire as usual.

Suddenly, a strange sound appeared within her senses. It was like blood vessels pulsing around a heart—sometimes distant, sometimes near. The rhythm was slow, but each beat was heavy...

It felt as though her own heartbeat was being dragged along, matching its rhythm, each beat heavier than the last... so heavy it was hard to breathe.

Gu Xi’s eyes snapped open, a soul-stirring, sharp glint flashing within them for an instant.

Her gaze slowly swept over the people in the camp. Seeing that no one else seemed to have heard the sound, she frowned slightly, then stood up and casually walked toward the edge of the camp.