Chapter 3: Did I Get Taken Advantage Of?
[Infernal Creature: Hellhound]
[Potential: Lord (Common, Elite, Lord, King, Epic, Legendary, Mythical)]
[Tier 3: 0/10000]
[Name: Not Named.]
[Skill: Not Grasped.]
[Believer: True Believer (Provides 10 faith points daily)]
[Mood: Joyful]
[Analysis: A hell-creature with a strong territorial instinct. Once it acknowledges a master, it becomes extremely loyal. A lord-level beast like this appears only among one in a hundred thousand mutant beasts.]
"Who would've thought this little puppy has lord-level potential."
"Though just a bit lesser than the little black cat."
"But in the future, it should also be a rare pet, right?"
Walking the remaining distance from the park's back gate to the nearby abandoned hospital, Zeng Shen pondered over the attribute panel of the small chow chow, contemplating the crises that might arise when the apocalypse arrives.
"The apocalypse will arrive in a year, and human civilization will be annihilated, giving rise to a new civilization, the Deity Civilization."
"Before this evolution, there will inevitably be a period of brutal, dark, and bloody chaos."
"If I want to grow rapidly during this period, to have a place in the future Deity Era, I need to rely on this system that came early to quickly earn ten thousand survival points, activate the lottery wheel, and draw treasures to cultivate my believers."
"In other words, these survival points are the guarantee of my future strength."
"Currently, I have only 3100 points, far from the ten thousand needed."
"There are four known ways to earn points."
"First, recruit believers."
"Second, turn general believers into true believers."
"Third, gain favor from stronger mutant beasts through feeding and eventually recruit them."
"Fourth, like the encounter with Li Yuqing, fend off deities that might threaten me."
With a black kitten in his arms and a little white dog following closely, Zeng Shen unknowingly reached the outer gate of the abandoned hospital.
The abandoned hospital was large, surrounded by walls, and the gate was an iron gate.
It was locked.
Through the patterned holes in the gate, it was evident that the hospital had been abandoned for quite some time.
There were a few rusty, dilapidated cars in the parking area, covered in vines, and the road leading to the main hospital building was overgrown with wild grass.
Rumor had it that several incidents occurred here, leading to its closure, and it became a home for stray cats.
Upon climbing over the iron gate, a chilling wind blew, causing Zeng Shen to shiver.
He picked up the kitten and the puppy that had slipped through the gate and proceeded inside.
Suddenly, urgent warnings accompanied by a vibrating red panel appeared before his eyes.
[Warning! Warning! A group of intelligent races is entrenched here, one of which is far beyond the host and the host's pets. Leave quickly; if discovered, they will enslave the host and could extract divine energy from the host through various means, leading to unimaginable consequences and misery.]
Ignoring the reminder, Zeng Shen expressionlessly walked to the hospital's glass doors.
The hospital's glass doors were shattered, with shards strewn everywhere, allowing easy entry.
To avoid alarming the cats, he stood before the shattered doors, took out a pack of fish sausages, placed one under the black kitten's nose, and said:
"Go get your siblings, aunts, and uncles. This fish sausage is yours."
"Meow."
The little black cat, though small, was intelligent.
It quickly understood Zeng Shen's intent, let out a soft meow, and dashed down the corridor behind the hospital lobby.
Occasionally, a meow echoed, as if calling friends.
Soon, it was like a hornet's nest had been stirred, with successive meows echoing from the hospital corridors and rooms.
"Meow~"
"Meow meow meow~"
"Meow~ Meow~"
"Woof woof woof woof."
The small chow chow, hearing so many meows, barked fiercely towards the hospital doors.
Suddenly, the entire hospital fell silent.
"Darn it, shut up, stupid dog," Zeng Shen lightly kicked the puppy aside.
The little white dog, having just subdued a group of wild cats, was full of pride.
But then its owner kicked it aside, leaving the puppy confused and whimpering until it saw Zeng Shen's stern gaze.
It quickly shut its mouth.
Seeing the puppy quiet down, Zeng Shen decided not to argue with it.
However, fearing it might scare the cats, he placed the puppy in a nearby broken car.
He left a few more fish sausages for it to eat before returning to the hospital's shattered glass doors, observing the interior.
Soon after, the black kitten's call echoed again, and its figure appeared in the hospital lobby.
Trailing behind were a few kittens of various colors.
Zeng Shen also noticed a few adult cat figures in other corners.
The black kitten called to the five following kittens, signaling them to keep up, then ran to Zeng Shen's feet, rubbing its head against his pants before eyeing the fish sausage in his hand and licking its lips.
[Warning! Warning! The host is surrounded by a group of intelligent races with Bastet bloodline. They are untamed and much stronger than the host. If enslaved, they will extract divine energy from the host. Lead your followers and break through quickly!]
Hearing the frantic prompts in his mind and the warning panel before him, Zeng Shen glanced at the wild cats watching from the corners.
Them, enslave me? Extract from me? How? Turn into cute girls? Squeeze out peanut oil?
"Little glutton, this is your reward."
Zeng Shen crouched and placed the fish sausage on the ground for the black kitten, tossing a few more to entice the five kittens and the other adults watching him.
Having been strays for a long time, these cats were quite wild, unlike domestic cats that easily trusted humans.
However, Zeng Shen was patient, waiting for the wild cats to succumb to temptation.
Time ticked by.
The first to give in was a kitten like the black one, a small orange tabby.
"Meow~" The orange tabby, with curious eyes, looked at Zeng Shen and meowed as if asking for permission to eat.
"Go ahead, little one," Zeng Shen said softly, smiling.
Perhaps sensing the kindness in Zeng Shen's smile, the orange tabby started nibbling on the sausage, occasionally making satisfied noises, and looking up at Zeng Shen with bright eyes, very cute.
[Congratulations, host, for gaining the favor of a Buster bloodline kitten, survival points +10.]
With one kitten approaching, the others quickly followed.
They meowed and began eating the sausages before them, all while glancing up at Zeng Shen with bright, adorable eyes.
[Congratulations, host, for gaining the favor of four Buster bloodline kittens, survival points +40]
The large wild cats observing everything from the shadows saw that Zeng Shen meant no harm. After a few meows among themselves, two large white wild cats with black spots approached cautiously, stopping five meters from Zeng Shen.
"Here, this pack of fish sausages is for you," Zeng Shen said, pulling a large pack of fish sausages from his inventory, tearing it open, and tossing it over.
The two black-spotted white wild cats were startled, retreating, and along with the other large wild cats, vanished.
Zeng Shen was dumbfounded.
"When did cats become so timid?"
"And they wanted to enslave me?"
He muttered, taking out a small pack of fish sausages, continuing to feed the six kittens nearby, and patiently waiting for the other wild cats to reappear.
Half a minute later.
The two black-spotted white wild cats, along with the other wild cats, re-emerged in Zeng Shen's view.
The two cats cautiously approached the fish sausage pack Zeng Shen had thrown.
They sniffed, then quickly grabbed a sausage and ran aside to eat, eyeing Zeng Shen warily.
Seeing no danger, the other wild cats also rushed over, grabbing sausages and retreating to hidden corners to eat, occasionally looking up at Zeng Shen.
Soon, the large pack of sausages was devoured by the wild cats.
Seeing this, Zeng Shen tossed another pack over.
This time, the wild cats didn't retreat, but instead, quickly grabbed the sausages, eating them on the spot.
After finishing the second pack, the wild cats seemed full, some sitting and scrutinizing Zeng Shen, others wandering off, and some returning to their dens to watch him.
But none approached.
Zeng Shen, observing the lazy demeanor of the well-fed wild cats, was puzzled.
"Why aren't these wild cats contributing survival points after eating?"
"Did I just get taken advantage of?"
"And why didn't these kittens become my followers like the black kitten?"
"Those sausages cost me a hundred bucks, and if they only got me 50 survival points, that's a loss."
Zeng Shen shook his head and massaged his temples.
"Maybe they're still wary of me?"
Thinking this, he decided to return tomorrow to feed them again and, taking the black kitten and the puppy, climbed out of the hospital's iron gate.
[Congratulations, host, for successfully leading your followers and mount through the encirclement of powerful intelligent races, survival points +1000.]
"Not a loss."