Super Zoo

With the mindset of "minimize dealings with humans," the escaped animals quickly moved on after convening with the Mountain Elves Tribe, and once again marched deeper into the mountains.

This time, it wasn't until they reached the true depths of Qin Forest that the animals stopped to undergo a series of "reorganizations."

The addition of the Mountain Elves King and his entourage of several hundred family members effectively doubled the overall strength of the animal army!

The key was that with the inclusion of dozens of male Mountain Elves, combined with the battle-ready animals from the original army, it became possible to establish a simple division of labor. Some of the weaker animals could be removed from the combat sequence, allowing for the formation of a dedicated fighting team comprised of the stronger animals.

Some animals were suited for combat, some for scouting, and others for building nests…

Most of the animals didn't quite understand why the two panda "kings" would complicate matters so much; the old way of everyone fighting together when there was a battle, and eating together when there was food, seemed pretty good to them.

They merely did what the panda kings told them to.

Even the pandas themselves couldn't say why they had the idea to have the animal groups divide the labor. Was it just for fun? It seemed like it, yet it didn't.

It was as if deep down, a voice was calling to them, telling them it should be done this way.

The two pandas didn't realize they were unknowingly evolving from a disorganized group of refugees into a disciplined regular army.

Animal groups often engage in simple cooperative efforts.

But those are generally instinctual, unconscious behaviors.

The conscious, top-down cooperation and division of labor within the animal army were starting to show the rudimentary forms of human society.

Under the guidance of the pandas, the animals even began consciously "manufacturing" and "using" tools.

The bear leader strapped on a thick layer of bark armor and carried around a sapling thicker than an adult's thigh, greatly enhancing his combat effectiveness. The Mountain Elves King stood no chance against the tree-wielding bear and was routed in just a few exchanges, unable to get close to him.

Of course, the Mountain Elves King had his secret weapons too!

Lele, who had woken up after being sedated, malevolently enlisted the help of several venomous snakes in the troop, instructing them to regularly spit out some of their venom.

"Spare no excess"... this applied to venom as well; there was no need to bite other animals, and it was better not to waste the venom while idle.

This venom was smeared on pieces of metal debris that had been found somewhere, and now the Mountain Elves King, who ranked third among the animals, rarely showed his weapons during friendly sparring. But once he did, the rust on the metal pieces and the applied snake venom could easily kill.

Defensive animals, like wild boars, enhanced their "armor" training; they rubbed against pine resin-drenched trees all day, developing a thick layer of armor on their bodies, so they wouldn't fear handguns anymore.

As for others, the nest-builders built nests, the patrollers patrolled, and scouts spread out across the mountains to survey the surroundings…

Deep in the Qinling, in a hidden valley, a silent and secret construction of a small animal kingdom was underway.

…

"Let's eat something first."

Suming handed a piece of compressed biscuit to the determined-faced middle-aged man sitting across from him.

He found the man by a stream at the foot of the mountain, and he wasn't alone at the time. A long safety rope trailed behind him, stringing together four people like grasshoppers in a row, with the middle-aged man leading and the others all suffering from either light or serious gunshot wounds.

When he came across this group, they had all passed out in a woodland not far from the stream, apparently struggling to find water and finally couldn't hold on any longer.

Suming put in a lot of effort and managed to rescue the leader, but it was impossible to save the remaining three. By the time Suming arrived, they had already passed away.

This man, of course, was Park Jeong-ui and his unlucky subordinates.

In history, very few if any had died at the hands of their own stray bullets while hunting animals. If this could be reported, it would surely 'be recorded in history', marking a significant entry in the poaching industry.

After being shot, two of them died on the spot. The remaining four, led by Park Jeong-ui, supported each other on their way out of the mountains following the exit route.

With their level of equipment, getting out of the mountains normally wouldn't have been too difficult, but unfortunately, in the chaos after they were shot, the escaping Mountain Elves took the opportunity to steal a large amount of their gear.

Park Jeong-ui could speak Chinese. After being revived by Suming, he refused to say a word regardless of how Suming questioned him and would only speak a few words of Korean when pressed.

Park Jeong-ui was lucky, one could say.

This group of people had gunshot wounds, calluses on their knuckles from handling firearms, and carried guns—it was obvious they weren't hikers.

If they weren't hikers—a group of foreigners showing up deep in the woods with gunshot wounds—they were definitely not good people, and most likely poachers.

If this had happened in the past, Suming might not have killed Park Jeong-ui like he did with the first group of poachers he encountered, but he also wouldn't have bothered to save him, likely leaving him to his own fate.

However, as Suming's horizons broadened and his abilities steadily increased, with the ability to always call upon six life-saving transformation orbs, Suming was nearly invincible in the mountains, and a mere poacher posed no threat to him.

So, after a quick search of Park Jeong-ui and confiscating his gun and weapons, Suming revived him.

Park Jeong-ui accepted the compressed biscuit and wolfed it down. Before he could finish a bite, he choked on it, so Su Meng passed a water bottle to him. Park Jeong-ui tilted his head back and gulped down the water… well, that made him choke even more…

"Eat slowly; I have plenty more," Suming said expressionlessly. Although the sentence was meant to comfort, his tone sounded as if he was about to kill the man.

Park Jeong-ui nodded subconsciously, carefully broke off a small piece of biscuit to put in his mouth, and poured a bit of water into the cup from the water bottle, sipping it slowly.

Suming sneered inwardly, thinking to himself: keep on pretending. If you can understand Chinese, speaking it shouldn't be too difficult.

He was curious to find out who this guy really was.

Suming wasn't in a hurry to expose the man. He turned his head and called out to the Crested Ibis Xiaohong, who was catching fish in the creek: "Xiao Hong, come back, don't wander too far."

The Crested Ibis Xiaohong, with its red beak and red cheeks and three legs, had closely attached itself to the wealthy Suming, who provided well for it, and followed him loyally. According to usual practice, a name was given for convenience, and Suming had thought up several names he found pretty good.

Little Third… Little Leg… Ultimately, it was under the disdainful gaze of Su Meng that he settled on Xiao Hong.

Along the way, he had discovered signs of large-scale fighting and tracks left by animals nearby. Most likely, the poachers had a clash with animals on the previous mountain peak, so it wasn't safe to say that the vicinity was entirely secure; it was best that the small Crested Ibis didn't stray from his sight.

Seeing the Crested Ibis Xiaohong hopping back from the water, Park Jeong-ui, who was eating the compressed biscuit, suddenly froze.