Future Pet Shop

Chapter 217: Indifferent to Life and Death, Just Fight

’I’m not easily impressed, but I’ve got to hand it to you. Daring to take on a lion one-on-one... Pingtou, you’re a true badass!’ Shen Yibin gripped his binoculars tightly, tracking Pingtou’s movements, terrified it would be killed by the lion in a moment of carelessness, making his entire trip a waste.

Pingtou’s fur bristled from head to tail as it opened its mouth wide, roaring right back at the lion. It showed no fear before the ruler of the savanna. Then, with a sudden flash to the right, it dodged the lion’s attack, circled around to its flank, and lunged in for a counterattack.

The lion’s movements seemed clumsy in the face of the agile Pingtou. Its massive body, far from being an advantage, was now a hindrance. The dodge spared its ribs but exposed its rear to Pingtou, which shot its claws out like lightning, swiping at the lion.

’Holy shit, that’s gotta fucking hurt!’ The sight made Shen Yibin clutch himself in sympathetic pain. The reason was simple: Pingtou’s claw had just landed squarely on the lion’s Egg, hidden between its hind legs. Pingtou had torn a large gash in the Egg. It was anyone’s guess if this unlucky lion would ever be able to have cubs again.

Pingtou was just as smart as Bear Grylls always said. It had keenly identified the Egg as the lion’s greatest weakness and launched a devastatingly successful strike. ’If a human were trying to capture it, it would probably use the same trick, wouldn’t it?’

’So this is the price for messing with Pingtou. Piss it off, and it’ll castrate you. This poor lion’s probably only fit to be Simba’s chief eunuch now!’ The thought of having to capture such a ferocious animal made Shen Yibin instinctively clamp his legs together. ’I have no desire to be castrated like that lion!’

"ROOOAR—" The lion let out a tremendous, agonized roar. The sound carried all the way to Shen Yibin’s position; even Sylvie and the others in the helicopter heard it. She quickly called on the walkie-talkie, "Bin, what happened? If it’s dangerous, you should hurry back to the helicopter!"

"It’s fine. A lion just got its weak spot clawed open by the honey badger." After all, Sylvie was a lady, so Shen Yibin was a little embarrassed to say the word "Egg." "I think their fight will be over soon. The lion already looks like it’s thinking of running away." ’Who would believe this? The king of the savanna, scared off by an animal less than a tenth of its weight! If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I never would have believed it.’

It was as unbelievable as Tyrion Lannister defeating Gregor Clegane in single combat, or Wu Dalang catching Lu Zhishen and beating him to a pulp. But that was exactly what had happened.

’This honey badger seems faster and more vicious than the ones I’ve seen in online videos. Its fur is much shinier, too. Is this the genetic mutation?’ Shen Yibin kept his binoculars trained on the fight, tracking the action.

While the lion was distracted by its injury, its legs clamped shut, Pingtou darted to its front and raked its claws viciously across its face. If the lion hadn’t flinched back, Pingtou would have gouged its eyes out. Even so, several deep gashes were torn across the lion’s face. Blood instantly matted its fur, making it look utterly pathetic. It had lost all of its previous majestic aura as the ruler of the savanna.

The lion seemed to have been thoroughly cowed by Pingtou. No longer daring to fight, it turned and fled with its tail between its legs. Pingtou was left standing proudly, head held high like a victorious general. It let out a triumphant roar in the direction the lion had fled, as if warning it to get lost and never come back.

"The honey badger drove off the lion," Shen Yibin said. "It fled in the opposite direction, so we’re safe for now. But you should all stay in the helicopter. I have a feeling a new fight is about to break out." ’As they say, a Pingtou’s life is either fighting or on the way to a fight. It’s not going to stay idle for long.’

And just as Shen Yibin had predicted, even though Pingtou had won the battle against the lion, the fight had taken a lot out of it. It was now searching for food to fill its belly and refuel for the next inevitable fight.

Pingtou began to patrol the grassland, trotting in circles with its head swiveling from side to side, constantly searching for a target.

Soon, Pingtou found its target. It lifted its head and looked toward a tree up ahead, where a huge, two-meter-long cobra was coiled in the canopy. The cobra seemed to be sunbathing, with no idea that danger was quietly approaching.

With a few nimble leaps, Pingtou was at the base of the tree. It scrambled up the trunk, one paw after another, and in no time, it was right below the cobra. ’Just after dominating the ruler of the savanna, it’s now planning to have another vicious, top-of-the-food-chain predator for lunch. This thing is on another level of badass.’

The cobra was enjoying the warm sun when it suddenly felt the branch beneath it tremble. Instantly alert, it spotted Pingtou charging up at it. The two creatures immediately erupted into a chaotic fight in the treetops. Pingtou lunged again and again, trying to sink its teeth into the cobra’s neck and kill it.

But the cobra wasn’t about to give up its life so easily. Its forked tongue flickered as it dodged Pingtou’s attacks, looking for an opening to strike back with lightning speed. It tried to kill this sudden rival with its sharp fangs and deadly venom.

Their struggle snapped countless twigs and leaves in the canopy until, almost at the same instant, both creatures plummeted from the treetop to the ground. They scrambled up immediately and resumed their fight, neither one injured by the fall.

After a few more moments of feinting and striking, the cobra seemed to realize it couldn’t land a single hit on Pingtou. It lost its nerve and began looking for a chance to escape.

But the moment it turned, Pingtou had its chance. It leaped forward, pinning the middle of the cobra’s body with its front paws, and opened its jaws to bite down. The sequence of moves was so swift that Shen Yibin could barely follow it.

Unwilling to die without a fight, the cobra launched a desperate counterattack. It sank its fangs into Pingtou’s body and began injecting its venom. In response, Pingtou smacked the snake’s head against the ground with one paw, then bit clean through its neck, putting a decisive end to the battle.

’Holy crap. This fight was even more dangerous than the one with the lion.’ The sight left Shen Yibin holding his breath.

Pingtou grabbed the cobra’s body and began to chew on it like a piece of jerky. After chewing for a moment, however, Pingtou suddenly pitched forward and collapsed onto the ground.

’Don’t tell me it died from the poison?!’ Shen Yibin’s heart leaped into his throat.