Chapter 17: Harvest

"It really is a hatchling... and it's alive!" Chen Yan's voice was full of wonder.

"Live birth... It actually gives live birth..." Liu Feng felt a chill run down his spine. The way these monsters reproduced defied everything they knew.

"That's enough. Let's get it out."

Han Ning spoke up. Ignoring his nausea, he and Chen Yan reached into the slippery abdominal cavity, carefully bypassing the viscous tissue as they worked together to pull out the Crocodile Lizard hatchling wrapped in its amniotic sac.

Covered in mucus and blood, the little Crocodile Lizard seemed to react to the outside air the moment it was pulled free. Its body twitched faintly, and it let out an incredibly weak HISS.

Han Ning dug through his backpack and found a relatively clean piece of plastic wrap originally used for food. He wrapped the little Crocodile Lizard in it, leaving only a small opening for it to breathe, and then stuffed it into his backpack. The bag wasn't big enough to fully contain such a "large" creature, so half of its body was left hanging out.

"Done." Han Ning zipped up the backpack, securing the little Crocodile Lizard to prevent it from falling.

Finally, he sliced a piece of meat from the smaller adult Crocodile Lizard and placed it in a plastic bag to use for future experiments.

"Let's go. The stench of blood is too strong here. Keep your guard up; I'll carry him," Zhou Wan reminded them as she hoisted Lu Minghu onto her back all by herself.

The five didn't dare delay for another second. Moving as fast as they could, they retraced their steps, wading through the muddy floodwaters and steering clear of floating debris that might hide unseen dangers.

Fortunately, they didn't encounter any other Crocodile Lizards on the way back. After all, these creatures weren't so numerous that one would stumble upon them every few steps.

By the time the five reappeared at the fourth-floor stairwell—drenched, exhausted, and reeking of blood—Qiang, the buzz-cut man keeping watch, immediately rushed forward with the others.

Seeing their disheveled state, especially the unconscious Lu Minghu with his shoulder heavily bandaged, Qiang and his group went pale.

"Brother Feng, what happened?"

"Cut the crap and help carry him inside!" Liu Feng snapped, cutting him off.

***

Han Ning politely declined Liu Feng's invitation to rest on the fourth floor and returned to his new home on the eighth floor.

Locking the door behind him, he made a beeline for the bathroom and placed the wrapped Crocodile Lizard hatchling onto the floor.

Han Ning had often pondered his choice of an Animal Companion. Creatures like the kittens and puppies from before his transmigration might be cute, but they had absolutely no combat strength and could only serve as pets. In this apocalyptic world, cuteness wouldn't keep anyone alive. The Crocodile Lizard hatchling in front of him might look ferocious and terrifying, but if it could truly be tamed, it would undoubtedly be a huge help. As long as its stats were high and it obeyed commands, that was all that mattered.

The little Crocodile Lizard was less than eighty centimeters long, covered from head to tail in pale gray scales that hadn't yet fully hardened. Its slender tail swept back and forth unconsciously. It looked exactly like a cross between a crocodile and a lizard, with a pointed snout, sharp fangs, short but powerful limbs, and razor-sharp claws.

The moment it was freed, it let out a weak but piercing HISS.

Its yellow, slit-like eyes, coated in muddy mucus, lacked the innocence typical of baby animals. Instead, they gleamed with pure ferocity.

"HISS!"

It lunged forward, trying to bite Han Ning's hand with its mostly toothless mouth.

"Quiet!" Han Ning glared, slapping it onto the floor.

"HISS-ROAR!" The hatchling didn't stop struggling; rather, Han Ning's slap made it even more frantic. Like a rabid dog pinned to the ground, it continually clawed at the floor tiles, leaving chaotic white scratch marks in its wake.

"This thing is like a xenomorph. It really is hard to control," Han Ning muttered, furrowing his brows. The little Crocodile Lizard's savagery far exceeded that of ordinary animal offspring, as if slaughter and destruction were instincts carved deep into its genes.

He thought, "Let's see if I can sign an Animal Companion contract first."

He recalled the Skills description on his interface: once a contract was formed, the target would obey the contractor. If it still couldn't be controlled after that, he would have no choice but to destroy it.

Recalling the relevant knowledge regarding his Animal Companion, Han Ning held down the Crocodile Lizard hatchling with one hand. Faint green light spilled from his fingertips, gathering into a glowing pattern.

Just as the Energy attempted to penetrate the hatchling's body to establish an initial Spirit connection, a cold, destructive will surged back along the mental link. This will was weak, but it carried a terrifyingly pure malice, as if it wanted to devour everything.

"What is this..." Han Ning's expression instantly turned solemn.

He hurriedly increased his Spiritual Power output. The emerald light flared brightly, forcefully suppressing the rebounding destructive will.

Suddenly, as his Spiritual Power entered the Crocodile Lizard hatchling's brain, he inexplicably "saw" a strange image.

Deep within the hatchling's relatively simple brain structure lay a faint, eerie aura that resembled black smoke.

He thought, "This thing doesn't seem natural. It looks more like a curse or some kind of corruption. Could it be the aura of the Black Tide?!"

Words from the native knowledge he had acquired flashed through Han Ning's mind—terms like "corrupting tide" and "madness." It was highly likely that the Black Tide's downpour had seeped into the bodies of these Otherworld creatures.

"Let's see if I can dispel it."

Han Ning mobilized nearly all the Spiritual Power in his body and slowly channeled it into the hatchling, aiming directly at the destructive black smoke coiled inside its brain.

A Druid's Energy represented natural vitality and order, fundamentally clashing with that aura of pure destruction.

The moment the black smoke encountered the Druid's Life Force-rich Energy, it was like ice water splashing against red-hot iron. Under the suppression of Han Ning's Spiritual Power, it thrashed wildly, desperately trying to resist.

But this wisp of black smoke was far too weak. Like water cut off from its source, it was quickly washed away by Han Ning's Spiritual Power, scattering until it vanished completely.

With the black smoke neutralized, Han Ning could clearly feel the change in the hatchling under his hand.

Its struggling weakened drastically, and the threatening hisses in its throat morphed into confused GURGLES. The vicious glint in its yellow, slit-like eyes faded, replaced by a sense of bewilderment akin to an innocent little beast.

Well... bewildered and ignorant as it was, this little guy simply wasn't built to be cute.

"HISS?"

It stuck out its forked tongue, tentatively licking the sweat that beaded on Han Ning's tense hand.

"Good boy..."

Han Ning rubbed its slimy head and resumed the contract ritual. He had only been helping the Crocodile Lizard hatchling dispel the negative Energy in its brain; now, he was officially beginning to forge the contract.

[You are sending an invitation to establish a Soul Companion Contract with an 'Unknown Creature.' Awaiting response.] An ethereal line of text flashed at the bottom of the interface.

The hatchling seemed to sense the affinity within the Energy. It tilted its head, a hint of hesitation flashing in its slit-like eyes. Free from the maddening interference of the destructive black smoke, its remaining instincts filled it with fondness for this Life Force-rich Energy.