DSMC Chapter 82.2

He wanted to go straight from the monkey zone to the animal clinic, but it would take at least twenty minutes on foot, and he didn’t have that much time.

He could only go back the way he came and ride his electric scooter to the clinic.

There was no time to think anymore.

The back-and-forth with the monkeys had taken at least fifteen minutes. The monkey king itself hadn’t been too hard to deal with; the worst were the monkey foot soldiers. He’d wasted a lot of time there, and with the rain getting heavier, climbing up and down the rocks while watching his footing — so as not to end up like Jiang Meiying — had slowed him even more. NPCs could revive; he couldn’t. If he fell, he would be done for.

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 20m 4s]

No more thinking. He has to get back to the wolf zone gate and ride the scooter to find the doctor!

Without Jiang Meiying deliberately leading him astray, the route from the small plain back to the hillside wasn’t that short, but it only felt huge before because the rain reduced visibility and NPCs had wasted his time. Now that the map in his mind was gradually becoming clear, he could shorten both distance and time.

Cradling the bag with the whimpering wolf pup, he sprinted forward. One more small hill and he would practically see the gate!

The torrential rain suddenly stopped, and Yan Jiyun’s field of vision widened. Everything around him became clear.

Wait. He would rather it kept raining, preferably as hard as the day Yiping went to ask her father for money¹A reference to the popular romance TV drama “Romance in the Rain” from 2001. Lu Yiping here is the poor, strong-willed daughter from a neglected branch of a wealthy family. The scene it’s referring to is where Yiping goes to her rich father’s mansion (under a torrential rain) to ask for money to support her sick mother but she was humiliated, scolded, and beaten instead.!

What kind of situation was this now?

He thought he was about to finish the task, but suddenly the wolf father and mother appeared!

They stood ahead of him, baring their teeth. Behind them was a line of gray wolves, all staring at Yan Jiyun, each sleek and well-fed, looking extremely combat-capable.

Among them, Yan Jiyun spotted one gray wolf whose expression didn’t quite fit in, standing at the very edge. Ah, this one had to be a player, and a low-ranking wolf at that, probably living a pretty miserable life.

No, actually, that wolf could still blend into the pack to protect itself. Yan Jiyun felt he might be even more miserable. He couldn’t even blend into a “pack.”

What should he do now?

The wolves stood in front of him, blocking his path. Would they think he was here to steal their pup?

Yan Jiyun made a calming gesture, then unzipped the bag and let the cub poke its head out.

The pup had been soaked by the rain; its gray-white fur was plastered to its body, making it look pitiful.

“It’s injured. I’m taking it to see a doctor. Don’t be so tense, okay?”

With a player present, Yan Jiyun had to act like a keeper. He couldn’t let the other party know he was a player too.

The pup whimpered weakly. Without timely treatment, it might really die.

Yan Jiyun crouched and gently took the wolf pup out of the bag, setting it on the ground. Its body was covered in tiny wounds from the monkeys’ rough pulling. One of its legs was probably injured. It couldn’t stand at all, only look at the two alpha wolves in front of it and cry softly. But the sound didn’t express fear. The pup even glanced at Yan Jiyun; it knew who had rescued it from the monkeys’ den.

The wolf pup tried to stand, but failed twice.

Yan Jiyun guessed one hind leg and one front leg were injured.

After hearing the pup’s cries, the two wolves at the front stopped baring their teeth at Yan Jiyun.

Since it had stopped raining, Yan Jiyun took off his raincoat in front of the pack, revealing his zookeeper’s uniform, hoping the wolves could recognize its special scent and let him leave quickly.

He tried to pick up the pup again, without letting go of the wooden stick.

He attempted to soothe them with his voice: “When it’s healed, I’ll bring it back.”

The wolf pup trusted him too. After being picked up, it didn’t struggle at all. It’s very smart.

Yan Jiyun slowly edged sideways, preparing to leave the wolf zone from the side.

As he moved, the wolves moved as well, still staring at him.

He held the stick in front of him in case they suddenly lunged. But with the pup’s cries calming them, they only stared closely and didn’t attack.

The alpha wolf stared at him the hardest.

Under their deadly gazes, Yan Jiyun slowly edged toward the gate.

While they stared at him, he also watched the pack closely. As long as any of them moved their feet, he would know. With no rain to interfere, his hearing had returned.

He was almost at the gate. As long as the pup didn’t cry out in panic, the task would be fine.

Once again, Yan Jiyun saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

Almost there. Almost.

One hundred meters. Eighty meters. Sixty—

Suddenly, the player wolf hidden in the pack lunged toward Yan Jiyun!

Yan Jiyun was startled and stepped back several paces, holding the pup tightly.

Then several low-ranking wolves also pounced at him. Fortunately, he still had the bite-proof sleeves on and the stick in his hand.

Even if he couldn’t knock them away as easily as he had the vicious monkeys, he could still block the first wave of attacks!

One wolf attacked him, and others behind it tried to bite him too. Just as he felt he was about to be overwhelmed, the low-ranking wolf that had leapt at him was suddenly pinned to the ground by two stronger wolves!

They stood between Yan Jiyun and the wolf pup.

Yan Jiyun remembered that gray wolf player. Although all gray wolves looked sturdy, each had subtle differences. The player wolf had a slightly sharper face than the two alpha wolves, and its gaze was different. They were easy to recognize.

The pup had completely inherited the alpha wolf’s looks, with a darker back than the others, appearing more imposing and majestic than the low-ranking wolves.

The alpha wolf let out a few low growls at the player wolf, and suddenly the pack split into two factions.

One followed the alpha wolf; the other followed the player wolf.

But for now, they hadn’t started biting and fighting in earnest.

Yan Jiyun seized the chance and ran toward the gate. Leaving now was the best possible choice. Since the alpha wolf trusted him to heal the pup, he had to live up to it.

He realized that not all animals in the instance harbored hostility toward keepers.

The wolf player watched the “zookeeper” leave with his mission objective in his arms, feeling anxious but helpless, as the alpha wolf was staring at him unblinkingly.

In fact, his mission was very simple: kill the leader’s pup.

Once the pup died, it would spark an internal war within the wolf pack, and he could seize the opportunity to become the alpha of the wolf zone and rule all the wolves.

Since there wasn’t much visitor traffic anyway, he could only break through from other angles. So what if a few wolves died?

Unfortunately, he had run into a meddlesome NPC zookeeper who completely disrupted his plan, and now he even had to face the challenge of the alpha wolf.

He was a player and couldn’t attack NPCs. He could only harm the pup. 

The wolf player began to worry. He had only just become a wolf; could he really defeat the experienced leader of the pack?

Yan Jiyun finally left the confrontation range of the pack. He guessed a real fight wouldn’t break out. The wolf player’s combat power was inferior to the experienced alpha, and in the end he would definitely compromise.

He just hadn’t expected the wolf player to try to snatch the pup from him. That look just now had been truly cold and vicious, as if he wanted both the pup’s life and his.

But that wasn’t the most important thing right now. He felt the pup’s body trembling, not knowing whether it was from pain or cold.

He wasn’t a veterinarian, but he could sense the pup discomfort. Was it about to die?

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 9m 19s]

There really wasn’t much time left!

He had to find his scooter!

Holding the cub, he rushed out of the wolf zone and pushed open the door to go outside. The only thought in his mind now was to find his little electric scooter!

He saw an empty parking spot. Where was his scooter?

Which fucking bastard stole his scooter?!

Yan Jiyun couldn’t waste time worrying about where the one he rode in on had gone. Now he could only find another vehicle to use.

He looked around the wolf zone entrance and didn’t find a single usable scooter.

Just as he was deciding whether to run to the clinic on foot, he spotted a women’s bicycle with a basket, parked right at the corner.

Having one was better than having none!

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 8m 0s]

He didn’t think any further. He put the wolf pup into the basket, swung his long legs over the bicycle, and set off!

Yan Jiyun pedaled with all his might, pushing the ordinary bicycle as if it were an off-road bike, racing toward the clinic like the wind.

It had taken about five or six minutes to ride there on a scooter. A bicycle would be slower. Not because he lacked strength, but because it was a women’s bike, and no matter how hard he pedaled, its speed was limited.

What was worse, the road to the animal clinic had a slight incline. It looked flat, but the longer he rode, the more exhausting it became.

Yan Jiyun felt like his legs were about to give out, and the pup had stopped making any sound, which only made him more worried.

He tried talking to the wolf pup. “Little one, let me give you a name.” His own name was Caramel, and he decided to give the cub an easy-to-remember name. “How about Pudding?”

You could tell at a glance it was his naming style.

But his own name had been given by his owner.

He wondered how his owner was doing after entering the instance this time.

He remembered the first time he saw Qi Feng enter an instance. Compared  to now, Yan Jiyun’s  feelings were very different. In the past, he had thought his owner might be an alien who possessed secrets the whole world didn’t know, and Yan Jiyun had even secretly rejoiced at being adopted by an alien. Later he discovered that the “alien” owner was just an ordinary human with no special powers, and he gave up on that idea. Not long after, he thought his owner must be some kind of special mysterious national operative. But now he knew: Qi Feng was a high-level player in a thrilling horror mystery game.

He hadn’t worried much before about whether the other would come back alive, but now he was a little worried. After all, it was an owner he had lived with for a year!

Pedal pedal pedal pedal pedal!

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 4m 0s]

Relying on sheer willpower, Yan Jiyun finally rode halfway there.

He was almost there. Four minutes left! He could hold on for this distance!

The pup had to hang on until he reached the animal clinic.

“Pudding, hold on. We’re almost there. Don’t fall asleep, okay!”

He was afraid the cub might go into hypothermia after being soaked by the rain.

He saw the sign. 1.3 kilometers left!

He could do it!

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 3m 0s]

He could do it!

Faster, just a little faster, as long as he was a bit faster!

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 1m 0s]

Almost there!

Two hundred meters left!

Yan Jiyun’s feet were almost numb from pedaling.

“We’re almost there! Pudding, you have to hold on. I’ll hold on too!”

Yan Jiyun encouraged himself.

But he was truly exhausted. The entire route was uphill, without even a slight downhill stretch.

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 50s]

“Screech!”

The bicycle finally stopped in front of the animal clinic. Yan Jiyun got off, carefully picked up the pup, and ran straight to Dr. Peng’s office door without stopping.

He knocked on Dr. Peng’s door!

No response. He tried the handle; it didn’t move. The office was actually locked?

What was going on? Wasn’t he supposed to bring it here to Dr. Peng for treatment? Was Dr. Peng not in?

No way!

[“Rescue the Injured Wolf Cub” side mission countdown: 3s]

2 seconds—

1 second—

Just as Yan Jiyun was in despair, the door finally opened.

It was pulled open from the inside, and a blood-smeared face appeared before him.

Dr. Peng wiped the blood off his face with his hand and asked Yan Jiyun, “Xiao Jiang, what is it?”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

Xiao Jiang doesn’t dare have any business!

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  A reference to the popular romance TV drama “Romance in the Rain” from 2001. Lu Yiping here is the poor, strong-willed daughter from a neglected branch of a wealthy family. The scene it’s referring to is where Yiping goes to her rich father’s mansion (under a torrential rain) to ask for money to support her sick mother but she was humiliated, scolded, and beaten instead.