Chapter 421: Ran Into Trouble Again

Zheng Tan couldn't tell what the somewhat transparent, sticky substance under his feet was; it might carry some animal's scent, but Zheng Tan's experience was limited, so he couldn't guess. He could only tell from Dashan's somewhat fearful eyes that it wasn't anything good.

Even those who seemed dangerous to Zheng Tan, Dashan didn't show such fear. If whatever made Dashan so fearful is an animal, then that animal must be at the absolute top of the food chain in this forest, far above Dashan.

As long as it wasn't animal feces or mucus, Zheng Tan lifted his foot and rubbed the slime off his sole onto the nearby grass, while looking around.

The slime wasn't only here; when Zheng Tan stood up and looked around, past some low bushes he saw more of it not far to the left front.

After thinking, Zheng Tan picked a relatively tall tree and decided to look around to see if he could discover anything, at least to have a clue in mind.

Even if Dashan knew what it was, he couldn't tell Zheng Tan; Zheng Tan wanted to know, so he had to seek the answer himself.

Standing on a branch over ten meters above the ground, Zheng Tan looked toward where he'd seen the slime; twenty-odd meters away, in a small clearing between two trees, there was a brownish-gray mass. From his angle he couldn't yet tell what it was, but there was a lot of slime there, the same sticky stuff he'd just stepped on.

He listened carefully around; there was no sound of other people or large animals. He glanced around, confirming no other danger. Zheng Tan estimated the distance to another tree, gathered strength, and jumped!

Dashan was still pacing back and forth below, somewhat anxious. He'd take two steps, then look at the slime; when he got close to sniff, he acted very cautiously, sniffing twice before hastily retreating, as if sniffing more would invite danger.

While Dashan was cautiously sniffing along the slime's trail, a noise from above startled the anxious, tense Dashan into jumping aside. Only after realizing it was the sound Zheng Tan made did he lift his head from behind the tree and look up. His gaze followed Zheng Tan's figure. After a moment's hesitation, he still lifted his foot and followed.

If that creature was a land animal, approaching from above would be relatively safer. Fortunately, Zheng Tan's tree-jumping skill was well practiced, and there were many trees here. After jumping from tree to tree several times, Zheng Tan came to a branch above the brownish-gray mass and stood there looking down.

That brownish-gray mass wasn't large; otherwise Zheng Tan wouldn't have dared to approach, even if it were just on the ground. That didn't mean it was harmless, though. The mass looked about the size of a wild rabbit.

Thinking this, as Zheng Tan examined it closely, the more he looked, the more it resembled a wild rabbit.

A rabbit?

Seems so, and indeed it is.

However, the rabbit had a layer of slime all over, and its overall appearance was altered, as if… it had been digested and then regurgitated.

Many animals, such as feline species, wolves, and wild dogs, when eating, tear their captured prey apart, pulling meat off bit by bit to eat, rather than swallowing it whole.

Yes, that rabbit, already digested, when vomited up still retained its whole shape, with no signs of being torn, and Zheng Tan saw no obvious wounds on it.

Being able to swallow prey whole and eat it this way made Zheng Tan think of cold-blooded creatures that sound chilling—snakes. Moreover, given the current situation, it was still a fairly large snake.

If it could swallow a rabbit, it could certainly swallow Zheng Tan; that wild rabbit was quite large, much bigger and fatter than the one Dashan caught yesterday—something that size could easily be swallowed, let alone Zheng Tan's small cat form; Zheng Tan is only this big now, with no size advantage.

If the slime were stomach acid or something from a large snake, being able to vomit that much fluid and make Dashan so wary, its size must also be considerable.

Thinking about the slime he'd just stepped on, and looking at the crawling traces left in the slime below, Zheng Tan could infer that the snake had certainly vomited more than just that one rabbit; it had done so before, then the snake crawled this way, leaving some traces along the way, and after arriving here it vomited again, and then…

Zheng Tan looked at the big tree he was in; it was somewhat old and very tall, so he climbed a bit higher and looked ahead.

The trees ahead weren't as dense; there were mostly weeds and various low shrubs, which is why Zheng Tan could see what was there.

Zheng Tan had thought the snake that vomited the rabbit would be as thick as a person's calf, but now it seems he underestimated—it's not calf-thick, but thigh-thick.

Moreover, about two meters from the snake, there were some vomit masses—roughly six or seven rabbits, digested to a similar extent as the earlier one.

In the wild, a python eating that many same-sized rabbits at once is unlikely in Zheng Tan's view, unless someone deliberately raised it, feeding rabbits to the snake as food. Such plump rabbits aren't typical wild survivors; it's highly likely the rabbits were also specially raised by people.

And why would someone raise such a large snake?

On the way from Peiliang's hometown, Zheng Tan had heard Er Mao and the others say that this province indeed has many people who raise snakes, because of the climate—many raise snakes, turtles, and flowers, and certainly some raise large snakes; Zheng Tan just didn't expect to encounter one here.

The snake was coiled, motionless, not knowing if it was alive or dead. Having vomited nearly all the food it had eaten, it was surely unwell. No wonder Dashan feared such a big creature; if the large snake were dead, that would be fine, but if alive, it would be an extreme danger.

Zheng Tan also didn't dare approach; looking down at the ever-cautious Dashan, he thought it best to leave quickly, lest curiosity kill the cat.

He lightly shifted on the branch, intending to leave, but as soon as he moved his foot, he heard someone coming this way, and running fast.

It was the three people he had encountered before.

Could it be that they were looking for this large snake?

Dashan had already heard the noise and hidden; Zheng Tan didn't leave directly either. He came down from the tree and hid behind the trunk.

The three people seemed to be urgently seeking their target; Zheng Tan couldn't resist his curiosity and followed them at a short distance, and they didn't notice.

Zheng Tan thought, if things went wrong, he'd bolt immediately; then even if those three saw Zheng Tan and Dashan, they wouldn't have the energy to deal with them.

While Zheng Tan was thinking, the three people quickly approached, and only after realizing they'd found the large snake did they stop about ten meters away.

They whispered among themselves; Zheng Tan couldn't understand what they were saying. But it was obvious: this snake was indeed their target. Upon seeing the snake, the three people's eyes clearly showed delight, and they seemed to sigh in relief.

Among the three, two pulled out the guns they carried, while the third picked up a stone from nearby and threw it at the large snake.

A fist-sized stone struck the snake's body, but the snake showed no reaction.

Seeing that, the stone-thrower walked forward. Approaching the snake, he boldly lifted its tail to have a look; after confirming whatever, he turned and nodded at his two companions.

Only then did the two with guns feel reassured and approach.

Watching them fiddle with the large snake, Zheng Tan knew the snake was either dead, near death, or completely lacking any strength to resist.

Zheng Tan had thought they'd just drag the snake away, but next he saw one of them pull out a folding knife, slightly turn the snake's body, then cut open with the knife not far from the tail.

After cutting it open, he used the knife to probe inside, then fished out a small glass bottle. The bottle had cracks, some blood had entered it, and inside the bottle were some pale yellow substances not fully dissolved in the blood. Zheng Tan didn't know what they were, but they were certainly nothing good—perhaps some kind of forbidden medicine.

Zheng Tan had heard that some people use animals to transport medicine, to avoid detection by drug-sniffing dogs or certain people's eyes. This huge snake before him would indeed be an excellent warehouse, but because the bottle hidden inside had ruptured for some reason, the medicine leaked out, ultimately causing the large snake's death.

It seemed they had uncovered another major secret.

Should I tell Er Mao and the others?

No, Zheng Tan directly rejected the idea in his mind.

This time, Er Mao and Wei Leng and their families had come along, just traveling to visit the elderly. Some had limited mobility; if they really got involved, it would be troublesome. These people might all be desperadoes; doing this sort of thing, they wouldn't have the guts to pull it off.

These people are too dangerous.

Forget it; there are specialized people to handle such matters. Zheng Tan decided not to worry about it—he's just a cat, not a superhero dedicated to punishing evil and promoting good.

After the three messed around a bit, they dragged the snake away, presumably to find a suitable place to dispose of it. They had already gotten what they wanted; the snake was dead, and they wouldn't bother lugging such a large snake back.

After those three left, Zheng Tan then came out of his hiding place.

This time, Dashan no longer wanted to linger here; his steps back were much quicker.

Did Dashan discover the secret hidden here? Zheng Tan suspects, but the possibility is too small; although Dashan is smart, he couldn't possibly understand all this—his aim seems to be just those people, as if he once had a grudge against them.

When they returned to the elderly person's residence, the heart Zheng Tan had been holding finally eased; going out wasn't easy, nervous and frightened, yet he still ran into those troubles.

Seeing the two kids drawing and playing in the courtyard, Zheng Tan decided to let it be; when he came out, Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma had also told him not to cause trouble, and since it didn't concern him, he'd pretend he hadn't seen it—worst case, he could make an anonymous report later.

This time he also brought his phone; when he leaves, he'll just make an anonymous report.

After deciding, Zheng Tan felt much more relaxed. He also had the mood to pick up a lighter that seemed unused for a long time, placed on the shelf beside the kitchen, and play with it for a bit.

There weren't many people around; Er Mao and the others hadn't returned yet. Two mothers were chatting in the hall, watching the two kids in the courtyard, and wouldn't notice Zheng Tan.

Zheng Tan lit the lighter, extinguished it, lit it again, extinguished it again, repeating many times, after which Zheng Tan also scolded himself for being so bored, bored enough to spend several minutes playing with a lighter.

Putting the lighter down, Zheng Tan turned his head to look over.

Dashan stood not far away, staring at Zheng Tan's side, looking at Zheng Tan, then at the lighter Zheng Tan had tossed beside his foot, walked over, pushed the lighter over, lifted his paw to try, couldn't manage it, tried again, still couldn't.

Zheng Tan didn't stay there, letting Dashan continue researching the lighter.

Thus, when the master brought Er Mao and the others back from outside, he only saw Zheng Tan hanging out with the two kids. After searching, he found Dashan beside the kitchen, and when he found Dashan, Dashan was still fiddling with that lighter; an hour had passed, and it still couldn't produce a flame.

With a slap, Dashan swatted the lighter far away, then stared at Zheng Tan.

Zheng Tan's whiskers twitched, 'What are you staring at me for just because you can't light it?!' (To be continued...)