Capítulo 15: Chapter 15 The Demon and the Sentinel
Every creature has its own story, and the alligator turtle is no exception.
Having lived in the lake for several years, the alligator turtle grew from a little thing into an enormous beast, becoming the undisputed overlord of the lake. The fish and shrimp in the lake were its food, taken at its leisure, with no natural predators. Its living space was innumerable times larger than the glass box it had at its previous owner's home, and life was comfortable and leisurely.
The only regret was the lack of a female alligator turtle to enjoy.
However, when it came to choosing between freedom and pleasure, the alligator turtle clearly preferred the former.
But recently, it realized that its good days might be coming to an end.
A young man had arrived at the lake.
The alligator turtle was not unfamiliar with humans; on the contrary, it had seen many people, including its original owner, and was quite worldly for an alligator turtle.
Over the past few years, there had been occasional incidents of tourists spotting it and trying to catch it.
But each time, the alligator turtle easily escaped capture, the vast artificial lake and deep waters making it difficult to find once it hid.
As long as it was careful not to eat those apparently dangerous 'baits,' there wouldn't be any danger.
So, as long as the zoo staff didn't discover it, and there was no large-scale roundup or the lake wasn't drained, the alligator turtle's good days could continue.
But now things had changed, after having a face-off with Suming, it had managed to escape the control of spiritual power, but that power had instilled an instinctive fear in the alligator turtle.
Animals have the survival instinct to approach what is beneficial and avoid what is harmful, and the alligator turtle was no different. It may not think like humans, but its survival instinct told it that this little lake was now filled with danger and no longer suitable for living.
So, it decided to move.
As a bachelor, moving was a simple matter; it could just carry its shell and leave, waving its tail elegantly without a cloud in tow.
And so, on this sunny and pleasant midday, the alligator turtle set off.
It crawled out of the water, chose a secluded direction, and headed toward the nearby woods.
The zoo had more than one artificial lake. The alligator turtle could sense that not far away was a larger body of water. If it could just reach there, not only would there be more food, but it would also be safer—no one would be able to catch it then.
Just as it climbed ashore, the alligator turtle noticed that a small, fuzzy creature was blocking its path.
The little creature had a pair of upright pupils and made strange "meow meow meow" noises, curiously stretching out its chubby little paws to scratch at its head.
The alligator turtle was not one to hide in its shell when faced with trouble!
In fact, its head couldn't retract into the shell, and coupled with the strong biting force granted by nature, it possessed a brave heart!
Apart from humans, the alligator turtle wouldn't hesitate to fight against any animal!
Especially not this fuzzy, frail little creature!
So the alligator turtle didn't hesitate to bite, as the small creature's slender arms and legs couldn't withstand its strength, and even its delicate waist would surely be bitten in two by the alligator turtle!
With a crisp snap, the bite missed. The fuzzy little creature, nimble as lightning, swiftly retracted its paws, leaving the alligator turtle stunned by its own powerful biting force, causing its jaw to hurt and its head to spin.
And as if that weren't enough, the little creature then slapped the alligator turtle's head with the back of its hand, forcing the turtle to bow down.
The slap itself didn't hurt; the little creature's palm was soft, actually quite comforting against the head.
But this was a blatant provocation, not about pain but about the dignity of an alligator turtle!
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The alligator snapping turtle got angry and charged to fight with a life-and-death resolve!
In a blur, the little guy had already jumped onto its back, and its small claws relentlessly scratched at the alligator snapping turtle's big head that couldn't retreat into its shell!
This truly hurt!
The alligator snapping turtle desperately twisted its body, its thick legs pattering, until it finally managed to throw off the creature on its back. But before it could relax for a few seconds, the little guy had jumped onto its back again.
The alligator snapping turtle realized helplessly that this furry little thing was, although small and not particularly strong, so agile that it just couldn't defend against it! It wanted to bite the intruder, but every attempt was easily dodged, while its opponent could use its sharp little claws to fiercely scratch it.
It was like a demon!
So, without any hesitation, the alligator snapping turtle turned tail and ran!
As it fled, it looked back nervously!
Fortunately, that little demon seemed scared of water, standing by the lake, not daring to follow, and caterwauling at the water!
The alligator snapping turtle went back into the water, not daring to linger, and sneaked along the bottom to the other side of the lake, hoping to find a new direction to move its home.
But as soon as it emerged from the water, it discovered in horror that not far away, another furry little black demon was curiously staring at it…
A sense of desperation washed over it.
...
Suming leaned against the window and witnessed the spectacle. Each time the alligator snapping turtle came ashore, it was driven back into the water by the cat. At first, the turtle still dared to 'break through' but each attempt was met with the cat brutally scratching its head.
Soon enough, the alligator snapping turtle didn't even dare to approach the shore and stayed in the water with half of its head poking out, vigilantly watching the shore.
A few of the cats had never seen a creature like the alligator snapping turtle, and their natural curiosity immediately exploded into action, running all around the lakeside.
"Hei! You lead the team, surround the small lake for me. We must not let this guy escape!"
Suming laughed and used his spiritual power to issue instructions to the cats.
It's not the fear of theft, it's the worry of the thief's attentiveness. If the alligator snapping turtle really escaped, with the zoo being so vast and a reservoir not far outside, he truly wouldn't be able to find it. And if the creature bore a grudge, it could come for revenge at any time.
Moreover, he couldn't be sure whether the alligator snapping turtle had escaped or was still in the lake. Therefore, as long as he didn't catch the alligator snapping turtle, the boating business couldn't get started.
But as long as it was blocked by the cats in the lake and couldn't escape, then with his spiritual power gradually increasing, he would be able to catch it one day!
Under Suming's command, and driven by their own curiosity, Hei led several cats patrolling the lakeside, like dutiful sentinels!
...
Over the next two days, Suming went to work as usual, visiting all the animal areas in the zoo and making quite a few 'new friends'.
In the zoo, the animals' cries in both frequency and volume were different from usual these past few days. Many of the animals with higher intelligence communicated with their own kind in their unique ways, expressing their confusion and curiosity about the strange 'creature' that had arrived.
That day, Suming switched to the afternoon shift with another colleague. As evening approached and it was getting dark, he passed by Monkey Mountain and saw the Monkey King squatting on top of it, vigorously waving at Suming, with the rescued baby monkey sitting on the Monkey King's back, swaying back and forth.
"Squeak squeak...gagaga..."
"Are you calling me over?"
Suming was familiar with the Monkey King, knowing the monkeys were quite intelligent and pleasant to get along with. Once acquainted, they posed no danger, so he simply entered Monkey Mountain through the keepers' entrance.
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