Zuo Feng had just wiped the salt soda stain from the corner of his mouth and was about to take another sip to calm his nerves when a more exaggerated energy boom echoed from within the cage.
"Boom! Bang! Thump--!"
This time, the sound not only made people's ears tingle but also carried a deliberate, undulating rhythm, as if synchronizing with some invisible beat.
Immediately after, on the surface of the giant Python Branch cage, the gnarled, writhing branches suddenly bulged and Depression, as if being pummeled from within by invisible giant fists, rising and falling, creating a series of rhythmic drumbeats on the tough spherical surface.
Zuo Feng's eyelids twitched as he watched. This noise, this rhythm, how did it sound so much like... blacksmithing? Or the wild drumming of some primitive tribe?
"Squeak, squeak--squeak, squeak, squeak!" Black and Hei Tantan's excited cries pierced through the Python Branches' obstruction, clear as day.
"Squeak! Squeak, squeak!" The yellowish-brown little bear's response was equally spirited, even carrying a hint of playful defiance.
The four voices rose and fell, intertwining, not at all like a fight to the death, but more like a lively concert of animal sounds, with rules only they understood.
Or were they providing vocal accompaniment to those exaggerated "drumbeats"?
Interspersed among them were the excited squeaks of the two little beasts with seven vertical stripes.
Zuo Feng's mouth twitched even more severely.
He couldn't help but rub his forehead, complaining wildly in his mind:
"Enough! All six of you! If you're going to act, do you have to bring your own sound effects and background music?
These drumbeats are more energetic than the plaza dance aunties' speakers before the apocalypse!
And those cries, do you want me to bring a speaker in for you?"
He could even imagine the scene inside: six furry little furballs, "thump-thump-thump" hitting the inner wall of the cage with their bodies to create "drum sounds," while shaking their heads and baring their teeth, "squeaking" in "chorus." The scene would definitely be funnier than a circus animal show.
Zuo Feng sighed helplessly. How exactly did the Firefly girls teach these little beasts in the base? These behaviors of the little beasts were clearly related to the "education" they received at the base.
These Firefly girls truly played with "education" in a creative way.
Zuo Feng could confirm that a "Companion Beast Carnival" was currently being held inside the Python Branch cage.
It was estimated that only Black and the variant were still seriously fighting. At the same time, Zuo Feng became increasingly confused about the relationship between companion beasts and variants.
Why would the two little bear companion beasts allow the variant to fight while they only symbolically acted out a battle? Did intelligent companion beasts also know how to assess the situation and, realizing they couldn't win, simply respond by playing? The logic behind this left Zuo Feng completely baffled.
But it was clear that the behavior of the two little bear companion beasts was inevitably linked to the initial conversation between Black and Hei Tantan. Unfortunately, no one could understand the specific content of their communication.
Zuo Feng was too lazy to bother with it. Since he could tell it was an act, Zuo Feng wasn't worried about the battle at all.
He simply sat back down, patiently waiting for the Earth-element variant's stamina to be depleted.
Inside the spherical cage, the 'carnival' continued. Dozens of Python Branches of the Python Branch Giant Tree were shattered, but strangely, the Python Branch Giant Tree clearly had the ability to regenerate Python Branches, so why wasn't it repairing the broken branches now?
Zuo Feng's gaze involuntarily fell on Wood Essence and Wood Spirit, hidden deep within the canopy. As if sensing Zuo Feng's gaze, the two little ones' clapping hands instantly changed posture, becoming serious faces directing the battle.
Zuo Feng couldn't help but laugh. He shook his head, thinking, these two little ones have also learned to "put on an act," but it seemed these two little ones were the best at acting, right from the start.
It seemed the base's education not only taught the little beasts to fight but also how to "perform."
This carnival lasted for nearly two hours. The five Python Branch Giant Trees, each had its branches and leaves scattered, with at least dozens of Python Branches shattered. The scene truly looked like they had just endured a fierce battle.
The two little beasts with seven vertical stripes were even knocked out of the cage countless times, each time fighting with renewed vigor.
And at this point, the battle finally neared its end. The Python Branches of the five Python Branch Giant Trees quickly retracted, and the cage rapidly disintegrated at that moment, revealing the "fierce" battlefield within. The Earth-element variant was clearly exhausted, tightly wrapped by a Python Branch, unable to move.
As the cage disintegrated, the stirred-up soil crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
The companion beasts inside were naturally exposed to Zuo Feng's view. Perhaps the little beasts hadn't expected the cage to suddenly disintegrate, and for a moment, they froze in place.
The two little beasts looked at each other, then surprisingly flipped onto their backs, falling straight to the ground, limbs splayed upwards, pretending to be utterly exhausted. They even twitched twice, then closed their eyes and lay motionless.
Seeing this, Zuo Feng couldn't help but chuckle, thinking that their acting was a bit too realistic.
Looking at Black and Black, although they weren't playing dead, they were clearly out of stamina, leaning against the tree trunk, panting heavily, yet their eyes secretly darted towards Zuo Feng, as if observing his reaction.
Zuo Feng couldn't help but sigh, these little beasts were not only strong in combat but also excellent actors.
Zuo Feng even saw the little one, Round and Round, who had somehow snuck in. Sensing Zuo Feng's gaze, Round and Round quickly curled into a ball, falling to the ground, pretending to be extremely weak. Its eyes, however, secretly opened a slit. Seemingly realizing its acting wasn't good enough, it quietly grabbed some dirt and smeared it on its face, trying to look more disheveled.
As for the two little beasts with seven vertical stripes, they were even more exaggerated. They floated down slowly like feathers blown by the wind, "weakly" squeaking twice mid-air (though the sound was barely audible), then "collapsed" softly onto the ground, curling their bodies, looking like, "I'm so fragile, I've suffered internal injuries."
Unfortunately, their shape was similar to an enlarged silkworm baby, without hands, otherwise they might have covered their chests with their little hands.
"My... my goodness..."
Zuo Feng felt his understanding being pushed to its limits again, his inner thoughts erupting like a volcano: "Best Actress! Absolutely Best Actress! The Oscars owe you two statuettes! You are seven vertical stripes; to be so heavily injured fighting little beasts with less than three vertical stripes, you truly 'tried your best.'"
Zuo Feng couldn't help but laugh, sighing inwardly, "This acting, even I almost believed it."
He gently shook his head, ignoring the little beasts' performance, and turned to walk towards the trapped variant. Seeing it caught by the Python Branches and exhausted, Zuo Feng's mouth curved into a smile. Next was the capture phase.
Zuo Feng couldn't help but look at the two little bear companion beasts lying on the ground playing dead, a slight wariness in his heart. He wondered if there would be any variables when subduing this variant. These two little beasts clearly had no losses. Would they watch him subdue the variant without reacting?
However, the most important thing right now was to safely subdue this variant. Zuo Feng summoned the Purple Lotus, and a small purple lotus seed slowly floated towards the variant's glabella. Zuo Feng could clearly feel the variant trying to struggle, but exhausted and bound by the Python Branches, it could only powerlessly let the lotus seed approach.
Zuo Feng's gaze remained fixed on the two little bear companion beasts. They remained motionless, as if truly dead from exhaustion. However, the eyes that secretly opened a slit betrayed their cunning. Zuo Feng smiled inwardly, thinking, "As expected, they are actors."
Fortunately, they made no extra moves, allowing Zuo Feng to subdue the variant.