The Mutation of the Huhuhu Beasts

“Confound it, that noxious scent once more!”

Chek, leading the charge, clamped a hand over his nose but pressed onward, plunging headfirst into the cavern. After a few more strides, he suddenly halted, turning to his kinsmen with a sharp command, “Quick! Half of the animal handlers return home! Hasten to protect our Huhuhu Beasts!”

At Chek's fervent plea, the Brockman family visibly split into two factions. The middle-aged and elderly remained unperturbed, their resolve fixed on rescuing the venerable Elizabeth. Yet, the younger generation's expressions shifted dramatically. They spun around, hastily ordering the handlers back home. “Hurry! Lest we gain nothing here, while our own Huhuhu Beasts perish! Go, all handlers, rush back to defend them!” Several youths, perhaps those most adept at raising Huhuhu Beasts, didn't even spare a glance for the cave before turning and flying away.

Their reaction caused Du Chen to pause, slightly taken aback. The third generation of the Brockman family truly possessed a chilling indifference!

The peculiar odor wafted into Du Chen's nostrils. Thanks to Philip's “tutelage” from years past, Du Chen immediately identified it. This scent was the emanation of a highly advanced timber undergoing combustion, bearing a resemblance to the charcoal aroma released during a brazier's burn. Thus, this gas must be imbued with two distinct powers: wood and fire!

Du Chen took a deep breath, trapping the gas in his nasal cavity, meticulously discerning its essence… Confound it, could it be the Life Tree burning? Otherwise, how could this gas contain such an abundance of plant-elemental and fire-elemental energies!? It possessed the dual aspects of plant-elemental power—both life and The Undead—and the searing heat of flames! Immensely potent! It was precisely this formidable blend of wood and fire energy that had calcined the nearby rocks, causing them to mutate and transform into unyielding roadblocks!

Du Chen swiftly moved to block the cavern entrance, shouting, “Everyone halt! Hold your breath and exit this valley! This gas might be poisonous!” It was common knowledge that large quantities of burning charcoal produced noxious fumes!

The youths dispersed in a panic, fleeing to the heights of the valley. Chek, however, remained with a few brothers. Seeing Du Chen obstruct the entrance, he cried out urgently, “Mister Alex, my mother is still inside!”

Du Chen waved a hand dismissively. “Entering this cavern now would be a death wish. Leave it to me! Chek, explain clearly: what connection does this gas have to the Huhuhu Beasts?” As he spoke, Du Chen simultaneously conjured a swirling vortex of ice and snow, intending to use the air current to extract all the gas from the cave, thereby creating more favorable conditions for his rescue.

Chek gazed anxiously into the cavern entrance, explaining, “That very same smell appeared after the last Central Atrium eruption. At that time, a massive number of Huhuhu Beasts in the City of Penance suddenly died. Our family’s Huhuhu Beasts also sharply declined by a fifth. That’s why Heidi had to marry a Kursk man to acquire more Huhuhu Beasts…” So, this toxic gas was the true culprit behind the Huhuhu Beast slaughter! Chek continued, “But the last time this toxic gas appeared, we Violet-Bloods weren’t harmed! Only the Huhuhu Beasts died! It’s as if… as if these gases specifically target the Huhuhu Beasts!”

Du Chen nodded slightly. His alchemy wasn’t Grandmaster level; being able to analyze the gas’s composition was already impressive. As for investigating why this evidently toxic gas exclusively targeted Huhuhu Beasts… that was not his forte! However, for now, only one thing mattered: the Central Atrium’s eruptions could generate a gas that specifically targeted and annihilated the lifeblood of the City of Penance’s inhabitants—the Huhuhu Beasts! This phenomenon might offer some unknown aid in researching the sole escape route—the Central Atrium!

The gas had thinned somewhat. Du Chen stated, “Its inability to harm humans last time doesn’t guarantee it won’t this time! Wait here; do not cause trouble. I will bring the old lady back!”

“Your immense kindness needs no words, we rely completely on you!” Chek’s eyes were red-rimmed. He then pulled a Huhuhu Beast hide from his bosom. “Please take this; it’s a map of a breeding base, seized from the Kursk family!” Du Chen glanced at it, then nodded.

As Du Chen stepped into the cavern entrance, Chek suddenly seemed to recall something and urgently called out, “Please be exceedingly careful! After that gas appeared last time, some Huhuhu Beasts became very peculiar and dangerous!”

Du Chen paused, “What kind of danger?”

Chek replied, “I haven’t witnessed it myself, but some vagrants saw wild Huhuhu Beasts, after the gas appeared, suddenly grow stronger and incredibly ferocious just before rotting and dying! Although our domesticated Huhuhu Beasts showed no such changes, please be cautious. This cave houses eighteen thousand of Kursk’s domesticated Huhuhu Beasts; even if only a tenth mutate, it would be extremely perilous!”

“Rest assured!” Du Chen soared into the cavern!

Similar to the Brockman family’s Huhuhu Beast base, the Kursk family’s facilities were also stratified by breed and meat quality. Upon entering the cavern, a tunnel led downwards to three breeding levels, each housing Huhuhu Beasts that provided “Coarse Meat,” “Fine Meat,” and “Honeyed Meat,” respectively. Below these premium tiers, a smaller, specialized base was dedicated to rearing the “Exquisite” Huhuhu Beasts reserved exclusively for the Kursk Family Head.

The dim tunnel revealed no immediate anomalies, and Du Chen proceeded directly to the first level—the Coarse Meat Base! His vision suddenly brightened. Under the illumination of Huhuhu Beast oil lamps, the space was as vast as a football field from Du Chen’s previous life. Arranged along the walls, rows upon rows of Huhuhu Beast cages were piled like mountains. A rough estimate suggested at least ten thousand Huhuhu Beasts resided here.

“Heh-gakka, help!” “We’re dying! Someone save us!”

The Huhuhu Beasts in their cages wailed incessantly; some, weakened, lay convulsing on the ground, while others had already perished. Du Chen quickly surveyed the first-level base but found no Brockman corpses—yet, screams had undeniably been heard emanating from this very location! Frowning, Du Chen lifted a cage containing a robust Huhuhu Beast and asked, “Where are the Violet-Bloods who suffered an accident here earlier? Especially an old lady!”

The Huhuhu Beast twitched painfully in its cage, but its large eyes darted, and it urgently said, “If you open the cage and free me, I’ll tell you what just happened here!” What a shrewd little creature! Du Chen once again recognized the intelligence of the Huhuhu Beasts; with such cunning, they truly possessed sufficient qualifications to be counted among the sapient races! Du Chen opened the cage. “Speak!”

The Huhuhu Beast explained, “After that smell appeared, my compatriots died, ‘Heh-gakka,’ and many of your friends fell too. But then some strange fellows came up from the second level and dragged all your fallen friends down there! Oh, and the old lady chased after them!” Du Chen casually released it, saying, “Very well! You may leave. If you wish to escape, exit through the ventilation shaft on the left!”

“Oh! You are truly ‘Heh-gakka’!” The Huhuhu Beast excitedly scampered towards the ventilation shaft! The Huhuhu Beasts’ grammar was truly peculiar! Like the Green Gourd Beasts, perhaps “Heh-gakka,” that strange exclamatory syllable, was how they expressed excitement and astonishment? Yes, they had indeed developed a unique grammatical structure belonging to their own race!

Du Chen wasted no more time, pursuing his quarry into the second-level base. He descended, but at that moment, the freed Huhuhu Beast suddenly collapsed at the ventilation shaft, seemingly dead! Then, its round, plump body slowly began to wriggle. With a “thwump,” a large bulge suddenly appeared on its skin. This bulge quickly burst open, and something resembling a tail slowly grew out. Simultaneously, its two already short legs became even shorter, but its body expanded, and its teeth grew sharper! Originally, the Huhuhu Beast resembled a Green Gourd Beast with a small head—like a long-haired, short-eared rabbit, with two legs growing from a round head and no arms, making it appear quite adorable. However, after its transformation, this Huhuhu Beast’s body grew from the size of a football to a basketball. While its basic outline remained largely unchanged, the suddenly extra tail was exceptionally unsightly. The tail’s skin was as rough as tree bark, and its tip bore a small, greenish fleshy mound. On this mound… were a nose, eyes, a mouth, and ears—it was unmistakably a small head! It had transformed into a Two-Headed Huhuhu Beast!

The eyes on its main head saw its own transformation and stared in bewildered terror. “I… how did I suddenly become so ‘Heh-gakka’!?” The small head on its posterior also cried out, “Heh-gakka, Heh-gakka!” As it transformed, a multitude of Huhuhu Beasts in the cages died. Among them, some old, weak, and sick never rose again after death. However, many corpses of strong Huhuhu Beasts began to slowly writhe, seemingly repeating the transformation of the first beast, also turning into Two-Headed Huhuhu Beasts. Following this, they clambered to their feet.

“W-we…” The Huhuhu Beasts were utterly terrified. After all, a sapient race could accept death, but not suddenly becoming *this* monstrosity! Could humans accept suddenly growing a tail, with a small head on its tip!? Du Chen was still unaware that the previous eruption had only caused a handful of wild Huhuhu Beasts to change. However, this eruption had inexplicably triggered changes even in the domesticated, subterranean Huhuhu Beasts, and on a massive scale! At this moment, the first Huhuhu Beast to change suddenly awakened with a shock. “Heavens, those strange fellows who dragged away the Violet-Bloods’ corpses—weren’t they exactly like I am now!? Could it be that…”

*Creeeeak, creeeeak!* Strange sounds echoed through the first-level breeding base. It turned out that the Huhuhu Beasts, resurrected and mutated, were growing restless in their cages. They used their newly acquired sharp, serrated teeth to gnaw at the cages. Those cages, which had once held them captive so securely, proved utterly fragile against their keen teeth, shattering with a single bite! If Du Chen had been there, he would have swiftly deduced that these Huhuhu Beasts now possessed the biting strength of at least a One-Star Fighter! And this was merely the “Coarse Meat” grade of Huhuhu Beasts. What fate awaited the “Fine Meat,” “Honeyed Meat,” and even the “Exquisite” Huhuhu Beasts below?

Du Chen arrived at the second level. A wave of bloody stench assailed him, and then he was utterly dumbfounded by the scene before his eyes!