Chapter 22: Raising a Baby Panda as a Pet

"Eek?" The little panda tilted its head.

"Then I won't give you any to eat."

"Eek!" The little guy immediately got anxious, clinging to Xu Xin's leg and not letting go, with eyes full of flattery, its large brown-and-white tail swishing behind it.

Indeed, it still understands what he's saying. Xu Xin handed the large red berry over to the little guy, who took it with both paws, licked it twice, and stuffed it into its mouth, letting out a comfortable sound.

It seems that these high-grade fruits not only have special functions for survivors but are also loved by animals.

On the other side of the lake, there is actually another large red berry bush. Xu Xin discovered it while exploring two days ago but didn't pick it because he was worried it might spoil. However, this little guy seems unaware and comes to him every day to beg for it.

After observing for the past two days, Xu Xin found that fruit of the blue quality, when picked, doesn't spoil like ordinary fruit. In the current jungle, especially at noon, the temperature can reach 35 degrees, but even so, the large red berry (blue) he picked two days ago still hasn't changed in taste, even retaining a cool mouthfeel.

Let's go harvest that bush later.

The little panda, after eating the red berry, stood upright like a human and licked its paws. Just as it was about to turn and run off as it did the previous day, Xu Xin swiftly grabbed it by the scruff of its neck, lifting it to eye level with him.

"Eek?" The little panda wasn't hurt, just tilted its head, seeming to wonder why the two-legged creature in front of it was picking it up.

It didn't struggle, perhaps because Xu Xin's feeding efforts earned its favor.

"How about you stick with me from now on? I'll give you one of those every day," Xu Xin said as the little panda didn't resist. He then cradled it in his arms, stroking the soft black fur on its belly.

This little guy is definitely not an ordinary panda. From a rabbit to a black bear, all terrestrial creatures, except some harmless fish and insects used as environmental elements, have been locked away by the world, yet it can move freely.

Additionally, it seems highly intelligent, capable of understanding Xu Xin's words and cannot be detected by Xu Xin's creator authority abilities.

This little guy is so special, it might be related to the secrets of this world, perhaps influencing whether Xu Xin can return to his original world.

The little guy snuggled into Xu Xin's arms, apparently finding it very comfortable there with no intention to leave, and held up two fingers.

Is it trying to bargain?

Xu Xin looked at the little guy in his arms as if discovering something interesting. The little guy's tail wagged, its fluffy tail sweeping against Xu Xin's arm tickling him, making him grab the mischievous tail and say, "Full board and lodging, one red berry a day, and if you can help me, I have other fruits of the same level."

"Eek?" Hearing about other fruits of the same level, the little guy's ears perked up, its pink tongue licking its lips, before climbing up to Xu Xin's shoulder, perching its large tail over his other shoulder.

Xu Xin knew it had temporarily agreed, smiling as he reached out to stroke the little guy's head. It nuzzled against Xu Xin's palm, lying on his shoulder with eyes closed resting.

This outing turned out quite fruitful, gaining a little panda that seemingly ignores the world's rules.

Even if it can't ignore the world's rules, just having a cute little panda as a companion is rewarding. Who could resist having a small panda that understands human speech in a place where you hardly see people all day?

Thinking it over, Xu Xin decided first to go pick the red berries he had seen earlier. One red berry bush could bear at least 30 berries at a time, enough for a month's supply for this little guy. He just wondered if picking so many in front of it might cause a rebellion.

Xu Xin remembered the location of the red berry bush clearly and quickly arrived before it. However, to his surprise, the little panda on his shoulder seemed completely uninterested in the berries on the bush, just glancing up before closing its eyes again.

Xu Xin couldn't help but ask, "This is your favorite blue-grade red berry, how come there's no reaction?"

"Eek?" The little guy gave Xu Xin a puzzled glance, looked at the red berry bush, scratched its head with a human-like motion, then jumped off Xu Xin's shoulder to pick one and put it in its mouth, shaking its head, "Eek~"

Xu Xin scratched his head in confusion too. What's going on, is this large red berry different? But the original bush had been knocked down by his treehouse.

Looking at the little guy that climbed back on his shoulder, Xu Xin felt a headache. Nonetheless, he proceeded to pick the red berries from the bush since, if not for the little guy, then at least he could eat them; after all, they're blue-grade fruit.

As soon as Xu Xin picked the first red berry, the little panda on his shoulder suddenly opened its eyes, excitedly making a soft sound, "Eek eek eek!"

"Hmm?" Xu Xin was baffled. Didn't it just refuse to eat? Why does it want to eat now that it's been picked? Could it be...

To confirm his suspicion, he handed the berry he had just picked to the little guy's mouth. It ate it in one bite, letting out a comfortable sound and squinting its eyes in delight.

Xu Xin took the little guy from his shoulder and brought it in front of the bush, asking, "Will you eat the berries on the bush?"

The little guy shook its little head.

He picked another berry from the bush and asked, "How about now?"

"Eek!" The little guy immediately nodded, reaching for the red berry in Xu Xin's hand with both paws, but the paws were too short, falling short of reach, leaving it to flail in urgency.

Xu Xin casually put the red berry in his backpack, placing the little guy back on his shoulder, "We agreed on one a day, you've already had two today, that's it."

Seeing Xu Xin put the berry in his backpack, the little guy tried to open the backpack but failed, so it could only lick Xu Xin's cheek in an attempt to win favor. Yet, Xu Xin didn't relent; if he indulged it like that, it would surely eat him out of house and home.

He came to a conjecture.

He had been suspicious from the start as to why these high-grade plants looked no different from the low-grade ones.

Now, it appears that these plants may hold no difference for the indigenous creatures of this world and were only granted new attributes by this so-called survival game.

Only when survivors brought into this world by mysterious forces harvest or chop down these attribute-assigned plants can the attributes manifest; otherwise, they are just ordinary red berries.

This mechanism might be maintaining balance. If blue resources were so scarce yet highly attractive to beasts, birds alone could devour these berries, leaving nothing for the survivors.

As he thought of this, Xu Xin suddenly felt that the truth of this world was far from as straightforward as he had imagined.

The voice that appeared in his mind might also be an outsider to this world, and they, along with this world, might be just a group of guinea pigs and a test field.