Strange Powder

Morning came.

Wei Long was pissed.

He had eaten like a king, fought a buff pig to the death, and even strategized like a true predator—

But despite all that, he only reached Level Seven Mortal Beast.

Level Eight was right there!

And now, the sun was rising, which meant—

The humans were coming.

Worse—

Something felt off.

Wei Long scanned the forest.

The beasts that had been everywhere last night?

Gone.

Not a single growl, chirp, or scurry.

Wait… Did the buff pig already kill them all?

That thing had been running around like a muscle-bound lunatic.

Or…

Did I kill too many?

Wei Long squinted.

Nah.

That can't be it. Right?

But the more he searched, the more unsettling it became.

Then—

His Predatory Senses (Peak) flared.

Something was nearby.

Wei Long stilled.

Then, without hesitation, he activated his Bio-engineered Mortal Camouflage (Peak).

He vanished.

From the shadows, he watched.

Three figures moved through the area, their movements swift and precise.

Wei Long's sharp hearing picked up their conversation.

One of them—a young man in gray robes—spoke first.

"We need to spread the Powder of Suiyou before the disciples arrive."

Wei Long's instincts screamed.

That name. That powder. BAD.

The second figure, a woman in dark robes, nodded. "Once the powder takes effect, the local beasts will go mad. The new disciples of the Autumn Dragon Sect will be annihilated before they can even begin their trials."

Wei Long's eyes narrowed.

Assassination?

These guys weren't normal sect disciples.

They were up to something.

A Smart Dinosaur Knows When to Run

Then—

Wei Long saw them spread the powder.

A fine, shimmering dust floated through the air.

It looked… harmless.

But Wei Long trusted his instincts.

And his Bio-engineered Mortal Predatory Senses (Peak) were SCREAMING.

This was bad news.

Very, very bad.

So, being the highly intelligent, self-preserving dinosaur that he was—

Wei Long ran.

Because he was not about to stick around and find out what that stuff did.

He bolted straight back to his cave under the tree.

Once he was safely inside, he grabbed one of the creatures he had captured earlier.

A random, low-level beast, still wriggling in confusion.

Wei Long stared at it.

Then he stared back at the area where the powder had been spread.

Then back at the creature.

Then back at the powder.

Then—

An idea.

A brilliant, mildly unethical, but completely justified idea.

Wei Long dragged the creature all the way back to the powdery zone.

Then, with zero hesitation—

THREW IT IN.

Then, quickly backed away.

And waited.

He watched carefully, his sharp eyes locked onto the test subject.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

Wei Long's eyes went wide.

Wei Long watched.

And he watched closely.

Because this was science.

Dinosaur science.

The little raccoon—just moments ago, a perfectly normal, struggling Level Four beast—

Now sat in the middle of the strange powder.

It sniffed.

It twitched.

Then, its fur bristled.

Wei Long's eyes narrowed.

For a few seconds, nothing happened.

Wei Long tilted his head.

Maybe it doesn't work on raccoons?

Then—

The raccoon twitched again.

This time, it was more violent.

Wei Long took one step back.

Then another.

The raccoon's eyes bulged.

Its fur, once a normal mix of brown and gray, turned red.

RED.

Wei Long's tail stiffened.

That's not normal.

The raccoon shook violently.

Then it suddenly roared.

Wei Long flinched.

A raccoon.

Roaring.

Like a beast ten times its size.

The little creature turned to face a nearby rock.

It growled.

Then—

ATTACKED IT.

Wei Long's jaw dropped.

The raccoon bit the rock.

It clawed at the rock.

It headbutted the rock.

And then—

Slammed itself against the rock so hard, it knocked itself unconscious.

Wei Long blinked.

It lay there.

Motionless.

For a moment, all Wei Long could hear was the wind rustling through the trees.

Then—

The raccoon's body convulsed.

Wei Long's eyes widened.

The raccoon twitched.

Then shook.

Then twitched again.

Wei Long took another step back.

Its tiny body jerked unnaturally.

Its limbs spasmed.

Wei Long narrowed his eyes.

It almost looked like its muscles were growing.

Wait.

No.

They were growing.

The raccoon's small frame stretched.

Its claws grew longer.

Its teeth sharpened.

Then—

Its eyes snapped open.

But those weren't the same eyes as before.

Wei Long felt a chill run down his tail.

It wasn't just stronger.

It was something else entirely.

And then—

A ding echoed in Wei Long's mind.

[Ding! Analyzing Target...]

Wei Long's gaze flickered to the system notification.

The raccoon, previously Level Four...

Now Level Six Mortal Beast.

Wei Long's jaw almost hit the floor.

This Was Not Normal

"What… the hell… did I just witness?"

Wei Long stared.

The raccoon roared again.

It turned in circles.

Then—

It charged at a tree.

The tree.

A completely innocent tree.

It attacked the tree.

Clawed at the bark.

Bit into the wood.

Then it ran to a patch of grass.

And attacked that too.

Wei Long watched in horror as the raccoon tried to fight the ground itself.

It was punching dirt.

It was growling at the air.

Wei Long's claws twitched.

This is worse than rabies.

This was INSANITY.

And that powder was to blame.

Wei Long did not need to see more.

Time to go. He turned. He left. His cave was waiting.

Once he got there, he grabbed a thick wooden log and jammed it across the entrance.

Would that stop anything from coming in? Probably not.

Did it make him feel better?

Yes.

Then, finally, Wei Long curled up.

He was mentally drained. Physically exhausted. And he had a lot to think about. But this time, make sure not to let the power get to him.

Suddenly, Wei Long froze. His tail stiffened. His claws curled into the dirt.

Because he sensed it.

A presence. A human presence. Far away— But getting closer. Wei Long's slit pupils contracted as he focused.

His Bio-engineered Predatory Senses worked in overdrive, analyzing everything.

A man. A human male. A Mortal Practitioner. Level Six.

Wei Long's eyes widened.

That's it? That's all this guy was? Just Level Six?

Wei Long blinked.

I'm Level Seven.

This man was weaker than him. A human, weaker than him. A Mortal Practitioner, weaker than him.

Wei Long felt offended.

Because this didn't make sense. Weren't humans supposed to be terrifying?

Weren't they the ones who could tame beasts, wield techniques, and basically cheat their way to power?

But this? This was a joke.

A Thought Crossed His Mind

Why not just kill him?

One bite. One claw swipe. One ambush. And this human pest would be gone.

No more powder spreading. No more rabid raccoons. No more weird conspiracies.

Wei Long's eyes gleamed.

Yes. Yes, this was a good plan. He could do it now. He could— Wait.

The man spoke.

"There aren't enough beasts here," the man muttered, scanning the area.

Then—

He turned around.

And left.

Wei Long stopped.

His plan crumbled instantly.

What?

Wei Long's eyes narrowed as he followed the man's silhouette with his gaze.

He's not spreading the powder?

Wei Long's tail twitched.

Now, this was strange.

Wei Long had assumed these people were just brainless evil cultivators, spreading dangerous powder like it was free seasoning.

But this guy? He chose not to. He didn't spread it. Why? Why not? Wei Long's mind raced.

Although he they are planning to kill the new disciples of the Autumn Dragon Sect, he felt like there was something.

Something wasn't right.

And then—

A thought hit him.

Who Are These People?

Wei Long remembered the sinister aura around them. Not the usual kind of evil, power-hungry aura cultivators had.

This was different.

It felt wrong.

Twisted.

Corrupt.

Wei Long's tail flicked.

Are they even part of the Autumn Dragon Sect?

Wei Long had just assumed they were rebels trying to wipe out the sect's new disciples.

But what if they weren't?

What if they were something else entirely?

What if they had their own sinister goals?

You know? Like cultivators from other sects.

Wei Long's claws flexed.

Should he follow them?

His instincts told him yes.

His logic told him to wait, think about this.

So he did.

Knowledge is power. He had spent too long just guessing how things worked. If he wanted to survive, he needed real information.

They have the powder. Whatever that stuff was, it was terrifying. He needed to know what it did, how it worked, and how to counter it.

They could lead him to something bigger. If these guys were working against the Autumn Dragon Sect, then who were they working for?

If he learns their secrets, he can plan better. Right now, he was just hunting, hiding, and hoping he didn't get tamed. That wasn't enough. He needed long-term survival strategies.

They could be stronger than they seem. This guy was only Level Six, but what if he had hidden techniques, powerful allies, or traps?

The powder could be dangerous. If they had a way to control it, Wei Long could end up falling into their trap.

They might detect him. If they had cultivation techniques or special senses, he might not be able to hide forever.

He could be walking into a disaster. For all he knew, they were heading into a base filled with dozens of powerful cultivators.

Wei Long sat there.

Thinking.

Thinking way too hard for a dinosaur.

If he didn't follow them, he'd stay ignorant.

If he did, he could get valuable information.

Or he could get captured.

Or worse—

Tamed.

Wei Long's claws scraped the dirt.

Tamed.

Absolutely not.

He shuddered.

That was his worst nightmare.

His greatest fear.

Being a pet to some weak human?

No.

No, no, no.

Wei Long took a deep breath.

Then—

His slit pupils gleamed with resolve.

"Alright!"

He would follow them.

Because no matter the risk—

Ignorance was worse than danger.

If he wanted to survive this world, he needed to understand it. After all, despite being a Bio-engineered Dinosaur or monster, there are monsters who have different abilities here too.

Gotta be brave.

Even if it meant walking straight into the unknown.