Animal Detective

A creature weighing over two hundred kilograms was no easy opponent.

Shen Xin clambered ashore, looking a bit of a mess.

Yuexiao even charged onto the shore, calling out to Shen Xin again and again.

'Like.'

'Like my ass.'

Shen Xin glared at him irritably.

On the other side, Yuebao and Xingbao had clearly entered the same state, drifting aimlessly on the water's surface.

And the poor little thing that had been frightened was still floating on the surface, puffed up indignantly.

Not getting what he wanted, Yuexiao's affection level stopped increasing. He returned to the water, floating on his back with his fins splayed.

His "weapon" was on full display.

Shen Xin couldn't bear to look. Beside him, Chen Sili also looked awkward, shrugging as he said, "See? I told you. Dolphins are especially lecherous."

Shen Xin nodded in profound agreement. He'd seen it for himself now.

But it was an animal, and everything it did was driven by instinct, so you couldn't really blame it.

They're at the top of the marine food chain with no worries about food. They're also quite intelligent. When they're full and not trying to procreate, what else are they going to do? It's not like they can go to work.

Seeing the three dolphins lost in their own worlds, Shen Xin pointed at the pool and asked if this was really okay.

Chen Sili had said before that they would recover quickly after enjoying themselves and that there would be no problems at all.

But looking at the scene before him, it felt like they were a little *too* lost in the moment.

"It's fine."

Chen Sili shook his head and got into the water to scoop up the poor little thing.

It got even angrier, its body puffed up round, its mouth pouting. It was impossibly cute.

While Chen Sili was taking the pufferfish away, Shen Xin stared at Yuexiao. A thought suddenly struck him.

Shen Xin had now witnessed just how wild dolphins could be.

'So, when Lin Zenghui drowned... could it have been a situation like this?'

'In the water, something over two hundred kilograms could definitely crush a person to death.'

'Maybe those irresponsible stories Yang Zeran made up were actually true.'

'It's even possible that some of the bizarre scenarios he proposed could have happened.'

'Li Fusen and the others could have been using pufferfish to stimulate the dolphins in private.'

'So who the hell knows what else Lin Zenghui did with the dolphins, besides using them to pick up girls.'

'Too bad Hua Zi is dead. We'll never know what really happened.'

Shen Xin called out to Yuexiao.

He was already high and didn't react much.

But just as Chen Sili had said, the stimulation faded quickly.

After about ten minutes, the three dolphins were back to normal.

Xingbao and Yuebao, full of energy, zipped back and forth, playing happily.

Yuexiao, however, sidled up to Shen Xin.

'Like.'

Shen Xin couldn't even look him in the eye and gestured for him to get lost.

He couldn't be shooed away and just kept circling Shen Xin.

Shen Xin ignored him and went back to work.

Yuexiao watched from the side.

At this point, the effects of entering the second stage must have been slowly manifesting.

Shen Xin's talent also affected animals.

Moreover, Shen Xin felt his talent might be a special form of communication.

'The thoughts I'm hearing must be translated through my talent.'

'Otherwise, how could humans and animals, with their different understandings of the world, communicate in a mutually intelligible way?'

Just like now, Shen Xin was constantly hearing Yuexiao's thoughts.

'Stop working.'

He seemed to understand what Shen Xin was doing, and then, with the help of the talent, it was converted into information Shen Xin could comprehend.

'Play with me.'

'More.'

'Like.'

'Play.'

Yuexiao even came over and nibbled on the arm Shen Xin was holding the brush with, trying to stop him from working.

In the second stage, the higher the affection level, the more thoughts Shen Xin could hear.

But Yuexiao was only at four bars of affection, which wasn't high, yet his thoughts came out one after another, like he was a chatterbox.

'Hit them.'

'Hate them.'

Yuexiao was annoyed by Yuebao and Xingbao speeding past and started complaining.

He even tried to get Shen Xin to join him in a fight.

When Shen Xin refused and ignored him, the affection level above Yuexiao's head would even drop.

But this time it only dropped, instead of disappearing completely.

And after dropping one bar, he swam around in a circle, came back, and continued to pester Shen Xin.

Then the affection level went back up on its own.

Shen Xin didn't know if this change was related to dolphins being intelligent enough to have self-awareness.

Anyway, for animals like Da Mei, their affection level would increase very slowly once they reached the second stage.

It would even get stuck.

Just like Da Mei, who was now stuck at eight bars in the second stage and hadn't changed in a long time.

Shen Xin couldn't talk underwater, so during a break from work, he surfaced and waved at Yuexiao.

He immediately swam over.

"Nod."

Shen Xin demonstrated by nodding his own head.

'Nod.'

Yuexiao immediately copied him.

"Shake your head."

Yuexiao learned it instantly.

Shen Xin was secretly amazed. 'His learning ability is incredible.'

'He's already smart enough, but with the influence of my talent, could his intelligence actually reach a human level?'

'Like being able to communicate without any barriers.'

Shen Xin tried to communicate with Yuexiao, for example, by asking him what he liked.

'Ball.'

First, he said ball.

Then he changed his mind.

'Hua Zi.'

'Like Hua Zi.'

Shen Xin's eyes lit up. Yuexiao still remembered Hua Zi.

'It seems they really do have long-term memories.'

'Hua Zi died.'

'Unhappy.'

To Shen Xin's surprise, Yuexiao now actually understood the concept of death.

When he "said" he was unhappy, he genuinely reacted with sadness, letting out a mournful cry.

But the next moment, he threw himself into Shen Xin's arms.

His tenderness was more than one could bear.

'Like you.'

It was obvious he had moved on to a new love.

Shen Xin pushed him away and continued to chat with him about other things.

This process of communication could increase the affection level.

And through their conversation, Shen Xin truly discovered that dolphins have very rich emotions.