Chapter 12: Croc Brother’s Little Follower

Beneath her lay a massive creature, its furtive movements betraying no trace of the aloofness typical of cold-blooded animals; instead, those amber vertical pupils radiated an unexpected tenderness. Lu Li carefully stepped down, and the crocodile seemed almost fearful of startling her, rigidly restraining its enormous body.

She wrapped her wrist with willow twigs, plunged a dagger into a tree trunk, then leaned forward, holding her breath to observe. The crocodile’s colossal form was covered in grayish-brown scales; its snout was short and flat, eyes large, limbs short and sturdy. There was something vaguely familiar about it.

The display panel sneered coldly: “Mutated Yangtze alligator, a national first-class protected species before the apocalypse.”

“Is this really a Yangtze alligator? Aren’t they supposed to be small and cute?” Lu Li questioned.

“Don’t they usually eat frogs? And now they’re mutated in size?” She looked at the enormous crocodile in front of her, doubting the panel’s explanation.

Once a model citizen, Lu Li’s hand trembled gripping the knife. She steadied her breath, reminding herself this was the apocalypse, where prison was no longer a worry; the only protected species now were humans.

Suddenly, she snapped into clarity. But she wasn’t human—she was the apex predator of humanity in this new world!

As she slapped her forehead, the crocodile’s needle-like pupils dilated, the black iris flooding over the orange-yellow. It tilted its head, wagging its enormous tail as it crawled closer, raising its short, stout front paw.

Lu Li’s eyes widened as the webbed claw rested on her leg. Her body stiffened, breath catching.

Playing dead on a crocodile—would that work? What should she do next? Could this mutated crocodile have other mutations? Was it using slaps instead of death rolls after failing to kill her?

The crocodile turned its head to look at Lu Li. Seeing her motionless, it patted her five-fingered hand, placed the other webbed paw on her other leg, and nuzzled its massive head against her knee, wagging like a loyal dog.

Lu Li was dumbfounded. Was this crocodile being affectionate?

Enduring the nudges and rubs from the crocodile, Lu Li tentatively reached out to stroke its head.

Her fingertips touched the cold, hard scales—smooth and slippery to the touch, making her reluctant to pull away. No wonder so many people loved crocodile leather goods!

Rather than anger, the crocodile responded with headbutts, curling its five fingers around her hand, pressing her palm closer against its scales.

Gazing at its uneven teeth, awkward grin, and rounded form, Lu Li felt a wave of familiarity from before the apocalypse return.

“Dog system, do we have any snow cakes?”

“Host, 30 points per pack. Would you like to put it on credit?”

Lu Li spat, setting the crocodile down, patting its head regretfully. “I can barely take care of myself, so I won’t trouble you.”

The crocodile, about five or six meters long, stubbornly clung to her feet, unwilling to leave. Recalling all that had just happened, Lu Li couldn’t help but shiver in fear.

“System, are you sure this is a national first-class protected useless creature?”

“Host, please do not question the calculations and measurements of higher-dimensional intelligent beings.”

“But if this is a Yangtze alligator, how terrifying must the other animals be?”

Lu Li hugged herself timidly, hoping to avoid reality a little longer. A sharp pain shot through her ankle, prompting her to step back.

As she tried to leave, the crocodile hurried after her, whimpering anxiously.

Hearing a burp behind her, Lu Li froze. After a moment, she confirmed the sound was indeed from a Yangtze alligator—the “pig dragon” was unmistakable.

Shaking off the willow twigs, she crouched down. “Croc, is your whole family like you, or just you?”

The alligator’s pupils contracted, its wide-open jaws closing with a serious expression.

Worried it might not understand, Lu Li made several “ho ho ho” sounds. Seeing the alligator’s persistently goofy face, she gave up struggling. If she didn’t understand herself, how could a crocodile?

Turning to leave, she stumbled over a fallen willow tree, rolling down to the riverbank only to be caught just in time by the Yangtze alligator.

Lu Li patted her burning backside and struggled to stand, watching as the willow tree burst into flame again.

Clenching her fist, she struck hard. Crackling sounds accompanied the splitting of another willow tree, its branches stiffening before collapsing under gravity.

Seeing her and the crocodile ready to continue, the willow forest rustled wildly; the branches retreated frantically, afraid to touch her clothes lest they provoke her wrath, eventually uprooting themselves.

Thanks to the willows’ self-preservation, Lu Li found, for the first time in the forest, a sun-dappled open path.

Yet she loathed the trees with a fiery passion, ignoring their pleas and tormenting whoever annoyed her—tearing leaves, hacking trunks, stripping bark, sometimes even toppling entire trees.

“If it weren’t for meeting a Yangtze alligator, I’d probably be crocodile food by now, torn to bits.”

“It doesn’t want to hurt me, but you lot cause me endless trouble! One misfortune after another, and I’ve taken quite a beating in such a short time.”

She cursed as she kicked a tree trunk. The Yangtze alligator followed closely, its short limbs trotting behind.

Its hind legs were too short to reach properly, causing it to sway awkwardly. Lu Li quickly steadied it, draping its tail over a tree trunk.

Its maw, filled with uneven, sparse fangs, opened in a crooked grin. Seeing this, Lu Li couldn’t help but chuckle, her frustration easing.

She tossed some low-pollution loaches she had recently caught into its mouth. With a quick gulp, the small fish slid down its throat.

Looking at her meager supplies, Lu Li felt even more disheartened. She was truly broke.

She casually stabbed her dagger into a willow tree, threatening coldly, “Hand over something useful, or I’ll slaughter you!”

The willow shuddered in terror, its branches scattering under the watchful eyes of woman and crocodile.

Staring at the dense, slender willow branches, Lu Li’s heart skipped—a moment of fear. This tree was beyond her strength.

Her method of judging strength had been flawed; she had always thought bigger meant stronger, but this willow’s power was incomparable to larger trees she’d faced.

Those she had challenged before were merely minor thugs of this forest. Without the Yangtze alligator’s protection, she might already have been done in by this iron-clad tree.

The willow’s branches were exceptionally slender and resilient, covering an extensive area. Protected by the crocodile, Lu Li reached toward the base of the branches.

The instant her fingertips touched, the entire willow shuddered violently, its branches stiffening to attack.

Lu Li recoiled in fear. The alligator raised its paw to pat her, then slammed its tail against the trunk in warning before allowing her to continue.

The proud, valiant crocodile roared triumphantly in the willow forest.

Its strange, burp-like cry left Lu Li speechless. She hurriedly shoved another loach into its mouth.

Under her expectant gaze, some branches withdrew. Holding up a strange weed before her eyes, Lu Li activated her measuring device: Pollution level 95%.

Seeing the number, she quickly stepped back. Such a high pollution level, towering over her—how awful it must taste!

She flicked the strange weed away, then bent down beside the crocodile, using her saliva to mimic its tears. “Ho ho,” she whimpered pitifully in a coquettish voice, “Croc, it’s trying to poison us with toxic grass!”