Yang Lin was first stunned by what he heard on the phone, and it took him a few seconds to finally react.
"What animal?"
The other party's next answer caught him somewhat off guard.
"A panda, do you want the panda that was at the city zoo before?"
At first, Yang Lin didn't quite register the word "panda."
"A red panda? Didn't I already take it to Xihong Zoo?"
"No, it's the giant panda. If you want it, I'll send it over now."
"What? That giant panda?"
After clearly hearing what the other person said, Yang Lin was instantly bewildered.
In his impression, pandas were national treasures. Even though they had been reclassified, they were still first-class national protected animals and highly sought after.
In the past, any large zoo would be embarrassed not to have one.
Being able to raise a giant panda was a symbol of strength, and it was even used in national diplomacy. It wouldn't have come to the point where no one wanted it.
He even thought that panda had already been taken by another zoo.
"Yes, it's that one. It's been at the city zoo for several days, and its keeper will resign tomorrow. I can only send it to your Xihong Zoo."
Director Nie's voice on the phone carried a hint of helplessness, clearly indicating that he hadn't expected this outcome either.
All the animals in the zoo had been relocated, leaving only a giant panda that no one wanted.
Unable to figure out the reason, Yang Lin immediately asked,
"This doesn't make sense. Why doesn't anyone want it?"
As soon as Yang Lin asked this question, Director Nie quickly provided the answer.
"It's like this: the giant panda was originally supposed to be taken by the Imperial Capital Zoo. However, when they found out that the panda was 18 years old and had epilepsy, they decided not to take it."
"Other zoos are in a similar situation."
Yang Lin: ...
Yang Lin hadn't expected such a reason.
But at the same time, he felt rather exasperated. Shouldn't this kind of matter be handled by higher authorities? Why was it being dumped on him?
Just then, Director Nie's voice came through the phone again.
"What, Tuan Tuan's epilepsy has recurred? Have you arranged for a veterinarian?"
"We can't find a vet. What should we do?"
...
"Director Yang, I'm truly sorry. I just received a call from the city zoo. The giant panda Tuan Tuan's epilepsy has recurred, and the situation seems quite serious."
"We can't find a vet at the moment, so we can only ask you to come over."
Listening to Director Nie's voice on the phone, Yang Lin couldn't help but show a wry smile.
"I didn't expect to get involved in something like this so late at night."
"It's my own soft heart."
As he hung up the phone, Yang Lin grabbed the keys to a nearby minivan and soon arrived at the city zoo.
The city zoo, after his previous "sweep," had most of the things that needed to be dismantled already taken down.
The entire park appeared exceptionally empty. There were no people, let alone animals in sight.
When Yang Lin arrived at the panda house, a temporary staff member from the city zoo looked at him as if he were a savior.
"Director Yang, you've finally arrived. If you hadn't come, I really wouldn't have known what to do."
Seeing the staff member's anxious expression, Yang Lin realized the situation was undoubtedly not simple.
However, when he walked into the panda house, he was still startled by the scene before him.
A plump adult giant panda lay there with its limbs spread wide, its four short legs twitching, and occasionally foaming at the mouth.
He had never seen an animal in such a state in his life.
Immediately, he frowned, thought for a moment, and said to the staff member,
"How about this, go and prepare some common medications. I'll take a look at it first."
Hearing Yang Lin's instructions, the staff member didn't dare to doubt him and immediately nodded and ran out.
Soon, only Yang Lin and the panda lying on the ground were left in the panda house.
At the same time, a system prompt sounded in his mind.
"Ding! Temporary mission triggered. Host, please save the giant panda."
"Mission completion reward: one talent point."
Yang Lin's expression remained unchanged as he listened to the prompt in his mind.
It was clear that the system mission was within his expectations.
With that thought, he directly cast a Light of Insight towards the panda on the ground.
The next second, a talent panel appeared before him.
[Giant Panda]
[Cuteness (Green Talent) Activation requires 1 talent point]
[Steel Teeth (Green Talent) Activation requires 1 talent point]
[Thick Skin (Green Talent) Activation requires 1 talent point]
[Soul of the Glutton (Green Talent) Activation requires 1 talent point]
[Tree Climbing (Green Talent) Activation requires 1 talent point]
[Natural Strength (Gold Talent) Activation requires 5 talent points]
[King of the Mountains (Gold Talent) Activation requires 5 talent points]
[War Beast (Legendary Talent) Activation requires 10 talent points]
Looking at the talent panel before him, Yang Lin felt his eyes were opened wide.
He had initially thought pandas were merely cute animals that survived on their charm, but he never expected them to possess such terrifying hidden talents.
Two gold and one legendary, especially the legendary talent "War Beast," looked incredibly impressive. If it weren't so expensive, Yang Lin would have really wanted to activate it and try it out.
As he was examining the panda's talent panel, the panda on the ground began to foam again.
It looked like it was on the verge of giving up at any moment.
Yang Lin, who had been planning to choose carefully, directly and casually placed a talent point into the "Soul of the Glutton" talent.
As the talent was activated, the giant panda, which had been on its last legs, instantly seemed to experience a surge of renewed vitality. Its limbs stopped twitching, and it stopped foaming.
When Yang Lin wanted to check its condition further, it immediately sat up and looked around with its panda eyes.
Upon seeing Yang Lin, it suddenly hugged his trouser leg.
Yang Lin initially thought it was trying to be cute towards him, but he soon felt something was amiss. He vaguely sensed something gnawing at his shoe.
He looked down and saw that a large chunk of his brand new leather shoes, bought for the upcoming sports event, had been bitten off.
The culprit was none other than Tuan Tuan, the panda hugging his thigh.
At this moment, he finally understood what the "Soul of the Glutton" talent represented.
ps: The seventh update ends here. This chapter commemorates the panda Tuan Tuan, who recently passed away in Taiwan. Consider this a resurrection for it.
And also Sun Si Miao, who passed away earlier.
Also, seeing some reader comments, I'll clarify here that this book will not have any spirit recovery plotlines.
Only the protagonist's animals will awaken talents, and they won't be overly mystical talents, maybe just slightly so.
The protagonist will only be a little stronger than an ordinary person in the later stages, not venturing into the mystical genre. The main focus will remain on the animals.
The ultimate goal is to create a super-large park where humans and animals coexist, similar to Disney or Jurassic Park.
Goodnight, everyone. See you tomorrow.