The frown on Yang Lin's face deepened as he watched the video transmitted wirelessly via Bluetooth.
He had initially believed that even the most audacious poachers wouldn't go too far.
But seeing this, he realized he had underestimated them.
In the vast, empty factory, dozens of large iron cages were neatly stacked.
Even if each cage held only one animal, that was still dozens of wild creatures.
Given the nature of these poachers, it was likely there were at least a hundred animals within these cages.
However, this was not the main point. The crucial detail was that the poaching group numbered over ten people, and each of them was armed with lethal weapons like firearms and crossbows.
With such equipment, they could easily hunt down lions, tigers, and elephants.
"It seems we've encountered a professional poaching organization. I need to call for backup."
With that thought, Yang Lin quickly signaled Li Shuangying, who was stealthily positioned on the roof, to return.
He himself found a safe corner and quietly dialed a number.
"Hello? Is this the police? I've discovered a group of poachers at the boiler factory on Gaogong Road."
"Yes, there are over a dozen of them, and they are all armed. I estimate they have at least a hundred wild animals."
"If you don't believe me, I have video footage taken by a drone."
"Okay, I'll send it to you shortly."
...
At the same time Yang Lin made the call, the Ningnan City Public Security Bureau, more than ten kilometers away, soon received a video.
As soon as the video started playing, the entire police station erupted in a frenzy.
"Captain Lin, these people must be the poachers that our forest police have been tracking for a long time. I didn't expect them to come to Ningnan."
In the conference room, a middle-aged man watched the video projected on the screen with excitement.
"Most likely. Ordinary poaching groups wouldn't have this kind of scale, and they're armed. They must have a significant background."
A short-haired young man beside him nodded in agreement.
"Judging by their appearance, they seem to be planning to transport these animals out of the country via land. We must intercept them this time."
"By the way, have the informant's details been verified?"
Upon hearing the young man's words, a young officer quickly nodded.
"Verified. The informant is Yang Lin, the owner of a private zoo. There are no issues."
"A zoo owner? What a coincidence," the young man said, though he didn't dwell on it.
"Alright, since the target and location are confirmed, let's move out. We absolutely cannot let them escape this time."
"If they get away, they pose a significant threat to all of Ningnan with their firearms."
"Operation!"
As the young man finished speaking, a large contingent of police forces quickly assembled.
Before long, police cars carrying officers began to converge on the eastern industrial production zone of Ningnan.
It was already half an hour later when they arrived.
During those thirty minutes, Yang Lin had been intently watching the factory designated as the poachers' base, fearing they might escape in the interim.
"Why aren't they here yet? What if they escape if they don't arrive soon?"
Just as Yang Lin's anxiety peaked, over a dozen police cars, with their sirens and lights off, appeared around the factory in a pincer formation.
Seeing this, Yang Lin's eyes lit up.
"Excellent, they're finally here."
"Since the police are here, there's no need for me to stay. I'll slip away while no one's looking."
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Yang Lin immediately drove away under the cover of night.
Not long after, he heard the sound of gunfire erupting from behind him, and a chill ran down his spine.
He also felt fortunate that he hadn't impulsively charged in alone.
Even though he now had the system, there was no significant change in his personal capabilities.
Even with the protection of Li Goudan and Li Gousheng, he doubted he could survive against those ruthless poachers.
He couldn't help but sigh, thinking:
"Humans are animals too. I wonder when I'll be able to add points to myself."
As soon as the words left his mouth, a system prompt sounded.
"The host is currently a higher primate. If the host wishes to add points to themselves, the system must be upgraded to Level 2 before this function can be activated."
Yang Lin was taken aback by the prompt but then a look of joy spread across his face.
"So, I couldn't add points not because I was incapable, but because humans are too high a level."
"But can this system be upgraded? What are the requirements to reach Level 2?"
"The host needs to illuminate the talents of no less than 100 animals, with at least 10 of them being gold-tier talents, for the system to upgrade."
Upon receiving the system's answer, Yang Lin felt as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water.
Illuminating the talents of 100 animals. Setting aside whether the Xihong Zoo even had 100 animals, even if it did, it would require 100 talent points.
Of course, this wasn't the most difficult part. The greatest challenge was having 10 gold-tier talent possessors.
This meant he couldn't just use ordinary cats and dogs to fill the quota; they had to be animals with extraordinary talents.
He could only imagine how difficult this would be.
"Forget it, forget it. I'll let nature take its course. These things can't be rushed."
Shaking his head, he pushed these unrealistic thoughts aside and stepped on the accelerator.
Before long, he was back at the Xihong Zoo.
He had expected to receive a task completion notification soon.
However, to his confusion, he waited for two or three hours without hearing anything.
"Could it be that the police didn't catch all the poachers?"
"That's impossible, right? Could they have escaped under those circumstances?"
As he pondered this, more than ten kilometers away at the old boiler factory site, Lin Feng, looking dejected, punched a nearby pillar.
As the commander of the operation, he had never expected these poachers to have two individual grenade launchers hidden amongst their conventional weapons.
Although they had successfully infiltrated the factory and killed eight poachers, seven of them had still managed to escape in the chaos.
"Captain Lin, all the wild animals poached by them are here. 148 live specimens and 78 specimens and carcasses."
As Lin Feng was feeling agitated, a police officer approached and reported.
"All their prey this time has been confiscated. If you were one of these escaped poachers, what would be your next move?"
Suddenly hearing his captain's question, the young officer froze.
"Find a safe place to hide? Or continue fleeing?"
As soon as he finished speaking, an older officer shook his head.
"No, you don't understand these desperate men well enough."
"Just like gamblers, when they encounter such a situation, they often choose to double down, even go all-in, to recoup their previous losses."
"Recoup their losses? They're in this state, how can they recoup their losses?" The young officer clearly didn't quite understand the old officer's words.
At that very moment, a mobile phone in the hand of a deceased poacher caught Lin Feng's attention.