Super Zoo

The wolf-dog brothers, each time they encountered the Wolf King, looked as though they were sworn enemies turning green with envy. Despite once being of the same species, they now couldn't stand the sight of each other, facing off with a ferocious roar through the bars of their cages each time they met.

The reason for this didn't need to be spelt out for Suming to guess.

The Wolf King probably thought, "You bunch of traitors have abandoned the glory of our ancestors to grovel and fawn over humans. How dare you parade in front of me, the shamelessness is utterly unbearable!"

As for the wolf-dog brothers, "You might be tough, but you're still trapped in a cage, all bark and no bite, what's the point of putting on airs!"

It was the Wolf King's pregnant wife, who was about to give birth, that actually seemed to have a fairly good attitude towards the two wolf-dogs, making Suming feel somewhat guilty on behalf of the Wolf King.

"Su, hurry up, the female wolf is giving birth; you need to go there!" Early on Tuesday morning, Mr. Peng hurriedly called Suming out of his waterside pavilion and dragged him towards the Wolf Pen.

What Mr. Peng hoped for was that when the wolf pups were born with Suming present, they'd first lay eyes on Suming upon entering the world. This natural bonding would make future care and management much easier.

Mr. Peng meant well, but Suming always felt there was something odd about what he said.

Why do I have to be there when the female wolf gives birth? I might be Bigmonster, but really, those pups have nothing to do with me!

That said, when he heard about the wolf giving birth, Suming was actually quite happy.

Damn it, I'm finally liberated. Never again will I have to put up with that sulky face of the pregnant wolf!

The one who felt equally liberated was the Wolf King, who had endured his fair share of humiliation during this time.

Strangely enough, the wolves in the zoo seemed to lack some wildness due to their upbringing, which affected their temperament and habits, making them quite different from the wolves in the wild.

Wolves take great care of their pups and are loyal to their mates, but it's unheard of for a male wolf to dote on a pregnant female wolf too. The female wolf, during her pregnancy, was extremely irritable, constantly snarling at the Wolf King who, to everyone's surprise, would just take it all without showing a shred of his supposed kingly domineering presence, looking like a beleaguered little man. Suming found it quite pitiable to watch.

The pregnancy period of the female wolves in the zoo also differed from that in the wild; wild wolves usually give birth in the spring.

During spring, life rejuvenates, and after a hungry winter, most animals lack peak strength and are preoccupied with finding food, which lowers their alertness. This makes it easier for the female wolf to hunt, enabling her to produce ample milk to nourish her litter.

The wolves in the zoo, however, didn't have to worry about food. While they didn't necessarily feast, they were at least well-fed, which even altered their birthing schedule, sometimes leading to births in summer or autumn.

Even weirder, while a female wolf in the wild normally has at least three or four pups in a litter, the zoo's female wolf only gave birth to a single pup, leaving everyone quite baffled.

Among nine dogs and one Tibetan mastiff, that sole one is always the fiercest. It's uncertain whether this one and only wolf pup will grow up to be the strongest wolf.

Regardless, the fact that the birth had finally happened was good news for everyone.

Due to the hot weather and the pregnant female wolf, the zoo spared no expense in installing a glass chamber and air conditioning in the Wolf Pen.

Looking through the clear glass, the Wolf King sat quietly inside his cage, occasionally glancing around warily, while the female wolf lay in her den, continuously licking a large chunk resembling a placenta with her protruding tongue.

It wasn't intent on consuming the placenta but rather on licking off the blood scent from it, to keep away other carnivores, avoiding a threat to the newborn cubs. Even though some habits have changed for wolves in captivity, the majority of their instinct still remains deep in their bones.

By the mother wolf's side, there lay a little grey, downy-furred wolf cub with black bristles, relentlessly burrowing into its mother's embrace.

Mr. Song lay propped up against the rail at the edge of the Wolf Pen, leaning forward with squinted eyes as he watched the mother wolf and her cub for a while before saying, "The Wolf King and his mate are both old now, and the mother wolf is two years older than the Wolf King, so I'm guessing she doesn't have much milk. Mr. Peng, come with me, we need to take the cub out for bottle-feeding."

The lifespan of prairie wolves is normally 12-16 years, and the Wolf King couple were already ten years old when they came to the zoo. Having lived here for another two years, by human standards, they are elderly, especially the mother wolf, who is in her twilight years, thus her milk is understandably scarce.
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"Let me do it!" Suming quickly dissuaded Mr. Song and Mr. Peng.

Wolves normally have very strong aggressive instincts, and the mother wolf, being protective of her cub, was especially tense and sensitive at this time, making it extremely dangerous to approach the cub. Although there are protective measures in place in the zoo, it's not one hundred percent safe.

If someone else went, even if their own safety could be ensured, it could easily startle the recently delivered mother wolf. If this caused a postpartum depression or some other problem, it would be bad.

Mr. Song looked at Suming, nodded, then signaled Mr. Peng to give the bottle to Suming and patted Suming's shoulder, "Be safe!"

Carrying the bottle, Suming circled behind the Wolf Pen and opened the iron gate, slipping through the keepers' corridor.

Similar to the interior of Xiongshan, the keepers' corridor at the back of the Wolf Pen was separated from the pen itself by an iron fence. The mother wolf lay not far from the fence, and Suming crouched by it, close enough to touch the cubs with an outstretched hand.

Hearing the footsteps approaching, the mother wolf, lying down at first, suddenly jumped up as if electrified, her wolfish howl erupting from her neck. She used her body to shield her cub, baring her fangs and emitting a low growl.

"Easy!" Suming released a wave of spiritual power, shaking the bottle at the mother wolf.

The mother wolf smelled the familiar scent on Suming and let down her guard, lying back down beside her cub.

Now closer, Suming could see the cubs more clearly: the little wolf cub was just slightly larger than a palm, with a thin grey film still covering its eyes, which were blue, watery, and the pupils were already visible as dark spots.

Seeing a stranger come in, the little fellow, which had been energetically burrowing into his mother's embrace, suddenly stiffened his tail and limbs, tilted his body sideways, and with a little thud, fell to the ground, eyes tightly shut, his body going rigid and motionless.

It looked as though the little wolf cub had been frightened by Suming to the point of a heart attack, dropping dead on the spot.

"Such an over-the-top performance!" Suming almost laughed; the little cub didn't recognize him and was playing dead.

So, releasing a faint spiritual power, Suming probed towards the little cub.

Newborn wolf cubs are naturally sensitive to spiritual power; upon contact with it, they immediately sensed that the 'big guy' in front of them held no malice. Instead, they felt an attachment.

Only then did the little cub let down its guard, slowly opening its eyes, curiously looking at Suming before shaking its head and struggling to rise.

It reached out with its tiny paws to wave about in the air, as if trying to catch that 'spiritual power,' but came up empty, lost its balance, and tumbled again.