“Good afternoon.
We now turn to a developing social news story.
Last night, an arrest operation led by the Black Guard took place in the Kero District of Huashan City.
During the arrest, a violent clash broke out with the suspect, resulting in four officers killed on the scene, one critically wounded officer later dying from injuries, and twelve others injured.
The suspect then escaped amid the chaos.
According to official reports, the suspect is 27-year-old Lidi, a red fox.
Authorities are urging the public to contact nearby Black Guard units if they witness the suspect or possess any reliable information related to him, with rewards being offered in return…” The news anchor on television continued reporting details about Lidi, even displaying a full frontal photo of him on screen.
Across the streets, beastman watching giant public screens, scrolling through phone livestreams, or listening through audio streams and podcasts, all came to know the name Lidi, and discussions quickly erupted.
“Holy shit!
Which martial arts master descended from the mountains?
He actually killed the Black Guards!” “He’s probably a terrorist.
Who the hell has the ability to fight the Black Guards, let alone kill them?” “Wait, isn’t that Lidi?
Why is he on the news?
Oh my god, he killed Black Guards?!” “I actually worked with someone that terrifying?” Every social platform exploded with comments regarding what Lidi had done.
Some treated it as entertainment.
Some were shocked.
Some personally knew him.
Some simply didn’t care.
But every single comment shared one thing in common — disbelief that Lidi possessed the ability to kill the Black Guards, much less escape from them as well.
‘Has anyone managed to contact Lidi?’ ‘I tried calling him.
His phone won’t answer at all.’ ‘Holy shit, Lidi’s actually a murderer now.
I used to mess with him all the time… do you think he’ll come after me for revenge?’ ‘Come on, everyone knows you bullied him back then.
If he comes after you, you deserve it.’ ‘@Lidi @Lidi @Lidi Hello?
Are you there?
Are you gonna hunt Marlow down for revenge or what?’ Even Lidi’s old middle school group chat had exploded with notifications.
Almost everyone was suddenly active.
Honestly, this was probably the most alive the group chat had ever been.
And while everyone discussed where Lidi currently was and what he might be doing.
Well, the perspective should probably shift over to him now.
…
“…Please don’t look over here…” Lidi lowered his head nervously while observing the capybara cashier Making sure he wasn’t paying attention to him so he could make his move.
Right now, he was inside a fruit shop, preparing to borrow (steal) an apple.
To be fair, as a fox, Lidi seemed naturally gifted when it came to “borrowing” (stealing) things from others.
It practically felt like a racial talent.
For example, the clothes he was currently wearing.
The hat came from a cargo worker who had fallen asleep on duty and dropped it.
The jacket was casually taken from someone’s drying rack.
And the mask came from a roadside free giveaway stand.
Put together, it created Lidi’s current appearance.
A perfect (extremely suspicious) disguise.
The disguise issue was temporarily solved, but his body’s weakness remained a major problem.
And for some reason, he felt far hungrier than ever before.
Which was why he had no choice but to come here and “beg for alms.” “Come to papa.” Lidi muttered inwardly before quickly stuffing a bright red apple beneath his clothes.
Then he calmly walked toward the exit as if nothing had happened.
Holding the apple against his chest, he kept his head lowered while slowly passing the cashier counter.
Yet the capybara cashier never even looked up, continuing his conversation with a koala coworker as Lidi effortlessly walked out of the fruit shop.
“Yes!” Lidi celebrated internally over his successful theft and quickened his pace toward a more secluded area to enjoy his prize.
“Hey, didn’t that fox just steal an apple?” The koala asked the capybara cashier while pointing toward the retreating Lidi.
The capybara cashier maintained his naturally squinting eyes and gentle expression as he quietly replied, “It’s just one apple, just let it go.
Look at him, he seems like a poor guy who can’t even afford proper clothes.” “Heh.
Fine, but if the boss notices, I’m not covering for you.” The two simply resumed chatting.
Meanwhile, Lidi found an empty corner, checked carefully for surveillance, then finally removed his mask and devoured the apple.
Within only two or three bites, the apple was completely gone.
Feeling the lingering emptiness in his stomach, he could only force himself not to think about it.
After spending some time investigating, he confirmed that he was currently in the commercial district known as Eighth Goda Street.
This is a relatively remote area from the city center, a place where people of the lower and middle classes live.
Moreover, Lidi can only see a few pedestrians walking through the streets, that’s unusual.
But for Lidi, this situation was good.
Fewer people meant less risk of being recognized.
On the other hand, distance is the problem.
Gallaf Supermarket was over ten kilometers away.
Walking there was impossible.
And now, the final step of his plan — transportation — had become his greatest obstacle.
Just as he was thinking about what to do next, his ears picked up rhythmic footsteps approaching from behind.
He subtly turned his head, observing with the corner of his eye.
Two Black Guards were patrolling not far behind him, scanning pedestrians one by one using the special visors on their masks.
“Shit.” Lidi didn’t dare hesitate.
He immediately sped up toward a nearby corner.
Unfortunately, that very reaction caught the attention of the two Black Guards.
They instantly accelerated toward him.
The moment Lidi turned the corner and broke line of sight— He ignored the pain and sprinted with everything he had left.
When the two Black Guards finally reached the corner, all they saw was Lidi fleeing into the distance.
“Red fox ahead!
Stop immediately!” Both Black Guards instantly activated the anti-magnetic propulsion devices mounted on their backs, launching into the air and rapidly pursuing him.
In his current condition, there was no chance Lidi could outrun two flying Black Guards.
Fortunately, not far ahead stood a church.
He can even hear the echo of loud speaker noise coming from distance.
Lidi immediately rushed inside, temporarily breaking the Black Guard’s line of sight again.
The two Black Guards quickly followed, descending in front of the church before entering.
The Church was constructed primarily from marble.
Inside was an enormous prayer hall capable of holding thousands of people — enough to host a small concert.
And right now, that was exactly what was happening.
“Every day!
Every night!
We never forget!” “Every day!
Every night!
We remain humble!” “What the…!” On stage, a raven priest shouted through powerful speakers using his uniquely rhythmic deep voice, delivering a style of chant that resembled rap.
Lidi was shocked by the numbers of beastman inside, as he wasn’t expect to be this crowded After every line the raven priest shouted, thousands of believers below responded in perfect unison with the name: “Winson!” Their voices echoed across the marble walls, giving the entire performance an almost sacred atmosphere.
“There!
Get him!” At the same time, the two Black Guards saw Lidi’s position, and they immediately rushed toward his place.
“With his descent, we were reborn!” “Winson!” Lidi squished himself through the crowd, thanks to his small frame he was able to do it easily.
“With his descent, we no longer fear!” “Winson!” Each sentence from the raven priest was met by a roaring response from the congregation.
The emotions of the believers rapidly escalated.
One after another, believers stood up, singing and dancing excitedly until the massive prayer hall became chaotic and wild.
The two Black Guards who were in pursuit were instantly blocked by the surging crowd of Father of All Beasts believers, completely losing sight of Lidi.
Then several especially enthusiastic believers outright grabbed the two officers and dragged them into the crowd, inviting them to dance together.
“Stop!
Stop!
We’re in the middle of a case!
Stop pulling us!
I said STOP IT!” “Hey!
They’re Black Guards!
Everyone!
We’ve got Black Guard here!” “If the Black Guards also follow the Father of All Beasts, then we are all family!
Come!
Praise Winson together!” Even highly trained Black Guards couldn’t resist being shoved and pulled around by dozens of excited beastman.
Before long, they were forcibly absorbed into the religious celebration.
“He rode upon the Ark and carried us through suffering!” “He guided us so we would no longer lose our way!” “Winson!” After that final shout of “Winson”, every believer inside the church jumped simultaneously.
Thousands of different beastman landing together caused the entire church to shake violently, sending the crowd’s excitement to even greater heights.
“He is the one we all adore!” “Winson!” “He is the one who loves us all!” “Winson!!!” “He is the one father of all!” “WINSON!!!!!” As the final chant echoed through the hall, music erupted.
Every beastman believer grabbed whoever stood nearest and began spinning together in celebration.
The dancing and singing continued endlessly.
The music played on.
And so did the dancing.
“Should we activate the electric shock function on our armor?” One of the struggling Black Guard asked through the communication system built into his mask while fighting through the sea of believers.
“Don’t be stupid.
If we injure or anger these Father of All Beasts followers, we’ll be buried in problems.” The other Black Guard was currently being hoisted up like royalty by a zebra and a white horse beastman, carried above the crowd while they danced.
“At this point, forget the target.
We’ll just have to wait until this concert ends.” “…Be honest.
You’re actually enjoying this, aren’t you?” “…” The Black Guard immediately cut off communications and silently continued drifting along with the crowd.