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Chapter 93 The Reasons Why Mud Doesn't Want to Leave

After listening to Zhang Xiaoling's account, the viewers in the live stream started discussing it.

"Grimer—the Pokédex says it really does smell bad."

"This is too tragic, they can't even go home."

"This Mud is pretty stubborn, isn't it? It doesn't want to leave or be tamed?"

"Teacher Lin, what should we do? We can't just stay in this stalemate forever, can we?"

Lin Dao frowned slightly after hearing this; it was indeed a thorny issue.

Mud itself is harmless, but its properties severely affect the normal lives of residents, and it cannot be simply driven away or forcibly subdued.

There must be a reason why it stubbornly stayed in that courtyard.

"Xiaoling, don't panic," Lin Dao reassured her.

"You said the police officers are still at the scene? If it's convenient, could you contact that officer so we can take a look at the situation directly? Maybe we can find out why Mud doesn't want to leave."

"Oh? Yes, that's fine! Officer Wang is a very nice person; he's been over there the whole time!"

Zhang Xiaoling quickly found a number.

Li Hao quickly established a three-way call through the live streaming platform's backend and granted temporary live streaming privileges to Officer Wang.

Soon, a new video window popped up.

The scene shifted to a dimly lit courtyard, where a police officer appeared in the live stream. He was wearing a police uniform and a simple activated carbon mask, and although he looked a little tired, his eyes remained focused.

"Teacher Lin! Brother Hao! Hello! I'm Wang Cheng, the police officer in charge of this area in Shancheng!"

'

Officer Wang Cheng was clearly surprised. He had been muttering to Muk, "—What's with you, always hanging around here? Sigh, I'm worried too. My kid hasn't even given me a second glance these past few days because I failed my trainer qualification exam—"

He seemed to be confiding in Mud.

After seeing the live stream connection go through, Wang Cheng scratched his head a little embarrassedly and adjusted the angle of his phone.

In his background, one can vaguely see a large, dark purple, viscous object slowly wriggling in the corner of the yard—it is the "culprit," the stinky slime.

Even through the screen and behind the mask, you can almost feel that faint "smell".

"Officer Wang, thank you for your hard work." Lin Dao nodded in greeting.

"Could you tell us more about the situation? For example, before the slime appeared, was there anything unusual in or around this yard? Any strange smells? Or did this family disturb the soil or anything like that?"

Wang Cheng thought for a moment and replied, "According to Ms. Zhang and her neighbors, there was no particular odor in the yard before the stinky mud arrived."

"However—about four days ago, Miss Zhang's family did dig a hole about half a meter deep in the southeast corner of the yard to plant a fruit tree, and then planted the sapling."

"After Mud appeared, it really liked to stay near that hole. We chased it away, but it would circle around and come back there."

"Digging a hole————"

Lin Dao seemed to be deep in thought, and a preliminary guess formed in his mind.

He explained to the camera, and also to Wang Cheng and all the viewers.

According to the Pokédex and further information, Muk is a Pokémon that feeds on toxins and bacteria, and is highly sensitive to harmful chemicals and toxic residues in the environment. They are sometimes attracted by the subtle, imperceptible scents emitted by these substances, using them as food or a comfortable environment.

He looked at Wang Cheng: "Officer Wang, I need your help. Can you safely approach that Mud now? Be careful to keep your distance and don't provoke it. I want to try to communicate with it."

"Communication?" Wang Cheng was taken aback for a moment, but considering the other party's identity, he immediately nodded.

"Sure! This Muk is actually quite mild-mannered, despite its strong smell. I've been chatting with it these past few days—uh, I mean, trying to communicate with it."

He added somewhat embarrassedly.

As Wang Cheng cautiously approached with his phone, Lin Dao also brought Pikachu closer to the camera to add some "friendliness."

Mud sensed someone approaching, slowly turned around, revealing two white eyes.

For Wang Cheng, this was something he frequently fed tree berries and energy blocks (although it was an attempt to lure it away).

The human policeman let out a muffled "Beidou~" sound as a greeting, then looked at the phone in Wang Cheng's hand with a puzzled expression.

At this moment, Lin Dao's voice came from the phone, gentle and clear, played directly through the speaker.

"Hello, Mud. Can you tell me why you've been staying in this place and don't want to leave?"

Muk was clearly taken aback, blinking its white eyes as if it hadn't expected a voice that could understand it to come from this "little box".

It glanced at Lin Dao and the curiously looking Pikachu on the phone screen, then at Wang Cheng beside it who looked nervous and expectant, and seemed to hesitate for a moment.

Then he began to whisper "Bei-do-bei-do-bei-do," gesturing towards a corner of the yard.

Through telepathic aura resonance and the understanding of Pokémon common language, Lin Dao quickly grasped the key information.

This place makes it feel "very comfortable," and it doesn't want to leave. It interprets the previous actions of those humans (trainers) as an attempt to take away this "comfortable place," which is why it resolutely resists.

A knowing glint flashed in Lin Dao's eyes.

While gesturing for Wang Cheng to turn the camera towards the corner of the yard that Mud had just indicated, he began a more in-depth and humanistic popular science explanation for all the viewers in the live stream, which was even more insightful than the Pokédex.

"Everyone, do you see this slime? The reason it smells so strong is likely due to its inherently foul odor." This isn't its fault; it's part of its life form. I hope that in the future, when you encounter similar situations, you can be more understanding and less disgusted.

He paused, his tone turning serious.

"More importantly, sludge feeds on various decaying substances, bacteria, toxins, and is even an expert in handling pollution and hazardous waste."

"A wild Grimer so fixated on a human yard, refusing to leave, even being tamed couldn't change its obsession"—then the most likely explanation is: beneath this yard lies something extremely attractive to it, but potentially a serious threat to humans and other creatures. For example, buried toxic or radioactive materials.

This explanation sent gasps through the live stream audience, as well as Wang Cheng and Zhang Xiaoling!

"My God! Are there dangerous materials underground?"

"No wonder Mud won't leave!"

"This—this is terrifying! Miss Zhang's family almost—"

"Professor Lin is amazing! He even managed to analyze this!"

Lin Dao continued to Wang Cheng, "Officer Wang, we need to verify this hypothesis now."

"Try communicating with Mud and tell it that we want to dig up that place and see what's down there."

If the found item is poisonous, or is food or a preferred environment for it, we can discuss handing it over for processing, provided that it guarantees the processing is safe and does not harm the surrounding environment or residents.