HLM – Chapter 163 I Want to Make It a Specimen

“Not a tiger?”

“No, it’s not a tiger. It’s a liger!” James explained. “A liger cub I bought from the National Zoo of Australia—it’s harmless.”

Of course it was harmless. Wang Bo looked pitifully at the little beast. It was nearly crushed to death, its body covered in blood, barely breathing. Since it had been dug out, it hadn’t opened its eyes even once.

This was Wang Bo’s first time seeing such a mystical creature. His understanding of ligers came only from his junior high biology textbooks. This animal was the offspring of a male lion and a female tiger, said to grow up to be even larger than either parent—one of the biggest feline species in the world.

This kind of animal shouldn’t be circulating freely in the public. Wang Bo eyed James with suspicion and asked, “Did you really buy this? Does New Zealand even allow private ownership of ligers?”

Out of respect for Wang Bo, the man who had just saved his family—rescuing the liger was the final part of the mission—James patiently explained, “You know, Mr. Wang, we Maoris have some special privileges in this country. Breeding wild animals is one of them.”

Sheriff Smith was even more knowledgeable about the matter. He explained to Wang Bo, “When New Zealand became independent, the government created special laws for two groups of people. The first were old noble families like the Roberts, who were allowed to retain their estates. The second were the Maoris, who were allowed to keep their traditional ways of life.”

Like Native Americans, the Maoris are indigenous people of the New World and hold a deep reverence for wild beasts—some even part of their spiritual beliefs. The New Zealand government had established these policies as a form of reparations for the harm done to the Maori people by British and French settlers. The original intent was to allow Maoris to breed large dogs.

But as the Maoris grew wealthier, dogs no longer satisfied them. They began to raise wolves, tigers, lions, leopards, and other predators. With legal protections in place, even ligers became acceptable pets for them.

James was the wealthiest man in this Maori settlement of Wanderers Town. His estate housed quite a few wild animals.

The rescue workers had never seen a liger cub before and all gathered to watch. Sheriff Smith, seeing the commotion, frowned and said to James, “Move your freak animal somewhere less conspicuous. Damn it, I don’t want it holding up the rescue operations!”

James wore a troubled expression. “There’s nowhere hidden enough around here. Just bury it. Look, it’s nearly dead—it’s not going to make it.”

Wang Bo, who had been inspecting the liger cub, suddenly had an idea. He cautiously suggested, “Maybe we could try saving it? Isn’t there a vet nearby? A liger is incredibly rare. It’d be a shame if it died.”

The odds of a lion and tiger falling in love and producing offspring are extremely low. Even in captivity, the chances of conception are only 5–10%, and due to congenital issues, the survival rate of the cubs is just about one in ten thousand. Currently, there are only around a thousand living ligers in the world.

James, a true rich man, just waved his hand indifferently. “It’s just a beast. If it dies, so be it. Though… it is a bit of a shame. I spent 800,000 New Zealand dollars on it.”

Wang Bo immediately jumped in, “How about this, man—this liger cub looks like it won’t survive anyway. Why don’t I buy it from you?”

Both James and Sheriff Smith looked at him in surprise. Wang Bo quickly explained, “You see, maybe you don’t know this, but in China we really love big cats like tigers and lions. Of course, I can’t raise such a ferocious animal, but I could buy this liger—if it dies, I’ll turn it into a specimen.”

Of course, that was just a cover. His real goal was to use the Heart of the Nest’s powerful healing abilities to save the liger and then give it a Pet Heart, turning it into a unique attraction for the town!

Living ligers were extremely rare—there probably weren’t many in New Zealand. If his town had one, it would certainly become a major draw for visitors.

His explanation sounded plausible enough. James generously waved it off. “If you want it for a specimen, just take it. I won’t charge you.”

Wang Bo thanked him but insisted, “No, that won’t do, James. I won’t take advantage of your misfortune. Your home’s been struck by disaster—this is the time you need money most. Buying the liger can be my way of helping your family rebuild.”

The surrounding Maoris were moved by Wang Bo’s righteousness. James gave him a big hug and said admiringly, “Wang, you’re a real stand-up guy!”

“How about 100,000?” Wang Bo asked.

“No, 50,000 is more than enough! A living liger costs 800,000—how could a dead one be worth 100,000?”

Wang Bo insisted on paying 100,000. Since Sheriff Smith would be a witness, they drew up a purchase contract.

He did this to prevent future disputes. With the Heart of the Nest’s potent healing, as long as the liger cub didn’t die before reaching the castle, it would certainly survive. In that case, if there were no contract, James might regret the deal.

Once the contract was signed, the half-dead liger cub officially belonged to Wang Bo.

In truth, raising a liger wasn’t wise for ordinary people. Despite having a lion and a tiger as parents—two apex predators—ligers had low survival rates, low intelligence, and lacked aggression.

From what Wang Bo knew, even without the earthquake, this liger likely wouldn’t have made it.

Once he had the liger, Wang Bo immediately instructed his team to carefully move it into the backseat of the Marauder. After all the jostling, the little beast was barely breathing.

Lying on the seat cushion, the liger cub shed a clear tear from its tightly shut eyes, as if mourning its tragic and difficult fate.

Wang Bo wanted to rush the cub back to the castle, but there were more pressing rescue efforts underway. The Marauder was also stuck due to a roadblock—the entire Wanderers Town, as the quake’s epicenter, had been surrounded by rescue teams.

And arriving even faster than them were the major media outlets—BBC, CNN, Reuters, AFP, Radio New Zealand, and even CCTV’s New Zealand bureau. Any large outlet with a New Zealand presence sent people immediately.

As Wang Bo was feeding the liger some warm milk, someone came looking for him. He thought they needed Zhuang Ding for another task and said, “Wait a sec, man. Let my kid rest a bit.”

The man replied, “No, Wang. A reporter wants to interview you—and your dog!”