Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 461 Overcoming Fear
"Are the fire extinguishers ready?"

"All four have been brought over!"

"Where's the fire blanket? Zhou Bo, is it laid out neatly? And Yuan Qu, where's the burn ointment I asked you to buy at the pharmacy?"

"It's done."

Isn't that right next to you?

"Don't get impatient with me! Do you even know what's going on? If anything happens, I'm telling you, neither of you will get away with it!"

"Yes Yes!"

"Zhou Bo, come and pour the kerosene!"

"coming……"

The two men were being directed around by the two women, which made the atmosphere on the scene increasingly tense.

Not far away, Lin Ge squatted on the lawn, quietly watching this scene. Behind him, four police dogs, unaware of what they were about to face, were still grooming themselves and playing around.

An'an had been squatting obediently, not moving an inch. But then Beibei suddenly jumped on its back and started thrashing around, which enraged An'an, who turned around and bit it. The fight between the two dogs quickly involved Guai Guai and Ying Ying, turning into a chaotic four-way brawl.

But no one cared about them at this moment. The iron ring wrapped with hemp rope was soaked in kerosene, emitting a faint stench. Just looking at the wet hemp rope, one could almost see it about to burst into flames. And the merciless flames would not discriminate just because the target was an honorary police dog. Once the flames touched the dog's fur, burns would be inevitable. And if the dog made a mistake and came into contact with the kerosene, or even if the oil got on its fur, it would be a terrifying prospect.

With only two days left before departing for Chu City to participate in the competition, any unexpected event at this point would force the police dog to be removed from the service.

Or, putting aside the competition, just considering the love the four handlers have for their police dogs, who would want to see them get injured?
"How about... we don't light the fire yet, and practice a couple more times? I think An'an's movements aren't perfect enough. She can jump even better. It's not too late to light the fire ring then!"

Yu Rong suddenly hesitated.

“There’s no time left. We even need to try to help the little ones overcome their fear of fire first. If things go well, we can finish this project today or tomorrow. If things don’t go well, who knows how long it will take before we can officially start the challenge. Besides… there’s the fire-jumping project after that! Completing the whole project in one go will take a long time, and we also need to teach them to line up and take turns without stopping… So, let’s get started!”

Sun Chang shook his head heavily, took out a lighter from his pocket, and tossed it to Zhou Bo.

Lighting a fire is naturally a man's job. Although kerosene is not very dangerous, what woman wants to have a burn scar on her face?

"I have a lighter too!"

Zhou Bo muttered something, took the lighter, and walked to the fire circle. He looked back at Yuan Qu and Yu Rong. Yuan Qu nodded silently with an expressionless face, while Yu Rong sighed and did not continue to refute.

Without further hesitation, Zhou Bo held the lighter close to the ring of fire and lit it.

Lin Ge ignored the antics of the four dogs behind him and, like the four men, adopted a serious expression, keeping his eyes fixed on Zhou Bo's movements.

With a click of the lighter, a flame instantly spread to the hemp rope. It was ignited immediately, then spread slowly to both sides. In the blink of an eye, the once damp steel ring became a ring of flames. Except for the bottom where it connected to the steel frame, where about twenty centimeters of rope was not wrapped around it and was not burning, the entire steel ring was licking at the intense heat, and thick black smoke rose several meters high.

Zhou Bo, expressionless, lit the two steel rings behind him, and three blazing rings of fire quietly appeared before everyone's eyes.

This scene even startled the four police dogs that were playing around. They stared in surprise, wondering how the props they had been using for training that morning had turned into something so terrifying.

Animals have an innate fear of fire. Under the firelight, both the bold Guai Guai and the calm An An would slowly retreat.

But being trained police dogs, they didn't flee in panic at the sight. The four dogs simply huddled behind Lingo, none of them daring to bark or stick out their tongues, just staring silently at the scene.

"Phew... Let's get started quickly, and it would be best to get it done in no time, so we don't have to refuel or deal with changes in the wind direction later."

Sun Chang took a deep breath and exchanged glances with Yu Rong, Zhou Bo, and Yuan Qu.

The four men nodded solemnly in unison, then turned and walked toward Lin Ge and the four police dogs.

"Ugh! I finally managed to put this troublesome matter off from morning till afternoon, but it just couldn't be put off any longer!"

Lin Ge sighed, only regretting that the strong winds of the morning couldn't hold on any longer, and Bei Bei and An An still had to face this challenge head-on.

"Wangwu?"

Sun Chang led Bei Bei by the leash towards the ring of fire. Although Bei Bei was scared and nervous, it obediently followed. It even seemed to have a premonition, barking incessantly as it walked, its eyes fixed on the ring of fire.

Leading it back to the starting point, Sun Chang squatted down, soothing Bei Bei's head as he whispered, "Don't worry, there's no danger. Although it looks scary, as long as you don't make any mistakes, there won't be any problems. Look, there's no fire down there, right? As long as you don't touch the sides or bump into the top, there's definitely no danger. Just pretend it doesn't exist, okay? Based on what we've learned these past few days, let's rush through it in one go!"

"Wang! Wang Wang!"

Beibei glared at Sun Chang and barked twice, while involuntarily shuffling its rear end backward. It seemed to think this was nothing like the easy task its human made it out to be; the fire looked incredibly scary!
"Wang Wang!"

"Wang Woo!"

An'an and Guai Guai, who were brought over, also lost their previous composure and boldness.

Even though they had circled around countless times over the past few days, the thing in front of them felt like a completely new project, still making them feel dangerous and unfamiliar.

Especially with a slight breeze in the afternoon, the flames swayed from side to side in the wind, as if mocking the fiery demons. The police dogs weren't unfamiliar with fire, but such close contact was a first for them. This terrifying thing was palpable even from a distance; any animal with a modicum of reason wouldn't willingly run into it. This wasn't a matter of daring or cowardice, but rather the most basic instinct and fear of danger inherent in all living beings.

"Don't be scared! Don't run away, okay? Wait, you're struggling so much I can't even hold you back!"

Zhou Bo pulled hard on the dog leash, but was pulled unsteadily by Guai Guai.

This time, Guai Guai is determined not to do it anymore; this is not something a dog should do!

Yingying glared fiercely at Yuan Qu, her teeth clenched, as if to say, "If you dare to give me an order, I'll talk back." This is like bullying a dog! Why don't you, the one who's going to clean up the mess, jump in there yourself first!

Sun Chang and Yu Rong hugged Bei Bei and An An tightly around the necks and whispered soothing words, gently trying to lower the two police dogs' guard. However, despite being relaxed, the two dogs still refused to do the dangerous thing.

Time passed slowly, and the burning ring of fire gradually dimmed as the kerosene was consumed. But that wasn't the main issue. The main issue was the slow waste of time. Running out of kerosene wasn't the problem; the real issue was if the rope burned out or broke, which would require even more time to re-tie it. Unfortunately, it was impossible to ask the training center staff for help; they only provided the space and materials, not the work itself.

So if these guys keep dragging their feet like this, they might end up accomplishing nothing all afternoon.

"Ow!"

Lin Ge sighed, walked over, and roared loudly.

His piercing scream startled all four men, who turned and covered their ears. It also stopped the four police dogs from struggling, and they stared at their crazy leader with surprise and confusion.

"I'll do it once to show you! Seriously, it's not dangerous at all!"

Lin Ge roared again, then stood on the starting line, ready to start. To be honest, the flames burning not far away made him a little apprehensive. But he had no choice but to do it! Without their leader, these four were utterly useless.

"Wangwu?"

Beibei tilted her head to look at Lin Ge, then, as if remembering something, quickly ran over to stop her boss from going to his death.

Before Beibei could even get close, Lingo had already dashed off like an arrow. His eyes were wide open, his speed incredible; his four legs almost blurred as he rapidly moved towards the ring of fire. The first ring of fire was almost within reach; the prolonged burning had significantly increased the surrounding air temperature, and the flickering flames seemed to exude a mesmerizing aura. But Lingo seized his opportunity and leaped, precisely clearing the unburnt area in the center of the ring. Upon landing, Lingo didn't stop or slow down; he took a running start a meter before leaping upwards with force, tracing a slight angle as if landing straight down on the other side of the ring of fire.

This method was a bit of a cheat, but what could he do when Lin Ge was so much smaller? Lin Ge didn't dare look back at everyone's expressions. This time, he took a 1.5-meter running start before leaping over the black and red flames, jumping through the center of the fire ring. While crossing the fire ring, aside from the flames on either side of his body burning his whiskers, the flames on his head making his ears and tail a little nervous, and the slight worry about kerosene dripping with the flames, there was nothing else dangerous. After landing, Lin Ge ran two more steps before turning around. Looking back, he saw all four dogs staring at him dumbfounded, and Sun Chang and the other three also looked utterly dumbfounded.

"What? You think that if a police dog can do something, I can't?"

Lin Ge snorted disdainfully. He knew that this was perfectly safe, but it just looked a bit intimidating. He didn't need any prior training to complete it.

Although it wasn't very well done, and the jump in the middle definitely didn't score high, it still finished, right? Maybe it's the only police cat in history to jump through a ring of fire, though it certainly won't compare to those bastards in the circus.

Lingo strolled over slowly, tail wagging, and the four dogs broke free from their owner's restraints, swarming around him.

These guys sniffed and smelled all over Lin Ge, even rubbing their noses on him, perhaps out of disbelief or perhaps out of concern that their leader might be injured.

'Clap clap clap clap!'

Lin Ge treated them all equally, giving each of them a slap in the face.

Back at the starting point, Lin Ge turned around and glared at his four underlings, saying, "From now on, you'll all follow me one by one, Bei Bei first! When I start, you start; when I jump, you jump right after me. Lighting this fire is just to scare idiots; it's not dangerous at all!"

"Wang Wang!"

Beibei seemed to hear Lingo calling it, so it quickly barked back and crouched down behind Lingo, wagging its tail excitedly.

"Then I'll dance it again, and you better keep up!"

Lin Ge adjusted his running posture again and started running. Halfway through, worried that Bei Bei hadn't kept up, he couldn't help but look back. He saw that Bei Bei was indeed following, and breathed a sigh of relief, but then realized that his speed had slowed down, so he had no choice but to give up.

"Wang!"

Bebe, habitually accelerating, stared in astonishment as its boss turned and disappeared through the passage. It wanted to follow, but its body's reflexes outpaced its brain's thought. Besides, this sequence of actions had been repeated countless times over the past five days. So, while desperately widening its eyes and gaping its mouth in disbelief, Bebe habitually charged, leaped, darted, landed, accelerated, leaped again, darted once more… a perfectly fluid sequence of movements.

Before Beibei could even process what it was doing, it had already successfully jumped through three hoops of fire and landed safely. Then, as if it were second nature, it proudly swished its tail back towards the starting point.

"..."

The four people, three dogs, and a cat stared in astonishment at the proud expression on Beibei's face and its happy wagging tail.

This guy... just jumped over like that?

"This guy... did a good job!"

Lin Ge was still annoyed that he had missed a great opportunity for Bei Bei to experience something amazing when he was dumbfounded to see Bei Bei jump through three fire hoops in a flash. Even though he could clearly see that the little guy's eyes were bulging with fear, it still managed to jump through them all perfectly.

So, while speechless at the speed of this guy's brain reaction, Lin Ge could only admire and applaud Bei Bei.

"Wangwu?"

Back in her original spot, Beibei squatted down, tilting her head as she finally realized what she had just done. That terrifying-looking thing… she had actually jumped over it?
Holy crap! I'm amazing!

Beibei stood up as if suddenly realizing something, its eyes wide and its tail held high. Belatedly realizing its mistake, it instantly became arrogant, its gaze towards the other three police dogs filled with disdain.

"Holy crap! It just passed by like that?"

Zhou Bo's eyes widened as if he'd seen a ghost. "We agreed it would be difficult! We agreed we'd all be cowards together! Bei Bei, you charged in alone and succeeded? Doesn't that make my weirdo look especially incompetent and useless?"
"..."

Yu Rong and Yuan Qu had the same idea. They glanced at Sun Chang, who was awkwardly laughing, and then turned their attention to their own dog.

"Wang Woo!"

With Beibei as a role model, An'an is eager to try.

"Woo~"

Yingying turned her head away, whimpering, pretending not to see her owner's gaze.

The strange creature then approached Beibei, sniffed it, and nudged it with its head to make sure that the creature was neither mutated nor injured. Then it looked at the three fire rings with a look of doubt and disdain.

If the defeated opponent from the fight can skip over this, then what about myself...?

"An'an, Beibei has set a good example, now it's your turn!"

Yu Rong decided to strike while the iron was hot and urged An'an to set off immediately. Given its competitive nature, it certainly wouldn't give up on something Bei Bei could do, right?

"Wang!"

An An ignored Yu Rong and instead nudged Lin Ge from behind with her paw.

"What's going on? Do I have to lead the way? You guys aren't kites, can't you just charge forward on your own? Do I have to give you a running start to make you fly?"

Lin Ge was a little tired and a little scared. After all, his posture when stepping over the fire hoop was definitely not as graceful as the four police dogs that had been training hard these past few days. One demonstration was enough; if he did it several times, wouldn't those four bastards laugh at him?

He was somewhat reluctant, but seeing An'an's insistence on pushing him to the starting line, Lin Ge had no choice but to walk over.

then……

Just as Lin Ge assumed a running stance but hadn't yet taken a step, An An barked and charged forward. It didn't need anyone to lead the way; it simply brushed past Lin Ge and pounced on the fire rings with the ferocity of a tiger pouncing on a rabbit. The first, the second, the third… the fire rings and flames had absolutely no effect on An An, not even slowing it down by half a second, allowing it to complete all its movements with ease.

"..."

Lin Ge looked speechlessly at An An, who had proudly returned. So why did you push me to the starting line?

Sense of participation?
"here you go!"

An'an's successful completion of the project thrilled Yu Rong. She hadn't expected that with the cat's participation, the project, which had been causing her so much worry and anxiety, would progress so smoothly. An'an completed the challenge on its first try, without any fear or hesitation along the way. The raging fire and intense heat had no effect on it, and its innate fear didn't cause it any hesitation! In the blink of an eye, with three leaps, it succeeded!

This put pressure on Yuan Qu, Zhou Bo, Yingying, and Guai Guai.

Lin Ge cleared the starting line, signaling that the eager-to-try freak could go on stage. This guy had the strongest competitive spirit; Bei Bei and An An both succeeded, so it was definitely not satisfied, right?

"Wang!"

With a quirky nose, he dug and puckered down, lifting Lin Ge back to the starting line.

"What the hell? Do you want to feel involved too?"

Lin Ge turned around speechlessly and glared at Guai Guai, thinking to himself, what kind of performance art are these damn dogs doing? If you're going to jump through a fire hoop, just jump through the fire hoop, why do you have to have a cat here as your mascot and cheer you on?
But Lin Ge discovered that if he didn't make a starting motion, the idiot would just stand still.

It would only make a preparatory sprint gesture next to Ringo after he got into position. Then, without Ringo starting or waiting for its owner's command, it would charge out on its own... and successfully complete a triple jump around the fire ring.

This put pressure on Yingying.

(End of this chapter)