Chapter Twenty-Three: Caressed by the Master

After the black dragon fell into the three-legged cauldron, the boiling steel within quickly cooled down. A few people then grabbed two large nets and fished our bodies out from the cauldron. Looking at the field strewn with stark white cat bones, I couldn’t even tell which was mine and which belonged to someone else.

Though I struggled to distinguish them, those strangely peculiar kittens seemed to have no trouble, staring blankly at a particular set of cat bones. Only then did I notice that the three unfamiliar kittens standing nearby had now taken on human form, their faces cold and forbidding, exuding an inhuman chill.

I was puzzled—this wasn’t the outcome I’d heard described before. Wasn’t it said that after being put in the cauldron, we wouldn’t die, and could still run about as skeletons? Why were our souls now separated from our bodies?

“There’s something else,” one of the people fishing through the thick, cooling steel scooped up a sapphire-blue earring.

“What’s this?” Another frowned. “Didn’t one of the kittens wear this just now?”

I wanted to float over and tell them it was mine—my body had been burned away, so naturally it had fallen off—but embarrassingly, I couldn’t even pick out which bones were mine.

They turned to Wangchuan, as if seeking help. Wangchuan raised his hand and pointed to one of the sets of cat bones.

Unconsciously, I nodded, thinking, Oh, that one’s me. But how did he know? All the skeletons looked identical, or if not exactly, then indistinguishably close.

After a moment’s thought, the man handed the blue earring to Wangchuan, then joined the others in heaving the massive cauldron away.

Now, the black dragon was once again in Wangchuan’s hand, the steel inside utterly cooled into a solid lump.

And so, it seemed, everything came to an end.

Rebecca stood above us still, regarding the cat bones below with undisguised contempt. I had no idea what her true status was, or why her expression was always so proud.

“Master, it’s done,” she said, turning around at last, her face finally showing some change—an expression of reverence and anticipation, her sea-blue eyes twinkling with dazzling little stars.

Wangchuan waved his hand, then stood up, gazing down at the six of us—cats, now only souls.

“Go on, return to your bodies,” he said.

At his words, each cat moved, standing beside their own body.

Rebecca sighed. “From today, you are Guardian Cats. As for your ranks, Master says it shall be determined by the order in which you jumped into the cauldron. Any objections?”

“None,” the kittens replied in chorus.

I was stunned. I was the first to jump in—so I had the highest rank? What a windfall from the heavens!

At that moment, one woman in a dark purple cheongsam glared at me with unconcealed fury. I’d noticed her before, and in a flash I realized—this was Ningning.

She was quite beautiful, with a sharp chin and phoenix eyes. Her gaze, different from when she was a cat, was now filled with sharpness and venom.

She hadn’t been this resentful before, but now she looked truly vexed.

I couldn’t help laughing inside—the tables had turned! The oppressed had risen, and the songs of the downtrodden echoed.

Ningning had been determined to become a Guardian Cat, but ironically, her attempts to suppress me had only spurred me on, allowing me to surpass her at the last moment.

She was the last to jump in. In truth, the order didn’t change the pain, but she suffered the most—when Fishball jumped in, the steel splashed and injured her paw. The pain made her even more reluctant to jump into the cauldron.

In the end, when all the others had gone in, she had no choice but to follow. Injured, she couldn’t leap and had to climb, each step searing her flesh, making her howl in agony.

Pitiful, just as I’d thought before—misguided cunning leads only to misery.

Ningning kept glaring at me until the little black dragon in Wangchuan’s hand flew out again, circling above our skeletal remains.

Soon, the dragon spiraled down, and flesh began to grow again over the cat bones. One was silver-white—the one Wangchuan had pointed out earlier. I darted over, elated, to stand before my new body.

Once the black dragon had restored all the cat bodies, a powerful suction suddenly drew me in, swallowing me whole!

“Uh—meow.” I yelped, the sound half human, half feline, proof of how swiftly I’d returned to my body.

I blinked, examining my new form—it looked just as before, yet felt so much lighter.

Wangchuan stretched and sighed. “So tired.”

Rebecca, eager to please, leaped onto his lap and kneaded him with her paws. “Then, Master, would you like to rest?”

“Forget it,” he waved her away, then pointed at me. “You, come here.”

I raised my paw, pointing at my nose. “Me?”

Wangchuan didn’t answer, looking as if he found it all rather troublesome. Obediently, Rebecca hopped off his lap, squinting at me, then at Ningning, who forced a smile. Rebecca merely flicked her tail arrogantly in reply.

There was nothing I could do; what the other cats did was none of my concern. I swaggered toward Wangchuan, but before I could leap onto his knee, he scooped me up.

In his palm lay the sapphire blue earring.

A shiver ran through me, my fur standing on end as if struck by lightning.

I had a new body—so, obviously, my ear piercings were gone! The earring would have to be put through again!

Oh heavens—the thin skin of a cat’s ear, already familiar with pain, made me all the more afraid.

Wangchuan stroked me from head to tail, twining his fingers around my tail.

I arched into his touch, but kept a wary eye on him. He seemed patient, stroking me again and again. Each time his hand ran down my spine, I couldn’t help but arch up, shaking my head with pleasure, purring uncontrollably.

Yes, I admit it: just after such a serious ordeal, here I was, purring in my master’s arms.

But I truly couldn’t help it. Cat flesh is odd—nothing happens if you leave it alone, but touch it, and it tingles!

This itchiness, soothed by strokes or scratches, turns to bliss—and then, all the more itchiness!

So now I almost couldn’t help myself, rubbing against Wangchuan’s hand.

He chuckled softly—I didn’t notice, too busy enjoying myself, until suddenly: “Yowl—!!”

Heavens—I flailed my paws, kicking wildly. This was the legendary outburst after silence, the tremble in pleasure!

Who could imagine my feelings now? I’d braced myself for the earring, but after being lulled by his touch, I was ambushed!

The pain—it was excruciating! My sharp claws sprang from my pads, instinctively digging downward.

But below wa