Chapter Eighty-Four: Secretly Returning to the Human Realm

I ran all the way to the Guardian Cat’s sleeping quarters.

Outside, everything was just as it should be—spring was flourishing, as if nothing had ever happened, as if the attack of the evil spirits was nothing but a rumor. All the kittens lounged lazily on the lawn or wherever they pleased, basking in the sun, tumbling and playing with one another.

Before I could even enter the Guardian Cat’s sleeping quarters, a flash of red darted straight out.

“Yu Bao! Where are you going?”

I hurried forward to block the crimson figure, who was already flapping his wings, about to take off.

“Qian Qian? You’re back?” He finally turned around when he heard me call his name, folded his wings behind his back, and looked at me with a puzzled expression.

I wasn’t supposed to be back yet...

A flush of embarrassment swept through me—had my friends already written me off as lost to the world? Did they really think I was imprisoned forever, never to return? How pitiful!

I sniffled, burying the sadness on my face.

“My master said everything’s fine now, so he let me out. He said I could wander as I pleased, just not too far.”

“Hmm, the trouble has passed recently, so you can come out for a walk.” Yu Bao seemed distracted, eager to leave.

“Can you tell me what actually happened?” Even though Yu Bao appeared busy, I pressed on—who knows if I’d have another chance to come out next time.

“Didn’t Xiao Yun already tell you? The Three Nether Kings of the Underworld came seeking his betrothed. Wangchuan refused to release her, so they went to war. The battle just ended, and all’s well now.”

Yu Bao answered quickly, as if he truly had urgent matters to attend to. Though he didn’t fly off, his steps were hurried.

“Will they come back?” I quickly followed him, not wanting to miss my chance, and asked a few more questions.

Yu Bao glanced at me. “Probably, but not anytime soon.”

“Oh... What are you off to, then?” Having gotten the answers I wanted, I finally breathed easy and became curious about Yu Bao’s errand.

“I’m going to catch souls.” He was nearly at the entrance of the rift now, his pace quickening.

A few more steps and he’d cross into the human world, unable to speak to me anymore, so he turned back hurriedly, his expression urging me to say whatever I needed quickly.

“Why do you still need to catch souls?”

“Because Xiao Mi is pregnant. Every cat has to bring back souls, but I can’t let her run out every day; what if she encounters danger? So I do it for her. Besides, Wangchuan’s soul-molding period is approaching. You know, after the Underworld stirred up trouble, Wangchuan is exhausted. The soul-molding period had already been delayed, and after all this, he’s bound to be weak. So he ordered all kittens to bring back double the souls, and now time is tight.”

It took me a while to digest his long explanation, blinking before I understood.

“Can I go with you?”

“You want to come with me?”

“I haven’t seen Xin’er in over half a month. I miss her.”

In the blink of an eye, I’d been here for more than two months, and had served as the bed-guarding cat in Wangchuan for quite a while.

I desperately needed a breath of fresh air—returning to the human world where I was born and raised would cheer me up, and seeing my sister would set my mind at ease.

Yu Bao considered for a moment, then nodded and took me with him.

Wangchuan had once forbidden me from wandering, but now the trouble had just passed—it was the perfect time to return to the human world. In a few days, things might change, and I might lose the chance. Besides, traveling with Yu Bao reassured me—if danger arose, having a spirit beast nearby would make me feel a bit safer.

Since my route was to visit Xin’er, Yu Bao went with me.

But unexpectedly, halfway there, a torrential rain suddenly poured down, with hailstones and raindrops pelting down together!

The rain came so swiftly, it caught us utterly unprepared!

Despite the autumn atmosphere, hailstones rained down! The ice beans struck my head painfully, so I searched desperately for shelter.

But the problem was, we were on a deserted road, with nothing around to hide under!

Yu Bao, in his fox form, darted under a small shed and waved his paw at me.

“Qian Qian, shift to cat form and come in!”

The shed seemed to have been erected for a reason, with offerings underneath—traditionally, rural folk or the more superstitious elders would worship the Earth God in such places.

I hesitated, but quickly shifted into cat form.

My hesitation stemmed from my imperfect transformation skills—I feared embarrassing myself in front of Yu Bao by turning into a half-cat, half-human.

Last time, I tried countless times but couldn’t master it, turning into a half-cat, half-human repeatedly in front of Wangchuan, who merely laughed and pinched my cheeks without telling me how to fix it.

So I worried that if I became a half-cat, half-human again, with Wangchuan absent, how would I return to human form? With floppy ears, walking in the human world would be impossible.

Fortunately, I succeeded in one go this time, darting under the shed!

Thank heavens! I silently thanked the gods—truly blessed!

My head ached, likely from those hailstones just now.

Hail in autumn—how strange!

But as I turned around, grimacing and rubbing my head with my paw, I saw Yu Bao staring wide-eyed outside.

I realized I must have crawled out of a pile of clothes!

I’d forgotten that every time I shifted to human form, I became hairless and naked!

So naturally, when I shifted from human to cat, my clothes didn’t become fur, but simply fell to the ground.

Oh heavens, my clothes and trousers were now piled in a heap on the ground, with my underwear bundled inside!

My face flushed scarlet, and I dashed out to drag my clothes back in.

But it was too late—the rain was so heavy, it seemed to make the road steam.

My clothes, in those few seconds, were soaked through, with no hope of salvaging them!

I pawed through the wet clothes, trying to bundle them up, but how could two cat paws manage a soggy ball of fabric?

Suddenly, it felt as though the whole world was conspiring against me!

Now, I was in cat form, my clothes drenched, and without wearing them, I couldn’t shift back to human form!

Besides, how could I shift back naked in front of Yu Bao? If Wangchuan found out, he’d kill me!

Yu Bao watched my flustered attempts and sighed, “Stop fussing—when the rain lets up, we’ll dismantle this shed and make a little bundle. You can carry it on your back.”

“But this is the Earth God’s—”

“There’s no Earth God here. No statue, nothing.” Yu Bao rolled his eyes. “This is for worshipping the big tree. Look.”

I looked up, and sure enough, not far away stood a tree taller than all the others, with red ribbons tied around it, evidently recently worshipped.

Now I understood—some places have the custom of seeking a giant tree for a newborn child, praying to share in its essence and hoping the tree’s spirit will bless the child’s growth.

With this explanation, I relaxed, and waited for the rain to stop. Yu Bao helped me dismantle the shed.

The two cats fashioned a bundle, wrapping up my clothes and trousers and slinging them over my shoulder.

So, woefully, I stayed in cat form to visit Xin’er, while Yu Bao went to catch souls, then returned to pick me up, and together we headed back to the rift.

Xin’er was as she’d always been—Han Mingxuan took good care of her.

It was an odd feeling—just watching from a distance made me feel at ease.

Then we returned to the rift together, and I thought Wangchuan would never know about my secret excursion today.

Until—I discovered that in the clothes I brought back, my little underwear was missing!