In the night, after chatting for a while, everyone prepared to rest early for the journey ahead. Qiqi was the first to fall asleep, understandably exhausted from the recent perilous experiences. So, when Mike was about to find a place to lie down, he turned his head to find Qiqi already asleep, her head resting on his thigh.
Regarding this behavior of using his thigh as a pillow, Mike thought, "Whatever~" Who would refuse a cute little cat girl sleeping on their thigh anyway?
Mike decided not to move and leaned against the cart for the night. After all, he was tough enough to sleep on an anvil if he had to. He took out a blanket and gently covered Qiqi. Perhaps sensing Mike's actions, Qiqi curled her body closer to him. Mike smiled and crossed his arms, closing his eyes.
However, he didn't fall asleep but started breathing at a special frequency. It was a breathing technique his grandfather had taught him, allowing him to maintain abundant energy during blacksmithing, enabling him to exert full force with each hammer blow. Years of practice had made it a constant part of Mike's life. Especially during rest, he would use this technique instead of sleeping, making his recovery of both physical and mental energy more efficient than normal sleep. It also helped him remain alert to his surroundings; if there was any movement, he could wake up immediately and react.
This was why he could fall asleep so easily on the cart earlier. Using this breathing technique in combat could also keep his blood and energy boiling, as if he had activated an unbeatable state, greatly enhancing his combat effectiveness.
Therefore, Mike had always suspected that his grandfather was not an ordinary blacksmith. Ordinary blacksmiths wouldn't have so many scars on their bodies. Mike could tell from the scars that his grandfather had not been injured from blacksmithing but from melee weapons.
Mike was eighty percent sure that his grandfather had been either a soldier or a mercenary. Given his loud voice and fiery temperament, he couldn't have been an assassin or anything like that.
Unfortunately, without those injuries, Mike felt his grandfather could have lived another thirty years. Mike always felt there was something suspicious about his grandfather's death. Three years before his passing, his grandfather had been lively, with muscles that many young people couldn't match. But in the following three years, he had visibly become thinner, like a deflated balloon. If it weren't for his grandfather's good spirits, Mike would have suspected foul play, like poisoning.
Mike had asked his grandfather, but he only said he had lived long enough, over a hundred years old, and that life force would gradually dissipate as one approached the end, returning to the natural world.
Mike couldn't find any other evidence, so he had to believe it. But he always felt that something was wrong, just couldn't put his finger on it.
Fortunately, Mike wasn't a sixteen-year-old child. While his grandfather's passing had saddened him, he hadn't been discouraged. A peaceful passing was probably the best outcome for his grandfather, especially for a soldier or a mercenary. In the wasteland, a mercenary who could live to die of old age was rarer than a three-legged toad.
As he blinked, it was already the next day. He felt a slight enhancement in his blood and energy. This breathing technique, when actively used, could mobilize his blood and energy, acting as a form of exercise. With perseverance, his physique would continue to strengthen.
Mike was able to advance to a five-star silver rank at sixteen, thanks in large part to this breathing technique. Unfortunately, his grandfather had taught it to him when he was fourteen. If he had learned it earlier, his rank might have gone even higher. But the reason his grandfather gave was, "The younger you are, the more you need to lay a solid foundation. This technique is external; your innate talent is internal."
Well… the so-called foundation was swinging a hammer and hitting iron every day. Mike still remembered his pacifier, which his grandfather had made from a piece of cloud-patterned steel, hard as a rock!
Looking at the dim sky, Mike twisted his neck and prepared to get up for a stretch. But as soon as he moved, he heard a soft whimper in his arms. Lowering his head to look, he found that Qiqi had climbed into his embrace at some point. Now, she was curled up, her head resting on his stomach, sleeping soundly.
Perhaps due to Mike's movements, she shifted in his embrace, finding a more comfortable position against him before continuing to sleep.
Mike couldn't help but reach out and gently poke Qiqi's cheek, saying, "Time to wake up, little kitty." Qiqi's long eyelashes trembled lightly, and her eyes slowly opened, her emerald cat pupils as beautiful as jade. She seemed a bit confused at this moment, her hair all messy from sleep.
"Big guy..." Qiqi half-opened her sleepy eyes, slowly sat up, and looked at Mike, her voice unusually soft. It was obvious she wasn't fully awake yet.
"Forget it, why don't you sleep a little longer," Mike chuckled.
"Mmm..." Hearing this, Qiqi hummed softly, her eyes gradually closing, and she instinctively lay back down, directly resting her head on Mike's shoulder, using his shoulder as a pillow. Her slender arms wrapped around Mike's neck, and she snuggled up, even rubbing against him a bit, hanging onto him like a cat.
Mike, "..."
How did she manage to cling to him like this? Listening to the continuous purring in his ear, Mike eventually decided not to wake her up. It felt, oddly enough, quite pleasant, just like with a real little kitty.
An hour later, when the sky was completely bright and everyone was awake, the convoy set off again. After drinking a potion and resting for another night, Qiqi recovered quite well. The scab on her shoulder wound had fallen off, which spoke to the quality of the potion.
Back to her lively self, Qiqi was now sitting on the roof of the vehicle chatting with Mike. A sweet smile never left her face, indicating she was in a very good mood.
And she was. Because she had slept so comfortably yesterday. Kitties loved to sleep, and being lively and active, cat people tended to get tired easily and be fond of sleeping. Yesterday was the most peaceful and comfortable sleep she had ever had.
This was because Mike had practiced the autonomous respiratory method last night, which had activated his blood and energy, keeping his body temperature at a relatively high level. The wilderness at night was very cold, and the temperature could drop to single digits, so lighting a bonfire was necessary. However, a bonfire too close could cause burns, and too far away would not provide enough warmth, which was torture for Qiqi, who wasn't very honest when it came to sleeping.
But this time was different. The temperature emanating from Mike was just right, making Qiqi feel very comfortable and warm. She couldn't help but snuggle closer, and as she snuggled, she ended up in Mike's arms. Moreover, Mike was huge, so Qiqi, being small, fit perfectly in his arms, making sleeping incredibly comfortable.
When she had just woken up, she found herself hugging Mike's neck, and her face immediately turned red. But Mike seemed not to mind, and Qiqi, being carefree herself, quickly shifted her attention and started chatting with Mike again.
In the end, there were no incidents on the last few tens of miles, and they arrived at their destination safe and sound in the evening.
Looking at the towering walls of Gorilla City, Mike was very excited. The delivery point was a magic academy, right?
Maybe he could stay there for a while. Perhaps he could find a way to learn magic there.