Chen Huaian opened the door, but no one was outside.
He felt a wave of helplessness, wondering if it was another delivery from the game company.
He instinctively looked down.
There, huddled by the door, was a small, fluffy black ball of fur.
He could vaguely make out its eyes, nose, and ears.
It was a kitten.
"If I remember correctly, I'm staying in a chain hotel," Chen Huaian muttered, glancing down the long hallway, deep in thought.
How did a kitten get into a chain hotel?
He crouched down and poked the little furball. It didn't react, just shivered. He then grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and lifted it up. Now he could see clearly—the kitten had a white "凸" mark on its face, commonly known as a "muscle cat." Its hind legs were a bloody mess, and there were injuries on its back as well.
His room was at the end of the hallway, next to a window, which was wide open.
He also noticed a small smear of blood on the door, in a spot the kitten couldn't have reached on its own. There were a few raptor feathers by the window.
This kitten… something's off! Could it be some kind of monster? Chen Huaian narrowed his eyes, sensing that this wasn't a simple situation.
After a moment of thought, he had an answer:
"Alright, case solved! A big bird crashed into the window and dropped its prey on my door. Then the bird got scared and flew off, abandoning its prey."
What sharp thinking!
Chen Huaian felt that his cancer cells must have activated some hidden potential in him.
"Little one, you are fated with this Venerable One."
Chen Huaian carried the kitten inside.
If he left it alone, it would surely die.
As a hotel guest, even if he planned to stay for a long time, keeping pets wasn't allowed. But Chen Huaian figured, "I'm already terminally ill—why should I care about the rules?"
The kitten was temporarily placed in a shoebox.
Going to a pet hospital at this hour was impossible.
It was almost midnight, and most pet hospitals were closed. His location was quite remote, and reaching a 24-hour pet hospital would require a one-and-a-half-hour drive to the city.
He doubted the kitten would survive that long.
In the few seconds he spent looking up pet hospitals, blood had already seeped into the shoebox.
"Little one, since conventional methods will surely lead to your death, this Venerable One can only try a desperate measure today. If your fate is not to end here, grow up well and don't get caught by big birds again. If this is your destined end, don't blame this Venerable One."
Chen Huaian clasped his hands together and bowed slightly to the kitten.
Then he pulled out a set of silver needles he had bought earlier.
He had originally planned to use them on himself daily, hoping to speed up the healing of his legs. He hadn't considered using them on others—until now.
Chen Huaian picked up a silver needle, and as his gaze fell on the kitten, an acupuncture point chart naturally appeared in his mind.
The acupuncture points of a cat were different from those of a human.
Chen Huaian didn't know how he knew this.
Perhaps this was his potential.
The primary function of the was to stop bleeding, promote blood circulation, and accelerate wound healing. The upgrade condition was to perform the procedure a thousand times or spend 998 yuan to upgrade to Level 2.
Following the sequence of highlighted points on the chart, Chen Huaian swiftly inserted the needles, completing the process in one go.
The kitten soon showed encouraging changes.
The most obvious was the hemostatic effect—the wounds had stopped bleeding. The injury on its back was the most visible, with a layer of blood film sealing the wound. This film hadn't been there before the needles were applied.
"Damn… this acupuncture is pretty powerful…"
Chen Huaian stroked his chin, deep in thought.
He didn't know much about traditional Chinese medicine but had always held it in high regard.
Now the question was: Was it him who was powerful, or was it the acupuncture technique he learned from the game?
He couldn't quite tell.
For now, he had done all he could for the kitten. Its survival would depend on its own will to live.
He turned and headed to the bathroom to shower.
However, as he stepped into the shower, he didn't notice the black dragon that had appeared behind him at some point. The dragon, shrouded in mist, flickered in and out of existence, as if hovering between reality and illusion. Only its eyes, filled with an awe-inspiring authority, were clearly visible, exuding a chilling aura.
…
In the shoebox, the small black kitten struggled to turn over.
Its mouth twitched, making a faint "clicking" sound. A pale bone fragment appeared faintly in its mouth. As it chewed, its body twisted, shifting between a goat-like form and a cat-like form. Its face also contorted into the shape of a toothy, eyeless demon, with its eyes located under its armpits. After several seconds of transformation, it finally stabilized into a cat-like form and gradually fell still.
…
Song Jiaojiao was dead.
Mu Baisuang learned this from Song Jiaojiao's partner, Yang Botao.
"How did Song Jiaojiao die?"
Facing Mu Baisuang's question, Yang Botao looked uneasy. "I don't know. I just told her to kill that bitch Li Qingran. After that, she never came back. She left a soul lamp with me, and when I returned to my cave to get some spirit stones, I found the lamp had gone out."
Mu Baisuang was shocked but masked it with grief and anger. "What? Why did you tell Song Jiaojiao to kill Li Qingran? Song Jiaojiao was my good friend, and Li Qingran is my senior sister. Are you insane?"
"I… I did it for you!" Yang Botao's face turned pale, and his voice trembled. "Baisuang, that bitch Li Qingran dared to hurt you. She also humiliated me before. I've always hated her. Didn't you tell Song Jiaojiao how much you've suffered because of Li Qingran? I was just trying to help you vent!"
"Call me Mu Baisuang. We're not that close! What I said to Song Jiaojiao was between us sisters. What does it have to do with you? Did I ask you to help me vent?"
"I…"
Mu Baisuang's face was cold, but her mind was in turmoil.
Her original plan was to complain to Song Jiaojiao, knowing that Song Jiaojiao and Yang Botao were close. She hoped to provoke Yang Botao, who admired her, into taking action against Li Qingran. This way, Yang Botao would be the one instigating the murder, not her.
Additionally, it was Fourth Senior Brother Zhang Hanxiao who had brought Song Jiaojiao into the inner sect.
This way, she could perfectly distance herself from the whole affair.
The only issue was having Zhang Hanxiao bring Song Jiaojiao into the inner sect, but that was nothing. According to sect rules, only Zhang Hanxiao would be punished. Moreover, as a senior brother, he should take the blame for her.
Song Jiaojiao was at the ninth level of Qi Refining, while Li Qingran was just a cripple with a shattered dantian and extracted spiritual root.
Killing Li Qingran should have been easy. Song Jiaojiao could have done it without leaving a trace, ensuring everyone's safety.
But Mu Baisuang never expected that Li Qingran would survive, while Song Jiaojiao died!
Something must have happened.
Even earlier, Li Qingran's rapid recovery from her injuries had been suspicious, but Mu Baisuang hadn't paid it much attention.
"Baisuang, I did all this to make you happy!"
Yang Botao was panicking. Li Qingran had been expelled from the sect and was no longer related to the Qingyun Sect. With her dantian and spiritual root destroyed, she was just an ordinary person. However, the Qingyun Sect was a righteous sect. If it became known that a cultivator had attacked an innocent civilian, other sects would laugh at them.
To save face, Yang Botao would surely face severe punishment from the sect, and Song Jiaojiao's death would also be blamed on him.
"No, I'm not happy. Yang Botao, you'll face the sect's judgment!"
With that, Mu Baisuang shifted all the blame onto Yang Botao.
Just then, Lu Changtian, the eldest senior brother of Chixiao Peak, walked in.
Mu Baisuang naturally hid behind Lu Changtian.
"Yang Botao, this is Chixiao Peak, not your Xuanling Peak. What are you doing here?"
"Brother Changtian!" Mu Baisuang's expression was filled with sorrow, tears streaming down her face as she clung to Lu Changtian's arm. "Yang Botao ordered Song Jiaojiao to assassinate Li Qingran, and he got Song Jiaojiao killed. How could he do this? One was my good friend, and the other is my senior sister! Wuwuwu…"
"No, it's not like that, Senior Brother Lu. Let me explain…"
Yang Botao tried to speak, but Lu Changtian, who had turned red with anger upon seeing Mu Baisuang's tears, kicked him to the ground.
"Yang Botao, you've got some nerve! Even if Li Qingran left the Qingyun Sect, she was once a member of Chixiao Peak. When did our family matters become your business? Did you think killing Li Qingran would make us respect you? Fine, you had Song Jiaojiao kill Li Qingran, violating sect rules. Now come with me to the Discipline Hall to face punishment!"
Lu Changtian pointed his sword at the pale-faced Yang Botao, about to grab him.
Mu Baisuang tugged at Lu Changtian's sleeve and whispered,
"Brother Changtian… Senior Sister Qingran isn't dead. It's Song Jiaojiao who died…"
Lu Changtian's hand froze mid-air, his face filled with shock. It took him a while to process this.
"What did you say?!"