The Cat Has Arrived

Zhang Tao grabbed Li Zhen in a bear hug. He could afford to ignore Nan Yunyue, but Li Zhen was someone he absolutely could not let run off. This guy was his personal talisman; if he left, Zhang Tao wouldn't dare to go gallivanting around.

"What the hell!" Li Zhen felt goosebumps rise instantly at being suddenly embraced. He cursed out loud and sent an elbow strike that sent Zhang Tao flying, looking disgusted as he said, "Get the hell away from me."

Nanyunyue also found the sight eyesore-inducing. Since when had this guy Zhang Tao become so shameless? And why did he have to drag Li Zhen along?

Zhang Tao rubbed his chest; he couldn't help it, Li Zhen's strike had really hurt.

"You dead scoundrel, you wouldn't have come here if there wasn't a profit to be made, would you? Stop playing dumb!" Nan Yunyue snorted immediately, convinced that Zhang Tao was trying to swindle her.

"I'm serious. I know there's a cat over there. Look, I bought all this cat food specifically for that cat!" Zhang Tao shrugged and opened up his large sack.

Nan Yunyue took a glance. Good grief, it really was cat food. Did this guy Zhang Tao run all the way to the Catacombs just to find a cat?

Li Zhen was also speechless. Was he really here to find a cat? And honestly, what was the point of finding a cat? Li Zhen didn't understand, but Zhang Tao said, "I can't say too much. Li Hanhan, trust me, we have to make this trip. As for you, Nan Yunyue, you can't come. Your strength is too low; if we run into any Monster Beasts, you won't even be able to escape!"

Nan Yunyue felt deflated. It was true; with such a long journey ahead, her Rank 5 cultivation would indeed be a burden.

"Then I'll wait for you here. I want to see what kind of cat makes you care so much!" Nan Yunyue huffed and left. She decided she wouldn't go anywhere for a while and would just stay in the Magic City Catacombs.

Zhang Tao didn't pay her any mind and said, "Let's get moving too!"

After saying that, he hoisted a bag of cat food and started walking. Li Zhen, feeling helpless, had no choice but to pick up a bag of cat food and follow behind Zhang Tao, saying, "You better not be pulling a fast one on me, or I'll break your legs!"

The two of them left Hope City just like that. Zhang Tao said, "This way, don't go wandering off!"

Li Zhen said speechlessly, "Damn it, aren't we going to that place? Why aren't we heading that way?"

Li Zhen didn't say it out loud; after all, there were too many ears around.

Zhang Tao rolled his eyes and dragged Li Zhen toward the back. That direction led toward the Forbidden Sea. Zhang Tao didn't intend to go through the interior; there was no helping it—with so many King Cities around, he wouldn't even know how he died if he walked through there. It was better to rely on Li Zhen and skirt the edge of the Forbidden Sea.

This was the exact reason Zhang Tao had insisted on dragging Li Zhen along.

"You son of a..." Li Zhen was speechless. No wonder he had to drag him along. Although he didn't know why, the Mental Power Avatar his Old Ancestor had given him allowed him to test the waters at the edge of the Forbidden Sea recklessly, but it was undoubtedly a good thing. At the very least, he, Li Zhen, now had a means of self-preservation.

"It's safer to go this way, even if it's a longer detour!" Zhang Tao said. Suddenly, Zhang Tao froze, because he hadn't even taken two steps before he saw a cat sunbathing.

The cat had fiery red fur and the appearance of a large orange tabby, currently sunning itself lazily.

"A cat, a cat!" Li Zhen exclaimed suddenly. There was no helping it; they had just been planning to look for a cat, and here it was.

Zhang Tao rolled his eyes. He wasn't blind; how could he not see such a huge cat?

When Zhang Tao and Li Zhen saw the cat, the cat naturally saw them too. Grey Cat stood up, tilted its head to look at Li Zhen and Zhang Tao, and said, "Are you the ones who are going to bring me something delicious? I felt like someone was going to give me treats, I've been waiting for so long!"

Zhang Tao was stunned. Good heavens, it could sense that? This cat was divine! He wasn't even a powerhouse of the Origin Dao, yet his thoughts could actually be perceived by this cat.

"Haha, you must be the Grey Cat. I've read about you in ancient texts. As it happens, I have plenty of delicious things here!" Zhang Tao ran over with a beaming smile, opening his bag at the same time.

Grey Cat looked at Zhang Tao and said in a milky, childish voice, "You actually know about me?" But soon, Grey Cat's attention was drawn to the items Zhang Tao had brought.

"What is this?" Grey Cat asked curiously, pawing at Zhang Tao's things.

"This is cat food. All the cats outside eat this now. Try some!" Zhang Tao said, specifically opening a can.

Grey Cat didn't stand on ceremony and poured it straight into its mouth. Its eyes turned into crescent moons as it savored the taste, then said, "So delicious! Do the cats outside really eat this well now? How happy they must be."

Zhang Tao nodded vigorously and added, "There's even more, lots of new and interesting things. It's just that I don't have a storage device, otherwise I would have brought them all for you."

Upon hearing this, Grey Cat's eyes narrowed. It couldn't help it; this stuff was too delicious. It was the first time it had ever tasted it. Thinking about how all the cats outside were eating this while it couldn't, it felt a bit unbalanced.

"Li Zhen, hurry up and bring the stuff over, don't just stand there like a fool!" Zhang Tao shouted immediately.

Li Zhen said "oh" and hurried over. A talking cat—good grief, this cat was likely a high-rank Monster Beast.

Seeing Li Zhen open his bag to reveal all sorts of cat food, Grey Cat's eyes brightened even more. It glanced at Li Zhen and said, "Even though you have the aura of that annoying old man on you, since you're giving me cat food, I'll forgive you!"

Li Zhen was completely baffled by these words. What did that mean? He didn't understand at all.

Zhang Tao, however, knew that Grey Cat had likely sensed the aura of the Heaven Suppressing King on Li Zhen. After all, the Heaven Suppressing King had robbed it in the past. Don't let the cat's silence fool you; it actually knew everything and was keeping score. This cat could be quite wicked at times.

Grey Cat swallowed everything in one gulp; it wanted to save it to eat slowly later.

"You treated me to cat food, so I'll treat you to a big fish. Now we're even!" Grey Cat said immediately. It then pulled out a fishing rod and cast it straight into the Forbidden Sea. In less than a second, a Rank 9 giant fish was pulled up, and before it even hit the shore, it had been pierced to death by the fishing rod.

The massive Rank 9 Monster Beast landed right in front of the two men. The overwhelming aura was so intense that even Zhang Tao and Li Zhen couldn't help but take a few steps back. Fortunately, the fish monster was dead, otherwise, the two of them might not have been able to withstand the pressure.

"Do you want me to help you roast it?" Grey Cat asked, blinking its large eyes. Seeing that Zhang Tao and Li Zhen weren't doing anything, it offered kindly.

Zhang Tao shook his head immediately. What a joke! This fish was a Rank 9 Monster Beast; its Heart Core and Brain Core were still inside, which could be used to forge a Rank 9 Divine Weapon. If they just roasted it, that would be a massive waste.

"Many thanks, Brother Cat. But Brother Cat, what will you do when you want to eat cat food again in the future?" Zhang Tao asked immediately. After all, Grey Cat had just said that by treating him to the fish, they were even, and that wasn't the result Zhang Tao wanted.