Cat-and-Mouse Game, Begin! (miHoYo, Give Me Back My Kitty)

Boom!

"No!"

Seeing Tang San blown away by Er Ming and slammed hard into the ground, Xiao Wu cried out in alarm.

"Er Ming, stop! I'll go back with you. Don't hurt him."

Er Ming, the Titan Giant Ape, lowered his head and stared at Xiao Wu, looking somewhat dazed.

Seeing this, Xiao Wu scolded him through a voice transmission. "Er Ming, if you don't listen to me, I'll never speak to you again."

Er Ming let out a low growl, growing anxious. Ignoring Zhao Wuji as he lunged toward him, he turned and bounded away in one enormous leap.

"Xiao Wu!" Zhao Wuji frantically tried to pursue him, only to realize that his speed was nowhere near enough to catch the Titan Giant Ape.

By then, Dai Mubai and the others, battered and covered in dust, came over and helped Tang San up from the ground.

Lin Ye and the two girls also stood up with "pale" faces, then sat down together to one side to "recuperate."

Oscar handed them sausages to help them recover.

Zhao Wuji could no longer maintain his Martial Soul Avatar either. His body gradually shrank until he returned to his original form.

Zhao Wuji walked up to Tang San, his face ashen and his eyes filled with regret and self-reproach.

"The Titan Giant Ape... why would it appear on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest? This is all my fault. I failed to protect Xiao Wu... Tang San, you..." The words reached Zhao Wuji's lips, but he had no idea how to comfort Tang San.

With Xiao Wu abducted by the Titan Giant Ape, no one believed she could survive—not even Zhao Wuji.

Tang San lowered his head, his voice terrifyingly calm.

"No, it wasn't your fault. It was me... I failed to protect her."

He still remembered that midsummer, the sea of flowers in Holy Soul Village, and the promise he had made to her.

"If one day lots of people wanted to kill me, and none of them were people you could defeat, what would you do?"

"Then they'd have to step over my corpse first!"

By taking his Xiao Wu away, this Titan Giant Ape had already signed his own death warrant.

He had promised to protect Xiao Wu, yet faced with such a powerful soul beast, he was utterly helpless.

He still wasn't strong enough. If he had cultivated to sufficient strength, he would make that Titan Giant Ape pay a terrible price.

Zhao Wuji sighed heavily. "Everyone, rest for now. In a little while, we'll find somewhere else and carefully consider our next move."

Just then, a faint yet unusually clear voice suddenly sounded beside Oscar's ear, as though the words had been forced through clenched teeth.

"Oscar, if you still consider me your brother, give me a few Mushroom Sausages. Don't let anyone notice."

Oscar's heart jolted. The voice belonged to none other than Tang San.

He stared blankly at Tang San.

Seriously, bro, what the hell are you trying to do?

By now, Tang San's eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like a man possessed.

"Oscar, even if there's only a sliver of hope, I have to try! Hurry and give me a few Mushroom Sausages. As long as I survive this, I'll never forget what I owe you."

Hearing this, Oscar sighed. "Fine."

Then Oscar secretly recited his incantation and gave Tang San a few Flying Mushroom Sausages.

Tang San ate them and flew into the air.

The sudden turn of events shocked everyone.

Zhao Wuji rushed forward in alarm and shouted, "Tang San! What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry, Teacher Zhao. I'm going to find Xiao Wu. Even if she's already dead, I'll bring her body back!"

With that, Tang San plunged resolutely into the woods, flying deeper into the forest.

Zhao Wuji wanted to give chase, but Lin Ye, who had already recovered, beat him to it.

"Teacher Zhao, let me bring him back. It's too dangerous out there for him to handle alone. Once I bring him back, we can all go find Xiao Wu together," Lin Ye said.

Zhao Wuji's mind raced. After a few seconds of consideration, he nodded.

Although Lin Ye gave him no end of headaches, it seemed the kid was still quite dependable when something serious happened.

What Zhao Wuji didn't know, however, was that Lin Ye had another purpose in mind.

Before leaving, Lin Ye turned to glance at Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing.

The two girls nodded slightly, then watched Lin Ye head off in the direction Tang San had taken.

Once away from the others, Lin Ye immediately used White Paper to manifest a coin. It was the Flipping Coin, an item belonging to a certain kitty, which could be used to speed up his movements.

Of course, this was merely something he had manifested based on scenes he had once seen in a game. It didn't grant the same extreme speed as the ability's original owner possessed.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot Zagreus's Blessing of Invisibility."

Cat-and-Mouse Game, begin!

In an instant, Lin Ye's figure became completely concealed, vanishing into the forest without a trace.

Meanwhile, Xiao Wu had already left Er Ming's hand and seated herself on his back. Er Ming ran steadily, keeping the goddess on his back from being jolted around.

At that moment, however, Xiao Wu's face was full of worry, and she kept glancing behind them.

"Er Ming, you really shouldn't have come looking for me. Stop here. Don't go any farther. I have to hurry back, or they'll worry."

Hearing this, Er Ming, the Titan Giant Ape, looked innocent, but had no choice but to stop and let Xiao Wu down.

Xiao Wu murmured to herself, "Tang San was hurt, and you carried me off. He must be frantic."

"Tang San, please don't do anything rash. I'll be back right away."

"Roooar..." Little Xiao Ming was rather unhappy.

After finally getting to reunite with his Sister Xiao Wu, she was thinking about someone else?

"Er Ming, the next time you sense my presence, watch from a distance first. Don't act rashly, or you might hurt my friends," Xiao Wu said, looking at Er Ming.

She knew Er Ming was worried about her, but this wasn't the situation she had wanted.

Seeing Tang San injured had truly wrung her heart.

Xiao Wu looked up and asked, "Er Ming, is Da Ming doing well?"

The Titan Giant Ape nodded his large, round head.

Xiao Wu said, "That's good. I have to hurry back. My friends will be worried. But since you've brought me out here already, I might as well complete my third Soul Ring now. That'll save me having to find another opportunity later."

She sat cross-legged. "I'll start now. Guard me."

Er Ming, the Titan Giant Ape, gave a low growl. Though muffled, it carried a thousand meters, frightening the surrounding soul beasts into scattering in all directions.

Worried about Tang San, Xiao Wu didn't dare delay and immediately began condensing her Soul Ring.

"Xiao Wu... Xiao Wu..."

A short while later, Tang San braced himself against a large tree, panting.

Each of Oscar's Flying Mushroom Sausages only allowed one minute of flight. Tang San had flown less than a few thousand meters before he had to land and continue on foot.

Now he used his Purple Demon Eye to its fullest, yet still found no trace of the Titan Giant Ape.

Tang San refused to accept it. Images of Xiao Wu kept flashing through his mind.

"Xiao Wu..."

Tang San had already begun to overtax his stamina. Now he had no choice but to stop and recover.

But just as he was about to take a drink of water, a rustling sound caught his attention.

"What's that?"

An enormous black spider appeared before him.

Its eight long legs moved rapidly as it closed in on him.

Tang San immediately got a clear look at its abdomen, and his pupils contracted sharply.

"This is..."