Shadow

Only after Ke Meng repeatedly assured the dog there would be a feast that evening did it agree to a second test. This would also be its last test; unless there was an emergency, it had no intention of using this skill again.

For this test, Ke Meng had the dog actively control its fur as it shook, firing exactly one hundred Dog Hair in a single direction. Not one more, not one less—it had to control them precisely, just as if it were shaking off dust.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! A shower of golden flashes flew into the distance.

He walked in the direction of the shots and, a thousand meters away, found gleaming golden needles embedded in trees, rocks, and grass.

Compared with the damage at close range, the Dog-Hair Needles had lost only about thirty percent of their penetrating power.

This proved that the Dog-Hair Needles could travel even farther, though their accuracy was harder to judge. Wind resistance during flight would throw them off course.

Once the dog had retrieved all one hundred Dog-Hair Needles into its belly, Ke Meng went back to his car and drove away.

The Dog Hair the fur ball had fired could not grow back immediately. Ke Meng had no idea how many days it would take.

After they returned home, the dog began looking forward to the feast Ke Meng had promised.

Ten portions of chicken cutlet meat. It had never eaten any before. Would it taste good?

When the delivery driver arrived with ten portions of chicken cutlet meat, the dog could smell the enticing aroma from the bedroom.

My master really didn't lie to me! The fur ball barked happily.

Ke Meng put nine portions of chicken cutlet meat on the floor and kept just one for himself, watching the videos he had recorded as he ate.

Compared with a few days ago, the Strange Cat review's numbers had skyrocketed. The platform had officially recommended it, greatly increasing its exposure, and it had now reached three hundred thousand views.

Ke Meng's glove review video had benefited too. After all, neither video was a serious review; their main appeal was goofy humor. Anyone who took them seriously had already lost.

The glove review video had now reached seventy thousand views. Ke Meng checked the system's actual figures: fifty-eight thousand people had watched it.

Soon. The Shadow-Grasping Hand skill would soon be his.

After watching the videos, Ke Meng pulled up his posts. One was the post asking for a name for the dog, and some fans had already replied below it.

"Bookworm20**09": "Easy. How about 'Dog Hair'? So descriptive!"

"Drifting Clouds and Clustered Leaves": "'Fur Ball' is pretty good. It captures both the fur and the roundness."

"Marquis of Heaven's Gate": "How about 'Head & Shoulders'?"

"Blank": "Dumpling."

"Zang Hongyang": "Tangyuan?"

"Misaka Dolly": "Pair them up-how about 'Big Fur Ball'?"

"lhuti": "Call it Big Ball."

Ke Meng showed the post to the dog. "Look, these are the names everyone suggested. Which one do you like?"

The dog gave a puzzled bark.

What is all this? I can't read it.

The dog did not understand Blue Star's writing, but as long as Ke Meng read it aloud, it could use the close bond between them to sense his meaning through Synesthesia.

A long golden Dog Hair pointed at "Head & Shoulders" on the phone screen. Ke Meng read the name aloud, and the dog understood.

A hair-washing product, specifically for cleaning. After using it, you rinsed it off with water, and it left you smelling nice.

Then it pointed at "Tangyuan," and Ke Meng read that aloud too.

Woof!

The dog understood again.

So tangyuan were dainty little balls of food, round and white, with fillings inside. Some fillings were sweet, while others were savory.

"Woof, woof." The dog's barks conveyed its desire to eat some.

Ke Meng gave it a smack. All it thought about was food.

After he read all the names in one go, the dog rolled back and forth on the floor, pondering its life as a dog.

At nine thirty that evening, in the convenience store downstairs.

Chen Momo was scrolling through her landlord's posts when she let out a surprised sound.

What a huge fluffy ball. When did Brother Meng get interested in buying plush toys?

"It must be really comfortable to sit on." Chen Momo liked Ke Meng's post, then sent him a private message: "Where did you buy it? Get me one too."

"There's no room for it at home." Her mother's voice came from behind her.

"I was just asking. It's not like..." Chen Momo instinctively turned around, only to stop halfway through her sentence.

There was no one behind her. Her mother was not there-only shelves.

"Mom?" Chen Momo called.

No one in the convenience store answered her.

Chen Momo was baffled. Had she imagined it? Why had she heard her mother's voice?

"Mom, where are you?" Chen Momo called again, louder this time.

The convenience store remained quiet and deserted.

Chen Momo checked the time. It was already nine thirty, and they would be closing at ten.

Every evening before closing, mother and daughter swept the floor, then mopped the shop before shutting up. Her mother might be soaking the mop in the convenience store's restroom.

Chen Momo went to the restroom. The door was open, and the light was on.

She stepped inside and saw her mother lying on the floor.

"Mom!" Chen Momo hurried over and shook her mother, but could not wake her.

Behind Chen Momo, at the restroom doorway, a shadow turned in from outside and darted to Mrs. Chen's feet at lightning speed, becoming her shadow.

In the blink of an eye, Mrs. Chen had a shadow.

Mrs. Chen slowly opened her eyes and raised a hand to shield them from the overhead light. It was too bright.

Chen Momo stared at the floor. She did not know whether her eyes had deceived her, but she thought she had seen a dark shadow fly over.

She stared at her mother's shadow, feeling an oddness she could not quite put into words.

Chen Momo chided her mother, "If you're tired, take a break. Don't work yourself into the ground."

"I was just..." Mrs. Chen stopped halfway, unsure what to say. In the end, she said nothing more and simply got up.

Her clothes were a little wet. After discussing it, they decided to close early.

They swept and mopped. A few customers came in to buy things while they worked, and looked surprised to find the store preparing to close.

"Closing so early?" a male customer asked.

"It's not that early. We used to start cleaning at ten. Today we're just doing it half an hour earlier," Mrs. Chen said with a smile.

Once the last customer had left, the two mopped the floor where the customers had tracked in dirt, switched off the ground floor's main power, then shut and locked the door.

They got on their little electric scooter and slowly left the convenience store.

Sitting on the back seat, Chen Momo turned to look at the convenience store. The shop was dark, with only Ke Meng's room on the second floor casting a cold light.