Chapter 114

Yanzi had gone out to play again.

Zhuge Shou searched the entire Qingshan Temple, sighed in exasperation, and then resorted to his ultimate trick—he dug out some premium cat food donated by visitors, stood in a breezy spot, and shook the bag.

The sound of the cat food pellets rustling quickly drew attention. Soon, a cat peeked out from the rafters, letting out a sweet meow.

Zhuge Shou: "Yang Huaer? Alright, alright, come and eat too."

He tore open the small bag of cat food and poured it on the ground for the colorful tabby.

Although the temple was located on the mountain, cats from the foot of the hill often wandered up. Yang Huaer was one such stray, well-fed by leftovers from the resort, shops, and private restaurants below.

But Zhuge Shou often saw it hanging out with Yanzi, and the two frequently fought over food—perhaps because stolen meals tasted the best.

The cat food Yang Huaer was eating was Yanzi's favorite—but since such "donations" were rare, Zhuge Shou only occasionally treated Yanzi, as the temple didn’t have much budget for feeding cats.

...However, there were some peculiar visitors who traveled great distances to bring cat food or even ordered it online specifically for Yanzi.

Zhuge Shou also often received donations on his video account.

All of this was thanks to the earlier promotional videos by Three-Five-Five.

Three-Five-Five had helped Long Zai find its owner, featuring Yanzi in the footage... Although Three-Five-Five and Chu Tingwu had gone to Jin City for school, the lingering effects of the video and the publicity from their award-winning film had brought a steady stream of visitors and income to Qingshan Temple. Even their notoriously inaccurate fortune-telling service now had a queue system.

After feeding Yang Huaer, Zhuge Shou stretched and thought, "Well, the cat’s grown up. It’ll come back on its own tonight."

Yang Huaer finished eating, let out a soft "meow," and tried to jump back onto the roof. It failed, and under Zhuge Shou’s gaze, it pretended nothing had happened and started grooming itself.

Zhuge Shou: "..."

Fine, he went inside.

Once the human was inside, the chubby tabby tried again, leaving claw marks on the wall as it climbed onto the eaves. It raised a leg to clean its rear but suddenly paused, tilting its head in confusion:

"Meow?"

"Meow-ow?"

Yang Huaer jumped down from the eaves, slipping slightly, and noticed the human was inside—it seemed humans didn’t like to be disturbed in such moments—so after a moment of hesitation, the tabby slipped into the yard, nudged the gate open, shook its fur in the wind, and began to venture into the bushes.

Meanwhile, Chu Tingwu was hiking up Zhangshan Mountain.

Given the mountain’s altitude, the climb was effortless for her, and the same went for Three-Five-Five, though the cat’s route was different—it occasionally leaped onto railings and rocks instead of sticking to the stairs like humans.

But Zhou Qiang suspected Chu Tingwu was taking the stairs just to match their pace.

After meeting up with Three-Five-Five and the other cats, the felines were taken to a private restaurant. Three-Five-Five even let out a call, summoning the local cats from the foot of the mountain. However, there was a small incident—

The calico cat, Niu Niu, sat in front of Chu Tingwu, looking hesitant.

When Niu Niu first met Chu Tingwu, she was just a kitten, but now she was a fully grown, spayed adult cat... So why did Chu Tingwu still smell like a juvenile?

"How do you raise her, meow?"

Three-Five-Five: "..."

Three-Five-Five, embarrassed and annoyed, grabbed Niu Niu and gave her a light nibble on the head.

Chu Tingwu: "=="

After settling the cats, ensuring familiar ones sat together, the only task left was to find Yanzi up on the mountain.

Chu Tingwu last saw Yanzi during the National Day holiday, when the temple was flooded with visitors. Zhuge Shou was swamped, and Yanzi was forced to "work," eventually retreating to the roof to escape the enthusiastic crowd.

Luckily, Chu Tingwu could climb roofs too.

Later, when Zhuge Shou went up to clean, he gave Chu Tingwu and the cat a reproachful look but ended up treating her to a free dinner.

The trio behind her consisted of Zhou Qiang, Shao Lingwu, and Chu Tingwu’s third cousin, who felt obligated to help as the "adult." Chu Xiao, however, had refused to participate in the hike.

Halfway up, the third cousin, who regularly worked out at the gym, was holding up well. Zhou Qiang, however, was panting with her hands on her knees, while Shao Lingwu took a break, walked down a few steps, and then realized, "Oh, wrong direction."

Maybe you should just head back down, huh?

Why did you tag along just because you heard the temple’s braised pork was delicious?

But walking alone seemed even scarier, so the others pressed on. Three-Five-Five, bored, yawned and hopped onto Chu Tingwu’s shoulder, letting the young girl carry her.

The fans watching the livestream were stunned:

[Wow, a new viewing experience—watching through the UP’s shoulder?]

[Isn’t this just carrying the camera on your shoulder? We’re seeing the same perspective, haha, just some VR livestream... A friend of mine says they’re not jealous at all!]

[I feel like my hind legs are resting on Chu Tingwu’s back, and for some reason, I’m feeling a bit nervous. I’m supposed to be a mom fan, after all...]

[It’s fine, Three-Five-Five is still the mom here...]

Chu Tingwu reached up and patted Three-Five-Five’s head, feeling the soft fur.

She was about to say something when Three-Five-Five suddenly jumped down. Chu Tingwu turned her head, gazing into the forest bathed in the setting sun. Both human and cat fell silent, except for the sound of the third cousin drinking water—which turned into a choking sound as Chu Tingwu abruptly said, "We’ll meet at the temple later."

Then, Chu Tingwu leaped into the forest, and Three-Five-Five followed.

[Huh??]

[Is Chu Tingwu taking us on a shortcut? Or showing off her off-trail hiking skills?]

After all, Chu Tingwu had a history of suddenly free-climbing cliffs by the sea without any warning, as her long-time fans vividly remembered. They knew she sometimes liked to go big.

A sign reading [No Entry] flashed by.

Fans: "=="

[Three-Five-Five’s fine, she’s just a cat, but Chu Tingwu’s definitely getting a lecture later.]

[Chu Tingwu can just pretend to be a cat—aside from her appearance, there’s no issue!]

[The biggest issue IS her appearance, though!]

At this point, the fans were still joking around, not realizing anything was wrong. But then Chu Tingwu suddenly stopped, her foot landing on a rock as she leaped up, grabbed a branch with one hand, and caught Three-Five-Five mid-air with the other. Silently, the duo crouched in the dense foliage of a large tree.

Below, a man hurried past.

He carried a hiker’s backpack and a large case, wearing a hat and mask. He glanced around, looking confused, and muttered to himself:

"No one here, and the goods aren’t here either. I think it went further up... Doesn’t seem like a cat? We need to hurry."

Chu Tingwu stayed silent, and Three-Five-Five didn’t move.

But the fans were losing it.

As the man passed, they heard a faint, weak meow coming from what seemed to be a case for filming equipment.

[What’s going on? Did I hear that right? What “goods”?]

[You can’t keep a cat in a sealed case... What’s this guy up to? Or was that just a recording?]

[Chu Tingwu, is this part of the script? Do you know this guy?]

As the questions piled up, Chu Tingwu turned her face to the camera, placed a finger to her lips, and silently mouthed, "Shh."

It seemed like an answer, yet it also seemed like nothing was said at all, but for now, it managed to soothe the fans… and the third cousin who was watching the live stream, among others.

Chu Tingwu suddenly changed her route, but she wasn’t usually an unreliable person, so it was clear that something urgent had come up. Fortunately, the live stream was still ongoing, and they could check the situation through the camera—the third cousin glanced at the others, and Zhou Qiang said, “Let’s call the foot of the mountain.”

Of course, the main purpose was to call Lin Undercover, who was bringing Long Zai over.

This was definitely not part of the script.

Chu Tingwu dropped down from the tree, listening to the system’s report—

Three people, both sides of a transaction, no guns, only sharp weapons for close combat… but if Three-Five-Five looked up and let the camera capture Chu Tingwu’s eyes, the fans might notice that she seemed to be in a “puffed-up” state.

Because Chu Tingwu had caught the scent of another animal.

Unlike the white-necked long-tailed pheasant from before, the animal that had entered the forest was still a juvenile, but it was undoubtedly a carnivorous hunter, and its current mood was anxious, panicked… and aggressive.

As if she had finally made a decision, Chu Tingwu let out a soft meow.

Three-Five-Five raised her paw and pressed it against Chu Tingwu’s palm.

Then, the mother cat tapped the soil beneath her paws, sniffed the scent left by humans, and began to run swiftly.

The tracking device on Three-Five-Five’s body directly shared her location with Lin Undercover, as they had already exchanged contact information and could use this more discreet method of alerting the authorities—

[Poachers are conducting a transaction on the mountain. Three-Five-Five is chasing them. No firearms detected. Location is on Three-Five-Five’s collar.]

Lin Undercover, who was halfway through driving: “…!?”

He continued rushing toward Zhangshan Mountain while instructing the others who had contacted him earlier to either descend the mountain or head to Qingshan Temple. He also notified his colleagues and told Long Zai, “Time to work, we’re on overtime.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Long Zai, who thought they were going out to eat: “Meow?”

Meanwhile, Chu Tingwu followed the scent and circled around to the side peak of Zhangshan Mountain. There was a rugged trail here that only experienced hikers would take, with each step barely half the width of a normal foot. After a new path had been opened, this one had been abandoned, with a simple fence blocking it not far away. But now, the wind was still, the trees were silent, and even the birds seemed to have stopped chirping. Fresh claw marks were visible on the trees.

Chu Tingwu stepped onto the trunk of a tree on the side of the cliff, her other foot hooking onto a branch above. The tree beneath her swayed slightly under her weight. She took a deep breath, and the feeling of being on edge slowly faded, replaced by a sense of anticipation as a breeze blew past—

The Level 1 genetic inheritance skill told her that below was a creature five times her size: a wild Siberian tiger.

It was indeed possible for a Siberian tiger to grow that large, and the Level 1 intuition skill told her that this tiger was still a juvenile, with a faint milky scent that hadn’t completely faded.

…If Niu Niu were here, she’d probably understand why such a large cub was still considered a juvenile, since this Siberian tiger was also just a cub.

Lost in thought, Chu Tingwu smiled silently.

She had faced beasts in her dream training sessions, but those weren’t real animals. She had also fought a wild wolf before, but that wolf was intelligent and followed the rules of the wild. It wasn’t like the creature below, which felt anxious, restless, and ready to attack anything it saw—possibly even injured.

So, she decided to handle the more threatening Siberian tiger herself, while the trained mother cat, Three-Five-Five, could easily deal with a few unarmed humans.

Chu Tingwu thought: Even if she couldn’t control the Siberian tiger, she needed to track its location, keep up with it in the mountains, and alert the police and the temple in time.

Following a tiger in the mountains without getting hurt—she figured she was probably the only one nearby who could do that.

But she was still a little nervous.

The bushes below rustled, and a yellow-and-black paw appeared.

Then half a rear end, and finally, a tiger’s head emerged from the weeds.

It let out a soft “ow.”

Chu Tingwu: “…”

It let out another “ow,” its ear wound no longer bleeding, but it clearly looked both pitiful and hungry.

The System: “…”

Chu Tingwu: “…”

The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‍System: “Actually, I wanted to remind you earlier…”

Cub, your genetic inheritance skill is based on a cat’s size. As for the tiger below, it’s indeed five times the size of a cat—because it’s only three months old!