C17 Heroic Orange Cat!
"Hiss, hiss~"
The stone was visibly elated by the results of its efforts over the past few days.
"Haha! Stone, here's your reward!"
At that moment, Lin Yi pulled out a dark, glossy pill from his pocket and popped it into Stone's mouth.
Without hesitation, Stone gulped it down.
"Woof woof!" Tiny, who had been scampering around, came running over, gazing at Lin Yi with hopeful eyes.
"All you do is play all day," Lin Yi said, squatting down to give Tiny an affectionate but exasperated head rub. Despite his words, Lin Yi soon produced another pill and tossed it into Tiny's mouth.
Tiny chewed on the small pill, seemingly unable to discern its flavor.
Watching Tiny still looking at him with those big, expectant eyes, Lin Yi chuckled, "Off you go. All you think about is playing and eating. That's it, no more treats—the pantry's empty!"
The black pill was an item Lin Yi had redeemed from the system. (Growth pill (1 point): Accelerates the growth of a bronze-phase cub.)
The pill proved to be extremely effective. It had been four days since Stone's emergence, and Lin Yi had been administering two growth pills daily.
Stone had grown from an initial 18 centimeters to now 28 centimeters, roughly half the length of Lin Yi's forearm, with its body's widest part as thick as three fingers pressed together.
"Scan!"
"Beep! Scanning..."
Name: Mutant Water Snake
Species: Reptilia
Attribute: Water, ?
Level: Bronze Three Late Period
Status: Youth Phase, Excited
Quality: Perfect
Potential: Four Stars
Skills: Entanglement, Gaze, Spunlace, ?
Evolution Route: 1, Common Evolution: Crystal Snake (Criteria not met) 2, Reversion Evolution: Anaconda (Criteria not met) 3, Mutated Evolution: Rock Snake (Criteria not met) 4, Epic Evolution: Feathered Serpent (Criteria not met) 5, Bloodline Evolution: Woodland Serpent (Criteria not met)
Introduction: Within Tiny's small frame lies a sliver of a mysterious bloodline. It's as if a mystical force is beckoning... The little one still requires ample nourishment...
Lin Yi gazed at the updated panel with great satisfaction.
After three days of nurturing, Stone's frail condition had vanished, the negative description was no more, and its level had successfully advanced to the late Bronze Three stage.
It's fair to say that the progress had been lightning-fast.
But there was a downside—it was incredibly costly.
In the last few days alone, I'd used over a dozen water essence stones and earth essence stones, not to mention eleven growth pills.
Now, my total savings amounted to $195,000 in cash and 49 energy points.
"If I'm careful, I can make it last a month..." I mused to myself.
"Woof! Woof!"
Just then, Tiny's barking snapped me out of my reverie.
On the grass ahead, a fat orange cat, resembling a pig, lay in front of Tiny.
Tiny was howling and swiping at the air, always missing the cat by a good half meter.
I rolled my eyes, accustomed to the spectacle. "Silly dog!"
"Meow!"
After toying with Tiny for a bit, the orange tabby turned its gaze to me.
Confronted with the cat's almost human expression, I sighed in resignation, "Ah... Sweet, the landlord's pantry is bare."
"Meow!"
Sweet was having none of it. After a defiant meow, it tried to heave its plump body up.
"Alright, alright, I'll give in!"
I had no choice.
I reluctantly exchanged a growth pill and tossed it to the orange cat.
This hefty feline was actually the pet of old man Lee, whom I'd played chess with before.
I figured it must have seen me feeding the stone pills once and had since become a regular nuisance. At first, I was reluctant to indulge it, but considering my decent relationship with Lee, I fed it just once.
That single act of kindness turned into a routine, and now the cat visited almost daily.
But what could I do? The creature's strength was formidable. It had Tiny at its mercy every time...
This time, while feeding the orange tabby, I stole a quick glance at it. (The system's detection range was somewhat limited.)
[Beep! Detecting...]
Name: Guangli Cat (Fatty)
Species: Quadruped
Attribute: Light, Water
Level: Silver Two Middle Period
Status: Aged, Hidden Disease, Disdain
Quality: Elite
Potential: Two stars
Skills: Light Refraction, Radiance, Scorch, Dawnlight, Water Sword, Water Escape...
Evolution Route: 1. Common Evolution: Dawnlight Cat... 2. Reversion Evolution: Dusktusk Cat... (Not satisfied) 3. Mutated Evolution: Morningglow Cat... (Not satisfied) 4. Epic Evolution: Sunblaze Cat... (Not satisfied)
Introduction: Once a familiar with promising potential, it suffered a severe injury in its youth...
"This..." Lin Yi was taken aback.
Yet, it wasn't the stunning attribute panel that surprised him; it was the introduction.
Considering Lee's youth, when he apparently battled alongside the Alliance Army against the Otherkin, the wounds might not be ordinary, and perhaps the cat was not just any pet...
Just as Lin Yi was about to speak...
"Meow!"
The orange tabby seemed to pick up on Lin Yi's thoughts, giving him a knowing glance before standing up.
It sauntered off...
And the orange tabby never returned.
...
Some lead unremarkable lives, others gain widespread renown... and there are those whose names are whispered with reverence, even as they live in anonymity...
...
On the fourth day of his leave, at 6:30 in the morning, Lin Yi arrived at school early, half an hour before classes began.
The classroom was deserted except for Lin Yi, who was hunched over a book at his desk.
Time passed.
"Click!" The sound of the door announced someone's arrival.
A girl entered—it was Nuo Juan!
Lin Yi quickly propped up his book to hide his face.
But as Lin Yi caught sight of her, Nuo Juan also spotted him.
"Ah! It's Yi gege~"
Nuo Juan, clutching a small bag, excitedly ran to the seat next to Lin Yi.
"Yi gege~ Why are you here so early today~?"
While speaking, Nuo Juan placed her hand on Lin Yi's back and gave him a gentle push.
"Hiss!" Lin Yi involuntarily gasped.
It seemed there was no escaping her.
"Nuo Juan, good morning," Lin Yi managed to say, lifting his head and greeting her with a smile.
"Hehe, good morning to you too, Yi gege~"
"Yes, good morning."
"Yi, I haven't seen you in days, and... I've really missed you," Nuo Juan said as she clung to Lin Yi's hand and gave it a gentle shake. "Do you miss me too, Yi?"
Lin Yi shuddered deeply and carefully withdrew his hand. "I don't think I've missed you quite as much..."
"Ah! Yi, how can you..." Nuo Juan began, her voice dripping with disappointment.
Just as she was about to continue, Lin Yi, sweating profusely from nervousness, heard a sudden "Crack!"
