Finally clambering onto the windowsill and stepping onto the stove counter beside it, the little white kitten swished his tail and made his way, with practiced familiarity, straight to the storage cabinet.
The kitchen was empty, not a soul in sight. The kitten was free to steal his dried fish in broad daylight without a hint of shame.
These dried fish weren’t actually standard palace fare, they were something a particular head cook made privately for himself, which was why Bai Xiaonian often had to work for quite a while just to get his paws on one.
This time, with the little kitchen unusually empty, the kitten preened with satisfaction. He reached out a paw and, little by little, pried the cabinet door open, finally managing to crack it open after a long struggle.
The inside of the cabinet was pitch black. Although he couldn’t see a thing, Bai Xiaonian already knew exactly where the dried fish were kept. He reached blindly inside with his paw, and the moment his claws brushed against a small dried fish and he was about to hook it out, he suddenly heard a sharp click from within the cabinet.
An instant later, searing, blinding pain shot through his little paw.
“Meow—!”
The little white kitten convulsed violently from the pain, unable to free himself, something inside had clamped down on his paw.
At that very moment, a group of people dressed as guards swarmed into the little kitchen, brandishing fishing nets, their expressions fierce as they closed in on the kitten on the floor.
“Consort Yi, this is the very cat that’s been stealing food.”
Ears ringing from the pain, Bai Xiaonian faintly caught the sound of a woman’s voice. “Catch it. Consider it doing the people a favor—His Excellency won’t blame us for it.”
But at that moment, some unknown reserve of strength surged through the kitten. While everyone was momentarily distracted, he dragged the heavy animal trap clamped to his paw and slipped away in a flash.
Startled, the group rushed to give chase, but by the time they reached the doorway, the kitten had vanished without a trace, leaving behind only a trail of blood on the ground.
They followed the trail of blood, which led them all the way to the gate of a desolate, abandoned palace.
The moment they looked up and read the name inscribed above the gate, a flicker of shock and dread crossed everyone’s eyes, and they all instinctively took several steps back.
“This is a forbidden zone. We can’t go in…” one of them said, voice trembling.
It was said that someone had once wandered into the forbidden zone by mistake and been shredded to pieces by the formidable array of formations within. Afterward, the Demon Lord had made it known that anyone who dared set foot in the forbidden zone, even if they somehow survived, would be personally hacked to pieces by his own hand once they emerged.
Later, someone with an especially hard head had forced their way in and, against all odds, survived, only to be cut down by the Demon Lord’s blade the moment they stepped back out, dying in a scene of unspeakable horror.
Consort Yi’s expression remained furious.
“Don’t worry, my lady. Even if the trap didn’t kill it, once it’s inside the forbidden zone, the array will grind it to pieces soon enough. And even if by some miracle it survives that too, once His Excellency learns of this, the cat won’t live long either way,” one of Consort Yi’s attendants said with a smug laugh.
Hearing this, Consort Yi’s face brightened once more. She lifted her chin haughtily, brushed off her robes, and turned to leave. “Very well. Everyone, head back.”
…
But inside the palace, things were nothing like what they’d all assumed.
Bai Xiaonian had encountered no resistance from any array whatsoever, walking straight into the hall without obstruction.
The hall was filled with all manner of scattered treasures, at a glance, there were miraculous elixirs, immortal artifacts, and various spirit-woven robes and ornaments. Everything looked achingly familiar to Bai Xiaonian, but he had no mind to admire the place now, hurrying instead to find a corner to hide in.
Perhaps it was some animal instinct, after being injured, all he wanted was to find a hidden spot where he could lick his wounds alone.
No matter how the kitten struggled, he couldn’t free his paw from the animal trap. Every slight movement only drove the sharp jagged teeth deeper into his flesh.
Bai Xiaonian trembled from the pain, feeling as though his paw might be severed entirely by the trap.
The kitten was barely two months old, his body still terribly frail. By now he’d already lost so much blood that his head was spinning.
Bai Xiaonian sniffled, an endless sorrow welling up inside him.
This Consort Yi, he would remember her well. Slandering him before Chong Yin was one thing, but now she’d even schemed to kill him outright. He had once been the mighty, fearsome Demon Lord himself, there was no way he’d allow himself to fall into that woman’s hands. Gritting through the pain, he dragged the trap along and fled.
The kitten curled his tail around himself, the blood from his paw staining his snow-white fur crimson. Instinctively, Bai Xiaonian tried to lick the damp fur clean, only to end up with a mouthful of blood, staining even the fur around his mouth and filling his mouth with the taste of it.
The kitten stuck out his tongue, trying to spit out the metallic taste, tears welling up in his round black eyes, feeling utterly wronged.
The kitten lay down and closed his eyes, meaning to rest for a while.
He couldn’t hold on much longer…
Once Bai Xiaonian had lost consciousness, a rare, extraordinary artifact sitting dust-covered in the very center of the hall suddenly flickered with a streak of shimmering, five-colored light.
…
Meanwhile, Chong Yin had returned to the main hall, reclining on the couch reading for a while, when he began to sense something was off.
Yesterday, that kitten had been curled up right here napping, snoring loudly enough to disrupt his reading. But ever since parting ways at the study, it had been noticeably absent all day.
Chong Yin’s brow furrowed slightly. The hall felt strangely too quiet, lacking the usual ruckus that little ball of fur always brought with it.
Just as Chong Yin was about to ask a servant about it, Taoxi hurried in, her expression urgent. “Your Excellency, something terrible has happened.”
Chong Yin shot her a displeased glance. “What’s got you in such a rush?”
Taoxi bit her lip, her face grim, hesitating before finally speaking. “Your Excellency… Xiao Niangao… he entered the forbidden zone, and he hasn’t come out in a long while. I’m afraid he might already be…”
Taoxi didn’t dare finish the sentence, because the air in the room had already plummeted, the oppressive force radiating from the Demon Lord utterly terrifying. Taoxi’s legs gave out beneath her, and she dropped to her knees, a sharp pain blooming in her chest, a metallic taste rising in her throat.
Looking up at Chong Yin on the couch, his face had turned cold and menacing, dark red flickering ominously in his eyes. He set down the book in his hands, rose from the couch, and strode toward Taoxi, looking down at her from above.
The pressure radiating from him crushed down on Taoxi’s entire body, making her tremble uncontrollably, an icy chill spreading from her feet up through her whole being.
“Why did you only come to report this now?” Chong Yin’s voice carried not a shred of emotion, cold enough to make her shudder.
Taoxi couldn’t read Chong Yin’s intent at all and could only answer timidly, “Reporting to Your Excellency, this servant only just learned of it herself, and rushed here immediately to report.”
Chong Yin stared unblinking into Taoxi’s frightened, trembling eyes, his gaze narrowing dangerously. The next instant, he lifted his foot and kicked Taoxi to the ground.
Taoxi coughed up a mouthful of blood, staring up in shock at the man towering above her like some deity.
The man radiated killing intent from every pore, yet his expression remained utterly indifferent, as though he cared nothing for anyone’s life or death, not even Taoxi’s, despite her having served him for hundreds of years.
Yet whenever it concerned that cat, he seemed to grow angry easily, it was only at times like this that the man seemed to have any emotion at all.
Taoxi’s heart filled with bitter sorrow. “Your Excellency, this is…”
“From today, get out of the Demon Realm.” Chong Yin’s thin lips parted, delivering the words coldly, utterly without mercy, words that shattered Taoxi completely.
She had expected Chong Yin might punish her, but she had never imagined he would banish her outright. She had done nothing wrong, it had all been Consort Yi’s doing…
As a demon cultivator, being cast out of the Demon Realm would mean a fate worse than death.
“Don’t put on that innocent act for me. I despise hypocrisy above all else. Do you think I can’t see through your conspiracy with Consort Yi to slander that kitten?”
Chong Yin’s expression darkened further as he continued, “If it weren’t for your years of service, you’d be thrown out of the palace with your body torn to nothing.”
Hearing those final words, Taoxi, who had still been trying to rise and offer some defense, froze, then collapsed to the ground in despair, covering her face and weeping.
Chong Yin spared her no further glance. His crimson robes billowing without wind, sleeves flaring, he strode out through the hall doors, heading toward the forbidden zone.