Dormitory:
“He Xunzhou, are you going home for the holiday?” Gu Bei packed his belongings while curiously glancing back at his friend.
He bitterly regretted not being a girl—otherwise he’d definitely be relentlessly pursuing He Xunzhou.
The corners of He Xunzhou’s lips lifted slightly with a faint smile, his peach-blossom eyes radiating tender affection like a spring breeze sweeping across thousands of miles. The first impression he gave was that of an exceptionally gentle person.
So gentle that it seemed no one could truly enter his heart. (This was the He Xunzhou everyone saw—no wonder those girls kept shouting about wanting to have his babies.)
“Not going back. Too much trouble,” He Xunzhou replied, his voice soft and gentle, bringing a sense of tranquility that could calm even the most restless heart.
Gu Bei scratched his head. “Yeah, with your dad like that, you’d just get scolded if you went back. They say ‘with a stepmother comes a stepfather’—the ancients didn’t lie.”
He Xunzhou and Gu Bei lived in the same residential complex, and their mothers were best friends. When He Xunzhou’s mother was alive, his father had treated him well. He remembered how much his father had loved his mother back then, always putting her first in everything.
But after his sickly mother passed away and his father remarried, everything changed. To make matters worse, the stepmother had given birth to twin boys for the He family. Since their arrival, He Xunzhou’s situation had become even more difficult—his father would either scold or beat him.
Fortunately, their family lived right across from He Xunzhou’s. Because of Gu Bei’s mother’s presence, He Xunzhou’s father didn’t dare go too far.
He remembered one time when He Xunzhou was nearly beaten to death—it was his mother who intervened, desperately restraining He Xunzhou’s father. Gu Bei’s father stood in front of his wife and threatened, “I don’t care what’s going on in your family. If you dare hit Xunzhou, I’ll dare hit you. Don’t forget—I’m his godfather.”
After that, while the physical beating stopped, the verbal abuse continued. Withholding living expenses became commonplace. Although his father offered money, He Xunzhou never accepted it. He Xunzhou worked part-time jobs alone, though sometimes Gu Bei would accompany him.
“Why don’t you come to my place? My mom misses you so much.”
He Xunzhou smiled. “I’m planning to travel. I’ll visit your home next time—don’t worry, I won’t forget your gift.”
Ahem. “Alright then.” It wasn’t like he was greedy for some gift.
“Be careful out there.”
He Xunzhou: “Yeah, don’t worry.”
“Time to rest at the hotel.” After a full day of traveling, he’d finally reached Guilin. He Xunzhou sighed in relief and lay down on the bed. Maybe I should have a drink to relax, he thought.
He remembered Gu Bei had given him a bottle, claiming it was brought from abroad. Luckily, he’d packed it in his backpack.
He Xunzhou opened the bottle and sniffed. “The alcohol content shouldn’t be too high, right?”
He poured the liquor into a glass and took a sip. Instantly, he exclaimed, “So strong! Hmm, why do I feel so dizzy?” Rubbing his head, he wondered, “Is my alcohol tolerance this bad? Knocked out by one sip!!!” With those words, he collapsed.
He seemed to see himself lying on the floor.
Damn! Did I really die from one sip of alcohol??
“Otherworldly Soul detected. Belongs to a person of immeasurable virtue who was originally destined to live to 100 years old. Lost due to Dimension Station’s error. We’re doomed.” A small sphere made a tearful expression while staring at the data panel in front of it.
Ahem. “Honorable sir, we can offer compensation. Wah, this humble one kneels before you.”
He Xunzhou stared at the small round ball before him, unable to see its legs at all—only a fluffy, snow-white sphere hopping around.
“Can it be revived?”
“No.” The tone carried a hint of guilt.
“How do you plan to compensate?” He Xunzhou looked up at it, the warmth in his eyes seemingly gone. The little ball trembled slightly, though it was invisible.
“I can send you to live in another era, along with a Dimension and a Spirit Spring. You can grow vegetables there. How about it, sir? You’ll also have a robust physique.” As it spoke, it straightened up proudly.
Not bad—these were decent benefits.
“Deal.” The moment He Xunzhou agreed, he immediately passed out.
From behind came the little ball’s voice:
“Ahem, you’ll have a powerful physique and a heroic form. Your fur will display striking orange and black stripes, as if bestowed by nature as a battle robe. Your mighty tail will be like a steel whip, ready to strike, inspiring awe in all who see it. Everyone must obey you—you are the king! You can enter the Dimension anytime, but you cannot stay for more than a month. Afterward, there’s a three-day cooldown. If you stay for a full month, you must wait for the cooldown to end before re-entering.”
Inspiring awe? Everyone must obey me? I’m the king? A prince? Or an emperor?
He Xunzhou: “…”
A tiger? A black tiger cub?
Damn!
The black stripes stood out vividly against its yellow fur, like bolts of black lightning. Though still a cub, its presence was suffocating.
He Xunzhou stared speechlessly at his reflection in the water. Yes, he was that tiger.
Inspiring awe (Well, it’s a tiger—of course it does).
Everyone must obey me (After all, what animal isn’t afraid of a tiger?).
You are the king (Right, the tiger—king of the forest, ruler of all beasts).
Was any of it wrong? No. “Heh, better not let it show up in front of me again, or I’ll slice it up.” No matter how patient one might be, who could tolerate this? Straight-up turning me into a non-human!
“Be careful at night, because you’ll turn into a black cat. Remember, the transformation happens at 8 p.m., and you revert at 8 a.m. My energy is insufficient, boo hoo hoo X﹏X”
“Awu, awu!” I want to turn back into a human! The tiger on the ground cried out anxiously.
“Well… don’t worry. Once my energy is replenished, I’ll come back for you. Bye-bye.”
He Xunzhou: “…” Scammer. I’ve encountered a fraudster—what should I do? This is urgent!!
This place belonged to the Kingdom of An, where there were men, women, and another type called “Ge’er.”
Ge’er resembled men in appearance but had a Pregnancy Mark between their eyebrows. The redder the mark, the stronger their fertility. They were stronger than women, but in wealthy families, Ge’er were usually only taken as concubines due to their lower reproductive capacity.
Poorer families often married Ge’er because their greater strength allowed them to share heavy labor.
This was a remote mountain village in the Kingdom of An called Liujia Village. The area was secluded, surrounded by mountains, and rumors spoke of tigers and bears in the hills.
Years ago, when the villagers faced famine, they organized a group of strong men to hunt in the mountains. Unexpectedly, after three days, only five out of over ten men returned, all severely injured. One eventually succumbed to his wounds. Since then, the village had an unspoken rule: no one was allowed to enter the mountains, even during food shortages—they simply had to endure.
“Huai Ge’er, where’s today’s meal? I knew you were lazy! Oh heavens! After raising you for so long, you do nothing at all.”
After finishing her work, Sister-in-law Liu went to the kitchen and found no one there. She immediately started cursing and rushed to a woodshed in the east. What met her eyes was a gaunt, frail boy with sallow skin and emaciated features. His frame was weak, his stature small, his flesh scarce, his face dark, and he was trembling incessantly.
If one didn’t look closely, it would be impossible to tell he was a ger due to his faint Pregnancy Mark. Unless examined carefully, it was nearly invisible. Yet this did not earn him any pity from the woman. Sister-in-law Liu yanked the boy up by his arm.
“You lazy good-for-nothing! What time is it and you still haven’t cooked? How dare you sleep!” As she spoke, she dragged the boy out of the woodshed and threw him to the ground. The boy showed no reaction at all.