Chapter Thirty-Four: Matters of Dreams

...As I gradually woke from my stupor, the pain coursing through my body seemed to ease somewhat. Again and again, a gentle sensation touched my injured shoulder. Startled, I followed the feeling, slowly turning my head in confusion, and caught a glimpse of a pair of hands carefully wrapping bandages around my wounded shoulder.

It was an elegant, slender arm, with fingers as pale as scallion stalks, dancing across my skin as if playing a beautiful melody on a piano. In the soft light, this hand felt exactly like the one from my earlier dream. She made me feel comforted beyond words, and the touch brought back the blush-inducing, heart-thumping sensations from the dream.

Was it her laughter that saved me at the moment when I was about to fall to the Lord of Light? It must have been! This familiar, warm touch felt so much like hers.

Gratitude flooded my heart. I forced myself to lift my still-heavy head, determined to see clearly the "living Bodhisattva" who had saved my life.

As my vision cleared, I gradually made out the face of my benefactor. The first thing I saw... was a pair of bewitching eyes. Those eyes were mesmerizing—a gaze so deep and inexplicable that I knew I would never forget it.

Then I saw his face, and the sight sent a shiver through me...

This was a face rarely seen in the world, perhaps utterly unique!

His short hair framed eyes full of watery autumn light, flawless skin like a lotus rising from the water, and lips like crimson cherries brushed by rain.

A perfect fox spirit!

Despite a faint scar on his right forehead, it did nothing to diminish his beauty or charm. Words failed me to describe his breathtaking allure; if I must, "enchanting and otherworldly" would barely suffice.

But there was one thing I couldn't understand!

Why did this beautiful person have... two patches of moustache above his lips? And not just any moustache—a classic handlebar!

As the haze lifted completely, I stared at the moustache, utterly bewildered!

What was going on? He was an enchanting man, not a woman!

This sudden realization shocked me to the core, sending waves of horror and regret through my heart, mixed with genuine disgust.

No matter how beautiful, he was still a man! A man! A man!

If it really was him who saved me, tore my clothes, and kissed...

I dared not think further; any more, and I'd die of disgust myself.

Terrified and unsettled, jolted by his presence, I could hardly sit still. I sprang to my feet with a loud "thud," only to blush and sit right back down.

Because I realized I was naked.

Worse yet, as I stood, I saw that I was inside a wooden cabin, and everyone else was there too.

I was atop a wooden bed, bandaged Zhao Hong and Little Ah Si leaning against the wall, smiling at me. Across from me, Wang Hou lay stretched out on his bed, while the only woman, Xian Hongye, stood behind the androgynous figure, covering her eyes and motioning for me to hide myself!

Everyone was alive and well, which gave me a sense of safety, and made the "spirit" before me seem less frightening.

So, covering myself, I nervously asked the androgynous spirit, "Who are you? Why did you take off my clothes? Are you some kind of pervert?"

The spirit neither male nor female didn't answer, but instead smiled in an odd way—a smile that seemed to carry both praise and appreciation, yet made me thoroughly uncomfortable.

I gulped and shouted again, "Answer me! Spirit!"

Just then, Xian Hongye poked her head out from behind the spirit and scolded me, "Bu'er! How can you talk to your benefactor that way? He saved you. Show some gratitude!"

Little Ah Si chimed in, copying Hongye, "That's right, big brother! You should thank this gentleman!"

Gentleman? So he really is a man? Was it really him who saved me?

At that moment, something in my heart broke.

So I turned to Little Ah Si and said, "Ah Si! Do you have a rope? Or a belt?"

Ah Si scratched his head, "What for?"

I sighed deeply, "To kill myself!"

Suddenly, there seemed nothing left in this world worth holding on to.

Upon hearing me, Ah Si was dumbfounded, while the spirit burst into laughter, his voice bright and hearty, carrying the boldness unique to men, leaving me utterly stunned.

This spirit was more of a man than I had imagined.

After the laughter faded, the man looked at me calmly and said, in a steady voice, "The one who saved you was not me, but yourself..."

His words were remarkably steady, so steady they were almost devoid of emotion. I had never heard anyone speak like that; his tone was a calmness woven between the words, as if he were giving a report, as though he were entirely detached from the situation.

From the moment he first spoke, I sensed that this man was extraordinary. His inner world was as complex and contradictory as his appearance.

Having spoken, the man turned and left, proceeding to bandage the wounds of Ah Si and Zhao Hong.

His place beside me was soon taken by my close companion, Xian Hongye.

Hongye drew near, scolding me again, "So rude, how could you speak to Brother Nineteen that way? Don’t do that next time!"

Hongye siding with the outsider naturally irked me.

I glanced at the spirit's back, and, stung by Hongye's rebuke, retorted, "Not do that? Then what should I do? Offer myself in gratitude?"

Hongye suddenly blushed, lightly hitting me, "What nonsense are you talking?"

Her reaction surprised me, but it also reminded me of something...

Why were we in this cabin? What happened after Hongye and Wang Hou disappeared? Most importantly... why was Wang Hou unconscious?

A string of questions crowded my mind as I looked at Wang Hou, sleeping across from me, unsure where to begin.

Finally, I refocused and turned to Hongye, smiling slightly, "It's good you all are safe... Can you tell me where you went just now? Why did all of you vanish when the pickup's headlights went out?"

My words made Hongye's face twitch abruptly. She unconsciously stroked her elbow, her eyes filled with a lingering terror.

The motion of touching her elbow made my heart skip a beat! Instinctively, I reached out, pulled her arm from where she was shielding it, and looked.

The wound on the back of her elbow made my heart ache.

There were five thin, long claw marks, deep and not yet fully healed. Though I knew the injury wasn't fatal, it still unsettled me.

Hongye was strong. Despite such serious wounds, she didn't complain; instead, she smiled at me and comforted me, "Compared to your wounds, it’s minor. Neither is fatal, so there's nothing to worry about."

In silence, I paused for a moment.

Then I asked, "What happened exactly?"

Hongye sighed, seeming unable to shake off the terror from earlier. She stared blankly for a moment, then replied, "It was a cat!"

I cursed, "A cat again?"

Hongye nodded, and recounted what had happened to her and Wang Hou in the pickup...

At first, everything was normal.

Hongye and Wang Hou sat inside the pickup, but kept a close eye on me, Ah Si, and Zhao Hong at the "red table."

Then, without warning, everything changed.

A gray cat suddenly leapt onto the pickup’s hood! This cat was extraordinary, with bright eyes and fur dotted with glowing green spots, as if studded with peridot gems.

Most strikingly, the cat was smiling.

Hongye and Wang Hou were stunned; neither had seen such a dazzling cat, nor could they understand the constant glow emanating from its body.

At that moment, the pickup’s headlights suddenly went out, plunging us into instant darkness. In that vacuum of blackness, everyone—the cat on the pickup, the surrounding scenery—was swallowed by night.

Not even a second passed before the door behind Hongye suddenly opened, and a tremendous force from outside pulled her through the window.

The event was so sudden that Hongye’s mind was overwhelmed by the wild force; after a brief cry, she lost both consciousness and speech.

She only felt herself slung over someone’s shoulder, carried away at high speed...

Just like that, she was abducted from the car, so swiftly that it was faster than lightning.

When her senses returned, Hongye found herself lying beneath the "Stone Man" we had passed many times.

Under the moonlight, as she opened her eyes, she was terrified by what she saw.

Standing on the clearing beside the Stone Man were twenty or thirty cats of all breeds and colors, each with different eyes, but all with extremely bright gazes, glaring fiercely at Hongye.

"Their eyes were like hungry cats staring at fish!" Hongye shuddered as she spoke.

Surrounded, she was frightened to her core, and realized these cats were nothing like the gentle creatures she knew.

The cats under the Stone Man were all unusually large and aggressive, their every move radiating ferocity and a thirst for combat.

Faced with these violent beasts, Hongye was helpless. She had no idea why she had been abducted there, or what would happen next—what these animals intended for her.

Then, from the forest came the sound of footsteps; a shadow emerged from the trees.

Under the moonlight, Hongye saw with astonishment that it was a very tall man—and this man... had the face of a cat!