Chapter 93: This Is What You Get for Cosplaying!!

Hotel.

Baji was dozing off to the sound of running water from the bathroom.

Suddenly, a thick, resentful aura filled the air—it was demon energy, and it was getting closer.

[A demon’s coming?]

Baji leaped onto the table and peered out the window. Sure enough, the bushes below rustled violently, as if some wild beast was charging through. The shaking stopped near the drainage pipe.

The next second, a massive black rat, about the size of a calf, shot out like an arrow and scaled the hotel’s exterior wall in just a few leaps, reaching the second floor.

[Heh, it really is coming straight here.]

Baji let out a cold laugh.

The human must have left some blood traces near Boss’ room. The rat demon must have tracked it here.

[Too bad it never should’ve come. Coming here is a death sentence!]

[Forget that Boss is already at the Void Fragmentation Stage—just the talismans on the door and windows alone will turn it into mincemeat! Kehehe~]

Baji felt no sympathy for a demon dying in front of it.

It belonged to the demon kind but wasn’t truly one of them.

In ancient times, humans lumped it together with ordinary demons, but it was something far beyond that—a true-born fiend, a being that transcended demons entirely!

In fact, in some ways, it was a natural predator of demons.

After all, compared to puny humans who could barely fill a gap between its teeth, demon kings—those towering beings spanning dozens or even hundreds of meters—were far more appetizing.

[Tch, but with Boss here, I can’t reveal my identity. Otherwise, that rat demon would’ve been a nice little snack for my recent cravings…]

Baji licked the corner of its mouth, its eyes flashing red for a brief moment.

Then, the bathroom door creaked open.

It quickly suppressed its hunger.

"Meow~"

"Oh, Baji, almost forgot about you."

Chen Huai’an stepped out of the bathroom, fully dressed, and smiled when he saw Baji.

Even though Baji had an almost nonexistent presence, after taking care of it for a few days, he had grown fond of the little guy.

Besides, Baji was incredibly well-behaved. Unlike other cats that caused chaos by parkouring all over the place, Baji barely made a sound.

And those eyes—it always looked so melancholic, like it had the worst luck in the world.

Just looking at it somehow put him in a good mood.

Baji: "?"

Damn it! It had been so focused on the rat demon that it forgot to find a hiding spot!

Chen Huai’an grabbed a shoebox and held it up against Baji for size comparison. Realizing it was too cramped, he swapped it for a storage container instead. Then, without giving Baji a chance to react, he lifted it and gently placed it inside. ꭆΆＮ??ΕS

"Sorry, Baji, you’ll have to bear with this for now. Once we’re past this, I’ll buy you a proper cat carrier," Chen Huai’an said apologetically as he closed the lid.

Baji sat inside, feeling utterly cold inside.

But it quickly calmed itself down.

[No big deal. This is actually an opportunity.]

This storage container wasn’t easy to carry around, so Boss would probably just hold it directly.

Which meant…

As soon as Boss left the room, Baji could jump out and escape!

[The world will be mine again! Kehehe! The sky’s the limit! The ocean’s my playground!]

Just as this wonderful thought formed—

The lid opened again.

A massive green carp was tossed inside.

Baji: "???"

The green carp: "……"

The lid slammed shut again.

Chen Huai’an’s voice drifted from outside. "Ugh, this fish is a hassle to carry around. Might as well leave it in the box for Baji to eat."

Baji and the green carp locked eyes.

The carp flapped twice, looking at Baji with big, teary fish eyes, filled with desperate pleading.

[…Forget it. I’m escaping soon anyway, might as well let this one go.]

Baji forcibly suppressed its hunger and convinced itself:

[A cat of my size shouldn’t be able to eat such a big fish anyway. Just hold back a little longer…]

Just a bit more, and freedom would be within reach!

The next second—

Chen Huai’an spoke again:

"I’ll take the talismans off the door and windows too. Those cost me 200,000 yuan. Damn, what a scam."

SLAP!

A hand pressed down on the storage container.

Baji’s heart nearly jumped out of its chest. Trembling, it slowly looked up.

Through the thin lid, it could just barely make out two rectangular paper strips being pressed onto the top of the container.

They were talismans—fresh ones, just taken off the door and window!

And Boss had casually slapped them onto the storage box!

[Ha… I was far too naive.]

Baji stared at the lid at a 45-degree angle, eyes welling up with tears.

[This is Boss we’re talking about! How could he not see through my little scheme?]

[Even if he didn’t notice, that blinding fortune of his would still suppress me!]

[There’s no escape. Absolutely no escape…]

Meanwhile, Chen Huai’an remained completely unaware that his casual actions had just sent Baji into a state of existential crisis.

He had finished packing—clothes and that potted plant went into the suitcase, while the storage box (now tightly taped) was secured on top.

As for himself, he wore an old, faded tracksuit.

It was a bit old-fashioned, but he was used to it.

Not that it stopped random girls from asking for his Green Bubble contact whenever he stepped outside.

However—

Just as he opened the door—

A scream rang out from nearby.

"AHH! MONSTER! MONSTER!!"

It was the cleaning lady’s voice.

Turning his head, Chen Huai’an saw the woman had collapsed on the floor, curling up against the wall, trembling in fear.

In the hallway, with its plush red carpet—

A massive black-furred rat was steadily approaching.

Its coarse black fur scraped against the wall, making a sharp creaking noise, proving just how tough its body was.

It didn’t even glance at the terrified cleaning lady.

Its blood-red eyes were locked solely on the figure standing at the end of the hallway—

Chen Huai’an.

One step.

Two steps.

Moving like creeping claws.

Like the devil’s approach.

"A mutant rat?"

Chen Huai’an stared at the monstrous rodent. Strangely, he felt no fear.

His mind subconsciously compared it to Daoist Qingxuan and found this rat was nothing.

It wasn’t even as threatening as the mutant wolf he had encountered at Tianmen Mountain.

But logically—

He figured he should grab something for self-defense.

Too late to think.

The black-furred rat suddenly lunged!

"SCREEEE—!!"

It zigzagged wildly, screeching,

A black whirlwind tearing through the hallway at terrifying speed.

Too fast!

Chen Huai’an had no time to dodge.

On instinct, he raised both hands to shield his face, his mind going completely blank.

But—

The rat never struck.

Hearing no impact, Chen Huai’an slowly lowered his hands.

The massive black rat had come to a dead stop—two meters away.

Even though they were different species, he could clearly see the sheer terror in the rat’s trembling eyes and shaking body.

"It’s afraid of me?"

Chen Huai’an steadied himself, confirming his judgment.

Underneath the rat, a puddle of yellow liquid was quickly spreading.

It pissed itself.

He took a few steps forward.

Even when he stood right in front of the black-furred rat—it didn’t dare to move.

"Seriously? You’re scared of me? That’s it? Kehehe~"

Chen Huai’an swelled with confidence, standing with his hands on his hips in front of the trembling rat.

Completely oblivious to the fact that the rat’s horrified gaze was actually fixed on the toppled storage box behind him.

"So this is the fear caused by a difference in life force level?"

"Wow, this is the biggest rat I’ve ever seen."

He circled around the rat, observing it like some kind of rare specimen.

It stood frozen—just like those stiff zombies in dramas with talismans stuck on their foreheads.

A mischievous idea struck him.

Pulling a Thunderfire Talisman from his pocket, he pressed it to the rat’s forehead.

"Kehehehe~"

"Today, I shall make you cosplay as a zombie rat!"

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