Lin Shijin’s shout got him squeezed to the edge of the cage by the other rats. His tiny paws clutched the bars as he looked over; among the dusty-grey heap of rats he was not particularly noticeable, though there were some more unusual varieties.
Sheng Rufei stopped in front of the cage. Lin Shijin called out twice, but failed to draw his attention, and grew a little anxious.
Old Six smacked him on the head with a paw. “What are you squeaking for? Don’t draw their attention, or we might not be able to get back later.”
Lin Shijin glared at Sheng Rufei. If that blockhead failed to recognise him…
He probably wouldn’t.
Sheng Rufei looked at the cluster of rats in the cage, examining them one by one. His gaze settled on a snow-white rat and paused briefly.
It was the best-looking rat in the cage.
Lin Shijin noticed Sheng Rufei’s gaze, looked towards the white rat not far away, and felt like coughing up blood. His fur bristled in anger.
This blockhead!!!
Who identifies someone just by fur colour? Who says that just because his human skin was fair he would turn into a white rat?
Idiot!!
Lin Shijin was extremely displeased, his fur puffing up all over, startling Old Six. Old Six followed his line of sight and spotted the little white rat among the group.
Old Six said, “White rats are indeed popular. The King has always wanted to take a white rat as a wife, and humans also like to catch white rats to keep.”
Sheng Rufei had originally been looking at the white rat, only pausing briefly, when a familiar lively youthful voice suddenly sounded by his ear, tinged with irritation.
“Sheng Rufei, you really are a blockhead!!”
He looked over and saw, in the corner of the cage, a grey-and-white chubby hamster clutching the bars. The hamster was fatter than the others, round like a ball. It glared with a pair of dark eyes, squeezed by the surrounding rats, its little paws tucked in pitifully, looking clumsy and aggrieved.
The chubby hamster had white fur on its limbs and belly, its small plump paws gripping the cage as it squeaked.
“You idiot blockhead, if you don’t recognise me, I’ll never speak to you again.”
“That so-called Rat King is still waiting for me to be his seventeenth wife. I’ll never speak to you again, you blockhead!!”
Sheng Rufei: “……”
Lin Shijin was still squeaking indignantly when, in the next moment, the cage door opened. The other rats surged inward, forcing him back as well. His little paw was crushed painfully.
A long, pale hand reached in. He met the youth’s cold, striking gaze. Amidst the surrounding squeaking, he was lifted into the youth’s palm.
The nearby scourge-slayers were all stunned, watching Sheng Rufei closely, yet none dared to ask anything.
“Squeak squeak squeak—”
Old Six cried, “Seventeen!!!”
Lin Shijin squeaked twice at Old Six, telling him not to worry. Still somewhat annoyed, he curled up in Sheng Rufei’s palm and turned his back on him.
His ears stood upright as his head was poked. Sheng Rufei stroked his fur, holding him in his palm, gently rubbing his little chubby paw and casting a healing spell on it.
“My lord…”
A scourge-slayer stepped forward to ask something. Glancing at the remaining rats, Lin Shijin immediately spoke, “Let them go. The curse in the city does not originate from rat plague. The source is an evil curse.”
Besides, this was an illusion array anyway. The rats here were all constructs of the formation. Not harming them would not affect their ability to break out.
Sheng Rufei gave a soft “Mm” and instructed, “Release the rest. Do not harm them. Also, investigate the recent source of the plague and find a way to bring back the infected corpses.”
The scourge-slayer replied, “Yes.” The remaining rats were released. Lin Shijin noticed Old Six still lingering and squeaked again, urging him not to worry and to hurry back.
Before he could squeak much more, his head was pressed down. The youth’s fingers rubbed him, turning him back around.
“You’ve made a new friend already?”
Sheng Rufei’s voice was cool as he looked down at him, first poking his head, then rubbing his belly.
Being rubbed on the belly felt comfortable by instinct. Lin Shijin hugged Sheng Rufei’s finger with his chubby paws and squeaked twice. He had not yet settled the earlier matter.
“None of your business.”
Lin Shijin hugged his finger and gave it a light bite, not enough to hurt, his tone still tinged with displeasure.
“If I hadn’t called you just now, you would have mistaken me.”
Then he would have gone back with Old Six, returning to the rat nest, with no idea when they might meet again.
Sheng Rufei’s fingertip felt warmth. The hamster in his palm had curled into a ball, softly hugging his finger, chirping crisply.
He poked it. The plump ball did not move, soft and yielding to the touch. Its ears twitched slightly in displeasure.
Sheng Rufei said, “Mm.”
“What do you mean ‘mm’?” Lin Shijin regretted that he was not in human form. His arms were too short to reach Sheng Rufei’s ears, otherwise he would certainly have tugged them.
Sheng Rufei poked him again and asked, “When will you change back?”
“How would I know? I don’t even know why I changed,” Lin Shijin said, sitting up. Still holding Sheng Rufei’s finger, he grew restless, looking around, then climbed up Sheng Rufei’s arm onto his shoulder.
He grabbed a handful of Sheng Rufei’s silver hair with one paw and clutched his clothing with the other to keep from falling, perching on his shoulder.
“Have you found anything?”
“Yes. The plague in the city appears to be caused by rat plague, but is actually due to an evil curse.”
Lin Shijin had already noticed this. The corpses he had seen in the rice fields all bore black runic markings, clearly signs of a curse.
“What about the rest?”
Lin Shijin swung slightly by two strands of Sheng Rufei’s hair. After playing for a while, noticing the many scourge-slayers outside and feeling shy, he burrowed back into Sheng Rufei’s clothes, gripping the edge lightly with his paws, only his head peeking out.
Sheng Rufei said nothing further, meaning the rest was still uncertain. Lin Shijin did not press, and followed him back into the city.
“This is one of the main cities of the Three Thousand Worlds, Xiqi City.”
Lin Shijin lay in the carriage watching for a while. In his small form, he perched on the window edge, the wind blowing his whiskers wildly.
He nearly got blown away, but Sheng Rufei caught him and brought him back. Resting in Sheng Rufei’s palm, he still had not had enough of looking.
There were snacks in the carriage. He noticed nuts, dried fruits, and grains, all things hamsters liked.
His attention was immediately drawn. He picked up some nuts and gnawed on them, then carried two back to Sheng Rufei’s palm, curling up there to eat.
Meeting Sheng Rufei’s gaze, which had been fixed on him, he lifted his little feet and glanced at him. “What if I can’t turn back?”
Before he finished speaking, Sheng Rufei poked his belly again. He was eating and felt annoyed, turning around to avoid the poking.
After a while, Sheng Rufei said, “Even like this, I like you.”
Lin Shijin’s ears twitched. His head was poked again. He let out an “Oh”, feeling a sweet warmth inside, though he could hardly hug and kiss that blockhead in this form.
His anger faded. After finishing his food, he fell asleep holding Sheng Rufei’s fingertip.
The little plump ball began to snore softly. Sheng Rufei’s fingertip felt warm. The small ball nestled in his palm, a tiny bundle, its two chubby paws clutching his finger, its mouth occasionally brushing his skin.
He had never felt anything towards such small creatures before, yet now it felt as though a feather brushed his heart, and his finger moved to poke the plump ball again.
It swatted his hand away with a paw.
In every city, scourge-slayers had their own residence. When Lin Shijin next opened his eyes, he was in Sheng Rufei’s arms. Sheng Rufei had just returned to the residence, and he looked around from within his robes.
The residence was solemn. Lin Shijin asked softly, “Shixiong, what dangers will we encounter in this city?”
“If one is infected by the evil curse, one dies.”
Sheng Rufei said only this. Lin Shijin immediately understood: they had to leave within a certain time.
If his guess was correct…
“Shixiong, is this also a dead city?”
A dead city, like Yixiu City he had experienced before, or the destroyed city in the Jinyue Temple illusion, was already gone. No matter what they did, they could not change its fate.
These were cities that had perished with time itself. What had already happened could not be altered.
After the previous two experiences, Lin Shijin understood this. In such cities, they were merely grains of sand, destined to be swept away.
It seemed each illusion had to be lived through once.
Sheng Rufei gave a quiet “Mm.” “This is the Rat Aspect Hell. To leave, it will likely be tied to the rat aspect.”
“Oh,” Lin Shijin said, nestling against Sheng Rufei’s chest. It was warm. He watched Sheng Rufei’s expressionless face as passing scourge-slayers cast glances at him.
As though they had seen something particularly strange.
Naturally so. He could imagine how it looked, a rat tucked inside Sheng Rufei’s robes. It must look utterly out of place. If it were not him, he too would be surprised.
He followed Sheng Rufei through the corridors, not needing to walk, simply curling into a small ball in his arms.
After returning to the room, he jumped down from Sheng Rufei and saw a small blanket prepared for him on the couch. On the nearby table were stacks of books piled high.
After returning, Sheng Rufei began reading. Lin Shijin sat by the couch holding a nut, and before long wandered over to join him.
The books had been delivered by others. He noticed they seemed related to the evil curse, and as he touched Sheng Rufei’s fingers, he glanced at them.
Those infected initially show no difference from normal people. The earliest symptom is abnormal wounds that are difficult to heal, and then—
Before he could finish reading, his head was pressed down. Sheng Rufei flipped the page, rubbed his head, and took away the nut in his paw.
His attention was immediately diverted. His nut was gone, and he was displeased. “What are you doing?”
Sheng Rufei set the nut aside and poked his belly. “You are not to eat too much.”
“I didn’t eat much.”
Lin Shijin had only eaten a few nuts. He reached for more, but Sheng Rufei’s finger was still pressing his belly. He pushed the finger away, and then his tail was touched.
He sprang up at once, retreating a few steps, covering his tail as his fur bristled, about to squeak when a flash of white light appeared before his eyes.
His viewpoint suddenly rose. Instinctively leaning forward, he ended up sitting on Sheng Rufei’s lap.
Crumbs still clung to his lips. No sooner had Lin Shijin sat down than the youth before him instinctively wrapped an arm around his waist.
