Chapter 38: Cat Cat God

Li Ao’s two feet were stepping on Isiris’s thighs, his two cat paws gesturing on the man’s chest. “Colorful.”

The soft pads of the cat paws touched the skin through the gossamer silk sleepwear, feeling somewhat soft yet strangely odd. Isiris had never been this intimate with anyone before. His gaze sharpened slightly, and as he lowered his eyes, he noticed that his clothes had come half-open, with the crystalline colorful spots peeking through. He assumed the little cat was referring to these as the colorful wool.

He never lied, yet he didn’t want the cub to encounter cruelty too soon. Just as he was about to pull his clothes together and change the subject, in that instant, an unbearable shudder rose from deep in his bones.

Twenty years ago, he had battled a newborn S-Rank Xenoid alone, slaying it with his sword at the cost of his left arm being bitten off.

At age ten, his father had fallen, insect swarms were stirring, and the little lion cubs were mewling for food. He could only grasp that lifesaving straw, implanting it into his body ahead of schedule.

With his young shoulders bearing the weight of the crown, he had bled profusely along the way, yet he had never felt pain like this.

Wherever the cat paws went, his limbs and bones ached as if they were being crushed to pieces. But soon, that pain turned into a tingling pleasure, rippling out like waves, stirring deep in his soul.

The agony roamed through his flesh and blood like a dull knife carving into the marrow, yet his soul trembled and indulged in the torment. Like an addict drinking poison to quench thirst, seizing twisted pleasure amid extreme suffering.

Isiris used all his strength to keep his shattered breaths from spilling from his throat. His light wheat-colored skin turned deathly pale. It took inhuman self-control to grab the mischievous kitten wreaking havoc on his chest in such a state.

Picked up by the scruff of its neck, the little cat’s eyes stretched wide. He lifted his little head, his two small paws still flailing wildly, purring throatily as if, to him, this was a fun relaxation game.

Of course it was! Such a premium cat-scratching board with the best texture! Q.Q so bouncy!

Cold sweat soaked his hair, sliding down Isiris’s smooth cheek. His taut throat suppressed his gasps as he watched the little cat’s paws extend and listened to the pleasurable purring. In the end, he slowly released his grip.

Freed from restraint, the little cat scratched even more vigorously. But this was hard to scratch—harder than Xun’s colorful threads, and he couldn’t even roll it into a yarn ball. Those colorful patterns were like ivy clamps dug into the flesh; if he didn’t grab them just right, they’d snap back into place.

“!” The stubborn little cat got mad, baring his teeth to bite one and kicking against the man’s leg to yank backward with all his might.

Excruciating pain gnawed at every nerve in Isiris’s body, his spine arching like a bowstring on the verge of snapping. His eyelashes trembled like broken butterfly wings, his golden pupils half-lidded yet refusing to lose focus. He was desperately trying to stay conscious.

Finally, Li Ao yanked off that entire swath of mottled patterns, and the inertia sent the little cat tumbling butt-first onto the bed.

The tidal wave of agony receded. Isiris suppressed his body’s slight tremors, bending one leg and propping his elbow on it. His golden hair was soaked with cold sweat, messily sticking to his pale neck. He tilted his head back, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he let out a satisfied sigh.

“Ah—” With Xun’s help, the little cat who had finally flipped over let out a frightened meow: “Li Ao has no teeth again!!!”

Isiris snapped back to awareness. A thin mist veiled his golden eyes, like melted honey. He picked up the cat and placed him on his lap, his finger gently lifting the little cat’s chin. Round two—the gap-toothed little mouth had sacrificed another front tooth in the tugging.

Isiris gathered the kitten into his arms, the little cat’s warm belly pressing against his abdomen. He couldn’t help but chuckle deeply.

How could he! Fierce Cat pouted in grievance, thinking he was mocking him. He raised his paw and scratched twice more in a huff—this time, truly scratching flesh.

“Hiss—”

This emperor, who hadn’t made a sound even when the mottling was ripped off raw, broke now. He stopped chuckling and lifted the kitten to eye level. Under the dim light, those habitually cold golden eyes were unbelievably tender.

Cloaked in glory, he had always looked down on the world. Yet at this moment, this king who never bowed lowered his body, his thin lips gently pressing against the little cat’s round head.

Golden hair draped down, brushing the little cat’s ear.

“Leo, you are the supreme treasure bestowed upon me by fate.”

The words weren’t in ancient tongue, so Fierce Cat didn’t understand. But Fierce Cat had been kissed… Fierce Cat felt shy and buried his head in the man’s chest.

The little monster blinked, then suddenly narrowed his eyes. His short tentacles poked at the man’s leg, mimicking the little cat’s mannerisms to perfection.

[Mine! I kiss!]

He wanted to snatch the cat back but got flicked on the forehead and pushed aside. Golden eyes met scarlet beast pupils. Isiris raised a finger to his lips—the meaning was clear.

“Alright, I’ll take you to get your teeth checked.” He placed the little cat in the crook of his arm.

Since his father king’s fall, this was the first time Isiris’s mood had been this good. The bedroom door opened, and before he could step out, he ran into Shen Que guarding outside.

“Your Majesty.” The purple-eyed man turned at the sound. Slightly taller than Isiris, he bowed with a slight lean, his gaze naturally falling on the man’s half-open silk robe and exposed chest.

In that instant, his breath hitched.

Dozens of fresh red scratches marred the light wheat-colored skin. The clueless cubs were oblivious, but it made the adult’s ears turn red.

Shen Que’s gaze panicked and darted away. He forced himself to look aside, hearing his heart pounding against his ribs. “Y-You’ve awakened…”

Isiris hummed in acknowledgment, making no move to cover his chest, letting it brazenly display as if he didn’t care—or couldn’t be bothered to fix it.

Shen Que’s fingertips clenched, nails digging into his palm as he desperately suppressed the turmoil in his heart. But then he realized something, and when he looked up again, the allure in his eyes had been replaced by pure delight. “Your crystallization is gone?!”

The colorful mottling that had climbed onto his chest was now nowhere to be seen.

“It’s receded somewhat, not completely gone.” Isiris replied calmly. “But it’s indeed much better.”

That alone was enough to fill Shen Que with ecstasy. He wanted to ask how, but realized the key before the words left his mouth.

“His Highness?”

“Naturally.” Besides the little cat, there would be no such miracle in the world.

Li Ao sprawled on Isiris’s forearm, rubbing his sleepy eyes as he asked Shen Que, “Was the tomato tasty?”

Shen Que suppressed his excitement, his clear, springwater-like voice gentle. “Extremely delicious. Thank you, Your Highness.”

“That’s what Li Ao planted himself!” Even sleepy, he proudly puffed out his chest, awaiting praise.

The amethyst eyes seemed to shimmer with tears. “It’s truly, truly amazing.” If he could alleviate Isiris’s pain, then from now on, he would offer his loyalty as well.

“Hehe…” Fierce Cat felt shy again. “Little dog Xun helped too, and the mantis monsters.”

Gappy-toothed but chatty—even half-asleep, the little mouth wouldn’t stop.

“That sounds wonderful. Shall I help you tomorrow too?” Shen Que cooed to the child, then glanced at the bouncing little black coal ball trailing behind. He squatted to pick him up. The two adults carried the two little ones into the examination room.

The little cat, whose spiritual power was exhausted again, fell fast asleep and was gently placed into the examination pod by Isiris.

Caleb and the chief medical officer hurried over with a group upon hearing the news. The advisor’s tense face softened instantly at the sight of the red marks on the monarch’s chest.

“Oh, Your Majesty, you naughty thing~” Caleb clasped his hands into fists affectedly, trying to burrow into Isiris’s arms.

Shen Que smiled without mirth as he yanked his collar. “Lord Advisor, please conduct yourself properly.”

The brown-haired advisor switched targets instantly, bending his leg to snuggle against Shen Que’s chest and thumping it with a big fist. “Captain of the Guard, you jerk~ It’s so unfair wearing that fake face~”

Shen Que’s brow twitched as he wanted to kick him away, but Caleb suddenly turned serious, straightening up to ask, “Your Majesty, has your crystallization truly receded?”

Isiris hummed. “The patterns seem alive. The little cat can grab them and peel them off the body.”

The brown-haired advisor looked at the little kitten in surrender pose on the medical platform, his tone uncharacteristically solemn. “Do you remember Bai Yunjun? A Doom Virus infectee slated for euthanasia who fully recovered after astral projection. Before Mandjet set sail, he contacted me, saying he was saved by His Highness.”

Caleb glanced at the black little coal ball nestling beside the little cat, paused, then continued. “Even that infected Zolax was pulled back from the brink of mutation by the little cat… What difference does it have from a god?”

Humans can’t see the laws but sense the universe operates by rules: all things counter and balance each other to endure eternally.

The Doom Virus prevents humans from longevity or eternal sanity;

Delphians granted hope and death by the Crystal of Delphi, with finite lives;

Bloodthirsty Xenoids, whose collective strength grows terrifying yet bound to The Abyss, unable to propagate…

Would the laws truly allow such a being to shatter the order it decreed?

Isiris’s slender fingers gently tugged the little cat’s whiskers twice. His words were calm, without ripple. “If there’s no difference, then treat him as such.”

His voice was like still deep water, blandly uttering words at odds with his aura. “He is Delphi’s Cat Cat God.”

“……” For a moment, the eloquent and quick-witted strategist couldn’t find a single word to retort.

The medical soldier chief ignored them entirely. As a doctor, he only cared about his patient’s health. After checking the little cat, he applied some ointment to his mouth that promoted tooth growth. The little old man said, “His Highness’s slumber this time is due to normal mental energy depletion. A good sleep will restore him fully.”

Isiris asked, “He pulled out the pattern on my chest for me. Will it affect his body?”

The medical soldier chief replied, “This kind of depletion will only make him sleep more and eat more—nothing harmful at all. In fact, it’s a good thing.” He draped a small towel over the little cat’s belly. “With the bloodline seal in place, even excessive ability use won’t damage his foundation. This cycle of gradual release and replenishment will only make his mental energy more stable.”

“Oh, right—one more thing. Cut back on the sugar from now on. This little guy already has a cavity.”

“What?!” Brenna, who had just taken the tomato bucket from Shen Que’s hands and made a huge pot of tomato-filled chocolate hearts, felt the sky collapse on her.

Isiris recalled how the little cat had twisted its little head into knots just to sneak a single candy, and he let out a soft chuckle.

In that instant, everyone in the room turned to look at him with faint surprise.

The golden-haired emperor remained calm, about to lift the kitten out of the examination pod, when the researcher who had been surveying the planet’s terrain burst in energetically.

“Who all ate the little cat’s tomatoes?”

There weren’t many tomatoes in that bucket—just enough for the few usual people around the little cat to each get one. The rest had been turned into chocolate by Brenna: half saved for the little cat, the other half distributed to the soldiers.

“Me, Caleb, Your Majesty, the medical soldier chief, and Brenna,” Shen Que answered him.

The researcher’s old face turned serious. “Don’t any of you feel something off with your bodies?”

Something off? Brenna felt great. She’d danced a full set of sword forms after lunch and could even flourish them with flair.

“……” It did seem a bit off. Too light and easy.

Delphi people not on the front lines didn’t have severe crystallization—usually just up to the calves for most, and even less for desk-job researchers, barely the ankles. But it wasn’t painless; they were just used to it.

Yet now, it genuinely felt much lighter.

The medical soldier chief rolled up his sleeve and saw the pattern had faded. The change was so subtle it was imperceptible without a microscope. But the Crystal of Delphi granted him ultra-precise vision, so he knew the shift in his body.

“It was that tomato?”

Everyone who ate one felt the same, exchanging glances in amazement. “How could this be…”

Just one tomato easing them through a whole day—if they ate one every day, wouldn’t it be like medicine?

“This isn’t from the tomatoes,” the medical soldier chief said, gazing fondly at the oblivious little cat. “It’s His Highness’s mental energy.”

Those seeds had taken root and sprouted through the little cat’s paws, drawing from the lake water to bloom and bear fruit. Nurtured by Li Ao’s mental energy, they were no longer ordinary vegetables.

“As His Majesty said, it’s the great Cat Cat God.”

Cat Cat God Li Ao was disturbed by the foolish mortals’ noise. He smacked his lips, reaching with his little paws to cover his ears. But he couldn’t reach, so he cracked open one eye, spotted his target little dog, and buried his head into Xun’s dark-as-night fur—

The pitch-black cosmic void slowly came into view. Li Ao sprawled by the porthole, gazing at the endless darkness. His gaze shifted to a massive, bright orb.

The visual shock instinctively frightened the little cat, but it didn’t last. He adapted quickly.

“Machine.” The little cat looked up. “Why is it so black over there?” He knew the glowing one was Aiai’ang’ang, but beside it was total darkness. “Where’d the two suns go?”

He was asking why the suns visible from the planet couldn’t be seen in space.

There were many reasons—no atmospheric scattering, light redshift, and so on—but no matter how Silver Wing explained, the little cat’s cultural programming couldn’t grasp it. So the robot said, “Because it’s too far away, you can’t see it.”

“Oh.” Li Ao looked back out the window, mumbling to himself, “I wonder if Earth is the same, that’s why you can’t see it.”

Longing was a prolonged, damp rainy season—even a glimpse of sunlight couldn’t dry the mud.

Isiris walked to the little cat’s side, placing his palm over the kitten’s downcast head. He wasn’t good with words of comfort; he just hid his pity in his eyes.

The little one really was an optimistic, resilient cub. In no time, he perked up, pointing out the window and asking this and that.

Isiris ruffled his fur and turned to oversee the planet migration.

“Any leads on Earth’s star system coordinates?” Isiris asked a scholar.

“Not yet,” the scholar replied. “Delphi’s star system records are quite outdated. Once we return to Delphi, I’ll head to the Interstellar Federation. They have the galaxy’s largest star system archive—maybe we’ll find a clue there.”

“Good. I’ll assign you a few more subordinates. Go together.” The emperor didn’t comfort with words; he took action.

“Aiai’ang’ang—!” Li Ao suddenly cried out. “It’s turning gray!”

Five ring-shaped devices enveloped the grayish-white Aiai’ang’ang. It was so massive that, from their current distance, Li Ao couldn’t make out its shape at all.

He just knew that the planet was really following the warship, setting sail with them.

“Mantis Monster…” The little cat remembered his companions still on the planet.

“After the next stellar energy resupply, I’ll take you to see them,” Isiris said, returning to the cub’s side.

“Tomatoes still need watering tax,” the little cat said seriously. “No tax and they’ll rot.”

“…” Even his blood-related father needed time to decipher what this gap-toothed little one meant.

A passing finance officer burst out laughing. “His Highness is right! Everyone has to pay taxes!” The empire’s future sun had such high economic awareness—it had the finance staff rubbing their hands in delight like flies. And those tomatoes His Highness grew—if they ever had a bumper crop and the locals couldn’t eat them all, sell them to the Federation’s fools for ten thousand each. Pure profit!

The little cat’s eyes went blank. He didn’t get why people watered things. Were they taking baths or something?

No need to ask—Isiris could read it on his face. Cubs without guile were just too easy to understand. This look was overly adorable. Isiris’s lips curved faintly as he tapped the kitten’s damp little nose, then thought of something upon withdrawing his hand.

Back in the comms room, he dialed the finance minister on Delphi.

“Your Majesty!! You’re actually calling me proactively?”

“Derek, set up a private account for me.”

“Huh?” The orange-haired finance minister was stunned. “What do you need a private account for?”

It was like seeing a ghost. Since Isiris was born, he’d never needed money for anything. His daily life was handled by specialists via the national treasury; he had almost no desire to spend. Why a private account now?

“Do I need to report my reasons to you?” A flicker of displeasure crossed Isiris’s brow. “Handle it quickly.”

“Fine, fine.” Derek hammed it up, then grinned. “The streets are full of people celebrating Little Highness Cat’s return.”

Isiris’s expression softened. “Are all the little cat’s things prepared?”

“Yes, everything as you specified. Everyone’s asking what color Little Highness Cat likes.”

Favorite color? Did colors need special liking? The ever-indifferent monarch pondered, then went back to the little cat. “What color do you like?”

The little cat didn’t know either.

He tilted his head up, remembering grandma’s little flower headscarf. “Green, white… uh, pink.” He glanced at the little monster’s red eyes beside him. “Red.” And Machine’s. “Silver.”

His round cat pupils turned to the man’s golden hair, shyly shifting his feet. “Gold.”

His affections were straightforward and unmasked. Isiris looked into his blue eyes and suddenly thought blue was nice too.

“Good, got it.”

Li Ao was pretty familiar with Mandjet by now. In the first few hours after launch, he’d excitedly peered out the window, tugging the little dog to dart here and there, instinctively marking his territory on the warship.

But seven or eight hours later, the kitten was a mess—eyes glazed, brain foggy, starting to get spacesick.

His fur was all fluffed out in disarray, looking as haggard as a mango pit sucked dry beyond salvation.

“Xi, you can lean on Mimi’s broad chest… Machine, don’t spank cat butt… Xun is good doggie…”

“Aiai’ang’ang… I’ll take you wandering oh, tomatoes, don’t water too much or they’ll rot…”

The poor little guy was delirious, starting to babble nonsense.

In all his past lives, Isiris had never found anything so amusing. His lips curved unconsciously.

…What an extraordinary little guy.