He was like a god surrounded by worshippers,
with thousands of gazes gathered upon him.
Yet the little cat merely twitched his ears.
He didn’t understand the turmoil in people’s hearts,
and only saw the tears glistening in their eyes.
“Here?” Li Ao extended his paw, pointing at the man’s still-bleeding wrist from afar. His airplane ears perked up seriously as he said, “You need to see a doctor quick…”
He just thought the other was crying from the pain of the wound, like an injured child who needed comfort and bandaging. Little did he know that upon hearing his words, the young man’s breathing hitched slightly, and his tears fell even faster.
“Th-thank you for your concern, Your Highness. We’ll head to the hospital right away.”
In the past, during his time in the military, he had encountered Delphi people before.
In fact, every year, Delphi sent thousands of legions to support the human frontlines. They were taciturn, one against a hundred. No entertainment, no leisure—every figure you saw was locked in slaughter.
Cold weapon enthusiasts, non-human physical qualities, powerful Spiritual Power, freaks, xenoids among humans—these were the labels slapped on Delphi people. As a race, they weren’t afflicted by the Doom Virus pollution, nor the suffering other races endured. How could they not be envied and hated?
Delphi people couldn’t be bothered to explain. Though immune to the Doom Virus, they endured the agony of crystallization day and night. The Doom disease lay dormant in humans without distinction, but once the Crystal of Delphi was implanted in the body, that crystallization pain would accompany Delphi people for life.
It was a path they chose themselves; they disdained explanations. And so they were misunderstood and prejudiced against by ordinary people for millennia, centuries on end.
But now, Delphi had a cat. He was lively, brave, unlike his silent subjects. He was so generous it brought tears to eyes. Just by standing there, he let everyone know what kind of nation Delphi truly was.
“Lio.” The voice was like wind and snow atop a high peak—deep, cold, instinctively making people hold their breath and bow their heads, not daring to look up. But the moment the little cat heard it, his ears shot straight up.
“Daddy—” Li Ao blurted out, twisting around and running toward the man. His big tail swished back and forth across the ground before he straightened up and pawed at the man’s leg. “Li Ao has one dollar!”
One paw on Isiris’s boot, the other holding up a dollar bill, his bright eyes full of seriousness. His little mouth bared fangs that weren’t fully grown yet, the bottom incisors only the size of rice grains. “Buy for Xixi…”
Buy what? The little cat was stumped. Grandma liked flowers—what did Xixi like?
“Buy flowers…?” He said it hesitantly, his ears drooping slightly, as if unsure if his choice was right.
Isiris didn’t refute. His straight legs didn’t bend a bit, only stooping slightly to pick up the cat. “Alright.”
“!!” Daddy said alright!
The little cat was instantly energized. His blue eyes spun, and his whole body perked up!
“Buy for Xixi!”
His tail wagged happily, little paw still holding the dollar, excitedly flailing in Isiris’s arms.
“I have lots of one-dollar bills! Buy for Grandma! Buy for the puppy too! Buy for Machine!”
Chattering on and on, faster and faster, completely unable to stop.
Isiris listened quietly, replying only in the pauses: “Alright.”
Only when their group had walked far away did the people in the square finally lift their heads, watching their figures vanish at the distant street corner.
Someone hesitantly spoke, feeling as if some cognition had been upended.
“His Majesty Isiris… is just a doting dad too?”
He sneaked a glance. When facing the cub, that powerful, aloof man showed not a trace of impatience in his brows and eyes.
“Why are there rumors about him being brutal and cold-hearted?”
Another replied softly, “Yeah, his aura is intimidating, but not like what they say online…”
Li Ao had no idea what the Delphi Monarch’s reputation was like in the eyes of the world. The little cat was buying flowers.
“What would you… like?” The flower shop owner was a local girl from Star 92, with healthy wheat-colored skin. But upon seeing Isiris, she blushed bright red.
No matter how powerful a man’s aura, his appearance was genuinely handsome enough to leave humans speechless.
Li Ao’s tail perked up as he wandered here and there, pointing at a colorful vibrant flower. “Boss, I want this one!”
The owner snapped back, crouching down to the cat. “Sure thing, let me wrap it up for you.”
“No wrapping.” The little cat beckoned her with a paw. His cuteness made the owner completely forget any man, wishing she could lie on the ground and offer her ear to the little cat’s mouth.
“…” One cat and one person seemingly whispering, but how could their conversation escape this group of superhuman Spiritual Power users?
“Your Majesty…” Shen Que pressed his fist to his mouth, amusement barely hidden in his eyes. “How about you step out first?”
Isiris gave him a faint sidelong glance but didn’t move. Outside the shop, the waiting robot dumped the little monster on the ground and turned to leave.
“Silver Wing.” The Empire’s Vice Captain of the Guard, Brenna, smiled sweetly as she blocked the mech’s path. “You can’t leave just yet.”
Xun had already bounced inside, not even glancing at Isiris before rubbing up to the little cat’s side.
“Xun.” Li Ao hugged him. “Perfect timing.”
The little cat took the trimmed red rose from the owner and pinned it on the little monster’s head. “Looks so pretty!”
A pitch-black furball with a big red flower on its head—how could that look pretty? Shen Que was somewhat concerned about the little Highness’s taste.
But Xun clearly thought he looked stunning. His big eyes blinked innocently and weakly as he nuzzled the cat’s chest: “Li Ao.”
“Alright! I’ll buy you one every day from now on!” The cat chest puffed reliably. He took another purple flower and offered it to the Empire’s Captain of the Guard. “Queque, this one’s for you!”
He beckoned with a paw, signaling the other to crouch. His short legs tireless, he climbed along the knee to the shoulder and tucked the flower behind the ear.
“Pretty!” The little cat declared confidently. “Matches Queque’s eyes perfectly!”
Without exception, all the guards following the little cat received their own flowers.
The mech’s face was stiff, a flower stuck in its “ear,” its foot panels covered in the short-legged cat’s usual colorful stickers.
As for Isiris, Shen Que had tied his hair into a neat ponytail, topped with a vividly colored flower pinned prominently.
His features were handsomely masculine without a hint of femininity, yet the flower didn’t clash. Against his golden hair and golden eyes, it was gorgeously dazzling.
“Want to buy more?” The golden-haired Monarch lowered his gaze to ask the still-busy little cat.
“One more!” Li Ao picked a bunch of white lilies. “This for little Xixi.” A bit worried, he hugged the flowers and looked up at the owner. “Will it wilt?”
He had experience—flowers for Grandma lasted at most ten fingers’ worth of days.
“It won’t!” The owner was utterly enchanted by this bipedal flower-holding kitten. “I’ll use the best preservative for you. This’ll last a full month!”
Li Ao spent several one-dollar bills at the flower shop, his shopping spree undiminished. He tugged at someone’s pant leg to head out and buy more.
“Wait.” Isiris scooped him up, placing him on the counter. His golden pupils drooped slightly. “What about for yourself?”
Li Ao froze, still clutching the bunch for Ryan, looking up blankly.
…For himself?
A slender finger gently tapped the little cat’s wet nose. “Gifts—don’t forget to give one to yourself.”
Li Ao had never bought himself a gift before. The little cat’s mind turned slowly, blue eyes filled with hesitation and confusion. Before he could react, Isiris looked away—the first time he’d spoken to an outsider since entering. “Get a bunch of lily-of-the-valley.”
The owner jolted instinctively. “R-right away!”
She didn’t even know why she bowed, her body faster than her brain. She hurriedly turned, swiftly prepared what the man wanted, and presented it with both hands.
Isiris took the lily-of-the-valley.
The tiny white flowers swayed lightly in his palm, the slender stems accentuating his long knuckles. His aura was so cold, yet it was softened by a wondrous gentleness.
A lily-of-the-valley flower crown was quickly woven. Isiris placed it on the little cat’s head and adjusted it. “Let’s go.”
Li Ao dazedly reached up to touch it, then suddenly grinned wide and pounced into the man’s arms.
“Like it?” Isiris held him securely with one hand, lifting the curtain with the other as he led the way out. “Remember—to love yourself well.”
This little cat was brave, fearless, selfless, and generous—noble qualities. But Isiris hoped his child would put himself first.
“In the universe, nothing is more important than yourself.”
Others’ lives, others’ faiths—they were all external. Isiris absolutely wouldn’t let the little cat be swayed by such things.
“Lord Fitt, this cat’s power is too terrifying! In just a dozen minutes, its prestige has even surpassed Zane Regalis from ten years ago!”
No bureaucrat in the Federation wanted to see this scene.
In the interstellar realm, so-called Federation rule was more fragile than any regime.
What seemed like a massive system was actually pieced together from countless complex factions and interest groups. It wasn’t sustained by bloodlines or absolute faith like Delphi; its existence was built upon a shared threat.
The Xenoid was their enemy, and also the excuse they used to maintain their rule.
As long as the threat of Xenoids existed, the Federation could tightly bind together various star systems and races, prioritizing “survival” above all else and suppressing all internal divisions.
But this balance was fragile. Once a figure capable of changing the rules appeared, the foundation of the Federation’s rule would shake.
What they feared wasn’t war, but the day when this world no longer needed the “Federation’s” protection.
That was why this little cat who could tame Xenoids made the Federation so uneasy.
What he shook wasn’t just the opposition between Xenoids and humans, but the very foundation of the Federation’s rule.
If humans no longer feared Xenoids and no longer needed the Federation’s protection, then what would hold together this massive yet fragile conglomerate?
What they feared wasn’t the cat itself, but the possibility he represented—a future that could upend the Federation’s current order.
“That cat—he can not only tame Xenoids, but also cure the Doom Virus. We must, we must do something quickly!”
“What to do?” Fitt chuckled lightly. “We don’t need to do anything.”
The elegant figure stood up and looked at the award ceremony winners projected on the screen. “Human nature is inherently evil. He can save one person, or a hundred people. But with so many higher lifeforms in the interstellar expanse, how could he save everyone?”
“A little help brings gratitude; too much breeds resentment. We just need to let one slip through, and he’ll be doomed forever.”
“A villain becomes a Buddha by simply laying down the butcher’s knife, but a good person… can never become a Buddha.”
“Cat Cat God.” Isiris pinched Li Ao’s little feet. “Do you want anything else?”
The little cat, wearing his lily-of-the-valley hat, lifted his round face and made his first request to his dad. “I want a collar.” He fiddled with the one around his neck—the kind that could change outfits. “The little dog doesn’t have one yet! Susu said he’d buy one for the dog too, but Susu didn’t buy it.”
“Mm, then let’s go buy one.”
The little cat could live freely under the sunlight, without needing to hide or evade.
He could run wildly, spread his wings without a care, and show everyone his miracle.
Because his father had the power to let him live like this until the end of his life.
