Cat Demon Raising Manual - Chapter 4

The rain hammered against the neon signs like firecrackers. Lin Zhixuan stood at the doorway, watching the downpour and hesitating to brave the storm on her way home.

After turning off the last shadowless lamp in the clinic, she took off her white coat and placed it in the metal locker. Sitting calmly by the entrance, she watched the muddy rainwater splatter against the glass door, her usually composed expression betraying a hint of irritation.

Adjusting her platinum semi-rimmed glasses, she counted the rhythm of the falling raindrops, sensing that the rain was beginning to ease.

There was no food in the clinic, and she hadn’t eaten dinner yet. Fatigue mingled with hunger, and her tightly pressed lips made her appear even more unapproachable.

Her features were soft and gentle, yet her demeanor was distant. Most of the time, she didn’t smile, and her light-colored eyes remained placid when she looked at others, creating an aura of detachment.

After a moment’s thought, Lin Zhixuan decisively retrieved a black umbrella and pulled down the rolling shutter door.

Outside, the rain pattered noisily against the umbrella. After just a few steps, she could feel her shoes becoming soaked.

Her mood worsened. Her slender fingers tightened around the umbrella handle, and in her frustration, she heard the faint whimper of some creature.

Lin Zhixuan paused, brushing aside the black hair by her ear as she strained to discern the weakening sound amid the rain’s echoes. Her heart seemed to hang in the balance.

She took a few steps toward the source of the noise, and the sound grew clearer.

In the next moment, a drenched, furry ball tumbled against her pant leg. Under the yellow streetlight, the calico patches blurred into a watercolor-like mess.

It was a severely injured cat, carrying the scent of burnt flesh.

Lin Zhixuan held the umbrella over the cat. Its right paw was curled at an unnatural angle, and blood seeped from the wound, mingling with the rainwater to form a winding trail on the ground.

It had a strong will to live.

The injured cat was still breathing. At the sound of her footsteps, its eyes seemed to struggle, trying to make her out clearly.

Don’t get involved, Lin Zhixuan frowned, already feeling discomfort in her nostrils. Her fingers tightened.

Her light-colored eyes flickered. Her wet shoes shifted direction, taking a few steps away. The streetlamp stretched her already tall shadow even longer, making her appear particularly lonely and detached.

Hua Wangxuan couldn’t say she had fully survived her eighth heavenly tribulation, as she was now too weak to use her self-healing abilities.

She might die before she could even assume human form.

Meow…

She didn’t want to die. She hadn’t yet tasted the world’s most delicious grilled saury, hadn’t slept on the softest bed, and hadn’t found a warm home.

She could feel the approach of death, and she refused to accept it.

Crawling out of the icy river, she had dragged herself halfway back from the brink.

The cold was piercing, and her entire body ached.

Using her claws, she crawled forward, searching for a chance to survive.

Then, she heard the footsteps of a human.

In her blurred vision, she saw a figure dressed in black, a female human holding a large black umbrella, wearing a black shirt, black cigarette pants, and black hair tied into a ponytail. Her white sneakers were dirty, but her eyes were clear and bright.

Was this the Black Impermanence, coming to take her away?

Tears welled in Hua Wangxuan’s eyes as she let out a pitiful whimper.

She didn’t want to die. She didn’t want to be taken to the underworld. She was a good cat, if she had to go anywhere, it should be to the cat’s paradise.

Then, Hei Wuchang glanced at her indifferently a few times before turning and leaving.

How infuriating. At the very least, he could have left her a can. Even if she were to die, she’d rather die with a full stomach.

The rain began to fall on her again, and her body trembled helplessly. Gradually, she closed her eyes.

She didn’t know how much time had passed, but warmth enveloped her once more. It felt as if she had returned to the amniotic fluid of her mother’s womb. She curled her limbs and hugged herself tightly.

It turned out that Lin Zhixuan had returned, holding a towel to wrap Hua Wangxuan before placing her inside a black trash bag.

Lin Zhixuan wore a double-layered mask and latex gloves, carrying the trash bag like a sanitation worker as she brought Hua Wangxuan back to her clinic.

The shadowless lamp above the examination table lit up once more. The trembling of her fingertips beneath the latex gloves wasn’t due to an allergy but rather the fragile life cradled in her palm.

The suffocating sensation from her allergy had already crept up her throat. Enduring the discomfort, Lin Zhixuan focused her gaze intently on the fluffy creature before her.

Sweat stains gradually spread across the back of her protective suit. After what felt like an eternity, Lin Zhixuan finally removed her fogged-up goggles, a faint smile playing at the corners of her lips.

After debridement, medication, and bandaging, the calico cat lay obediently on the examination table like a little mummy. Her pupils, under the bright light, contracted into golden-green amber, and her tiny chest rose and fell steadily.

A small life had been saved.

“Such a resilient little cat,” Lin Zhixuan murmured softly, tapping Hua Wangxuan’s head lightly. Unexpectedly, the kitten suddenly bit down on her glove.

She shook her glove gently, and the kitten’s head swayed back and forth like a swing.

“You ungrateful little thing.” Fortunately, the kitten didn’t bite hard, leaving only shallow tooth marks on the rubber glove. Lin Zhixuan pulled her finger free, held it up to her eyes, and stared blankly for a few seconds.

She had brought a cat home, even though she was allergic to cat fur. What was she going to do with this cat now?

There was no way she could keep it. She had to find someone to adopt it.

Lin Zhixuan pinched the bridge of her nose, grabbed a packet of glucose, and drank it, as if it could soothe the burning sensation in her throat.

For tonight, she would just have to take it home.

Her eyes lowered as she looked down at the frail yet tenacious little cat before her.

So ugly, it would probably be hard to find someone willing to adopt it.

Lin Zhixuan coughed lightly and dutifully cleaned up the shaved cat fur and blood-stained cotton balls. She placed Hua Wangxuan back into a medical waste bag, disinfected the clinic, and finally let out a sigh of relief.

She would temporarily close the clinic tomorrow. First, she needed to nurse this little thing back to health.

Carrying the trash bag, Lin Zhixuan turned off the clinic lights. As she walked, she thought for a moment and detoured to a supermarket.

She bought some lactose-free milk and chicken breast. The kitten in the trash bag remained quiet and didn’t fuss. Lin Zhixuan was pleased, at least she wouldn’t be mistaken for some weirdo making a scene.

Her steps paused in front of the plush toys. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at the trash bag in her hand. Surely, kittens liked soft things, right?

Lin Zhixuan bought a small plush toy shaped like a toast that could double as a bed and a soft blanket. After paying, she headed home with the cat, returning to an empty house.

She turned on the light, and the cool-toned glow fell on her face. Her eyelashes, beaded with moisture, made her look like a flawless jade sculpture.

The air seemed to carry a chilly stillness.

A faint purring sound from the bag made Lin Zhixuan pause in surprise. She opened the bag to find the kitten sleeping soundly, completely unguarded.

She settled Hua Wangxuan in the storage room, found a cardboard box originally used for medical equipment, lined it with a blanket, and cut a small entrance on the side.

Lin Zhixuan lifted Hua Wangxuan out of the garbage bag and gently placed her on the blanket, setting the small plush toy beside her head.

Hua Wangxuan, annoyed at being woken up, kicked her legs. As the anesthesia wore off, the pain made her eyes snap wide open.

“Don’t move around,” Lin Zhixuan said sternly, stopping her. Then she closed the door and went to the kitchen to fetch a bowl, pouring lactose-free milk into it.

Lin Zhixuan tore open the bag of chicken breast, heated both the chicken and the milk in the microwave, and returned to find Hua Wangxuan lying on the blanket with a look of utter despair, nuzzling the small plush toy.

“Time to eat. Milk or meat?” Lin Zhixuan placed both bowls in front of Hua Wangxuan, letting her choose.

Hua Wangxuan stretched out her four pink paw pads, opened her mouth, and hissed a few times to show her threat. Seeing that Lin Zhixuan merely watched her quietly without reacting, she cautiously crawled toward the bowl of chicken breast. She took a big bite, wolfing it down, then sneakily glanced at Lin Zhixuan, whose face was hidden behind a mask.

This human female must be really ugly if she doesn’t dare show her face in front of me. How pitiful.

Although I love beautiful things, this ugly woman saved me. I’m a cat with a conscience, I won’t look down on her.

Thinking this, Hua Wangxuan’s eyes softened. Feeling a twinge of guilt for her earlier rudeness, she let out a sweet meow and buried her face in the bowl, eating earnestly.

Nom nom, I’m so hungry. Eat more, eat more!

After finishing the meat, she turned to the milk bowl, lapping noisily and splattering milk everywhere with her tongue.

Lin Zhixuan took a big step back, sighing helplessly at Hua Wangxuan’s messy eating. The milk splashed on the floor, making her frown.

She fetched a medical pad and placed it next to the cardboard box, pointing at it and saying, “Kitty, pee here. Don’t pee anywhere else, it’s dirty.”

Hua Wangxuan lifted her head from the bowl, milk staining the fur around her mouth, and stared blankly as Lin Zhixuan repeatedly gestured.

Is this human female both stupid and ugly? How tragic. Hua Wangxuan gave a sympathetic look and sighed deeply.

Even in her miserable state, she remembers to offer me tribute. What a devoted follower. I must protect her well.

She stretched out a paw and placed it firmly on Lin Zhixuan’s slipper, letting out a determined meow.

Lin Zhixuan hesitated, observing Hua Wangxuan’s actions and expressive eyes. Maybe the kitty understood me and won’t pee randomly.

Despite their mutual misunderstanding, the human and the cat somehow reached a harmonious agreement.

“Kitty, sleep here tonight. Don’t run around with your injury, or the wound might reopen,” Lin Zhixuan reminded her.

Hua Wangxuan nodded half-heartedly and continued lapping up the milk noisily.

After the meal, she should have groomed herself, but her limbs were restricted by the annoying bandages. Hua Wangxuan meowed in dissatisfaction.

Ugly woman, hurry up and clean me properly!

Lin Zhixuan seemed to understand, using a wet wipe to clean Hua Wangxuan’s mouth, then meticulously drying the damp paw pads. Hua Wangxuan was very well-behaved, keeping her claws tucked in and not scratching wildly as she had during the earlier wound cleaning.

“Good, obedient children get rewards.” A slight smile tugged at the corner of Lin Zhixuan’s lips as she opened her phone and browsed through some well-reviewed cat food, litter, and canned food. Only after closing her phone did she realize she had already bought a lot of cat supplies.

She wasn’t planning to keep her long-term, it was only temporary. Lin Zhixuan’s finger paused on the screen, and she pressed her lips together.

But she didn’t cancel the pet toys either. She decided to think of them as gifts for the future adopter.