I Am Being Raised by a Cat - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

“A-Shang, I’m going out for a bit.”

The words had barely left his lips when a Bengal cat leaped down from a nearby shelf.

As the outside light flickered across it, the cat’s entire body appeared golden-orange; its fur was patterned like a leopard’s, its pupils were golden, and its tail flicked back and forth nonchalantly on the floor.

It didn’t even make a sound, merely tilting its head up to look at the youth, but Cheng Yue already understood its meaning.

He gave a helpless smile. “I really can’t take you. I’m going to get your cat food, and carrying a cat bag wouldn’t be convenient.”

Ever since he rescued A-Shang from a cat trafficker three years ago, the cat had been exceptionally clingy toward Cheng Yue, following him almost step-for-step.

If the school didn’t strictly forbid it, Cheng Yue would likely have brought the cat to class with him.

A-Shang did not back down, continuing to stare at Cheng Yue.

Cheng Yue sighed, attempting to bargain. “I’ll let you sleep on the bed tonight, okay?”

Like all pet owners, he believed his animal understood human speech.

But A-Shang seemed truly intelligent.

As soon as Cheng Yue’s hand pointed toward the bedroom, the cat cooperated by tilting its head, appearing as if it were deep in thought.

A few seconds later, A-Shang walked over with its chin held high in a haughty manner, lightly rubbed against the youth’s calf, then leaped back onto the shelf and lay down lazily.

The meaning was: Deal.

I was sleeping on the bed tonight.

The youth couldn’t help it; his eyes curved into a smile.

Cheng Yue had slightly curly, chestnut-colored hair. When he smiled, he looked very well-behaved, with shallow dimples appearing on his cheeks.

The Bengal cat lying on the shelf looked lazy, but its golden pupils followed the youth closely from start to finish.

Because the pet shop was very close to the apartment just across the street—Cheng Yue didn’t take much with him, grabbing only his keys and phone before heading out.

There was a specific brand of cat canned food that A-Shang loved particularly, but it had been out of stock for a while. It had finally arrived today, and Cheng Yue wanted to hurry and buy some.

When he stepped out of the pet shop, the sun was still a bit dazzling.

To his surprise, in the span of just a few minutes, right as he reached a fork in the road, a thick fog suddenly rolled in.

Cheng Yue was a bit dazed.

How could such a heavy fog appear under such a bright sun?

Visibility dropped sharply. Swirls of white mist almost enveloped Cheng Yue; he reached out a hand tentatively, only to find that he couldn’t even see his own palm in the fog.

However, it lasted for only a moment. The outside sunlight broke through, thinning the mist until it quickly vanished.

It was as if it had all been a hallucination.

An inexplicable unease rose in Cheng Yue’s heart. He pursed his lips and quickened his pace, wanting to head home.

But once he walked past that street, the sight before him left him completely stunned.

Every building was a skyscraper reaching into the clouds. The surroundings were utterly strange, nothing like the road he had come from.

Even more shocking were the crowds of people passing by.

It was as if he had accidentally entered some massive cosplay event; people were openly wearing rabbit ears or walking around with tails trailing behind them.

Was… was this still S-City?

The surroundings were filled everywhere with the sense of technology from a sci-fi future.

In contrast, Cheng Yue, wearing an ordinary short-sleeved shirt and shorts and carrying a bag, felt utterly lost.

He didn’t know what was happening. After a moment of daze, he hurried to pull out his phone, but strangely, the device which he had seen was fully charged when he paid moments ago would not turn on.

The screen remained pitch black.

With so many things happening within a few minutes, Cheng Yue was so anxious his palms were sweating, and his face turned slightly pale.

He didn’t dare keep walking forward, but there was no way back.

Looking back, there was only a straight, grand avenue stretching toward an endless horizon, leading to parts unknown.

He looked around frantically like a headless fly until his eyes landed on a time projection nearby.

May 17, 2155.

NO!!!!

This has to be fake!!!!

Cheng Yue’s eyes widened, his breathing becoming rapid.

He couldn’t care about anything else now. He ran toward the time projection, standing beneath it with his lips trembling violently.

Twenty years?!!

He just went to buy some cat food, and he ended up twenty years in the future?!!

Cheng Yue was an orphan with no ties, so he wasn’t worried about much else. But… he couldn’t help but tighten his grip on the bag in his hand.

What about his cat?

Cheng Yue had seen similar news stories before: a mysterious flight disappears for decades and then suddenly lands, while for the passengers, only a few hours have passed.

When they step off the plane, the world has changed, and their loved ones have mostly become grey-haired.

The lifespan of an animal is limited.

Twenty years later… maybe, maybe his little one was already…

Cheng Yue’s expression grew panicked. He had to go home, he had to get back!! But how was he supposed to get there…

Suddenly, an extremely piercing “Beep!” rang out through the surroundings.

Hearing this sound, everyone on the street stopped in their tracks and looked up in the same direction.

Above the plaza, a massive display screen appeared out of thin air. Simultaneously, a mechanical female voice broadcast began:

[The 19th Federal Joint Session has passed the vote. Army Colonel Cheng Shang has been elected as the new Governor, effective immediately. This concludes the broadcast.]

At the same time, the suspended screen displayed the official portrait of the new Governor.

The screen was split in two, showing two different photos.

One was a military portrait. The man was tall with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, dressed in a sharp black military uniform. The brim of his cap was pulled low, showing only his tightly pressed thin lips and a sharp jawline.

What shocked Cheng Yue even more was the photo next to it.

It was a leopard. Its body was slightly arched, its pupils were golden and slightly narrowed into slits, faintly exuding a wild danger.

This was a fierce leopard, but at first glance, Cheng Yue had an inexplicable gut feeling: this was his little one!

Those identical eyes, it was impossible to be mistaken.

But his little one was just a small Bengal cat. How could he have become a leopard??!

At this moment, Cheng Yue felt nothing but panic and helplessness. He stood there for a while before managing to calm his mind.

He looked around and picked someone who didn’t have ears or a tail, someone who looked like a normal person and hurriedly walked over to stop them.

“Excuse me, I wanted to ask, where is the police station?”

The person was startled by him and looked him up and down with a wary gaze.

Cheng Yue’s face was very pale, his expression pleading.

The pedestrian hesitated before speaking. “The Federal Police Station is in front of the plaza. Just follow this road.”

Cheng Yue thanked them a thousand times, bowing several times before turning to leave.

He wasn’t sure if it was a hallucination, but he felt the sunlight getting stronger and stronger. When it hit his body, it felt like a searing pain; his exposed skin felt as if it were being licked by flames.

But Cheng Yue could only quicken his pace, not daring to linger for a single second.

…

The police station was built on a massive scale. To be precise, since Cheng Yue had mysteriously arrived in this world that was supposedly twenty years in the future, every building here was terrifyingly tall, feeling as if they were endless.

Cheng Yue stood at the entrance, taking a few deep breaths before gritting his teeth and pushing the door open.

The police station was bustling with people coming and going.

The office had one-way glass; the crowds outside could be seen from within. Cheng Yue stared blankly for a few seconds before slowly retracting his gaze.

He was still shaken.

In the past half hour, he had looked at some news from the last twenty years and gained a rough understanding of the current world.

In 2135, a global heatwave swept the world, known in history as the “Great Evolution.”

A portion of humanity, after several days of high fever, would undergo an “atavism” phenomenon, gaining their own animal forms.

Even rarer were animals that evolved into humans.

These beings who possessed two forms, whether humans or animals, were collectively given a new name.

“New Humans.”

Following this, nations integrated to establish the Federation.

The New Humans leaped above ordinary humans, becoming the rulers of the Federation.

In just twenty years, the world had been turned upside down.

The office door was pushed open. A police officer walked in carrying a stack of pictures and placed them in front of Cheng Yue.

The moment the youth saw them, he spoke urgently. “Yes, it’s him. This is my cat.”

The officer’s expression was somewhat strange. He paused for a few seconds before speaking. “Governor Cheng’s animal form is a leopard.”

Cheng Yue pursed his lips. He stubbornly gripped the photo in his hand, his voice dropping slightly, but he repeated it once more: “This is my cat.”

The officer gave him a deep look, then suddenly raised his hand, pushing a cup on the desk toward him. “Have some more water. It’s very sunny outside, isn’t it? The solar radiation is very strong now; ordinary people need to wear radiation suits to go out.”

Cheng Yue held the cup and took two more sips before murmuring, “When can I see my cat?”

The officer gave two dry laughs. “We are contacting them. Please wait a moment, just a moment.”

He wasn’t sure if it was because of the sun earlier, but Cheng Yue felt his body growing weak. Gradually, his head felt heavy and dizzy, and he couldn’t even keep his eyes open.

In his daze, he faintly heard a low whisper by his ear.

“Is it him?”

“That’s right. He is the person Governor Cheng is looking for.”

After that, Cheng Yue fell into total darkness.

…

By evening, the piercing light finally faded behind the clouds. A large truck was parked behind the police station. The truck was square and had a storage area in the back; currently, it was loaded with a massive iron cage.

The youth was curled up inside the cage, his figure thin and looking somewhat pitiful.

“This is the person Governor Cheng wants. Is it appropriate for us to do this?”

Next to him, a man in a black jacket bit down on a cigarette and snorted coldly. “What the hell do you know? Do you know why the Governor has been looking for this person for all these years?”

“My cousin has a connection in the Government House. I heard this person used to be Governor Cheng’s master.”

The person next to him understood instantly. “So he wants revenge on this person?”

“After the Great Evolution, how many pets and masters had their statuses reversed? The captain of the Enforcement Squad used to be a German Shepherd. His master used to abuse him. After he evolved, he bit his master to death and ate him. He even started from the legs on purpose.”

“Governor Cheng will only be more cruel. Maybe he’ll lock the guy in a dungeon and take one bite out of him every day.”

The two men burst into loud laughter.

And in the cage not far away, the youth, who appeared to be still unconscious, was faintly trembling.

Cheng Yue had woken up long ago. He didn’t dare move, hearing every word of their conversation clearly.

He only felt his whole body go cold, as if even his breathing had stopped.

What did they mean?

A-Shang wants to eat him?

Cheng Yue had never been very brave since he was a child. With so many strange and ancient things happening, he had already been scared to death; it was only because he kept worrying about A-Shang that he had gritted his teeth and held on until now.

But he suddenly found out that A-Shang actually wanted to eat him.

Cheng Yue buried his head very low, his eyes feeling a bit stinging.

He suddenly felt that this world was so strange.

It was as if he couldn’t even find a reason to keep living.

…

Night had already fallen, yet the Government House remained brightly lit.

The new Governor had arrived, and there were many matters that required handover and processing.

Cheng Shang finished signing the last document and didn’t intend to stay any longer.

He capped his pen and handed the file to his secretary, his tone indifferent. “Tell everyone to head back early. Also, notify all department heads above the third rank for a meeting in the conference room tomorrow.”

“Understood. I will notify them immediately.”

Cheng Shang changed his clothes and headed out. Outside the building, a black car was already waiting quietly.

As he approached, an assistant respectfully opened the car door for him.

After Cheng Shang sat inside, he spoke calmly, “To Xilin Villa.”

The assistant’s body stiffened slightly before he got into the passenger seat.

Xilin Villa was the property Cheng Shang visited the least, but every time he went there, it was only for one reason.

They had found that person again.

It had been so many years, and there had been countless situations like this.

Those people either wanted money or power, bringing one fake after another before Cheng Shang.

It was also strange; whether through makeup or plastic surgery, several times the assistant thought the person looked exactly like the one in the portrait, but Cheng Shang only needed one glance to tell they were fake.

However, the man, who was usually cold and gloomy, never showed excessive harshness regarding this matter.

Even if they were fake, he would instruct the assistant to give them a sum of money and send them away.

It was just that for the next few days, the man would be surrounded by extremely low air pressure, his expression somber and his temper extremely volatile.

The assistant couldn’t help but feel anxious.

Xilin Villa was a villa in the suburbs. A car was already parked there; the assistant could see from a distance that there seemed to be a huge iron cage nearby with someone locked inside.

The car came to a stop. The man who had been resting with his eyes closed in the back slowly opened them.

The assistant opened the door for him, whispering at the same time, “The person has arrived.”

Cheng Shang had no expression.

Since the “Great Evolution,” the temperature on Earth has changed, with extreme differences between day and night. New Humans could adapt perfectly.

But an ordinary person like Cheng Yue could not.

His whole body was shivering from the cold, and he curled up tightly in the farthest corner of the iron cage, burying his head.

He was about to freeze to death.

Perhaps before A-Shang could eat him, he would freeze solid.

Cheng Yue thought with dark humor: This is fine too. It saves me from being bitten to death while alive.

He was afraid of pain.

In his daze, he heard approaching footsteps.

His eyelashes fluttered as he slightly lifted his head. The first thing he saw was a pair of black military boots, stopping right outside the cage.