I Really Want to Pet My Wife's Cat Ears - Chapter 26

Chapter 26

The flower sea was located in a part of the map that Shuoyu had not yet unlocked.

As the grey-black mist dispersed, the Little Cloud Person acted like a torch, scattering the darkness with every leap. Navigating like a blind person feeling an elephant, the landing point of each jump was an unknown: sometimes bare soil, sometimes lush green grass, and occasionally a dry, brittle piece of rotted wood.

Fortunately, the Cloud Person’s balance was excellent. It held the young girl steadily in its arms, ensuring that not a single branch or blade of grass scratched Ji Mianmian. As a resident of Cat Island, Ji Mianmian’s vision was not obstructed; she screamed with excitement all the way as if she were riding a drop tower.

At first, she only dared to wrap her arms around the Little Cloud Person’s neck, burying her face in its cloud-like chest while her heart raced. Later, she grew bold enough to peek outside.

“Sister, we should be arriving soon!”

When Ji Mianmian’s sweet, whispered reminder reached Shuoyu’s ears, the churning grey mist before her eyes finally cleared. It revealed an endless, vibrant, and fragrantly beautiful field of flowers.

Because no one tended to it, various flowers grew in a wild, disorganized fashion. Fiery red canna lilies, golden sunflowers, blue and pink hydrangeas… flowers of all kinds had abandoned their natural seasons to present their best selves on Cat Island.

Shuoyu was momentarily dazed. These flowers grew with a chaotic passion that was entirely different from the carefully manicured lavender fields she had seen in advertisements. It looked more like a painter’s oil palette—vibrant, enthusiastic, and possessing a raw beauty born of the plants’ inherent vitality.

Ji Mianmian frowned, clutching the hem of her black-and-white maid dress: “Oh no, I forgot to change into a pretty skirt!” She had made every preparation before waiting for Shuoyu to log on, but she had specifically forgotten to swap out her monotonous maid outfit.

Hearing the girl’s faint annoyance, Shuoyu smiled. “It’s fine. Mianmian looks good in anything.”

Upon hearing this, the girl on the screen relaxed considerably, letting go of her skirt. Shuoyu checked the Little Cloud Person’s skills and found that four new skills had appeared in the special interaction bar: Flower Field Meow Power Collection, Search for Meow-Meow Flowers, Collect Meow-Meow Flowers, and Travel with Cat.

After reading the descriptions, she activated Travel with Cat, manipulating the Little Cloud Person to carry Ji Mianmian to a slightly higher, sun-drenched slope. Shuoyu had the Cloud Person hold the girl’s hand, listening closely to her breathing while saying, “Mianmian, remember to keep your eyes wide open; don’t miss any details.”

In quick succession, she activated the Flower Field Meow Power Collection skill. In the misty sunlight, colored light spots matching the flowers’ hues detached from the numerous plants. They spiraled and rose overhead, eventually merging into a three-dimensional cat-head shape flowing with irregular seven-colored light.

Shuoyu specifically controlled the Little Cloud Person to look at the nearby peony. This was the first plant to produce light spots; it swayed quietly in the wind, and Shuoyu wondered if it was her imagination, but the deep red petals seemed even more brilliant now. Seeing that extracting Meow Power didn’t harm the plants, Shuoyu breathed a sigh of relief. This flower field was too beautiful; she didn’t want to destroy it.

The cat-head floated in the air, rotating slowly. The colored light inside was gradually mixed by its movement, eventually separating into two layers: a milky white inner layer and a magnificent rainbow outer layer. It was a sight only possible in a fantasy game world. Shuoyu watched it with a surging heart, feeling the magic of it all. She looked down at Ji Mianmian and saw the colorful reflections in her warm, moist eyes.

When both the person and the cat were lost in wonder, a “ding-ding-ding” sound effect rang out. The cat-head forged of radiance stopped spinning and flew toward Shuoyu, plunging directly into the Little Cloud Person’s body.

Flower Field Collection Complete: A total of 1,000 Meow Power points collected!

At the same time, No. 001’s unique voice rang in Shuoyu’s ears: “Congratulations to the Player for exceeding 1,000 Meow Power points! You have unlocked the Meow Power Collector achievement, meow. Reward: 100 Cat Diamonds!”

Shuoyu hurriedly swiveled the camera left and right but didn’t see No. 001 anywhere. Her lips curved slightly; she had wanted to thank it for its generosity.

Although she was curious about the Meow-Meow Flowers, Shuoyu decided to keep the Travel with Cat function active. An interaction card lasted for two hours, and she didn’t want to repeat her experience under the sea—playing with Ji Mianmian for only a moment before getting busy with tasks.

The Little Cloud Person held Ji Mianmian’s hand, introducing the flowers to her as they walked. Occasionally, they would stop at a particularly beautiful spot to take several photos of the cat-eared girl amidst the scenery. There were no ready-made paths in the flower field, so they had to step carefully to avoid crushing the low-lying herbs on the ground.

Seeing this, Shuoyu shamelessly opened her arms and proposed: “Mianmian, let me carry you. My feet are made of clouds; they’ll automatically bypass the flowers when I step.” She liked the fact that they were so close during the embrace, even being able to hear Ji Mianmian’s quiet breathing.

However, Ji Mianmian only produced a few shy, hesitant, and expectant emojis before shaking her head, insisting on walking herself. She was very serious about finding her way, nearly losing her balance and almost falling several times. Each time, Shuoyu would enjoy the girl’s startled, sweet gasps while reassuring her, manipulating the Little Cloud Person to steady her.

Rounding two mulberry trees growing together, Ji Mianmian blinked: “Sister, I recognize this place! It wasn’t like this last time I came!” About a week before Shuoyu arrived at Cat Island, Ji Mianmian had wandered here with the kittens when she couldn’t find food.

Back then, while the terrain was flat, there were no real flowers to speak of. These two mulberry trees were unique one leaned north and the other south; though their roots were almost touching, their upper branches split far apart as if they loathed each other. Ji Mianmian had even chatted about it with Little White and the others back then.

“Maybe it turned into a flower sea because I came here,” Shuoyu said cockily after hearing the story. Though she knew it was a programmed setting—the world before the player arrived was a chaotic one, and the gears only started turning once she entered the game.

To her surprise, the cat-eared girl believed her words completely. She nodded seriously and said with a smile, “Yes. I am very, very happy that Sister could come to Cat Island.”

From the first-person perspective, Shuoyu saw Ji Mianmian’s lips were a deep red, her eyes were a warm honey color, and the setting sun cast a thin layer of pink on her cheeks, making her look even more beautiful than usual. Shuoyu’s throat moved as she forced back the romantic thoughts in her mind.

“Mianmian, let’s go find the Meow-Meow Flowers.”

The Meow-Meow Flower was a flower with a style completely different from the others. It had only one petal, shaped like a cat’s head without facial features. The two tufts of whiskers on the cat’s face were the pollinating stamens. The description said these flowers could produce Meow Power and Cat Diamonds, so Shuoyu decided to dig up the whole plants.

Following the direction of the cloud clusters emanating from the Little Cloud Person, they found the Meow-Meow Flowers. Originally, the flowers were pure white, but as Ji Mianmian approached, black and yellow patches miraculously appeared on the petals. Looking closely, the distribution of colors on each flower was identical to the cat ears atop Ji Mianmian’s head; it was a cute little calico cat.

Shuoyu was the first to notice. She said with surprise, “Mianmian, take two steps back!”

Although the girl on the screen was confused, she did as she was told. As soon as Ji Mianmian stepped outside the one-meter range, the colors on the Meow-Meow Flowers faded away, returning to pure white. Shuoyu marveled, “It seems the Meow-Meow Flowers can help determine the cats’ patterns! Mianmian, don’t do the digging; just stay with me, and we’ll dig up as many as we can!”

That night, a ring of white Meow-Meow Flowers was planted in the bait zone of Xier Beach. When night fell, their petals emitted a faint bioluminescence, and the patterns the cats picked up when approaching lasted for a long time. In the swaying shadows of the wind, they looked like a row of cute kittens of different colors huddling and playing in the grass.

Shuoyu pursed her red lips and extinguished all the lights in the safe zone. She double-checked the Meow Power gloves on the paws of Little White, Little Flower, and A-Jin. With these gloves, their attacks on the ethereal bodies of evil spirits would be solid, and they wouldn’t have to worry about whether attacking possessed cats would hurt the cats’ physical bodies.

Before the big battle, she couldn’t resist stroking Ji Mianmian’s fluffy ears. Shuoyu’s eyes darkened slightly: “Everything is ready. This time, attracting evil spirits at night, everyone must, must pay attention to safety.”

Amidst the meows of the cats, she lit the Spirit-Attracting Incense. Sure enough, night was the time for evil spirits to be active. The incense’s effect was doubled; in less than five minutes, five evil spirits and one malicious cat were attracted. In the lightless night, the evil spirits’ illusory black mist bodies looked even more eerie and terrifying, like an abyss waiting to swallow the cats.

Shuoyu didn’t offer verbal guidance this time. As a player on the other side of the screen, she could only play a supporting role. Fighting the evil spirits and driving them out was something the island’s cats had to solve for themselves. She watched nervously as the cats formed an organized attack line.

They used cat punches to drive the evil spirits out of the pitiful cats and pinned the spirits to the beach with long arrows imbued with Meow Power… Seeing her cat squad already showing the aura of mature warriors, Shuoyu felt an indescribable joy.

Fifteen minutes later, the ground was covered with a layer of shining loot, but there were even more evil spirits surrounding them now. Shuoyu asked, “Can you keep going? Do we need to light the Spirit-Dispelling Incense?”

The cats’ meows rose and fell in refusal. Little Flower: “No need, let them come! The harder they hit me, the more damage the evil spirit takes! Hit me, you villains!” Little White: “No, Shuoyu. If you have time, pick up the loot around us; it’s blindingly bright.” A-Jin: “Fighting with Meow Power gloves feels so good. It takes no effort, and my claws reach out easily!”

Shuoyu saw Ji Mianmian look up to meet her gaze, her eyes also shining with spirit. She stopped worrying and trusted the cats wholeheartedly.

Thirty minutes passed, and the Spirit-Attracting Incense finally burned out. The prolonged jumping and fighting had left the cats with a layer of fatigue. Little Flower opened its mouth and took a bite, and the last evil spirit that had been drawn in was finally eliminated. Shuoyu naturally took out the prepared small cart and placed the fainted or confused possessed cats into it one by one.

Just as everyone was harmoniously preparing to tally the harvest, Shuoyu’s ear suddenly throbbed with pain. She heard a child’s voice screaming right in her ear: “Let go of Mimi! Don’t touch my Mimi!”

Then the screen blurred. The quiet night beach turned and interlaced in the black mist, transforming into a cartoonish children’s room with drawings of wolves catching rabbits and leopards tearing meat. The furniture was all macaron pink and blue. The strange yet cozy room made Shuoyu uncomfortable.

She looked around; Little White, Little Flower, A-Jin, and the four cats they had just rescued had all disappeared. Only Ji Mianmian remained, looking solemn and clutching her bow tightly.

Sensing that Shuoyu was still by her side, even though she couldn’t see her worried and beautiful face, the cat-eared girl’s hands stopped trembling.

“If I’m not mistaken, this must be the evil spirit’s spiritual space.”

The moment Ji Mianmian finished speaking, the doorknob of the children’s room began to turn with a “click.” The weak, thin cries of a kitten, mixed with a child’s ignorant laughter” Mimi, your fur feels so good; skin it and make me some gloves” rang out from outside the door.

Shuoyu’s face darkened, and her tone turned cold: “Mianmian, don’t be afraid. Hide in the wardrobe on the right.”

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