I Really Want to Pet My Wife's Cat Ears - Chapter 27

Chapter 27

As soon as Ji Mianmian finished hiding, the child-spirit pushed the door open and walked in.

It looked to be less than five years old, dressed as if it had just finished school at a kindergarten. It was chubby, wearing a kindergarten uniform and carrying a backpack. Its short, fat pants were stained with spots like red plum blossoms it was unclear if they were bloodstains.

In the spiritual space, the evil spirit had a physical form, but everything above its nose remained shrouded in a thick, inseparable black mist, leaving only a blood-red mouth that split all the way to its corners.

When Shuoyu saw the kitten held in its hand like a toy, she clenched her fists tightly, gritting her teeth. To be precise, it was a cat-eared girl, scaled down to the size of a kitten, wearing a white dress. Though she had a human body and face, she had cat ears and a tail.

That little cat-eared girl appeared to be extremely young; her eyes weren’t open yet, and her face was wrinkled. However, judging by the orange and white ears and the splash of black on the tip of the tail, it was highly likely a “larval stage” Ji Mianmian as imagined by the evil spirit.

Recalling the child’s words from outside the door “your fur feels so good,” “skin it to make gloves” Shuoyu felt more than just anger and heartache. She felt a profound chill, a sense of mental pollution so great it made her nauseous.

She switched the camera view into the wardrobe and saw Ji Mianmian’s eyes were vacant and out of focus, appearing completely bewitched. When Ji Mianmian saw the “mini cat-eared girl” in the spirit’s hand looking like a tattered rag, she immediately felt the pain as if it were her own. Her ears trembled uncontrollably, and she began to cry, covering her mouth to keep her sobs as faint as a mosquito’s hum.

As Ji Mianmian began to weep, the cat-eared girl in the spirit’s hand also started crying. Because of her young age, she wailed loudly, crying uncontrollably like a child having an emotional breakdown.

The child-spirit’s blood-red mouth, reminiscent of a Kuchisake-onna, split even wider. It giggled incessantly, squeezing the mini cat-eared girl harder while shouting, “Mimi, you smell so good!” and “Mimi, cry louder!”

Whether it was her imagination or not, Shuoyu felt the spirit’s size grow by a few inches as it became more excited. Its pant legs, which originally covered its feet, were now pulled up to its ankles.

As the “small cat-eared girl” began to cry, the surrounding environment felt as if it had been tossed into a washing machine. Heaven and earth began to rotate slowly and chaotically; the images on the screen were nauseating to watch.

Cursing the heartless developers for writing such “Gura-Chu” (disturbing/perverse) plots, Shuoyu endured the dizziness and nausea, frantically moving the game controller to see if there was anything to interact with. After a frantic search, she found that aside from being able to flick the spirit’s head for -1 damage, everything else was non-interactive! There were no interaction buttons at all!

It has to rely on the cat herself.

The woman before the screen looked grim, her mind racing. The evil spirit feeds on the negative fear of cats, and this is its spiritual world… She and Ji Mianmian had been snatched away without warning, so they should be the first ones to enter this space. Therefore, the cat in its hand was fake!

The energy it was sucking was actually Ji Mianmian’s own fear. No wonder she looked like a dazed, soul-less child right now!

“Hey, little fatty!” Shuoyu shouted loudly a few times, but seeing no reaction from the spirit, she knew it couldn’t perceive her.

She turned to Ji Mianmian, speaking with patient guidance: “Baby, don’t be afraid. It’s Sister Shuoyu. That is an evil spirit; the kitten in its hand is a fictional illusion. It isn’t you, and it isn’t any other cat. I asked No. 001; there is only one cat-eared girl on Cat Island—you are the most special and unique one!”

Ji Mianmian’s eyes seemed to clear slightly. She stopped crying. She turned her head to observe the narrow children’s wardrobe, trying to see who was speaking.

Shuoyu softened her voice, soothing her gently: “Don’t look for me, baby. I’m always with you from a very far place. Don’t be afraid, Mianmian, wake up… Do you remember? We just used the Spirit-Attracting Incense, wiped out 17 spirits and 5 malicious cats, and were organizing the loot when we were accidentally sucked into this child-spirit’s world.

Wake up quickly, and Sister will help you take it down! You have the Meow Power bow; you can easily pierce the spirit’s body and destroy it.”

Perhaps it was because Shuoyu’s voice was too familiar and friendly, or the gentle sensation of her stroking Mianmian’s ears, or the longbow she held tightly even while bewitched… Ji Mianmian’s honey-colored eyes gradually began to focus, regaining their spirit.

“Bow and arrows… oh, right! I have my bow!”

Under Shuoyu’s constant soothing and “verbal therapy,” Ji Mianmian woke up completely. She clutched the longbow, her heart filled with courage and no longer afraid. Sensing that its food source had been cut off, the spirit began to knead the mini cat-eared girl in its hand like a tattered sock. Its crimson mouth opened wide, saliva dripping onto the mini-girl’s skirt, leaving dark wet stains.

“Little kitten, why aren’t you afraid anymore? Cry for me! I’m going to skin you to make gloves and chop off your ears and tail to chew on! Aren’t you afraid?!”

It was truly bluffing; the child-form spirit had no direct means of attack, so it could only simulate the weakest, most piteous kitten stage of a cat’s life. By adding psychological suggestion and hypnosis, it made the cats sucked into the space believe the illusion was their own avatar. It made them fearful, terrified, and sad to feast on those negative emotions.

However, Ji Mianmian was already recalling Shuoyu’s beautiful face; her mind was full of the sadness that Sister was worrying about her. She slowly pushed the wardrobe door open just a crack. She extended her arm, drew the longbow, and gripped three arrows full of Meow Power at once, firing them all at the spirit.

“I’m not afraid! You yourself are nothing to be feared!”

The Meow Power arrowheads which were the best fertilizer for the island’s environment and the best supplement for the island’s cats—were now like highly corrosive sulfuric acid or scalding hot lava. All three arrows pierced the spirit’s face, which was shrouded in black mist. In an instant, it could no longer maintain its human form.

Along with the cozy and eerie children’s room, it collapsed and disintegrated into a mass of black mist that could not regroup. It shrieked and charged toward Ji Mianmian like a starving vulture desperate to snatch a lion’s prey.

Unfortunately, its movement was stopped by an invisible wall, accompanied by a woman’s voice full of satisfaction and triumph.

“The spirit in the spiritual world can be controlled once it turns into black mist! Mianmian, quickly use the Meow Power arrows to stab it! Oh, don’t bother drawing the bow one by one just grab the remaining dozen arrows and stab them into it!”

“Sister Mianmian, the five weak cats need to be moved in two cart-trips. You and A-Jin go back first; Little Flower and I will wait here…”

The battle was over. After helping Shuoyu collect the loot, Little White meowed to discuss the next steps. To its horror, when it turned around the next second, its fur stood on end. Ji Mianmian had disappeared! Shuoyu, who had been floating in mid-air, was also gone!

Little White dashed to its companions: “A-Jin, Little Flower! Did Sister Mianmian leave early? How could she leave without a word… What? You didn’t see her walk back?”

A-Jin, the most experienced, stood up. It sniffed carefully and observed the surroundings, finally arriving at a sorrowful conclusion. Ji Mianmian had been snatched by an evil spirit. The good news was that this spirit must be weak; it had hidden to the side while everyone was fighting and only dared to take a cat into its space once the battle was over.

Since the omnipotent Shuoyu was with her, Ji Mianmian’s life should be safe. The bad news was that because it was weak, its spiritual space had limited capacity and could only hold one cat. Unless Ji Mianmian came out on her own or they waited until dawn, they wouldn’t find an entrance to rescue her.

After waiting for a long time without seeing any sign of them, Little White and the others decided to first take the five cats attracted by the incense home. Though Shuoyu wasn’t there to open the medical station or pay the bills, they could summon the robotic arms to prepare food for the thin newcomers and soothe the possessed cats. Once Shuoyu and Mianmian returned, they would be added to the safe zone!

As the Meow Power on the last arrow purified the spirit entirely, the spiritual space completely collapsed. The image on the screen shifted again, and Shuoyu and Ji Mianmian were back on Cat Island.

The memory of the cat-eared girl sobbing in fear earlier was completely cast aside. Ji Mianmian bit her lower lip and tapped her head in frustration: “Oh no, I forgot to recover the arrowheads!”

Meow Power arrows were modified from ordinary arrows. Once the Meow Power at the tip was exhausted, they could be recovered and reused after being replenished—very environmentally friendly. Shuoyu finished picking up the shining loot on the ground, her eyes curving with charm.

“It dropped a Barbecue Party Card interaction fragment; that’s much more important than arrowheads. It doesn’t matter if the arrowheads are gone; Sister will make you more tomorrow.”

Since the cat combat squad had formed and could easily drive out spirits, the drop rate for fragments had lowered significantly. Last time, nine monsters dropped eight fragments; this time, twenty-four monsters only dropped seven!

“Sister really likes using interaction cards. It’s a pity we came to fight the spirits right after getting back from the flower field instead of going to the hot springs.” Remembering the hand-holding and hugging with the Little Cloud Person, Ji Mianmian’s heart rate involuntarily quickened. Actually, she liked using the interaction cards too. As long as Shuoyu was online, she liked whatever they did, regardless of the form.

Shuoyu was too embarrassed to tell her that she wanted to save that card until the day all five senses were unlocked. Just the thought of being able to touch the girl with her own hands made her body feel warm with longing. She checked the crayon-drawn map for the cat paw icons.

“Little White and the others have gone home. Let’s head back too.”

Returning to the medical station and seeing the cats looking after the five newcomers so well, a sense of “the children have grown up” rose in Shuoyu’s heart. She greeted the five cats one by one. Success! Duo Duo, Short Tail, Little Muddled, Lu Zai, and Hei Zai were added to the Cat Encyclopedia!

While she was busy, Ji Mianmian waved with a smile: “Sister, I’m a bit tired. I’m going back to change my clothes first.”

Shuoyu observed carefully to ensure the girl’s mood was normal and not dejected like the last time she was obsessed with petting A-Jin. Only then did she let Mianmian go. But with more cats in the safe zone, “balancing the water” (treating everyone equally) had become difficult. After petting the newcomers, the original residents meowed for attention.

After petting A-Jin and the others, Big Yellow and his group spending their last day in the medical pods got jealous. Shuoyu finally experienced the “happy troubles” of being popular. In the chorus of meows, she even felt a sense of being an emperor in a cat harem!

Concubine Bai is dignified, Consort Jin is clingy, Noble Lady Lu is charming… As long as they were meowing, fluffy cuties, they were all the apple of her eye!

After finally satisfying all the cats, Shuoyu hurriedly made an excuse to slip away: “Mianmian was snatched into a spiritual space today; I’m going to comfort her. Goodnight everyone, don’t fight you’re all my good babies!”

Then she fled to the master bedroom door, moving the controller to knock: “Knock, knock.” After doing this, she felt a bit silly. Even though Ji Mianmian looked human, she probably didn’t understand English. Just as she was about to use another opening line, a sweet and curious voice came from inside: “Who’s there?“

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