Chapter 181: A Talking Cat: Helper or Enemy?

While the rat plague remained unresolved, a sudden appearance of cats disrupted the scene.

Chen Yi and his companions immediately raised their guard, unwilling to jump to conclusions before figuring out whether these creatures were friends or foes.

The cats appeared somewhat lazy at first, pacing leisurely toward the horde of rats. However, upon sensing the dangerous aura of the rats, the finesse vanished; the cats bared their fangs, their eyes glowing with a piercing green light.

Seeing this terrifying display, the rats didn't hesitate for a single second and bolted in sheer panic.

Everyone present was dumbfounded. These cats clearly possessed a high level of intelligence, yet the mutated rats obeyed them out of sheer terror.

"Hey, I say, why are you people acting so strange? An capable individual helped you deal with your adversaries, and yet you stand there staring like that?"

"A cat... that speaks?"

Hearing the cat's voice, the group could not help but gasp. "Good grief, even cats have mutated these days!"

"What is so strange about that?"

Licking its paw, the leading Cat King strode forward haughtily, let out a meow, and then prostrated itself directly before Chen Yaxi.

"Little girl, from now on, you shall be my master."

This sudden development left everyone stunned. What was going on? Chen Yaxi was somehow the Cat King's master? How did they not know Yaxi had such an affinity with felines? Even Chen Yaxi herself was utterly baffled, completely at a loss.

"What is the meaning of this? Why are you suddenly trying to become my pet?"

"Because you are cute, of course."

The Cat King licked its paw once more. "It is precisely because of your charming appearance that I grant you this opportunity. I wouldn't offer this to just anyone."

"Hold it right there." Chen Yi raised an eyebrow.

"I am not thrilled by that explanation. We are all intelligent people here; nobody is going to believe you are altering your entire path for such a trivial reason."

"So what if I am?" The Cat King chuckled again. "I do not abandon the one I choose. With a master, I can forge a contract and ascend to become a warrior of the feline clan!"

These words made everyone instantly aware of the cat's ambition. Craving greater power, it sought to use a human to equalize its strength. In truth, this creature was likely attempting to secretly siphon power from humans.

Chen Yi smiled inwardly. For a mere cat to harbor ambitions surpassing those of humans was truly astonishing. He stepped forward again, his twin blades flashing as he raised them.

"Speak. How would you prefer to die?"

Fear finally crept into the Cat King, causing the fur all over its body to stand on end.

Good grief! These humans did not play by the rules at all! The Cat King had originally thought it could turn the tables, but now it realized the entire situation was a joke—a ridiculous blunder that could have been avoided entirely had it not been for its own foolishness.

At that moment, the other cats began to eye the surroundings with hostility, attempting to edge closer to little Yaxi.

"You're courting death."

Chen Yi's gaze turned glacial as his fists clenched tightly.

"Whoever dares harbor any ideas about my sister, I will skin them alive!"

The Cat King's fur bristled once more. This man radiated an oppressive, suffocating pressure, feeling very much like an emissary from hell. If they hadn't desperately needed the power of purification, they would never have run all the way here just to court their own destruction.

Things were looking grim now.

Meowing frantically, the Cat King panicked. This blunder had brought them monumental trouble. Once they missed the window for purification, even if they retained their current strength, their evolutionary path would be permanently halted, unable to advance any further.

Left with no choice, the Cat King attempted a cautious, conciliatory approach.

"Please, I beg of you, stop fighting us. If we lose our contracted master, our power will truly be stripped away entirely."

"First, tell me: what purpose does this essence actually serve?"

Chen Yi fixed his cold gaze upon the creature once more.

"Until I understand its true intent, I will not agree to this. Unless you can genuinely guarantee the utmost care for my sister, all discussions are off."

Realizing the gravity of the situation, the Cat King hurriedly stepped closer, expressing its willingness to reveal everything before beginning its explanation.

As it turned out, for mutated magical beings like the feline clan, they were neither fully human nor entirely cat; they existed as transitional, anomalous entities bridging the two species. To survive, they needed the support of a contracted master. Chen Yaxi possessed the strongest resonance of potential, which was why they had set their sights entirely on her.

Hearing this, Lu Kai and the others let out cold, mocking laughs.

"You've got it wrong. The truly powerful one here is our boss. See him? That's Chen Yi."

The Cat King looked over at the young man standing before it. After scanning him up and down, it could indeed sense an overwhelming capability, yet it gently shook its head.

"He is formidable indeed, but I know we cannot subdue him. Therefore, we have no other choice."

Hearing this, the group couldn't help but chuckle. It seemed these creatures possessed a decent amount of self-awareness after all.

However, they quickly reined in their emotions. In a delicate situation where a single misstep could trigger a chain reaction, they could not allow these creatures to dictate their emotional state.

At that very moment, the rat army began to advance once more. Having severely misjudged Chen Yi and his group's true strength, the rodents intended to mount a comeback.

Yet, the Cat King merely smiled coldly.

"All of you, stand back. Leave them to us."

Seeing the Cat King volunteer, Chen Yi deemed it a reasonable course of action and signaled his companions to step back.

"Get out of our way!" The rat leader bellowed, its eyes burning with fury.

"I'm warning you, if you dare help the humans again, we will tear you cats into shreds!"

"Tear us to shreds? Be my guest!"

A chilling glint flashed in the feline's eyes. With a fierce roar, the Cat King led its army in a ferocious charge, hurling themselves into a brutal melee with the rat horde without a second thought.

In a matter of moments, the battlefield turned into a river of blood.

Neither cats nor rats emerged completely unscathed; neither side could claim absolute victory. Before long, countless bodies littered the ground. The Cat King had sustained severe injuries, yet it forced itself back to its feet, slowly dragging its battered body toward the surviving rat leader.

The rat leader was already on the verge of collapse, gasping its final breaths.

"Spare me... I swear we can reach a truce."

"It's too late. I'm in no mood for mercy."

With a swift swipe of its paw, the Cat King ended its adversary once and for all.

Licking the fresh blood from its claws, the Cat King turned its cold gaze back to the humans.

"Do you believe now that I can be of help to you? Or do you still wish to drive me away?"

Chen Yaxi, being a child after all, giggled brightly at the sight.

"That was so cool, kitty! Shall we forge our contract now?"

"Stop messing around." Chen Yi furrowed his brow once more. "This is a bad idea."