CH 3.3

The rough mountain road was difficult to transverse and coming and going indeed ate up a lot of time. Bai Xia Xia was bored to death, and Cat classes started again.

Da Hua’s head shook like a rattle, and he pulled back his big meaty paw in rejection: “Ao~”

Everything Xia Xia talks about is very difficult.

I don’t want to learn.

It’s harder than hunting skills, something about counting and common sense from two-legged beasts…

Bai Xia Xia taught patiently and systematically and was in the process fooling the fat tiger. Suddenly, she heard some sounds of rustling from feet stepping on fallen leaves.

Speaking of it, it was also weird. Ever since Bai Xia Xia transmigrated and became a cat, her five senses became more sensitive by many folds.

It was unknown if the cat’s body was originally this sensitive, or if after she transmigrated, a mutation had occurred.

For some things that ordinary people and ordinary animals could not hear and see, she was able to hear clearly.

The sound of steps slowly got closer, as if it was a distance that was not too far away from them.

Bai Xia Xia pricked up her ears to listen.

The slight breeze carried over bits and pieces of the sounds of conversation. Bai Xia Xia ignored other noises and started to seriously listen to them. Solemnity and graveness slowly appeared on the cat’s face.

Her claws unconsciously extended out.

“Those son of b*tches, bastards that have mothers to give birth to them but none to feed them! Laozi[1] will sooner or later shoot them to death.”

“Oh, just shup up! If it weren’t because of you getting into a fight with that crazy guy impulsively, Da Dong and Er Ming wouldn’t have died.”

“How’s it my fault?” The person that was talking spoke gruffly, his voice was both rough and unpleasant. However, it contained clearly discernible madness and hostility: “Those useless people from Tong city, they weren’t able to catch people by themselves, and actually called external assistance to waste our time.”

“Wang Peng, don’t try to trick laozi and shirk responsibilities, you clearly knew that the ones from Tong city were not people that should be provoked, but you still ran out arrogantly. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have been exposed at all!”

“Now look at us, almost everyone has died off, and only we remain to waste time with you! Both the person and the wealth were lost, and everyone is trapped in this god forsaken who-knows-where place! On our behinds there’s also a group of killers, you tell me what we should do!”

“No skill but with a bad temper. I really don’t understand how back then you…”

“Old Liao, who the f*ck are you talking about? That I’m not capable? Will you believe me if I shoot you to death right now?”

“Stop!”

A middle-aged voice that was obviously calmer and older than the other two reprimanded, it was snappy and a bit impatient, “Is it time to be fighting amongst ourselves?! Do you all not want to live anymore? A bunch of brainless bastards, you don’t want to live, but I still want to!”

“Live my ass! If you ask me, if they don’t let us live well, then let’s all die together and die cleanly!”

“Hmph! The most hateful one was that captain,” Wang Peng hatefully spit out foam that had blood, his face full of hostility, “he was injured worse than us, most of the blood was from him, no one in the troop was wounded.”

“Killing our people, making us fall into this situation. No matter what, we should at least make him pay us back the capital plus interest.”

The voice of the calm, middle-aged man followed up saying: “That man is incredible too, he got such a serious wound and was still able to keep escaping until now.”

“Right now, we’re stranded in this mountain, among that group of soldiers, there’s none that’s good to deal with. As long as we’re able to find him, no need to mention other things, but at the very least, we’ll have the possibility of getting away.”

The voice of the person named Old Liao was astonishingly high-pitched, in between the femininity there was three parts of mockery: “Why speak so much rubbish? Keep following him first, talk later after finding him.”

“Taking him as a hostage or whatever will probably not be an option. After dragging on so many days, even a body made of iron wouldn’t be able to bear it, he must be close to dying.”

“…the best scenario is if he’s not dead yet, good enough to let us use him as a hostage. This guy…”

Bai Xia Xia difficultly swallowed saliva. The whole cat jumped up from fright.

She had wandered on the mountains for many days. Even though she had never seen the outlaws that had been cornered into the mountains, but if she thought about it, people who could make the base send troops to hunt them, who could reduce Qin Xiao to such a bad state, they had to be vicious and fierce without a doubt.

Brutality and cruelty that was inhuman.

I and Da Hua are still okay, but what about Qin Xiao?

This group of people must’ve guns in their hands for sure, they’re not people that can be easily confronted.

“Meow~”

“Da Hua, hide with me.” On both sides of the road, there was an abundance of overgrown trees and greenery, the bushes could cover Da Hua and her without any problem at all.

Da Hua was confused, pacing with Bai Xia Xia to find cover, hiding by the road.

“Awu?” Don’t care about the two-legged beast anymore?

Bai Xia Xia listened to the movement in the distance, predicted the direction where the three people would be coming from, and big, round eyes fixedly stared over there, observing left and right.

Her brain madly started making plans. The closer the three people were, the more nervous Bai Xia Xia became.

So nervous that her fur bristled, her back slightly arched, and her eyes were full of tension: “Da Hua, listen to my commands in a moment, if I tell you to charge out, just charge, understand?”

Cuilian Mountain was too big, it was unknown if the troops would be able to find them.

Qin Xiao was heavily wounded, not only did she have to protect him, she also could not allow him to be injured further, that would possibly make Qin Xia meet his death.

Additionally, Da Hua could not take risks either. Da Hua had only come out because he listened to her, Bai Xia Xia could not harm Da Hua.

“Bad people are coming here; I want to protect him.”

Da Hua had never seen Bai Xia Xia looking so wary and nervous and, in a spur of a moment, also started to become nervous too, his throat emitting suppressed growling sounds.

The whole tiger was hidden among the lush trees, its body in a half-prostrated posture, with its big, meaty paws pressing on the loose soil, “Xia Xia, they have guns?”

Even though Da Hua was young, ever since he was in the nest, he had heard his mom saying that the two-legged beasts had a very incredible thing, and to not provoke them lightly.

Later, Bai Xia Xia had thoroughly explained how harmful guns could be to Da Hua.

It was then that Da Hua had known, What two-legged beasts carry are guns, they can hit me from a very long distance.

If wounded, it’ll be serious, enough to die.

Bai Xia Xia, for Da Hua’s safety, had spoken about a lot of things to him.

This had made Da Hua develop a very, very strong feeling of vigilance.

Bai Xia Xia taught Da Hua to divide humans into two categories, trash that were bare handed and did not carry anything.

Big guys that carried and held iron pipes.

Of course, no matter if they carried weapons or not, Bai Xia Xia had told Da Hua to not harm any of them, unless the situation called for it.

Da Hua was very obedient.

“En[2].” Bai Xia Xia’s breathing was rapid. She tried her best to tell herself to calm down, calm down!

It’s unknown when Lu Jianhua will come, those three outlaws don’t have any good plans for Qin Xiao.

Fortunately, my ears are sensitive, knowing their movements ahead of time.

They also didn’t have any scruples, speaking loudly. Bai Xia Xia had gotten a lot of information from their conversation, roughly knowing that they had been chased into running everywhere, that they were tired out, and that they were close running out of ammunition and food.

All three held guns in their hands, but only the gun in the middle-aged man’s hands had two bullets left.

The one that was most threatening.

The two remaining people had knives with them, their physical skills were fierce, and they were people who had trained in martial arts.

Three versus three.

Three exhausted adult outlaws that were trained in martial arts and that carried guns, against a big cat, a small cat, and a wounded person.

On their side, only Da Hua was worthy of showing off, but they also had to worry about bullets and could not be too risky.

Bai Xia Xia with a small figure… she decided to take cover, telling Da Hua to mount a sneak attack.

Old Liao’s group of three people followed all along the blood trail that Qin Xiao had left on the road, Bai Xia Xia internally cursed and cried like a dog: This baby only wanted to find a poop shovel officer for herself, first rescuing him, then planning on extending a friendly small paw of proposal for cohabitation towards soldier gege.

Couldn’t you have come a bit later?

The three got increasingly closer, it was not only Bai Xia Xia, Da Hua, who was an elite hunter at the top of the chain, also smelled the scent of strange intruders.

Two forepaws rubbed lightly; nose twitched.

Wildness and ferociousness that belonged to animals surged in the beast eyes, pursed upper lips occasionally exposed cold, white teeth.

— —The Emperor of a Hundred Beasts was going to display its mightiness, it was time to work.

Translator’s comments:

Da Hua is a good boy, Xia Xia is his sister(?).

Translator’s notes:

[1] 老子(lǎo zi): It means father, but is only used in anger or in contempt. Another way of translating it is ‘daddy’. Through much deliberation, we’ve decided on sticking to using its pinyin, however, if the readers prefer ‘daddy’, we can change it, so leave a comment if you wish for us to change it.

[2] ‘嗯(ēn)’: a sound to express approval, agreement, or simply yes.