Chapter 20: The Guardian’s Pursuit

A cat?

A flicker of curiosity stirred within Bai Zhi, and unable to resist, she drew closer.

She had previously heard rumors about the recent surge in stray cat numbers within San City.

It was said that some people, chasing trends, had acquired pet cats, but then lacked the necessary patience, and consequently, after purchasing them, found them bothersome and abandoned them not long after.

However, seeing a so-called stray cat appear before her eyes was still a first for Bai Zhi.

Yet, the cat before her… differed somewhat from her imagined image of a stray.

The cat before her was entirely pitch-black and plump.

Its fur was soft and sleek, not a single strand out of place; from a distance, it appeared as though draped in a layer of fine silk, exuding a lustrous sheen.

Evidently, this cat was accustomed to a pampered existence, the kind whose every strand of fur received meticulous care.

It was clearly not in the same league as the strays that frequented the alleyways and hovered near trash cans.

At that moment, the black cat lay curled up by the roadside in a completely unguarded posture, fast asleep.

Even upon hearing Bai Zhi’s approaching footsteps, it merely opened its eyes to glance at Bai Zhi before resuming its deep, rumbling slumber.

“You’re not afraid of people at all? I don’t know whether to call you friendly… or just stupid.”

Bai Zhi couldn’t help but murmur under her breath, even as one hand instinctively reached out to stroke the sleeping black cat.

Her fingertips registered the expected silky smoothness.

To avoid startling the little creature before her, Bai Zhi tried to make her movements as gentle as possible.

However, the black cat before her seemed entirely unfazed.

It neither showed any signs of resistance nor did it actively nudge its head into her palm like a typical housecat would with its owner.

Instead, it adopted the languid, somewhat disdainful posture of a salted fish.

It was as if it were saying, ‘If you’re going to pet me, do it quickly; once you’re done, be on your way.’

“This doesn’t look like a stray at all. It must have snuck out because someone left their door open, right?”

Bai Zhi pondered the cat’s origins in her mind, forcibly suppressing the urge to take it home.

On one hand, she knew that with her personality, even if she took the black cat home, she wouldn’t truly care for it; in that case, she would likely dump all responsibility onto Rena.

On the other hand, the cat clearly had an owner, and its owner seemed to treat it very well, leading Bai Zhi to believe she couldn’t possibly snatch someone else’s beloved pet.

With a tinge of regret, Bai Zhi continued to stroke the cat.

It was nearly a minute later before she reluctantly withdrew her hand.

“I still have things to do. I’m leaving now.”

Regardless of whether the black cat could understand, Bai Zhi softly murmured this to it.

As if it truly understood, the black cat opened its eyes and cast a glance at Bai Zhi as she rose.

“Alright! Time to get down to business!”

After her delightful moment of petting the cat had concluded, Bai Zhi felt her spirits completely revitalized and began to earnestly ponder how to locate the suddenly vanished Transmigrator.

Firstly, a brute-force search within the residential area, as before, was certainly out of the question.

Bai Zhi surmised that the unknown Transmigrator must have learned about her in advance, and thus, had found a way to conceal themselves the moment they arrived in this world.

However, she did not know what the Transmigrator looked like.

Such a blind search would likely yield nothing; it was even possible that the Transmigrator could be standing right before her, and she still wouldn’t notice them.

She needed to devise another method.

Bai Zhi pondered deeply.

Then, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

In the past, Bai Zhi had attempted to develop her abilities.

One such attempt involved releasing magic to rapidly scan her surroundings, intended to help her quickly detect enemies her eyes might have missed.

However, Bai Zhi quickly abandoned this particular endeavor.

It wasn’t because she couldn’t achieve it, but rather because she found it unnecessary; after all, when most opponents could be defeated in a single move, she had little need for strange or peculiar techniques.

It wasn’t until today that Bai Zhi finally had the opportunity to test the concept she had envisioned years ago.

Bai Zhi quieted her mind.

She merged her consciousness with the vast surge of magic within her body.

Then, this amalgamated consciousness and magic unleashed itself from within, like a floodgate opening.

An invisible wave consequently emanated outwards, centered on Bai Zhi.

The moment it encountered this wave, the black cat sleeping beside Bai Zhi suddenly twitched, then looked at Bai Zhi with a hint of curiosity.

Meanwhile, in Bai Zhi’s vision, the world, which had been a canvas of absolute blackness upon closing her eyes, now burst into a riot of colors.

Lifeless roads and buildings appeared gray, plants glowed a pale green, and the ordinary citizens enjoying their dinners within those buildings were rendered in an ethereal milky white.

‘Magic Vision’—this was the name Bai Zhi coined for this newly invented ability, a skill capable of detecting targets over a wide area, disregarding obstacles.

As for the varied colors currently appearing in her vision, Bai Zhi speculated they might be the colors of souls, or perhaps something similar.

Driven by curiosity, she shifted her focus to the cat beside her.

In her vision, the black cat before her was emanating a blue glow from its entire body.

“So, the colors of animals and humans are indeed different,” Bai Zhi mused silently.

Although Bai Zhi wished to verify this observation further, there were more pressing matters at hand.

Thus, she temporarily cast the thought aside.

‘After all, there would be plenty of time in the future!’ Bai Zhi thought, ever the optimist.

Her consciousness gradually spread outwards, extending towards more distant, unknown territories.

Amidst the landscapes of interwoven gray and milky white that swept past her vision, one after another, Bai Zhi suddenly spotted a brilliant, fiery red mass, blazing like a flame.

“I’ve found you!”

Bai Zhi abruptly opened her dark eyes.

Then, she shot into the air, streaking towards the fiery red mass she had perceived.

***

Along a silent, deserted street, a burly man walked alone in silence.

The man was tall and powerfully built.

Despite wearing a rather loose-fitting jacket, the robust muscles beneath were still discernible.

His skin was dark, as if frequently exposed to the scorching sun during arduous labor.

His smooth scalp was completely devoid of hair.

Combined with his menacing appearance, he exuded the aura of a thug who, despite merely strolling down the street, might at any moment burst into a convenience store to rob it.

“Hmph, that Number Four, treating this great one like an idiot again!”

“And Number One, he personally established this organization, yet now he’s telling us not to make any rash moves.”

“When I first met him, he seemed like a man of integrity. How did he turn into such a coward now?”

The man grumbled under his breath, a look of profound displeasure on his face.

He appeared utterly dejected.

Suddenly, the man’s footsteps halted.

Behind him, a slightly languid female voice called out to him.

“Hey, it’s you, isn’t it! You hid pretty well, made me search quite a bit.”

The black-haired girl had appeared behind the man at some unknown point.

Her tone carried an unmistakable hint of displeasure.

After all, she was still starving, all because of her search for this fellow.

Upon hearing the rather irritated female voice from behind him, the bald man, surprisingly, erupted into a look of wild ecstasy.

“The ‘Guardian’! You didn’t come… yet you delivered yourself right to my doorstep!”