Chapter 0123

What?

Shock, stupor, petrification.

Lin Ran stood frozen in place, unable to react for a long time.

[Little Black: "Holy shit, is that Luo Yao? Mind-blown for a cat. How is she so skinny? And with short hair, looking like a little beggar—who could’ve guessed this was actually a girl?"]

Lin Ran: "So… you’re Luo Yao."

Lin Ran couldn’t see even a trace of the current Luo Yao in this little boy—no, little girl.

Mainly because Luo Yao was still very young, with short hair, a childish voice, and covered in dirt—it was genuinely hard to tell her gender, okay?

Wait, there was one similarity: their eyes.

Especially now, those crimson eyes were practically a carbon copy of little Luo Yao’s.

Slap! Lin Ran harshly struck himself across the face.

His beloved was right in front of him, and he hadn’t recognized her.

Not only that, he’d mistaken her gender entirely, thinking she was a boy.

[Little Black: "You think slapping yourself makes up for your stupidity?"]

"Luo Yao, I—"

Before Lin Ran could finish, little Luo Yao suddenly leaped at him without warning.

"You! Are! Mine!"

Lin Ran was instantly knocked to the ground, feeling a sharp pain in his shoulder—exactly the same spot as before.

Little Luo Yao: He can’t leave. He’s mine. I want to eat him up.

Lin Ran gritted his teeth against the pain.

[Little Black: "Lin Ran, we have to go. If we don’t leave now, we’ll be obliterated by the temporal pressure—not even ashes left."]

Lin Ran: "Luo Yao, listen to me. As much as I want to stay with you here, I have to go. You have to survive and get out."

"When you grow up… I’ll marry you. Then we’ll live together forever."

The words worked like magic. Little Luo Yao gradually loosened her bite, the metallic taste of blood lingering on her tongue. Her eyes flickered with confusion.

"Marry… me?"

"Yes. When you grow up, you’ll marry me. Understand? We’ll be together forever, inseparable. We’ll eat together, sleep together, wake up together."

"When you can’t sleep, you’ll curl up in my arms and stare at me. When I can’t sleep, I’ll lie under you and stare at you."

A glimmer of light slowly returned to little Luo Yao’s eyes, as if she’d found a reason to keep living.

"Really… can… we?"

"Of course. I’d lie to the whole world before I’d lie to you."

Little Luo Yao stared at the bloody bite mark on Lin Ran’s shoulder, the crimson in her eyes fading.

Replaced by—reluctance?

"Want… to eat… you."

Lin Ran’s heart ached. He didn’t want to leave either, but if he stayed, he might never see Luo Yao again.

He pointed at his still-bleeding shoulder.

"You like biting here?"

Little Luo Yao nodded.

"Fine. I promise—this spot is reserved for you. When you grow up and find me, you can bite it whenever you want. And only here. I won’t let you bite anywhere else."

Little Luo Yao blinked, as if processing his words.

"Promise… me?"

"Yes. This is my vow to you. When you’re older, come collect."

"Okay."

Though Lin Ran had so much more to say, Little Black wasn’t waiting any longer.

The moment time was up, it pulled Lin Ran away, their figures dissolving into the predawn darkness at four in the morning.

Lin Ran felt weak, as if he’d just woken from a long, exhausting dream—or maybe done nothing at all.

"Luo Yao—!"

He gasped awake, sitting up weakly in bed.

He’d left at night, but when he arrived in the primal forest, it was dusk.

Now, back in reality, the sun was already high.

Twelve hours. Lin Ran had completed a time-travel journey he’d never forget.

Yet suddenly, none of it felt real.

A talking cat. A tiny Luo Yao. His own exhaustion.

Had he really traveled back? Or was it all a dream? Maybe he was losing his mind?

"Little Black. Little Black."

[Little Black: "I’m here, you love-struck fool. What’s all the yelling about?"]

Not a dream. He could still hear Little Black’s voice in his head.

Then—

"I need to go back. Let’s go back, okay? I didn’t finish talking to her!"

[Little Black: "You said plenty. And my powers are limited. I’m exhausted. I need food, rest—at least a month before I can manipulate time again."]

Lin Ran struggled out of bed, his body drenched in sweat, the bite mark on his shoulder stark against his skin.

"A whole month? Isn’t there a faster way?"

[Little Black: "Take a shower first. Then I’ll tell you."]

Lin Ran didn’t argue. Even he felt like he needed to wash off—his sweat had soaked him like a downpour.

"Fine. I’ll shower. Think about what you want to eat. When I’m out, I’ll have it prepared. Then we’ll go back."

As he spoke, he stripped off his tattered clothes, grabbed a loose robe, and headed for the bathroom.

His legs wobbled from weakness. By the time he finished washing, he barely made it back out.

"Now can you tell me?"

[Little Black: "No use. Even if I could push myself, your body can’t handle another trip so soon. Focus on the present. Also, I want yellow croaker."]

"Seriously? You made me shower just for that?"

[Little Black: "I’m a clean cat. You reeked. I was nauseous."]

Lin Ran was speechless. This cat had to be the reincarnation of pure sass.

With a sigh, he resigned himself to feeding it—after all, he’d need its help again.

"Yellow croaker? You’re a cat. Shouldn’t you eat mice?"

[Little Black: "My mother tongue is exasperation, you absolute walnut. Cats eat mice for taurine, not because we like them. Do you even biology?"]

"Fine. I’ll get your fish. Tiny thing, big attitude."

Lin Ran took a few steps before dizziness slammed into him. He collapsed.

He was truly spent.

"Meow—" [You fraud. At least bring the fish before passing out!]

Little Black padded over, eyeing the discarded, shredded clothes with feline disdain.

[Now I have to clean up your mess. So damn annoying.]

In his daze, Lin Ran thought he saw Luo Yao again.

Under a sky full of stars, her face was blurry, but she seemed to be forcing him to do something.

What was it?

"Big brother, do it yourself, okay?"

"If you dare leave me, I’ll kill you. Turn you into a specimen. Make sure you stay with me forever."

Though Lin Ran couldn’t see clearly, his instincts screamed that this was his beloved.

Just as I was about to agree to Luo Yao, I noticed her eyes turning blood-red, terrifying.

"You promised you'd stay with me forever, ah—" Luo Yao's scream was horrifying, no longer sounding human at all.