Cat Girl

Lord Jingzhe?

Why was she here?

And when Shangguan Yunying's gaze fell on Gu Xiaoli, she was utterly stunned.

What was that?

Cat ears?

Cat tail?

Cat paws?

Shangguan Yunying rubbed her eyes vigorously, wondering if she was seeing things.

Was this still the Gu Xiaoli she knew?

Gu Chengyin was equally surprised. He wasn't shocked by Lin Qingyan's appearance.

But when he saw Gu Xiaoli in this form, his eyes went wide.

Under the moonlight, the world-weary girl was crouched, cat ears perked up, tail bristling, cat eyes gleaming with hostility.

This...

So Gu Xiaoli really was a cat-eared girl!

This form was just too...

Gu Chengyin couldn't find the right words to describe it.

Even after being suddenly attacked by Gu Xiaoli, Lin Qingyan remained true to her persona, wearing that same detached, uncaring expression.

As if she hadn't just been assaulted, as if the tense standoff before her had nothing to do with her.

Even so, a hint of coldness couldn't be hidden in her eyes.

A restless energy of lightning began to stir around her.

But the lightning wasn't the golden kind she usually used.

It was black, filled with an aura of death.

Countless black bolts of lightning crackled madly around Lin Qingyan, hissing and popping.

They tore tiny fissures in the surrounding void.

The blackness was deep as an abyss, radiating an aura of destruction, as if she was ready to fight at the slightest provocation.

Gu Chengyin's pupils contracted as he watched the black arcs around Lin Qingyan.

One was invincible at the Golden Core stage, the other was half a step into Nascent Soul. If they really fought...

Forget the Stargazing Tower, probably the entire divine capital would be destroyed, right?

Gu Chengyin felt a throbbing headache.

Why was it that every time danger erupted, he ended up at the closest range?

What kind of karma was this, landing him in these situations?

He had to stop these two. No matter what, they absolutely could not fight.

Gu Chengyin immediately stood up and walked quickly toward them.

He stepped directly between Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli, using his body to block their line of sight.

Lin Qingyan's black lightning crackled at his side; Gu Xiaoli's sharp claws were right in front of his eyes.

But Gu Chengyin seemed oblivious to the danger. He looked first at Lin Qingyan.

His eyes carried a soothing intent, signaling her to stay calm.

Meeting his gaze, the coldness in Lin Qingyan's eyes eased slightly, and the black arcs around her subsided.

Gu Chengyin nodded slightly. From the current situation, he could roughly guess what had happened.

Lin Qingyan had clearly been the one attacked; otherwise, she wouldn't have suddenly emerged from the void.

And Gu Xiaoli, for some reason, had been nowhere to be found earlier, only to appear now and strike at Lin Qingyan.

What was going on?

Did these two have some deep-seated grudge?

After confirming Lin Qingyan wouldn't act recklessly, Gu Chengyin turned to look at Gu Xiaoli.

He bent down slightly to meet her vertical cat eyes at eye level, his tone as gentle as a spring breeze:

"Xiaoli, what happened?"

Gu Xiaoli's cat eyes blinked. Once Lin Qingyan's figure was blocked by Gu Chengyin, her hostile posture calmed down considerably.

The fierceness in her cat eyes faded, and her tail stopped bristling, swaying lightly behind her.

She stared at Gu Chengyin for a moment before speaking slowly:

"Sister Qingyan wants to take Big Brother away."

Her voice was soft and sweet, but carried a childish stubbornness.

"Xiaoli won't allow that to happen."

Gu Chengyin was stunned. He blinked, momentarily at a loss.

Lin Qingyan wanted to take him away?

Where had Gu Xiaoli heard that?

Gu Chengyin asked in surprise, "Xiaoli, who told you that?"

Gu Xiaoli opened her mouth, about to say Luo Zhao's name.

But she stopped herself just in time.

She was well aware of Luo Zhao's current state.

After all, she had personally created the consciousness puppet for Luo Zhao, so she couldn't reveal that Luo Zhao had told her.

With Gu Chengyin's intelligence, one word would let him deduce the entire truth.

And then everything would be ruined.

Gu Xiaoli blinked, a glint of cunning flickering in her cat eyes.

Then she pointed at Lin Qingyan and said with full confidence:

"Sister Qingyan used to compete with Xiaoli for Niangniang, and now that she's back."

"She's still clinging to Big Brother's side. It's obvious she wants to take him!"

Gu Chengyin was speechless.

He didn't know what to say.

Gu Xiaoli had discovered Lin Qingyan secretly protecting him, thought she was hanging around on purpose, and got hostile?

And the reason she thought this was because Lin Qingyan had competed with her for Empress Lin in the past?

Gu Chengyin looked at the bristling cat-eared girl before him and felt a mix of amusement and exasperation.

He shook his head and patiently explained:

"Xiaoli, you've misunderstood. It's not like that. Little Aunt, she..."

Gu Chengyin paused, choosing his words carefully.

"She's just protecting me in secret. She's not hanging around on purpose."

Gu Xiaoli's cat ears twitched, a hint of suspicion in her eyes.

This version was different from what Luo Zhao had told her.

Lin Qingyan had fallen in love with Gu Chengyin? It had turned into her just protecting him?

"Sister Qingyan... is protecting Big Brother?"

"Yes."

Gu Xiaoli tilted her head, thinking, then looked at Lin Qingyan again, still somewhat distrustful.

Seeing her like this, Gu Chengyin said gently:

"How about this, Xiaoli? Put that form away first. Let's talk nicely, no fighting. Be good."

Gu Xiaoli pursed her lips, glanced at Lin Qingyan one more time.

The vigilance in her vertical cat eyes gradually faded, replaced by a flicker of hesitation.

But she knew this wasn't good either. They really couldn't end up fighting.

It was just that when she found Gu Chengyin and noticed Lin Qingyan secretly watching him.

Gu Xiaoli, for some reason, struck out with a claw without thinking.

By the time she came to her senses, they were already in this situation.

Finally, Gu Xiaoli nodded.

Her cat ears, cat eyes, tail, and claws all faded away.

The familiar, world-weary Gu Xiaoli reappeared before Gu Chengyin.

But her lips were still slightly pouted, clearly still feeling unsatisfied.

Gu Chengyin stepped forward, reached out, and patted her head, praising her:

"That's more like it."

Then he took Gu Xiaoli's hand and led her over to Lin Qingyan.

"No matter what, attacking right away was wrong of Xiaoli."

He looked at Gu Xiaoli, his tone gentle but firm.

"Apologize to Little Aunt."

Gu Xiaoli pouted even more. Though usually very obedient, she was being stubborn now.

She turned her head away, refusing to look at Lin Qingyan, and muttered softly:

"Sister Qingyan clearly wants to take Big Brother. Xiaoli won't apologize."

Her voice was small, but carried a trace of defiance.