Chapter 671: A Cat’s Way of Thinking Is Beyond Human Understanding

The Daoist circled the palace, examining it closely.

Mount Tiazhu was a single column of stone, but about halfway up, a fissure split the peak into two halves. The palace too had a left and right hall, connected by a stone bridge. Overall, the layout was the same as when he had last visited.

Only now, the palace had been slightly repaired. Some statues had been replaced, everything had been swept clean, and there were fresh signs of the Daoists’ daily life here.

A small room served as a sleeping chamber.

Cooking was done in one corner of the room, where they had set up a tiny stove, so cramped and compact that it was plain the Daoists’ life on this mountain was still rather austere.

But the place was kept spotlessly clean.

Carrying a lantern, the Daoist strolled along. When he stepped onto the central stone bridge, it was as though he were walking in the heavens.

The calico cat followed at his heels, tail hanging low, paws moving in light, quick steps like a little wolf. When they reached the mountaintop platform and stepped onto the bridge, she went where he went, stopped where he stopped. All the while, she looked up at him and said, “You said you wanted to borrow the palace, and they didn’t even take any money, they just lent it to you.”

“Yes...”

“How come they know you too?”

“Don’t they also know you, Lady Calico?”

“How come they know me?” The cat stared blankly at him. “I don't know them.”

“You traveled the land, walking among mortals, often doing good. You slew demons, eradicating evil, helping the people. Such deeds naturally spread by word of mouth. And those who’ve been helped by you will, of course, remember your kindness. So when they see you again, they recognize you.”

The Daoist spoke slowly as he walked with the lantern in hand.

“Mm...” The cat seemed half-understanding, savoring his words.

“In that case, from now on, wherever you go to eat, you won’t have to pay anymore?”

“...” The Daoist stopped in the middle of the bridge.

A small arch bridge, yet it seemed like something built in the sky.

“I’ll be here,” he said.

Seating himself cross-legged at the crest of the arch, he looked at the cat, who was still watching him with her head tilted in puzzlement, and said, “Lady Calico, you should stay here on the mountain this time. Don’t go down casually, and don’t keep coming over every so often to check on me, sniffing around, or running back and forth making clattering noises in front of me.”

“I never do that!”

“And you needn’t bring me food, water, or extra clothes. When I enter meditation, I won’t be hungry, thirsty, or cold. Wind and rain won’t matter either. If you have questions, you can discuss them with the swallow, whose wisdom is not far off from your own.”

“Got it...”

The cat, disappointed, shook her head, turned away, and walked off in a slow, swaying gait.

Song You watched her go before closing his eyes.

Moonlight and starlight poured over him.

As usual, he first took the time to set up a protective formation, both to ensure he would not be disturbed, and to keep Lady Calico and the swallow safe.

The Celestial Emperor was likely growing ever more impatient.

Still, Song You’s opponents this time were gods, not depraved villains without scruples. Song You and any discerning person knew that if the Celestial Emperor truly stooped to harming little spirits like Lady Calico or the swallow to threaten him, it would only cause the virtuous gods of Heaven to cast him out entirely, even abandoning their resistance.

Some who might otherwise have supported him would instead turn away, and such an act would only work greatly to Song You’s advantage. Even so, he could not take such a dangerous gamble, and so he prepared against the possibility all the same.

Days on the mountain passed in the alternation of sunrise and sunset, morning mist and evening haze. Below, tourists came and went, their loud voices sometimes startling the calico cat and the swallow in the heavenly palace above.

At night, the palace lights shone like stars. Several clear days in a row brought the thickening of spring’s warmth.

In the mountains, grasses and trees sprouted new shoots, and wildflowers bloomed.

After sun came rain, bringing back the chill of spring, but the world after the rain was all the fresher, and each day the spring light grew brighter.

On Mount Tiazhu, the path to the summit remained unseen. Many visitors came in admiration, only to hear that they could climb only to the main mountain peak to view the pillar itself, but could not set foot atop the pillar’s peak, much to their regret.

Many were here for the first time and did not know whether the pillar could ever be climbed. At times, the mountain was shrouded in cloud and mist, hiding the palace at the summit entirely. Hearing others say there were two palace halls built upon that sky-piercing column of rock, most refused to believe it, thinking the speaker had merely heard it second-hand or was teasing them. Though, indeed that only days after the start of the year, there had still been a small path up there.

Unknowingly, three months passed.

The mountains deepened into lush green, and summer had arrived. Yuezhou’s Mount Tianzhu had also been fully restored.

The Daoist finally opened his eyes.

He was still seated cross-legged on the central stone arch bridge. No one could tell how many cycles of sun and rain, wind and frost he had endured, but his robes were as spotless as before, free from a speck of dust.

Sensing something, he turned his head.

Not far from him on the bridge, the cat was lying on her side, using a mouse as a pillow, sleeping soundly. Only the very tip of her tail was left “on watch,” swaying slightly back and forth.

The mouse’s eyes were wide open, full of fear.

“...”

The Daoist shook his head. He was just about to rise when he suddenly felt a warmth on his body.

It was that shard of clay figurine. He glanced at his cat, still sleeping with her head on her “ration,” thought for a moment, and then closed his eyes again.

It was early morning, a perfect time for dreams. An old god entered his dream.

The scene was the same ink-wash landscape as before: ancient pines stretching out their branches, the wind stirring the grass, cranes flying silently, a waterfall flowing without sound, only the pouring of tea broke the silence with its gentle gurgle.

In such stillness, that sound stood out clearly. Across a desk, the old divine lord and the Daoist sat facing each other.

“You certainly have the leisure...” The old god’s tone held a trace of irritation.

“It’s thanks to your help, senior, that I can remain so composed,” the young Daoist replied calmly. “So this composure is really borrowed from you, it is your composure, not mine.”

“You’re a smooth-talker.”

“I wonder what guidance you have for me this time, senior?”

“Guidance? Hardly. I’m just doing the dishonorable things you asked of me,” Divine Lord Lilong said, waving his hand. “This trip is only to inform you of the Heavenly Palace’s current situation.”

“Please, have some tea.”

“I’ll pass.”

Divine Lord Lilong waved again and spoke bluntly, “Gold Spirit Official was defeated and fell in battle. Fiery Sun True Lord is in seclusion to recover from his injuries. The Ancient God of Heavenly Bell has been reduced to ashes.

“Among the Eight Divisions of legitimate gods in the Heavenly Palace, the only ones who could truly fight were the War Division’s chief, Gold Spirit Official, and the Thunder Division’s chief, Duke of Thunder Zhou, whose incense among mortals has been flourishing in recent years. Normally, when the Celestial Emperor needed fighters, these two were his strongest. Now only Duke of Thunder Zhou remains.

“Duke of Thunder Zhou may be hot-tempered, but he is upright. At least for now, he’s unlikely to violate heavenly law and become your enemy. The ancient gods backing the Heavenly Palace have also lost the equivalent of two.

“As for the Four Saints of Antiquity of the Four Directions, they are all in closed-door cultivation and cannot come out for now. Even if roused, the length of their cultivation is uncertain, it’s unlikely they could be summoned in the short term. That leaves only the Emperor of the Void.

“The Emperor of the Void’s merits and faults are hard to judge, and his temperament is unpredictable. With the Celestial Emperor weakened and without Gold Spirit Official, whether the Emperor of the Void would answer his summons is unknown. But the Emperor of the Void’s divine powers are the most profound and unfathomable of all, you must be prepared in advance.

“The Emperor of the Void has four subordinate gods, who are both his servants and manifestations of his own divine power and authority...

“...”

Divine Lord Lilong spoke at length.

“Many thanks, senior.”

“If you’re going to thank me, then once your matter is done, find a way to get me a few more temples and statues in the mortal world, give me some honorary title and idle post that doesn’t require effort but still earns me incense offerings. I’d like to linger in this world a few more years. Think of it as repayment for the help I’m giving you now.”

“I will do my utmost...” The Daoist answered sincerely.

“You... you...”

Divine Lord Lilong sensed that the Daoist hadn’t given a firm promise, leaving himself room to negotiate. He only shook his head and said no more. “This is the last time I can help you. Last year, the Celestial Emperor already began to suspect me. Fortunately, most in the Rising Clouds Palace are virtuous gods or those who avoid trouble, and with Immortal Elder Qingmu speaking on my behalf, his doubts were dispelled for the time being. But it won’t work after this.

“That said, there likely won’t be many who can trouble you from now on.”

“You must be careful, senior.”

“What’s there to be careful of?” The old god only chuckled. “I’ll head to the ends of the earth and lie low for a while.”

“Then I must trouble you, senior.”

“I’m off...”

A gust of mountain wind swept past.

The old god within the ink-wash landscape dissolved into a single stroke of ink, like a drop of pigment spreading in a basin of water, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished completely.

The Daoist opened his eyes. It was hard to tell how much time had passed in the dream. It felt like a moment, yet also like half a day.

When he opened his eyes, Lady Calico had already woken and was sitting properly not far in front of him, her tail sweeping from side to side behind her. Her amber eyes stared at him without blinking.

Who knew how many times in the past three months she had sat like this, staring at him as she waited for him to wake, and how much time in total she had spent doing so?

“Hmm?”

It wasn’t until she saw the Daoist wake that the intense focus in the cat’s eyes finally wavered. She let out a soft “

Mmh

,” her eyes widening even more as she asked curiously,

“You’re awake? Why?”

“I woke up naturally.”

The Daoist met her gaze, studying her expression.

There was a bit more light in the cat’s eyes, which seemed to suggest a touch of joy in her heart. But apart from that joy, there was nothing else, making it all the more pure.

The Daoist had been about to ask,

In these past three months, has Lady Calico always sat in front of me like this, waiting for me to wake?

But when he saw that look in her eyes, he didn’t ask after all.

The answer could only be one of a few possibilities. Either she would say “That’s right!” in a way that seemed serious but was actually casual; or she’d tilt her head, looking at him in puzzlement, wondering why he would even ask; or she’d give an even more offhanded answer like “Cats are just like that.” There were no other answers.

For Lady Calico, this was simply normal, how it should be. There were no other options. Otherwise, what else would she be doing?

The Daoist stood up, and the cat stood up as well. The Daoist walked toward the palace beside them. The cat followed him.

“Lady Calico, where’s that mouse?”

“Mmh? What mouse?”

“The one you were using as a pillow.”

“Which one?”

“...”

“Oh! Right! You always have your eyes closed, how did you know I was using a mouse as a pillow?”

“I opened my eyes just now and saw it.”

“Then why didn’t you call me?”

“You were sleeping so soundly, and I happened to be a bit drowsy myself. After I opened my eyes, I just closed them again and took another nap. When I woke, you were already up.”

“Then I’m the better one here!”

“...”

The Daoist froze for a moment, then thought about it, realizing she must be referring to the fact that she woke up before him.

A cat’s mind was beyond human understanding.

“I left them all on the mountain. Anyway, the mountain is only so big and there’s no way down. If they jump, they’ll fall to their deaths, so of course they wouldn’t dare. I just let them hide wherever they want, even tossed them some grain in hidden spots. When I feel like finding them again, I can just go catch them.”

“...”

“It’s great fun!”

“...”

“Though I don’t know why, there are still fewer and fewer of them each day. Swallow says it’s because I scared them into jumping off.”

“...”

Truly, a cat’s mind was beyond human understanding. No ordinary person would even think to do such a thing.

The Daoist shook his head, choosing not to discuss it with her.

The cat, however, stopped walking. She stood at the edge of the stone bridge, looking down at the people below.

It was early summer. Compared to the new spring, there were far fewer visitors, but with the better weather and more pleasant temperatures, there were more than in the past two months.

Now that the mountaintop was free of cloud and mist, and since it wasn’t too far from below, they could see the tourists who looked like ants. The tourists, of course, could also see the figures walking along the bridge above. Many people stood at the foot of the mountain, pointing up toward them with exclamations, as if they were glimpsing heavenly palaces and immortals.