Ye Tianxuan rubbed the cat's belly with a pained expression. "I'm a dog lover, I have no interest in cats."
But he couldn't help but rub the black cat's belly and touch its ears.
The black cat purred and lay sprawled on Ye Tianxuan's lap, its eyes emitting a faint purple glow. Correspondingly, the purple patterns on Ye Tianxuan's ring and tongue also emitted a faint light.
"You're out of the dungeon?" Night Goddess lay down beside Ye Tianxuan, looking at the cat lying on his lap in a very unladylike manner. "You've cleared ninety-nine dungeons already, you'll be leaving the town soon, right?"
"Yes." Ye Tianxuan couldn't resist the hand that wanted to pet the cat, so he simply gave up and stared at the cat in his arms, a smile playing on his lips. "I'll win this bet soon."
The black cat raised its head and bit Ye Tianxuan's finger with its sharp teeth, "Meow."
"Hmph, you don't understand. I still have a month left, and I only have one final dungeon to complete. No matter what, I can complete the entire strategy for the town. I'll be satisfied as long as I complete the entire strategy." Ye Tianxuan gazed at the night sky, his eyes deep and distant.
"But you will die in a month. Whether you leave the town or stay in the instance, you will die soon." The Night Goddess's voice and words were colder than the night wind in the town.
"So what?" Ye Tianxuan smiled, his white figure shining like a light in the dark night. "Even if I hadn't come here, I would still be spending the rest of my life lying in a hospital bed."
"My long lifespan still slipped through my fingers like sand, and I did nothing, yet it was over."
"On the contrary, now I have traded my life for the lives of countless others in the dungeon, achieving the greatest value with the least sacrifice."
"My life will be as precious as gold."
The black cat stopped wriggling on his knees, and Lady Night lowered her eyes to look at his pale face.
"We are monsters, and we have long lost the emotions that humans should have. But I can also feel that you are the most unique existence among humans. It's just a pity that people like you are destined to disappear early."
Ye Tianxuan coughed twice, then smiled and said, "I can't be called the most unique existence. It's more accurate to say that Yin Xiu is."
Lady Ye curled her lip in disdain, "Yin Xiu is more like us."
"Not at all," Ye Tianxuan smiled and gestured in the air with his hand. "Yin Xiu is like a giant hedgehog with sharp and dangerous weapons. Anyone who sees him thinks he is a terrifying monster. Everyone thinks he is a monster, and over time, he himself has come to think so."
"But in reality, he is very soft and vulnerable inside. Every thorn on his body is just a weapon given to him by his past to protect him."
"Who is born a monster? Yin Xiu is not, nor are the people in the dungeon. It's just a matter of environment."
Night Goddess sneered twice, using her sharp nails to pull open the back of his collar, revealing a pale back covered in crisscrossing scars. "It's pathetic to hear such words from your mouth. Some people are just inherently evil. You know those people in the dungeon better than anyone. When danger strikes, they will devour their companions."
Ye Tianxuan nodded with a smile, "I don't deny that you're right, but Yin Xiu is not that kind of person. His weapons are only used to protect himself now, but one day, when he regains his emotions, he will use his power on the people he wants to protect."
"Yin Xiu is the best talent in this town."
Ye Tianxuan patted Ye Niangniang's hand, pushed the black cat off his lap, and then stood up. "Alright, I'm not chatting with you anymore. I just finished a dungeon, I need to go back to sleep."
Goodnight, Night Goddess.
Goodnight, you dark thing.
He waved and turned to walk back towards his house.
The black cat crouched in place, staring at his figure, then turned its head and meowed at Lady Night.
"I understand, then we'll do it your way." Lady Night sighed and nodded in agreement. "Anyway, you're in charge of the dungeon, and I don't know what's going on inside."
She looked down at the black cat at her feet. "But Yin Xiu is dead, Ye Tianxuan will be sad. Is this okay?"
"Meow! Meow meow meow."
"You're right… he can't save everyone." Lady Ye narrowed her eyes and looked in the direction of Yin Xiu's house. "Some sacrifices are necessary."
After daybreak, Yin Xiu planned to get up, tidy himself up, and then go see Ye Tianxuan.
Just as the person sat up in bed, a notification sound suddenly rang out from the town.
[Notification to all players:]
A brand new special dungeon will be updated today. It is not included in the main completion record. Players with a completion record of 90 or higher will be randomly matched with it. All players are encouraged to try to complete all dungeons.
The news caused an instant sensation in the small town.
"It even includes dungeon updates? That's outrageous!!"
"It's not in the main playthrough log, so it must be a special dungeon like the prison dungeon, right?"
"You can only be matched with players who are at least level 90... Is this a torture for hardcore players?"
"Does this mean Boss Ye has another dungeon to go to? He's only missing the final dungeon."
"If Boss Ye goes straight to the final instance, then we'll have to figure out the strategy for this instance ourselves."
"What's there to be afraid of! Only players with a progress level of 90 or above can be matched with us. They're all high-level players and they're not afraid of any dungeon, okay?"
"That makes sense."
Yin Xiu listened quietly to the notification from the dungeon, then opened the door.
As soon as he opened the door, he saw a dungeon item placed at his door today. It was a key item used to open the dungeon. Last time it was a little girl doll in a red dress that looked extremely like Ya Ya. Today it was a black octopus with eyes on its tiny tentacles.
Yin Xiu squatted down, picked it up, and examined it carefully. The black octopus, with eyes growing on its tentacles, actually did resemble Li Mo in some ways.
The items usually used to open dungeons are in the shape of this core character. Last time it was a little girl in a red dress, but this time it's...?
"Is it Li Mo's copy?" Yin Xiu wasn't sure, but it looked like it. Maybe this was the newly updated copy?
He stared at it for a couple of seconds, then picked up the doll and took it into the room before going to Ye Tianxuan's side.
Ye Tianxuan, who was woken up by a knock on the door in the middle of the night, opened the door for Yin Xiu while still very sleepy, and then lazily climbed back into bed and lay down. "I came back from the dungeon very late last night, so I went to bed late."
"I know." Yin Xiu nodded and turned to look at Ye Tianxuan's room.
He said he didn't like the blank, hospital-like bedroom, so he covered the walls with all sorts of cute little things, incorporating a little bit of everything, making it messy and chaotic.
Ye Tianxuan lay peacefully on the bed, closing his eyes for a short rest while asking Yin Xiu, "Did you hear the announcement just now?"
"Um."
Do you have any plans to enter a dungeon recently?
Yin Xiu nodded, "Yes."
Ye Tianxuan opened his eyes and looked at Yin Xiu, "Let's go together then. I'll work out the walkthrough for this dungeon before I leave."
Yin Xiu stared at him calmly, "I'll go, you go finish the dungeon."
Ye Tianxuan yawned lazily and smiled meaningfully, "Are you sure you can gather all the information and then create a five-star walkthrough, Brother Xiu?"
Yin Xiu: ...
He might not be able to!