Number 46 is my cat.

"I know where she is now," Stranger said.

Upon hearing this, Azure Seal felt the chill around her pierce straight through her chest; it was as if her heart cracked with the sound of ice breaking. She wanted to run, but dared not move her feet. She knew that even the slightest sound would alert the silver-haired one, and with only her own mortal legs, how could she escape the pursuit of a celestial? Thinking of escape, she remembered a treasured item she always carried.

Cloudleaf.

Carefully, she fished two leaves out of her pouch and tucked them into her shoes. As she did this, she heard the silver-haired figure ask Stranger, "Good child, tell the Immortal Lord, where is she?"

Stranger answered, firm and clear, "I know where she is, but I cannot tell the Immortal Lord. Please punish me as you wish; I will accept it all, gladly and willingly." With that, he bowed deeply.

Azure Seal, still fumbling to tuck the leaves into her shoes, suddenly froze, overwhelmed with conflicting emotions—grief and joy tangled together. The silver-haired one's expression darkened, his face stormy as if a tempest were brewing. He raised his hand and, in his palm, a jointed silver whip appeared, lashing out at the kneeling figure before him.

Startled by the heavy sound of the blow, Azure Seal snapped out of her daze; she even heard the crack of bones breaking. In the next instant, she burst from the shrubs, propelled by the Cloudleaves beneath her soles, and in a flash, interposed herself before Stranger. The silver-haired one's second whip lash, falling instinctively, struck the ground beside them, causing the earth to tremble and split open a crack more than a foot wide.

He withdrew his whip, staring in surprise at the mortal woman who had suddenly charged out so recklessly. What astonished him even more was that she was holding a sleeping infant in her arms.

Her face was flushed with anger as she pointed at him and shouted, "How dare you strike him!"

He narrowed his eyes, a cold gleam flickering as he recognized her at last—the elusive Celestial Fungus he had been hunting so desperately. So she had been here all along, her skill at concealing her presence truly extraordinary. If not for his focused celestial sight, he might have missed her entirely.

Now Celestial Fungus was within reach, and his mood brightened instantly. He smiled faintly and said, "He is but a beast of the house—what harm in teaching him a lesson?"

Azure Seal's eyes blazed, her voice harsh, "He is no longer of the house. Listen well: from this moment on, he is my cat!"

The silver-haired one laughed, his expression full of mockery. "Your cat? Even you belong to me. Celestial Fungus, come to me." With his left hand, he made a gesture as if plucking a flower, closing his fingers in her direction across the distance.

Though his hand was still a yard away, she suddenly felt as if her very soul were being squeezed by his fingers. Her consciousness blurred, her body leaning forward, compelled to approach him. Yet her mind clung desperately to the thought of Stranger lying silent on the ground; she fought to maintain a shred of clarity, resisting the urge to step forward. Struggling, she suddenly raised her right wrist, and a blood-red feathered arrow shot through the air, straight at the silver-haired one's face.

His expression shifted; he deftly caught the arrow between two fingers and exclaimed, "A Blood Dove Feather Arrow?!"

Azure Seal was shocked. She knew the arrow’s power—it had exploded a giant rat spirit on impact before—but he caught it as easily as if it were a drifting feather, his strength beyond her comprehension.

Given his overwhelming power, the chance of her and Stranger escaping unscathed was slim.

Even if there was no way out, she would fight. While the silver-haired one examined the feathered arrow, she turned and lunged for Stranger, still holding the infant. Using the peculiar adhesive strength of her palm, she managed to drag the half-conscious man onto her back. Instantly, she felt the blood soaking through her clothes, burning her skin with anxiety.

She heard his blurred whisper in her ear: "Go… leave me… let me bear the punishment…"

"Punishment, my foot! Shut up, you fool!" she snapped fiercely.

The silver-haired one, still holding the blood feather, made no move to stop them, only smiled as he watched their desperate struggle. Seeing how pitiful they looked, he wondered how they could possibly escape his grasp. Leisurely, he watched Azure Seal stagger away with Stranger on her back, then tossed the blood feather aside and said, "I'm done playing." He stretched his hand toward them.

Suddenly, darkness fell, as if a dense black mist swept in, engulfing the world in an instant, blinding his vision. The silver-haired one was startled, but without hesitation, he whipped his silver lash deep into the fog.

A thunderous crack resounded, something struck and shrieking hideously. Several celestial children quickly formed a battle array, some guarding, some pursuing. The silver-haired one waved his wide sleeve, stirring a powerful wind that dispersed much of the black fog. When he looked again in the direction of Azure Seal and Stranger's escape, they had vanished.

His face was clouded with anger, and he spat one word, "Pursue."

Two celestial children responded and sped off.

Meanwhile, two others returned dragging halves of a huge red serpent. The serpent had been split in two by the whip's blow and was dead. Its body was thick as a barrel, and a budding horn protruded from its head—a giant viper on the verge of becoming a flood dragon. A viper becomes a flood dragon after five hundred years, a flood dragon becomes a true dragon after a thousand. But this viper spirit was different from ordinary ones; its two eyes were blood-red, its tongue black and venomous. Even in death, its mouth emitted thick black fumes, heavy with demonic energy.

The silver-haired one raged, "How could such a fiendish creature appear at this critical moment? Investigate!"

The celestial children bowed and complied.

Azure Seal and her companions had not run far. Even with the Cloudleaves accelerating her steps, she was carrying an infant in her arms and a severely wounded man on her back. Their pursuers were true immortals—how far could she run?

When the inexplicable black mist had appeared, she used the Cloudleaves to leap two miles in an instant. She hoped she might really escape, but the gravely injured Stranger suddenly reverted to his true form—he could no longer hold it.

Suddenly, her burden became a beast weighing seven or eight hundred pounds, crushing her to the ground. Still holding the infant, she managed to protect him during the fall, but her elbows were left bloodied and nearly broken. Crawling out from under the beast, she tried to drag him, but he was too heavy. Despair filled her heart.

She could hear the distant voices of their pursuers. Without hesitation, she lay down flat atop the beast, tucking the infant into its neck fur for concealment, and spread herself out to cover as much of his massive body as possible.

Wasn’t she supposed to be able to conceal her aura? She would hide whatever she could.

A cloud swept low overhead, skimming the treetops, and she heard celestial children's voices from above. Perhaps they hadn’t expected the fugitives to be so close; focusing on the distance, they failed to notice them and continued their pursuit further afield.

The silver-haired one and other celestial children were still nearby, so Azure Seal dared not so much as breathe, lying motionless atop the beast.

The beast was equally still. She carefully shifted, pressing her ear to his chest, listening intently. At last, she heard the slow, heavy heartbeat. Tears welled up and soaked into his thick fur.

She had gone two nights without sleep, and after lying so long, fear and anxiety blurred her senses and she drifted off.

She was startled awake by the sound of chatter approaching. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, bright and dazzling on her face.

The voices continued.

A shrill, thin voice said, "Did you hear it last night? Boom-boom, bang-bang, such terrifying sounds!"

"I heard it! Father said the immortals were fighting in the mountains—the trees on the front slope were all knocked down. Scared me to death, thought the immortals were coming for us!" Another equally shrill voice, grating and annoying.

As Azure Seal wondered who was speaking and what to do, a soft, babyish cry emerged from the beast's neck fur—the infant’s spell of confusion had worn off, and he had woken.

Azure Seal hurried to cover his mouth, but it was too late.

The voices paused, then exclaimed, "That's the sound of a baby!"

Another voice, delighted, said, "Fresh meat to eat!"

Quick, light footsteps sounded, and soon two children, about two feet tall, ran out from the bushes. To call them children was not quite right—they were half-human, half-beast, dressed in rough homespun clothes, but with pointed faces, small bean-like eyes, thin gray ears atop their heads, and long, twitching tails behind them.

Azure Seal recognized them at once—two little mouse spirits.

The pair, following the baby's cry, ran excitedly into the clearing, only to find a giant cat-beast lying in the woods—an arch-enemy for their kind—and a woman sitting atop it, staring coldly at them.

The two mouse spirits immediately burst into tears, spinning around to flee. A shrill whistle split the air, a red light streaked past their ears and struck a tree before them with a loud crash, breaking the thick trunk and bringing the crown down to block their path.

The pair dropped to the ground, hugging their heads and wailing, their long gray tails stuck straight up, trembling violently.

Azure Seal stepped forward, grabbed one tail, and looped it firmly around her hand. The caught mouse spirit wailed desperately.

"Quiet," Azure Seal said.

Its cries quieted to fearful whimpers. "Don't kill me, please don't kill me."

Azure Seal kicked the other on its rear, "Go, fetch your father here immediately to receive us."

The mouse spirit scrambled away, tumbling and crawling.

The one she held continued to cry on the ground. Bothered by its racket, Azure Seal rubbed her temples impatiently and asked, "Enough crying. Do you have anything to eat?"

Hearing 'eat', it thought she meant to eat it, and cried even harder. Azure Seal, exasperated, stopped paying attention to it and bent to check on Stranger.

Tentatively, she called, "Stranger..." She stroked his pointed ear, but there was no response; he was still unconscious. Her hand anxiously moved to his nostrils. Thankfully, he was still breathing, albeit weakly. The wound left by the jointed silver whip cut diagonally from beneath his shoulder blade across his back; his spine was clearly broken. Though most of the night had passed, blood still seeped from the wound, soaking the earth beneath him. His injuries were far worse than when she had first met him.

She trembled as she watched, terrified he might die.

Author's note: You little tormenting monsters~

At least say something!!!!

"Half-Immortal Seal" chapter 46—"He Is My Cat" has been updated!