Cat 261: Master Zuo

Chapter 261 Master Zuo

With the help of the black-robed figure, Cheng Shen had successfully gained possession of Song Kai’s youthful body. If Yan Jiyun hadn’t barged in unnoticed, he might never have learned that there was another player involved behind all this—a black-robed figure.

The voice of the black-robed woman wasn’t one that Yan Jiyun recognized, but it did seem oddly familiar—like something he’d heard somewhere before.

He recalled all the women who had appeared in the Liu family; he also remembered Chen Minmin from the Chen family—her voice didn’t match. Nor did Liu Rongzhi from the dance hall, or anyone from the Cheng family. In fact, he could count on one hand the number of women he’d encountered in this scenario—yet none fit this voice.

He realized now: this was someone he’d never directly interacted with.

Filtering through all the possible women in his mind, he even recalled Liu Jingxi’s rarely mentioned fiancée—but still, there was no one whose voice matched.

He crouched silently underneath the bed, waiting for the black-robed woman to speak again.

He didn’t have to wait long. Cheng Shen—now in Song Kai’s body—provided him with just the opportunity he’d been hoping for.

Cheng Shen couldn’t help but want to get up and try moving in his new body.

The black-robed woman cautioned him, “Mr. Cheng, you might not yet have full control over this body. Small problems could easily arise. Hold back for another two hours.”

Cheng Shen laughed. “Master Zuo, I’ve waited so long for this moment. There’s so much one can do when one is young.”

Master Zuo’s voice was as calm and impassive as ever, only reminding him, “That’s true. But I ask that you follow my instructions.”

Cheng Shen replied eagerly, “Yes, yes, Master Zuo. However you say, I’ll do it.”

Yan Jiyun scorned Cheng Shen internally—he was just like an elderly patient nodding to medical advice, all while secretly doing the opposite.

Master Zuo, inscrutable and aloof, said nothing more. She left the room through a secret door.

Yan Jiyun wanted to trail after her, but the door closed too quickly. He considered his options: if he followed, and she discovered him, who knew if she might simply kill him? Every unknown NPC was a potential threat.

The door snapped shut, blending perfectly into the wall. Unless you searched with careful hands, you’d never find it. No wonder Cheng Shen had waited this long to use Song Kai’s body—he was nothing if not thorough. Of course, just now, he was lost in joy over the new body.

Yan Jiyun glanced around—no one else was present.

Master Zuo had warned him: no contact with water for four hours.

But there was no water in this basement.

No, wait—what about the ticking sound of water he’d recently heard? It was in this very direction.

After seeing the black-robed woman, Yan Jiyun felt the whole scenario was like a hard nut to crack—only by chipping away at every layer could he reach its core.

The black-robed woman, too, was a paper person. Without a voice, his sense of hearing was virtually sealed by the script; he couldn’t risk moving recklessly.

If he transformed into a person now, he risked exposure; Cheng Shen might raise a cry and summon someone. Yan Jiyun was unfamiliar with the layout and couldn’t take such a gamble.

He checked his now-healed paw—the ointment had worked well. Every time he entered a scenario, it seemed, something ended up hurting. It was exhausting.

Before he could act, the newly embodied Cheng Shen grew restless.

Getting up from the bed, tottering on his still-clumsy legs, he paced about the soul-exchange chamber, ignoring his old, discarded body.

Clearly, Cheng Shen’s excitement over the new body was uncontainable.

How strange, then, that Wei Liu could remain so calm. He, too, didn’t use his own body, yet that one seemed somehow false, while Cheng Shen couldn’t even adapt to a new one.

Ah, that was it—Wei Liu had to keep a low profile, hide from everyone, conceal that he was still alive. Cheng Shen, on the other hand, wanted to safeguard his own wealth and luxury—he wanted to enjoy it all, forever.

So what was Master Zuo’s role in all this?

Cheng Shen still hadn’t adapted to the new body—he wobbled about, mood elated, never noticing the black cat slipping out from beneath the bed.

Seeing that he could barely stand, much less walk, Yan Jiyun attacked at once, using his claws to slash at Cheng Shen’s exposed heel.

It would be somewhat troublesome to go out and fetch water to stop Cheng Shen’s reincarnation.

Looking back—fetching water would hardly have mattered. He needed to coax information about the black-robed woman from Cheng Shen. He had a new hypothesis forming, and the woman’s appearance had come just in time.

Cheng Shen, struck by Yan Jiyun’s claws, utterly lost his balance and crashed to the ground, stunned. Yan Jiyun himself hadn’t expected his blow to be so effective—brand-new paper bodies were truly fragile.

To be safe, he slashed Cheng Shen’s other foot as well, rendering it impossible for him to stand.

Staring at the black cat before him, Cheng Shen’s face filled with terror. “Where did this cat come from?” He tried to shrink his legs beneath himself, bracing with his hands to distance himself.

Yan Jiyun ignored him. The newly inhabited Cheng Shen wore an ill-fitting set of pajamas, his wrists exposed—an opportunity not to be wasted.

Yan Jiyun promptly scratched Cheng Shen’s wrist, disabling any chance of escape during this period of weakness.

“Damned stray cat! Go away—don’t come closer!”

Cheng Shen wasn’t stupid. He called for help in the direction the black-robed woman had gone. “Master Zuo! Master Zuo! Help! Come quick!”

But no matter how he shouted, the woman never reappeared.

Yan Jiyun calmly stood by, watched a moment, then darted out through the door. He assumed human form again and strode back in.

Cheng Shen, just relaxing, assumed it was Master Zuo returning. When he saw an unfamiliar young man enter, panic swept over him anew.

“Who are you?” He tried to retreat, but his tendons felt as if they’d been cut—utterly useless. He couldn’t move at all.

Upon transforming, the system had outfitted Yan Jiyun with a black robe identical to Master Zuo’s—a sure sign of the system’s laziness in clothing design. No matter—the villainous look now suited Yan Jiyun quite well.

He crouched in front of Cheng Shen, took his limp wrist in hand. Cheng Shen couldn’t even flinch away.

“Who are you?” Cheng Shen’s anxiety only grew with the stranger’s silence. He began to wheedle, “If you spare me, I can give you half the Cheng family’s fortune!”

Imitating Ninth Master’s usual disdainful snort, Yan Jiyun pressed down his voice, speaking slowly: “Even in Song Kai’s body, you’re still Cheng Shen—a man who belongs in the grave. As for me? I don’t care for your wealth. I just want to know about Master Zuo…”

He broke off deliberately. Cheng Shen, desperate to live, would naturally fill in the blanks.

As expected, Cheng Shen obliged eagerly.

“What do you want to know about Master Zuo? If you let me go, I’ll tell you everything—nothing withheld!”

Yan Jiyun ground his heel into the hand he’d clawed. “You lot really have no backbone. Does Master Zuo know you’d sell her out?”

The more unsparing he was, the greater Cheng Shen’s fear. Had he questioned him in a conventional way, Cheng Shen would surely have deflected. Only this approach would squeeze out something useful.

Cheng Shen said, “It’s not really betrayal with Master Zuo—we’ve only ever had…a fair transaction.”

Yan Jiyun: “What transaction?”

Cheng Shen hesitated.

Yan Jiyun said, “Your greed for life is clear—you sacrificed even your grandson. Clearly, Master Zuo didn’t ask for money.”

Cheng Shen blurted, “How do you know that?”

Yan Jiyun: “I have my ways. If you want to live, be honest—otherwise, even your hand won’t last five more minutes. No, that’s not all—you might not even survive. Four hours—no water, isn’t that right?”

Cheng Shen grew more alarmed. “Who are you really? How do you know all this about Master Zuo?”

Yan Jiyun: “Who I am is irrelevant. Tell me about your dealings with her. What did she gain from all of you?”

At this, Cheng Shen heaved a sigh. “Actually, Master Zuo is a good person. She never asked us for anything in return.”

Yan Jiyun: “Is that so? You all became paper people—wasn’t that her idea?”

Cheng Shen realized this mysterious young man knew far more than he’d thought, and dared not hold back.

He glanced at Yan Jiyun, weighing what to say and what to conceal. But seeing his hand about to be crushed underfoot, he burst out, “She came to us first—said she could ensure not only our lasting wealth, but even immortality. We never thought the price of immortality would be to become paper people.”

That, at least, gave Yan Jiyun the outline—but he needed to know how Master Zuo achieved it, and how to free all the souls of the town.

He asked, “Why did she want no reward? That point is crucial.”

Cheng Shen shook his head. “I don’t know.” All he’d cared about was immortality and riches.

Yan Jiyun stomped on his right leg. “Really? You’re still lying.”

Cheng Shen insisted, “I’m telling the truth!”

Yan Jiyun: “Have you seen her real face? Do you know who she is? As paper people, you’re all essentially dead, aren’t you?”

Cheng Shen argued, “But I’m alive—I’m not dead!”

Yan Jiyun: “When she came to you, you didn’t question her? That’s impossible.”

Cheng Shen: “We did, but she really did keep our whole town preserved. We lived happily and well, with no problems—just like normal life.”

Yan Jiyun sneered. “And you’re perfectly satisfied with that?”

Cheng Shen actually looked proud. “Of course. As long as Master Zuo is here, we’ll never die.”

Yan Jiyun: “So why did Old Man Lin, possessed by A Juan, die?”

Cheng Shen: “What? Old Man Lin died?”

Yan Jiyun: “He was burned to ash. Only a layer of paper left.”

Cheng Shen shouted, “Impossible! If a paper person is burned, it’s never just paper left—look at Cheng Liang! He was only burned, that’s all!”

Seeing how stubbornly unrepentant he was, Yan Jiyun stomped on his thigh; the limb instantly caved in.

Cheng Shen’s mood changed as he gawped at his leg. “What’s happening? Master Zuo said we couldn’t die…”

It didn’t seem like he was faking. Yan Jiyun pressed further. “What’s her relationship to Wei Liu?”

Cheng Shen wouldn’t answer, instead repeating, “Did Old Man Lin really die? Burned to paper scraps? How? How? There’s never been a paper person reduced to scraps.”

Yan Jiyun delivered the final blow: “Master Zuo’s spell has failed.”

Cheng Shen: “No! Impossible!”

Yan Jiyun pressed on. “Then explain why.”

Cheng Shen: “I don’t know! It’s impossible—Master Zuo promised us we’d live forever!”

Yan Jiyun: “Where is she? Maybe she can fix your paper problem.”

“She’s—uh—”

Cheng Shen’s words cut off. Several fiery arrows shot in from the direction Master Zuo had departed. If Yan Jiyun hadn’t rolled to the door, he’d have been hit. Once the door snapped shut, he peeked back inside.

By then, Cheng Shen’s body was all but consumed by raging oil fire, nothing left but a scrap of paper—utterly unrecognizable.

Yan Jiyun paid him no further mind and searched the room for the exit switch. Beside a cabinet, he soon found a button—the secret door opened, and he slipped through!

Master Zuo was far too important a figure now!