Chapter 361: "I’m Incubating the Eggs.

The young Vulture from the small tavern paced back and forth by the door until his eyes suddenly lit up at the sight of a cable car stopping not far away.

He strode over. "You’re back! Welcome back!"

Vulture had been extremely anxious ever since Miss Rabbit was taken away. Fortunately, the people from the Land of Prophecy had arrived quickly. Seeing Miss Rabbit return safe and sound, a weight was finally lifted from his shoulders.

Yu Zhizhi kept her head down, a blush still lingering on her cheeks.

The young man from the Cat Clan smiled and greeted Vulture, and the two began to chat at the entrance to the small tavern.

Lifting the hem of her skirt, Yu Zhizhi headed upstairs.

The moment she walked in the door, she saw the little red octopus flying toward her—

"You’re finally back! This is great! If they hadn’t released you, I was going to charge into the palace myself!"

The Little Octopus had seriously thought it through.

It had even drawn a diagram.

It calculated how long it would take to rescue her.

Yu Zhizhi smiled and said, "It was just a misunderstanding. I’m fine."

Her steps suddenly stopped short.

On the sofa in the outer room lay the Purple Fox, which had somehow grown a bit larger than when she left. It seemed drained of energy now, its eyelids drooping.

Yu Zhizhi walked toward it.

The Purple Fox’s ears twitched. ’It knew this lop-eared rabbit had been taken away, but it didn’t expect her to return so soon...’

Yu Zhizhi administered some healing. It had been resting well lately, and its Beast Form had probably grown because it had recovered some of its strength.

Soon, the fox detected the scent of another male.

Its pale violet eyes glanced over, a barely perceptible wariness in their depths.

Zero arrived at the doorway of the room.

His eyes immediately fell on the Purple Fox on the sofa. "A guest?"

Yu Zhizhi replied softly, "It’s injured. I accepted payment from its attendant to heal it."

The young Cat Clan man nodded.

He came up behind Yu Zhizhi, unable to resist staring at the rather rare purple fox. Even injured, its fur was still beautiful.

Zero recalled, ’In Moonrise, the Purple Fox Clan holds an extremely high status.’

’And the Divine City, separated from the Cang Mountain Domain by only a stretch of sea, is the territory of the Fox Clan.’

’I wonder if it’s here because it’s truly injured, or if it has ulterior motives...?’

Yu Zhizhi suddenly grabbed his wrist. "Come with me."

Zero followed her.

Watching the two of them leave, the Purple Fox slowly closed its eyes to rest.

Yu Zhizhi led Zero into the inner room.

On a rack by the bed was a wooden box, inside which three Beast Eggs lay quietly.

When Zero saw the Beast Eggs, his pupils dilated slightly—

’Cat Clan cubs.’

’He had sensed them earlier. But on the way here, he’d been so preoccupied with what had happened to his little rabbit that he’d almost forgotten she had just borne him three cubs.’

’They haven’t hatched yet.’

The young Cat Clan man slowly approached. He stared at the three Beast Eggs on the soft cushion, each bearing the mark of the Cat Clan, his expression somewhat dazed.

’...He really has his own descendants now?’

’He’d thought he would go his whole life without a bloodline of his own.’

’After all, he had never even considered it before.’

The young Cat Clan man reached out, slowly caressing the Beast Eggs. The cubs inside the shells, as if sensing something, stirred gently.

Seeing Zero’s interaction with the Beast cubs, the corners of Yu Zhizhi’s mouth curved up slightly.

Not far away, the little red octopus looked on with a resentful expression.

’Hmph, I’ve been the one taking care of these three Beast Eggs all this time. Now this detestable cat is definitely going to take them all away!’

’These three little kittens... his little rabbit had borne them for him...’

He couldn’t help but take her hand.

Squatting on the floor, the young Cat Clan man gently held Yu Zhizhi’s hand. When she looked down, she saw Zero gazing up at her, his amber eyes shimmering with tenderness.

"This must have been hard on you," he said softly.

His gaze made Yu Zhizhi feel a little shy.

Zero lifted her hand and gently kissed it.

From the day he was born, he had seen more of the world than others and witnessed far too much darkness.

But today was the most wondrous experience of his life.

"Will the kittens be taken back to the Land of Prophecy?" Yu Zhizhi couldn’t help but ask.

Zero stood up and nodded. "The Cat Clan guards will see them back safely."

In the most suitable environment, the Beast Eggs will adapt to this world more quickly.

And when the Beast cubs hatch, their bodies will be in peak condition.

Knowing the kittens would have a safe place to be, Yu Zhizhi relaxed considerably. She smiled and nodded.

Zero continued, "I’ll be staying in the Underground City for a while. I have matters to discuss with Lord Dracula. Once that’s handled, I’ll set off for Demon Hunting City."

His main objective was in Demon Hunting City.

Yu Zhizhi hummed in acknowledgment and squatted down, gently stroking the three Cat Clan Beast Eggs.

’Initially, he had wanted to go to Demon Hunting City with her.’

’But according to the latest battle reports, the situation there has become extremely complicated.’

’It would be dangerous for his little rabbit to go.’

’For her own safety, it’s best that she stay in Cangshan Underground City.’

’There’s a natural Barrier here, so they don’t have to worry about smugglers. There are also the Palace Guards, and with Cang Mountain’s Camp being hostile toward Varolan, he doesn’t have to worry about the Duke finding her for the time being.’

But he suddenly found himself hesitating.

’Perhaps it was because...’

’...he saw her with Dracula today and was reminded of the rumors about them.’

Zero’s logic and emotions were at odds. When he realized he was hesitating because of this, he couldn’t help but laugh in spite of himself.

’—This wasn’t like him.’

’Ever since he met Zhi Zhi, he had been acting more and more strangely at times.’

That evening, she and Zero had dinner at the small tavern.

Yu Zhizhi was still in her lop-eared rabbit disguise. The customers coming and going paid them little mind, merely seeing a young couple, passionately in love, sitting in the corner.

When Vulture wasn’t busy, he came over to chat with them.

Yu Zhizhi noticed that he and Zero got along really well.

From their conversation, she learned that Zero had lived in the Underground City for a time as a child.

「The night deepened.」

Yu Zhizhi went back to her room to sleep.

Zero was in the room next door.

As soon as she entered the room, she saw the Little Octopus sprawled on top of the three Beast Eggs. Its tentacles were wrapped around each one, holding them securely beneath its body.

’The Little Octopus didn’t even go down to eat today.’

Yu Zhizhi couldn’t help but ask, "What are you doing?"

The Little Octopus looked up, giving her a reproachful glance. "I’m hatching the eggs."

Yu Zhizhi was speechless.

’It was obvious the Little Octopus really, really liked the three Beast Eggs. Surely it isn’t treating them like pets, is it?’

After washing up, Yu Zhizhi lay down on her bed.

She turned off the bedside lamp.

The room plunged into darkness.

When she first moved in, she had to sleep with a light on every night. Now that she had lived here for some time, she could finally sleep soundly in the darkness.

She could sleep even more soundly now that Zero was here.

Just then, the system’s voice sounded in her mind—

[Ding! Congratulations, Host, on unlocking the seventh main quest!]