She was risking her life, bargaining with an ancient predator in the middle of a toxic swamp, purely out of a selfless desire to bring a gift back to him.

To keep him company, to ensure he didn’t feel lonely.

The monster that ruled the core of Xie Wangchen’s soul didn’t just roar in triumph; it wept tears of devotion.

’He is indeed my forest, my green forest,’ Wangchen’s mind disintegrated into a blinding supernova of pure adoration, his mental light-tubes waving so frantically they were catching fire.

’He looked at a myth and decided to catch it for me. If so, then I’ll burn the Heavens for him and freeze the oceans. I’m unworthy of the air he breathes, but I’ll slaughter anyone who tries to take him away from me.’

He watched, paralyzed by his own emotion, as Ji’an reached out her hand.

The Nekomata stepped forward.

It pressed its glowing, cold silver nose against the palm of Ji’an’s hand.

A brilliant, blinding flash of silver light erupted in the clearing, accompanied by the sharp, ethereal chime of a soul-tether snapping into place.

The ancient magic wrapped around Ji’an’s wrist, forming a faint, glowing silver ring just below the midnight-blue threads of Wangchen’s Pulse Guard.

The light faded.

The Nekomata let out a satisfied, delicate mewl.

It hopped gracefully forward, completely ignoring the muddy ground, and smoothly climbed up Ji’an’s arm, settling itself comfortably across the back of her neck like a glowing, fluffy silver scarf.

«Your shoulders are surprisingly sturdy, cook,» the kitten projected into her mind, wrapping its two tails securely around her neck. «Onward to the Ice Palace. I expect high-quality sashimi for breakfast.»

Ji’an stood up, bearing the weight of the legendary beast with a triumphant grin.

She turned back to Blue, completely unaware of the fact that the rogue was currently experiencing a massive, emotional system failure.

"Well, Blue!" Ji’an beamed, patting the silver kitten on her shoulder. "Mission accomplished! I got a massive haul of ingredients, and I secured the ultimate souvenir for my bro! I think we can officially call it a night!"

Blue stared at her.

He looked at the bright, pure joy in her eyes.

He looked at the legendary beast she had just bound to her soul for his sake.

It took every single ounce of his discipline for Wangchen not to drop his disguise, fall to his knees in the mud, and swear eternal fealty to her right then and there.

Instead, Blue took a slow, deep breath, forcing his mask back into place.

He offered a low, sweeping, incredibly reverent bow.

"You are a marvel, Young Master Ji’an," Blue murmured, his voice thick with an undeniable worship that she once again mistook for mercenary politeness. "Your... ’bro’ is the most fortunate man in the Heavens to possess your loyalty."

"He’s alright," Ji’an chuckled fondly, turning to walk back toward their camp, the glowing two-tailed kitten purring on her shoulders. "But if this cat sheds on my bedroll, I am throwing it in the lagoon."

As she walked away, the red-haired rogue followed, a silent, unshakeable shadow, his heart completely chained to the chef who had just conquered the swamp for his smile.

***

Lin Ji’an was a woman of many virtues.

She was fiercely protective of her friends, a masterful culinary artist, and a survivor capable of adapting to the most lethal, soul-crushing environments the Azure Empire had to offer.

However, she was also a transmigrator who had spent her previous life on Earth working double shifts in cramped, sweltering commercial kitchens to make rent on a tiny apartment and save money.

Therefore, it was a fundamental, universal truth that Lin Ji’an was a rabid, unapologetic, and die-hard capitalist.

She loved money.

She loved spirit stones.

She loved the heavy, clinking sound of wealth that promised security in a world where immortal psychopaths could blow up your house because they were having a bad day.

So, after successfully binding a Rank 7 legendary Enlightened Beast to her soul for the sole purpose of gifting it to her brooding, icy best friend, her charitable, selfless nature immediately clocked out for the night, and her inner goblin clocked in.

"Alright, fluffball," Ji’an stated, tapping the silver nose of the Nekomata currently draped across her shoulders like a luxurious, glowing scarf. "You said you’ve lived in this swamp for three hundred years. And you said your ancestors lived here before you. Now, I’m no expert on hoarding, but legendary beasts usually have dens. Dens full of shiny things. Right?"

The Nekomata yawned delicately, its twin silver tails swishing lazily against Ji’an’s collarbone.

«We are Enlightened Beasts, mortal. We do not covet the mundane, shiny trash that humans murder each other over,» the kitten projected into her mind, its telepathic voice dripping with aristocratic disdain. «My ancestors collected things purely because they were bored, or because humans dropped them before they were eaten. It is all just clutter taking up space in my napping cavern.»

Ji’an’s silver-flecked eyes widened.

Her pupils dilated until they practically eclipsed her irises.

"Clutter," Ji’an repeated, the word tasting like a Michelin-star dessert on her tongue. "You have three hundred years of human ’clutter’ just sitting in a cave?"

«Yes. It is terribly uncomfortable to sleep on. The pointy gold cups keep poking my ribs,» the Nekomata complained.

Ji’an slowly turned her head to look at Blue.

The red-haired rogue cultivator was standing a few feet away, cleaning his hunting knife, looking entirely unbothered by the conversation.

"Blue," Ji’an said, her voice dropping into a hushed, vibrating tone of reverence, her eyes sparkling with shine. "We are going to take out the trash."

.

.

.

The Nekomata directed them deeper into the mist, guiding them toward a massive, towering formation of jagged obsidian cliffs that jutted out of the swamp like the teeth of a dead god.

Through a sequence of illusory walls that would have trapped a high-level master for a decade, the kitten led them into the heart of its ancestral den.