DA chapter 36

 

The world began to collapse and everything turned white. A door appeared before everyone.

Just as they let out a sigh of relief, Lin Jia bent down and picked up a high-quality, complete fish spirit.

Without any effort, he tucked the Fish Spirit into his clothes, opened the door, and was just about to leave when the wrist resting on the metal doorknob was suddenly grabbed.

After a slight pause, Lin Jia looked up and saw Yan Xu.

The hand holding the fish spirit was the one being grabbed. Lin Jia lowered his gaze and glanced at his wrist. “Isn’t the administration not involved in fish spirit distribution? I think I can win the ‘Most Valuable Player Award’ this round. I’m qualified to take all the fish spirits, and I don’t need to notify others. What does Captain Yan think?”

Yan Xu was the one gripping Lin Jia’s wrist. The others’ eyes lit up, thinking that Yan Xu had suddenly grown a conscience and was going to distribute the fish spirit in Lin Jia’s hand to everyone.

But Yan Xu only said lightly, “A fish spirit of this quality has to be exchanged at the Administration on Beijing Road.”

Everyone: “… ”

“Thanks.” Lin Jia shook off Yan Xu’s grip and looked at the cat.

The dead cat looked at him and Yan Xu with a guilty expression.

“Toast.” Lin Jia called lightly.

The cat finally reacted to the sound and hurried over. When passing Yan Xu, it deliberately detoured and leaped onto Lin Jia’s shoulder, ensuring it wouldn’t touch Yan Xu.

The cat’s movement made Yan Xu narrow his eyes. He quietly watched Lin Jia’s back as he opened the door and left. Deep emotions rose and fell in his gaze.

The instant Lin Jia moved his gaze away, he did not miss Yan Xu’s look.

But he remained calm, pushing open the door with the cat and the Fish spirit.

Suddenly, noise poured into the Fish Belly, which was about to vanish. Those who had wasted their efforts there suddenly came to their senses.

Damn it, Lin Jia, right? Just wait.

Lin Jia left through the door first. The moment he stepped outside, he was no longer involved in the chaos inside.

After getting farther from the door, with no passersby nearby, Lin Jia threw the cat down.

Wherever the cat was thrown, it lay there.

“It’s over. Did Yan Xu notice something?” The cat sprawled weakly on the ground. It had also noticed Yan Xu’s meaningful gaze and felt its heart beating so fast that it thought it was about to die. “It’s over. I’m dead.”

Lin Jia looked at the black lump on the ground. “If he had seen through it, could you and I still come out through the door?”

The cat raised its head and, after a while, understood what Lin Jia meant.

It jumped up and leaped onto Lin Jia’s shoulder. “You mean he didn’t find any clues?”

Anyway, these clothes were already dirty. Lin Jia endured the dirty cat and said, “He found it, but he has no proof.”

Ever since he publicly threw the cat at Deputy Chen, Yan Xu had been watching them. This time, Yan Xu and Deputy Chen both entered the Fish Belly, so the suspicion only increased.

But it was only suspicion. If Yan Xu had actual evidence, he would have shot Lin Jia and the cat by now.

Lin Jia couldn’t stop others from suspecting him, so if Yan Xu suspected him, then so be it. He just had to leave directly; he could not control that.

However…

This stupid cat kept doing stupid things. A vein jumped on Lin Jia’s forehead. “If you do something stupid again, I won’t help you.”

Cat: “Help how?”

Lin Jia had reached his limit with the cat. “I’ll deal with you first.”

Cat: “…”

A car with a cheap license plate was parked by the roadside.

As Lin Jia passed by, the window rolled down to reveal Old Zhou’s face.

“Lin Jia, Lin Jia!” Old Zhou called him from inside the car.

Lin Jia turned and got in.

Since he was used to sitting in the backseat, Old Zhou, who was driving, could only half-twist around to speak to him. “I noticed that D2481’s cloud had dissipated, so I drove over immediately.”

The Bounty Hall also had information about cloud dissipation. When the cloud drifted apart, it meant that the people who had entered the cloud had already found the Soup Base.

As the cat had said before, unless someone was a big shot, who else in the Underwater Wold had the money to buy a car?

Lin Jia did not expect Old Zhou to have a car, but it was not surprising either. He was tired, too, and did not want to walk back to the hotel.

Old Zhou only saw Lin Jia alone, and his heart tightened. “Where’s Xiao Yao?”

Lin Jia then remembered Xiao Yao, who was probably fighting with the group coveting the fish spirit. However, he did not want to explain much and only said, “Not dead.”

Old Zhou let out a long breath and said awkwardly, laughing dryly: “People from the Axe Gang also went to D2481. You didn’t clash inside, right? As for the fish spirit…”

Actually, what he really cared about was the fish spirit.

Lin Jia had promised Old Zhou that the fish spirit would go to Sharp Knife, and that he would listen to Old Zhou’s instructions. Old Zhou hurriedly caught the fish spirit when Lin Jia tossed it to him. Seeing the complete fish spirit, his eyes widened. “You took all the fish spirits?”

“What else?” Lin Jia asked.
“How much can it be exchanged for?”

Old Zhou: “Based on my experience, probably one million or eight hundred thousand.”

Only one million or eight hundred thousand? Lin Jia leaned back in his seat, closed his eyes, and rested. He didn’t take Yan Xu’s reminder seriously anyway since he wasn’t the one doing the exchange.

Soon after, someone knocked on the car door. Xiao Yao arrived, with Xiao Tian following behind.

Old Zhou urged, “Why are you so slow? Hurry up and get in before that mad dog Yan Xu sees.”

The car engine started and sped down the wide road.

After the engine sounded, Yan Xu leaned against the wall and stared at the car’s shadow that quickly disappeared.

His eyesight was good. He saw a bullet dent on the back of the car. That was the shot fired from the revolver before entering D2481. The shooter had intended to kill someone with ulterior motives, but missed and hit the car instead.

Deputy Chen came out of the door next, looking disheveled and gloomy.

Yan Xu withdrew his gaze and said to Deputy Chen, “There’s an administration office nearby.”

Deputy Chen understood that Yan Xu did not plan to go with him and looked at Yan Xu.

Yan Xu said, “I’ve been gone for two days. The inspection team is probably piled with troublesome things waiting for me. I’m in a mess, so I won’t go with you, lest I embarrass you and let those old men laugh at me instead.”

—

Old Zhou held a welcoming dinner for everyone and welcomed Xiao Tian into the Sharp Knife group.

As a newcomer, Xiao Tian showed promising potential. Groups in the Underwater Wold needed new members, so Xiao Yao brought Xiao Tian to Sharp Knife.

Xiao Tian had nowhere else to go and could only stay at the Sharp Knife base.

Lin Jia wanted to stay at the hotel, but his account balance was zero, so Old Zhou transferred three hundred thousand from his account to Lin Jia’s. If the fish spirit could be exchanged for more, he would make up the difference later.

The distribution of the fish spirit had been promised beforehand. If the cat could merge with its original self, it would be much more valuable than the fish spirit. This cat should be blamed for recognizing the wrong person, resulting in an empty-handed outcome.

Otherwise, given Lin Jia’s personality, how could he possibly share any of the fish spirit he obtained with others?

On the way back to the hotel, Lin Jia rested with his eyes closed, convincing himself that there was no reason to be angry with a stupid cat.

The cat curled up beside him and calculated: Deputy Chen was not his original self, so who was? It had already confirmed that its gender was male. Last time at the Bounty Hall, besides Yan Xu, there had been one man and one woman standing beside Deputy Chen.

It knew!

Its original self was most likely the other man beside Deputy Chen, besides Yan Xu!

It had spent a long time with Deputy Chen, which is why it felt familiar with him. After all, a person sees the faces of familiar people more than their own face!

The cat thought this must be it. Since Yan Xu worked with them too, maybe its original self and Yan Xu were political enemies. That could explain why it disliked Yan Xu so much.

The car arrived at the hotel entrance. The hotel manager, who was working as a waiter, stepped forward to open the door. Lin Jia got out, and the cat hurriedly followed.

Since few people stayed in five-star hotels in the Underwater Wold, this room was the same one Lin Jia had stayed in before. On the top floor, a huge floor-to-ceiling window offered a panoramic view of the Underwater Wold.

Lin Jia was still extravagant, asking the manager to deliver food and new clothes and open an expensive bottle of wine. The massage bathtub was filled with warm, clear water, and the sound of splashing could be heard.

It was a peaceful scene.

After the hotel manager finished what Lin Jia had instructed, and left, the cat carefully pushed open the sliding bathroom door.

Steam filled the bathroom. The cat saw Lin Jia lying comfortably in the bathtub.

The cat tiptoed in and jumped onto the edge of the bathtub.

The bathtub was slippery. The cat’s paw slipped, almost causing it to fall into the water. Lin Jia reached out a hand to steady the cat and prevent it from falling in. Otherwise, the water would have had to be refilled.

Lin Jia opened his eyes and looked at the cat.

The cat was also looking at Lin Jia.

Lin Jia had a good figure, with a lean and strong waist and six visible abdominal muscles. The cat clearly saw his abdominal muscles tense as a droplet of water slid down his jaw, passed over his Adam’s apple, and slid between his collarbones, following the smooth, beautiful lines of his abs into the water.

The cat’s gaze could not help following the six abs further downward. The water surface rippled in circles, so the view was not very clear, but before the cat could clearly see the outline and size beneath the water…

Lin Jia: “Looking for death?”

The cat did not dare to look any longer. He coughed and changed the subject: “Lin Jia, Lin Jia, I feel like I’m that man beside Deputy Chen.”

Lin Jia did not want to pay attention to the cat.

The cat guaranteed: “I can basically confirm it’s my original self.”

Lin Jia: “Heh.”

The cat tried to reason with Lin Jia, presenting evidence, but Lin Jia did not want to hear a single word. He pushed the cat aside. While the cat landed on the ground, Lin Jia took the towel within reach, stood up, and wrapped it around his waist.

He returned to the living room and poured new wine into a glass.

The cat chased after him, just as he was about to say something, when someone knocked on the door. The cat darted into the shower room.

The hotel management always used the doorbell, so the visitor was clearly not a staff member.

Lin Jia asked: “Who?”

He walked to the door and looked outside through the peephole.

The visitor did not mind being seen by the person inside and guessed that Lin Jia would look through the peephole. He had even wiped the peephole glass clean.

—Yan Xu.

Yan Xu had cleaned up, too. He wasn’t wearing the inspection team uniform but rather a jacket over a T-shirt — very casual attire.

Lin Jia opened the door. Yan Xu said, “I used a bit of my authority and found out you were here—”

Seeing that Lin Jia was wrapped only in a towel, Yan Xu paused and said, “There was no need to rush to open the door for me.”

Lin Jia: “Captain Yan thinks too much.”

He raised his arm to show Yan Xu the wine glass in his hand. The glass was moistening his fingertips. “I just got up to pour another glass.”

Yan Xu looked directly into Lin Jia’s eyes. “Fine, then continue washing. We’ll talk after you finish. I’ll wait outside.”

Lin Jia also met Yan Xu’s gaze. “I’m very slow. Captain Yan will have to wait a long time.”

Yan Xu frowned slightly. “How long?”

Lin Jia looked at the small mole between Yan Xu’s brows, thinking for a moment. “About one or two hours?”

He had only been soaking for a short while.

Lin Jia probed: “If it’s official business…”

Yan Xu smiled: “It’s not official. I just thought it wouldn’t be easy to pick up your life again, so naturally, I should invite my lifesaver to a meal.”

Those words carried hidden barbs. Lin Jia had used this same excuse to take all the fish spirits, so it was hard not to see Yan Xu’s words as mockery.

Lin Jia countered, “Restaurant booked?”

Yan Xu: “Not yet. Didn’t know what you like to eat.”

Lin Jia: “This hotel’s restaurant is good, downstairs.”

Yan Xu agreed readily: “Okay.”

Lin Jia said expressionlessly: “See you in two hours.”

After speaking, he closed the door.

He walked back to the shower room. The moment he saw the situation inside, his blood pressure rose.

While Lin Jia was gone, the cat had been bathing.

Upon discovering Lin Jia was back, the cat yowled and quickly covered its crotch.

Cat fur floated everywhere in the shower room. Lin Jia lifted his foot to kick the cat out, but it suddenly let out a strange yowl.

The cat lowered its head to look at itself. The cat was human, so in this sudden situation, it subconsciously looked for something to cover itself.

However, the cat had only covered the lower half. It looked at Lin Jia again. After Lin Jia finished bathing, he sometimes only wrapped a towel around his lower half.

The cat became wildly happy at the wrong moment.

It knew now—it was male!

Seeing that Lin Jia was ignoring it, the cat said, “I remembered my gender. I’m a man.”

As it spoke, the cat lowered its head to look at its lower body.

Lin Jia paused, then looked toward the cat.

The cat said, “I don’t understand cats, I can’t tell whether it’s neutered or not.”

Lin Jia said, “It is.”

Cat: “Damn.”

Unable to endure the cat’s stupidity and unable to drive it away, Lin Jia brought up Yan Xu. “Not asking who knocked just now?”

Only then did the cat come to its senses and ask, “Who?”

Lin Jia: “Yan Xu.”

The cat froze: “Yan Xu? What’s he here for?”

“Inviting me to eat.”

“Ah? He invited you to eat? Why? Did you agree?”

“There’s no reason not to eat free food.”

The cat came closer. “But that’s Yan Xu! Why did you agree to eat with him?”

Lin Jia did not continue to soak in the bath; instead, he stepped into the shower.

The cat wanted to say something more, but seeing Lin Jia wrapped in a towel while showering, it asked again. “Why are you wearing a towel to shower? I’m also a man.”

It had already very quickly accepted its discovery.

Lin Jia’s voice was light: “I like men.”

Cat: “…Oh.”

After a while, the cat said, “Really?”

The cat thought that the male lover Lin Jia invented, Fish Belly, was only created to give it a chance to fuse.

Lin Jia’s fingers ran through his wet hair. His tone softened by the steam. “Instead of caring about my orientation, care about yourself.”

The cat did not understand, but it instinctively felt that something was wrong.

Lin Jia: “Do you really think Yan Xu came to invite me to eat?”

The cat became nervous. “…Could it be not… not?”

Lin Jia: “Really not.”

He looked at the cat. “I was only talking about the Soup Base to get the fish spirit and leave the Fish Belly. What lifesaver? It was just an excuse he found.”

The cat did not dare think deeply. “Then he came for…”

Lin Jia deliberately brought up the topic that scared the cat: “Right, he came for you because your behavior doesn’t resemble a normal cat’s at all.”

Cat: “!!!”

Cat: “Then why did you agree to his invitation?”

Lin Jia: “He already at the door. Can I not go?”

Cat: “What should we do?”

Lin Jia: “My suggestion is to check a cat’s habits and act like a good cat to dispel his suspicion. Otherwise, with Yan Xu’s personality, he’ll keep watching you.”

The cat ran off quickly.

Lin Jia could finally bathe in peace. Hot water fell on him, but his expression grew colder.

The cat belonged to Lin Jia, but Yan Xu had also set his eyes on him.

After bathing, the cat immediately jumped to Lin Jia’s feet, lying down and exposing its belly.

Lin Jia lowered his head to look at the cat. “What are you doing?”

Cat: “I checked. When a cat lies down by its owner’s feet, it means the cat trusts its owner very much. It’s a sign that the cat likes its owner.”

Lin Jia stepped around the cat to put on his clothes.

The cat got up and chased after him, rubbing against his feet and saying, “A cat rubbing against your feet shows goodwill, meaning it likes you very much and hopes you pet it, play with it, and give it food. Most importantly, it leaves its scent on you to tell other cats that you are its owner and to declare its territory!”

Lin Jia was annoyed to death. He had just bathed and did not want the cat to leave its scent on him. “Move.”

The cat knew that Lin Jia was a bit of a clean freak and did not dare rub too much. It changed its posture, sticking its butt high up.

When Lin Jia finished changing clothes and turned around, he saw the cat’s butt facing him.

Lin Jia endured it: “What does this mean?”

Cat: “Means letting you lick my butt.”

 

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