Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Ugh..." Chen Ji pushed himself up from the bed, his body swaying slightly. System Cat, perched on his chest, watched him with a grave expression. "What's wrong?" Chen Ji asked instinctively.

System Cat glared at Chen Ji as if he were a piece of trash. "You have a fever."

Chen Ji's constitution was truly pathetic! He hadn't seemed busy yesterday, the weather was pleasant, and he barely broke a sweat—how on earth did he end up with a fever today?

Chen Ji reached back and felt his backside; it was quite warm too. Yes, he definitely had a fever.

Fortunately, before returning, he had packed most of the common medicines for daily use. He pulled out the first-aid kit from under the bed, rummaged through it, found some medicine, and took it. Since it was only a low-grade fever, he just felt a bit dizzy. Squinting at the delivery notifications on his phone, he said to System Cat, "A few packages are arriving this afternoon. If I'm still asleep later, could you answer the phone for me?"

System Cat waved its paw angrily. "What do you take me for?!"

Chen Ji replied, "A great, omnipotent system that can even answer phones."

System Cat: "...?"

Seeing Chen Ji's rare moment of vulnerability, System Cat decided to be magnanimous and agreed. It waved its chubby paw and bopped Chen Ji right on the nose. "Alright, alright, go to sleep. I'll handle it. I guarantee everything will be taken care of by the time you wake up!"

His slender, pale fingers gently rubbed the orange cat's ears. The young man's thin lips curved into a tender smile, his delicate eyes sparkling with amusement.

But System Cat slammed its large head hard into Chen Ji's face, turning his nose red. It growled viciously, "Don't think I didn't hear you thinking I'm only good for this much! Chen Ji, damn it, I hope you burn up from that fever!"

Chen Ji laughed, collapsing back onto the bed. System Cat, unable to resist, gave him another kick in the chest. Chen Ji gasped sharply, curling into a ball on the bed with a pained groan. System Cat didn't even glance back as it flicked its tail and stalked off.

After System Cat left, Chen Ji dozed off again on the bed, only to be woken by hunger pangs. He grabbed his phone and checked the time—it was already noon.

His phone battery was still healthy. Since the Mountain Lord's temple had no electricity, he had brought several power banks, which should last about a week. Power should be connected within a week—he had even bought a small gasoline generator in advance. It wasn't expensive, just two thousand yuan. It should be delivered up the mountain today. That way, he could use electric hot pots for instant noodles, porridge, or steaming some pre-made buns.

His forehead felt even hotter than when he had fallen asleep. Drenched in sweat, Chen Ji instinctively walked into the bathroom, used a self-heating pack to warm some water, and wrung out a towel to give himself a quick wipe-down.

Chen Ji's hand paused. He stared expressionlessly into the mirror for a long moment, then wiped the mirror with the towel to make sure it wasn't a problem with the mirror itself.

Lifting the hem of his pajamas, he revealed swirling red marks around his waist, connecting to the ones on his neck. He stared coldly for a while, then turned around. The red marks on his back were a continuation of the ones on the front. He tugged his pants down slightly and saw the marks extending from his waist down, disappearing near his tailbone.

He'd had a nightmare the night before, dreaming he was tied up by a snake or some vines.

Chen Ji pulled his pants back up, rinsed the towel, and hung it. As he left the bathroom, System Cat was just coming in. It looked up at him, sounding agitated, and said, "Two deliveries arrived... Can you hurry up and get better? Humans are so annoying! Why does everyone have to grope me?!"

Chen Ji smiled. "Petting you a couple of times doesn't count as groping."

System Cat snorted disapprovingly, jumped onto the bed, and complained, "I hope you say the same when the delivery guy pets you and chases after you for more."

Chen Ji lay back under the covers, closed his eyes, and after a moment said, "...Actually, that sounds kind of exciting?"

System Cat's fur bristled. "You're so shameless, just die already!"

Suddenly, System Cat exclaimed, "Huh? What's wrong with you?"

It stared at the loose collar of Chen Ji's pajamas, following the red marks down to his chest. Its body tensed with alertness. "What happened? I swear no bugs or snakes crawled into the bed last night!"

Even though Chen Ji was uncooperative, sarcastic, and always slacking off, System Cat still cherished the host it had painstakingly selected! After all the effort to get Chen Ji to return to this godforsaken place to complete tasks, it couldn't let him die mysteriously from a snake or insect bite!

System Cat adamantly refused to admit that it had developed a soft spot after Chen Ji had been feeding it all sorts of delicious city food for half a year.

Chen Ji unbuttoned his shirt to let it see clearly. System Cat gasped at the strange marks. "...You didn't mess with something weird, did you?!"

Chen Ji scooped System Cat into his arms and ruffled its head irritably. "Why are you more superstitious than I am? Are you really a product of advanced technology?"

Then he showed System Cat his phone screen, which displayed: Herpes zoster, an acute inflammatory skin disease, commonly known as "snake coil waist" or "girdling fire dragon"... Symptoms include...

"...Oh." System Cat fell into an awkward silence.

Tch, in its panic, it had forgotten it could search the pathology database.

It was all Chen Ji's fault for constantly visiting temples, burning incense, and seeking masters to exorcise evil (it)! Chen Ji had rubbed off on it!

Seeing System Cat bury its head in his chest pretending to be dead, Chen Ji couldn't help but stroke its thick fur. Honestly, having a pet that could talk and take care of itself was pretty nice.

If System Cat knew that Chen Ji had returned to his hometown to repair the temple just to fulfill his pet's little wish, it might spit blood.

"Gurgle~" Chen Ji's stomach growled. System Cat lifted its big head from his chest, said "Wait here," and dashed out like the wind.

Chen Ji clasped his hands together in thanks. Soon enough, he received a self-heating hotpot. Probably considering he was sick, today's flavor was a mild tomato base. After eating, Chen Ji went back to sleep. When he woke up around three or four in the afternoon, he felt much better.

Though still a bit dizzy, he could move around again.

He first went to the main hall, respectfully offering a prepared cup of instant noodles and replacing other offerings. Then he lit three sticks of incense and murmured, "Grandfather Mountain, please forgive me. I was sick today and couldn't get up, so I'm a bit late. Please forgive me."

"Grandfather Mountain is generous, compassionate, majestic, dignified, and transcendent... You will surely understand. Once I'm fully recovered, I'll clean your statue and replenish the incense..."

System Cat wondered how Chen Ji managed to spout such praise with a straight face.

Chen Ji paid no mind to System Cat's thoughts. After finishing his string of compliments, he kowtowed three times respectfully, inserted the incense into the burner, and, to show sincerity, added a pack of cigarettes to the offering table.

Having lived in the temple for a few years as a child, he believed that while one might not believe in gods and spirits, one must still show respect. One shouldn't make promises before the gods that they can't keep, so Chen Ji said "once I'm fully recovered" instead of "tomorrow."

After paying respects to the Mountain Lord, Chen Ji checked the packages. Seeing they had been neatly unpacked with the cardboard boxes stacked to the side, he praised System Cat—all that effort he'd put into teaching it had paid off.

System Cat lifted its head proudly.

Having slept most of the day, Chen Ji felt weak all over. He grabbed a broom and decided to sweep the fallen leaves and branches in front of the temple, figuring it would help him stretch a bit. He swept slowly, making sure not to sweat, and wore thicker clothes just in case.

Though it was already spring, nights in the mountains came faster than in the city. When Chen Ji left the main hall, the sun was still above the ridge. By the time he'd swept a small area and looked up again, the sky was ablaze with brilliant gold and red. Leaning on the broom, he sat on a stone railing and admired the sunset.

The unknown-material bracelet on his wrist swayed slightly with his movements. Chen Ji's gaze fell on a cluster of small white spots under the century-old ginkgo tree—probably wild mushrooms.

It seemed like rain was coming, so they had emerged.

Chen Ji watched them with interest, guessing what kind they were. They looked a bit like termitomyces... or maybe not. What if they were a cluster of white parasol mushrooms? They were still too small to tell—even if they grew bigger, he probably wouldn't recognize them. It had been too long since he'd dealt with this stuff.

Hmm... he'd let System Cat try them first. It wasn't carbon-based anyway, so it wouldn't die. One bite, and it would know what kind of mushrooms they were.

Chen Ji happily decided.

He got up to fetch a rope and a basket. There were too many dead branches and leaves around; if he didn't clear them, the night wind would just scatter them again, undoing his work. Just as he returned to the courtyard with the supplies, he suddenly paused mid-step, standing motionless at the doorway.

Something seemed to have darted past, but it was too fast for him to see clearly.

Could it be a rat?

Chen Ji frowned. He had stocked up on plenty of food and drinks; if rats showed up, it would be trouble. Still, he needed to finish cleaning outside first. The moment he stepped out, another shadow flashed past him.

Chen Ji froze, his eyes instinctively following it. Before he could make out what it was, he heard a sharp screech: "Squeak—!"

On the pile of leaves he had swept, a yellowish weasel stood upright like a person, its beady black eyes fixed on him, the fur around its snout tinged with dry white.

The moment Chen Ji met its gaze, a chill surged from the soles of his feet.

"Squeak——!" The weasel revealed an eerie grin directed at him. A chill went through Chen Ji's entire body; this smile... was exactly the same as the one in his dream!

In the next instant, the world spun violently, everything turned upside down. Chen Ji shut his eyes briefly, and when he reopened them, he saw a weasel standing before him, two men tall. It lowered its head to meet his gaze, its face still wearing that same eerie smile. Its mouth moved, emitting a sound that was both like crying and laughing, singing:

"A daughter at home ah—just eighteen—!"

"In the bloom of youth ah—soon to wed—!"

"A hundred families celebrate ah—a hundred celebrate—!"

It cackled, tilting its head, its enormous pupils nearly dominating Chen Ji's entire field of vision. Then suddenly, in a completely different voice—clear and childlike—it cried out brightly: "Chen Ji!"