Ballie, the Performing Artist

"Phew!"

Shao Zifeng lay on his bed like a starfish and caught his breath as he tried to calm his pounding heart. What monkey saw, monkey did, so Ballie lay on its back and stretched out its four limbs, five if the tail was counted, and it caught its breath as well.

Shao Zifeng looked over at Ballie, feeling dumbfounded. He had carried Ballie all the way as he ran, so what was up with Ballie?

Ballie became self-conscious when Shao Zifeng stared at it and quickly curled itself into a ball, only revealing its two eyes.

It peeked at Shao Zifeng.

"Ballie, what did you chase after just now?" Shao Zifeng turned to look at Ballie once his breathing regularized.

Ballie became plucky upon hearing that. It unfurled its body and danced up and down in front of Shao Zifeng.

He remained silent since he could sense Ballie's excitement, pride, and arrogance, but he did not understand lizard language. Ballie became a little anxious when it noticed how dumbfounded Shao Zifeng was.

Ballie's eyes lit up all of a sudden, and it jumped onto the PC table. Then, it picked up a piece of paper and a pen with its mouth. It ran back up to Shao Zifeng and placed the paper on the bed. Using both paws to hold the pen, Ballie started to draw on the paper with much difficulty.

Shao Zifeng looked on with interest. After a while, Ballie, the post-modern abstract expressionism artist finished drawing four curvy radiating lines on the paper. Then it abruptly transformed itself into a post-modern performing artist, lying on the paper and stretching its neck to look at Shao Zifeng.

Shao Zifeng put his hand to his chin and was deep in thought as he looked at Ballie lying down with its five limbs outstretched. It was surrounded by the four radial lines.

What was this?

Realizing that Shao Zifeng had not figured out the meaning, Ballie sat up with its legs crossed and imitated Shao Zifeng's gesture by putting its paw to its chin. Shao Zifeng's heart melted when he saw Ballie's overflowing cuteness.

Ballie suddenly clenched its left paw into a fist and punched it on its right paw with an "aha" look on its face.

It then took the pen that was nearly its height and drew an additional four curvy lines before it crawled back to the center of the right radial lines. It curled up into a ball as it looked at Shao Zifeng expectantly.

"A sphere with four radial lines on each side? Is it the sun?"

His answer really angered Ballie.

Shao Zifeng gave Ballie an "I-am-just-kidding" look as he patted it on the back to calm it.

"A sphere with eight radial lines. What could it be?" Shao Zifeng rubbed his temple, trying hard to figure it out.

Just then, an image came to mind: the round spider body with eight steel legs, leaping at them with dancing fangs and claws. 

"Ballie, was it that tarantula you chased today?" Shao Zifeng opened his eyes.

"Eeeek!"

Seeing that Shao Zifeng had finally worked out the answer, Ballie breathed a sigh of relief and crawled up to him, looking for a compliment.

"What was wrong with that tarantula?" Shao Zifeng held Ballie at eye level.

Ballie gave it some serious thought and tried to come up with a simpler way to express itself so that this stupid two-legged beast could understand it quickly.

Ballie jumped down from Shao Zifeng's hands and swept the paper down with its tail. Following that, it puffed its cheeks, and ember fell onto the paper, igniting it. The paper turned to ashes as it drifted onto the ground. 

Using its claw, Ballie pointed at the ashes and patted itself on the chest with its head held high.

"Burned to ashes?" Shao Zifeng was in disbelief.

Noticing Shao Zifeng's tone, Ballie raised its chin skyward, expecting a compliment from him.

"Meow!"

Before Ballie could get its praise, the weak cry of a cat came from the corner. Ballie shot the white cat a dissatisfied look. Only then did Shao Zifeng realize that he had brought a dying cat back.

He got up and approached the moribund white cat. He ignored its rueful eyes as blue light flickered in his own eyes.

Name: Mutant domestic cat

Growth: Growing

Condition: Endangered, frightened

Strength: None

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Felidae

Attribute: None

Potential: ★

Talent: Pure water vapor. It purifies air through a water curtain that can filter and purify germs, dust, and particles in the air while it humidifies. Then, it sends the moist and clean air into the room via airflow, improving environmental humidity and cleanliness.

Skills: Acting cute, being lovey-dovey 

Description: Mutated from a normal domestic cat, a perfect humidifier replacement, and its soft, as well as cute appearance, is a means for its survival.

It was truly a standard template of a domestic pet beast. Unfortunately, he could not help it—he did not know how to treat a wounded pet beast, and he could not send it to the veterinary hospital either. He was in a predicament.

Suddenly, Shao Zifeng remembered that he had bought some healing potions from the platform. They were in his backpack, so he got up and rummaged through the bag.

He shoved a pill for treating internal injuries into the white cat's mouth and sprayed it several times with a trauma spray.

Sadly, that was all he could do. Every bullet had its billet; he just hoped that it would pull through.

...

"Dear Mr. 9331, your mission report has been submitted. We will send a commissioner to verify it personally. Once you pass the review, the corresponding reward and items will be automatically transferred to your name. As for the domestic pet beast that you mentioned in your report, please deal with it on your own. Have a nice day."

Shao Zifeng's mobile phone screen went out, and his vision went dark. After his eyes adapted to the darkness, he could see that the low-wattage heating lamp from his pet enclosure was emitting a faint light.

Feeling Ballie fall asleep in his arms, Shao Zifeng had mixed feelings. He had completed the mission, but he seemed to be caught in trouble again.

The vanishing of numerous domestic pet beasts, the sudden appearance of a tarantula, combined with the Bloodsiphon Tarantula's evolution type, which he had seen in its description, made it seem like an invisible net was engulfing him. Perhaps it was not just him but the entire of Sucheng City.

"I'm just too weak." Shao Zifeng felt upset and aggrieved.

"Awwk..."

Ballie sensed Shao Zifeng's mood in its sleep and gripped his clothes tightly with its little claws.

Shao Zifeng's heart melted, and his expression softened.

This was a really clingy guy.

No wonder hunky men would always shout at their pet beasts, "Let Lao Tzu change you!"1

By the way, he still wondered about Ballie's gender.

Too bad he did not know how to tell a lizard's gender.

Shao Zifeng gradually fell asleep as his mind drifted off.

...

Pei Yong's busy day finally came to an end, and he thought of his wife. She might be waiting for him at home, so he quickly cleaned up his desk and could not wait to show up at the door the next second.

Without the burden of work, he seemed to return to a more fulfilling and happy time since he was in love with his wife.

Ding!

In the empty, dimly-lit office building, the notification sound from his mobile phone was extremely clear.

Pei Yong's heart skipped a beat. He stopped in his tracks and silently took out his phone with his trembling hand.

His face turned pale instantly.

"I'm downstairs outside your house."