'Just a Cat

So, savior, can I ride on your sword instead?" she asked with blinking hopeful eyes.

With a twinkle in my eye, I began, "I'm, uh, crippled. Sorry." She flushed again, steam rising off her head as she flailed her hands about trying to correct herself, "I—I d-didn't mean it like that, savior! A-and it's alright to—to b-be t-that!"

"That? What?" I tilted my head, "I mean I'm a cripple so I can't ride a sword." Which was true but I knew she wouldn't buy it.

Her eyes wandered about as she stuttered and tried her best to form a coherent sentence meanwhile, I tried my best to trifle a cackle that wanted to blast out of my throat. I'd realized that she was one of those… those clumsy airhead types, to top it off she had a weird choice of wording at weird times, so of course, I couldn't stop myself from teasing her. Though this one could be serious when the situation called for it, so that was nice.

"Come on, take out your sword, I'll teach you how to ride." I grinned devilishly as I turned and said that, getting behind her. Her gears turned as she came to her own scenarios and conclusions, and… poof.

She snapped. Eyes dazed, face flushed beyond what was physically possible—this world's weirdness perhaps—she robotically took out her sword out of thin air and put it on the ground. With her hands trembling just like my lips, although for different reasons, we flew high into the air, with me guiding her so she could learn to fly as well as get rid of her fear of heights.

Fair to say, she stayed silent the whole journey, and her little brain came up with way too many scenarios that she didn't even notice the heights we soared. It was a nice journey, all considered, and by the end of it, the capital was in my eyes.

We had finally arrived.

***

- General POV -

Wang Kai and Li Renji fell flat on their butts, huffing and puffing for air. Renji's hands wandered above him as he tried to protect himself from the onslaught he appeared to be thinking would come, and Kai followed in his steps. However, what they awaited never came, and instead came an almost disappointed sigh.

Renji peeked and found out that Bis Ke had turned on her paws and trotted up to the side, hopping up the big rock that stood beside the tree in the back of the mansion. This place was used for their training and nothing else.

Kai followed after him and both realized that Bis Ke was no longer interested in sparring with them anymore; it was both a relief and a wound to their pride. To think they'd be defeated by a mere cat— they dared not think like that again. No sir, thank you very much. They were far too aware of the fact that Bis Ke would beat them up if they called her just a cat.

She was far too intelligent, that devilspawn.

"I want to grow strong," Kai said suddenly, sounding rather determined.

"Yeah," Renji glanced at him, sighing, "...Same."

Silence reigned between the two before it was broken by Kai.

"Hey, um, Renji, why do you want to cultivate and all this? What do you want basically?" Kai's question was rather innocent and could be interpreted badly too, but Renji was aware that his brother was rather lacking in intelligence, and he most likely didn't have any hidden agenda behind asking such information, so he answered.

"Well," Renji's nose suddenly thrust higher than usual as arrogance seeped into his words. "I wish to tame the heavens. To have the power to get revenge, on everyone; everything that wronged me even once."

"Oh, that's an admirable goal." Kai laughed, scratching the back of his head with a goofy grin on his face. "But, well, it's not for me."

Renji raised an eyebrow, he was curious about this person whom he'd taken as his brother—a minion to be more precise, but whatever. They were under the same Master so that was something.

"What do you want, then?" Renji couldn't help but ask as he leaned back, his hand digging into the sand below them. It felt a bit hot and got stuck to his skin due to all the sweat. Not like any part of his body didn't have sweat at this point, but whatever.

"I want…" Kai trailed off a bit before grinning like an idiot. "I want to tame the heavens too! And get strong! Strong enough to protect anyone I hold dear!"

Confusion washed over Renji at Kai's words. "Didn't you just say this stuff wasn't for you?" Though he normally wouldn't bother, he was curious and wanted an answer.

"I did?" he laughed, scratching his head. "Maybe. I changed my mind!"

Renji sighed; this guy had no clue, did he? Well, not like it wasn't usual.

A meow brought them out of their heads, and they twitched as Bis Ke sauntered up to them, swaying her hip elegantly like a cat would before settling it down gracefully. She was smaller than them, but as she raised her head and looked down on them, they couldn't help but cower. Her sharp eyes seemed to screech to get up and spar with her again.

Bis Ke, their senior sister, they believed, wanted to teach them.

Their Master hadn't really said anything about this, but they suspected a bit anyway.

***

- Bis Ke -

Under the blazing sun, casting bold shadows over the training arena, Bis Ke, the magnificent cat, perched atop the prominent rock with regal poise. Renji and Kai, her junior brothers, had appeared to be in need of some humbling lessons, and so she generously obliged. Restraining the full might of her mighty paws, for she had no intentions of hurting them in the Great Master's absence and suffering his wrath. She had a singular desire—to be cherished. To bask in the affectionate strokes and belly rubs that only her Great Master could provide. No other soul would suffice. Only he was allowed such an honor.

Nonetheless, the thought of marring these weaklings with her fearsome prowess was inconceivable. If she hurt them, her Great Master would surely be disappointed and not pet or scratch her. A disappointment to her venerable Great Master was far more formidable than any mere adversary. The very thought of losing out on those coveted ear scratches and belly rubs… Bis Ke could simply not allow such behavior from her Great Master. It was unacceptable.

Scratching her belly, petting her and stuff, was an honor not matched and only her Great Master was worthy of such activities, and she could not bear seeing him not doing it.

So, she better not harm these two.

What she could do, though, was teach them some stuff in the absence of her Great Master—he would surely love that!

Letting out a yowl, she gracefully leaped from her majestic perch, sauntering over to the duo who were engrossed in their utterly pedestrian chitchat. Bestowing the Earth itself with the honor of hosting her graceful behind, she settled down elegantly. No rush, no hurry, just a wait for the mortals to wrap up their mundane exchanges, and then she could teach them.

Gaze fixed upon her regal figure, the two helpless humans hesitated, and then, to her surprise, exchanged determined glances for the first time since she'd started beating up their ass.

Bis Ke refrained from smiling, it seemed their previous failures were still fresh in their minds and this time, their resolve burned even brighter; they were ready to prove their mettle, their worth. This, this right here, could very well be the perfect time to test them and see if they were worthy of her Great Master's time!

Perched majestically upon the earth, as if it were her royal throne, Bis Ke draped herself lazily. Her tail swished with grace, while her piercing golden orbs remained fixed on the duo. A nonchalant demeanor projected her disinterest quite well, as if this whole skirmish was just a trifling amusement for her majestic paws. Just as she'd intended, it riled them up.

How cute. This time, she smiled. In fact, she grinned.

Renji stepped forward, his posture tense and his determination evident to her in his voice as he parted his lips. "Today, we won't falter, Bis Ke!" he declared, his voice firm. "We will show you! Just you wait!"

Kai nodded in agreement; his goofy grin was replaced by a focused expression. "Yeah, we're not holding back anymore. We'll fight you seriously."

Ho?

A twitch. A minuscule, involuntary flicker of those finely tuned feline ears of hers, fight this mistress seriously? Were they mocking her? Had they not been using their full power? The audacity!

Her anger boiled, but she remained still, waiting for them to make the first move. She would allow them the first move given the vast difference in their power!

With a bolt, Renji and Kai moved in perfect sync. They attacked from opposite sides, trying to catch Bis Ke off guard. However, she was quicker—she scoffed at their lowly attempts. With a graceful leap, she avoided their strikes, her lithe form moving effortlessly. She even had the leisure to close her eyes.

"Argh!" Renji growled in frustration, and he lunged at her with renewed vigor. His fists glowed with Gu, and a red and purple miasma covered his body. A small layer, surely, and barely noticeable. But to Bis Ke, this was truly an improvement. She would admit that he'd been working hard. She was not petty! She knew to give credit where due.

His strikes were undoubtedly swift and calculated, but Bis Ke evaded them with ease given they appeared very slow to her.

Kai, on the other hand, tried a different approach. He feigned an attack from the front, but at the last moment, he pivoted to strike from the side. It was a clever move, and for a brief moment, it seemed like he had the upper hand. But Bis Ke was one step ahead—and her junior brother still seemed to question her intelligence. Yowling, she twisted mid-air. Her feline body was capable of far more than these fools could imagine, and as her claws grazed Kai's arm, he hissed, missing. She easily evaded his attack.

Pain shot through Kai's arm, and it was evident on his face. He stumbled back, his confidence wavering—Bis Ke shook her head. Still weak. Need moar.

"YOU!" Renji's frustration boiled over, and he unleashed a barrage of attacks, "Take this, Thousand Fists!" He struck; his eyes determined. Bis Ke merely gave his lamely named attack a glance and flicked it away with her paw. Reckless. He was reckless. She needed to double his training it seemed. Coming to that conclusion, she made quick work of Renji by jumping high in the air, landing on his head, and flicking him with her paw.

They still need work. And she would be damned if she didn't prepare them before her Great Master returned!

***

A sense of realization dawned upon Renji and Kai. Despite everything, they were still outmatched. As they watched Bis Ke disappear into the distance, most likely finding her way to the kitchen to steal—no, no, take what was hers. Renji spoke, gritting his teeth. "We still have a long way to go."

Kai nodded in agreement, "Yeah, but we'll get there. We'll become strong for our Master. Also! I have a goal! To pet and scratch Bis Ke! After all this, I deserve that!"

Renji rolled his eyes. This guy didn't know what he was doing. Even as he thought that there was a smile on his lips.

***

- Yun Ren -

His face stung as his father's hand met his cheek, and Yun Ren fell to the ground coughing blood. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he refused to shed a tear.

"You stupid, useless, buffoon! Do you even know who that person was?!" His father growled, slamming his feet into the table and sending it hurtling across the room as he put emphasis on each word—especially, useless. That, that stung more than the slap across his face and the ringing in his ear. His father, this bastard, he never had enough. Whatever Yun Ren did, it was never enough. That is why he'd given up on impressing his stupid old man and had started pursuing his own dreams!

He was happy!

He got to taste any woman he wished! He had friends! He had money! Status! Power! He didn't need his old man. But. BUT, he needed to wait. Lay low. Bear everything.

Yun Ren had never undergone such humiliation as he was right now. This paled in comparison to the time when he returned back to the city with soiled pants. Though, thank the gods, he had enough leisure to dry it up with his Gu after washing it in a river. However, that didn't negate the fact that bastard had humiliated him!

And, to make matters worse, his so-called father, was taking that fucker's side instead of him, his son!

Yun Ren knew fury. Just… Just you wait—

A kick slammed into his abdomen, and he toppled over, "You should've died with that useless mother of yours!"

Eyes getting blurry as he saw his father huffing and leaving, Yun Ren had only one thought. This fat motherfucker… Just you wait. Yun Ren glared blatantly. He would make sure to end his reign. Then, then, Yun Ren would fuck his concubines and wives in front of him as he was chained. He dared insult his mother?!

The image of his father, as well as that Wu bastard, remained fresh in his mind.

Yes, it wasn't going to leave his mind anytime soon.