Peking Opera Cat: I Became A Zi's Brother

As the night faded, the morning light struggled to shine through the carved windows of the inn, casting a few rays of light.

Mo Zi dragged his scarred body, step by step, into the inn as if he was filled with lead.

Her clothes were tattered, covered in dust and dirt, and her hair was messy and stuck to her cheeks.

She walked silently to the corner of the hall, sat down slowly while holding the wall, and stared at the room where Bai Tang and the others were resting. There was worry and a hint of expectation in her eyes, as if as long as she stared at them like this, her friends would wake up immediately.

……

I don’t know how long it took, but with a “creak” sound, the door of the rest room slowly swayed and was pushed open.

Bai Tang hummed a tuneless little song and walked out stretching lazily. Wu Song followed behind with his arms folded across his chest. Da Fei rubbed his sleepy eyes and yawned.

"Come……"

As soon as Bai Tang raised her head and her eyes met Mo Zi in the corner, her smile froze instantly, and her mouth opened so wide that it seemed like an egg could fit in.

"Sister Azi, how did you...how did you become like this!"

"Um?"

Wu Song's expression froze, and his originally steady pace quickened instantly. He rushed to Mo Zi in a few steps, his eyes like torches, looking her up and down, his brows twisted into the shape of a "chuan" character, his tone full of concern and anxiety:

"Sister A Zi, what happened? Did you encounter any danger? Are you injured?"

"This……"

Da Fei's eyes widened like copper bells, and he scratched his head, with question marks popping up in his head. Then he roared in a muffled voice:

"What's going on? Sister A Zi, who bullied you? Tell me, and I, Da Fei, will be the first one to not let him off!"

"Hmm~"

Mo Zi slowly raised her head, her eyes empty and tired. She just glanced at her companions lightly, her cracked lips moved, but she didn't say a word.

"Ugh……"

After a brief pause, she shook her head helplessly, supported herself on the wall with her hands, slowly stood up, and walked towards the bathroom with her legs that felt like they were filled with lead.

"!"

Xiaoqing was the last one to come out of the room. When she saw Mo Zi's departing back, her heart skipped a beat and felt inexplicably tight.

At this moment, some scattered images flashed through her mind like lightning: under the moonlight, her sleeves fluttered, and the ice blades were wrapped in biting cold, shooting towards Mo Zi like dense raindrops.

Xiaoqing's face turned pale instantly, and her lips trembled slightly.

"elder sister!"

She yelled and started to chase after him.

But Mo Zi's figure had already disappeared behind the bathroom door, leaving only the sound of the door closing.

Bai Tang, Wu Song and Da Fei looked bewildered, looking at each other with confusion written in their eyes.

"I'm sorry, sister..."

Xiaoqing's face was full of regret, her hands clenched into fists, her nails deeply dug into her palms, and she stood there blaming herself.

Xiaoqing stared at the closed door of the bathroom, her heart seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, with nails digging deep into her palm.

"Sister Xiaoqing, do you know what's going on? Please tell me!"

"Yeah, I want to know what happened too."

Bai Tang, Wu Song and Da Fei were all confused, like ants on a hot pan, surrounding Xiao Qing and asking her questions non-stop.

"Sigh~"

Xiaoqing took a deep breath, trying to calm her inner panic. The nightmare that Mo Zi had mentioned before was now surging in her mind like a tide.

"Everyone...be quiet for a moment."

Xiaoqing's voice trembled slightly, and her eyes swept across the anxious faces of her companions one by one.

"Sister A Zi told me before that she had a terrible nightmare. She dreamed that we were controlled at night, lost consciousness, and killed each other... Some images suddenly flashed through my mind just now. It's very likely that we were controlled last night."

"What!"

Bai Tang's eyes widened like two copper bells, his face full of disbelief, and he shook his head like a rattle:

"How could that be? Will we be controlled? Even if we are, how can we possibly defeat Sister A Zi?"

Wu Song crossed his arms, his brows knitted into the shape of a "chuan" character. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke with a hint of doubt:

"Xiaoqing, could you be remembering it wrongly? Maybe you just had a nightmare and confused it with the dream Sister A Zi told you about."

Da Fei scratched his head, confused, and muttered:

"I didn't think anything was wrong...but why is Sister Azi covered in wounds and in that state?"

Xiaoqing was so anxious that her eyes turned red and she stamped her feet:

"I really didn't remember it wrong!"

Her voice was choked with sobs, and she shook her head desperately.

"Since it was us, my sister didn't dare to fight back with all her strength! She took all the attacks alone!"

At this moment, a cold voice came from the corner:

"Xiaoqing is right."

The cats looked in the direction of the sound and saw Mingyue slowly walking out from the shadows with a solemn expression.

"Last night, I was also controlled and attacked Ah Zi."

"!"

Hearing Mingyue's words, the cats were struck by lightning and stood there in a daze for a moment.

At this time, the bathroom door slowly swayed, making a "creak" sound, and Mo Zi walked out.

She changed into a clean lavender dress, her wet long hair casually draped over her shoulders, with water droplets sliding down the ends of her hair and dripping onto the ground.

However, the fatigue on his face was like a deep scar that could not be wiped away.

The eyes of the cats instantly focused on her like spotlights, and the atmosphere in the entire hall became oppressive and tense, as if the air had frozen.

"..."

Mo Zi was keenly aware of something unusual, and his eyes swept across everyone's faces one by one, finally landing on Xiao Qing.

Xiaoqing bit her lower lip, her eyes filled with tears, like a flood that could burst out at any time.

She quickly ran to Mo Zi's side, her voice filled with tears, almost choking:

"Sister, I remember now. Last night...we were the ones who hurt you."

Mo Zi's body stiffened slightly, and a complex emotion flashed in his eyes, including pain, helplessness, and heartache for his companions.

Then she sighed softly:

"It's okay, you see, it doesn't hurt that much, does it?"

Wu Song took a step forward, his face full of guilt, his head almost lowered to his chest:

"Sister Azi, did we really do this? I'm so sorry... I actually hurt you with my own hands."

Bai Tang lowered his head, his eyes reddened, his hands clenched tightly into fists, and he blamed himself:

"Sister A Zi, I am such a bad person. How could I possibly hurt you?"

"It's fine……"

Mo Zi looked at his self-blaming companions, and a gentle smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, like the warm spring sun.

She walked forward and patted the shoulders of Bai Tang, Wu Song, Xiao Qing, Da Fei and Ming Yue in turn, her tone full of relief:

"Little ones, this isn't your fault. After last night, I noticed that your strength has improved quite a bit! Facing powerful enemies, you were able to skillfully utilize your rhythmic energy, and the power of your moves should not be underestimated."

"Okay, I've decided!"

Da Fei clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white, and shouted loudly:

"We must find that bad guy and avenge Sister A Zi!"

The cats nodded, determination burning in their eyes.

Mingyue stepped forward, her voice cold but revealing an unquestionable determination:

"I will work with everyone to find out the truth."

Mo Zi looked at everyone with relief. Although the road ahead was full of thorns and dangers, with these friends by her side, she firmly believed that no matter how difficult the difficulties were, she could overcome them.