Peking Opera Cat: I Became A Zi's Brother

The wind in the gloomy valley was stronger than it had been three days ago.

Dark clouds pressed down on the top of the valley, completely blocking out the last bit of daylight. Only in the depths of the Chaos Hall, the eternal lamp formed by the black fog emitted a faint green light.

It barely illuminated the chaotic air currents swirling in the hall - they were like tiny black snakes, entwining the cold stone walls, winding along the ground, and finally converging on the black iron chair on the high platform.

An just sat there.

He was not wearing the mask that covered half of his face. His pale jawline looked particularly sharp under the green light. His fingertips carelessly stroked the twelve grooves carved on the armrest of the chair - those were the marks of the "Twelve Sorrows", each of which corresponded to a strong man who was completely swallowed by chaos.

He lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the figure in the center of the hall, his voice devoid of warmth:

"You know everything about the fight against Zong?"

The person standing in the hall was none other than the leader of Pan Sect, Wuqing.

He was still wearing the black official robe embroidered with silver patterns, and Pan Zong's "Prison Order" hung around his waist. Even when standing in front of An, his back was straight, but the knuckles of his hands hanging at his sides were tighter than usual.

Hearing An's question, he bowed slightly, his tone calm and steady:

"Yes. Although Lord Yuanshi Hun Chaos did not completely control the Da Zong, he did inflict heavy damage on Bai Tang and his group. They have all returned to their respective sects to recuperate."

"Recuperate?"

An chuckled softly, and the chaotic airflow at his fingertips suddenly surged, then quickly converged.

"I don't want them to recover from their injuries, I want them to never get up again."

The ruthless head drooped even lower:

"It was my subordinates' fault. During the battle with Da Zong, the troops of Pan Zong failed to fully cooperate, which allowed Bai Tang to escape by chance."

"You're not derelict in your duty."

An's eyes suddenly became sharp, scraping across the ruthless face like a knife.

"You're waiting. Waiting for them to recover, waiting for them to liberate the remaining sects, waiting for an opportunity to overthrow me, right?"

An icy aura instantly enveloped the entire hall. The hem of his ruthless official robe swayed slightly in the chaotic air currents, but he remained bent, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"I dare not. The Pan Clan has been loyal to Chaos for generations. As the Clan Leader, I have no second thoughts."

"Whether you have two hearts or not, you can't tell with your mouth."

An stood up from his chair and walked down the platform step by step. His steps were light, but they made the chaotic air in the hall become sticky.

"After the sect war, you captured all the Chaos spies I sent to judge the sect and threw them into the 'Chaos Prison'. How do you explain this?"

Wuqing's body stiffened imperceptibly for a moment, then he slowly raised his head and met An's gaze:

"Those spies abused their power and murdered ordinary cat people within the Panzong territory, violating Chaos' original intention of 'ruling' rather than 'destroying'. As the leader of the Panzong, I must deal with them according to the rules. If there is any inappropriateness, please punish them, Lord An."

"Deal with it according to the rules?"

An suddenly smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes.

"When will it be your turn to decide the rules of the sect?"

He raised his hand, and the chaotic airflow at his fingertips turned into a black rope, which suddenly wrapped around Wuqing's wrist.

The cold touch instantly spread throughout his body, but he did not struggle. He just stood there quietly and let the black rope tighten.

At this moment, three neat announcements came from outside the hall, breaking the stalemate inside the hall -

"Xing Tian requests to see Lord An!"

"Zhulong requests to see Lord An!"

"Gou Mang requests to see Lord An!"

An glanced at Wuqing's entangled wrist, exerted a little force with his fingertips, and the black rope disappeared instantly.

He turned around and walked back to the platform, sat down again, and his tone returned to its previous calmness:

"Let them in."

The palace door was pushed open, and three figures walked in one after another.

Walking in front was Xing Tian. He was wearing heavy metal armor, and his shoulder armor was still stained with the dust of the battlefield. Every step he took on the stone slabs made a dull sound.

He walked behind Wuqing and knelt on one knee, his eyes under the helmet as heavy as iron:

"Your subordinate Xing Tian, ​​here to see Lord An."

Following closely behind is Zhulong.

He was more reserved than Xing Tian, ​​with not a single wrinkle on his dark robe, but with a hint of fatigue in his eyes - after the sect war, he was ordered to clean up the purification forces outside the borders of the Panzong, and he received the order to meet with the emperor as soon as he returned.

He also knelt down and said in a steady voice:

"I am Zhulong, your subordinate, here to see Lord An."

Gou Mang came in last. She was wearing a long, green, waist-cinching dress with delicate vine patterns embroidered on the hem. Her hair was tied up with a jade hairpin, revealing her smooth forehead.

She did not kneel like Xing Tian and Zhu Long, but walked to their side, bowed slightly, and spoke in a clear but somewhat cold voice:

"Your subordinate Gou Mang pays homage to Lord An."

The three cats are all ruthless direct subordinates and are also Pan Zong's most effective fighting force.

At this moment, they stood side by side behind Wuqing. Although their posture was respectful, they formed a barrier to protect Wuqing behind them - this subconscious action did not escape An's eyes.

An's eyes swept across the three people, finally landing on Gou Mang, with a hint of a smile in his tone:

"I heard that when you were cleaning up the purifying forces, you let a kitten with the charm of water escape?"

Gou Mang's body paused slightly, then he said calmly:

"That kitten is just an ordinary descendant of the Shen Sect and did not participate in the rebellion against Chaos. The Pan Sect acted according to the rules and did not punish the innocent. Lord An, please understand."

"According to the rules?"

An repeated these four words, and his gaze fell back on Wuqing.

"It seems that your understanding of 'rules' is different from mine."

Wuqing took a step forward and stood in front of the three people:

"Master An, Xingtian, Zhulong, and Gou Mang are all the backbone of the Panzong. They all act according to the rules of the Panzong. If there is any offense, it is all due to the poor teaching of my subordinates, and has nothing to do with them."

"Poor teaching?"

An's fingertips condensed chaotic airflow again.

"Then today, I will teach you what the true 'rules' are."

He raised his hand, and a black beam of chaos suddenly shot towards Wuqing.

Wuqing's pupils suddenly shrank, and he was about to raise his hand to resist, but Xing Tian behind him suddenly stood up, and the heavy armor blocked him - with a dull "bang", the chaos beam hit the armor, stirring up sparks all over the sky. Xing Tian groaned, and his knees slammed heavily on the ground, and a deep crack appeared on his shoulder armor.

"Xingtian!"

Wuqing screamed and wanted to go forward to help him, but was stopped by Zhulong.

Zhulong shook his head slightly at him, then stepped forward and helped Xingtian up together with Gou Mang. The three of them knelt back on the ground and said in unison:

"I am willing to accept the punishment on behalf of the Sect Master!"

An looked at the scene in front of him, and the coldness in his eyes became even stronger.

He originally thought that Wuqing was just being disloyal, but he didn't expect that his three subordinates would dare to go against him.

He took a deep breath, and the chaotic airflow at his fingertips slowly dissipated:

"Good, very good. It seems that everyone in the Pan Sect takes you, the Sect Master, seriously and treats me, the Lord of Chaos, as a mere decoration."

Wuqing said quickly:

"I have absolutely no such intention! Pan Zong will always be loyal to Lord An, but..."

"Just what?"

An interrupted him,

"But do you think there's still hope for Bai Tang? Do you think he can overthrow me with those remaining defeated troops?"

He stood up and walked to the center of the hall, his eyes sweeping over the four Wuqing people:

"I tell you, it's impossible. The battle with Da Zong was just a warm-up for the original chaos. Next, what Pan Zong has to do is to guard the road leading to Du Zong and Zuo Zong. Wuqing, I'll give you one last chance——"

His voice suddenly became stern:

"Within three days, release the Chaos spies you captured; within seven days, eliminate all cats related to the Purification Force within the Judgment Sect; within ten days, bring Xingtian, Zhulong, and Gou Mang with me to the Du Sect to assist Zhulong.

(Note: This is the deployment related to Du Zong, which can be adjusted according to the subsequent plot. Anyway, the final right of interpretation belongs to me)

Strengthen the defense line. If you can't do that, you don't have to be the leader of the Pan Sect anymore."

Wuqing's body trembled. He knew that this was An's ultimatum and final warning. He took a deep breath and slowly bowed.

"I obey my orders."

"very good."

An's tone softened a bit.

"You guys go down. Remember, don't let me down again."

Wuqing, along with Xingtian, Zhulong and Gou Mang, slowly left the hall.

The moment the palace door closed, Wuqing's tense body finally relaxed. He turned around to look at the three people behind him, and his voice was filled with fatigue:

"Xing Tian, ​​your injury..."

"Don't worry, Sect Master. It's just a minor injury."

Xing Tian held his shoulder armor, his voice still hoarse.

"It's just that Lord An's attitude is even harsher than before. What we're going to do next..."

"Do as he says."

Ruthlessly interrupting him, his eyes became firm,

"First, place spies, then clean up the forces. As for going to supervise the sect... we'll make plans when the time comes."

Gou Mang walked up to him and said softly:

"Master, we all know you don't want to help the evil, but An is too powerful. If we fight him head-on, it will only bring ruin to the Pan Sect."

"I know."

Qing raised his hand and touched the "Prison Suppression Order" on his waist.

"But we can't just stand by and watch him destroy the entire Cat Land. Bai Tang and the others are still here, and Zuo Zong hasn't been liberated yet. We still have a chance."

He looked up at the thick, impenetrable black fog deep in the Haze Valley, a flicker of determination in his eyes:

"Everyone, be careful in the coming days. Xing Tian, ​​go to 'Chaos Prison' and release those spies. Remember to send more people to keep an eye on them.

Zhulong, go and organize the deployment of the Panzong's forces and concentrate the core forces at 'Duanyun Pass' - that is the only way to the Zuozong.

Gou Mang, go check on the movements of Primordial Chaos. I have a feeling that the power he consumed in attacking the clan is not that simple."

"Yes!"

The three cats responded in unison.

The four cats walked side by side on the mountain path of the Haze Valley. The wind was still cold, but it could not blow away the determination in their eyes.

At this moment, in the Chaos Hall, An was standing in front of the huge cat-shaped stone statue, and the chaotic airflow from his fingertips was constantly injected into the patterns of the stone statue.

The black fog surrounding the stone statue grew thicker and thicker, and two scarlet lights slowly lit up in its empty eye sockets.

"ruthless……"

An's voice echoed in the hall, with a hint of calculation.

"Do you think you can fight me? Once I control the full power of Primordial Chaos, no one in the entire Cat Land, let alone the Panzong, will be able to stop me."

The scarlet light grew brighter and brighter, and the body of the stone statue began to tremble slightly, as if some terrifying existence was about to wake up.

The wind in the Haze Valley grew even colder, and a storm was just beginning to brew, encompassing the Panzong, Duzong, and even the entire Cat Land.