You are a cat demon

You're being really foolish by doing that...

Actually, you were just trying your luck, hoping to get lucky and maybe you'd just stumble upon the right answer.

You try to stand up on your hind legs, straighten your back as much as possible, and stand like a human.

Since many of the great demons you've seen have transformed into human form, imitating humans is, if not always the case, one of the most likely conditions for cultivation.

What you find strange is, why do they have to take human form, even if they can take any other form?

Monsters despise humans, but ironically, they can transform into human form once they reach a certain level of cultivation.

Humans, who consider themselves the pinnacle of creation, have for millennia proclaimed themselves the masters of the earth, even in this chaotic world, they continue to deceive themselves with a laughable optimism. You've spent enough time with humans; you know they aren't nearly as terrifying as your cat-demon clan's legends portray them. Humans lack the agility of apes, the strength of tigers, and the majesty of dragons; in short, they lack all the "spirit" that the so-called "pinnacle of creation" should possess. The reason humans have been able to dominate the earth for millennia is simply due to their intelligent brains, their advanced weaponry, and the favor of heaven. But now, things have changed. Demon races are rising in power, human civilization has stagnated for centuries, even regressed, and no one can predict what the future holds.

You really can't understand why those exceptionally gifted demons would choose to give up their naturally powerful claws and teeth, discard their naturally beautiful fur, scales, and feathers, and transform into a naked human. Is it because humans have something they don't?

Even if you can't figure it out, since those great monsters do it this way, there must be a reason. Even if you can't understand the principle, just follow their example. Although, currently, there's no gourd for you to copy...

The cat demon can stand upright on its hind legs, but it's definitely more comfortable to stand on all fours. You can get used to this standing posture at first, but after a while, your hind legs will ache terribly and your back will hurt badly. Then you won't be able to hold on and your whole body will fall forward. Unfortunately, your two front legs can't react in time... The result is that you fall face-first to the ground.

Later, you gradually got used to this long-term standing posture and began to try to move your feet and walk, looking as silly as an Antarctic penguin.

Later, you grew a little bolder and began to take a big step forward, trying to step into your home, just like humans do. But as soon as you stretched out one hind leg, the other hind leg suddenly went weak, your whole body stiffened, and then you fell straight backward.

To those who didn't know better, it looked like you'd accidentally pulled your balls. Even Zhang Qingshan, the village chief who rarely smiled since the death of the big black dog, couldn't help but laugh at your comical appearance.

Tsk tsk tsk, you've disgraced your ancestors for eighteen generations. You should go live on another planet.

A few days later, you noticed that Village Chief Zhang Qingshan and Ruoye were spending more time at home and by your side. Also, for some reason, their attitude towards you seemed a little strange.

What you might not know is that if a house cat stands up inexplicably for an extended period, it means it's seeking its owner's attention and doesn't want to be ignored. Moreover, considering your age, for an average cat, your days are truly numbered.

Gradually, you will be able to fully master the ability to walk upright, although you will be like a clumsy penguin.

Learning this alone is far from enough (even if you don’t know whether it’s necessary or not). If a monster wants to become stronger, it must breathe in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and absorb the essence of the sun and moon, day after day, year after year. The process is extremely long and arduous, and very few can persevere.

You are a cat demon. If you cannot succeed before the end of your life, all your previous efforts will be in vain. But you only have a few decades left. Other demons have struggled for hundreds of years and still have a 90% failure rate. Will you really be so lucky?

However, if one is unwilling to take this difficult path, there is actually another shortcut, which is also the way that most monsters prefer to choose—to seize the demon cores of other monsters and steal their demonic power.

This method sounds even more inhumane, but it is indeed more efficient. The demonic power comes in faster and stronger. Some demons who cultivate diligently may take decades or even centuries to reach their current level, but with this method, they may be able to surpass it in as little as three to five years. Why not do something so convenient?

Although obtaining demon cores is no easy feat, no demon will surrender easily. There are no free lunches, and nothing in life is ever smooth sailing. Without a fierce battle, one cannot enjoy the sweet fruits of victory. This is why you often see demons of the same or different races fighting and killing each other.

You decide to go with the flow.

But there's another question: do you have the ability?

Even if there were, there wouldn't be any monsters near Sakura Village for you to kill indiscriminately. You would have to go to remote, deep forests to encounter a few weak monsters that you could practice on, which would mean you might have to leave Sakura Village for a while.

You're the type of person who's determined to do whatever comes to mind.

This time, however, you don't plan to leave without saying goodbye. After all, after spending so much time together, you're bound to develop some feelings. Especially considering that you've been freeloading off people here for ten years, even you, with your thick skin, can't help but feel a little embarrassed.

Consider it a way of giving them some explanation. You've been going out hunting every night for the past month. But instead of snakes, cockroaches, and rats—those worthless things humans look down on—you've spent so much time with humans that you naturally know what prey is valuable to them. You're bringing back large herbivores like red deer, argali, muntjacs, and stags. Besides, it's springtime now, and the herbivores are all plump and healthy, roaming the forests, ensuring you a bountiful harvest every day. However, you certainly can't openly give them as gifts; you have to carefully arrange them into "accidental scenes"...

After completing all of this, you were almost worked to death, nearly "the late emperor died before completing his great undertaking."

When you finally achieve enlightenment, you will definitely come back to visit them.

On the day you were about to leave, you noticed that the atmosphere around Village Chief Zhang Qingshan's family was strange; they seemed to be staring at you with a very odd look. Village Chief Zhang Qingshan pulled Ruoye aside and whispered something in her ear. Ruoye bit her lip and nodded, then asked you to come out with her.

Since you're about to leave, you don't mind taking a little more time. Whether Ruoye wants you to play with her or does something else, you want to take this opportunity to see her one more time.

Ruoye led you out of the village and onto the only road leading into the mountains, and that's when you realized something was wrong.

"Little Black, farewell."

……

You stared blankly at her retreating figure as she returned to the village, your mind a complete blank. It took you a long time to realize that you were all alone here, the silent forest almost swallowing you whole.

Have you misunderstood something?

Or did they misunderstand you in some way?

You are free.

You have never been bound by anything.

You galloped across the vast plains like a madman, weaving through the boundless forests, seemingly trying to vent all sorts of inexplicable emotions. Until you were finally tired, weary, and thirsty, you stumbled upon a clear spring in a daze. The calm surface of the water was rippling in the breeze, and your reflection in the water was both so familiar and so strange.

Now that things have come to this, are you still just a pure cat demon?