On the Ark.

The muscles must be torn, right?

The bones were probably ground to dust as well.

Even his spirit is about to dissipate.

Lin Ye slowly closed his eyes.

……

The sound of cicadas reached my ears.

"Lin Ye, it's the class monitor's birthday today! We're all going to his house to play, are you coming?"

The thin boy looked up at the girl with the ponytail who had extended an invitation to him, and was about to reply when a hand landed on him.

"Excuse me, little student. Lin Ye has to go home now," the mother said with a smile to the boy's classmate. "Maybe next time."

"Is that so? Okay then." The little girl skipped away.

Looking at the lively ponytail, the boy's eyes gradually lowered.

"Let's go home." The mother took the boy's hand and walked out of the school.

The students walked past the boy in groups, laughing and cheering as they greeted him. But the boy just kept his head down and didn't say a word.

His mother asked him what he wanted to eat, but he didn't answer.

His mother asked him what he wanted to drink, but he didn't answer.

He felt it was boring, and he didn't know why. Other classmates could always play with each other, while he could only stay with his mother.

Holding his mother's hand, the boy felt that the world was incredibly boring.

Then he heard a cat meowing.

He immediately looked up and saw a small white figure at the end of the street corner.

"Mom, Mom!" He recognized her and shook his mother's hand. "That white cat from last time!"

The mother looked in the direction the boy pointed and also saw the white cat, but she didn't think much of it: "All stray cats look the same. How do you know it's the same one as last time?"

"Yes, it must be!" the boy insisted. "It is, I recognize it."

"Okay, okay, that's right. Sweetie, we're going home now."

The boy didn't want to leave and kept his head down.

"What are you going to do?" The mother frowned.

The boy didn't say anything, he just wouldn't leave.

The mother took a deep breath and called out the boy's name loudly: "Lin Ye!"

The boy looked up: "I want to go see it."

“Impossible,” the mother said coldly. “Stray cats are filthy, and they might even have rabies. What if they scratch you?”

"Will not."

"What can't you do! You better listen to me!" The mother tried to pull the boy away, but the boy just wouldn't leave, stubborn as a stinky rock.

"Let's go take a look!"

After several minutes of stalemate, the mother had no choice but to give in.

"Then let's go take a look, but we can only look."

The boy ran off happily, his mother following behind. But the white cat ran away as soon as it saw them. After chasing them for more than ten meters, the mother became impatient.

“It’s afraid of you,” the boy said, pointing at his mother. “You should just stay away.”

"Stray cats are afraid of people."

"No, it's not afraid of me."

The mother was so angry she almost laughed: "If it's not afraid of you and is willing to go with you, then I'll let you keep it."

The boy's eyes lit up: "Really? You have to keep your word!"

The mother paused, stunned. She hadn't seen such emotion in her son's eyes in a long time; the boy rarely expressed what he wanted to her anymore. Perhaps thinking of something, the mother was silent for a moment, then sighed and nodded: "If it really wants to go with you, then I'll let you keep it."

The boy was even happier. He told his mother to wait where she was and ran off to find the little white kitten.

The little white cat was rummaging through the trash can, so thin that its bones were clearly visible. Hearing the noise, it turned to look at the boy. Although it didn't run away immediately, it lowered its body, its tail slightly bristling.

The boy looked at the kitten and realized it was indeed the same kitten from last time; he recognized those jewel-like blue eyes.

"Kitten, come with me." The boy held out his hand to the kitten.

The kitten leaped up and slashed at the boy's hand with its claw.

Three bloody streaks appeared on the boy's hand, with fine beads of blood seeping out. The boy cried out and plopped down in the pile of garbage, while the kitten took the opportunity to run further inside, eyeing the boy with wary and dangerous eyes.

"Lin Ye, what happened to you?! Were you scratched?!" His mother's voice came through the phone.

"No, no." The boy wiped the blood away. "I was just startled."

"Come back soon. If you really want to keep a cat, I'll buy you one. Stray cats are different from house cats; they're too fierce..." the mother said.

But the boy didn't listen at all; he just looked at the kitten and noticed a scar on its back.

"Are you hurt?" the boy asked. "I'm hurt now too. Come with me."

The boy reached out his hand to the kitten, and the kitten let out a low hiss.

I'm a little scared.

Whether it's a boy or a cat.

but.

The boy still reached out his hand.

“I’m alone, and you’re alone too,” the boy said.

The kitten opened its mouth, revealing its sharp teeth.

But he didn't bite down.

The boy touched the kitten's head.

"I've got you." The boy smiled, revealing his white teeth. "From now on, let me stay with you."

……

"I've got you."

Lin Ye said.

He touched that warm hand, and that warmth gave him strength. Even though he was already exhausted, he didn't know where he found the strength.

To everyone's disbelief, the vines withered.

The raging, vibrant vines withered in an instant, and the enclosed prison they had constructed collapsed in a flash.

The magic dissipated.

Wood chips floated in the air.

The blood-covered boy embraced the girl he had brought out of the darkness.

He looked up at the somewhat dazzling fluorescent lights.

"Let me stay with you from now on."

He said softly.

Chapter Twenty-Eight Liz

Lin Ye felt like he had a very long dream.

In his dream, he freed a beautiful girl who looked like an angel but was essentially a devil from the prison that held her captive. And then, nothing more. Logically, he should have been enjoying the girl's happiness and gratitude, but instead, he shamefully fainted.

That's so embarrassing, especially since he seemed to have said some really shameful things to the girl.

Ugh, it's just too painful to recall. I wish this dark history were just a dream.

Lin Ye thought to himself.

When he opened his eyes and felt a faint stinging sensation coming from his arm, he sadly realized that this was not a dream.

"You're awake." A familiar, androgynous voice rang in Lin Ye's ears.

Lin Ye turned his head and found Ansel sitting on the edge of his bed, wearing glasses and holding a book.

"How long have I been asleep?" Lin Ye asked.

“It’s been a while.” Ansel closed the book. “Seven or eight hours? I don’t remember exactly, because it was such a chaotic time.”

"Too chaotic?"

“You haven’t forgotten what you did, have you?” Ansel said. “You only injured your arm, and Shining healed it. But the injury was so severe before, so you’ll probably feel a little uncomfortable after it’s healed.”

Lin Ye moved his right hand around. While his movements were generally fine, he could still feel pain, though he wasn't sure if it was just psychological. After all, just raising his hand now reminded him of the brutal force of those vines, as if they had tried to tear him apart—a truly frightening experience.

"Okay." Lin Ye slowly sat up from the bed, then looked around at his surroundings. "Is this the medical room?"

“Hmm,” Ansel said. “By the way, your clothes were soaked in blood, so I changed you into a hospital gown. If you don’t feel comfortable wearing it, you can go back to your dorm and change back into your own clothes.”

Lin Ye then realized that he was wearing a hospital gown, which explained why it felt so loose.

But something just feels off.

Wait, did Ansel change his clothes?

This gave Lin Ye a strange feeling, after all, Ansel was a man, and it would have been better if he weren't.

Ansel had no idea what Lin Ye was thinking. Seeing Lin Ye get out of bed, he took out a bottle of medicine from his pocket and tossed it to Lin Ye.

Lin Ye took it and asked, "What is this?"

“Nutrients,” Ansel said. “You’ve lost quite a bit of blood; it would be best to replenish it.”

Lin Ye smiled and unscrewed the bottle cap: "Thank you."

Ansel was silent for a moment, then said, "We should be the ones saying that to you."