Chapter 287 Kidnapping the Cat
Zhou Jue almost burst out laughing when he saw the leopard cat gesturing with its paws and its eyes full of longing.
"Okay," Zhou Jue replied in his mind, and walked towards it.
As soon as the leopard cat saw her approach, it tensed up again, baring its teeth and making a growling warning sound.
But its inner voice betrayed it: "She's coming! What's she going to do! Is she going to back out? Is she going to steal my fruit!"
"I'll give you the water, and you give me those two fruits from the tree," Zhou Jue said, stopping a few meters in front of it.
"No way!" The leopard cat refused without even thinking, its heart filled with grievance.
"Those are two fruits! You only have one water! I won't exchange them!"
Its little brain worked quickly, and it clearly felt that this deal was not worthwhile.
Zhou Jue was amused by it. This fruit was quite something; the little guy could even count. She shook the small water bottle in her hand.
"Mine can be poured into many cups."
"Your fruit, every one you eat is one less."
Zhou Jue's eyes darted around: "However... if you're willing to come with me, this water is plentiful."
Zhou Jue offered a deadly temptation, and the leopard cat froze.
It glanced at the water bottle in Zhou Jue's hand, then looked back at the two bright red fruits on the tree, its golden pupils filled with conflict.
"Follow...follow you?"
Where to?
“Go to a place where there is plenty of this kind of water to drink,” Zhou Jue advised patiently.
“Then…then my fruit…” The leopard cat pointed to the tree.
"The fruit is yours too, I'll pick it for you." Zhou Jue's tone was like he was coaxing a child.
"Really?" The leopard cat's eyes lit up instantly.
"real."
The leopard cat struggled internally for less than three seconds.
Freedom, plenty of good drinking water, and fruit that can be preserved...
She decisively chose the latter. After all, she had no friends and her mother was gone; she was a free cat! Today, the cat was going to find herself a new protector!
"Deal!" it shouted in its mind.
Then, it trotted quickly to Zhou Jue's feet, nuzzled her trouser leg with its furry head, and made a satisfied "gurgling" sound in its throat.
The meaning is clear: I'm sticking with you, but where's the water?
...
Cheng Gan and his team members, standing in the distance, were completely petrified.
They watched as Major General Zhou and the leopard cat "talked to each other from a distance" for a long time.
Then, the ferocious leopard cat seemed to be frozen in place, sometimes tense, sometimes conflicted, and finally ran to General Zhou's feet to act cute and charming.
"Squad leader..." The young soldier's voice trembled, "I have a feeling... Major General Zhou has... recruited that cat?"
Cheng Gan didn't speak; she just silently watched the scene. The cat and the tree were clearly unusual. Was it a hidden treasure in the deep mountains, or was the spiritual energy about to be revived?
Ignoring the shock of the group behind her, Zhou Jue bent down in a good mood and stroked the leopard cat's smooth fur.
From now on, I'll call you...Zhaocai (meaning "bringing wealth").
"Meow?" The leopard cat raised its head, looking bewildered.
Zhou Jue poured another cup of spiritual spring water for it, watching it happily bury its head and lick it vigorously.
Then she walked up to the strange little tree.
Of the three spiritual fruits, one had already been eaten by "Lucky Charm," while the other two remained intact.
She carefully picked the two whole fruits and placed them into the Starry Secret Box.
The value of this thing is probably immeasurable.
"Sister Cheng Gan, notify the base to send an engineering team and a research group over." Zhou Jue turned around, his expression turning serious again.
"Immediately designate this valley as a top-level restricted area and physically isolate it."
"No one is allowed to approach."
Cheng Gan immediately snapped out of his daze and stood at attention: "Yes, sir!"
She quickly relayed the order via an encrypted channel.
“Xiao Jue, this tree and that cat…” Cheng Gan walked over, looking at the leopard cat that was still drinking water, his expression complicated.
“The situation has changed; let’s take it back to base first,” Zhou Jue said succinctly.
She glanced at the sky, then walked over to Zhao Cai and picked up the fat guy who weighed at least twenty pounds.
Zhao Cai was startled and kicked its four paws wildly in the air, but soon it found that the two-legged creature's embrace was warm and had a pleasant smell, so it gave up struggling, found a comfortable position, and nestled in contentment.
"Return to base."
The transport plane slowly landed at the base.
Zhou Jue, carrying Zhao Cai, returned to his room, exhausted.
Cheng Gan immediately went to the command center to personally oversee the establishment of the Qinling Valley blockade zone.
Inside the room, Zhao Cai was filled with curiosity about this new environment.
It jumped down from Zhou Jue's arms, first cautiously sniffing around the room, and finally its gaze settled on the small water bottle that Zhou Jue had placed on the table.
"Meow~" It jumped onto the chair, scratched at the edge of the table with its paws, and looked at Zhou Jue with longing eyes.
Zhou Jue found it a large bowl and filled it with spiritual spring water.
Zhao Cai immediately let out a cheer, buried his whole head in the bowl, and drank with great relish.
After settling the little guy in, Zhou Jue finally had time to sit down and sort out his thoughts.
The spiritual energy has returned; it's come so quickly.
Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
On the positive side, the emergence of spiritual energy means that China can break free from its dependence on the supply of spirit stones, cultivate more cultivators, and achieve a leap in overall strength.
The Great Array of Ten Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains can also have a more stable energy source.
But from a negative perspective...
If a spiritual vein node has appeared in the Qinling Mountains, what about other parts of the world?
Kunlun Mountains? Alps? Amazon Rainforest?
Once signs of a global resurgence of spiritual energy begin to appear, the existing world order will inevitably be completely overturned.
The nation that masters the methods of cultivating spiritual energy will gain an unparalleled advantage.
Those who lack mastery will only become lambs to the slaughter.
New disputes and new wars are almost a foregone conclusion.
Moreover, spiritual energy nourishes not only humans.
There are also animals like the lucky charm, and those sleeping, unknown beings...
If not handled properly, this planet will begin to collapse from within.
The more Zhou Jue thought about it, the more his head ached.
An external threat from a "higher civilization system" has left everyone in a state of utter chaos.
Now, the internal variable of "spiritual energy revival" has suddenly appeared again.
However, she felt that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages. If we couldn't defeat alien civilizations in terms of technology, what if we added cultivation of immortality to the mix?
She took out her personal terminal, accessed her encrypted contacts, and dialed Chief Zhang's number directly.
The call was answered almost instantly.
"Xiao Jue, what's the matter so late?" Chief Zhang's calm voice came.
"Grandpa Zhang, there's a new development." Zhou Jue's tone was very serious.
"Even more urgent than the Voyager mission."
Chief Zhang on the other end of the phone paused for a moment, his breathing noticeably faltering.
"you say."
Zhou Jue gave a detailed report on his discoveries in the Qinling Valley, including the spiritual energy, spiritual fruits, and the leopard cat that had already developed intelligence.
With each word she spoke, she could feel the breathing on the other end of the phone grow heavier.
After a long while, Chief Zhang muttered to himself.
"Spiritual energy...the revival...is it starting so soon?"
"Is the era from our ancestors' myths and legends... about to return?"
“Grandpa Zhang, we must come up with a solution immediately,” Zhou Jue interrupted his reverie.
"First, we must seize control of the spiritual vein in the Qinling Mountains at all costs."
"Secondly, we must immediately conduct the largest-scale geological and energy exploration across the country to find all possible spiritual vein nodes and take control of them before they fully 'awaken'!"
"Third..." Zhou Jue paused, then said the most crucial point: "Shouldn't we... put the popularization of spiritual energy cultivation on the agenda?"
Zhou Jue knew that once the entire population began cultivating, the entire social structure, laws, and morality would face reconstruction.
It was a social transformation more radical than any war.
"Xiao Jue..." Chief Zhang's voice was filled with an unprecedented weariness.
"You should rest first."
"We'll discuss this matter again after daybreak."
The call ended, and Zhou Jue stared at the black screen, but he was wide awake.
She walked to the window and looked out at the deep night.
She knew that tonight, that conference room in Xishan, the capital, was destined to be another sleepless night.
And now, another topic has been added to the agenda.
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