The comments said I was deeply affectionate, I just added points by using an alternate account.

Tianze City, a hotel called Good Luck Inn whose name itself sounds perfunctory.

The room reeked of cheap disinfectant, but Chen Guan didn't care; he just needed a place to sleep.

He sank into the mattress and slept soundly through the night.

Until a furry tail lashed his face, neither too hard nor too soft.

"Hungry."

A concise word rang in his ears.

Chen Guan opened his eyes and met a pair of hungry, vertical pupils.

...This leopard is getting harder and harder to please.

They're getting bolder and bolder; now they even offer wake-up services.

He sat up, looked at the bright daylight outside the window, and yawned.

"Awoo."

When the leopard saw that he was awake, it jumped off his chest, walked gracefully to the door, and turned back to urge him with its eyes.

Chen Guan resignedly got out of bed, took out a roast chicken from his storage space, tore off a large piece of chicken leg meat, and put it into a food bowl.

The little guy immediately buried his head in his food, his tail wagging happily behind him.

Chen Guan casually turned on the old television set in the room.

After a series of static noises, the screen lit up, revealing a serious-looking female news anchor delivering the morning news.

"We have an emergency news briefing. Late last night, an unidentified terrorist organization attacked downtown Yunlan. Two commercial buildings were destroyed. Fortunately, the evacuation was timely, and there were no large-scale civilian casualties."

The television screen switched to the still-smoking ruins of Yongheng Square, where terrified citizens and reporters stood outside the cordon.

Chen Guan's gaze remained fixed on the screen, his hand continuing to tear apart the chicken without stopping.

The female anchor's voice continued.

"According to our station, the mayor of Yunlan City was found dead at his home this morning. Sources say his death is related to last night's terrorist attack."

On screen, Gao Yan's face, filled with anger and exhaustion, flashed by. He faced the camera and swore in a hoarse voice that he would bring those villains wearing white masks to justice.

Chen Guan casually tossed a piece of chicken skin, which he didn't eat himself, into Leopard's bowl, then turned off the TV.

The only sound in the room was the soft chewing of the leopard as it ate.

"Have you finished eating?" he asked.

"belch."

Leopard let out a satisfied burp, licked the grease from its mouth, and looked at him with its clear eyes.

"Eat first, then get back to work."

Chen Guan stood up and stretched his limbs.

……

Black Wind Mountain Forest Area on the outskirts of Tianze City.

Because of the fall of a powerful demon, this place has been shrouded in a poisonous miasma for many years, making it a forbidden zone for ordinary people and a paradise for many demons and beasts.

Because the cleanup is difficult and the monsters don't run away from the mountains, the local government turns a blind eye to them.

Only when a monster of the fifth rank or higher is born will people be called in to eliminate it.

Chen Guan accepted a B-level mission, the objective of which was to hunt down a sixth-tier demonic beast, the Three-Eyed Poison Toad, that was entrenched in this area.

This kind of monster has thick skin and can spew highly corrosive venom, which is a considerable problem for ordinary sixth-tier monsters.

But for Chen Guan, a second-rate seventh-level cultivator, it was a piece of cake.

Following the information in the mission briefing, he ventured deeper and deeper, and soon he stopped in front of a swamp.

In the muddy swamp, a head the size of a water vat, covered in disgusting pustules, was warily staring at this uninvited guest, its three murky eyes filled with savagery.

"Quack."

The three-eyed poisonous toad let out a low warning, and a huge venom sac bulged out from its mouth.

Upon hearing the word "gua," Chen Guan frowned and didn't give it a second chance to bark.

His figure left an afterimage in place, and in the next instant, he appeared above the poisonous toad's head.

A jet-black scythe, with a faint whistling sound as it tore through the air, silently slashed across the surface.

puff.

The toad's enormous head was cleanly split in two, like a watermelon cut in half, before it could even let out a scream.

Chen Guan stepped lightly on the corpse with his toes, landing back on the dry ground a few meters away, his body spotless.

He walked to the corpse, flicked the tip of his scythe, and a demon core the size of a pigeon egg, radiating a dark green aura, flew into his hand.

Take a photo, upload it—all in one smooth motion.

From entering the mountains to successfully carrying out the plan, the entire process took no more than twenty minutes.

He put the demon core into his storage space, turned around and left, not even bothering to look at the corpse again.

The leopard perched on his shoulder was lazy from beginning to end, only flicking its tail impatiently when it smelled blood.

……

Tianze City Teleportation Hall.

After Chen Guan paid the money, the silver patterns under his feet lit up one by one, and the dazzling white light swallowed his vision.

The feeling of weightlessness flashed by.

When Chen Guan opened his eyes again, the familiar air of the academy rushed towards him.

In the early morning at the college, sunlight filters through the tall sycamore trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Chen Guan walked towards the teaching building, yawning. A fluffy purple creature was perched on his shoulder, sleeping soundly, its soft snores audible only to him.

The classroom was quite full, filled with the aroma of breakfast buns and the low murmur of students chatting. Everything seemed the same as usual.

Chen Guan walked to his usual seat by the window and sat down. Just as he took the book out of his storage space, Wang Hanyue's signature loud voice came from the front row.

"Did you see the news this morning? Something big happened in Yunlan City."

Wang Hanyue's phone screen was facing Long Ao, displaying an aerial view of the ruins of the two buildings in downtown Yunlan, with scrolling subtitles that were quite glaring.

"Terrorist attack? These bastards are incredibly audacious to do something like this right under the Great Wall."

He slammed his fist on the table with a loud bang, attracting the attention of several classmates around him.

Long Ao crossed his arms and stared at the ruins on the screen, his expression grim.

"The news said that fortunately the evacuation was timely and there were no civilian casualties. It's a stroke of luck amidst misfortune," a girl said with lingering fear.

"Even if no one was hurt, this is still outrageous," Wang Hanyue cursed. "Look at the extent of the damage. These people should all be arrested and executed one by one."

Chen Guan rested his chin on one hand, his gaze fixed on the window, ignoring the discussion.

He even had the leisure to gently scratch the leopard's chin with his finger, eliciting a comfortable purr from the little guy.