Yuxue: Tsundere Big Brother
After obtaining the bonus from the brown bear, Xia Yu had already selected the skill upgrade functions that came with Level 3 and Level 4 to prevent accidents like the one with Yin Shulan. Now, the levels of the three skills he obtained from the brown bear were: Endurance LV4, Strength LV3, and Upright Walking LV2. He then began to check the rewards that came with the Level 3 and Level 4 bonuses. The selectable rewards at Level 3 were: AI Trustee Personality, LV5 Skill Upgrade, and Bonus Solidification. The rewards at Level 4 were: Body Inspection Opportunity, LV6 Skill Upgrade, and Mark Column.
Without any hesitation, Xia Yu chose Bonus Solidification for the Level 3 selectable reward. However, he was a bit hesitant about the selectable rewards for Level 4. During his encounter with the brown bear, he had come to understand that modern society was dominated by firearms. If he had a firearm skill at the time, combined with the physical strength of the brown bear, he could have easily defeated all the encountered squads and escaped with ease. Although the security in the first district was not as chaotic as in other areas, it was still better to be prepared with firearm skills.
Therefore, he was more tempted by the Body Inspection reward, but the Level 6 Skill Upgrade, which could elevate a Level 5 skill to Level 6, also greatly appealed to him. Level 6 Skill Upgrades were extremely rare, having only appeared twice so far – once during a previous test mission and now in this situation. On the other hand, Body Inspection opportunities were relatively common, appearing randomly in Level 3 rewards. After some hesitation, Xia Yu ultimately chose the Level 6 Skill Upgrade.
His current skills were:
Pharmaceutical Making LV6, Music LV5, Test-oriented Education LV5, Dexterous LV4, Programming LV4, Endurance LV4, Dressing LV3, Language LV3, Acting Spoiled LV3, Business LV3, Painting LV3, Soothing LV3, Massage LV3, Strength LV3, Inspiration LV3, Fighting LV3, Intimidation LV2, Makeup LV2, Driving LV2, Psychotherapy LV2, Flower Arrangement LV2, Buddhist Principles LV2, Upright Walking LV2, Night Vision LV1, Grace LV1, Video Games LV1, Psychic Perception LV1, Dexterity Bonus LV1, Test-oriented Education Bonus LV1.
Xia Yu didn't immediately choose a target for Bonus Solidification; he planned to use it on firearm skills later so that he could practice at a shooting range by himself. He didn't think the identity he would assume could easily get a gun and afford to waste bullets. Without any hesitation, he used the remaining skill upgrade on Music. With Level 6 Music, his composition Wild Breath should be achievable.
Compared to the firearm skills that he probably wouldn't need, his own interests in life were more important. After all, the first district was a peaceful area, and even if there were gunmen, one or two of them would be no match for Xia Yu. Picking up his phone, Xia Yu sent a message to An Siyao and Xu Youxiang, explaining the situation behind his disappearance for the past three days.
Everything has been dealt with, Xia Yu covered himself with a blanket. Though he slept regularly and didn't feel tired, the past three days and nights of fleeing had worn him down.
Before falling asleep, he dazedly thought about the fact that his relationship with the brown bear only increased to level 4, even after entrusting it with his life. And what was the situation with Yuxue at level 4?
Was the girl so overprotective of her brother? She obviously sent women to him quite eagerly.
Without figuring out an answer, he fell asleep.
In the afternoon when he woke up, the first thing he saw was a pair of eyes very close to his own.
Those were An Siyao's eyes.
Seeing him wake up, An Siyao was very delighted.
However, Xia Yu was startled for a moment. Anyone would feel uneasy waking up to a pair of eyes staring at them.
To get back at her, he lifted his head and gently pecked An Siyao's lips.
The girl immediately blushed and turned her head away.
Feeling satisfied, Xia Yu got out of bed and saw Yuxue standing at the foot of the bed while Hu Lianglu was standing outside the door.
This made Xia Yu a bit embarrassed.
What should he do when his sister and his girlfriend's best friend saw him getting intimate with his girlfriend?
He pretended as if nothing had happened.
He got up and went with An Siyao to her villa to have fun.
After spending half a day with An Siyao, Xia Yu went to Xu Youxiang's place the following day and calmed down the restless Xu Youxiang.
Then, on the morning of the third day, he began to think about the issue of firearm talents.
Based on his past experiences, he decided to focus on obtaining physical examination opportunities.
He checked his own relationship levels with different people.
Yuxue: Level 4, An Siyao: Level 3, Xu Youxiang: Level 3, Wen Ziying: Level 2, Black Cat: Level 2, White Cat: Level 1.
Wen Ziying and Black Cat were the likeliest candidates to reach Level 3.
Wen Ziying was not easily fooled. Her level 2 relationship was a result of her own initiative to confide in Xia Yu about her family situation. It seemed somewhat difficult to raise Wen Ziying's relationship level to 3 in a short time.
Xia Yu shifted his focus to the Black Cat lying by the window.
"Meow?" The Black Cat sensed trouble and immediately prepared to flee.
Xia Yu wouldn't let it go. Using free selection, he entered the body of the Black Cat.
Shaking its body and scratching its chin, Xia Yu adapted to the Black Cat's body and began to walk.
Although he hadn't used the Black Cat for a long time, he still remembered the feeling. He walked out of the room and came to the small living room outside, where Yuxue was watching TV on the sofa.
Seeing the Black Cat, the girl waved to it, "Little Black, come here!"
Xia Yu walked to the sofa and leaped with all his strength.
It had been several months since he last visited the Black Cat's body. Though he had no problem walking, there were issues with jumping.
With a slap, he fell back to the ground.
The scene instantly became awkward.
Lying on the ground for two seconds, the Black Cat rolled around, pretending the fall was intentional and not a mistake.
"You fat cat, you can't even jump anymore." Hei Mao Yu's trick didn't fool Yuxue, the girl picked him up and stroked his fur.
"You're the fat one!" Hei Mao Yu pressed the girl's leg, which felt much softer.
Usually, Yuxue would definitely argue that she was not fat, but at this moment, her attention was completely focused on the fact that Hei Mao Yu was talking.
She was so frightened that she immediately threw Hei Mao Yu away.
Landing smoothly on the sofa, Hei Mao Yu tidied up his hair: "What, you don't recognize me when I speak?"
Yuxue placed her hand on her chest, and asked doubtfully: "Brother?"
"It's me." Xia Yu answered.
Picking up Hei Mao Yu again, Yuxue looked at him in amazement: "So you can speak when you're in an animal's body?"
"I couldn't before, but later I could." Xia Yu answered.
Originally, animals' physical structures were not suitable for using human language. When Xia Yu first entered a cat's body, he had attempted to speak but found it very difficult and his speech was hard to distinguish.
Moreover, speaking animals were too shocking and taboo, so he never tried again. Until the brown bear incident, he tried a second time, already prepared for the difficulties in pronunciation, but didn't expect the brown bear to speak very fluently.
Logically, this was an impossible thing, but later Xia Yu thought of the reason.
It was because of the Level 3 Language ability he obtained from Wen Ziyin.
"But why do you sound like a little girl?" Yuxue asked again. This was also the reason why she threw Hei Mao Yu away in horror.
Xia Yu was silent, unable to explain this issue. What could he do if he sounded like a little girl? He was desperate too!
When he had previously tried speaking as the black cat, it was difficult to pronounce and the sound was harsh and awkward. This time, after the optimization of Language Level 3, his true voice was revealed. He only found out after he started speaking, otherwise, he wouldn't have spoken at all.
His voice was husky and neutral when he was a brown bear, but when he became a black cat, it turned into a soft, cute little girl!
Putting down Hei Mao Yu, Yuxue stroked her chin and pondered for a moment, looking at Hei Mao Yu expectantly, "Now that you can speak, can you become a cat-eared girl next time?"
"Put away your dangerous thoughts!" Xia Yu answered.
"Hehe." Yuxue petted Hei Mao Yu a couple of times and continued watching her TV show.
Xia Yu yawned, wondering how to deepen the black cat's affection.
Last time, when he reached Level 2, he let the black cat eat the goldfish he had been longing for. He ate two, would it now be four goldfish?
Xia Yu felt this might be unreliable. The black cat wanted to eat fish last time because Yuxue had bought goldfish and let the black cat look at them every day, but wouldn't let the black cat eat them, so the black cat developed a strong desire to eat the goldfish.
To repeat this operation, he might have to buy a few more goldfish and put them in front of the black cat for about ten days.
He'd start with daily life instead.
After basking in the sun on the balcony for a while, Xia Yu let Yuxue take him to a nearby pet store.
Upon arriving in the store, he looked around at the shelves, raising his cat's paw to point.
Yuxue asked the store clerk to pack everything that Hei Mao Yu pointed at, and they went back home.
After trying out all the things he bought for the black cat, Xia Yu received feedback of indifference.
Cats don't enjoy climbing? The dried fish wasn't fragrant enough?
Xia Yu could not understand why the black cat had no reaction at all. He pondered what the black cat usually liked to do.
Although the black cat's nest was in his room, Xia Yu hardly paid attention to it.
As he arrived at Yuxue's feet, Xia Yu glanced at the height of the sofa and felt the wind direction. He made a precise calculation in his mind, leapt up, and landed steadily on Yuxue's lap.
His actual target was beside Yuxue, but since he had already come up, it wasn't a big issue.
By the time the black cat arrived at her feet, Yuxue had already noticed him and was not startled by his sudden jump.
"Yuxue," the black cat spoke.
"Hmm?" The girl responded.
She was puzzled. It had been a long time since her brother played with the black cat's body. He would only occasionally pet the black cat when he happened to pass by. Why was he suddenly paying so much attention to the black cat today, even buying so many things for it?
Initially, Yuxue thought her brother might be tired of being human and wanted to experience the cat's pleasures, but he stopped playing after a while.
"What does Little Black usually like to do?" Xia Yu asked the main question.
"Sleeping, being stroked," Yuxue answered.
Xia Yu thought for a moment and decided to follow suit. He fetched a pillow, lay on it, and let Yuxue stroke his fur, concentrating the effects of his mental sensing on her.
Comfortable goodwill transmitted from Yuxue, combined with the soft cushion underneath and Yuxue's gentle stroking, allowed Xia Yu to quickly fall asleep.
After confirming that the black cat was asleep, Yuxue placed him on her lap.
She felt that Xia Yu might have missed her a lot after being away from home for three days but was too shy to show affection with his original body, so he used the black cat's body as an excuse.
There was nothing she could do about such a brother. Yuxue sighed.
After sleeping for an unknown amount of time, Xia Yu woke up in a daze. Without opening his eyes, he continued to enjoy the rare peace.
Although humans are social animals, they don't always enjoy being in crowded environments. Occasionally, they need some quiet time.
When he was in his own body, Xia Yu always had to accompany various women or play various games. Now that he was in the black cat's body, he didn't have to do anything and felt relaxed and content.
Rolling over, Black Cat Yu let Yuxue scratch his belly.
Eight hours later, Xia Yu returned to his own body.
The black cat's bonus was still at level 2 without any change, but Xia Yu had gained the rare feeling of comfort.
He planned to do it again sometime, and have An Siyao stroke his fur.
After An Siyao, he could try Liu Manman, Hu Lianglu, and Yu Ningmeng.
Tomorrow, he would go see Wen Ziying, and the day after, he would bring the black cat to An Siyao's place.
After making up his mind, Xia Yu started playing games.
The next day, December 4th, Xia Yu entered Wen Ziying's body.
After a moment of darkness, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling.
It was the ceiling of Wen Ziying's home, which Xia Yu was observing for the first time.
"Feeling unwell?" Xia Yu asked Wen Ziying. It was already nine o'clock, and Wen Ziying should have gotten up at seven.
"No," Wen Ziying's words were a bit cold, which had two meanings—one was alienation, and the other was covering up.
Looking around, Xia Yu picked up the phone beside the pillow, turned on the screen, and saw a forum page.
This forum was hosted by a television station, where people could discuss TV shows and movies. The forum had high traffic, and it was almost the largest entertainment forum in the country, with many celebrities using it to make announcements, bypassing newspapers.
This forum had already taken on the prototype of Weibo, and Xia Yu wondered when Yu Ningmeng would launch Weibo's project.
Putting aside the matter for the moment, Xia Yu looked at the screen. Wen Ziying was browsing the posts about "Swan".
Xia Yu originally thought that the girl would feel sorry for the potential hit drama, "Swan," ruined by the lead actress's acting.
But after taking a glance at the content of the post, he realized he was wrong. The failure of "Swan" seemed quite light compared to what was mentioned in the posts.