Forbidden Land – CH 082

Back in his dorm room, Zhang Chao was washing up at the sink when suddenly a meow came from outside the window. Startled, he turned to look and saw a black cat perched on the air conditioner unit.

Zhang Chao quickly opened the window and exclaimed excitedly, “Bei Bei, you’re alive!”

The black cat tilted its head and gave him a disdainful look, as if to say, “Of course I’m alive! Why are you cursing me to die?” Then it jumped in, lazily crawling back to its old bed and lying on the floor watching Zhang Chao.

Zhang Chao said, “Are you hungry?” He took some potato chips and cookies from a snack bag and poured them for the cat.

As soon as the black cat saw the food, it perked up and quickly devoured everything in the bowl. Clearly, its weeks as a stray hadn’t been easy.

After the black cat finished eating, Zhang Chao picked it up. He then noticed a patch of fur, about the size of a thumbprint, missing from the cat’s head. White flesh was exposed, already scabbed over. He quickly turned the cat over; its back and paws were covered in healed wounds, but on its paw, a three-centimeter-long patch of fur was completely gone, leaving only a dark red scab.

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Zhang Chao remembered that night. He had been lying on the ground, unable to move, when he heard footsteps approaching. It was the black cat that had run down. Later, he couldn’t find the cat, only its fur. He had assumed it was dead, but he hadn’t expected it to survive and return on its own.

Zhang Chao couldn’t help but ask urgently, “Bei Bei, who did you fight with that night?”

The black cat, of course, didn’t react, looking at Zhang Chao innocently.

Zhang Chao looked at it, knowing it couldn’t speak, and could only give up, crawling back to his bed to sleep.

In the middle of the night, a loud meow suddenly broke the silence of the dormitory, startling Zhang Chao awake. He sat bolt upright and saw a black cat leap out of the window, followed by several more intense meows.

Could someone have come outside?

Zhang Chao quickly got up and ran to the window, peering out. He could only hear the meowing continuing, but he couldn’t see the cat.

Judging from the sound, the black cat had probably run to the Baisha Square area. Standing behind the dormitory, he naturally couldn’t see it.

After giving it some thought, he hurriedly changed into his clothes and left the dorm.

Outside, there wasn’t a soul in sight.

Zhang Chao called out, “Bei Bei, Bei Bei,” but there was no response.

He was right downstairs from the dormitory. Although it was late at night, with so many students asleep nearby, he wasn’t afraid, whether it was a person or a monster. He walked around Baisha Square twice but saw no one, and the black cat was nowhere to be seen.

Upon reflection, Zhang Chao reluctantly went back to his dorm room after realizing that going in this direction was not the answer. Opening the door, he found the black cat lying in its bed.

Zhang Chao walked over and casually asked, “What happened?”

Suddenly, Zhang Chao looked down and noticed the black cat was covered in blood. It was trembling and constantly licking its paws.

Zhang Chao bent down for a closer look and was horrified. A small section of the black cat’s right front paw was missing. Blood was gushing out, staining a patch of ground in front of it.

Zhang Chao quickly found an old piece of clothing, cut it off with scissors, picked up the cat, and bandaged it.

At this moment, the black cat was unusually docile, seemingly understanding that its owner was treating its wound. Although still trembling in pain, it cooperated very obediently.

After finishing, Zhang Chao let out a sigh of relief. Looking at his blood-stained hands and thinking about how the black cat had been injured like this outside, a wave of anger and fear washed over him.

Logically, Bei Bei had never jumped out to check if anyone had walked by outside, given the sheer number of people passing by every day.

This time, the black cat was so agitated that he wanted to jump out. Did that mean someone had approached the window while he was sleeping in the middle of the night?

So, the black cat acted out of instinct to protect his territory, rushing out?

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This thought startled him.

It was the middle of the night, and he was fast asleep, alone in the dormitory. Yet someone had quietly approached the window.

What if it wasn’t a person? What if it was something else?

A pale face pressed silently against the window, watching him without a sound, watching him sleep.

When he woke up, it would gracefully turn and leave.

Thinking of this, Zhang Chao couldn’t help but shudder. He washed his hands and quickly climbed back into bed. But tonight, lying in bed, he couldn’t sleep. He kept wondering if someone was standing beside his bed, and he would open his eyes to look around every few minutes. Especially when he looked up at the window, he always had a strange feeling in his heart.

He tossed and turned all night and didn’t fall asleep until dawn.