Help! The Villainess Trapped in the Beast World's Drama!

Chapter 487: Chapter 470: First Encounter with the Little Leopard Cub

Shen Tang arrived at Xiao Jin’s Spiritual Illusion Realm, where there were also many doors leading to memories.

The doors were colored pink, red, gray, and green, which likely represented joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. The categorization... was quite simple and straightforward.

To the right, there was a pink door, and out of curiosity, Shen Tang pushed it open and entered.

Three seconds later.

She ran out, her face flushed, slamming the door shut with a bang, wishing she could seal it with wooden planks!

...What was this stinky panther thinking about all the time?!

Shen Tang patted her head.

No time to think about anything else.

The important matters first!

Shen Tang ventured to the deepest part of the Spiritual Illusion Realm to find a memory door.

This was where the owner’s deepest memories were hidden.

It was either his earliest memory after being born or the most profound memory of his life.

Strangely, this door had no color, and it was unclear which memory it hid.

Shen Tang pushed open the door and entered.

A white light flashed.

Upon opening her eyes again, Shen Tang found herself in a poor and rundown residential area. The technology on the Beast World Continent was very advanced, with high-rise buildings everywhere, so such backward places were rarely seen anymore.

All around were dilapidated bungalows tightly packed together, as well as primitive houses built with wooden planks and stones. The roofs were all damaged, making it easy to imagine how miserable it would be during windy or rainy weather.

Garbage was everywhere on the streets, with even excrement visible, and the air was filled with an indescribable stench.

Shen Tang’s face changed.

During the rule of the late Emperor, the Night Glow Empire was very corrupt, and in the lower city, there were many such abandoned residential areas known as slums.

They had become the residences of some marginalized members of society.

Did Xiao Jin grow up in such a place?

In the distance, a small black shadow appeared, immediately catching Shen Tang’s attention.

It was a charcoal-black little creature, holding a half-consumed nutrient tube in its mouth. Its fur was dirty and thin, revealing skin and bones, clearly an orphan abandoned in the slums.

Most striking were its round, bright golden eyes, so beautiful and bright, exuding a splendor that clashed with the surroundings.

”Ah Jin!” Shen Tang shouted excitedly and quickly walked over.

The little panther, seeing a strange beastman approaching, was terrified and puffed up, turning around and running away.

Shen Tang quickly stopped, annoyingly patting her head, realizing that in the time frame of this Spiritual Illusion Realm, Xiao Jin didn’t know her yet!

The stray cubs in the slums had a hard time surviving, often bullied and persecuted, with most orphans dying young. It probably mistook her for a bad person...

Shen Tang opened the system map and quickly found the little black panther on a nearby street again.

This time, she was more cautious and didn’t impulsively rush over to get close, intentionally concealing her presence and quietly following the little black panther to see where it went.

The little black panther happily carried the nutritious liquid it had dug out from a trash can, running back to its den. Suddenly, it sensed something and slowed its joyful steps, turning its head to look behind cautiously.

Hmm.

Nothing there.

Strange, was it just its illusion?

The little black panther curiously tilted its head, blinking in confusion.

After glancing again and confirming no one was there, it withdrew its gaze and continued on its way.

Dusk was approaching.

It had to hurry home.

The slums housed many mentally unstable beastmen, who mostly stayed indoors during the day but would go mad and attack people at night. Weak cubs would be the primary targets.

There were also many illegal organizations that specialized in capturing parentless cubs in the slums and selling them for a good price...

In short, nighttime was very dangerous, and it needed to get back to its dwelling quickly!

But the faint footsteps behind it lingered, not dispersing.

It felt like a ghost was following it!

The little panther was so scared it puffed up again, once more turning its head to look at the empty space behind it, its round ears folding back into airplane ears, growling and yowling with its mouth open, although its milk-like roar had no intimidating power whatsoever.

The footsteps disappeared.

The little panther, frightened, kept a tight hold on the nutrient liquid and dashed forward with a fighting spirit.

At a bend in the alley, it disappeared like a flash of black lightning.

Shen Tang, who lost track for the second time, ”...”

No wonder Xiao Jin became the Empire’s Major General, with such strong counter-reconnaissance ability from a young age!

Watching in the direction where the little panther disappeared, Shen Tang felt a tinge of melancholy and heartache, not expecting Xiao Jin to start wandering at such a young age. She knew neither his parents’ identities nor his origin; his background was a complete mystery.

Of course, this wasn’t unusual, as most stray orphans in the slums had such a beginning.

In such a harsh and perilous environment, few orphans grew up successfully.

Xiao Jin was considered lucky amidst the misfortune.

When Shen Tang found the little black panther again, it was lying on a wide road.

This was the junction between the upper and lower town. Here, one could often find discarded food and items from nobles and beastmen, which were a treasure for the slum-dwelling beastmen, especially the stray cubs.

The little black panther must have accidentally blocked a noble’s carriage while traversing the road.

A lavishly dressed noblewoman stepped out of the car.

Surrounded by two attendants, she looked disdainfully at the cub knocked over by the car in the road and kicked it onto the roadside grass with disgust, saying, ”Today’s been unlucky, let’s hurry up and go!”

After the carriage sped away.

Shen Tang anxiously looked at the cub lying motionless in the grass, as if it had lost its breath.

Soon, the frail body of the little black panther stirred, slowly getting up, limping away.

It held no grudges, seemingly accustomed to it.

Bad news.

The little black panther gained nothing today, its stomach growling. It had to find food quickly before nightfall, or else it might starve to death.

Finally, in a trash can, it caught a half-dead big rat.

To grab this rat, the little black panther fought with a slightly larger stray cub. Fortunately, it won in the end, dragging its scarred body and carrying its prize back home.

The so-called home was just beneath an abandoned overpass, where a small section had collapsed, surrounded by half-human tall weeds and shrubs, forming a natural barrier that hid its petite body, ensuring it wouldn’t be discovered while sleeping.

The little black panther somehow dragged over some rags and clothes, laying them into a makeshift child’s bed.

It crouched in its nest, its front paws gripping the dead rat, devouring it like a famished tiger, leaving nothing behind, not even bone shards, and licked its lips in satisfaction.

Finally, some meat!

It wouldn’t starve for at least three days!

In the latter half of the night, the little black panther’s stomach began to ache. It curled into a ball, clutching its stomach, trembling all over.

Many rats in the slums were infected with viruses, some even fed rat poison.

The chilly night wind blew, with the rubble of the collapsed overpass serving as walls, but it couldn’t keep out the cold. Fortunately, the little black panther’s strong physique allowed it to slowly recover by dawn, starting a new day of foraging.

It was still too young, unable to compete with others, and had to continue rummaging through garbage cans for expired and rotten food. Rats common in the sewers became the only meat it could eat.

It had to eat.

Better to be poisoned than to starve!