PCJ – Chapter 267 Deadly Pursuit

Upon hearing a cat’s meow in the courtyard, Chen Maozhong and Chen Hongming rushed inside, only to be met with a sight that made both their legs tremble uncontrollably.

The courtyard was filled with a dense mass of cats, all of them pitch black. As Chen Maozhong and Chen Hongming entered, every cat turned to face them, their terrifying eyes fixed on the father and son.

Chen Maozhong’s legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground. Chen Hongming didn’t fare much better, although he managed to stay on his feet, he suddenly felt a warm sensation in his pants as a stream of urine trickled down his leg. He had wet himself out of fear.

The cats’ eyes seemed to hold a hint of disdain.

The fat cat slowly moved its body, then suddenly leaped onto the incense table. The leader cats, which were much larger and more robust than ordinary cats, made strange huffing sounds. All the black cats in the courtyard bowed low, as if worshiping the fat cat.

“Gululu…” The fat cat made strange noises, though what it said was unknown. However, as soon as it finished, all the black cats in the courtyard began howling loudly.

The fat cat jumped down from the incense table.

Whoosh!

In an instant, a path opened up through the hall and the courtyard.

The fat cat sauntered out of the hall and into the courtyard, where it approached the father and son lying on the ground. It leaped to their side, bringing its mouth close to Chen Maozhong’s nose and inhaling a white mist from his body. Chen Maozhong, who had been trembling in fear, suddenly stopped shaking, his expression relaxing as if he had fallen asleep. The fat cat then approached Chen Hongming, ready to do the same, but Chen Hongming suddenly jumped up and bolted out of the house.

The fat cat, taken aback by the sudden movement, hesitated for a moment. By the time it reacted, Chen Hongming had already disappeared from sight.

“Meow!”

The fat cat let out an angry roar, and several leader cats immediately sprang out to chase after Chen Hongming. The fat cat also gave another roar and joined the chase, followed by a large group of black cats.

Nearby, Zhang Benrui was still lurking around Chen Maozhong’s house, hoping to find Zhang Genxin. To his surprise, he suddenly saw Chen Hongming rush out, pursued by a horde of black cats. Instinctively, Zhang Benrui turned and fled.

Chen Hongming, seeing Zhang Benrui, ran towards him, desperate and with nowhere else to go.

“Damn it! Why are you running towards me?” Zhang Benrui had no choice but to keep running.

Chen Hongming, now fully using his potential, ran faster and faster. Growing up in the countryside had given him a good level of fitness. Being a mischievous guy, his stamina was naturally better than Zhang Benrui’s, and so was his speed. It didn’t take long for him to close the distance between them.

But two legs couldn’t possibly outrun four. After just a few steps, one of the leader cats leaped onto Chen Hongming’s back, its sharp claws slashing through his clothes and leaving a bloody gash on his back.

“Ah!” Chen Hongming screamed in pain, but he gritted his teeth, flung the leader cat off his back, and continued running as fast as he could.

The fat cat led the pack of black cats in a sweeping charge, leaving chaos in its wake.

Zhang Benrui had no place to run and decided to head towards the garden nursery along the road.

Chen Hongming was forced to fight off several leader cats while running, which slowed him down significantly. Zhang Benrui began to pull ahead.

“Woof woof, woof woof…”

At the garden nursery, the mountain dogs barked furiously. Even the leopard hound was agitated, and the puppies were even more restless.

“Something’s not right, Zhang Jiaohua. I’ve never seen these mountain dogs so anxious,” Zhang Wenrong said, concerned.

Zhang Jiaohua nodded but didn’t seem too worried. “Don’t panic. If soldiers come, we’ll block them; if water comes, we’ll channel it. Since you’re all on edge, let’s go outside and do some drills.”

Zhang Jiaohua led all the mountain dogs into the nursery, holding a formation flag. After this period of training, the dogs had become proficient in following Zhang Jiaohua’s commands and forming battle formations. Zhang Jiaohua had long sensed that something was going to happen, so he had been training the dogs rigorously. Unfortunately, most of them were still too young.

Despite their earlier anxiety, the mountain dogs were now fully focused, brimming with battle energy. Each dog, like a small leopard, seemed eager to rush out and tear their prey apart.

“Help! Help!” Zhang Benrui shouted as he ran, but who would dare step forward in such a situation? Besides, there were hardly any houses along the road he was running on.

Chen Hongming continued to fight off the leader cats while desperately trying to keep moving, but his injuries were worsening, and he was losing a lot of blood. He was starting to feel dizzy and could collapse at any moment.

As he crossed a canal, he suddenly plunged off the bridge. The water in the canal was deep enough to reach his navel, and the swift current quickly carried him far downstream. Although cats can’t drown in water, they naturally fear it. The black cats stood on the bank, watching helplessly as Chen Hongming was swept away.

The fat cat soon caught up and, with a roar, commanded the black cats to continue the chase along both sides of the canal.

Zhang Hangao and Zhang Jiagen were guarding the canal that night, having spent the day clearing the channel leading to the nursery. That evening, they blocked the water flow to divert it to the nursery, but worried that someone might open the gate and stop the water from reaching the nursery, they stayed to keep watch.

The sound of the water in the canal was like the soft weeping of a lovesick girl in the night.

“Hangao, do you hear something?” Zhang Jiagen asked.

“Hear what? I don’t hear anything,” Zhang Hangao replied, scratching his head.

Zhang Jiagen shone his flashlight into the distance, and what he saw nearly scared the life out of him.

“Hangao! Run!”

Zhang Jiagen grabbed Zhang Hangao and started running for their lives.

Not understanding what was happening, Zhang Hangao asked as they ran, “What’s going on? Is someone from another village trying to steal our water?”

“Don’t ask so many questions, just run!” Zhang Jiagen wished he had more legs. “Hurry, hurry! We’ll be safe once we reach the nursery!”

Zhang Hangao, though confused, followed Zhang Jiagen’s lead and ran as fast as he could. It didn’t take long for him to understand the reason. After just a few steps, he heard a thunderous sound behind him. What kind of wild animal could that be?