So, it seems like there really is something amiss with Dongya!

With a bit of contemplation on the words of the man in the white snake mask, a glimmer of suspicion also arose in the black cat's crystal-clear eyes.

Although Dongya didn't seem like someone who harbored deep schemes, the coincidences were too many. Particularly the way his missions repeatedly failed, yet each time he managed to escape certain death and even gained considerable benefits — something about it didn't sit right.

"So... you're planning to test Dongya?"

Blinking her gleaming eyes, the slender and graceful black cat shifted her sitting position and asked in a slightly hoarse voice:

"White Snake, you're hoping I send some false information to Dongya, then see if that Food God of the Clean-up Bureau receives it and gets led to the Witch Kingdom?"

"Yes, that's exactly my plan."

"But if the Food God really comes, what should I do about my plan?"

The black cat furrowed its brow and said:

"Dealing with Dongya is still manageable. His Authority is straightforward and simple, not complicated to handle. Even if he becomes the Pillar God, I'm confident I can manage him.

But the Food God is another matter; his abilities are too varied and strange. I don't have confidence in restraining him. If he really finds the Grand Witch King's daughter before I do…"

"That would be even better."

The man in the white snake mask's mouth curled slightly upwards, then he spoke with a hint of implication:

"Two targets becoming one, wouldn't it be better if they can be dealt with together?"

"?!"

The black cat's pupils contracted sharply at White Snake's words, then she spoke in astonishment:

"White Snake? Could it be those esteemed members in the Association have already…"

"The situation in the Old Soil is quite complex, so those esteemed members can't return yet."

After providing a straightforward response, White Snake tossed her a large knit sleeping cap, then smiled and said:

"But they've marked the situation here, so they specifically told us a 'Bedtime Story'. As for the name of the story, I wasn't sure before, but now... let's call it The Fate of the Traitor!"

The fate of the... traitor?

After hurriedly catching the cap White Snake threw, the black cat's slender fingers involuntarily gripped the pom-pom tightly, her expression slightly tense as she said:

"What do I need to do to cooperate?"

"No cooperation needed."

Pointing a finger at the top of the black cat's head, White Snake smiled and said:

"As the listener of the Bedtime Story, you don't need to do anything. Just put on this cap and wait patiently for the story to begin... What? Do you have any more questions?"

"I do have some questions!"

The black cat instinctively bit her lip, then spoke with evident reluctance:

"The last person to wear the cap went insane directly, and the one before that still hasn't woken up. I don't think..."

"If you think there's no need to wear it, then don't wear it."

Waving his hand dismissively, White Snake leaned back into his chair and smiled:

"Anyway, the story of the adults has already begun. If you wear the cap, you're the listener of the story. If you choose not to wear it, you're part of the story. It's entirely up to you whether to wear it or not."

"I..."

"Alright, that's it then."

Waving his hand in a gesture of dismissal, White Snake stood up from the main seat at the long table, turned, and left without looking back:

"Black Cat, I sincerely hope you can hear a good story inside that cap."

"..."

I sincerely hope you put on that damn cap and listen to that deadly story for me!

At the moment White Snake stood up and left the long table, the light and shadow before the black cat abruptly shifted, finally exiting that secret space shrouded in gray mist, returning her to her own bedroom.

"Crack!"

The firewood in the fireplace snapped in pain under the flame's caress, spreading out flickering red light that illuminated the woman's face behind the black cat mask.

Seems it's not just Dongya who's being suspected, but me too.

With a slight exertion of her fingers, gripping the soft-to-the-touch cap, the woman in a dark purple nightgown bit her own lip, then took out a shimmering amber from her pocket and waved it over the cap in her hand.

With the flickering of light and shadow, the knit cap in the woman's hand abruptly disappeared and appeared inside the amber, and what chilled the woman to the bone was that after leaving her hand, the cap, once so "obedient", bizarrely started to move.

The frayed yarn at the cap's edge quietly extended from the Honeycomb Amber that was harder than diamonds, slowly yet irresistibly spreading and lightly entwining her little finger.

It seems what White Snake said was true; the Bedtime Story has indeed begun, and she has been chosen as one of the "beginnings" of the story...

After glancing at the cap floating in the amber and checking the strand of yarn on her finger, the woman couldn't help but sigh, and she voluntarily removed the black cat mask, revealing a delicate and beautiful face.

If any high-ranking member of the Witch Kingdom saw this face, they would most likely exclaim in surprise, for aside from the pair of black cat ears, the woman's face by the fireplace was identical to the long-missing daughter of the Grand Witch King.

It seems escaping the pursuit of the Slaughter King Association by myself alone isn't possible this time. I have to find a way to connect with people from the Clean-up Bureau.

Tightening the velvet nightgown at the chest to cover up a hint of exposed skin, the cat-eared woman got up from the recliner by the fireplace and walked towards the elegant mahogany cabinet on the other side of the room, taking a dimly toned crystal ball from the top.

"I wish to see the past…"

With a barely audible murmur from the cat-eared woman, the dimly toned crystal ball flickered, revealing the appearance of an elderly woman with a head full of silver hair, and the face was none other than Taurus, the Director of the Clean-up Bureau.

At that moment, Taurus was grasping an ornate mirror with both hands, listening in shock as a black-haired man narrated something, her face showing three parts astonishment, seven parts shock, and nine hundred and ninety percent complete surprise.

"What did you say? You smashed the entire northern regions into the earth's core? You shattered the Earth Shell that the three earth tribes had summoned?"

"???"

Just like Taurus in the crystal ball, the cat-eared woman's mind was blown by this explosive news, and she couldn't help but widen her eyes. She immediately cupped the crystal ball with both hands, focusing the "picture" on the black-haired man, then began to painstakingly rotate it counterclockwise.

With her movements, the image in the crystal ball rapidly rewound, with the black-haired man retreating back into the earth's core, accepting the surrender of the earth progeny in reverse, and pulling over a hundred giant mountains "up" from the earth's core with a wave.

My God… how did he even do that?

Restoring the crystal ball to its forward position, and watching Leon, who was smashing over a hundred mountains with a wave and even forcibly dragging an entire hexagonal mountain range, seemingly intending to completely destroy the earth's core, the cat-eared woman involuntarily gasped.

Is the Food God of the Clean-up Bureau really this outrageous? No wonder even with releasing the earth progeny, Dongya couldn't complete his task... Hmm... wasn't it supposed to be a three-way battle? Where's Dongya? Why don't I see him anywhere?