Chapter 535: This Life Is Too Short
Chapter 535: This Life Is Too Short
The nine-tailed fox didn’t bother going to the training ground.
Watching two girls fight seemed boring anyway – playing games with the fat cat sounded way more fun.
Tsukikage Chuxia completely agreed with the nine-tailed fox. Fighting was stupid when games existed.
The cat and fox immediately hit it off, curling up on the living room sofa with snacks and controllers.
Just as they finished one round, Chuxia’s phone buzzed with a game invite.
She nearly dropped her device when she saw the sender: Super Cool and Cute God.
This walking disaster was legendary across servers – dubbed the Devil’s Teammate and Mole Queen.
Teaming with her meant guaranteed losses, even four pros couldn’t carry the match.
Most players would rather eat penalty bans than get stuck with her.
The worst part? She wasn’t actually bad. Whenever her rank tanked, she’d go full tryhard to climb back up… only to troll teammates again.
Chuxia’s finger hovered over the DECLINE button.
The invites kept coming.
“What’s wrong?”
The nine-tailed fox peeked over and hissed, “You kept this bastard friended?!”
She still had PTSD from being trolled by that mole last season.
“Forgot to unfollow!”
As Chuxia reached for the DELETE option, the fox grabbed her wrist. “Wait. Accept it.”
“Why?” The fat cat’s ears flattened. “You want more suffering?”
The fox smirked. “Relax. I know how to counter-troll.”
Chuxia accepted with shaky fingers.
Across Mechanical City, Li Yu sprawled on a high-rise rooftop, mindlessly sending invites.
It’s not like she enjoyed playing with ‘Invincible Cat Lord’ – this account just had her last remaining follower.
The Area 11 server’s player base was too small. Everyone recognized her username now.
Teammates instantly quit matches when they spotted “Super Cool and Cute God”. She hadn’t gotten into a single game tonight.
“Should I smurf on EU or North American servers?”
Her gaze lingered on the God Slayer in her friends list.
The only thing keeping her here was this mystery player – the sole person who knew how terrible she was yet still joined her games.
Alt account requests kept getting ignored.
“I’m starving! Wallet… no, Tamamo-no-Mae, where did you disappear to?”
Li Yu stared at the city veiled in nightfall, sighing heavily.
She’d lost the money borrowed from Tamamo-no-Mae. With no cozy place to sip sparkling soda, munch snacks, or game, she lingered on the rooftop, chilled by the wind.
Her bank card was empty. Friends and colleagues refused to lend her more cash—they’d learned their lesson.
Even Mechanical City conspired against her. Not a single criminal or murderous monster roamed the streets.
Couldn’t even “steal from the rich to feed the poor.”
For a goddess to hit rock bottom like this? Unprecedented.
As Li Yu wallowed, ‘Invincible Cat Lord’ accepted her game invite.
Her eyes lit up. Worries forgotten, she dove into the game.
In the apartment, Tsukikage Chuxia accepted Li Yu’s invite and nudged the nine-tailed fox. “How’ll you mess with her this time?”
“Leave it to me.”
When teammates finally joined, Tsukikage Chuxia noticed the nine-tailed fox on the opposing side.
“Why’re you on their team?!”
The nine-tailed fox slung an arm around Tsukikage Chuxia’s shoulders, grinning. “Easy wins. We’ll climb the ranks using her as our doormat.”
The fat cat wailed, “So I’m getting dragged down too? No way!”
She’d rather sprint extra laps in the running cage than suffer guaranteed defeat.
The nine-tailed fox raised a clenched fist. “Care to rephrase that?”
“Big sister, trick me all you want! Go harder, please!”
“That’s more like it.”
Tears welling, the fat cat entered the game—and got crushed instantly.
“Hahaha! Another round!”
The nine-tailed fox sprawled across the sofa, cackling without restraint.
Li Yu, the ultimate liability as a teammate, became the perfect pawn when opposing them.
The fat cat muttered complaints but readied for round two.
Suddenly, the nine-tailed fox sat upright. “Play alone. I’ve got business.”
As she left, the fat cat quit the game, deleted Li Yu, and felt sunshine replace her gloom.
Outside, the nine-tailed fox shifted to her true form, darting through shadows.
Evading patrols, she slipped past Mechanical City into the unfinished outer city.
On a skeletal building’s framework, she found a frosty-eyed wealthy lady.
Resuming human form, she approached.
Identical in face, differing only in clothes and poise.
Tamamo-no-Mae’s embroidered qipao and refined gestures screamed aristocratic elegance—a lady born to luxury.
The nine-tailed fox wore a cute T-shirt with a pleated skirt and sneakers, looking youthful and adorable.
Tamamo-no-Mae studied her and smiled. “Seems you’ve been living comfortably.”
The nine-tailed fox pouted. “You look well-fed too. Healed completely?”
She felt no joy at her true form’s sudden arrival, only quiet resistance.
Returning meant merging everything into Tamamo-no-Mae – even her consciousness.
She’d cease being herself, becoming just another part of the original.
The nine-tailed fox had delayed hunting other doppelgangers, clinging to borrowed freedom.
Yet here stood Tamamo-no-Mae, having reclaimed all fragments except this last one.
Though unwilling, a doppelganger couldn’t defy its true form. Her desires meant nothing.
“Recovered enough to return to Area 11.”
Tamamo-no-Mae leaned back as a chair materialized behind her.
Her qipao slipped open when she crossed legs, revealing pale thighs – a view wasted on empty air.
“Impressive work. I expected trouble tracking the Killing Stone, yet you secured it first.”
At the stone’s mention, Kanzaki Rin’s face flashed through the fox’s mind. “You’re not taking it now, are you? Don’t be rash.”
Tamamo-no-Mae’s gaze sharpened. “Reason?”
“It’s fused with Kanzaki Rin. She’s the Blood Emperor’s woman.” The fox spoke quickly. “You know Fang Cheng – the vampire who crushed Isis. Kill her, and we face his wrath.”
“Woman?” Tamamo-no-Mae arched an eyebrow. “Since when do vampires keep mates?”
Weren’t they all sterile husks?
“This one’s special.” The fox shrugged. “A lecherous freak who collects women like trophies.”
“Then you’re in danger?”
“Tell me about it! The creep keeps grabbing any chance to grope me. I’ll chop those filthy hands off someday.”
“Then return immediately.”
“Uh…”
Tamamo-no-Mae’s smile vanished. “You refuse?”
“N-no! But…” The fox scrambled for excuses. “If I vanish, Fang Cheng will suspect. Recovering the stone becomes impossible.”
“Leave that to me.”
The chair dissolved. Tamamo-no-Mae appeared inches away, eyes glacial. “Your reluctance reeks of betrayal.”
The nine-tailed spell granted multiple lives, but with a flaw – prolonged separation bred independence.
Though Tamamo-no-Mae controlled her fragments, a doppelganger’s suicide meant permanent power loss. Hence her swift reclamations.
“We’re one being. Why betray?”
“Then stop resisting.”
Tamamo-no-Mae’s voice turned icy. “The Lord of All Monsters approaches. Should I face it weakened? Die again?”
“I…”
The fox’s protest died weakly.
Meeting that unyielding stare, she finally whispered, “Five minutes. Grant me that.”
Her phone emerged. Thumbs hovered over Kanzaki Rin’s contact.
Words came and went until only two remained:
_Goodbye._
Sent.
Eyes closed, she awaited dissolution.
Tamamo-no-Mae’s memories stretched centuries, but hers spanned mere sixteen years – fifteen in barren caves, half a year tasting freedom.
Soon she’d become another cold memory in the original’s mind.
No more nine-tailed fox. Only Tamamo-no-Mae.
Such a brief existence.