"Not exactly," Qian Five replied. "Because we were already dead upon arrival, in theory, you can only reach Zhou Six’s family, not Zhou Six herself."

That sentence caused Qi Xia and Li Shangwu to furrow their brows, while Qiao Jiajin looked like his brain had crashed.

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"But isn’t that strange...?" Li Shangwu thought for a moment and continued to ask, "It was clearly such a massive earthquake...why were only we the ones who died, while our families remained unharmed?"

"I don’t know," Qian Five answered. "And I don’t want to know. Rather than investigate why my family didn’t die, I’d much rather they continue living well."

"You’re right..." After learning there was a chance his daughter, Xuanxuan, might still be alive, Li Shangwu’s mood noticeably lifted. But soon, another question began to circle in his mind—

He turned to look at Qi Xia, hesitant to speak, but Qi Xia understood his unspoken thought and sighed. "Officer Li, the fourteen-year-old me had no family."

"You—" Officer Li swallowed the words lodged in his throat, unable to say a single thing.

Hearing their exchange, Qian Five couldn’t help but interject, "Wait... Ole Li, you weren’t able to contact the fourteen-year-old Qi Xia?"

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"That’s right." Officer Li nodded, his tone layered with implication. "I don’t know where the problem lies."

"Perhaps Qi Xia’s always been this way." Qian Five chuckled. "How many of the things he tells us are actually true? I’m afraid it’s not just you—Qi Xia and I came from the same year, and I couldn’t reach him either."

"What?"

Both Officer Li and Qi Xia were taken aback, but the latter quickly composed himself and replied calmly, "I’ve always been used to being on my own. Not being able to reach me isn’t that unusual."

"On your own...? I remember you said you had a wife, didn’t you?" Officer Li pressed.

Qian Five froze for a moment, then turned to Qi Xia with a puzzled look.

A wife?

"Yes." Qi Xia nodded seriously. "I have a wife. I just hope she’s alright."

Though Qian Five still looked puzzled, she said nothing. Instead, she turned to look at Nineteen. "Are you able to keep going?"

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Nineteen wiped the sweat from his forehead and shook his head. "No... my {belief} is reaching its limit."

"Then let’s leave it at that for today," Qian Five nodded, then turned to Qi Xia and the others. "You’re welcome to stay here for the night. Once Nineteen has recovered, I still have some other matters I want to discuss with you all tomorrow."

The three of them exchanged glances and found they had no reason to refuse.

"There’s some food available, feel free to have lunch here this afternoon," Qian Five said with a smile, nodding to everyone before turning to leave.

"Wait a moment," Li Shangwu called out.

"What is it?" Qian Five turned back to ask.

"Are {Cats}... still taking people in?"

At those words, Qian Five smiled slightly, then nodded. "Of course. Officer Li, you were born to be a {Cat}."

"I was?"

"Like the majority here, you don’t truly want to leave; you only want to earn some money for your daughter, right?"

"Yes... So you already knew?"

"Stay here," Qian Five nodded at him. "From now on, you’re one of us. I’ll make sure you get a figure you’ll be satisfied with."

Li Shangwu had never imagined that joining {Cats} would be this easy—no {assessment}, no {interrogation}, nothing.

"Does that mean I can’t go by Li Shangwu anymore?" he asked.

"Indeed," Qian Five nodded. "That name no longer belongs to you. From today onward, you are a {Cat} drifting through {End Point}. We are {Earthly Branches} without bestowed titles; we are one entity."

Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin both looked toward Officer Li. Though they weren’t especially close, parting ways like this still left a twinge of melancholy.

"What’s with those faces?" Officer Li chuckled heartily. "I joined {Cats}, I didn’t drop dead. Qian Five should be an upstanding person. I don’t think he—she’ll stop me from keeping in touch with you all, right?"

"Of course not," Qian Five nodded. "You’re free to move around. When there’s a task, Zhou Six will inform you."

"Let’s shake hands," Zhou Six said coolly as she reached out. "After every revival, remember to do the same. I keep close contact with Five ge, so I’ll relay anything he needs."

Officer Li reached out and lightly touched her hand. As soon as they made contact, Zhou Six quickly withdrew hers.

Her lips moved slightly, mouthing something in near silence.

Suddenly, her voice rang out in Officer Li’s ear: "Testing, testing."

"Li Shangwu; affirmative. Standing by." he replied instinctively.

"Tsk, no need to be so formal," Zhou Six waved her hand dismissively. "Alright, as long as you can hear me."

A sudden thought made Qi Xia turn toward Zheng Hero, who was tucked behind him. Zheng Hero took a few quick sniffs, then said quietly, "It’s faint... but I can still smell it. That’s the subtle fragrance of {Sound Conveyance}."

Hearing this, Qi Xia turned to look at Zhou Six and asked, "May I ask, what is your {Reverberation} called?"

"Tsk, it’s {Sound Conveyance}," Zhou Six replied impatiently. "What now, genius? Got some brilliant insight? You need my {Sound Conveyance} too?"

"No, no need." Qi Xia shook his head. After three separate confirmations, it was more than enough to prove that the boy named Zheng Hero could accurately identify anyone’s {Reverberation}.

But how?

Was that his ability?

"That child..." Qian Five leaned to the side and glanced at Zheng Hero behind Qi Xia. "I’ve been ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) meaning to ask you, is he with you too?"

"Yes," Qi Xia nodded. "All four of us will stay here for now."

"Alright," Qian Five nodded, then turned to Song Seven. "Seven, kindly arrange rooms for them."

"Understood. There are a few vacant rooms after Twenty-One, I’ll settle them there for now," Song Seven responded with a nod.

"No, Officer Li doesn’t need to stay behind Twenty-One," Qian Five shook her head. "Give him the room in front of mine."

"What...?" Song Seven froze. "Five ge, did I mishear...? T–The room in front of yours is—"

Zhou Six frowned. "Tsk, Five ge, what are you doing? Wouldn’t this guy be {Li Twenty-Two}?"

"When did I ever say I’d give him {Twenty-Two}?" Qian Five spoke calmly, her gaze fixed steadily on Li Shangwu. "Starting today, Officer Li is {Four}. He ranks ahead of me."

At these words, everyone in the room furrowed their brows in confusion.

Four?

"Why?!" Song Seven exclaimed with visible disbelief. "Five ge, you’ve always been the leader of {Cats}. Why are you naming him {Four}?!

"You’re all misunderstanding something." Qian Five shook her head, then gave a faint, complicated smile. "I didn’t name him {Four}, rather, he’s the one who named me {Five}."

Her words left the room in stunned silence.

"You—You mean..." Officer Li blinked, as if trying to process a buried truth. "I was once... {Four} here?"

Qian Five nodded slowly. Nearly seven years had passed, yet she still remembered that offhanded, joking remark—

{So you guys are Zhang Three Li Four, Qian Five Zhou Six huh?}