37 Hello, my son.

Li Jun froze. He didn't dare move. His hand shook as he looked at the mutated beast, which was at least ten times stronger than the beast king he had killed. 

'What is it doing here?!' He thought. There was no way the city lord wouldn't sense a powerful beast like this.

Perhaps the beast had a stealth skill? A million thoughts ran through his head as the small black cat stood up and stared at him with dissatisfaction. It nuzzled its head against his hand, urging him to continue petting it.

'What should I do?' he asked himself carefully. It didn't seem threatening; in fact, it looked rather cute. However, the thought of it attacking him led him to stretch out his arm once more and brush his fingers across its fur.

The kitten purred happily and rolled onto its back again, its legs up in the air as it wiggled its body back and forth. Li Jun smiled and then remembered how dangerous such a beast could be. 

He noticed a metal ring around its ankle as he considered what to do next. He looked closer and noticed some kind of writing he didn't understand. He reached out to touch it, and a bright light shot out as soon as his finger pressed against the cold metal.

The kitten jumped to its feet and then sat down as it looked up at the light. Li Jun stumbled back as he prepared himself for an explosion. After nothing happened, he turned back and saw a beautiful woman standing in the light.

The woman had long black hair and glacier-blue eyes. A decorative strip of fabric covered a long scar on her neck. 

As he looked up at his mother, tears formed at the edges of Li Jun's eyes. 

"How is this possible?" He muttered as he noticed her mouth open slightly.

"Hello, my son." A gentle voice emerged from her lips. I'm sure you have probably noticed from my sudden disappearance, but I'm not quite as weak as you thought I was. Now that you have entered the path of cultivation, I can rest easy knowing you will be safe." Yao Lan frowned as she spoke. 

Li Jun gasped. He hadn't heard his mother's voice since he was seven years old, and he was now nearing sixteen. For over half of his life, his mother hadn't been able to say a word, but he could hear her once more. He didn't even realize what she was saying until she mentioned cultivation.

"Over the past few weeks, I haven't been able to stop worrying about you, so I sent a little helper to watch over you. However, I have something I would like to say to you."

Li Jun watched on as tears streamed down his face.

"Be careful, my handsome boy. Your father didn't die in battle like you were told. A very influential person made arrangements for him to be silenced after he learned something he shouldn't have. I wish I could tell you more, but you aren't strong enough yet. The ring attached to my pet will activate once more when you reach the core refining stage, and there you will find another message," she said.

Li Jun looked down at the kitten and noticed it had bowed its head towards the strange ray of light that had taken the form of his mother.

"Mom!" Yelled Li Jun. He was unaware that she couldn't hear him. In his mind, she was speaking to him face to face; the concept of a pre-recorded message simply didn't exist in the world he knew. 

"I have to go now. Make sure you become stronger, stronger than your father, and even stronger than me. I don't think I will be home for a while, so live your life to its fullest until the day we meet again. I love you so much. I will wait for you, my son." Yao Lan said as the beam of light vanished.

"Mom! Mom!" Li Jun cried. Although he had matured over the past few weeks, his heart couldn't handle the thought of not seeing her again. He reached toward the cat and tried to touch the metal ring again, but instead of nuzzling his hand, the cat hissed as his fingers neared the ring.

Li Jun retracted his hand as quickly as he could. He was afraid he would lose a finger if he tried again. He scurried back and fell onto his rear end, staring at the kitten with contempt. 

"Why didn't she answer me? Could she not hear me?" He asked aloud.

'What does she mean that dad didn't die in battle? Who could he have offended that had the power to kill him? Why would anyone want to kill him? What secret is worth more than someone's life?' Li Jun's mind raced with questions, but as his eyes fell back to the kitten that had begun to lick its outstretched rear leg, he sighed and looked up at the stars above.

"Mom," he whispered. "Who in the world are you? Why keep your strength a secret? You could have taken care of Li Hong all along." 

He thought if she had the power to make a mutated beast at the core refining level into a regular house pet, then she had to at least be at the peak of the core refining stage or perhaps even stronger.

In a way, the mystery felt exciting, but he wished she had told him more. He lay back and let his mind race. He was physically exhausted from training, but his exhaustion spread to his brain, as he only had more questions. He wished so desperately for answers that he didn't feel two tiny paws step onto his chest. 

Li Jun froze as the kitten's hind legs stepped up and lay down on top of him. It pressed its nose against his chin and then rubbed its cheeks against him.

He was terrified. He never thought a small cat could scare him so much. But here he was, lying on his back with a purring kitten on his chest, and he wanted nothing more than to run away.

'It shouldn't kill me, right?' He thought as he looked at its mouth, which was close to his face. 'Please don't eat me.'

He gulped nervously as the kitten lay its head down and purred into his ear.