At 7:40 in the morning, a tall figure and a small one emerged from the stairwell.
Xia Qing, her long hair draped over her shoulders and dressed in a white sundress, held the small hand of her daughter, whose hair was tied in a ponytail. "Tongtong, walk properly. Don’t skip..." she said.
"Okay, Mom." Dressed in a cute school uniform and wearing a cartoon backpack, Zhou Tongtong immediately settled down at her mother’s reminder and stopped skipping.
The joyful smile on her small, round face made it clear the little girl was full of anticipation for starting her new life in elementary school.
Xia Qing wheeled her recently purchased electric scooter out of the bike shed, lifted her daughter up, and placed her on the back seat.
Then, she started riding the scooter toward her daughter’s school.
In a distant greenbelt, two little creatures poked their heads out from the bushes. They watched Zhou Tongtong as she sat on the back of the scooter, receding into the distance.
"Meow... Zhou Tongtong and her mom are heading out so early. Where are they going?" the Little Black Cat asked, puzzled.
"Meow... You idiot, how did you forget so fast? Didn’t Zhou Tongtong tell us yesterday? She’s starting elementary school today," the Little White Cat said.
"Meow... Oh, right. She and her mom are out early to go to school... Sigh, why has my memory been so bad lately," the Little Black Cat said, the realization slowly dawning on him.
"Meow... Your memory has always been terrible. As the humans say, ’all brawn and no brains’," the Little White Cat said with disdain.
"Meow... You’re the one who’s all brawn and no brains!" the Little Black Cat shot back, refusing to admit it.
"Meow... Never mind that. Let’s hurry and find some food! I’m getting hungry," the Little White Cat said.
With that, the two little strays scurried out of the bushes and quickly climbed a large tree growing very close to the perimeter wall.
From its branches, they leaped onto the wall, left Ping’an Garden District, and headed for a place rumored to have plenty of mice to hunt.
...
GRRRRUMBLE...
An intense wave of hunger struck Lin Li. He had just gotten off the phone with Zhang Yuxi and planned to sleep in, but the hunger forced him out of bed after only half an hour to find something to eat.
The hunger only intensified during the short time he spent washing up in the bathroom.
Lin Li knew that the massively increased appetite, a side effect of eating the Magical Little Fruit, would persist for a few days. So, he was prepared.
He went into the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and took out the Yellow Ox Exotic Beast Meat he had marinated the previous night before bed. Then, he dug out the barbecue grill he hadn’t used in ages.
The weather was gorgeous—not a cloud in the sky. It was still cool this early, and bright sunlight streamed onto the balcony, bathing Lin Li in light as he grilled the beef skewers.
Having eaten the Magical Little Fruit, Lin Li’s power had seen a massive boost, and his control over his Flame Superpower had become much more adept.
GRUMBLE...
His stomach rumbling, Lin Li was eager to eat as soon as possible, so he didn’t bother with smokeless charcoal.
SNAP. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Sparks shot from his fingertips.
In the blink of an eye, the sparks transformed into a series of small, orange-red fireballs, each the size of an egg.
Under Lin Li’s control, the small fireballs hovering before him flew one by one into the grill, where they began to roast the skewers of marinated Yellow Ox Exotic Beast Meat.
SZZZLE...
As the small fireballs did their work, the marinated skewers soon began to release a mouth-watering aroma.
WHOOSH...
A sudden breeze swept across the balcony, carrying the tantalizing aroma of grilled meat in all directions.
An upstairs neighbor, hanging laundry on their balcony, caught a whiff of the grilled meat and muttered in confusion.
’Strange... Is that grilled meat I smell? Who’d be having a barbecue this early in the morning?’
The small fireballs created by his Superpower put out intense heat. After just a short while, Lin Li, who was turning the skewers, felt they were about done and ready to eat.
’It doesn’t have that unique charcoal-grilled flavor, but it’s still pretty good,’ Lin Li thought after taking a bite. Then, he began to devour the meat in large mouthfuls.
His stomach was growling, and all he wanted was to quell the agonizing hunger as quickly as possible; he wasn’t too picky about the taste.
...
The sun slowly climbed higher in the sky, and the relatively cool morning air began to warm up.
Lin Li feasted on the balcony, quickly polishing off the entire large portion of marinated Yellow Ox Exotic Beast Meat.
GULP, GULP, GULP... After chugging an ice-cold soda, Lin Li let out a satisfied burp and patted his stomach contentedly.
With the large portion of Yellow Ox Exotic Beast Meat in his belly, the uncomfortable pangs of hunger finally vanished.
PUFF... Full and satisfied, Lin Li glanced at the small fireballs still burning under the grill. He blew a light breath at them, and the Superpower-created flames immediately extinguished.
’The last time I ate a Magical Little Fruit, my appetite went crazy for about four or five days. I wonder how long it will last this time... It’ll probably be even longer.’
Lin Li leaned back in his chair, gazing at the brilliant golden sun in the distance and enjoying the occasional breeze that drifted onto the balcony.