In the vast expanse of an uninhabited grassland, a small white figure lay quietly in the shade. This was no ordinary creature, but a cat of extraordinary nature.

The feline's coat was a pristine white, its fur sleek and gleaming like polished silk. Its nose was a delicate shade of pink, and its eyes were as clear and blue as sapphires infused with the very essence of the ocean. This remarkable cat bore the name Yue'an, bestowed upon him by his first human owner.

Yue'an lazily flicked his tail, basking in the cool shade that offered respite from the scorching sun. With a graceful motion, he sat up, his slender tail giving a slight quiver. In that instant, a remarkable transformation occurred - multiple snow-white tails sprouted from the base of his spine.

The cat's face contorted with a mix of concentration and anxiety as he turned his head, carefully counting his tails. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. Eight tails! Satisfaction bloomed across Yue'an's feline features. His gaze then shifted to the faint, ghostly outline of a ninth tail, just beginning to materialize. With utmost care, he reached out, as if to stroke this spectral appendage.

Though his paw passed through the intangible tail, Yue'an's expression became one of utter contentment, a purr of pleasure rumbling in his throat. With a gentle shake of his back, the eight corporeal tails folded back into one, like a closing fan.

Legend spoke of cats gaining a new tail for every twenty years of cultivation. Upon growing the ninth tail, a cat would achieve enlightenment and ascend to immortality. However, just as the ninth tail was about to fully form, the cat would receive a divine decree to fulfill a human's wish - any wish at all. The catch? Granting such a wish would cost the cat one of its precious tails, forever trapping it at eight tails and just shy of immortality.

Yue'an was a young cat by mystical standards. He had never lost a tail and had no intention of doing so. Refusing to accept this seemingly inevitable fate, the ambitious feline had seized an opportunity. When the elders of his clan were distracted, he had used a transportation array left behind by the only cat who had successfully ascended to immortality, whisking himself away to this desolate place devoid of human presence.

Calculating the days, Yue'an realized his ninth tail was on the verge of manifesting. And here, in this vast wilderness, there were no humans to be found! The thought filled him with unbridled joy. He yawned, stretching luxuriously, his tails swaying with smug satisfaction as he began to groom his soft, beautiful fur.

This was a paradise inhabited solely by animals. The dry season was drawing to a close, and the parched grasslands, long ravaged by intense heat, were about to welcome the sweet relief of rain. Yue'an's keen nose detected the subtle moisture in the air, bringing a hint of coolness to the arid, sweltering plains.

The snow-white cat rose to his feet, shaking out his fur before leaping onto a large boulder he often used to sharpen his claws. His small frame stood tall and proud atop the rock. Recalling images of lions he had seen on television in his past life, Yue'an attempted to mimic the majestic roar of a male lion with a full mane.

"Meow!" The delicate cry that escaped his throat startled no one, not even the birds nearby who merely cocked their heads in mild curiosity.

Yue'an's ears flattened in embarrassment. "Just you wait," he thought to himself. "When I become immortal, a single cry from me will be enough to shake this entire grassland!"

Slightly miffed, he looked down at his paws. His claws extended, and he lightly scratched the surface of the boulder. Satisfaction returned as he observed the deep grooves left by his sharp claws.

Jumping down from the rock, Yue'an held his tail high as he sauntered towards the water hole within his claimed territory. He had been in this place, so bereft of spiritual energy, for several decades now. Since the time he had only five tails, he had established this area as his domain and hadn't moved since.

To call this place lacking in spiritual energy was an understatement. Even during the Age of Decline, when few cats could awaken their spiritual consciousness and cultivate, the energy here was far more scarce. Yue'an had long suspected he was no longer on Earth.

The air here was thin, and the flora and fauna were much smaller than their Earth counterparts. The sky always had a reddish, hazy quality, and the oppressive heat seemed to emanate from below the ground rather than from sunlight.

But none of that mattered to Yue'an. His tail growth wasn't dependent on spiritual energy - he only needed to survive. The scarcity of energy merely affected the potency of his mystical abilities. For instance, a lightning spell that could once demolish a wall was now only useful for... catching fish.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Yue'an kept fish in his water hole. Occasionally, during the dry season, some bold little animals would sneak into his territory and steal a few. When Yue'an noticed, he rarely bothered to intervene. All creatures were simply trying to survive - he just happened to be living more comfortably than most.

As he trotted along with a fish stunned by his weakened lightning spell dangling from his mouth, Yue'an daydreamed about the life of an immortal. He could eat fish to his heart's content, indulge in his favorite chicken whenever he pleased, and instead of chasing sparrows, he could hunt phoenixes!

The white cat, still small in stature, happily pattered along. If not for the fish in his mouth, he might have been meowing a cheerful tune.

Yue'an's fish pond was quite a distance from his den. Before becoming a true supernatural being, he had been a pampered house cat. His first owner was a fashion-loving young girl who spoiled him endlessly. Unfortunately, when the girl's mother became pregnant with a second child, Yue'an was sent to live with relatives in the countryside.

It was there that Yue'an's spiritual consciousness had awakened, and where he had been discovered by an elder cat spirit who brought him into the fold of mystical felines.

The young girl had cared for Yue'an for over a year, and during that time, he had picked up many of her fastidious habits. He insisted on keeping his living area free of strange odors, maintaining a sleek and polished appearance at all times, and eating with proper etiquette and manners.

Yue'an had even designated a specific area for dining and burying food remnants. Between his den and the fish pond, slightly to the right, there was a patch of bare earth not covered by the wild grass. This was Yue'an's "dining room."

As he set down the fish he'd been carrying and raised his tail in anticipation of his meal, Yue'an's ears suddenly perked up. His gaze snapped to his right, and in a flash of white, he sprang into action.

The tall grass rustled, and when Yue'an reappeared, he was dragging a creature that looked like a cross between a bird and a chicken - already lifeless in his jaws. With practiced ease, he used his razor-sharp claws to prepare his unexpected prey, meticulously cleaning himself afterward before settling down to enjoy his feast of fish and wild game.

The meat was similar to chicken but more sinewy, providing a satisfying challenge for his teeth. After finishing his leisurely meal and cleaning his face, Yue'an began to dig a hole to bury the leftover bones.

Suddenly, a thunderous boom shook the sky. The white cat, startled mid-dig, leaped up and stared at the hazy, reddish heavens. He hadn't detected the usual scent of impending rain. This was not a normal occurrence.

As Yue'an had suspected, the thunder was followed by an eerie silence. Then, without warning, the sky erupted in a blinding flash of light. The brightness intensified, piercing through the misty atmosphere like a comet breaking through the planet's atmosphere. Trailing a long tail of fire, it hurtled towards the barren land with apocalyptic force.

Yue'an watched in growing alarm as the object, now clearly visible as some sort of flaming projectile, drew nearer and nearer. It passed directly overhead, the ground trembling violently beneath his paws as it crashed down onto...

Wait. What?

His den!

The fish bone Yue'an had been holding dropped from his mouth with a soft 'plop'. His cute feline face cycled through expressions of confusion, dismay, and shock. His fur stood on end, and forgetting all about burying his leftovers, he turned tail and sprinted towards what remained of his home.

The outcome, however, was already set in stone.

Yue'an found himself sitting beside an enormous, oval-shaped object that radiated intense heat. Its surface was a dark, ashy gray. The cat stared forlornly at the ruins of the den he had so painstakingly built and inhabited for decades, feeling on the verge of tears.

The white cat, now smudged with soot and too distraught to groom himself, circled the massive, coal-like object a few times. Finally, he stopped, let out a series of pitiful mews, then abruptly shifted from sorrow to anger. He extended his claws and began furiously scratching at the thing that had destroyed his home.

Being a mystical creature, Yue'an possessed extraordinary strength. His claws, which could shred ordinary materials with ease, managed to tear into the surprisingly resilient surface of the object that had endured the heat of atmospheric entry.

After a short while of frantic scratching, Yue'an felt something change beneath his paws. There was a faint 'crack' from within the object. The cat's ears twitched, alert, as he watched a fissure form down the center of the enormous, egg-like structure.

Yue'an retracted his claws and backed away, observing as the object split open to reveal its contents. Inside was not the yolk of some giant egg, but a softly glowing, pod-like structure. As Yue'an watched, the pod began to open, revealing what it had been protecting.

It was a person. A badly injured, barely breathing person with a gaping wound in their abdomen and covered in blood.

Despite their grievous injuries, the person's eyes flickered open, their will to live evidently strong.

A human!

Alarm bells rang in Yue'an's mind. The moment he realized what the pod contained, he turned to flee without hesitation.

But it was too late.

At that crucial moment, just as his ninth tail was about to fully manifest, Yue'an received the divine decree. He couldn't help but hear the desperate wish in the heart of the dying person before him.

...Want to live.

Want to survive.

Yue'an pretended not to hear, running as fast as his paws could carry him. But as he ran, he felt a strange lightness in his hindquarters. Glancing back, he saw one of his tails lying on the ground, detached.

Yue'an skidded to a halt, trembling as he fanned out all of his tails. He counted them, refusing to believe what had happened. When the count came up short, he let out a mournful yowl. Looking back at his fallen tail and the human whose injuries were visibly healing at an accelerated rate, Yue'an felt his world go dark.

In that moment, all the cat could think was a very un-catlike string of expletives, cursing the unfairness of it all.