Life Exchange Game

[1. Tag slot +1]

[2. Body filter function +1]

[3. Takeover AI personality change]

The tag slot was exactly what Xia Yu had been wanting. The body filter function seemed to be a way to filter bodies based on certain criteria, but without an extra slot, selecting another body would be pointless. As for the takeover AI personality change, he hadn’t realized the takeover AI had a personality.

“Takeover AI personality,” Xia Yu said.

The next moment, a string of text appeared before him:

[AI personality: Taciturn]

So, it had this feature. The game didn’t come with a manual, so he had to explore everything on his own. The taciturn personality was quite excellent, and Xia Yu didn’t intend to change it. He reached out and clicked on the first option. His exchange slot now had an empty position.

Satisfied, Xia Yu walked out of his room and began to wash up. Since the black cat could be exchanged again, bringing the cat home became the most urgent task. If something happened to the black cat outside, Xia Yu would lose an excellent body.

After getting ready to leave, Xia Yu checked the time. It was now 2:30 AM. The city where the black cat was located was the neighboring city, and there were no high-speed trains available at this hour. He hesitated at the door for a moment, sighed, and hailed a taxi.

“Where to, buddy?” the driver asked.

“To Donglin City,” Xia Yu said, feeling the pinch, “How much?”

“Not many passengers at this hour, so I’ll give you a discount, four hundred,” the driver said with a smile. Long-distance fares were more profitable than short trips. “I’m not overcharging you. Even if you find another driver, it won’t be less than my price.”

Four hundred was nearly half a month’s salary for Xia Yu. He tried to bargain, “How about three hundred fifty?”

“Deal!” The driver opened the door.

“…”

“Haha, three hundred fifty is the bottom line price. You really know your stuff, buddy!” The driver cheerfully invited Xia Yu into the car.

Oh well, who knows how long it would take to find another taxi. In this world, there was no one-click ride-hailing feature. It’s just money, after all. Finding the black cat quickly was the priority. In many fantasy stories, tragedies often occurred because the protagonist procrastinated.

After a three-hour drive, Xia Yu arrived at his destination. He had the driver stop at the familiar pedestrian street entrance, paid the fare, and got out of the car. Although it was his first time here in his own body, he was already familiar with the area from the black cat’s perspective.

He walked past the tree where he had grabbed the balloon last night and the glass wall where he had looked at his reflection. Xia Yu entered the alley. The milk tea cup he had crushed last night was still lying quietly on the ground. He walked past the trash can and reached the corner where he had hidden the roast duck. Only the duck’s head remained; the rest had disappeared.

Did the black cat take it?

If the black cat wasn’t nearby, it would be troublesome. However, as long as the black cat wasn’t in danger, it wasn’t a big problem. He could find a taxi driver and tell them to take a cat to Zilang City at night, then switch to the black cat’s body and take the taxi himself. The premise was that the black cat wasn’t in danger.

After searching the area and finding no sign of the black cat, Xia Yu considered waiting until night to switch again. He didn’t want to spend time grinding the black cat’s skills; learning the piano was his top priority.

“Hey…” a young man approached Xia Yu.

“Hello, is there something you need?” Xia Yu looked at the young man, who was dressed in an ordinary checkered shirt and didn’t look like a thug.

“There’s a very fierce stray dog in this alley. You’d better not go in,” the young man said.

Xia Yu glanced around and realized he was standing in the area the black cat had warned him about last night. The black cat knew it was dangerous, so it wouldn’t go in.

“Why not call urban management if there’s a stray dog?” Xia Yu asked casually.

“Urban management came twice but couldn’t catch it. The dog is very cunning; it hides when there are many people. Besides, not many people use this road, so it’s easier to just avoid it,” the young man pointed to the right. “You can go this way.”

“Thanks.” Xia Yu thanked him and was about to leave when he noticed a packaging bag stuck in the corner of the alley. It was the roast duck’s packaging. The young man, seeing Xia Yu following his advice, smiled and was about to leave when he saw Xia Yu walking into the alley.

“???”

“Hey, why don’t you believe what I said!” The young man quickly picked up a brick from the ground and followed Xia Yu.

Xia Yu had already started jogging. He heard the sound of a cat meowing. When he reached the source of the sound, he saw the black cat clinging to a small tree. Below the tree was a half-meter-tall, dirt-colored dog.

Seeing Xia Yu, the native dog stood up and barked at him. Xia Yu looked around for a weapon but found nothing. Seeing the black cat clinging weakly to the tree, Xia Yu broke off a branch from a nearby tree.

The native dog, seeing Xia Yu unwilling to retreat, became ferocious and charged at him. Its rough breathing and sharp teeth were intimidating. As it approached, Xia Yu felt its movements slow down a notch. Dogs don’t suddenly slow down; it could only be that his reaction time had sped up due to his increased agility.

A quick sidestep allowed Xia Yu to dodge the dog’s attack and strike its face with the branch. A normal dog would whimper and run away after being hit, but this native dog didn’t even flinch. It turned around and charged at Xia Yu again. Xia Yu discarded the ineffective branch and, timing his move, kicked the dog hard in the side. The force of the kick made the dog unable to get up.

The young man, who had followed with the brick, was stunned by Xia Yu’s confrontation with the dog. He had been ready to call an ambulance but hadn’t expected Xia Yu to be so formidable. After the dog whimpered, the young man came to his senses and used the brick to hit the dog’s head.

“Remember chasing me last time? How did my butt taste, huh?” Hearing the young man’s words, Xia Yu could already imagine the miserable scene of him being bitten. The young man was so enthusiastic not only because he was a good person but also because he had a grudge.

After knocking the dog unconscious, the young man thanked Xia Yu, “Finally got my revenge. If you have something to do, you can go. I’ll wait here for urban management to take the dog away.”

Nodding, Xia Yu used a sausage he had bought on the way to coax the black cat into his arms. He looked around and saw a pile of bones. The bones were from the roast duck. The black cat couldn’t have eaten it all at once. The native dog must have smelled it, stolen the duck, and chased the black cat up the tree.

Fortunately, he arrived early. If the native dog had caught the black cat, it would have been disastrous. Patting the black cat’s head, Xia Yu took a taxi back to Zilang City. Since high-speed trains didn’t allow animals, he had to spend money again.

By the time he got home, it was almost noon. Hearing the door open, Youxue came out. “Brother, where did you… Ah, it’s a cat!” Noticing the black cat in Xia Yu’s arms, the girl was excited.

Xia Yu handed the black cat to Youxue, who happily petted it. After getting a glass of water from the kitchen, Xia Yu waited for the girl to ask about the phone, but even after two glasses of water, she didn’t mention it. Seeing the phone on the desk, Youxue must have guessed it was from him, but it was strange that she didn’t bring it up at all.

My sister isn’t usually this impolite. Xia Yu frowned and thought for a moment. “Youxue, go buy me an eraser.” He handed her ten yuan to get her out of the house.

“Okay.” Without any reluctance, Youxue put down the black cat and left. Watching from the balcony as she walked away, Xia Yu went to Xia Dongyang’s room and kicked the door hard.