Chapter 333: Chapter 333: When the System Regains Its Final Strength

The Little Sand Cat excitedly stomped on the sand, then suddenly seemed to remember something and started digging—swish swish swish!

Its little paws were even more nimble than usual, sand flying as it quickly dug a small pit.

[So awesome!] It was amazed at itself, looking up at Qi Xiao, then at its own handiwork, its round eyes shining like stars.

The next moment, it suddenly leaped and flew straight into Qi Xiao’s arms, its furry little head rubbing against his chin, [Brother Qi Xiao, I love you~]

Before Qi Xiao could react, the Little Sand Cat planted a wet kiss on his cheek, its damp little nose brushing against his skin, and its soft tongue licking twice more, full of affection.

Qi Xiao was completely frozen.

The usually stern look on his face rare showed a trace of panic, his ears turning red at a speed visible to the naked eye, with even his neck slightly heating up.

Instinctively wanting to avoid it, the Little Sand Cat was very clingy, clinging to his collar and not letting go, wanting to kiss him again.

"Ahem..." He coughed softly, trying to hide his discomfort, but his slightly averted face and tense shoulders completely exposed his embarrassment.

Xu Ying watched from the side, laughing, and teased him on purpose, "Boss Qi, I didn’t know you were so popular with small animals?"

Qi Xiao pressed his lips together, silent, only reaching out to gently rub the Little Sand Cat’s head, his actions gentle yet helpless.

The little creature took the opportunity, burying itself entirely in his arms, purring contentedly, its tail swishing back and forth as if declaring victory.

Firelight flickered, reflecting on Qi Xiao’s reddened ears, mixed with Xu Ying’s laughter and the Little Sand Cat’s triumphant purring. The desert night suddenly felt extraordinarily gentle.

Watching the Little Sand Cat snuggle up to Qi Xiao, Xu Ying couldn’t help but pout, "Little Sand Cat, you haven’t kissed me in ages~"

The Little Sand Cat immediately bounced over and gave her a big kiss on the cheek with a "mwah".

The little guy tilted its head, thinking, [Brother Qi Xiao’s face is hard like a rock! Sister Station Master’s face is soft like cotton~both are great to kiss]

Qi Xiao had strong bone structure, his facial lines were sharp and smooth, and because he often exercised for missions, his body fat was very low, making his cheeks firm.

After saying this, the Little Sand Cat mischievously blinked, [Want to try kissing too?]

Xu Ying’s face immediately turned crimson, "No need, no kissing randomly!"

"What did it say?" Qi Xiao, curious, leaned over to ask.

Xu Ying was immediately at a loss for words, her ears visibly turning red. "N-nothing..."

She stammered, lowering her head, fiddling with her phone, pretending to be very busy, "It’s just...just some meowing..."

But the Little Sand Cat wasn’t having it, jumping between the two, [Sister Station Master is lying!]

It pointed at both of them with its little paw in turn, [I said Brother Qi Xiao’s face is very hard, sister’s face is very soft!]

"What exactly was said?"

Qi Xiao couldn’t help but ask, watching Xu Ying’s face redden further.

"It’s really nothing!" Xu Ying suddenly stood up, nearly tripping over her own feet,

"I-I’ll go check on the seedling box!"

With that, she fled in embarrassment, too flustered to even pick up the overturned kettle.

Qi Xiao watched Xu Ying’s hurried retreating back and then looked down at the Little Sand Cat squatting in the sand, its tail swishing proudly, a hint of confusion appearing in his handsome brows.

He squatted down, threading his hands through the Little Sand Cat’s front paws, lifting it up to his eye level.

"What exactly did you say, little kitty?" Qi Xiao squinted slightly, his deep voice carrying a hint of danger. "Are you saying bad things about me to Sister Station Master?"

[Of course not!] The little creature immediately began a lively "performance".

First, it gently patted its own left cheek with its furry right paw, mimicking a kiss, then suddenly switched to its left paw, smacking its right cheek hard, its head exaggeratedly thrown back.

"This is..." Qi Xiao frowned slightly.

The Little Sand Cat, getting anxious, swished its tail. Thinking quickly, it pointed a paw at Xu Ying’s distant back, then suddenly went limp, turning into a furball puddle in his palm.

Then, using its paw pad, it touched Qi Xiao’s face, immediately snapping its body straight, as stiff as a plank of wood.

"Soft and...hard?" Qi Xiao hesitantly guessed.

The Little Sand Cat meowed excitedly, suddenly leaning close to Qi Xiao’s face, puckering its little mouth as if to kiss, then quickly turned its head, making a flying kiss motion towards Xu Ying’s direction.

Lastly, it squatted in Qi Xiao’s palm, holding its face with two front paws, its eyes blinking with an expectant expression.

Qi Xiao’s ears suddenly turned red. He coughed lightly and placed the Little Sand Cat back on the ground, "I think...I get it..."

From the distance came the sound of the seedling box toppling over, Xu Ying’s hurried figure particularly clear in the moonlight.

Qi Xiao unconsciously touched his own face, then with red-tipped ears, went over to help Xu Ying sort out the seedling box.

*

Early the next morning, just as the sky began to lighten, Xu Ying stepped out of the tent. She stretched, the morning breeze carrying the desert’s unique dry scent rushed over her.

Standing on the desert border between Dragon Country and Desert North Country, she looked at the endless expanse of yellow sand, her thoughts drifting far away.

Suddenly, an overdue mechanical voice sounded in her mind: [Ding! Congratulations to the host for leveling up the desert rescue level to full, the points shop is officially unlocked!]

Xu Ying’s eyes widened, instantly awake.

She had waited too long for this notification sound; ever since she bound to the "Desert Guardian" system a year ago, she had been working every day to increase her rescue level.

[In the points shop, the host can use the points earned from protecting wild animals and planting forests to exchange for various items.]

The system’s voice continued to explain.

Xu Ying couldn’t wait to summon the system interface, only to see the previously dim shop icon now gleaming with golden light.

Taking a deep breath, she mentally clicked on the shop on the virtual interface, a dazzling array of items immediately appearing before her eyes.

"This is..." Her gaze was instantly attracted to the first item—a miraculous nutrient soil she had once received! This special soil could allow plants to grow rapidly in extreme environments; a small pack of it rewarded by the system had once enabled her to cultivate a vegetable garden in the desert.

And now, the shop showed 1 points for 1 cubic meter!

Excitedly, Xu Ying checked her points balance: 7000 points! These were accumulated bit by bit over the years by rescuing wild animals like ear foxes and sand cats and planting drought-resistant trees.

Animal rescue was rewarded with 1 to 100 points based on the number and degree of the rescue.

Planting one tree rewarded 1 point, she hadn’t realized she had accumulated so much over time.

Continuing to browse, she discovered the shop also had various special tree saplings: Poplar, Sea Buckthorn, Sacsaoul...but all marked with the words "enhanced version".

"System, what does ’enhanced version’ mean?" Xu Ying asked curiously.