Chapter 35: First Hunt

A golden light flowed from the top of the Divine Tree, slowly converging into the Elf’s brow before disappearing. Zhai Guangyi didn’t feel anything different—it was as if an ordinary beam of light had shot over, and then there was no further sensation.

“So, do you feel stronger, more comfortable, as if reborn, with a newfound sense of confidence?”

Zhai Guangyi shook his head and swayed slightly, completely unable to sense the experience Xiong Er described. The only change was that during Appraisal, he was no longer nameless—his own name now appeared.

“Let me use Appraisal to see what changes have occurred for you.”

Race: Primordial Spirit (Zhai Guangyi)

Level: 1—Distance to Level Up Required Spiritual Power: 1000

Life Value: 100

Magic Power: 42,000

Strength: 2

Defense: 1

Speed: 3

“Nothing seems different; it’s pretty much the same as before. Wait, why are you named Zhai Guangyi? How come?”

“The name? I told the Divine Tree my name is Zhai Guangyi, and it named me accordingly.”

Xiong Er looked incredulous, recalling that Liya had also told the Divine Tree her name was Liya, and it had named her directly. She had never imagined she could choose her own name—like in a game’s automatic naming system, where auto-generated names are often strange, and only editing your own ID is the right solution.

“Ugh! How annoying!”

Zhai Guangyi shrugged, continuing to devour the large piece of roasted meat in his hands, responding without a hint of guilt.

“Can’t help it. After all, I’m the biological one, and you’re adopted. There’s a difference.”

The night after dinner returned to its usual tranquility. The bonfire had been extinguished, and occasionally, many Magical Beasts could be seen patrolling nearby. Xiong Batian and other Demon Humans were also responsible for night patrols. With so many Magical Beasts around, there was no shortage of hands.

Zhai Guangyi spent a peaceful night at Xiong Er’s house. Although he slept on a pile of books, there were blankets made of wool and animal skins on top, making it quite comfortable.

Xiong Er had wanted to sleep with Zhai Guangyi, but Xiong Batian came over and dragged her away, seemingly insisting that Xiong Er give up the room for Zhai Guangyi. Though Zhai Guangyi felt a bit embarrassed, there was nothing he could do as Xiong Er was pulled away by Xiong Batian.

Xiong Er reluctantly agreed with forced cheerfulness and followed Xiong Batian to sleep on a pile of hay. Lying in the hay, Xiong Er vowed to change the current situation and make sleeping in a comfortable bed a common occurrence.

The next day, Xiong Er came to wake Zhai Guangyi up to go hunting Inside the Forest, saying she would take him along to Level Up and let him experience the harshness of the Otherworld.

Xiong Er called the Storm Holy Wolf over.

“These Storm Demon Wolves can carry us, allowing us to move through the Forest more quickly. Come on, give it a try.”

Xiong Er stroked the Storm Demon Wolf beside her. Its size was considerably larger than hers, let alone the currently short Zhai Guangyi, who was only about 1.3 meters tall—still in a child’s body. Looking at the massive Storm Demon Wolf, Zhai Guangyi suddenly felt a bit terrified.

“Hey, it’s okay. These magic wolves are our good companions. When faced with a life-threatening crisis, they’re even willing to sacrifice their lives to save us. This magic wolf has been with me for a long time—it’s a great fellow. Don’t be afraid.”

Xiong Er noticed that Zhai Guangyi seemed a bit scared, and a protective urge welled up inside her. She wondered whether it was because children were more likely to evoke such feelings in her or if she had already been influenced by this female body.

The Storm Holy Wolf, seeing the tiny Zhai Guangyi, quickly ran over and stuck out its tongue to lick his face. Zhai Guangyi tried to block its large tongue but ended up falling to the ground instead.

There was no helping it—after all, his strength stat was only two points. The Storm Holy Wolf showed no trace of malice, circling around Zhai Guangyi and wagging its tail.

Xiong Er leaped up, soaring through the air to land astride the Storm Holy Wolf’s back. Then, grabbing Zhai Guangyi’s arm, she pulled him in front of her. Zhai Guangyi wasn’t yet capable of riding alone—not only was his size unsuitable, but his strength was also insufficient.

Under Xiong Er’s direction, the Storm Holy Wolf began galloping through the Forest. The oncoming airflow blew so fiercely that Zhai Guangyi could barely keep his eyes open. If he were riding alone, he’d probably be blown off in no time.

After riding for several dozen minutes, Zhai Guangyi gradually grew accustomed to the sensation—it felt like riding a motorcycle in the past. The Storm Holy Wolf’s strides were fast yet steady, with minimal jostling while seated. The only downside was the speed, which made it hard for Zhai Guangyi to see the surrounding scenery clearly.

After some time, the Storm Holy Wolf suddenly came to a halt, crouching down slowly and making almost no sound. Xiong Er leaped off gracefully, landing elegantly on the ground, then gestured for Zhai Guangyi to dismount.

Zhai Guangyi followed suit with a jump, and Xiong Er caught him in her arms—the entire process was completely silent.

Xiong Er then pointed toward a certain spot in the Forest. Zhai Guangyi looked over, scanning carefully for a while before finally spotting a Goblin through a gap between the trees. It seemed to be hunting as well.

In front of the Goblin was a large hen pecking at the ground for worms. It would occasionally lower its head to peck a few times, then raise it to observe its surroundings.

The Goblin hiding in the woods held a wooden club, staring intently at the large hen, completely unaware that Zhai Guangyi and the others had already arrived behind it.

“Do you have any offensive Magic? Want to give it a try? With a sneak attack now, there’s nothing to fear.”

Xiong Er whispered into Zhai Guangyi’s ear. He nodded, indicating that he did.

Although it was just a Goblin—and Zhai Guangyi had taken down quite a few even when he was a tree—the feeling was different in this body. Even his raised hand seemed to tremble slightly.

Zhai Guangyi could sense a hint of unease within himself. He couldn’t help but wonder whether he would miss, or if the Goblin would suddenly turn around and discover them.

Even though Goblins were weak, Zhai Guangyi couldn’t stop himself from dwelling on these thoughts.

Unconsciously, more and more Magic Power gathered in his palm as Spirit Magic converged. A golden ball of light materialized in Zhai Guangyi’s hand, aimed at the Goblin’s back.

The ball of light grew larger and larger, its intense flow of magical elements causing the surrounding Magic Power to become somewhat chaotic. Xiong Er already felt it was becoming difficult to breathe. As she watched the ball of light, a sense of unease echoed incessantly in her heart.

A golden beam shot straight through the forest, instantly vaporizing anything in its path. The intense flow of magic power stunned every creature that witnessed the radiant light.

After a long while, the light faded, revealing a wide, hundred-meter-long path with a radius of one meter ahead. Everything in its way had vanished, as if a road had been carved out of thin air.

It had cleanly sliced through over a hundred meters of forest, and of course, the Goblins and the giant hen ahead were gone too—not even a trace remained.

“You’re using an ultimate move on small fry!”

Xiong Er stared at the scene before her, her lips twitching slightly.

She activated Appraisal again to check Zhai Guangyi’s stats and was shocked to see his Magic Power had dropped by nearly ten thousand points. That amount was several times her own Magic Power—such extravagant use of magic was truly outrageous.