2 - Hunting

The next day, Tang Han woke up.

He stretched lazily atop a distant tree branch.

Naturally, he hadn't slept in the burrow. It would have been impractical for him to finish eating both rabbits since his body was smaller than theirs; not to mention, they would spoil anyway, and he couldn't freeze them for later use.

So, he slept on a random tree branch. He didn't want to wake up to the decaying bodies of the rabbits, even though the burrow would have been safer.

Of course, he had bathed himself by licking himself to avoid any sickness from the blood he consumed.

'Lucky me with this cat body.'

Tang Han was a cleanliness fanatic.

"Shh..."

Today, the forest was not as quiet as it had been the day before. Tang Han heard some noise not far from him and even felt its vibrations through his fur. It seemed like a monster fight was happening.

'What kind of beast are these?'

Tang Han felt a bit of curiosity, but he calmed himself down.

He couldn't afford to act recklessly.

'I need to increase my power first.'

Tang Han's first principle was — to fully understand his surroundings. That way, he would build a clear picture in his mind, and at least, that would let him know what to do next.

As a former assassin, he knew that the first step to controlling any situation was observing the environment and carefully analyzing every small detail. This would give him the upper hand in any situation; knowledge was power!

'I'm in the dark now, I don't know what dangers this forest holds.'

'As for my stat points…'

Tang Han hesitated.

He currently had 4 stat points. The first two came with the system, while the additional two were gained from leveling up the previous day.

How did the points come with the system? Was it like a "starter pack"? Or charity?

Of course, it wasn't. Based on what Tang Han had seen so far, this system was purely functional, with no features like "storage" or "shop".

He attributed the two points to his passive skill — [Life Steal].

This skill was extremely powerful.

[Life Steal]

Type: Passive Skill

Description:

An innate passive skill that allows the user to steal stat points from the opponent when striking them. The stolen points are acquired randomly either as raw stats points or distributed among the user's stats, depending on luck. Its effect increases with the strength of the opponent.

'This skill is what "courting death" means when facing stronger foes, but it's worth it.'

After thinking carefully, Tang Han decided to add two points to "Attack," one point to "Agility," and the last one to "Stamina."

His initial plan was to analyze his surroundings to identify weaknesses, but after reconsidering, he realized boosting his attack power first was the priority.

[You've added 2 stats points to "Attack"!]

[You've added 1 stats point to "Agility"!]

[You've added 1 stats point to "Stamina"!]

As soon as the decision was made, Tang Han felt a pleasant warmth flow through his small body, as if a surge of power had coursed through his veins. His muscles contracted slightly, almost as if they were reshaping themselves, while his body became more flexible and agile!

'Hmm… this is interesting.'

He thought quietly as he watched his claws, which now seemed sharper and shinier. He felt at ease with every movement he made. These were two points into attack!

Looking at the tree in front of him, he suddenly felt the urge to try out his claws.

'No, better to test them on a practical target.'

He now had 8 points in Attack and 11 points in Agility. Tang Han felt a little excitement and wanted to test his newfound strength in combat!

'Also, I need to confirm how to increase the number of my skills.'

"Whoosh!"

Tang Han moved through the forest, racing against the wind. As a cat, he was naturally very fast, and the forest seemed vast, he hadn't seen its end yet.

'Thinking about it, this seems like a cultivation world.'

While moving, Tang Han quickly realized it.

His conclusion was based on two things:

The system referred to "Qi" as energy instead of mana. The name of the forest was Chinese.

'Of course, it could be something else entirely.'

Tang Han didn't care much.

"Sha!!"

After a while, he soon encountered another rabbit, but this one was slightly different.

It was twice the size of the previous one, with fur as grey as a wolf's, and it had prominent fangs. It looked at him with a gaze that showed no fear. Its body was low, almost ready to pounce, and its red eyes glowed with pure intent.

'Carnivorous rabbit? Interesting.'

Tang Han stood still, observing the grey rabbit like a predator. His black tail flicked, embodying his excitement.

'It looks delicious too, but unfortunately, no system storage...'

While he was thinking, the grey rabbit leapt toward him with its fangs bared!

"Whoosh!"

The rabbit's movement seemed slow to Tang Han. He sidestepped gracefully, evading the first attack effortlessly, letting the rabbit fly through the empty air.

"Shu!!"

The rabbit charged with momentum toward a tree, and with some difficulty, it turned its body, causing its hooves to slam into the trunk before it launched itself even more fiercely at Tang Han, tearing through the wind!

'What?'

Tang Han was taken aback by this sudden movement, and he could only applaud internally.

Tang Han dodged the attack and quickly realized.

"Whoosh!!!"

"Whoosh!!"

'This rabbit! Do the other beasts of the forest have this kind of intelligence?'

Using the trees around him as support, the grey rabbit kept leaping, turning its momentum each time to increase the power of its attacks!

'I can't let this continue...'

Tang Han sensed the danger. As the momentum increased, the rabbit's strike would surely become more powerful.

At that moment, he activated his skill!

[Instant Agility!]

Tang Han felt his body lighten, his muscles strengthening. Without hesitation, he looked to his left, then leapt!

"Whoosh!"

In less than a second, mid-air, Tang Han collided with the grey rabbit. They were moving in opposite directions, but Tang Han, with his high agility and cat body, was unaffected by the momentum. He quickly raised his paw, activating his skills—

[Cat's Claw!]

"Whoosh!!"

"Chaa!!"

With his sharp claws, he struck the rabbit just below the neck, creating a deep wound. The grey rabbit cried out and crashed into a distant tree trunk, losing control of its momentum, and within seconds, it fell dead.

[Your "Intelligence" stat has increased by 1 point!]

This time, the [Life Steal] skill activated!

Tang Han sat not far from its corpse, watching the forest around him. He looked at his claw, now shining with red blood, before licking it lightly. As he knew — a cat's teeth were naturally purifiers.

'A little below what's needed, but it died in the end… I need to improve my control over my claws.'

'But if I found a rabbit like this here... what about the rest of the beasts?'

Tang Han couldn't help but think, wiping his claws and looking at the distant horizon. The forest was still full of noise. Suddenly, he felt that this forest was far more dangerous than it appeared.

Looking at the system screen before him, his thoughts became clearer.

'No, thinking about it. If the "Life Steal" skill is innate to me as a Ming Forest Cat, why can't the other monsters have skills this strong or even some intelligence?'

'Yes, this isn't Earth. Each beast has its way of living.'

'Yes, that makes sense.'

Tang Han did not arrogantly think he was the hero or a lucky son of the heavens. He knew he had good luck — his previous life had been quite good even as an assassin — but he wouldn't bet his life on it and act recklessly.

Suddenly, a new golden screen appeared before him.

[Quest!]

[Description — Kill the Golden Carp!]

[Deadline — 3 Days]

[Rewards — 5 Stat Points, Unlock "Storage" Feature]

[Accept quest?]

[Yes/No]

'There's a quest feature? Nice!'

Tang Han's eyes lit up immediately, and his tail couldn't help but wag with excitement.

'Unlocking the "Storage" feature as a reward? This system is teasing me. Shouldn't that feature be free?'

Tang Han laughed inwardly.

'But so be it, I accept it!'

He chose "Yes" without hesitation.

'To find the carp, I'll need to find a river first.'

'Golden Carp… I'm afraid the quest is harder than it looks.'

Tang Han was alone in the forest. He didn't know what this golden carp was or how rare it was, and the system had given him no information about it. Worse, he didn't have any skill like "Evaluation" to recognize it when he saw it.

'First, I need to search for the nearest river.'

It wasn't as difficult as he thought. As a cat, he had natural advantages. Soon enough, Tang Han found it. He found a large blue lake.

Tang Han lay on one of the branches, looking at the lake from afar.

'Of course, I need to be cautious.'

'Beasts usually gather around such places.'