Cultivation Struggles of a Lowly Fox

Chapter 2 – Second Day and Rude Neighbour

He woke up, still feeling tired, but much less than before. It felt like his body was pressed by something heavy and he had a hard time standing up, not to mention that this wasn't a human body anymore and he was trapped inside this animal body. This greatly pained him, he wanted to indulge in human desires, but if he tried to get close to any city those guys from... from... It would be bad for him.

He finally managed to stand up and looked around. It was a quiet morning with chirping all around him. He didn't dislike those sounds, but he was still afraid of them. He was just a cub and this Forest was extremely absolutely humongous, he could fit inside a Human male palm with very little difficulty. This meant he was truly and absolutely tiny and would take a lot of time to traverse inside this forest.

He also wasn't alone inside this forest and would be hunted by possibly anything that moves.

He could hear a sigh.

[Please check your [Items] as you were given gifts by us...]

She could feel her depression dripping from the text, but he still opened his system.

His mind was still muddled, but he could see his blessings were completely outrageous. He also noticed that he got that unfortunate title, but he didn't dare click on it, lest he vomit blood and die on the spot... vomit blood? Why would he vomit blood?

He clicked on the [Welcome Package].

There were 'birthday' party effects with some additional sounds. He was startled, but then he looked at it and was greatly disappointed.

[Introduction to the Mortal Realm]

He didn't expect anything extravagant from the system, but this was just downright sad. Not because he got the book, but because...

[You need at least 100 Mind and 10 Insight to read this book]

His fragile ego suffered a heavy blow since in his previous... he was very smart, but now the system told him he was dumb as a brick.

He placed the book back inside the system and ignored it. He then went around the forest to find himself something to eat, since he could feel like he was very hungry.

He strolled without a goalpost, looking all around him to find anything to eat.

He found a bird nest far away in front of him on a branch. It had a few eggs inside.

He was against hunting since he was formerly a cultured human who didn't eat raw meat, but eggs should be fine as long as he swallows them and doesn't chew them.

He steeled his mind and walked towards the tree cautiously. He was worried that those birds were nearby and used him as a snack.

Fortunately for him, it didn't seem like there were any birds around, as he couldn't even hear a single bird chirp.

He stared at the obscenely huge tree and gulped, his stomach also rumbled, reminding him it was time to eat.

He used his sharp claws as climbing gear and slowly moved upwards. He was making some good progress. When suddenly his body gave out, he felt powerless as exhaustion washed over him. Fortunately for him, his claws were still stuck inside the bark, not allowing him to fall.

He was confused for a moment, but soon he realized what was wrong.

[Stamina: 0/2]

He ran out of stamina when climbing. He cursed his tiny body as it wouldn't even take that much effort to obtain those eggs if he was in his Human form- Form? What's form?

He hung there like wet towels on a drying rack, waiting patiently for his stamina to recover as he was not even able to remove the claws from the bark.

After an hour his stamina recovered by 1 and he cursed again. It would take him a whole day to get to that nest and it better be worth this hassle!

Like this each hour he moved slightly upwards. He almost fell a few times as he was trying to push forward, but after hanging on one paw for another hour he didn't feel as motivated to push forward since his paw really hurt...

[HP: 1/2]

It seems like he took damage because of it. Curses!

...

He finally managed to get on the branch, exhausted and now weak he heavily panted as he lay on the branch. Eggs were just in front of him, but he didn't have any Stamina to move his tired body. He waited another hour to recover one stamina and moved in front of the nest. There he saw 3 quite large eggs, but not so large that he couldn't swallow them.

He finished them in 3 gulps and felt satisfied, but also sad that he didn't get any kind of reward for this feat.

*CAW* *CAW*

A bird noisily screamed not far from him and he was shaken. If this was that bird's nest he was dead! In his panic, he looked around to find a way out, but couldn't. His blood drained from his body once he heard those same noises, but much closer to him. His mind blanked and the only thing he could think of was to jump down.

His body was falling through the air, landing on a bush, but that bush wasn't really that hard and only slowed him slightly.

[You have taken 1 damage.]
[HP: 0/2]

He felt like his body wasn't his, like someone cutting strings that allowed him to move his body and he slowly, but surely fell deep inside that bush and lost consciousness.

...

He woke up. He didn't know how long he was out, but he knew he was still alive.

He also got multiple messages from the system.

[You have demonstrated acrobatic feat above your possibilities!]
[System has rewarded you with Title: [Agile]]
[Would you like to acquire [Agile]?]

He stared at the text mockingly, of course, he would acquire it! He didn't know the effects, but he felt like they were much more important than Classical Skills.

[You have Acquired [Agile]!]
[Title: Agile]
[Give the User flat 5 Agility and 1 Agility per level.]

[You have escaped from the clutches of death and lived!]
[System has rewarded you with Title: [Brave]]
[Would you like to acquire [Brave]?]

'Do you even need to ask?!'

He cussed at the system. He also noticed that he could move his body again.

[You have Acquired [Brave]!]
[Title: Brave]
[Gives the User flat 1 Vitality, Toughness, Strength and 1 Vitality, Toughness and Strength per level.]

[You have digested the last Egg and recovered your satiety.]
[EXP gained.]
[Level: 2 -> 3]

He felt... really springy... those Titles were a huge help to him. He would be able to traverse more easily, but there was still danger from other animals.

He also felt full and not as groggy. He spotted that black bird that was still trying to frantically find its eggs, with no success. He could see it was enraged and a chill went up his spine each time it shrieked. After all, it was 3x his size!

He didn't dare leave the bush, he was safe for now, so he looked at his status and tapped [Blessing of the Ancestral Nine-Tailed Fox].

[Blessing of the Ancestral Nine-Tailed Fox]
[####]
[1st Effect: You can't be forced into obedience or slavery contract under #### Cultivation unless you decide otherwise.]

He didn't quite understand the meaning of the effect clearly, but he knew slavery was bad and was happy that he could avoid that.

[Blessing of the Ancestral Phoenix]
[####]
[1st Effect: You will burn anyone who forces you into a contract. Damage depends on the User's strength and opponent's Cultivation.]

This was... vicious, but it was another barrier that his opponents had to face if they wanted to enslave him.

He nodded happily and laid back down, waiting for the crow to either calm down or leave. The latter would be much more appreciated by him.

...

He woke up, he didn't even notice he fell asleep and it was already dark again. He felt hungry and hopeless once again and squinted his eyes, surprisingly he could see things outside the bush, but not inside.

He looked around trying to find the black bird but with no success. He breathed a sigh of relief and left the bush cautiously, always looking all around him to spot any predators. He would need more skills to survive here and abilities to protect himself, but for now, since he was small, he was able to traverse this place relatively easily.

He made it to a bush with deliciously looking cherries. He 'plucked' a few, returning to his bush to munch on them. He wanted peace of mind at least during eating.

He sat down, munching on the cherries, when suddenly he couldn't move his body. His cherries dripped from his mouth and he soon plopped on the ground without being able to do anything.

[You have been poisoned.]
[Current Effect: Paralysis]

He was fortunate that it wasn't lethal poison, but that also meant he couldn't eat that delicious-looking bush with so many cherries on it. He also felt really parched after eating those cherries so he will now have to find a water source.

After half an hour the effect disappeared and he could move once again. He immediately set off to find some food, but he couldn't hear any water nearby. So it was quite tough, but once he sharpened his senses he was able to feel humid air drifting from south.

He followed that air for half a day, avoiding predators and anything that could pose a threat to him... which was everything. He even had to avoid walnuts falling from trees since they dealt a whopping 2 damage to him! He finally regenerated to 3 HP, but now he was back down to 1!

He was crestfallen from that and had to pay much more attention to detail, exhausting him quicker.

Fortunately, he was able to find the river soon. Unfortunately, it was a rocky river, it had no bushes all around it! He couldn't hide when drinking water! He would be exposed and defenceless to predators. So he made up his mind and waited until night, it should be safer that way... He hoped.