The sun hung tall above the blue empty sky as the morning fogs had already vacated about their journeys elsewhere.
The peaks behind the mountains proceeded to enhance the scenery with a glimmer of sovereignty.
As the beasts below of such a magnificent picture resumed on with their customary commits.
Somewhere inside an extended 10-meter wide hole.
A long 5 meters snake could be discerned dozing off soundly in the middle of this space.
Not long after.
Seemingly to be awake... the snake's pair of eyes slowly unfolded itself as its long forked tongue flickered about in rhythm.
Tasting the bitter taste within the air as there was still a slight mark of drooling from before.
"This?... system what time is it now?"
As I opened my eyes I immediately consulted the system in a hurry.
The purpose for such a hastened inquiry in the early morning was because it felt so unusual.
The feeling of an abrupt end... added with a touch of instant!.
(Ding... answering back to the host... it is now
8 in the morning.)
The motionless voice answered back with the norm.
"Hiss? but it felt like barely a second had passed... this is amazing... No this is ridiculously amazing."
(Thank you for the praise host.)
The metallic voice resounded yet again but this time with a touch of gratefulness.
"Well now that I have discovered such a function. My journey to becoming a great serpent is on the right path!... as long as I worked hard enough anything is achievable.!"
'Yes stay positive!'
I yelled inside my heart excitedly.
"For now let's stretch a little before doing anything else"
-
-
-
-
After performing my day-to-day morning exercise, I quickly slithered forward towards the hole leading outside as the air of the newly refreshed morning downed its way into my lung...
*Breathes!!*
"Man what a great day! It is very hard to see such things in the city. "
"Towering trees and beautiful forest."
I mumbled to myself as I breathed in a large gust of air.
"Let's go out for today... I wish to scout out a new area where numerous animals gathered. like a river or something..."
Having decided that... I slowly slithered my way out from the nest through the tiny hole.
Luckily I'm not that big that I managed to plop out safely without getting squeezed.
"This nest also is a no-go anymore...sigh... I'm growing bigger far too quickly that I barely stayed in one nest for a day... "
"When I found a river... I should just live there... it is more spacious after all. "
While saying that... my body zigzagged away at an ordinary pace but this time behind my back.
A lengthy gully could be discerned on the ground trailing from my tail...
-
~5 hours passed by~
After hours of traveling.
Eventually, I discovered a murky-yellow stream in the forest. It was seeping and dribbling as it swerved through the trees.
It jumped for joy over the timeworn rocks.
I heard once that rivers were the arteries of the forest. This one was sparkling like tinsel.
The fluttering butterflies drifted over it lazily. I bent my head down to drink from it. It was very stimulating.
The aroma of the forest was very powerful. I plucked a few berries and they were lush and fruity to the tongue.
Though a snake wouldn't normally consume berries...
I drifted my gaze over only to glimpse the overgrown grasses on each side. Covering the river from the C-shaped soaring trees.
"Finally, a proper river and it's quite wide too!... This will be my new home from now on. There is also an island in the middle of this river. That can be my sleeping place for tonight."
"Though... the water is a bit murky..."
Noticing that the water was a bit murky and dark... I slowly gulped down my saliva.
Worrying for the unknown. Even in my last life, I had never learned how to swim.
And now in this life, I'm about to venture off into the unknown.
The legendary tea water.
*Gulped*
"There shouldn't be anything dangerous inside the water right?..."
" even if there is I'm pretty sure I can beat them all."
A slight hesitation appeared on my face as I staggered about whether to go in the water or not.
But the longing for the unknown grew stronger and stronger and finally, I gave in.
The need of moving forward was far more crucial than being cowardly.
"Well here I go"
*Breathes!*
Without faltering, I slowly slithered my way towards the water and finally with my head in first.
*splashes!*
I peeped my head down with caution just to see the depth of it but! the next scene that grabbed the view was truly extraordinary.
"This? how can it be so clear?... isn't the water murky?"
Confused, I had no option but to inquire about it with the system.
"System what's happening here?... why can I see so clearly inside the river?... "
I asked with a puzzled look on my face as I attempted to flinch my gaze around. Perceiving the whole river floor with my eyes.
(Ding... answering back to the host. This is one of the adjustments that had been carved to the host body when the first time the host evolved. The host can also breathe underwater)
"Why didn't you inform me of this adjustment?..."
(Ding... host never asked)
"W-well... that's true. In a way..."
"..."
-
The river was around 8 meters deep and ahead of me exist myriad of submerged plants towering in massive groups from top to the bottom of this river.
I also saw numerous varieties of fish swimming about a bit ahead of me...
My existing plan presently was to scout around in the river first.
Identifying any possible dangers and eradicating them before turning this place into my new hunting ground.
I'm rather confident with my current strength to face off against any enemy... and if I can't win against them I still can run away with my skills.
"This feels so calming. "
The feeling of water grasping my entirety makes me so comfortable for some reason. Like... at home...
I softly mumbled while I swam forward unhurriedly...
"Well... for now I should focus on scouting the area. And next, I will be focusing on hunting."
-
-
-
-
Somewhere else.
Inside this river.
A long slender 5 meters shadow could be glimpsed moving about from the surface of the water.
And somewhere else inside this river, a 2 meter long, Threadfin fish could be discerned swimming towards the water area where Hiro was currently at.
Whenever this creature passed by.
The smaller fishes galloped away in terror fearing that the huge fish might target them.
-
Back at Hiro location...
" Each of these fish gave me a lot of points...
But still, it was quite a hassle to hunt them down without using my skills."
Realizing this problem I decided to assert a plan in regards to my skills usage.
" I should conserve my skills when I'm encountering a powerful enemy... spending it blindly might kill me in the end..."
" a wise choice is better than a thousand trials... though passive is still passive right?. Am I dumb?"
-
-
-
-
After finishing the three fish that I had hunted before.
I immediately proceeded ahead in a random direction. Hoping to find more victims.
-End of this chapter.