The Luxe Life Reboot: Cultivating in the Wild
Leo, Deer, and the Nameless Forest
"Ugh," Leo grumbled as he slowly opened his eyes, surveying his surroundings. The headache was splintering--eight tequila shots will do that to you--but not so much as to distort the appearance of his lavish, envy-inducing, middle-of-Manhattan apartment. For starters, his bedroom didn't have grass in it, nor did it have trees... nor did it have a deer licking his toe that was sticking out of an old sock. "AAAHH!!" he yelped out in terror, scaring the deer away. It swiftly bolted, leaving him aghast with the new reality. Reality that was quickly explained by the screen that appeared in front of him.
[Congratulations on dying a premature death and being transmigrated into the Val'hun World!]
[You have inhabited a body of a nobody, someone of no parental lineage, no special bloodline, no ties to the Immortals, no access to anything worthy of note! In fact, whatever you choose to call yourself, the world will believe you! Because that's how worthless you are!]
[To kickstart your progress, your Spiritual Roots (which were abysmal) were repaired and increased from Abysmal to Low-Tier Damaged Mortal Roots. You may spend points to increase the tier of your roots! Remember: the lower the tier, to slower the cultivation! And the slower the cultivation, the higher the chance of dying!...again!]
[You are currently situated within the Nameless Forest where you have to survive and find a way back to the civilization! You are given three major quests:
--1-- Survive the forest's ordeals
--2-- Ascend into Spirit Formation Realm before leaving the forest
--3-- Become apprenticed to a Sect or found one of your own]
[As a temporary boost, you will be given special statuses for 7 days:
--1-- You will become incapable of feeling Fear, Terror, Anxiety, Crippling Doubt, or any and all states of mind that may impede your progress
--2-- First strike against every enemy will deal 8x more damage if done from stealth
--3-- You will not need to consume any nourishment to sustain yourself
--4-- Your System XP gains will be increased by 200%]
[System XP: gain System XP by doing tasks such as--killing wild beasts or demonic monsters, harvesting unique herbs and plants, creating medicinal pastes, forging weapons and tools, building shelters, and anything that can be considered an achievement for your pathetic circumstances!]
[By leveling up the System, you unlock further functions that will ensure you don't die young and stupid!...again!]
[You will be informed of further things on need-to-know basis! Good luck...ish!]
Leo stared rather absentmindedly at the floating blue screen in front of him. He wanted to cry, he really did, but couldn't. He also wanted to scream out, very much so, but his body wouldn't let him. All he could do was stare blankly at the deer who had come back and was peeking toward him from behind a bush. It looked like a weird voyeur, prompting Leo to finally laugh out loud at the thought.
"Ha ha ha--why the hell am I laughing?!!" he cursed at himself, grasping at his head. "No, no, no, just get me back home, man! I know I ain't exactly pine of the forest and the glitter of the stars, but I got folk that'll miss me! Plus, who's gonna feed Mr. Fetching Kitten?! Aya, don't force him to eat my corpse, man! That's not cool!"
His grievances poured out like a rain but they were hollow--they were just words, and his emotional state came dangerously close to feeling 'psychotic'. It was the loud, thunderous rumble of his stomach that woke him up ever so slightly to the reality of his current life. He wasn't hungry--or thirsty, even--but was on the 'cusp' of it. Like that feeling midway between lunch and dinner, where you weren't exactly 'hungry', but still reached for a bag of chips for some light snacking.
It was a rather annoying feeling, but it vanished quickly. Apparently, he wasn't even allowed to feel irate.
Standing up, he dusted off his clothes and took a look at them for the first time--they were shabby, to say the least, tattered and torn and should have been tossed into the shredder some eight years ago, but they were rather warm. He had wooden sandals on his feet with a set of toenails that could be used as claws, and though the body wasn't exactly brimming with muscles, it was in shape.
"Alright. First things first... shelter, right?" he looked around at the plentiful of trees and smiled faintly. He didn't recognize them--they were rather thin and tall, with leafy canopies and no fruits that he could see. But it was moot, anyway, as he had no tools to make anything complex. In fact, his best bet was to make a mud hut, but to do that, he'd have to find water first. Until then, just the classic straw-roof-hut would have to suffice.
As such, he went around and started plucking leafs and picking up the ones that fell as well as breaking off quite a few branches. He saw quite a few berries and even a few mushrooms, but stayed well enough away from them. Even if he did recognize them (which he decidedly didn't as they were all at least 4 times larger than the biggest ones he knew back on Earth), he would have still stayed away as this was a completely different world, and he was in no hurry. Well, seven days grace period wasn't exactly a cause for a 'no hurry mantra', but he physically couldn't feel any other way. And he couldn't even feel frustrated about it. It was all very strange.
"Mhkay," he mumbled after fashioning a straw hut. "That won't keep away piss from the birds." It collapsed soon after, what with the violently gentle breeze of the wind passing through at the remarkable 3 miles per hour. "Right. Why did I think I could even do it? I watched like 3 videos of other people doin' it and suddenly I'm Mr. Bob, huh? Haah..."
Scratching his head, he began to wander around aimlessly, exploring his surroundings. He was still careful, though--after all, the 'system' confirmed that there were wild beasts about that weren't all as curiously harmless as that voyeur deer, and it would do him no good to have his limbs divorced from his body this early on in his journey in another world.
The forest, through and through, was eerily similar; in fact, it may as well have been a maze. Leo hardly had any experience navigating anything past the city streets, so it wasn't long before he was lost. Well, lost--as he didn't have anywhere to return to, he, technically, wasn't lost. He was simply journeying.
"Khm, the system even won't allow me to have a bruised ego, khm..."
Eventually, he finally came across a body of water--it was a small, pool-size pond surrounded by glistening rocks and several smaller critters drinking from it. He recognized two--a rabbit and a hawk, though the second head on the rabbit and the six wings on the hawk played loose with the 'recognized' part--while the several others hardly had counterparts he could assign them to. They were just... animalistic shapes with heads and limbs as far as he could tell.
They all warily glanced at him but, luckily, didn't immediately lounge for his throat. He also didn't approach them, sitting down near the edge where no animals were present and scooping up a handful of water. He wasn't thirsty, either, but just like with 'hunger' portion of feeling sated, it was the feeling of being on the cusp of it; had he been watching a movie, for example, he would not have gotten up to fetch a drink, but if it got any worse, he would have.
As the water drizzled down his throat, he suddenly felt his entire body alight with freshness--for some reason, he began to hear popping sounds throughout, and felt invisible threads of something ethereal rush from within the depths of his core.
[Congratulations on achieving Enlightenment!]
[With the help of Fresh Water, you have reached Sixth Stage of Qi Condensation Realm!]
[Fresh Water can no longer assist you in breaking stages, but can help you in refining the body!]
[Fresh Water: with an unknown source, it flows to the surface and sustains the entirety of the Nameless Forest. Can be used for cooking, medicine, or mud bricks]
[Unlocked a new building blueprint: Mud Hut!]
[Mud Hut: a primitive shelter used for those in desperate positions. Requires: 15 pounds of mud, 40 stalks of nameless grass, 15 pieces of vine grass, 6 stones, 20 branches of the nameless trees]
"H-huh?" Leo stumbled and muttered. "Did you just change your damn genre? Aah, whatever. Looks like I can pretend to be a jack-of-all-trades after all."
Standing up, he felt extremely light. Not only that, he could see much better, at a much greater distance, and even hear things well beyond the normal scope. His entire body felt beyond refreshed and anew, prompting him to glance at the pond of water and look at it oddly.
"I... I didn't stumble upon some divine source or something, right? Nah, no way. That ain't how it goes. It must be that this body was just so bad that even a drop of remotely normal water made it better. Plus, I'm guessing there are like 56 realms and even newborns are all at least at Foundation Realm or something. Ho ho, you almost made me arrogant, system! Anyway, let's collect stuff for the mud hut. I can make it at that small clearing I just passed. It will be close to fresh water. I wonder if it will just appear like magic when I collect the ingredients? Alright, a good grinding sesh needs a good motivating song...
"I'm a survivor, I'm not gon' give up~~"
Chapter 2 - Survivor Game? Cultivation? Adventure?
"Well, I'll be damned," Leo sucked in a cold breath as he stared at the mud hut in front of him. It really did just appear, like magic. As soon as he collected all the ingredients, he got a 'prompt' of sorts that, if he 'clicked', displayed a transparent version of the hut. He still had to physically clear up enough space, but as soon as he did, he could just plop it down and it... appeared. It was simple, somewhat circular, with straw roof and no doors, and it was empty and dark inside, but it was his new home. He shed a single tear, having to call this a 'home' now.
A massive downgrade from an AC-powered flat in the middle of Manhattan with a view that countless would kill for, but when compared to sleeping on the floor or on the branches, it was astounding.
[Congratulations for building a Mud Hut! You have earned 1 System XP! Just 9 more to Level Up!]
[New Blueprints unlocked: Straw Bed, Wooden Torch, Spike Trap]
[New Side Missions:
--1-- Hunt down a wild boar that has been bullying the forest critters recently
--2-- Tame a powerful beast to be your Home Guardian
--3-- Discover the secret behind the Nameless Forest]
The system was rather random, Leo noted; furthermore, as far as he could tell, he didn't have the ability to summon a 'status window' or anything of the sorts. Beyond those times where it appeared to tell him something, it was as though it didn't even exist. In fact, even when he was building the mud hut, he couldn't track how many ingredients he was missing and could only go from his memory. He overshot on quite a few and had the excess, but it was a good lesson.
As such, he quickly looked up the three blueprints and memorized what they required to be built. With having reached the Sixth Stage, his memory, too, seemed to have improved considerably, but it wasn't as though the three new blueprints required a warehouse worth of materials to be built.
He also memorized the three missions and immediately ignored the latter two, choosing to patiently check out the 'wild boar' and see if there was a chance to kill it.
"Tsk, just 1 XP for this bad boy," he complained as he stared at the mud hut with pride, as though he built it with his own hands. Besides, nobody else knew about the system; to the world, he did build it with his own hands. "First things first--let's build the bed."
Just like with the mud hut, as soon as he collected enough leafs, grass, and vines, he was able to place it in the hut. Considering it was made from nature's garbage, effectively, it was surprisingly comfortable. Furthermore, despite there being no doors, the mud hut offered a nice isolation.
The temperature had slowly started rising as the day went on and it was, by Leo's estimates, closing in on the high 80s.
Sitting down on the bed, he closed his eyes and tried meditating. After all, in all cultivation stories, characters spent about 80% of their lifespans just sitting and thinking about stuff. If he wanted to survive and progress, he imagined he'd have to do the same--so, even if meditation right now didn't really do anything for him, as he had nothing else to do either, he may as well get accustomed to it.
About 17 seconds later, he went back out and toward the pond.
Most of the animals had scattered, likely due to the scorching weather, making Leo rather happy. Quickly taking off the shabby clothes, he jumped into the water and let it wash over him. He began to gingerly float and play around like a child, enjoying the moment of simplicity.
"Ah, I have a mentality of an immortal," he mumbled. "Nothing can shake me."
[The system--]
"Soon, the world will recognize just how mentally strong I am..."
He left the pond about fifteen minutes later, feeling wholly refreshed. He also gave the old clothes a quick wash, but it hardly changed much; after all, even if using gold as glue, garbage would still remain garbage. Nonetheless, it was better than nothing.
Making a few landmarks to orient himself towards and even a map of sorts on a rather thick and large flower petal that he had stumbled upon, he began to wander about, exploring. It wasn't long before he realized that the forest seemed endless--even if he climbed on top of a tree to look about, all he saw were other trees. In the distance, their shapes and colors changed, and they grew even larger, but they were trees nonetheless. Here and there he saw protruding rocks, and an occasional mirage of a monster with a mile wide wingspan that was simply his mind playing tricks on him.
He managed to map out roughly a mile and a half of radius around the mud hut before the nightfall. By then, the temperature chilled and strange howling could be heard and he dared not wander about aimlessly, swiftly returning to the hut.
"Ah. I forgot to craft a torch," it was dark inside, and he couldn't even review his map properly, so he had to go at it from the memory.
North of the hut was a lot of trees, but also a lot of red-capped mushrooms that seemed to grow about the very old trunks.
West of the hut was a lot of trees, but also the pond where critters seemed to congregate at least twice a day--once in the morning and once early in the evening.
South of the hut was a lot of trees, but also a lot of strange stalks of grass that seemed to be as hard as iron, though, with his infinitely amazing cultivator's strength, Leo was able to bend them.
And east of the hut was a lot of trees, and a lot more trees. And then some more trees.
He drifted to sleep feeling numb; it was eerie and strange, the sensation of not caring, yet also warm and ever-embracing. It felt like he was home, even though his home was a hastily-constructed mud hut in the middle of a nameless forest in the middle of god-knows-where. By all accounts, he should have been rolling on the floor, breathing rapidly into a paper bag, and praying this world had invented anxiety medication, and yet... there was none of it. Just calm. Peace. Stillness that seemed everlasting.
The dawn came rather swiftly and Leo woke up feeling as well as he did yesterday, if a bit more rested. Yawning, he stretched and left the hut, looking around. Up on one of the branches, he saw a strange owl with a pair of eerily red eyes that was hooting and hollering, its wise eyes fixated on him. Coiling up the trunk of the very same tree was a python that seemed longer than Leo dared count; it was black and white and yellow, and its fleshy-seeming eyes stared at him just like the owl's did.
The two were not alone--in fact, the more he looked around, the more terror he felt he should have been feeling. There was a white panther, a black tiger with two tails, a monkey with six arms and red fur, a stag with milky-white eyes and antlers that went about six feet above its head, an eagle with a wingspan of a small plane, and a myriad of other queer creatures and beasts that seemed far more curious about him than he was terrified of them. Well, than he should be terrified of them
"Hello~"he awkwardly greeted, not knowing what else to do. "I hope you guys don't mind me making a home here. Uh, I, I'm cool being a vegan, you know? Just, uh, just not sure what things are edible. Right. I'm talking to a bunch of animals. I always knew I was nuts, but boy does it not feel good to have it confirmed. Khm, don't mind me, don't mind me. I'm just gonna go wash my face..."
Under the scrutiny of many-an-animal, Leo slowly walked to the pond, very much expecting to be jumped and torn limb for limb. Even so, he didn't feel any fear or terror or anxiety--the curse of numbness was still very much strong. However, to his surprise, he wasn't jumped; he made it to the pond safely, and washed his face, and by the time he turned around, he saw a marvelous sight--the monkey-like animal put down several dozen mushrooms, berries, and even some fruits in front of him.
"Oh, these are edible?" the monkey tilted his head and 'smiled' before scurrying away. "Huh. This must be one of those really smart species. Oh, this fruit looks nice," he picked a plum-looking fruit, though thrice the size of the one from his memory, and bit into it. The juices flooded and the taste of heaven crashed against his taste buds, coating him with bliss. He could feel himself becoming awake and apt, and imagined at the moment hearing his blood churn through the veins like water through canals. "Wow. A fruit that makes me even more nuts."
He continued to nibble away at the many others that the monkey brought--a fruit that looked like an apple if an apple had edible 'needles' protruding from four sides; grape-like balls that had to be sucked like candy; bananas that tasted like a baked potato, and quite a few more that he couldn't even quite describe.
Nonetheless, they were all quite tasty and actually did finally satiate him. For the first time since coming, he felt full in body and spirit. He also took a mouthful of water and washed it all down, prompting yet another set of screen windows to appear in front of him.
[You have consumed a variety of strange fruits!]
[Your potential has been increased!]
[Your vitality has been increased!]
[Your strength has been increased!]
[Your agility has been increased!]
[You regenerate from wounds much faster!]
[You have reached the peak of Qi Condensation Realm!]
[Consuming 'Feathered Fyra' has reshaped your foundations!]
[Your cultivation was lowered to the First Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm!]
[You are now tied by fate with '????']
[A blessing dawns upon you--the Spirits are more likely to befriend you!]
[New Quest: '????' Monkey has a favor to ask of you: it wants you to build a tree house for him and his family!]
[Time Limit: 3 days]
[Reward: '????' Monkey becomes your friend]
[Failure: N/A]
[New Blueprint Unlocked: Tree House!]
[Tree House: 80 vines, 60 branches, 240 stalks of grass, 60 cadaea flowers]
"You need a house, huh, buddy?" Leo glanced up at the tree nearby where the monkey was currently lounging about. The latter glanced back at him and seemed to grin as Leo examined the requirements for the tree house. "Better start gathering," he sighed, noting that the tree house the monkey wanted wasn't akin to those the kids used to make back before all trees in the backyards went extinct. The furry brother wanted a palace, it seemed. "Hmm, alright. Anthem for today will be... When I was, a young boy, my father took me into the city~~"
Chapter 3 - Befriending the Forest--ish
Leo yanked at the vine and ripped it clean, pulling it down into the bulk to the side. He had been collecting the materials for the monkey's tree house for quite a few hours now and was only halfway done. Furthermore, that did not include the last of the ingredients--ca-something flower, a name, even if it did exist on Earth, he wouldn't have recognized because his knowledge of flowers began and ended with varying colors of roses.
Just then, he heard a rustling of the leaves to his left, prompting him to stop and slowly glide over to take a peek; he'd noticed quite a few strange things happen, a number of which were sex-related which further fueled his idea that this nameless forest was a hedonistic hellhole where the sexually-charged offenders of the animal kingdom were imprisoned, though this one didn't appear to be that.
There was a boulder of a boar--good four feet long--currently ribbing away like a taunting villain, looming over a pair of young deer whose legs were shaking with fear.
[You have spotted the wild boar that had been causing trouble for the forest natives.]
[Killing it will increase your favorability a decent amount.]
[Wild Boar: Peak of Qi Condensation Stage
Strengths: Great charge speed; durable
Weaknesses: Low agility; susceptible to sneak attacks]
[Wild Boar Meat is extremely delicious and its tendons ripe for bows and similar tools]
Leo's entire repertoire about hunting came from a singular source--video games, which meant that it was about as useful as a condom to a eunuch. However, for some reason, there was a surging urge within him--urge to leap forth and strangle the beast. It wasn't righteous anger to avenge the poor critters, or even yearning for the supposedly delicious meat of the beast, but something akin to fiery competitiveness over meeting a stranger that's better at something than you.
From what Leo recalled, his cultivation had been downgraded all the way down to the first Stage while the boar was at the peak (though, admittedly, Leo had been at the peak for a little while, too). By all accounts, he should just turn heel and go back to collecting all the weird flowers and praying one of the is cecedela or something.
But, instead, he stilled his breathing and slowly moved toward the boar, crouching. The boar was still focused on taunting the scared deer and seemed entirely blind to its surroundings. It would ripple its hooves against the dirt here and there, but only to scare the feeble animals further. As such, Leo was easily able to approach its rear without being spotted.
He also recalled the brief flash of one of the bonuses that he got alongside not feeling hunger, fear, thirst and such--though he forgot the exact number, he did recall that his first attack out of stealth would deal bonus damage. He could now only pray that it was enough to one-shot the damn thing.
Yanking up the faint trace of Qi within him that he learned to move around roughly, he pushed it into his fist and, with as much momentum as he could muster in the foot and a half distance between the two, charged forth and slammed it into the two hanging bells easily visible.
He heard the crack--like that of a thunder--that was followed by such a painful roar that even his heart ached. The roar shook the forest and the boar's hefty body grew weak and collapsed on the ground. He'd broken the two bells and blood sprayed out like mad. Not allowing the boar to recover, he kept shoving the strands of Qi into his fists and pounding away at the boar's body, drilling it full of dents and even a few holes. It was ten seconds later that a window popped out, confirming that he'd killed the thing.
[Congratulations on slaying the Wild Boar!]
[System XP increased by... 2! You are just 5 away from the System level up!]
[You have killed a beast with 8 Stages of difference! A monumental achievement!]
[You have reached Third Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm!]
[Your vitality has been increased!]
[Your strength has been increased!]
[Your attacks out of stealth will deal 20% more damage!]
[Your favorability with the critters of the Nameless Forest has been increased by 8. They now consider you a friend and will aid you if you ask them nicely!]
[--New Side Quest Triggered!]
[You have angered Wild Boar's mate! Its cries resound deep in the forest and it has picked up on your scent!]
[It will reach you in 4 days!]
[Slay the Wild Boar's Mate and end the cycle of revenge once and for all]
[Wild Boar's Mate is at the Fourth Stage of Foundation Realm and has special Boar Bloodline!]
[Work hard and improve your strength to face your yet greatest challenge... or just die!... again!]
Leo rubbed his eyes and sighed; no good deed went unpunished, indeed. Here he was, trying to make the forest a safer place to live, only to be marked by some wild monster that he has no chance of killing.
As the boar toppled over, his body wholly ruined and unusable otherwise, the two deer appeared and slowly, quite warily, approached him. He'd sat down and pondered all-so-broodingly upon his cursed fate when he felt the two young critters lick him gently. Suddenly, his spent Qi was refreshed back to full, and the brooding sensation was swept away. Though it was likely because of the system and its insistence he felt nothing, he instead attributed it to the magic deer lick.
"You two fellas okay?" he smiled gingerly and petted the two animals that nestled their heads against his cheeks. "That's good, then. Alright, I have to keep gathering crap for the monkey's tree house. Right, you two wouldn't know where I can find some, uh, cacela? Cecela? Cecilia? Ce-something-dammit flowers?"
The two animals seemed to glance at each other like people would before one of them bit his clothes and yanked him forward. They dragged him some half a mile south and stopped by a patch of flowers resting neatly in the shade of a remarkably thick tree. The flowers each had between six and nine petals, all colored either in sky-blue or bruise-purple. They were quite beautiful, indeed, and as he picked one, he got the notification he was looking for.
[You've collected 1x cadaea flower]
"Cadaea! Right! Goddamn whoever named this crap," he mumbled as he plucked away. "Thank you," he turned to the two deer. "Want one? Ah, right, what'd the deer do with the flowers. Maybe nibble away? I had a tortoise as a kid, y'know? That damned animal would nibble at everything. Grass, leaves, socks, toes, asparagus... everything. I still remember the day I thought it'd be great to walk him out like I saw other kids walk their pets. Never seen that Toyota comin' till it... system, please let me feel something!"
Luckily, there were precisely 62 cadaea flowers in this particular patch, whole 2 over count, and by the time he was done plucking them, the sun had once again began to burn the sky. It must be summer here, he concluded as he hurriedly returned to his hut and to the sweet shade it provided.
There weren't as many animals around his house as this morning, but there were still quite a few. Namely, there was a falcon-like bird perched on top of his mud hut, sunbathing. It opened its sharp eyes and gazed at him for a moment before ignoring him. Leo did the same, walking inside the hut where a set of surprises waited for him.
For starters, the hut was illuminated by a strange lizard with a tail aglow with color, like a certain character from a certain game from his childhood. It lied coolly at the center, not even opening up its eyes as Leo entered. It wasn't alone, either; there was a wolf-like creature curled up in the corner, its head a seat to a small, palm-sized turtle. It peeked its head out of the shell for a moment before retreating it, ignoring Leo. There were a few other, small strays, but Leo ignored them as they ignored him.
Lying down, he closed his eyes and drifted; memories of his life back on Earth surged. It was some life, in many ways--he was born with a diamond spoon, the sole heir of a hotel chain tycoon. Private schools, tutors, vacations, cars, jets, women... he was never in want of anything. However, unlike his dad who simply gave him money and ignored him, his mom was a hawk--she forced him to get at least a Bachelor's, and even to work for a while, not to mention punishing him whenever he did something stupid... like buying a horse for a girl he fancied. Four times. Twice for the same girl.
By the time he was in his late twenties, though, he got bored. Severely bored. And that boredom eventually turned into depression. By the time he was in his mid thirties, he hardly left his apartment; he spent his days in a drunken stupor or high off his mind on these or those prescribed narcotics. He didn't want to die, not really--he simply wanted to feel once more. Alas, he never got a chance to recover.
He was here, now, wherever that was, bereft of all the privileges. And yet, monumentally, he 'felt' less drained than in years. Perhaps he was simply fooling himself and it was just the system, but there was more to it, he was certain.
A few hours later, he left the mud hut. The evening slowly came and he went to collect the rest of the materials for the tree house. This life, he swore, would be different. Much, much different. Better. Much better.