After a while, Tang Han slowly opened his eyes.
"What happened?"
Instinctively, Tang Han's body assumed a combat stance as his claws extended. He looked around cautiously but found nothing unusual.
Then, the memories came rushing back; he was chased by a meteor, woke a snake by mistake, and finally jumped off a cliff.
A cold sweat ran down Tang Han's back as he recalled the cursed meteor. Why was it chasing him? He hadn't made any wish!
He frowned, deep in thought: 'Regardless, the meteor hit me, and I jumped off a cliff. So, how am I unharmed?'
As he pondered, he noticed strange notifications floating in front of him.
"What is this?" Tang Han read the system notifications, shock evident on his cat-like face.
Name: Tang Han
Titles: | One Who Experienced Death! |
Type: Ming Forest Cat (Common)
Level: 1 | XP: 0/10
Spirit: 6 Magic Energy: 4 Luck: 7
Vitality: 4 Health: 10 Stamina: 5
Agility: 7 Defense: 3 Attack: 4
Passive Skills: (Life Steal)
Active Skills: (Cat Claw Lvl 1), (Cat Bite Lvl 1), (Instant Agility Lvl 1)
"A leveling system? Like games?" Tang Han muttered.
It reminded him of a conversation with a sociable organization member who once joked about reincarnating into another world and receiving a system as a cheat card.
"Is this what's happening to me now?" Tang Han chuckled bitterly at his state after seeing his stats.
He noticed several options on the screen, like Inventory, Store, and Quests.
Shaking his head, Tang Han left the area.
He suddenly recalled his leap from the cliff and attributed his survival to the meteor.
Feeling hungry, Tang Han began searching for a nearby river tributary to catch fish.
Climbing a tree, he perked his ears to listen for the sound of flowing water.
The tree wasn't very tall, so he couldn't scout visually.
"Swoosh!"
Tang Han heard the faint sound of rushing water. He climbed down and, after some time, reached the river.
Looking around cautiously, Tang Han said, "Luckily, no animals nearby!"
Standing silently at the riverbank, Tang Han didn't move a muscle.
Remaining still, doing nothing, was an assassin's method—waiting in hiding, even for days, before striking in one clean hit.
Suddenly, Tang Han thrust his claw into the water!
"Cat Claw!" A voice echoed in his mind, but he ignored it.
The fish struggled, but Tang Han tightened his grip, striking it with his other claw to finish it off.
[ Passive Skill Unlocked: Assassin's Sense! ]
[ Skill Unlocked: Silent Claw! ]
[ Killed: Carp! Gained 5 XP! ]
[ Cat Claw gained 5 XP! ]
Notifications echoed in his mind, and silver screens materialized before him.
"Ugh, this is so annoying!" Tang Han muttered irritably as he bit the fish and ran off to a safe spot.
Once secure, Tang Han analyzed the system notifications.
Assassin's Sense (Passive Skill): Enhances the user's danger awareness, keeping their senses and instincts alert to threats.
Silent Claw (Active Skill): Allows the user to kill opponents in a single, precise strike. Consumes 4 energy points and improves with leveling.
Tang Han's eyes lit up. "System, show my stats!"
Name: Tang Han
Titles: | One Who Experienced Death! |
Type: Ming Forest Cat (Common)
Level: 1 XP: 5/10
Spirit: 6 Stamina: 5 Luck: 7
Magic Energy: 4 Vitality: 4 Health: 10
Agility: 7 Defense: 3 Attack: 4
Passive Skills: (Life Steal), (Assassin's Sense)
Active Skills: (Cat Claw Lvl 1), (Cat Bite Lvl 1), (Instant Agility Lvl 1), (Silent Claw Lvl 1)
"So, I gained 5 XP for the Cat Claw skill. Does that mean it levels up with use?"
Tang Han extended his small claws and eyed the trunk of a fallen tree. Internally, he shouted, "Cat Claw!"
His claws struck the tree's trunk, but no XP was gained.
"Do I need to use it on a living target?" Tang Han thought.
He ate the fish and headed back to the river to test his theory.
After wandering for a while, he came across a slightly larger tree with a hollow. Narrowing his eyes, Tang Han climbed the tree stealthily and slipped into the hollow.
Moving quietly, making no sound, Tang Han reached the end of the hollow and spotted a sleeping squirrel.
Carefully, without making a sound, Tang Han approached.
[ Skill Unlocked: Assassination! ]
When he was just a step away from the squirrel, Tang Han shouted internally, "Silent Claw!"
Swoosh!
Tang Han's claw slashed at the squirrel's neck, leaving three bloody gashes.
"Squeak—!" The squirrel woke up, shrieking in pain.
"Cat Bite!" Tang Han bit the squirrel's neck, finishing it off.
Once sure it was dead, Tang Han exhaled in relief and checked the system notifications.
[ Killed: Tree Squirrel! Gained 10 XP! ]
[ Cat Claw gained 10 XP! ]
[ Ding! Level Up! ]
[ Congrats! You Have Reached Level 2! ]
[ Gained +1 Stat Point! ]
[ Cat Claw upgraded to Lvl 2! ]
Updated Stats:
Name: Tang Han
Titles: | One Who Experienced Death! |
Type: Ming Forest Cat (Common)
Level: 2 XP: 5/20
Spirit: 6 Stamina: 6 (+1) Luck: 7
Magic Energy: 8 (4+) Vitality: 5 Health: 12
Agility: 7 Defense: 4 Attack: 6 (+1)
Passive Skills: (Life Steal), (Assassin's Sense)
Active Skills: (Cat Claw Lvl 2), (Cat Bite Lvl 1), (Instant Agility Lvl 1), (Silent Claw Lvl 1), (Assassination Lvl 1)
Assassination (Active Skill): A skill designed for stealth kills, allowing the user to blend seamlessly with their environment and erase their presence.
"So that's how it works…" Tang Han realized.
To level up skills, he needed to use them on living targets. Killing enemies granted XP, which would eventually level him up, improving his stats even by a small margin.
Tang Han allocated his stat point to Attack, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. Increasing his power had now become an achievable goal.