When Jiang Ming opened his eyes again, a sharp pain shot through his feet, and his palms burned with a stinging sensation.
Fortunately, before entering, he had simulated what he would do after arriving here.
First, he dragged his injured body to a part of the forest where the vegetation wasn't so dense. The area was relatively open, making it easier to move and observe.
He then picked some tender-looking leaves and wrapped them around his injured palms. After that, he found two flat stone slabs to stabilize his ankles. Though crude, the splints provided some relief.
Next, he pulled himself up and limped through the woods to find two moderately-sized wooden sticks. He took them to a flat stone and began grinding the ends to sharpen them.
Everything was proceeding as planned, methodical and efficient.
However, sharpening wood wasn't as easy as he had expected. It took him over half an hour of relentless effort to barely bring one to a usable point.
"Alright," he exhaled, gripping one in his hand and strapping the other to his back. "Let's level up."
Jiang Ming hobbled toward the same vegetation zone he had explored yesterday. His steps were slow and deliberate, every sense alert.
"Rustle~"
Suddenly, the vegetation ahead shifted.
Even though his feet made movement difficult, his hands remained agile. Without hesitation, he drove the one-meter-long wooden spike toward the source of the sound.
He felt something jerk against his hand. Instinctively, he drew the second spike and plunged it in.
The weapon began trembling violently in his grip. Jiang Ming leaned forward and saw the familiar rabbit from the day before. One of the spikes had struck true, piercing its eye, while the other lodged deep into its body.
The rabbit was still twitching on the ground. Jiang Ming grimaced, pulled out the spike, and drove it back in, finishing the job cleanly.
After retrieving his makeshift weapons, he left the vegetation and returned to the forest. He found a recessed spot in the terrain, lay down, and focused on the Classic of Mountains and Seas within his mind.
He continued channeling a sliver of spiritual energy into the [Si] page.
Once again, that feeling of sublimation washed over him.
[Name: Jiang Ming]
[Level: Apprentice Lv.1 (20/100)]
[Strength: 0.86]
[Constitution: 0.94]
[Agility: 1.05]
[Spirit: 3.50]
[Spiritual Power: 3/3]
[Natal Card: Classic of Mountains and Seas]
[Card Slots: (empty) (empty) (empty)]
[Backpack]: [Fang (Normal)]
His physical stats had each risen by 0.01, his spirit by 0.02, and he'd gained one more point of spiritual power. The progress of the [Si] page had reached (2/20).
He didn't receive another [Fang] material card this time, but Jiang Ming didn't mind. The sense of growing stronger was infinitely more satisfying than merely earning cards to sell.
Driven by this rush, he limped back to the vegetation zone. To his surprise, after assigning some points, the pain in his injured limbs had subsided significantly.
As a result, the rabbits in the area were doomed.
No matter how tall the grass grew, it couldn't shield them from Jiang Ming's relentless hunt.
Armed with two sharpened spikes, he became a predator—silent, ruthless, and efficient. In that stretch of overgrowth, he was god and executioner, a nightmare for the unsuspecting rabbits.
Time slipped by. After an hour, Jiang Ming pulled his weapon from another rabbit, wiping its blood on the creature's fur.
Only one more kill to go.
Just one more for the next level.
At that moment, a dark shadow loomed over him, and the grass nearby swayed violently.
Jiang Ming instinctively rolled to the side.
"Bang!"
A thick black snake tail crashed into the spot he had just vacated.
A snake?
When Jiang Ming turned to look, a chill ran down his spine. This wasn't just any snake.
It was monstrous—half a meter thick, with two serpentine heads hissing in unison, their tongues flicking through the air with sinister rhythm.
A two-headed rattlesnake?
Before the thought fully formed, the snake's tail lashed out again.
Fortunately, Jiang Ming's newly improved reflexes allowed him to dodge by leaning back. The tail cracked through the air like a whip, powerful enough to break bone.
Failing twice, the serpent shifted tactics. It stopped swinging its tail and instead lowered its heads, slithering toward him with frightening speed.
Sweat beaded on Jiang Ming's forehead, but he didn't retreat.
There was no point in running. At this range, such a massive python would catch him in seconds, coil around his body, and squeeze the life out of him.
Besides, if he died here, it wouldn't affect the real world.
He took a deep breath and focused, eyes locked on the serpent's movements.
The instant it coiled slightly, preparing to strike, Jiang Ming lunged forward with his wooden spike.
"Puff!"
The sound of flesh tearing and fluid spurting filled the air. Jiang Ming and the two-headed snake collapsed to the ground.
Blood gushed from one of the snake's eyes, splashing across his face in thick, warm droplets.
Blinded, he instinctively twisted around, trying to pin the creature's head beneath him. But the snake's strength was overwhelming—it lifted him like a rag doll.
Jiang Ming found himself straddling the snake's head mid-air. With a desperate cry, he plunged the second spike into the other head's eye again and again.
Just before the serpent could fling him away, he buried the weapon deep into the eye socket.
"Bang!"
The impact sent Jiang Ming flying nearly ten meters.
He hit the ground hard. Every bone in his body screamed in protest, but he forced himself up, driven by adrenaline and instinct.
Ahead, the tall grass rustled violently.
He shoved it aside and saw the two-headed snake writhing in agony, its blood spilling freely from both ruined eyes.
Jiang Ming exhaled in relief. It was only a matter of time before the creature succumbed to blood loss.
A moment later, a familiar system message appeared in the lower corner of his vision.
["Congratulations on killing the Two-Headed Snake. Your level has been upgraded to Apprentice Lv.2. Your overall attribute points have increased by 0.01, and your spiritual power has increased by 1 point."]
["Congratulations on killing the Two-Headed Snake and obtaining the [Twin Snakeskin] material card."]
He quickly pulled up his panel.
[Name: Jiang Ming][Level: Apprentice Lv.2 (20/100)][Strength: 0.95][Constitution: 1.03][Agility: 1.14][Spirit: 3.67][Spiritual Power: 11/11][Natal Card: Classic of Mountains and Seas][Card Slots: (empty) (empty) (empty)][Backpack]: [Fang (Normal)] [Twin Snakeskin (Rare)]
This single creature had granted him 30 experience points. More impressively, it added 8 points of spiritual power and bumped his level to Apprentice Lv.2. His stats had increased by 0.09 in physical attributes and 0.17 in spirit.
Jiang Ming was completely absorbed in the rush of leveling up. Step by step, the feeling of becoming stronger was intoxicating.
Tonight's gains had been extraordinary.
He had even acquired a rare-grade [Twin Snakeskin] material card—an unexpected windfall.
And it wasn't over yet. He glanced at the bottom-left of his Classic of Mountains and Seas.
[Spiritual Energy: 3]
As expected, the spiritual essence from the two-headed snake far surpassed that of the rabbits.
Jiang Ming returned to the forest, found a comfortable spot to rest, and began infusing all three points into the [Si] page.
[Si (12/20)]
His stats rose again: physical attributes up by 0.03, spirit increased by 0.06, and three more spiritual power points were gained.
Initially, he thought gaining just 0.01 attribute per point of spiritual energy was slow, but now there were only two words in his mind:
Absolutely worth it.
With steady daily progress like this, it wouldn't be long before he unlocked the abilities tied to [Si].
Just then, a notification appeared.
A friend request.
Jiang Ming frowned. He hadn't shared his in-game name with anyone.
Curious, he opened it.
"Fan Huai requests to add you as a friend. Do you accept?"
He raised an eyebrow, then accepted.
The first message came in immediately:
"How do you know the name of my game?"
Jiang Ming's reply was dry.
"Brother Ming, don't you always use 'Jiang He' when you play games?"
"..."
Note:
The terms natal card and destiny card maybe used interchangeably. Sorry for the confusion.