After regaining control of his body, Jiang Ming immediately pulled up the panel for his destiny card: Mountain and Seas.
[Classic of Mountain and Seas]
[Quality: Ordinary (Mythical)]
[Illustrated Guide]
Jiang Ming frowned. What does it mean for something to be both ordinary and mythical?
Compared to his personal stats panel, this one was far too simple.
He clicked on the Illustrated Guide.
A vision of the Classic of Mountains and Seas appeared in his mind, materializing as a bound copy with aged pages. In the lower left corner of the cover, a few words shimmered faintly:
[Spiritual: 0]
The moment he focused on it, a strange enlightenment welled up within him.
Kill all spiritual creatures to gain spiritual points.Each exotic beast is equivalent to a page in the Illustrated Guide. You can invest spiritual points to slowly illuminate these entries and enhance yourself.Unlocking a complete illustration grants you the skills of the corresponding beast.
As these revelations settled in his mind, the pages of the book began to turn on their own.
The first entry appeared: the legendary Zhulong.
In the lower left corner of the page, a number appeared:
0/1000
Its meaning was self-evident. It would take one thousand spiritual points to fully unlock this mythical being.
As countless strange beasts flickered through his mind like a parade of phantoms, Jiang Ming realized that the spiritual cost to unlock them varied. Some required a thousand points, others only hundreds, and a few just dozens.
So this is the power of my destiny card, he thought.
Before he could delve deeper, two prompts flashed before him:
[Preparing to enter dungeon. Do you want to change your appearance and name?]
Jiang Ming chose yes without hesitation.
Even if this is just a copy world, there's no guarantee I won't run into others. Better safe than sorry.
He sculpted a new face, completely unlike his real one—equally handsome, but unrecognizable.
He named himself Jianghe.
After confirming the changes, the white void around him began to shatter like glass.
Jiang Ming stood calmly as the fragments swirled and reassembled, forming a new world around him. As color and substance returned, he found himself in the midst of a vast, alien forest.
The trees here weren't anything like those on the Blue Planet. A single trunk was thicker than several ordinary trees combined, and the undergrowth was almost impenetrably dense. When Jiang Ming stood up straight, the grass nearly swallowed him whole.
If only I had brought my knife, he thought. I could have carved a path with ease.
He carefully pushed aside grass nearly two meters tall and began to explore, determined to escape this suffocating green prison.
Rustle~
The sound of movement in the underbrush made Jiang Ming freeze.
There was something nearby.
The unknown is always the most dangerous, he reminded himself, especially in a world like this.
Combat techniques from his past life flashed through his mind as he clenched his fists and began to step back slowly.
But whatever it was, it was drawing closer. The grass swayed violently, heading straight for him.
Jiang Ming snatched a stone from the ground and hurled it forward.
The vegetation rustled in reply.
Then—two glinting fangs burst from the foliage.
Instinctively, Jiang Ming swung a fist at the fangs, only to feel a jarring pain shoot through his hand.
Harder than bone!
The impact sent him stumbling back, and he nearly fell. Thankfully, the dense vegetation propped him up, allowing him to stay on his feet.
He finally got a clear look at the creature.
A rabbit—if it could be called that—stood over a meter tall. Its brown fur bristled, and two long fangs, more than ten centimeters in length, jutted menacingly from its upper jaw.
What kind of species is this?
"Roar!"
The sound it made was anything but rabbit-like. With an explosive burst of speed, it lunged at him. Jiang Ming only had time to throw up his arms and catch its neck, holding back the deadly fangs just inches from his face.
The creature was stronger than him. His arms began to tremble as its weight pressed down.
From the corner of his eye, he spotted the stone he'd thrown earlier lying within reach.
With a surge of adrenaline, he held the rabbit's head back with one hand and grabbed the stone with the other, slamming it down on the beast's skull.
Thud!
The rabbit writhed and shrieked, but Jiang Ming was relentless. He grabbed its thick neck fur with both hands, mounted its body, and pummeled its head over and over.
Blood splattered. It covered his face, his hands, soaked his clothes. But he didn't stop.
Only when his arms were numb and the taste of blood filled his mouth did he pause.
The rabbit's head was pulp.
He looked down to the lower left corner of his vision.
"Congratulations on killing the Sharpfang Rabbit. You have gained 10 experience points and have been promoted to Apprentice. Your attributes have increased by 0.01, and your spiritual power has increased by 1 point."
"Congratulations on killing the Sharpfang Rabbit. You have obtained a material card: [Fang (Normal)]."
Only after the prompt confirmed the creature's death did Jiang Ming dismount, collapsing on the ground and gasping for air.
Eventually, he sat up and opened the Classic of Mountains and Seas in his mind.
The number had changed.
[Spiritual: 1]
Despite the pain in his limbs, Jiang Ming's heart stirred with excitement.
He could now light up a page of the Illustrated Guide.
He flipped to the first entry: Zhulong.
"Beyond the northwest sea, north of the Red River, there is Zhangwei Mountain. There dwells a god with a human face and red serpent's body, with eyes as bright as lanterns. When his eyes close, the world darkens. When they open, all becomes light. He does not eat, sleep, or rest, and is attended by wind and rain. He is Zhu Jiuyin, known as Zhulong."
Jiang Ming's hands trembled slightly as he read.
Zhulong isn't necessarily the strongest, but he's easily among the top three beings in the Mountain and Seas.
But killing a beast like that rabbit had only earned him one spiritual point. To accumulate a thousand would take an eternity.
He decided to start small. He needed an exotic beast whose skills were both useful and affordable.
He flipped through the Illustrated Guide again and selected three candidates:
[Si] (0/20)[Bo] (0/15)[Spinning Turtle] (0/30)
If Bo could be unlocked, it would likely grant a speed-related skill. The Spinning Turtle was almost certainly a defense-based creature.
Only Si was well-rounded, boasting incredible strength, speed, and defense. Its horn alone weighed countless pounds.
After careful thought, Jiang Ming placed his spiritual point on Si. The change was immediate.
A faint light now illuminated the beast's page.
[Si Progress: 1/20]
Still 19 points to go.
Thankfully, every investment not only brought him closer to unlocking skills, but also strengthened his body.
He opened his status panel:
[Name: Jiang Ming]
[Level: Apprentice Lv.1 (10/100)]
[Strength: 0.85]
[Constitution: 0.93]
[Agility: 1.04]
[Spirit: 3.48]
[Spiritual Power: 2/2]
[Destiny Card: Mountain and Seas]
[Card Slots: (empty) (empty) (empty)]
[Backpack: Fang (Normal)]
Strength, constitution, and agility had each increased by 0.02. Spirit rose by 0.03. His total spiritual power now stood at 2 points.
The improvements were modest, but the feeling of growth was exhilarating.
Much better than lifting weights in a gym.
Jiang Ming could feel the changes in his body. When he looked back at the Illustrated Guide, the page for Si was now partially lit, no longer completely dark.
One point invested.
Nineteen to go.
The scent of blood still hung thick in the air, reminding him this was no time to relax.
He stood up, ignoring the ache in his body, and used a stone to carve off a piece of meat from the rabbit.
His right hand was a mess, rubbed raw and torn. His left foot felt sprained.
At least there aren't any more monsters around.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, a prompt appeared in front of him:
"Dungeon complete. Thank you for your participation!"
Notes:
Si or 兕 is typically mentioned as a fierce animal living in remote mountains. It is often described as shaped like an ox, but with a single horn, fierce and cannot be tamed.
Bo or 驳 resembles a tiger with wings and eats leopards and tigers. It punishes the wicked. Often associated with righteousness and justice.
Zhulong or 烛龙) a creature with the body of a dragon and the face of a man. He does not eat, does not sleep. His eyes open to bring daylight and close to bring night. His breath becomes wind. Often seen as a personification of celestial forces, playing a role similar to gods of the sun or time in other cultures.