A Few Hours Later…
It took Aethryon several hours to finish eating the Iron-Biting Rat and the three youths. The prey was quite large, so the small snake had to patiently consume them piece by piece.
However, something else truly surprised Aethryon.
This was the first time he had ever eaten humans.
Yet the points he received from the system were far higher than he expected. They gave far more points than spirit beasts of similar levels.
System notifications appeared in his mind one after another.
[Level 20 Spirit Master Consumed: +3.5 Points]
[Level 18 Spirit Master Consumed: +3.5 Points]
[Level 18 Spirit Master Consumed: +3.5 Points]
[58-Year Spirit Beast – Iron-Biting Rat Consumed: +1 Point]
Aethryon stared at the numbers for a few seconds.
Then a rather dangerous idea appeared in his mind.
"What if…"
He paused for a moment.
"…I start a human farm?"
Aethryon quickly shook his head and pushed the idea out of his mind.
He was still far too weak. If he actually tried something like that now, he probably wouldn't even survive the next day.
He thought for a moment and made a serious calculation in his mind.
"At the very least… after becoming a 10,000-year Spirit Beast and evolving a few times… maybe."
The small snake lightly flicked his tail.
Still, Aethryon hadn't completely abandoned the idea.
If he happened to encounter humans suitable for his teeth again…
He definitely wouldn't miss the opportunity.
Aethryon opened the system panel in his mind again and immediately looked at the points section.
[System Points: 17.5]
Seeing the number, he quickly made a calculation.
If he spent all of his points on cultivation, he could become a 44-year Datura Snake.
However, that amount of growth wouldn't provide a significant increase in strength. At least, not enough to be worth spending all his points.
Aethryon thought for a few seconds.
Then he shifted his attention to another option.
The System Shop.
Maybe there was something there that could actually help him.
While browsing through the shop, two items immediately caught Aethryon's attention.
[Low-Grade Body Optimization Pill: Reconstructs your body and grants a genetic evolution that surpasses the standard of your species 75 Points]
[Poison Hunger (Passive): Absorbs consumed poisons, making your venom more lethal and allowing it to continuously evolve into something superior 100 Points]
Aethryon stared at the two items for several seconds.
The Poison Hunger ability especially made his eyes light up. If it worked the way it described, his venom could continuously grow stronger over time.
However, he quickly looked back at his points.
17.5.
Then he looked at the prices again.
75… and 100.
Aethryon remained silent for a few seconds.
Then he muttered inwardly.
"…I'm still poor."
Aethryon let out a quiet sigh.
Those two abilities were truly tempting, but their prices were just as terrifying. He stared at the numbers on the panel for a while and silently calculated in his mind.
"If I'm going to spend 175 system points on those…"
He paused for a moment.
"…I could instead buy 58 years of cultivation."
The thought slowly became clearer in his mind.
If he did that, he would become a 97-year Spirit Beast.
Almost a century-old spirit beast.
Aethryon remained silent for a short moment. He remembered the day he first arrived in the Beginner Forest. Back then, he had only been a ten-centimeter weak snake. He feared everything and had to wait patiently just to catch the smallest prey.
Now, he was standing on the edge of becoming a nearly century-old spirit beast.
The small snake reached a calm conclusion.
"Being stronger… increases my chances of surviving."
And right now, that was the most important thing.
Aethryon lightly shook his head.
"Whatever…"
There was no point thinking about it too much right now. First, he needed to obtain 175 system points.
No matter which path he chose, his strength would increase. Whether he bought cultivation or purchased those powerful abilities, either way he would become stronger.
So the decision was simple.
Hunting.
Aethryon's eyes suddenly gleamed with excitement.
The small snake silently slithered forward through the grass. Now he had only one goal ahead of him.
More prey.
More points.
With this excitement, Aethryon practically turned into a grinding machine.
He hunted nonstop in the outer region of the Beginner Forest. Silently gliding through the grass, he would strike the moment he found an opening.
When a Black Flower Snake suddenly lunged at him, Aethryon swiftly slid aside, lashed his tail, and sank his venomous fangs directly into its neck. The poison took effect within seconds.
[21-Year Black Flower Snake consumed: +0.6 System Points]
During another hunt, he caught a thick Earth Worm that emerged from the soil. Aethryon quickly coiled around it and devoured it piece by piece.
[28-Year Earth Worm consumed: +0.6 System Points]
Near a small pond, he encountered a slow-moving Blue-Spotted Turtle. Its shell was tough, but Aethryon patiently used his venom repeatedly until it was finally subdued.
[33-Year Blue-Spotted Turtle consumed: +0.7 System Points]
One of his toughest hunts was a Fierce Monkey. The monkey jumped from tree to tree, dodging Aethryon several times. But when it made a single mistake, the small snake lunged forward and struck its leg with his tail. The poison spread rapidly.
[41-Year Fierce Monkey consumed: +0.8 System Points]
And so, Aethryon hunted nonstop for three days.
For those three days, everything he caught…
was happily welcomed into his stomach.
Aethryon's three-day hunting streak suddenly came to an unexpected stop on the third day.
The reason was that he encountered something very strange.
While chasing prey, he had unknowingly entered a small clearing. But the moment he arrived, he immediately felt that something was wrong.
The air was much hotter than normal.
Such heat was unusual for this part of the Beginner Forest. Aethryon cautiously slithered a little closer.
And a few meters later, he saw the reason.
Right in the center of the clearing…
there was a flower burning like fire.
Its petals glowed with red and golden light, flickering as if real flames were dancing across them. Even the air around it shimmered from the heat.
Aethryon froze for a few seconds.
Then a thought appeared in his mind.
"This… is definitely not a normal flower."
He paused.
"…but is it edible?"