Chapter 43: Into Nature (2)
According to the system’s introduction, Circle Three, [Into Nature], primarily upheld the principle that all life was equal.
To allow humans to truly place themselves in animals’ shoes and experience their way of life, every player entering Circle Three would randomly receive an animal identity each day.
A genuinely immersive day in the life of an animal.
Animal identities refreshed daily without any discernible pattern.
Meanwhile, somewhere among the enormous human population was an animal that had taken over each player’s human identity.
Players had to find the “person” who had stolen their identity and exchange identities with them to clear Circle Three.
If [Fairy-Tale Kingdom] had largely simulated human society, then [Into Nature] was undoubtedly a complete simulation of the real world.
Su Qiong even thought it should replace the beginner Circle and become the true reality instance.
Because Su Qiong and ERROR were bound together, his animal identity automatically followed ERROR’s. On the first day, they were both fennec foxes.
The system retained at least a tiny trace of kindness and did not truly transform them into animals. It merely gave them the corresponding animal characteristics.
Otherwise, forget completing the quest—whether they could even survive in the natural environment would become an enormous obstacle.
Two enormous ears emerged from the top of Su Qiong’s head. His hands transformed into fox paws covered in golden fur, with pink pads underneath.
He looked toward ERROR and discovered that ERROR’s appearance had changed as well.
The difference was that Su Qiong’s ears and paws made him resemble a carefree little fox.
ERROR’s flax-colored animal eyes, however, radiated authority. He looked like the true ruler of the desert, someone even rattlesnakes would fear.
“Although our bracelets are disabled, we can still communicate face-to-face. The situation isn’t too terrible.” ERROR quickly assessed their circumstances and looked down at Su Qiong. “Do you know anything about fennec foxes?”
Su Qiong shook his head, causing his two large ears to twitch.
“No.” As a newly born string of code, Su Qiong barely understood humans, much less foxes living in the desert.
ERROR had expected that and gave him a brief explanation.
“Fennec foxes are extremely small, among the smallest members of the canine family. They’re roughly the size of a domestic cat. They primarily live in deserts, usually forage at night, and eat fruit and small animals. They don’t hold an advantageous position in the food chain.”
“The food chain…” Su Qiong murmured.
“You do know what a food chain is, right?”
“I still understand basic common knowledge. Big fish eat small fish, and small fish eat shrimp.”
“How clever.” ERROR offered a halfhearted compliment, then continued from Su Qiong’s example. “Right now, we’re the shrimp. The system wants us to experience nature immersively, which means predator-prey relationships will inevitably exist.”
IF was not some peaceful, cheerful friendship game.
From the beginning of the game until now, even the most discreet players had accumulated their share of hatred.
Furthermore, killing another player granted items and points, creating an enormous temptation.
Large-scale conflict had not erupted among the players in the previous Circles for two reasons.
First, the environment had not supported it.
Second, the players who attracted the most hatred were usually high-level individuals with powerful abilities. Lower-level players could only suppress their resentment.
Yet Circle Three began by disabling their bracelets and assigning them positions in a food chain.
The closer someone stood to the top of the chain, the stronger their natural advantage. Defeating someone stronger was no longer a fantasy.
After understanding this, Su Qiong looked at the ears on ERROR’s head again.
Even with animal ears, ERROR remained imposing.
But nothing could change the fact that he was still a fennec fox.
A powerful fennec fox might defeat a venomous snake, but in front of a large animal, it was merely a helpless little brother.
Then there was the fact that this expert possessed no abilities or weapons and had half his points deducted every time he cleared an instance.
—The system was definitely targeting him, wasn’t it?
For one brief moment, Su Qiong regretted binding himself to ERROR.
“What were you thinking just now?” ERROR seemed to see through him.
“Nothing!” Su Qiong guiltily changed the subject. “Let’s find Yu Qimiao. Maybe they transformed into powerful animals and can protect us.”
“You…” ERROR stared at Su Qiong, hesitating.
He should tell Su Qiong not to trust his companions too much.
The Orphan Alliance was merely a guild temporarily formed after entering the game. Its members appeared to coexist peacefully, but who knew what they truly thought?
However, ERROR watched Su Qiong for a while and ultimately kept those thoughts to himself.
Remaining forever inside a beautiful dream was another form of reality.
As long as the dream never ended, wouldn’t that be enough?
[Into Nature] prohibited players from using their bracelets, but Su Qiong was an NPC, so his bracelet remained unrestricted.
He opened the interface and discovered that the bracelets belonging to Yu Qimiao and the others could not be detected, preventing him from determining their locations.
But Su Qiong was no longer the same Su Qiong as before!
He possessed a “vast fortune” of KPI, along with the items and little cloak stolen from the Fairy-Tale Princess. His abilities had improved considerably.
Su Qiong waved his wand and chanted, “Quickly tell me where Yu Qimiao is.”
ERROR laughed softly. “Shouldn’t you add an incantation? Something like, ‘Spirits of heaven and earth, heed my call’?”
“That’s right!” Su Qiong failed to notice the sarcasm and assumed ERROR was kindly reminding him. He tried again. “Spirits of heaven and earth, heed my call. Where is Yu Qimiao?”
He gripped the wand with both little paws, making himself look twice as adorable.
A fox performing magic was already ridiculous.
Even more absurdly, it actually worked.
One fragment of the pink diamond flew outward, its pointed tip indicating a direction.
“Wow! The princess’s item is so useful. Let’s go find Yu Qimiao!”
“All right.” ERROR followed behind him and casually asked, “Why are we finding him first?”
“Why?” Su Qiong considered the question. “Because he was the first human I met inside the game.”
“Only because of that?” ERROR narrowed his eyes.
Because I arrived too late?
“He takes good care of me. Isn’t that enough?”
“I take good care of you too.” ERROR could not help feeling bitter as he spoke.
When they first became bound, their intimacy had been only 0.02%.
Su Qiong shook his head. “It’s different.”
ERROR understood the principle of knowing when to stop. Continuing to question him might become annoying.
However, he still added, “How is it different?”
Su Qiong scrunched up his fox-like face and thought seriously for a while before answering, “He carries a warm scent that makes me want to approach him.”
“Oh.” ERROR’s response was dry.
He had brought that humiliation upon himself.
The silence continued for two minutes before Su Qiong suddenly spoke again.
“You…” Su Qiong rarely expressed his feelings and was not skilled at organizing them. He slowly said, “You’re especially strange. You feel like you don’t belong in this world.”
“I see.” A trace of helplessness flashed through ERROR’s eyes.
“But I don’t belong in this world either.” Su Qiong’s tone became cheerful. “So I want to learn more about this world’s warmth and beauty, and then tell you about it.”
ERROR fell silent.
He stared directly at Su Qiong for a while.
Su Qiong assumed he was about to ruffle his hair again and hurriedly covered his head.
He did not mind having his hair ruffled, but he currently had ears on top of his head, and pressing too hard would hurt.
ERROR lowered his hand without touching the ears. He merely rested it lightly against the back of Su Qiong’s head.
Then he leaned closer and gently kissed the center of Su Qiong’s forehead.
It was as light as a dragonfly touching water, gone almost immediately.
Su Qiong froze for a moment before reacting. He freed one hand and pressed it against his forehead.
“You kissed me.”
“Am I not allowed to?” Laughter hid within ERROR’s eyes. He seemed rather pleased.
However, his happiness disappeared in the next second.
Su Qiong muttered, “You said this body was a gift from you. So does this count as kissing your own creation? My original form seems to be a string of code. Do you want to kiss the characters in the code?”
“…”
ERROR fell silent.
It was the first time he had kissed Su Qiong. He had expected the marshmallow to become at least slightly embarrassed, but reality had exceeded all expectations.
After going around in circles, even ERROR began wondering what exactly he had kissed.
At last, he gave up.
“Let’s go.” ERROR stopped struggling. “We’ll find Yu Qimiao.”
Yu Qimiao was not far away. He stood near the border between the desert and grasslands, having transformed into a caracal.
Although its name contained the word “cat,” making it sound weaker than a fox, it belonged to a particularly fierce feline species and possessed greater combat strength than Su Qiong and ERROR.
It still did not rank especially high within the food chain, but with Yu Qimiao’s abilities, it was enough for him to protect himself.
Upon seeing Su Qiong, Yu Qimiao released a breath of relief.
He was normally calm and composed, handling everything with ease.
However, being transported alone into an unfamiliar environment genuinely deprived him of any sense of security.
When he first entered IF, Yu Qimiao had known nothing about the game, yet had not felt afraid.
But after spending time with his teammates, he gradually became accustomed to their company. Suddenly losing contact and facing a dangerous instance alone naturally frightened him.
“The bracelets are disabled. How did you find me?”
Su Qiong pointed at the pink diamond. “With this. I still need to find everyone else.”
“We don’t know what they transformed into. We should find them quickly.”
Su Qiong nodded. “All right.”
Perhaps because the system had considered that they belonged to the same guild, none of them had been transported especially far apart.
While traveling, Yu Qimiao quickly shared the information he had gathered.
“There are many players on this land. They retain human features in appearance, but while fighting, they possess the instincts of their assigned animals.”
Su Qiong and ERROR had already discussed and guessed that.
“The food chain, right?”
“Right. I saw a low-level player who had become a rhinoceros force a high-level player who had become a crocodile underwater. The high-level player resisted desperately but was still tortured nearly to death. He survived only because his guild companions helped him.”
As expected.
The food chain could largely offset differences in level.
“Have either of you triggered a side quest?”
“No,” Su Qiong answered.
“Neither have I.”
“The side quest in this world may simply be forcing players to kill one another.”
“I don’t want to think that way.” Yu Qimiao sighed. “Let’s find A first.”
When they found A, his appearance thoroughly amazed them.
A was already handsome, even more in line with the image of a “beauty” than Yu Qimiao.
People simply tended to overlook his appearance because his combat strength was too overwhelming.
After entering Circle Three, A had been transported deep into the rainforest and transformed into a beautiful peacock.
His arms had not become wings, nor had a tail grown behind him, but a peacock marking appeared between his eyebrows, and his clothing changed into something resembling colorful feathers.
He was a wild green peacock, his eyes as magnificent as gemstones.
Behind him, they could vaguely see two figures and a cluster of dull gray fur.
Moi and Qiyi had become twin koalas, looking extremely adorable.
Qiyi appeared to have been bullied. A patch of fur was missing from one ear, and her eyes were swollen red from crying.
“A, why are you with them?”
Seeing Qiyi’s miserable state, Su Qiong asked, “What happened to you?”
“We became koalas and didn’t know what to do. Then a player suddenly charged out and attacked us,” Qiyi replied, suppressing her sobs and trying to remain calm. “I told Moi to run first and get farther away while I fought him. He was much stronger than me. He nearly bit through my throat. Then A appeared and saved us.”
“That’s what happened,” A summarized concisely.
“How did you find them?” ERROR asked curiously. “Wasn’t your bracelet disabled?”
They were both players, so why was A so much luckier than him?
A glanced at him and said coldly, “I’m a peacock. I can fly.”
After realizing that, he flew upward to search for Su Qiong.
He failed to locate Su Qiong but instead saw Moi and Qiyi in mortal danger.
A was not someone who enjoyed helping others and possessed no strong sense of belonging to the group. Furthermore, he knew the twins possessed an ability that meant one of them dying would not be especially serious.
Yet after circling overhead for a fraction of a second, A still decided to descend and rescue Qiyi.
They knew each other, after all.
If she died, Su Qiong would definitely be upset.
That was how A justified it to himself.
“Becoming a bird is so convenient.”
ERROR once again sensed the system’s malice toward him.
“Wow!” Su Qiong had always loved beautiful things and was immediately captivated by the gorgeous peacock. He circled around A repeatedly. “You’re so beautiful. Can you fan your tail?”
“I don’t have tail feathers. But…” A raised an arm and reached into his slightly longer hair, unexpectedly pulling out a feather and handing it to Su Qiong.
The feather shimmered with flowing colors, more beautiful than the finest brocade.
“I don’t know whether it will remain tomorrow.” A would change species the next day, and perhaps the feather he had pulled from his hair would transform into something else.
“Thank you. I love it!” Su Qiong put the feather away. “If I place it inside my item space, it definitely won’t disappear. Otherwise…”
Otherwise, he would curse the system!
The system: “…”
Why am I taking the blame again?
ERROR became inexplicably irritated.
Was transforming into a peacock so impressive?
Why couldn’t he do it?
“Next, the Orphan Alliance is still missing two people. Who should we find first?” Su Qiong naturally used the word “we,” already treating himself as part of the guild.
“Lu Shufan,” Yu Qimiao said. “Shi Yuntian has probably started fighting other animals.”
“Uh…”
“Guild Leader Yu, you’re being too conservative. It’s not ‘probably.’ It’s certain.”
“As expected of him.”
Once someone became familiar with Lu Shufan, they would learn that he only knew how to talk recklessly and court death.
When he was transported alone into an unfamiliar environment, however, he became incredibly timid.
Unfortunately, he had transformed into a sloth, an animal with poor mobility and extremely low attack power. He could only hide inside a tree hollow and wait for his companions to find him.
When he saw Su Qiong’s wand, Lu Shufan nearly cried from excitement.
However, after crawling out and learning that he was the second-to-last person they had found, his mood immediately crashed.
“Little Pastry, am I really that unimportant to you?”
“No,” Su Qiong denied.
Lu Shufan had just begun feeling happier when Su Qiong continued, “But the others are slightly more important than you.”
Lu Shufan: “…”
Their friendship was over!
It ended now!
Seeing this, Yu Qimiao casually added, “Shi Yuntian is still missing.”
“That’s right!” Lu Shufan suddenly became proud. “Boss Shi is still behind me. I’m not last!”
Everyone else looked at him with pity.
Being only slightly better than Shi Yuntian was hardly something worth celebrating.
Su Qiong activated the pink diamond’s guidance function again to locate Shi Yuntian.
However, the diamond fragment swung wildly up and down and refused to settle.
“What’s happening?”
“Shi Yuntian must be moving constantly, making the direction unstable.”
“Could he possibly…”
“Remove the ‘possibly,’” Lu Shufan said disdainfully. “Boss Shi is a lunatic whose head is filled entirely with fighting and killing!”
Su Qiong struggled to control the pink diamond and finally determined Shi Yuntian’s location amid its frantic movements.
As they approached, they smelled blood from a great distance.
Shi Yuntian had transformed into an agile cheetah. He moved with astonishing speed and left almost nothing intact wherever he passed.
How should they describe it?
The species suited him perfectly.
Upon seeing his teammates, Shi Yuntian, covered in blood, waved toward them.
“You’re here. Want something to eat?”
Only then did everyone notice that although the surroundings were soaked in blood, they saw only the remains of large animals, not any player corpses.
Shi Yuntian had originally intended to fight other players to his heart’s content.
However, remembering that every player in IF was Su Qiong’s emergency food reserve, he had restrained himself.
Since he had finally transformed into a cheetah, Shi Yuntian naturally needed to follow the animal’s instincts and challenge the ruler of the animal kingdom—
A male lion!
How could that unfortunate lion have known that urinating to mark its territory would make it Shi Yuntian’s target?
The powerful adult lion had not taken a cheetah seriously. An ordinary cheetah would never attack a lion alone.
It had no way of knowing that a deranged cheetah existed in the world—one that drove it into a desperate situation, pursued it everywhere, and ultimately bit through its throat.
Shi Yuntian built a fire and invited his companions to share his spoils.
“Eat as much as you want. There’s plenty more.” His tone was heroic, as though the entire world were the kitchen behind his restaurant.
As for the order in which Su Qiong had searched for him, Shi Yuntian had not noticed at all. Even if he had, he would not have cared.
He looked at his companions and laughed boldly.
“You all became such weak animals? Don’t worry. I’ll protect you!”
Shi Yuntian patted his chest proudly.
These people mocked him every day for lacking a brain. But in a world governed by natural selection, what use was intelligence?
Circle Three was destined to become Shi Yuntian’s territory!
His pride did not last long before Su Qiong said, “To complete the main quest, we need to find a way to approach humans.”
“Right,” Yu Qimiao agreed. “Along the way, I noticed every player transformed into an animal that lives far from human settlements. Figuring out how to reach humans is our first problem.”
The moment he heard the words “figuring out,” Shi Yuntian knew his dream of dominating IF had shattered again.
Why did the natural world care about brains?
How annoying!
“Furthermore, aside from A, all of us are land animals.”
“If I’m correct, cooperation is possible in this instance too.”
“The problem is that we’re transported and assigned new identities every day. Wasting time searching for one another each day would be incredibly inefficient.”
Su Qiong proposed a solution.
“Today, we’ll gather clues and find a way to contact humans. At the same time, we’ll locate a safe place and gather there directly tomorrow.”
“Agreed.”
After reaching a consensus, the players decided to search for clues and determine how to enter human society.
Animals possessed no public transportation or maps. They could rely only on exploration.
Although Su Qiong’s wand could point the way, it could guide him only toward people he knew. When the main quest was involved, even the pink diamond was powerless.
They had no choice but to split up and gather clues.
Considering the existence of the food chain, the eight members divided into three groups, each containing at least one relatively powerful person.
The two weak fennec foxes, Su Qiong and ERROR, were assigned to the strongest member, Shi Yuntian.
Shi Yuntian examined ERROR’s ears, then his sharp claws, and found the situation unbelievable.
From the first moment he met ERROR, Shi Yuntian had known that he was powerful—powerful in a way that felt impossible to defeat.
He never imagined fortune would reverse and the day would come when he was responsible for protecting ERROR.
“ERROR, I heard you’re pretty arrogant.” Shi Yuntian fearlessly provoked him. “Call me Boss Shi, and I’ll protect you.”
ERROR could not be bothered looking at him. He turned toward Su Qiong.
“The two of us should be enough to search for clues, right?”
Su Qiong considered it. “Yes.”
With Shi Yuntian’s brain, he would not be useful even if he followed them.
“Hey!” Shi Yuntian became anxious and chased after them. “I was joking! Why don’t you have any sense of humor?”
ERROR and Su Qiong walked side by side, pretending not to hear him.
They had not gone far when they encountered someone familiar.
Su Qiong had said that the system treated high-level players preferentially and would not give them a hellish beginning.
Except for ERROR, of course.
Take A, for example. Upon entering Into Nature, the system had not transformed him into the strongest animal, but it had at least given him the ability to fly.
As for the current top-ranked player, Xi Huaiji, leader of Extremity, she naturally received the highest treatment.
She began as one of the strongest animals—a magnificent golden tiger.
As fellow animals, they could sense the oppressive presence of a natural predator.
Several Extremity members accompanied Xi Huaiji, seeking their leader’s protection.
Upon seeing Su Qiong, Xi Huaiji approached and greeted him first.
“Hi.”
“Su Qiong, don’t go over there,” Shi Yuntian warned. “She’s powerful enough to kill you in one strike.”
“It’s fine.” Su Qiong showed no fear. “We know each other. She won’t do anything to me.”
Su Qiong walked toward Xi Huaiji and stopped only half a meter away.
“Do you want to exchange information with me?” he asked.
Xi Huaiji looked toward the people behind Su Qiong and said meaningfully, “My cooperation with your guild has already ended.”
By now, everyone in IF knew that Su Qiong was the Orphan Alliance’s exclusive NPC. If she gave him information, he would immediately share it with Yu Qimiao and the others.
“Besides, your group entered the instance last. What information could you possibly have?”
“We truly don’t have any.” Su Qiong admitted honestly, then added, “But I can share any information I find later.”
Before Xi Huaiji could reply, two members behind her could no longer tolerate it.
“You’re trying to gain something for nothing!”
“Guild Leader, don’t agree to that!”
“Quiet.” Xi Huaiji gestured for them to stop speaking before questioning Su Qiong again. “That condition is unfair to me. Why should I agree?”
“It is fair.”
“How do you measure fairness? With Yu Qimiao’s blackhearted exchange bag?”
The blackhearted exchange bag claimed to be fair, but its very existence represented the greatest unfairness.
“We can agree never to attack each other within Circle Three.” Su Qiong asked, “You understand the food chain, right?”
“I do. I’m higher on it than all of you.”
“What about tomorrow?”
Xi Huaiji fell silent.
Indeed, her current position was higher than that of every other player.
That was preferential treatment granted to a high-level player, protecting her from dying immediately.
But it also carried an enormous disadvantage.
IF was a fair game. It would not allow a player to remain at the top forever, just as it would not force someone to remain permanently at the bottom.
During the coming days, Xi Huaiji would inevitably face an unfavorable situation.
Players had only just entered the Circle, so most would not attack one another rashly. But this Circle would continue for ten days. Who knew what might happen later?
High-level players became high-level not merely through levels, but because they possessed powerful tactical ability.
No member of the Orphan Alliance was easy to deal with. If the food chain eventually led to slaughter, they would become extremely dangerous opponents.
More importantly—
Su Qiong’s abilities had not been disabled.
While every player had lost access to their abilities, his wand could transform into a soul-summoning banner at any moment.
“Deal.” Xi Huaiji accepted Su Qiong’s offer while adding a condition. “But you must tell me your clues first. I’ll decide which information to exchange in return.”
Extremity was a large and prosperous guild filled with experts. Naturally, they would obtain far more clues than the Orphan Alliance.
“All right.” Su Qiong nodded.
“Let’s go.” Xi Huaiji beckoned Su Qiong along, then looked toward Shi Yuntian and ERROR. “There are two battle zones ahead. I’ll escort you through.”
“Fighting has already started?” Shi Yuntian sounded tempted to join.
“They’re all lunatics without clear minds who want to eliminate their rivals as quickly as possible,” Xi Huaiji said calmly.
Shi Yuntian: “…”
He had been insulted again.
“Before you arrived, Extremity’s members explored the area. The desert, forest, and grasslands are all enormous, and the scenery repeats endlessly, making it extremely easy to become lost. Without guidance, we cannot reach human settlements.”
“Is there no method at all?”
“That isn’t entirely true,” Xi Huaiji said. “Based on my deductions, there are two ways to find humans. First, locate humans in the wilderness. Second, find a way to make humans bring us into a major city.”
“There are humans in the wilderness?”
“You truly know nothing about human society.” Xi Huaiji glanced sideways at him. “Some humans possess a perverse desire to spy on things and especially enjoy secretly observing animals’ lives. Search their habitats for hidden cameras. You may discover something useful.”
“I understand. Thank you.”
As they prepared to separate, Su Qiong suddenly stopped Xi Huaiji and asked, “Will you participate in the killing?”
“I have to clear this game.”
If the main quest required slaughter, Xi Huaiji would draw her golden hairpin without hesitation.
“That’s good.” Su Qiong seemed to have received some sort of promise and waved goodbye to her.
Only then did ERROR ask, “Are you close to her?”
“No.” Su Qiong answered honestly. “But she’s beautiful.”
ERROR had nothing to say.
Never underestimate the lack of principles possessed by someone obsessed with beauty.
Following Xi Huaiji’s reminder, they not only searched for a way to leave the natural environment but also watched for traces of humans along the road.
After passing through another chaotic zone, Su Qiong truly found something.
“ERROR, is that a camera?” Su Qiong pointed toward a spot in the distance.
ERROR moved closer and examined it carefully.
It truly was one.
Its exterior had been made to resemble an ordinary stone, making it extremely difficult to notice when lying on the ground.
At the same time, the humans observing from behind the camera began exclaiming one after another.
“Oh my god, fennec foxes! They’re adorable!”
“This species normally lives in deserts. Why would they appear here?”
At the word “desert,” someone on the observation team could not help trembling.
—Their homeland was so far away. Surely the human whose identity they had stolen would not appear here?
Just as they clung to that hope, the system’s demonic voice sounded.
[System: Do you wish to return to an environment filled with natural predators, injuries, illness, and starvation?]
[System: As long as you kill the human whose identity you stole, you may retain your current life forever.]
[System: All lives are born equal. Awaken the beast within your soul and fight for yourself.]
