Chapter 44: Into Nature (3)
Although Su Qiong and ERROR were fortunate enough to find a hidden camera, the research institute seemed to have “released it into the wild” and never sent anyone to retrieve it.
Waiting beside the camera in hopes of finding humans was almost certainly pointless.
ERROR complained as though accustomed to it, “As expected, anything related to ‘luck’ has nothing to do with me.”
“Don’t say that.” Su Qiong comforted him. “Your luck may be very low, but it isn’t nonexistent.”
“Oh?” ERROR asked. “What’s my luck stat?”
“Approximately zero.”
ERROR: “…”
Well said. Don’t say it again.
“What do we do? We can’t find any way to contact humans.” Unable to trigger a system prompt, Su Qiong became deeply worried.
The [Into Nature] instance was enormous, almost the same size as Earth.
Animals had no transportation and could not determine the correct direction. If they wandered around blindly, the entire ten days might pass without them seeing even a human shadow.
The moment Su Qiong finished worrying, a system notification sounded.
[System: One-third of the first day remains. Night is about to fall. Player ERROR and NPC Su Qiong have been identified as fennec foxes, a nocturnal species. Return to your habitat immediately and complete a survival task.]
[Hint: Completing the survival task will provide a clue about the human world. Failure to complete it within the time limit will invalidate the task.]
As the prompt ended, a large countdown appeared in the air:
04:59
Su Qiong blinked, and the number changed to 04:58.
The two immediately reacted.
“Run!”
IF had a default rule: traveling between any two zones always took five minutes, regardless of the actual distance.
The player’s method and speed of travel had almost no effect on that time.
If they failed to react immediately after seeing the prompt, they might not return to their habitat before the countdown ended, causing the task to be declared invalid.
“Phew…”
“We made it.”
ERROR held Su Qiong’s hand and dragged him all the way back to their original desert habitat.
The countdown reached zero precisely as the sky darkened at an unbelievable speed.
A cold wind began to blow, lifting yellow sand into the air and obscuring their already poor visibility.
“The survival task is…” Su Qiong stopped halfway through his sentence when he realized he could no longer speak.
It was more than being unable to speak.
Everything around him suddenly expanded several times over. Even a single grain of sand beneath his feet no longer looked small.
Su Qiong turned toward ERROR and discovered that the surroundings had not grown larger.
The two of them had shrunk.
They had become genuine fennec foxes covered in fur, each with a pair of enormous ears.
[System: Survival Challenge—Spend the night in the form of a fennec fox.]
“Awooo—”
As night deepened, a roar sounded in the distance. Su Qiong could not tell whether it belonged to a desert wolf or something even more terrifying.
Many animals in the vast desert emerged only at night. The formerly barren, desolate landscape suddenly became unusually lively.
Su Qiong realized that the two foxes might already be surrounded by natural predators.
No matter how intelligent or powerful they had been as humans, they were now merely one link in nature’s food chain, easily reduced to another animal’s meal.
“Chirp.” Su Qiong released a faint cry.
ERROR made no sound. He warily observed their surroundings while using his small body to shield Su Qiong behind him.
His front claws dug firmly into the ground, his body lowered into a stance ready to attack at any moment.
A low bush diagonally ahead trembled several times. Something was clearly hiding inside.
Su Qiong instantly became alert and copied ERROR’s posture, defending himself like an animal.
However, the anticipated danger never arrived.
“Chirp.”
A cry identical to Su Qiong’s sounded from within the bush, responding to him.
Accompanied by rustling noises, another large-eared fennec fox emerged.
It was still a cub. Its ears were even larger in proportion to its body than an adult’s, making it look exceptionally adorable.
“Chirp!” The cub called toward him.
“…Chirp?” Su Qiong tentatively answered.
Although he could not fully understand the meaning, he sensed that the cub was greeting him.
Once both sides confirmed they were the same species, more and more fennec foxes emerged from the bushes and approached them.
ERROR released a slightly deeper cry. It sounded rather cute, but he found it humiliating and refused to make another sound.
Instead, he used one paw to scratch two crooked words into the sand:
Social animals.
The IF system was relatively fair and would not make the situation completely hopeless.
Fennec foxes were weak, but they lived in groups. An individual accepted by the group would have a much safer chance of survival.
After all, even ants became a force that could not be underestimated when gathered together.
“Chirp!” The fennec fox cub liked Su Qiong very much because his tiny body made him resemble another cub.
Fennec foxes were already among the smallest canines. Adults commonly reached thirty or forty centimeters in length, but Su Qiong was only twenty centimeters long, with most of that apparent size coming from his ears.
Even the adult fennec foxes approaching them regarded him as a cub that needed protection.
ERROR, who received none of the benefits of social living, silently thought that the system seemed especially partial to Su Qiong.
It gave him items, gave him abilities, and had even prepared the sacrifice ritual that allowed him to become a Circle Lord.
Could it be that his unfilial son actually liked Su Qiong?
ERROR sneered.
Planning a rebellion, was it?
“Chirp.” Su Qiong had already begun mastering the fennec foxes’ method of communication and generously produced more adorable cries.
As he called more often, he gradually understood what the others meant.
Fennec foxes were nocturnal animals and normally searched for food at night. Now, after going hungry for an entire day, the little foxes had to find food somewhere in the vast desert.
Most canines were omnivorous. They ate fruits, vegetables, insects, and meat—whatever they encountered.
Because fennec foxes were small, their diet generally consisted of fruit, insects, and small animals.
Although they lived in groups, they rarely hunted collectively. Their reactions were too quick, and their targets were not large animals, so hunting together often interfered with one another.
Only mothers brought their underage cubs along while searching for food.
Su Qiong was classified as an “underage cub” and followed the mother of the cub who had befriended him through the enormous desert.
After becoming a fennec fox, Su Qiong discovered that his hearing had become extraordinarily sensitive. He could hear insects moving more than ten meters away.
ERROR followed at a moderate distance behind Su Qiong. Rather than rushing to hunt, he kept a close eye on him.
Su Qiong knew ERROR must be starving.
To make them realistically experience the survival methods of animals, the system had amplified their hunger to the maximum.
As a string of code that normally could not feel hunger, Su Qiong had walked only a short distance through the desert before becoming dizzy with starvation.
“Chirp.” Su Qiong released a quiet cry.
Hearing it, the mother fennec fox stopped and licked his ear, comforting the pitiful cub and promising to find food quickly.
A crawling sound came from beneath the distant sand. It was probably a desert snake tunneling underground.
For a fennec fox, a desert snake counted as large prey.
Furthermore, many desert snakes were venomous. A single bite could kill the fox instantly, turning the hunter into the snake’s prey instead.
The mother fox had two cubs with her and originally had no intention of challenging a desert snake.
But Su Qiong was dizzy with hunger, and her own cub was also crying for food.
The mother fennec fox made up her mind and decided to take the risk for the cubs.
She raised her ears and listened carefully, tracking the snake’s movements beneath the sand.
Then, choosing the right moment, she struck downward with one paw.
The mother fox was rather unlucky. The portion exposed from the sand happened to be the desert snake’s head.
It opened its mouth and flicked out its tongue. Its venom-coated fangs gleamed coldly in the darkness.
The mother fennec fox nearly got bitten. She hurriedly dodged and released a hoarse cry of alarm.
The desert snake looked at the adult fox, then at the two cubs crouching nearby.
It immediately made its decision and turned to attack the young ones.
The mother fox’s cries instantly became shrill as she rushed toward her cub.
However, another fox moved even faster.
The desert snake had barely begun charging toward Su Qiong when ERROR seized it from behind, biting just below its neck.
A fennec fox’s bite was not particularly strong and should have struggled to pierce the thick armor the desert snake had developed from years of exposure.
ERROR clamped down with his teeth and tore halfway through the snake’s neck.
The surrounding fennec foxes stared in amazement.
Was that combat ability truly appropriate for a canine?
Had some large feline been born into the wrong body?
After killing the desert snake, ERROR prepared to check on Su Qiong.
However, Su Qiong recoiled in resistance and released disgusted chirps, looking more frightened of ERROR than he had of the snake.
“…”
In Su Qiong’s eyes, ERROR saw a fox with its face covered in blood.
Su Qiong feared sticky liquids that could easily dirty him more than anything else. No wonder he was so resistant.
ERROR had no choice but to abandon the idea of approaching him. He turned toward the adult fox, released a low sound of instruction, and quietly left to find water and clean himself.
Many fennec foxes living in the desert could go their entire lives without drinking water, so they lacked any instinct for locating it.
ERROR had to put in considerable effort before finding a small pool.
Many large animals had gathered around it to drink. When they noticed the strangely placed fennec fox carrying the scent of blood, they stared at him ferociously.
Yet because his presence was so unusual, not one of them dared approach.
ERROR openly washed the blood from his face and picked two fruits from plants near the water.
Following their scent, he returned to Su Qiong and discovered that the little fox was almost crying.
The mother fennec fox had treated him very well. She split the desert snake in half and gave Su Qiong the larger portion.
But Su Qiong could not bring himself to bite into bloody flesh.
His animal instincts made the hunger in his stomach increasingly intense, causing him even greater discomfort. He nearly began crying from grievance.
ERROR immediately ran to him and gave him one of the fruits held in his mouth.
Su Qiong disliked the saliva on it and hesitated, but ultimately ate the sweet, delicious fruit.
Only then did the mother fox relax and share the large snake with her own cub.
Only half the night had passed, yet all four foxes were already full.
However, their survival problems had not ended.
Fennec foxes were nocturnal, and most of their predators were nocturnal as well.
Not every desert animal was fortunate enough to find food immediately after leaving its den.
Many large animals were equally hungry and, when left with no other choice, would target fennec foxes.
Therefore, before daylight arrived, they had to cautiously find somewhere to hide from predators.
Finding shelter in the desert was far more difficult than hunting.
Everywhere they looked, endless sand stretched into the distance.
The occasional giant cactus or cave had already been claimed by other animals.
The mother fennec fox led the two cubs in a careful search for a long time before finally locating a patch of low bushes.
The bushes were not truly safe. Experienced predators would search them for prey, so the foxes had to remain extraordinarily alert.
The mother fox instructed both cubs to hide carefully.
Looking outside, she noticed that the fennec fox born into the wrong species had no intention of entering the bushes, but neither did he plan to leave.
Like a soldier standing guard, he remained a short distance away, openly exposing himself.
In nature, only an absolute powerhouse would dare display itself so openly.
He truly had been born into the wrong species.
When the mother fox saw him successfully drive away an enormous, highly aggressive predator, she became even more certain of that conclusion.
Regardless, they would at least be safe tonight.
The mother fox lowered her head and pulled both cubs into her embrace, keeping them warm through the desert night’s enormous temperature drop.
The cub who had appeared today actually fell asleep.
What a carefree and adorable little creature.
The night passed safely.
When the morning sunlight arrived and the sleepy mother fox prepared to bring her cubs back to rest, she discovered that the little one from the previous night and the large fox who had stood guard outside had both vanished.
She had no idea where they had gone.
Meanwhile, Su Qiong awoke after a wonderfully restful sleep.
He reached up and touched the top of his head, discovering that his ears had disappeared.
In their place was a pair of…
Antlers.
The antlers of a young deer.
A deer was fine. At least deer were slightly stronger than fennec foxes.
Furthermore, deer were herbivores. He would not have to challenge himself to eat bloody meat.
[System: Congratulations to NPC Su Qiong and Player ERROR for completing the survival challenge and obtaining a clue leading to the human world.]
[Clue: Humans are not in the desert.]
“…”
“What meaningless nonsense.”
After struggling for an entire night, they had received only that useless statement.
Both felt their fists hardening.
The system seemed to sense their anger and hurriedly continued.
[System: Today’s randomly assigned animal identity is the sika deer, which lives in grassland or forest regions. Transportation will now begin.]
Su Qiong arrived in a new environment surrounded by mountains and water. The scenery was beautiful, and there were no especially troublesome predators.
Today’s survival task would surely be easier than the fennec fox challenge.
“ERROR, let’s go to the meeting place. Maybe the others received more useful clues.”
“All right.” ERROR could not be bothered analyzing the clue they had received.
The system targeted him, so perhaps it had given the others better information.
When they reached the agreed meeting place, everyone else had already arrived and was sharing their clues.
They had also received new identity cards today.
Shi Yuntian, who had been full of confidence the previous day, appeared unusually gloomy.
His new identity was unexpectedly an ocean fish.
Although he could leave the ocean outside the survival challenge period, the dryness and sunlight made him extremely uncomfortable.
Su Qiong approached with a pair of antlers and immediately received a chorus of praise about how “cute” he looked, making Shi Yuntian even more depressed.
Why did Su Qiong always receive suitable animal identities?
Couldn’t Shi Yuntian become something adorable too?
“Our clue says humans aren’t in the desert,” Su Qiong reported.
“As expected. Another useless statement.”
“Another?”
“Yes. Aside from A, none of us received useful clues.”
Su Qiong looked toward A. “What clue did you get?”
A raised his eyelids.
“Humans can be found in the sky.”
“!!!”
Compared with everyone else’s clues, A’s was incredibly useful.
It made sense. The wilderness they occupied was sparsely populated, but airplane routes were unrestricted. Perhaps they could encounter human aircraft in the sky.
“But no one received a bird identity today.”
“Even if someone became a bird, encountering humans in the sky would still be extremely difficult.”
Su Qiong sighed. “It seems we can only place our hopes on wildlife researchers.”
“What researchers? Where can we find them?”
Su Qiong and ERROR told everyone about the camera they had found the previous day.
Su Qiong then analyzed the situation seriously.
“Since humans are studying animals, perhaps we can encounter them while they’re placing or retrieving cameras.”
“That’s possible. Also, Su Qiong, your identity today gives you a major advantage.”
“A deer?” Su Qiong touched his antlers.
Did deer possess some kind of human-detection ability?
Was it in the antlers?
“I’m not referring to your antlers,” ERROR said, then paused and revised his answer. “Actually, the antlers may help slightly. Sika deer are nationally protected animals. Their habitat is easy to observe, and they’re attractive, so humans are highly likely to study them.”
“No, no, no.” Lu Shufan immediately objected. “The only attractive one is Little Pastry.”
Although both were sika deer, ERROR resembled the leader of a herd—the kind that could flip a human over with his antlers at any moment.
ERROR: “…”
There was no need to display such blatant favoritism.
After touching his antlers, Su Qiong suddenly remembered something.
“Can I tell Xi Huaiji this information?”
“I don’t care,” A said.
“Why would you tell her?” Yu Qimiao asked in confusion.
“Because I made a deal with her yesterday.” Su Qiong explained the transaction, then added, “She keeps her promises.”
“I don’t agree with Xi Huaiji’s methods, but she is trustworthy. The transaction isn’t a loss.” Yu Qimiao still warned him with concern, “However, you should keep your distance from her. Xi Huaiji will use any method necessary to achieve her goals. Your identity is unusual, and I’m worried she may scheme against you.”
“I’ll remember.” Su Qiong nodded. “Are we splitting into groups again today?”
“No!” Shi Yuntian immediately objected.
He was currently a fish and wanted only to soak in the water.
Besides, ERROR and Su Qiong had not needed protection at all. Shi Yuntian had volunteered to guard them the previous day, only to be abandoned halfway through.
Well, in truth, Shi Yuntian had become tempted when he saw the battle zone and stopped moving, joining the other players in a chaotic fight.
“Since you object, you can act alone today. Everyone else follows yesterday’s arrangement.” Yu Qimiao made the decision and declared the meeting over, ignoring Shi Yuntian’s protests.
Su Qiong took out his wand and located Xi Huaiji.
Remembering Yu Qimiao’s warning, he made certain there was no danger nearby before approaching her.
Xi Huaiji had become a beautiful snake today, which suited her personality remarkably well.
Su Qiong gave her the clue, and Xi Huaiji generously returned two pieces of information.
“Humans can be found in a grassland hunting zone, but the danger level is extremely high.”
“Also, humans can be found at sea.”
“Grasslands and the ocean.” Su Qiong immediately looked at ERROR.
Shi Yuntian happened to be in the ocean today. Hopefully, he would discover something there.
However, humans at sea would probably be aboard cruise ships and just as difficult to approach as those in the sky.
That left only the other clue…
“The grassland hunting zone.” ERROR immediately made a decision. “We’re going back.”
There was usually a reason protected animals had become protected.
The main reason deer received protection was poaching.
People often said every part of a deer was valuable: antlers, blood, meat…
Wild antlers in particular sold for considerable prices on the black market.
Even though deer were protected animals, some people were still willing to risk everything for enormous profit.
If humans truly appeared in the forest and grasslands, Su Qiong would unquestionably become a target.
He looked adorable and innocent, and his antlers were beautiful.
Who could resist such a little sika deer?
“Are you certain you want to return?” Xi Huaiji offered a rare friendly warning after hearing their decision. “The poachers have guns. We aren’t their opponents.”
“It’s all right. I can use my items and abilities.” Su Qiong waved his wand, then said, “Besides, my companions will protect me.”
Xi Huaiji froze slightly, seemingly understanding why he had remained with the Orphan Alliance.
In any other guild, an NPC would probably be used as bait in this situation.
A guild might appear unified, but in reality, everyone cared only about protecting themselves. They did not care whether their teammates lived or died, much less an NPC.
Such a guild truly would not deserve Su Qiong’s trust.
“Good luck.”
“Thank you.” Su Qiong said goodbye to Xi Huaiji and returned to the grassland habitat with ERROR.
They passed several battle zones along the way. The fighting was even more intense than the previous day.
Players with an advantage in the food chain all wanted to use their temporary superiority to eliminate those who had once stood above them.
After passing through the third battle zone, Su Qiong began to feel worried.
“ERROR, is there any way to stop them from killing one another?”
“There is, but it would be difficult.” ERROR asked in return, “Why stop them? This instance established the food chain precisely to make them fight.”
“Is that really true?” Su Qiong remained doubtful. “I believe the food chain is only an additional setting. Their true enemies should be the animals that stole their identities.”
Su Qiong speculated that as time passed, the animals who had taken their identities would become increasingly integrated into human society.
They would hide more deeply and develop their own networks of human relationships.
By then, reclaiming their human identities would become even more difficult. It might even require cooperation across the entire natural world.
Yet the players failed to realize this and instead became obsessed with killing one another.
The ending would probably be disastrous.
ERROR understood Su Qiong’s meaning. He raised a hand and touched his antlers.
“That is precisely the system’s goal. The way to destroy a civilization is often not through an external attack, but internal conflict.”
“What solution do you have?” Su Qiong asked.
“You should know. There’s only one way to unite them.”
Su Qiong understood.
“A common enemy.”
Only by creating a powerful new target would they set aside their former grudges and deal with the immediate threat.
And conveniently, one had just delivered itself to them.
Su Qiong and ERROR returned to the grassland habitat and discovered that it was unusually quiet.
Grasslands differed from deserts.
The desert became too hot during the day, with temperatures sometimes reaching fifty degrees Celsius, making it unsuitable for most animals.
Grasslands, however, were habitable environments where many animals remained active during daylight.
That made the silence especially strange.
Just as Su Qiong began to wonder about it, a gunshot rang out in the distance.
Animals hidden throughout the area fled in panic, and wave after wave of birds burst into the sky.
“Poachers.”
“I’ll go investigate,” ERROR decided.
“I’ll go with you. I can serve as bait.”
“You…” ERROR hesitated.
The poachers’ guns sounded dangerous. He did not want Su Qiong to recklessly place himself in danger.
“I can use Order Deduction to locate them,” Su Qiong hurriedly said.
“All right. Once you determine their locations, don’t act carelessly.”
The two deer followed the sound and entered the hunters’ firing range.
Su Qiong hid behind a large boulder and opened his hand. A loading symbol appeared in his palm.
“Order Deduction.”
The deduction began.
Without fear, Su Qiong charged into the firing zone and used his agile body to evade the gunshot aimed directly at him.
Following the direction of the shot, he rushed toward the poacher’s position.
Just as he was about to approach the man…
Gunshots rang out almost simultaneously from both sides.
At least four bullets flew toward Su Qiong.
He barely dodged two, but another struck his leg, while the final bullet hit his neck.
Neither wound was immediately fatal, so Su Qiong did not die at once.
But with his leg injured, he could no longer run. He could only lie helplessly on the ground and watch the hunters approach him…
Although he felt no pain during Order Deduction, Su Qiong could sense his life gradually draining away.
The poachers examined the young sika deer with greedy eyes.
“What a beautiful little deer. Too bad it’s so rebellious.”
“If it had behaved, I originally intended to shoot only its leg. Now it can only become our food.”
“…”
Listening to their cold discussion, Su Qiong closed his eyes, and the deduction ended.
When he opened them again, he fearfully covered his neck and no longer dared enter the hunters’ firing range.
“What happened?” ERROR asked.
“There isn’t only one hunter. There are seven or eight of them. I can’t evade all their attacks.”
“It appears to be an organized operation.” ERROR felt somewhat relieved. “Fortunately, we didn’t let you take the risk directly.”
“They have weapons. We can’t get close at all. Even if we did, we couldn’t attack so many humans at once.”
ERROR did not appear nervous. Instead, he said calmly, “Didn’t you ask how we could stop the players from killing one another? Here is our opportunity to unite them against a common enemy.”
Without alerting the poachers, Su Qiong and ERROR returned to the battle zone.
The players remaining there had all received powerful predator identities that day. There were creatures that flew and creatures that swam. Su Qiong even saw a peacock.
However, it looked carelessly designed and was nowhere near as beautiful as A had been the previous day.
Su Qiong explained why they had come.
The players who had been fighting one another to the death unexpectedly became hesitant.
“They have guns and are hiding in the shadows. Wouldn’t approaching them be suicide?”
“…Aren’t you also waiting here to die?” Su Qiong asked.
The players considered it and realized he seemed to have a point, so they asked for his plan.
Su Qiong took out his wand and said seriously, “During Order Deduction, I saw most of the poachers’ appearances. I can use the pink diamond to determine their locations. When the time comes, you’ll divide into groups and restrain them simultaneously.”
“We have to divide into groups…” The players looked resistant and unwilling to cooperate.
ERROR had expected that reaction and casually reminded them, “Some of those people may be animals who stole your identities.”
If a player was lucky enough to encounter the animal that had taken their identity, they could become the first person to clear Circle Three, receive the system’s rewards and enormous number of points, and gain an overwhelming advantage in the remainder of the game.
Even if none of the humans had stolen their identities, making contact with humans first would still give them an advantage over every other player.
“Fine. It’s only cooperation!”
“Quickly divide us into groups. I love cooperating with everyone! Cooperation is the best!”
Su Qiong: “…”
I would believe you more if you wiped the blood from your faces first.
