Chapter 38: Jungle Rules and a New Attribute
Yi obediently refrained from attacking, waiting instead for Xu Zhi’s command.
Xu Zhi instructed it to collect the cores on the ground. The moment the monkeys saw Yi picking them up, their trembling expressions visibly eased, and once it had taken them all, they chattered amongst themselves and retreated into the forest.
Xu Zhi stared curiously at the thirteen new cores in her inventory. Was it because the monkey leader had gained sentience? Or were monkeys just naturally smart enough to act like this? Judging by their behavior, it didn’t seem like it was their first time doing something like this.
Or… was this a broader trend among forest animals?
Could this be a fundamental difference between the ecosystem of mutated animals in the forest versus those in the city?
Thoughts swirled in Xu Zhi’s mind. Eventually, she decided to have Yi test her theory: when encountering prey, don’t kill it right away—try intimidation first and observe the reaction.
By the end of the day, Yi had encountered numerous prey animals in the forest. Following Xu Zhi’s orders, it intimidated them one by one. Most solitary and weaker prey simply trembled under the pressure. A few, especially those that were stronger or in groups, reacted like the monkeys—offering up cores in submission.
It seemed that, even before humans had reached a consensus on societal rules, the jungle had already established a mutual understanding: the law of the jungle prevailed, and cores had become a key form of currency or offering.
Not surprising, really. The animal kingdom had always worked this way—only now, cores were in the mix.
After one trip into the forest, Yi returned with 32 cores. Combined with what Zhen and Gouzi had gathered, the total nearly reached 40.
“…Is my luck too good?”
Xu Zhi rubbed her arms, feeling a strange sense of destiny. It was as if she were a chosen one, with fortune constantly bending in her favor—every time a challenge arose, the solution seemed to land right in front of her.
Still, this abundance made her wary. If forest creatures had long since adopted this behavior, the more powerful ones had probably hoarded massive amounts of cores to strengthen themselves. Their levels might already surpass Yi’s.
No—there had to be creatures stronger than Yi.
Especially since the black fruits appeared in the forest. And in the forest, only the strong held onto resources like that.
“Looks like Yi needs to be more cautious from now on.”
Those apex mutated beasts—killing one would surely yield immense “wealth.”
And by wealth, she didn’t mean gold or jewels, but cores and raw power.
Xu Zhi’s eyes lit up. “Mutated animals in the city can’t compare. I need to shift my focus to the forest.”
In the city, humans and aberrants were the key players. Mutated animals, though present, were just side characters. Their real base of power was clearly the forest.
Xu Zhi didn’t have any interest in humans, and she wasn’t ready to deal with the aberrants yet. That left the forest.
“Starting tomorrow, you three will go hunt in the forest. Don’t wander too far. Stick together, and if it gets dangerous—run.”
That night, Xu Zhi gave instructions to her three returning familiars.
Then, she gently patted Gouzi’s head. “You’ve worked hard.”
She knew Gouzi often received the least resources from her. It wasn’t fair, but she had no plans to change her approach. The least she could do was compensate emotionally.
Like… being a little more affectionate?
Xu Zhi was unsure whether that would help, but the moment she rubbed its head, Gouzi lit up, vigorously nuzzling her hand. Yeah—it definitely worked!
Gouzi, or rather all her familiars, were susceptible to this kind of affection.
“There’s no such thing as love without a reason—except from parents.” Xu Zhi had heard this saying before but never understood it. Her own parents had never shown her real affection. But now, she sort of got it—not from “parents,” but from the selfless love of “children.”
No… not quite. It felt more like a bond between “creator” and “creation.”
She had chosen her familiars, and because of that, they followed her unconditionally, obeyed her, adored her—just because she had chosen them, and brought them into existence. Even if it was through a game console, the one making the decisions was still her.
It was a strange and beautiful bond. Xu Zhi felt like she had grown a little closer to her familiars.
She could no longer see them as just tools. Now, there was a hint of personal connection—of belonging.
And what’s so wrong with that? After all, who could resist the pure, unconditional love of a little animal?
Especially one that doesn’t get mad even when you neglect it and show favoritism—one that works even harder just to please you!
Xu Zhi pinched Gouzi’s soft ears, and it wagged its tail even harder, sensing her affection.
After comforting Gouzi, Xu Zhi opened her inventory to check the day’s haul.
Finally, among all the familiar core colors, she spotted two she had never seen before.
“Oh? Just one more and I’ll have them all.”
Seven colors now sat in neat rows in her inventory. The [Blade] attribute still had the most, followed by [Moth].
The new colors were the rarest, with only one of each.
She clicked on them to view their details, guided by the system’s narration.
The first was an orange core, the color of flame—[Forge].
[Forge: The principle of transformation and destruction.]
It governs change, craftsmanship, fire, destruction, shaping, and strength. It’s associated with technology, industry, and smithing. Its wielders possess originality, mechanical thinking, and superhuman strength.
Xu Zhi raised an eyebrow. “Figures. That pamphlet really was unreliable.”
It didn’t mention anything about destruction or strength. But clearly, [Forge] was tied to creation—yet that didn’t mean its wielders lacked offensive capability. Quite the opposite—superhuman strength was no small thing.
In fact, [Forge] users might be especially valuable. They could probably craft extraordinary items.
Next, she checked the purple core. When she clicked it, a single character appeared: [Initiate].
“Darn.”
It wasn’t [Lamp], the one she was most curious about.
[Initiate: The principle of opening and dismantling.]
“…Huh?”
Xu Zhi recalled the manual’s explanation and sighed.
It relates to wounds, locksmiths, doors, and keys—encompassing revelation, unlocking, and deconstruction. Its wielders are insightful and associated with thieves and oracles.
“…”
“It’s not entirely wrong… but it’s far too shallow.”
Xu Zhi understood now—the world still didn’t fully grasp these extraordinary attributes. Understandably so—they didn’t have her kind of cheat system. It would take time before they truly comprehended them.
Still, the “revelation” and “oracle” parts of [Initiate] caught her attention. She had a strong feeling this attribute would give rise to some very unique ability-users.
