...
Mentally exhausted, Araw dragged his tired body toward the direction of the wooden house to rest... Closing his eyes before eventually falling asleep.
Splash!
Quacckk!!
Soon, after an unknown period of time, an intense splashing sound of water from the nearby pond and the unceasing quacking of ducks suddenly entered Araw's ears... Making Araw, who was peacefully sleeping, instantly from his dream.
Although the distance between his wooden house and the pond wasn't considered small, at least 10 meters at minimum, his senses after reaching the 3rd stage of the body tempering realm seem to have experienced great changes.
Probably due to his exhaustion earlier or probably that the changes occurring in his body are still not finished earlier, it only becomes noticeable right now.
"This..."
Gazing at the curious small ducks in the pond, creating waves and disturbing the fish living within, to the point that some of them began chasing the fish under the water, Araw's face couldn't help but turn grave...
Feeling unsettled since this is his first time seeing those ducklings creating trouble.
Moreover, those fish, after weeks of living comfortably in the pond, could be said to have gained a considerable amount of weight. In another two weeks, he believed that the fish would finally enter their maturity... Reasoning for him to become enraged upon seeing the ducklings hunting his soon-to-be food.
However, the thing that surprised him was the speed of the fish and ducks within the pond—although they couldn't be compared to the speed of beings that reach the first stage of the Body Tempering realm, they already surpassed the speed of mortals by twice, causing him to stare at them in shock and curiosity.
Furthermore, their intelligence left him unsettled... Considering how those fish looked at him with disdain weeks ago, he began to feel that the beasts that the system offered weren't that normal.
Even though all of them have the capabilities to enter the transcended grade in their lifetime, which was equivalent to the body tempering realm, their intelligence shouldn't be much different from normal livestock...
Hence, he began to think that the reason beyond their changes and mutations was probably related to the system or their environment.
"Stop!"
Shouting and shooting a deathly glare toward the ducklings in the distance, Araw heavily strides forward, causing the ducks to instantly halt in their movement, panic-stricken before scattering with a swift speed... Vanishing beyond the tall grasses nearby in just a matter of seconds.
Unfortunately for them, although some of them managed to escape, Araw still managed to catch the slow ones.
Carefully touching them on their necks, immobilizing their movements, Araw immediately returned to the wooden house before starting to inspect the ducks' bodies — wanting to see if there were changes that occurred to them after being free for weeks.
Hmmm??
Surprisingly, after just touching their triangular feet and their beaks, Araw instantly noticed their unprecedented hardness, something that shouldn't be present in their current age.
Furthermore, their soft feathers also give a soft metallic glow, a testament to their sturdiness comparable to the thick hides of normal beasts.
Quacckkk!
Feeling uncomfortable from Araw's unceasing nudging, the ducks fearlessly peck Araw's hands, instantly causing the expression of the latter to change as he felt a faint sensation of pain within that shook his core.
Although his body strengthening scripture doesn't focus on defense, the little ducks, which haven't reached the threshold of the transcended grade, shouldn't have been able to cause him any harm or pain—causing him to look at them with mixed expression, unaware whether to express happiness or fear.
"Don't tell me that all of the cubs that I purchased weeks ago already mutated.
"If that is the case, I needed to quickly lock them before they could become a threat to me!"
Although the probability of that occurring is small, Araw's current personality never allows him to risk his safety. Without sufficient strength, just sensing something that could risk his well-being already caused him to become anxious!
Without further ado, fearing that beasts' growth might outpace him, Araw immediately exited his wooden house, raising his head as he gazed at the small beasts that were still devouring the grasses nearby... If his memory wasn't playing tricks with him, the cubs that he purchased from the system weeks ago should be number around 30 plus.
"I need to buy a ranch with advanced durability that even early stage transcended beasts had no hope of breaking them."
Feeling another pinch to his financial situation, Araw reluctantly spent 2 teaching points to buy a ranch of considerable size.
Placing it far away from his house before tossing the beasts that he had captured inside without hesitation — causing most of them to start at him in fear and confusion...
While the rest stared at him fearlessly or with disdain.
"There's still 3 left..."
Staring at the seemingly unending expanse, Araw couldn't help but reveal a troubled look on his face. He had already looked around, quite far from his wooden house, yet he still hadn't seen the shadows of the 3 cubs, causing him to slightly feel uncomfortable.
Although the beasts that he purchased only consisted of herbivores, the thought of them mutating and successfully becoming omnivorous or carnivores emerged within his mind.
(One of the examples of these is those little ducks that looked at the fish with curiosity.)
Crunch!
As he was pondering deep within, a sudden faint sound of munching, originating from the distance, entered Araw's ears, causing Araw's expression to change greatly as he immediately shifted his gaze toward the encompassing land...
In an instant, a small tree bearing unripe fruits entered Araw's eyes. The fruits' surface could be seen flickering with a faint healthy glow as their somewhat sweet aroma, exuding from their beings, quietly drifted within the atmosphere — a testament that they would mature soon.
However, the thing that caught Araw's attention was the small deer munching on one of the tree's fruits... which caused his face to instantly turn dark.
Surprisingly, some of the deer's skin already turned green, while its irises seemed to contain a tint of deep green within, silently swirling as it unfolded faint traces of spirituality. Its dreamy silver hooves also carried a metallic glow that gave him a faint sensation of coldness.
In addition, every time it moved, the air around seemed to accompany it, causing the grasses nearby to sway chaotically.
Seemingly not noticing Araw's presence, the deer again opened its mouth, slowly biting the corner of the unripe fruit as its eyes curved upward in enjoyment — creating a crispy sound that reverberated within the surrounding area before eventually gulping the juices within.
"You beast! That's my precious fruit!"