Chapter 256 The First Day of Entering a Xuanhuan Novel

Chapter 256: The First Day of Falling into a Fantasy Novel

He regained consciousness.

An Yi slowly opened his eyes. What met his eyes was not the home he shared with Chu Chen, but a thick, unyielding darkness interwoven with deep green and murky gloom.

Tall trees with gnarled, twisted branches—like countless contorted, struggling arms—cut the already dim sky into jagged fragments.

The air was thick with the scent of leaves and damp soil, mingled with a dampness that seeped into his nostrils.

An Yi was instantly wide awake.

Once again... after his life had come to an end, he had transmigrated.

He wondered which book he had ended up in this time.

Just like before, he had been cast into another unknown world without any warning.

It was just a pity about his last life... he had been the one to leave first.

Chu Chen... his Dr. Curly... he would surely be heartbroken.

An Yi steadied himself. He instinctively tried to sit up, but suddenly realized his perspective was unnervingly low, as if his entire body were prostrate on the ground.

Moreover, had he transmigrated into the wild this time?

He tried to speak, to mutter to himself, "Where is this?"—but what escaped his throat was not his voice, but a feeble, delicate sound that made even his own scalp tingle—

"Meep~"

An Yi: "..."

A chill shot up from the base of his spine to the crown of his head.

He snapped his head down—

What met his eyes were not human hands, but two... furry, little pitch-black paws!

They rested limply on the ground covered in wild grass and fallen leaves.

An Yi: "!!!!"

The sheer shock nearly made all the fur on his body stand on end!

He couldn't believe it as he raised one of those "hands," the little black furry paw trembling slightly in front of his eyes.

As he moved, five tiny pink paw pads spread apart, revealing the thin, sharp-looking but utterly harmless claws hidden beneath. Then they snapped shut again, like a startled black velvet flower closing in on itself.

"Meep~!" That uncontrollable, delicate cry escaped his throat once more, and this time, even he could hear the terror in it.

Was this really his hand?

It wasn't a human hand!!

He wasn't even human anymore?!

The realization made his heart seize up.

Back when he'd first transmigrated into that restricted novel, he'd calmly thought that after the trials of that world, he probably wouldn't panic again, no matter what bizarre realm he encountered next.

It seemed he had spoken too soon.

An Yi shook his head internally.

His two little paws instinctively dug deep into the damp ground beneath him, the sensation of grass roots and sharp pebbles coming through clearly through the soft paw pads—real, undeniable.

His mind raced as he attempted to summon his spatial power.

Thankfully, the familiar fluctuation of his spatial power was still there.

A mirror materialized on the open ground before him, and An Yi scrambled toward it.

However, this unfamiliar body, which could only move on all fours, made his movements clumsy and unsteady.

He plopped down in front of the mirror, desperately peering at its surface.

The mirror vividly reflected his current appearance.

An Yi: "..."

In the mirror was... a palm-sized, pitch-black, ball of fluff so fluffy it was nearly spherical.

Its fur was exceptionally dense, gleaming with a healthy sheen, yet so fluffed out that its overall silhouette looked like a round ball.

His features were almost entirely hidden by that deep black fuzz; only the faintest contours hinted at where his eyes and nose might be. Without a close look, it looked like a faceless, moving ball of fluff.

The only prominent feature was the tail behind him—nearly as long as his body, equally fluffy and bushy—now stiffly erect and motionless due to his intense emotional turmoil, standing like a little flagpole.

To be fair, setting aside the fact that this was his own body, just looking at the image in the mirror—this pitch-black ball with only a tail and no discernible face—was indeed... the kind of "cuteness" that made one want to reach out and squish it.

Round, fluffy, faceless.

But... this was his body!

He wasn't a human being anymore?!

An overwhelming sense of absurdity and shock left An Yi unable even to feel angry; he could only feel a mix of amusement and exasperation.

He instinctively tried to curl the corner of his mouth, but instead, another string of feeble sounds uncontrollably spilled from his throat: "Meep meep~ meep~"

An Yi: "..."

Whatever.

He drew in a sharp breath, the air filling his lungs, carrying the cool dampness of the forest.

Since he was here, he might as well settle in.

The experiences of his previous worlds had long forged his adaptability and composure.

With a thought, he dismissed the mirror and began trying to sort through and process the memories left by this body's original owner.

Unfortunately, the original owner's memories were woefully sparse.

For as long as he could remember, he had lived alone in this seemingly endless forest.

The memories were monotonous and repetitive, carrying a raw, unpolished quality.

When thirsty, he would tilt his head up and lap up the sweet, fresh dew gathered on broad leaves.

When hungry, he would seek out the brightly colored, juicy exotic fruits hanging from the branches.

When tired, he would curl up in a cave and sink into dreamless sleep.

Day after day, year after year, his mind remained empty, just running and leaping through the forest in a daze, driven by the most primal survival instincts.

No parents, no companions, no name—not even a clear sense of "self."

Like a mindless breeze drifting through the woods, or a pebble tumbling aimlessly, he existed without leaving a single lasting mark.

Yet, in a corner of this nearly blank canvas of memory, An Yi managed to pick up a few fragmented yet crucial pieces of information.

It wasn't systematic knowledge, but rather a vague inheritance etched deep in his blood:

In this world, one could cultivate.

Also, this world had demons and monsters.

By absorbing a special energy from heaven and earth and refining oneself, once one's power reached a certain level, a demon could shed its original form and take human form.

Thinking back to this, An Yi's tense mind eased slightly.

That was a relief.

Although this current form—fluffy, pitch-black, and only able to "squeak"—wasn't entirely unacceptable.

But he was still more used to existing and thinking in human form; it was more convenient.

Now that he knew the way forward, he could cultivate anew and take human form again.

Though the process might be long and hard, it was still a glimmer of hope.

Still, was the book he'd transmigrated into this time about cultivation or something else?

How interesting.

An Yi lay quietly on the fallen leaves, his one clearly visible fluffy tail giving a gentle flick.