Han Xi jumps onto Xu Hao's head, assuming her rightful position on her throne. Xu Hao extinguishes the fire and the two start to make their way back to the vilge. As they go to pass by the front gate, the guard waves at them both.

  “Hey you two! Coming back already?” says the guard as they approach.

  “Yeah, we ended up with a big haul today, so we decided to come back early and rex.” Xu Hao replies, stopping at the gate.

  Surprised, the guard gives him a pyful, suspicious gre. “You didn't steal anyone's catches, did you~?”

  Giggling at the guard's teasing, he replies, “No, no, nothing of the sort. You won't believe it, this little one took down 3 frosthorn deer in a matter of minutes!” he says, pointing at Han Xi, and completely shocking the guard.

  Irritated as she's being pointed at, she bites his finger, causing him to recoil. ‘Serves you right for pointing at me. Though I'll give you a few points for your praise~.’ she thinks in her mind pompously.

  “Ouch!! Ok, ok, I get it, no more pointing.” Xu Hao looks at his finger with a wronged expression. Surely, just because he pointed at her, doesn't mean he deserved such treatment.

  Meanwhile, the guard is still processing what he had heard, his jaw slightly agape. “You're telling me that tiny little fox took down 3 of them?! They may just be animal grade, but they are fast. Surely a fox cub couldn't keep up with them, let alone do enough damage to kill them.”

  The guard makes a very good point. Most fox cubs as old as Han Xi are still reliant on their parents to survive. They would struggle to injure a rabbit, even if it stood still. But she was special since she was born with not just a system to help her grow faster, but immediate access to skills.

  “It's true, she was the one that did it. You know I wouldn't dare come home empty-handed at this hour. A certain someone would kill me.” Both Xu Hao and the guard shudder, thinking of Lei Yue's wrath.

  Sighing, the guard opens the gate, allowing them to pass. “Alright, I get it. It's just hard to believe, that's all. Anyway, welcome back, and I'll see you ter.”

  Both of them enter the vilge, walking down the main road towards their residence. As they approach, they notice Lei Yue outside, tending to the maintenance of the house. She notices them approaching and waves at them. Xu Hao waves back at her, smiling. Only after standing in front of her, does he finally notice the sinister smile on her face.

  “Xu Hao, welcome home~. You had better be bearing proper food this time, since you are so early.” she says in a friendly, yet threatening voice.

  Xu Hao immediately shrinks back from her intimidation. “W-well, yes, we have come home with food. Actually, Miss Han Xi collected enough food for us today to st nearly a week!” he says, pointing to his storage pouch.

  This shocks Lei Yue greatly, as Xu Hao has never been particurly good at hunting due to not being very strong. But what shocks her more, is the fact that this small fox cub was able to take down so many animals.

  “What?! There is no way. I don't believe you. Show me what you brought back.” Lei Yue yells out in disbelief. Her loud voice drew the attention of nearby onlookers. They, too, are now curious what he brought home.

  Hesitantly, he opens his storage pouch and takes out the 3 frosthorn deer and 2 rabbits, shocking nearby vilgers, but also Lei Yue.

  “How did you get so many?! You're telling me this little fox cub took them all down herself?! Not possible!” Lei Yue excims in shock while everyone nods their heads, agreeing with her statement. “Even some of the best hunters in this vilge struggle to get a single one of them due to their speed and ck of proper equipment, but you're trying to say this little one caught them effortlessly?”

  “Yes, I'm telling you the truth, I swear! You know I can't kill even one of them, so how else would I get them.” he says defensively.

  [New Quest: Shock all the humans in the vilge with your might!Difficulty: MediumGoal: Kill 7 frost boars before sundown with a witness present.Bonus Goal: Shock them so greatly, at least 3 pass out. Current Progress: 0/7Time Remaining: 6hrRewards: 5x Meat, 50 Stat Points, 20 Skill Points, 1 Health Pill, 1 Lucky PillBonus Rewards: Rewards depend on how shocked they are.]

  Han Xi starts giggling, and then breaking out into full-blown ughter at the quest given to her by the system. ‘A quest to shock everyone here? Sounds like fun, so don’t mind if I do! Maybe then they’ll understand how great I am.’ she thinks delusionally. ‘But look at those rewards. Getting 50 stat points is practically a 60% boost in my stats! Not to mention the Health Pill and Lucky Pill. Those sound fantastic! You’re on, System!’

  Everyone gathered around stops talking and notices the strange sight of a fox cub ughing for seemingly no reason. After she stops ughing, she notices everyone staring at her, and she coughs awkwardly. ‘Wait, I only have 6 hours to complete this?! How exactly am I going to communicate this to the Little Perv…’

  Han Xi taps Xu Hao on the head with her paw, trying to let him know she wants something. He looks back at her with a puzzled expression. She points her paw towards the deer, and then to him, and stly the gate to the vilge. This causes him to think for a few moments, and then realizes what she's trying to say.

  “Are you saying that you want to prove yourself by hunting some more?” he asks after realizing what she means. Han Xi nods her head, indicating that he understood her intentions well.

  “Wait, wait, WAIT, you’re trying to say that fox is communicating with you? Wouldn’t that mean it has the intelligence of a demonic beast or higher?!” one of the male vilgers says in shock, his jaw completely agape. A few moments after he says that, the jaws of all the vilgers surrounding the house fall equally low, as they now are processing the situation.

  As mentioned previously, a being at the animal grade should not have any intelligence at all and are generally considered to not be able to form any complex thoughts. However, when an animal evolves into a savage beast, it gains the capacity for some intelligence, albeit not much. Following that evolution, is the evolution into a demonic beast. At this stage, the beast is able to create complex thoughts and has a sense of identity.

  Amused by the man's reaction, Han Xi decides she wants him to be the witness to her sughter. She taps Xu Hao’s head once again, points towards the man, and then back at Xu Hao.

  “Are you asking me to take him along with us?” he asks, looking up at her from below.

  Han Xi nods her head once again, indicating he is correct. Unbeknownst to him, she is still slightly irritated that he is guessing everything she is trying to communicate, as it makes her feel too easy to read.

  The man smiles, “Hey, I like this fox! I’ll come along, and I’ll see what it can do. Then we can settle this friendly dispute!” he says with a jolly attitude. “It's unbelievable that it has intelligence at just animal grade, however. I’m sure it has other surprises, too. Here’s an idea, if the fox does catch anything, we split the meat up between everyone and have a feast! Would that be okay with you, little fox? I promise, our best cooks will make you a feast you'll never forget.”

  This proposition irritates Han Xi a little, since her prey should be rightfully hers to dictate where it goes. However, thinking about it, if she does agree to his terms, she will become well liked in this vilge. This could potentially give her free rein to do as she pleases here without running into surprises. Not to mention, the successful completion of this mission with a witness will attest to her strength, meaning less people will be likely to cause her trouble. If she’s lucky, maybe she can make this vilge into her own!

  She reluctantly nods her head, causing all the vilgers to cheer. Whether she gets more meat or not, they will all be satisfied with the result. Today's antics have cheered everyone up, and if they get a feast from it, all the better!

  He narrows his eyes as he studies the little fox. If she really is as strong as they cim, she may one day surpass everyone in the vilge, if she hasn't already. “That's great news! In a show of good faith, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Xian Fu, but you may call me Elder Fu. I am this vilge's elder. I look forward to hunting with you, little fox.” Elder Fu says, cupping his hands to show respect.

  Just like how Xu Hao thought, Elder Fu also believes this fox to be special, due to her intelligence and unusual circumstances. If she does manage to demonstrate her might, he would be inclined to believe that her cultivation potential would be massive. As a leader, it is his job to ensure the safety of the vilge, and this little fox could one day jeopardize that safety if treated wrong. Therefore, he believes it's important to earn its respect now.

  Han Xi nods smugly, looking down at the man from atop Xu Hao's head. To her, it was only natural they would show her such respect. This caused her opinion of Elder Fu to rise considerably.

  The crowd disperses for the time being, as Xu Hao and Elder Fu need time to prepare for their trip and agree to leave in 1 hour's time. This naturally upsets Han Xi, as that means she is losing 1 of her precious hours to hunt for the quest. However, since she can not voice her displeasure, she is forced to comply.

  Lei Yue sighs, as her quiet day tending to the house has been interrupted by something so troublesome. “Let me make you something to eat before you leave on your second trip. It is the least I can do, considering you brought so much food home.”

  Han Xi's tail wags quickly, and her ears perk up at the sound of a meal. She has been starving since she woke up, and even more so after exhausting herself earlier. Xu Hao naturally feels a simir way and smiles delightfully. “That sounds wonderful, thank you! Though it may be in vain, I'll go give Han Xi another bath to clean off the blood from her earlier kills.

  Xu Hao brings Han Xi upstairs and prepares a bath for her, cleaning her fur of the blood. While he is doing this, Lei Yue brings the deer and rabbits inside and begins to prepare their meat. She also carefully cuts off the horn and antlers from the deer, pnning on selling them ter.

  While this vilge is poor, they still have 1 alchemist and 1 inscriptionist residing here. Their abilities are subpar, and are not suited to work in rger towns or cities. However, they are still able to contribute to the vilge by running their small shops. The alchemist will purchase any alchemical ingredients you can find, as long as they aren't extravagant. In turn, they also act like a local pharmacy for the residents.

  The inscriptionist will generally contribute with odd jobs around the vilge and complete requests for basic talisman. One of the few more advanced inscriptions he can make, can be observed in the mps in and surrounding the vilge. They are not done particurly well, which is why they are dim. Despite this, it is still impressive he is able to make such an inscription at his current skill level to begin with.

  Xu Hao finishes scrubbing Han Xi’s fur clean and uses a cloth to dry her off. As the two make their way downstairs, the delightful aroma of the frosthorn deer being tenderly cooked by Lei Yue fills their noses, causing them to salivate. They rush down the stairs and sit at the table.

  While they wait, Xu Hao decides to pick Han Xi up and pces her on his head. Unlike st time, Han Xi does not get irritated with him. This is likely due to her starting to grow fond of him. Although, it is also possible she feels it's just her natural pce to be, whos to say.

  Xu Hao looks up at Han Xi, and smiles. “So, have you decided whether you want to stay here with me or not yet? I originally brought you back here since you did not know the way back to your den at first. But now that you have stayed here once, would you like to continue staying here?” he asks in a friendly tone. Inside, however, he is truly nervous how she will react to his question.

  To Han Xi however, this was a simple question, with only one answer. She nods her head yes, looking down at him smiling. She does not want to go back to being alone in her den. Her time with Xu Hao and Lei Yue has been very amusing to her, and she gets to eat tasty food. She also thinks that Xu Hao's personality is very endearing.

  ‘You know if you were a woman, I would have half a mind to make you into one of my concubines in the future. Actually, come to think of it, why does he have to be a woman? I don't really feel any attraction to anyone right now. Maybe I thought that because of what System said regarding my past life memories.’ She decides to dismiss the thought for now and focus on the present.

  Xu Hao lets out a sigh of relief, followed by his entire face brightening up as she agrees to stay, causing him to stand up in celebration. “Alright! I'm gd you decided to stay, Miss Han Xi. I'll try to make you not regret that decision.” he says earnestly. Xu Hao was really concerned that she would choose to leave, as he genuinely enjoys having her around.

  “Will you please quiet and sit back down, the food is ready!” Lei Yue yells at Xu Hao, causing him to shrink and sit back down.

  The three of them begin to eat, Xu Hao bringing every other bite of the meat up to Han Xi so she can eat too. This greatly pleases her as she enjoys her meal.

  “It's almost time for us to go. Once we finish this meal, it'll be time to go back out to the forest. Are you ready, Miss Han Xi?” he says as they come close to finishing their meal.

  She nods back at him while thinking about if there is anything else she needs to do to prepare. ‘Before we leave, I should probably use my current stat points and maybe obtain another skill.’ she thinks, wondering how she should improve her stats this time.

  AnDwHaT5