Chapter 19: The Appearance of Humans

After the rabbit meat was finished roasting, the black panther’s tail swished back and forth frequently, its gaze fixed tightly on the roasted meat, and it made a sound as if swallowing.

Ji Wuxiu divided the meat in half, giving some to the panther. Although the meat was too hot to eat immediately, the panther couldn’t resist tasting a bite. Afterward, it stared at the meat, showing an expression of shock.

Ji Wuxiu almost burst out laughing but didn’t realize that his current behavior was not much different from the panther’s.

Sitting on the grass with his large backside almost flattening the grass on both sides, Ji Wuxiu paid no attention to his image, holding the rabbit meat with his bear paw and gnawing away, sighing in delight as he ate.

So delicious!

Simply scrumptious.

The system watched with shock and panic, then prompted: 【Host, pay attention to your image.】

Ji Wuxiu rolled his eyes, innocently replying to the system: “I’m trying to gain weight, ensuring I won’t lose five pounds next month. There’s no one else around, and this panther doesn’t understand my charm, so why should I care about my image?”

The system was silent for a few seconds before responding: 【I understand, Host.】

Satisfied, Ji Wuxiu continued eating.

In the corner, a black ball of fur rolled around anxiously, unable to contain its impatience.

—Squeak, I really want to eat.

Seeing the two large creatures almost finishing off the meat, the black ball of fur could no longer hold back. It quietly rolled over, despite the grass sticking to its fur, and rushed toward the food.

It kept rolling forward, the world spinning around it, dizzy and unable to see straight. But even though it felt like it might throw up, it still pushed forward to eat the meat.

Ji Wuxiu stopped eating, stunned as the ball of fur rolled up to him and bumped into his leg, coming to a complete stop.

“Squeak!” The ball of fur cried out in pain.

Ji Wuxiu instantly jolted.

This black ball of fur… is alive?

The black panther didn’t even glance at the black fur ball, continuing to devour the roasted rabbit.

Ji Wuxiu nudged the black panther, signaling with his eyes that something was coming.

Only then did the black panther reluctantly lift its head, glance at the black fur ball, and instinctively assess the level of danger.

The thing looked small, with no claws or teeth—it definitely posed no threat.

Relaxing its vigilance, the panther continued eating.

“……” Ji Wuxiu.

This panther loves to eat this much?

Ji Wuxiu was helpless and decided to stop paying attention to the black panther. Instead, he carefully moved over to the fur ball and gently poked it.

The fur ball trembled, rolling around once more, seemingly turning its head to reveal a pair of small, almost invisible eyes, letting out a terrified squeak.

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

What is this thing?

The black fur ball shook like a sieve, letting out a fearful cry.

It regretted its decision.

It had gotten itself into this mess just for some good food.

After thinking for a moment, Ji Wuxiu decided to try talking to the strange fur ball.

“Mm?” Who are you?

What was meant to be a simple “mm” sound, when it reached the fur ball’s ears, turned into a language it could understand.

The fur ball’s eyes widened, its body shook, and it began rolling in circles out of fear, letting out a childish cry: “Squeak—squeak!”

—So scary! The monster can talk!

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

Are all the animals here crazy?

The black fur ball rolled around several times, realizing the monster wasn’t going to attack it. It cautiously stopped rolling.

“Squeak?”

—Monster, aren’t you going to eat me?

Ji Wuxiu felt bothered. With his appearance, he was a well-behaved bamboo eater. How could he suddenly eat another animal for no reason?

Not receiving an answer from the monster, the fur ball didn’t mind and instead looked at the roasted meat with cautious eyes, making a request.

“Squeak squeak squeak? Squeak!”

—Can you give me a little bit of the meat? I want to eat!

Ji Wuxiu expressionlessly handed the remaining meat to the fur ball.

Eat, eat, it’s all yours.

The fur ball cheered and shook its fur, excitedly hopping in place three times.

Ji Wuxiu glanced at the black panther, which was still engrossed in eating.

The fur ball rolled over to the rabbit meat, letting out a “Ah—” sound as it took a bite.

Ji Wuxiu focused, nearly scaring himself half to death.

The fur ball took just one bite, devouring rabbit meat that was twice its size. Of course, the fur ball also swelled up a bit, but as the chewing sounds filled the air, it gradually shrank back to its original size.

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

Nature—it’s truly marvelous.

The fur ball cheered, squeaking happily, and with more affection for the strange creature before it, it hopped around a few times to show its gratitude. Then, just like it came, it rolled away with a gurgling sound, disappearing into the corner.

It just left like that?

Ji Wuxiu twitched his mouth, speechless, and quickly pushed the incident out of his mind.

However, the next day, the black panther eagerly announced it was going hunting.

Naturally, Ji Wuxiu tried to stop it, as the black panther’s injuries hadn’t fully healed.

But after having tasted the delicious roasted meat, the panther no longer cared for its previous meals. Taking advantage of Ji Wuxiu’s absence while he was fishing, the panther snuck off to hunt.

So, when Ji Wuxiu returned with a fish in his mouth, he found two black figures waiting patiently for him to start the fire and roast something.

The black panther wore a cold expression, but its tail was wagging excitedly, and as soon as it saw Ji Wuxiu, it immediately growled: “Awoooo!”

—Ugly creature, here’s some meat for you.

It then nudged the prey on the ground with its paw—another rabbit, just like the one from yesterday, meeting its end at the panther’s mouth.

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

His mission when he crossed over was to be cute and level up, not to be a cook.

Meanwhile, the black fur ball watched the black panther’s actions and suddenly understood.

So, to get meat, you had to give this monster something.

The black fur ball immediately rolled off, and after a while it dragged the equally dead insect and placed it in front of Ji Wuxiu, hopping excitedly: “Squeak!”

—Here, I want meat.

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

What kind of karma did he have in his past life?

He really wanted to flatly refuse the requests of these two black creatures, but when he saw the two sets of eager eyes…

Half an hour later, Ji Wuxiu lay back in contentment, kicking his legs up, rubbing his belly, and giving a living demonstration of what it meant to become as round as a ball.

The panther sat poised, but couldn’t resist licking its lips, savoring the scent of the roasted meat.

“Squeak…” The black fur ball rolled around, letting out a satisfied squeak. Its body expanded to three times its size, but strangely—as it kept rolling—its body gradually shrank back down, and eventually, it lay down with an empty expression, completely flattened into a… leaking dumpling.

The panther suddenly pressed down on the black fur ball, stepping on it with its paw and shaking it around, growling playfully.

The fur ball didn’t scream in pain, instead letting out a relaxed squeak.

“Squeak~”

Ji Wuxiu, who originally planned to get up and rescue the black fur ball, lay back down and stopped paying attention to the two black creatures.

For the next few days, Ji Wuxiu could only choose to turn a blind eye, letting the black panther go hunting while he handled the roasting. The fur ball also showed up at mealtime every day, eventually completely settling in and not leaving. It even shamelessly moved into the black panther’s tree hole nest.

The black panther, however, showed no reaction.

Ji Wuxiu couldn’t help but be curious. Based on his understanding of the black panther, it didn’t seem like the type to allow other creatures into its territory.

The panther lazily lay on the grass, constantly pressing the black fur ball with its paw, flattening it from a round ball to a pancake. From start to finish, the fur ball only let out satisfied sounds.

Ji Wuxiu: “……”

He seemed to understand why.

Time quietly passed, and a week soon went by.

The panther’s injuries were completely healed. The fur that had fallen off due to the wound had grown back, and its body became even more massive than before awakening. Its gaze now exuded an inexplicable sense of oppressive power.

In response, the system explained: 【Because it has become stronger.】

Ji Wuxiu, while feeling a bit alarmed, was also curious about the black panther’s abilities.

He approached the panther and asked it to attack a nearby tree, wanting to see how strong the panther’s attacking power was.

The black panther showed no interest, only wanting to hunt every day, have the ugly creature roast meat, and continue roasting meat—roast meat every day.

Ji Wuxiu quickly realized what the panther was thinking and hurriedly promised that if it didn’t obey, it wouldn’t get roasted meat.

Reluctantly, the panther nodded, its tail nervously slapping the ground.

The panther’s response made Ji Wuxiu feel a sense of melancholy.

His attempts to act cute were useless, as the panda who topped Earth’s popularity charts, he had failed to conquer animals with cuteness, and now… he had to rely on his cooking skills to win over the black panther.

The black panther used its ability, quickly opening its mouth and roaring. A golden lightning bolt snaked forward, striking the thick trunk of a tree. A loud thunderclap echoed, and the tree instantly turned black, leaving only half of it standing.

Ji Wuxiu’s eyes widened: “!!!”

Impressive.

So awakened mutant beasts are this strong?

The system’s voice came from the side: 【If the host levels up, it will be even stronger than the Lightning Panther.】

Ji Wuxiu was stunned. “Level up? What level am I now?”

【Beep! Host, your current level is: 0. To level up successfully, you need 100 cuteness points.】

Ji Wuxiu was instantly filled with despair.

Cuteness… why is it so difficult?

Suddenly, the black fur ball urgently squeaked, “Chirp!” indicating danger.

Ji Wuxiu was taken aback.

At that moment, faint human voices could be heard from the front.

“It seems the sound came from over here…”

“Let’s go, we’ll check it out… maybe it’s the mutant beast causing the commotion.”

Ji Wuxiu’s heart tightened, and he suddenly realized what the black fur ball meant by danger.

He hurriedly pulled the black panther behind a large rock in the dark, giving it a warning.

— Don’t attack unless I give the command, understand?

Although Ji Wuxiu had only encountered humans once since crossing over, that single encounter had made him fully aware of the low status of animals.

Especially mutant beasts.

They were beings that humans loved to torment.

The black panther’s vertical pupils contracted, staring at an unknown spot, with a fierce look on its face.

Seeing this, Ji Wuxiu became even more concerned.

The previous incident had left a huge shadow over the black panther, making it harbor great hatred for humans.

The black fur ball trembled in Ji Wuxiu’s arms, shaking in fear.