Inside the seemingly endless forest, where countless beasts and abominations were roaming around.
Cold, chilling wind blew through the horizon, causing the towering trees, mostly covering the sight of the sky, to sway back and forth, generating a rustling sound.
Swish~
Within the damp ground, where vines and grasses were freely growing, a man, covered in bruises and wounds, could be seen breathing heavily underneath the cover of the canopy. His face, although pale and ordinary, carried an otherworldly aura, making him quite mysterious to one's eye.
Soon, after a few minutes, the man's eyelids began to twitch uncontrollably, as if about to awaken from a nightmare.
"Ahhh!!"
Sure enough, not even a second passed by, and the eyelids of the man suddenly opened. His black eyes, akin to a deep abyss, showed clear indication of intense pain as he released a disturbing wail, instantly breaking the silence within the forest.
"Thi-this, where am I? Am I still alive? Is this heaven?
"No, it's not possible. Although I didn't commit much sin, I knew my name in heaven was already long gone..."
Clutching his head, still remembering the illusionary pain when the truck hit his body, causing his frail physique to fly midair before hitting the nearby running car — causing his body to flatten, which sealed his death — Naib, whose head was still in extreme pain, began to notice the unfamiliar environment he was currently in.
The towering trees occupying most of his vision first entered his confused gaze, followed by the sight of a rusty yet bloody sword resting beside him.
Other than that, he also noticed the half-eaten strange fruit on the ground nearby, making his eyes suddenly constrict as an unfamiliar memory began assaulting his mind, making the receding headache come back again.
However, this time, the pain lasted much longer, causing him to again release a loud wail of agony that chillingly echoed through far.
"I... I actually transmigrated! Moreover, it's in a world filled with mythological creatures and devils!"
Gasping for breath, letting the pain within his head subside a bit, Naib then began processing the unfamiliar information that appeared within his mind, separating the useless information from the necessary one before finally opening his bloodshot eyes.
Unexpectedly, the excited expression that he should be showing on his face right now upon transmigrating into this world didn't reflect on his being; instead, a gloomy look, containing panic, appeared within the depths of his eyes.
Other than the basic knowledge regarding Beast Taming, which was the basic trend of this world, using the power of beasts to transcend the mundane and become immortal. The unfamiliar memories within his mind only showed great agony, death, and hunger.
It could be said that the predecessor of this body actually lived in constant fear and hunger for months before accidentally dying of food poisoning.
As for the reason why the predecessor's life was miserable, it's actually due to the beast tide that occurred months ago!
Although a beast tide often happened every 5 years, giving everyone ample time to grow and prepare, tragedy still occurred.
That time, it's really unfortunate for the village beast master to be ambushed by a High-Transcended beast in a critical moment, causing unexpected casualties among the high combatants, which leads to the eventual downfall of the village!
It's already fortunate for the predecessor to escape in time while the beast masters gather the attention of the beasts... Or else, he might die without an intact body.
(Beasts were divided into countless known realms, from weakest to strongest, known as; Mortal realm, Awakening realm, and Transcended realm, which were further divided into 4 stages known as the Low Stage, Mid Stage, Late Stage, and Peak Stage.
Although there are legends of existence above the Transcended realm, the predecessor wasn't fortunate to learn them.)
"This world was simply dangerous; even if I managed to transmigrate into this poor body, I might die at any second!"
Gazing at the unfamiliar surroundings, Naib couldn't help but grab the rusty sword beside him, gripping it tightly as he observed his surroundings vigilantly.
His eyes trailed to the green bushes and the towering trees in the distance before stopping at the sun that was rising from the horizon, beholding its blazing existence and feeling the heat it was releasing as his eyes soon glimpsed something in the corner of his sight.
A small button, transitioning between the colors of black and white, caught his attention, making his mind focus on it subconsciously as a monotonous voice soon echoed through his consciousness.
Ding!
[ Initiating bounding the fate-changing system... (Accept/Decline)? ]
[ Note: upon accepting, you wouldn't be able to decline the probing quest, requiring you to finish it in order to fully bind the system into your soul. ]
"This!"
Hearing the unfamiliar language within his mind yet able to understand it perfectly, Naib's first response was shock and surprise before being replaced by unprecedented excitement.
Although he usually didn't like reading novels in his past life, Naib would lie if he said that he didn't know the existence of the system. It could be said that, although their origin was highly doubtful, it's almost certain that they were extremely helpful, giving him an ample chance to reach the peak of this world!
"However, the note below gives me an unsettling feeling. This system feels like a trap... But what if it was simply reminding me?"
Roarr!
While Naib was pondering within himself — gazing at the thin panel in front of him that appeared after the monotonous voice finished speaking, containing the words that it just said — when suddenly, a roar, shaking his soul and momentarily leaving him in a daze abruptly echoed through the unknown distance, making his face pale in an instant as he instinctively raised his head toward the direction of the sound...
Unfortunately or fortunately, even after staring around him for a couple of seconds, only the dense vegetation entered his sight, making his tense body slightly relax, yet still remain cautious.
"D*mn, there's no time to hesitate. System, I accept!"