Chapter Four: The Proper Way to Unlock the System
After reviewing the system panel, Li Yunfei glanced at the little fox in his arms and navigated to the pet panel. In his mind, he said, “Bind pet.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a black liquid instantly began to ooze from his hand, seeping into the little fox’s fur—it was precisely the substance formed from that pearl.
A swirl of rainbow light emerged from the pet panel. When the glow faded, a three-dimensional image of the little fox appeared in the center of the previously empty panel.
Above the image was a blank space with the words “Please name your pet.”
Without hesitation, Li Yunfei entered the name “Red” in the space.
Beside the pet’s name was the label “Level: 1,” and below that, an experience bar, indicating that pets could level up as well.
Further down was an option: “Store pet in Pet Space.”
Li Yunfei tapped the question mark next to this option, and information about Pet Space surfaced in his mind.
Pet Space was an independent realm, replicating the environment familiar to Red—the surroundings of Li Yunfei’s home.
Essentially, Pet Space was the habitat most comfortable and familiar to the pet.
When storing a pet in Pet Space, Li Yunfei could choose whether or not the pet could perceive the outside world.
This way, even in Pet Space, the pet wouldn’t feel lonely.
Below the “Store pet in Pet Space” option, there was one last line:
Skills: [empty][empty][empty]…
Not only could pets level up, but they would also awaken skills.
Li Yunfei’s consciousness focused in turn on each empty slot, revealing prompts for “Awaken at level ten,” “Awaken at level twenty,” “Awaken at level thirty.”
It appeared that the pet would awaken a skill every ten levels. Li Yunfei was filled with anticipation, wondering what abilities Red would unlock.
But what about his own skills? How would he awaken them? Was it also through leveling up? Why didn’t his skill panel show any prompts?
Sitting on the sofa, pondering for a while, Li Yunfei decided to run a test.
He stood up, still holding the little fox, picked up her bowl, and walked to the kitchen. He took several eggs from the fridge.
The little fox’s eyes lit up, her captivating gaze narrowing into two crescent moons, and she let out a soft, sweet “yiyi” sound.
Besides meat, foxes loved eggs most of all—any kind of egg, but chicken eggs were their favorite.
Li Yunfei chuckled, cracked the eggs into the bowl, returned to the little fox’s nest, and set her down with the bowl.
He gently rubbed her fur, laughing, “Winner winner, chicken dinner. Stay home, be good. Your master’s going to buy your favorite treats.”
“Yiyi.”
---
Whether she truly understood or was simply acting on instinct, the little fox stuck out her soft tongue and licked Li Yunfei’s hand before she started lapping at the eggs.
Li Yunfei smiled, rose, and headed out—planning to buy a few live chickens to experiment with, to see how much experience he’d gain from butchering one.
Driving to the market, he found the live poultry section and bought two roosters and two hens, packed them in a snakeskin bag, and brought them home.
When the little fox heard the clucking, she darted excitedly around Li Yunfei’s feet, full of anticipation.
Unable to wait, Li Yunfei carried the bag to the kitchen, boiled water in the electric kettle, plucked feathers from the chickens’ necks, flipped their heads, gripped them firmly, and with a swift, practiced motion slit their throats with a kitchen knife.
Moments later, the chickens had expired. He opened his attribute panel and stared, conflicted.
Killing one chicken only increased his experience by 0.01%. He’d have to slaughter ten thousand chickens to reach level 2.
Each chicken cost several dozen yuan; that meant he’d need to spend hundreds of thousands to level up once.
And ten thousand chickens—his arms would go numb from killing them! Where would he even keep so many?
This was absurd. He wondered how much experience slaughtering pigs, cows, or larger livestock would provide—probably not much more.
That dashed his hopes of running a farm or slaughterhouse for leveling.
Li Yunfei felt he hadn’t yet discovered the proper way to use the system. Surely it couldn’t be this ridiculous.
With no other options, he set the matter aside and quickly cleaned the four chickens.
He first cut a few pieces of chicken meat for the little fox, then prepared dinner for himself.
After eating, his satiety rose to 82%, and his stamina recovery accelerated.
Around 80% fullness was the most comfortable state; he could eat more, but would feel bloated and sluggish, and recovery slowed. Overeating always made people feel exhausted.
Below 80%, he was no longer hungry, but still felt unsatisfied, wanting to eat more.
No wonder experts said that eating until eighty percent full was best—it truly made sense.
After washing the dishes, Li Yunfei tied a leash to the little fox and took her out for a walk.
He never expected that this stroll would reveal the true way to use his system.
Passing through the garden, he noticed several children playing near the flowerbeds, feeding ants.
They placed bits of food, like crumbs, before a solitary ant, which lingered beside the food before returning to its nest.
Soon, lines of ants would emerge from the hole, working together to carry the food back into their nest.
Li Yunfei had done this as a child himself. Watching ants cooperate to move objects much larger than themselves was endlessly fascinating.
As he walked by, leash in hand, Li Yunfei smiled knowingly, seeing in these children the reflection of his own childhood.
---
Just then, a system notification suddenly sounded in his mind.
“Attention, host: Instance ‘Ant Nest’ discovered. Level range: 1 to 5. Please select instance level.”
At last, Li Yunfei realized where his true battlefield lay, and how he was meant to level up.
He paused for a moment, suppressing his excitement, and continued walking the little fox as usual. Before long, another notification chimed.
He noted each location where the alert sounded, and with a quick search, found numerous ant nests formed by mounds of fine sand, mostly at the base of the flowerbeds.
There were plenty of ant nests in this garden. By the time he finished his walk, he had discovered no fewer than twenty ant nest instances. Returning home, he immediately began preparations for dungeon runs.
As a former field reconnaissance soldier, he never fought an unprepared battle.
…
The next morning, at first light.
“Weapons, tactical flashlight, food, water, pots, bowls, stove, wax blocks, lighter, herbal spray, first aid kit, antibiotics, bedding, tent, towel, folding bicycle…”
The living room floor was covered with gear. As a strong, slender finger pointed at each item, they vanished one by one.
When everything had disappeared, Li Yunfei, crouching in the living room, dressed in a black short-sleeved athletic shirt, army green outdoor pants, fingerless leather gloves, and tactical boots, rose to his feet.
Having packed all his gear into the system inventory, Li Yunfei closed his eyes and thought carefully, ensuring nothing was forgotten.
Moments later, confident that he was thoroughly prepared, he opened his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.
Turning to the little fox crouched beside him, Li Yunfei gave her a smile so warm and gentle that any girl would instinctively want to call him “Oppa.”
He bent to pick up the little fox, gently stroking her head. “Red, from now on, we’ll fight side by side.”
“Yiyi.”
The little fox seemed to understand, calling softly twice, then licking the back of his hand with her pink tongue.
“Heh, let’s go!”
Without hesitation, he turned, opened the door, and headed toward the garden.
When he reached a flowerbed, the system notification sounded in his mind as expected.
“Attention, host: Instance ‘Ant Nest’ discovered. Level range: 1 to 5. Please select instance level.”