Chapter 2: The Summer of the Little Monster (2)

The sky grew ever dimmer.

Within the forest, darkness had already fallen.

Yet no matter how dark it became, it had no effect on Lu Fei, who had now turned into a white wolf demon; he could see perfectly in the night.

He walked toward his dwelling, humming a tune from his mountain patrol.

Lu Fei had resigned himself to his current circumstance. After all, back on Earth, he had been nothing more than a lowly delivery rider, without ties or burdens. Now, having become a low-ranking little demon, he found that by shifting his perspective, he felt little aversion to his new form. Besides, he had a golden finger at his disposal—the chance to cultivate and attain power for himself.

His mindset shifted quickly.

By the time he returned to his dwelling—a cave built from stacked rocks—the sky outside was completely black.

No sooner had he stepped into the cave, where a faint light flickered, than he heard the voices of the crow demon and the little pig demon, Redskin, from within.

The crow demon said, “Why isn’t White Fur back yet...”

Redskin replied, “It’s about that time; maybe he’s on his way back now...”

The crow demon grumbled, “I’m starving. I didn’t get enough to eat yesterday...”

Redskin agreed, “I didn’t eat enough either. It feels like there’s less food now than before, it’s really dwindling...”

The crow demon muttered, “I wish a fight would break out soon. Then we could earn some credit. I can hardly wait…”

Redskin responded, “I still think it’ll be dangerous if there’s a fight…”

“Of course it’s dangerous…” Lu Fei said as he entered the cave, seeing the crow demon and Redskin sitting on their hard stone beds, chatting.

Yes, Lu Fei, the crow demon, and the little pig demon were all assigned to live in the same stone cave—one reason for their close bond.

In a corner of the cave stood a battered oil lamp, casting a faint glow. Though the three little demons could see without the lamp, its light gave them a different feeling.

“You’re finally back…” Seeing Lu Fei’s figure, the crow demon immediately called out, “Come on, I’m starving.” With that, he got up to leave.

“Where to…?” Lu Fei asked, sitting down by Redskin’s stone bed and glancing at the large yellow gourd on his back. “Is that water in your gourd?”

Redskin nodded. “Yes, my mother prepared it for me.”

“Could I have some?” Lu Fei asked.

“Sure,” Redskin replied, “I change the water every three days. It’s very clean.”

“Every three days…” Lu Fei hesitated upon hearing this, looking at the gourd Redskin handed over. Despite his thirst, after a moment’s hesitation, he waved it away. “I’m not thirsty right now.”

“Oh…” Redskin didn’t mind; seeing Lu Fei refuse, he slung the gourd back over his shoulder.

The crow demon spoke up, “Aren’t you hungry? We’re going out to find food. I know where we can get some.”

“Where?” Lu Fei asked.

The crow demon hurried to the cave entrance, looked out, then returned and whispered, “We’ll go to the village beneath Wandering Mountain. There are humans who raise chickens, ducks, and pigs. We can steal from there.”

“Beneath Wandering Mountain…” Redskin replied, “I heard it’s far, and that there are lots of humans there, with bows and arrows. They’re not easy to deal with.”

The crow demon snorted, “We’re demons! How can we be afraid of humans? Besides, as long as we can fill our bellies, what’s a bit of distance…”

Listening to their exchange, Lu Fei couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. How humiliating! His first day as a demon, and not only was he starving, but he had to resort to stealing just to eat.

Still, he didn’t reject the crow demon’s suggestion.

Because all over Wandering Mountain, the population of animals had dwindled after years of unchecked hunting by the demon horde. The closer to the main mountain, the fewer creatures remained. On the main peak where Lu Fei now lived, there were scarcely any animals left at all; they’d long been hunted to extinction.

Any demons wanting to hunt had to venture deep into more distant forests.

That was why Lu Fei couldn’t dismiss the crow demon’s plan. Compared to risking a long trek into the woods for a slim chance at prey, sneaking down to the foot of Wandering Mountain to steal from the village seemed far more reliable.

Many other little demons had tried as much already, though quite a few had died trying.

Seeing Redskin fall silent, the crow demon looked to Lu Fei. “White Fur, what do you think?”

Lu Fei recalled that there was a river at the base of Wandering Mountain; perhaps he could try catching fish there. But it was night now, not the right time.

Faced with the crow demon’s question, Lu Fei considered, then nodded. “Let’s go to the village.”

“But if we leave now,” he added, “we might be spotted by the other demons, and the humans probably aren’t asleep yet. We should go later.”

His stomach was aching with hunger; filling it came first. After all, you couldn’t expect a demon with an empty belly to have much enlightenment.

“You’re right, White Fur…” the crow demon quickly agreed. “If we go now, the Grayskins might see us…”

“Let’s wait until everyone’s asleep, then go…” With that, the crow demon sat back down.

He fell silent, and the cave grew quiet.

It’s hard to focus on anything when you’re hungry. This is true for humans, and even more so for little demons who’ve only recently awakened their intelligence by chance.

So, most of the time, lower-ranking little demons lazed about, slept, or played, rather than sitting in meditation to cultivate.

Only a few, whose intelligence awakened early or who were especially clever, would strive to train after taking on human form, seeking to improve themselves.

Among demonkind, most who rose to the rank of leader were such as these.

Hearing Lu Fei and the crow demon’s conversation, Redskin silently took the gourd from his back and climbed onto his stone bed, leaning against the wall in meditation.

Lu Fei wasn’t surprised; in the memories of this body’s original owner, Redskin the pig demon had always been the most diligent of the three.

There was still some time before they would head down the mountain.

Without further thought, Lu Fei returned to his own stone bed, sat against the wall, and settled into a meditative posture.

Seeing his two companions begin their breathing exercises, the crow demon, who had been about to sleep, found he couldn’t lie still anymore. Muttering a few complaints, he too sat up against the wall and started to meditate.

Two little demons began to cultivate.

Before starting his own breathing exercise, Lu Fei summoned his will.

Lines of faint, white, glowing virtual data began to appear before his eyes.