Beneath the moonlit sky, the venomous snake was none other than Bai Chuan.
As the saying went, a gentleman could wait ten years to avenge himself.
But Bai Chuan wasn't a gentleman!
Yes, reason told him that his future was boundless. As long as he held back, he would eventually become invincible, and there would be nothing left for him to fear.
But that was in the future.
Why was he evolving so furiously, hunting every day to save up points? Wasn't it all so he could evolve into something more perfect and more powerful?
Only by becoming more perfect could he experience the beauty of this world again. Only by becoming more powerful could he stop having to swallow his pride.
Otherwise, why push himself so hard? Why not just live like an ordinary Eye King?
It was because he'd already suffered enough indignity and helplessness in his previous life. In this life, he just wanted to live as he pleased, without having to bend over backward to accommodate others.
It was just a medium-sized raptor. Did he really have to abase himself over it?
He was the King of Venomous Snakes, armed with human intelligence!
Was it really so hard to deal with a raptor that had no intelligence?
Yes, as a raptor fighting a land-dwelling creature, it held the advantage from the start. As long as it wasn't arrogant or careless, it could immediately take to the skies and escape the moment things looked bad.
But could it really stay in the air forever without landing?
Not necessarily. The knowledge he'd gained during the great explosion in his previous life had taught him that no matter what kind of creature it was, if it had a mortal body, it would eventually get tired and need to rest.
And that resting period would be his best chance to strike.
Perhaps other animals might know this and still be unable to act on it, but he was different. What was the greatest hallmark of human intelligence?
The ability to observe a situation, identify its patterns, and come up with a solution.
Over the past three days, he had first figured out its range. Then, drawing on what he remembered about birds, he'd quietly searched for its nest within that area.
After that, he'd confirmed when it rested.
And so, after four days of searching, he'd finally made all the preparations.
In the dead of night, when birds slept, he'd arrived like an uninvited guest.
To do so, he'd even changed the Eye King's usual routine.
After all, the King Cobra's kind were active by day and returned to their dens at night.
But in order to get his revenge, he'd taken to going out at night.
Recalling all the effort he'd put in over the past few days, Bai Chuan stopped wasting time. His muscles tensed as he coiled himself to strike!
He plunged forward, and in an instant, his deadly bite clamped down on the Goshawk's neck.
Then, in a rare move, he wrapped his thick, powerful body tightly around the bird, paying particular attention to its sharp talons.
Eye Kings rarely used their bodies to constrict their prey. Their thick scales and deadly venom meant they only needed to bite down and hold on until their prey died.
Only in the rare fights between one Eye King and another did they coil around their opponent.
Of course, this showed that Eye Kings weren't especially good at constricting. But not being good at it didn't mean they couldn't do it at all.
This showed just how seriously Bai Chuan was taking things.
The sudden, searing pain finally woke the Goshawk, but it was already too late.
A raptor barely over fifty centimeters tall, with a wingspan of just over a meter, could never hope to match a giant King of Venomous Snakes more than three meters long.
Especially when it was already trapped in his thick, powerful coils, its neck bitten, its wings pinned, and its talons bound.
Before long, Bai Chuan felt the prey in his coils struggling less. Its body was slowly starting to stiffen, too.
Only after he was certain the venom had taken effect did Bai Chuan slowly loosen his coils. The Goshawk was barely breathing.
Then Bai Chuan moved his head closer and examined the bird. Good. It really did have a bald patch.
That meant he'd found the right target.
Next, he glanced at the sky. There was still plenty of time, so he began a gluttonous feast.
He was probably one of the few venomous snakes around that ate eagles.
By the time Bai Chuan had finished eating the Goshawk and returned to his tree hollow, the sky was just beginning to brighten.
This was usually when he went out, but now it was time for him to rest. He had to admit, getting revenge had worn him out.
Fortunately, it had all been worth it.
Six days had passed, and he'd saved up 60% of a point. It wouldn't be long before he had enough for another one.
As for how to spend it, he hadn't decided yet. He still knew far too little about biology.
As he pondered, he drifted into a deep sleep.
At dusk, after sleeping for almost a whole day, he finally stirred.
The first thing he did was open the Panel, then look at the Ability Structure Library. A new model had appeared there.
'Ability Structure Library: Rat, Sharp-Snouted Viper, Python, Frog, Goshawk.'
He stared at it for a moment, then casually tapped the Goshawk model.
In an instant, a transparent Goshawk radiating an eerie blue light soared into the air and settled before him, slowly rotating.
Come to think of it, this was the first time he'd ever seen a bird model so clearly.
Its sharp eyes, curved and sturdy beak, thick, razor-sharp talons, and majestic bearing.
Anyone would have to marvel at such a magnificent bird!
At the same time, the Goshawk's abilities appeared.
'Species: Goshawk.'
'Ability Structure: Flight LV2, Sharp Claws LV2, Clairvoyance LV2, Digestion and Absorption LV1, Strength LV1 (chest mutation), Avian Bone LV1 (flight mutation)...'
"Holy! Th-this is such a rich set of abilities! It's got three LV2 abilities, and... and... it even has..."
"D-D-Digestion and Absorption!"
Staring at the incredibly detailed panel, Bai Chuan initially could only suck in a breath and marvel. He couldn't help admiring how birds of prey were indeed among the kings of the sky. Even one that wasn't among the very top raptors had such an impressive range of abilities.
Then he read further and suddenly spotted an ability: "Digestion and Absorption"!
The surprise came so suddenly that he was left speechless with excitement.
Once he recovered, he burst into wild laughter:
"Hahaha! Looks like even heaven is helping me! The flowers I planted never bloomed, but the willows I stuck in the ground grew into a shady grove. I've finally, finally found 'Digestion and Absorption'! Now my road to soaring has truly begun!"
It was no wonder he was so excited. Anyone familiar with the abilities on his Panel knew what a meteoric rise awaited him once he acquired "Digestion and Absorption."
Before, no matter how much he ate, he could use the Panel's passive ability to trigger a bout of frenzied digestion.
But the problem was, no matter how quickly he digested, if his ability to absorb couldn't keep pace, the energy produced by digestion would simply dissipate and go to waste.
That was also why, with the Panel's ability usable only once a day, it took him a grueling ten days to save up a single point—and why he had to hunt like mad every day.
But now, things were different. Improved Digestion meant he wouldn't have to rely on the Panel's once-a-day ability to digest his food. He could digest it rapidly at any time.
Improved absorption meant he could take in more energy each day. More energy meant he'd need less time to accumulate points.
And what would less time mean? No need to spell it out: points would build up faster, letting him evolve more powerful abilities sooner, as well as even stronger LV2 abilities.
At that moment, he was so thrilled that he didn't even bother with the Heat-Sensing Pit he'd long dreamed of or the Goshawk's Clairvoyance.
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