Go Climb a Tree

The rabbit eventually became Andy's dinner. With a full stomach, Andy lay down on that dilapidated bed and survived another night.

For several days in a row, Andy spent his time waking up early and running around for the sake of his belly. Whether his physical strength had increased, Andy wasn't sure, but he had certainly become more proficient with his traps. The camouflage for his traps had also become increasingly varied, though he could only catch small animals; he lacked the leg-hold traps needed for anything larger.

On the morning of the seventh day, Andy woke up slowly. He had managed to control his wake-up time with extreme precision—not a minute late. Every day when the time came, Andy's eyes would open on their own. After such intense running, being able to wake up on time was clearly thanks to the Monster Spirit.

"Host, this Spirit wishes to file a complaint!" The Monster Spirit exploded in Andy's mind, acting as human-like and petulant as a rascal. "I protest!"

"What are you nagging about!" Andy said while putting on his shoes. "Aren't you here to assist me? What is there to protest?"

"I am an auxiliary system, not an alarm clock!" the Monster Spirit clamored. "You can go find a real alarm clock, or... you could try raising a rooster."

"Bullshit!" Andy tossed that single word at the Monster Spirit and got up to leave the room.

"Kid, how long do you think it will take for this kind of training to show results?" Andy looked up to see Nathas strolling over.

Andy rolled his eyes, thinking to himself, Is this how you act as a teacher? You leave your disciple behind, disappear for who knows how many days, and then come back to spout sarcastic remarks! If you had been here, would I have been limited to just running every day?

Seeing the murderous look in Andy's eyes, Nathas smiled awkwardly. "Let your teacher point you toward a brighter path! There is a massive tree in the north of the city; you can go climb it."

Andy was completely bewildered. This is the bright path you're pointing me toward?

"Climbing this tree has conditions. Given your current state, climb up and down once a day, then add one more trip every seven days," Nathas said. "You can come back to sleep every day, or you can sleep up there—suit yourself! A month from now, I want to see the results of your training!"

Just like that, Andy followed the "bright path" pointed out by Teacher Nathas and trudged toward the north of the city. Climbing trees wasn't difficult for Andy; he had climbed them often as a child in his past life. He couldn't exactly scale walls like a master, but he was agile. However, when he arrived at the north side and saw that abnormally tall and thick tree, cold sweat began to trickle down his back.

Damn it, is this even a tree? The trunk was so thick that ten people couldn't wrap their arms around it, and the roots protruding from the ground were gnarled like giant pythons. The bark on the trunk had peeled away in places, revealing the wood beneath, and the surface was riddled with deep gullies and ridges, with countless insects and ants crawling in and out. Andy looked up, but he couldn't even see the top, only a massive canopy. The lowest branch was as high as a twenty or thirty-story building. Andy licked his lips. Good grief, is this meant to kill me? A tree this high—let alone climbing it barehanded, even with tools, it would be exhausting. The real issue was that it wasn't safe!

"Hey, Spirit?" Andy called out in his mind. "How am I supposed to climb this?"

"Use your hands!" The Spirit seemed to still be annoyed about being treated like an alarm clock.

"No kidding. I'm asking how to climb a tree this high—what if I fall halfway up?" Andy said.

"I don't know!" the Monster Spirit replied. "This Spirit has never climbed a tree, but I believe that if you fall from this height, the scene will be quite spectacular!"

Andy almost cursed out loud. Can't this crappy system say anything pleasant? Andy spat into his palms, stretched his limbs, and prepared to start climbing.

The tree was actually quite easy to climb at first. Since it wasn't very high yet, the psychological impact wasn't too great, and there were plenty of handholds. But once he passed the ten-meter mark, the difficulties began. The height put immense pressure on Andy's mind, to the point where he didn't dare look down to see how high he had climbed. The spots on the trunk that could be used for leverage became fewer and fewer. They weren't non-existent, but they were spaced far apart, forcing Andy to exert great effort, and he had to rest after every single step. During this time, Andy asked the Monster Spirit more than once if there was a better way, but the Spirit's answers always made Andy want to curse for a long time.

"Sigh, little one, you are still too weak!" Nathas sat on a rooftop, watching the thin, small figure shifting and maneuvering on the trunk in the distance, and sighed. "Only by making you strong quickly can you truly grow."

Nathas's eyes were no longer hazy; they were exceptionally bright, with sharp glints flashing through them from time to time. "It seems the future of the spirits can only rely on you all. Malfurion is still too conservative; those unknown creatures will arrive on this continent sooner or later."

After exhausting every ounce of his strength, Andy finally touched the lowest branch of the canopy. He let out a long breath and, following the branch, stepped onto the thick limb of the great tree. Andy had the urge to shout—he had made it up! But when he thought to admire the surrounding scenery, he was left completely stunned.

The sun was gone!

To be precise, the sun was about to set completely. He had spent his entire day focusing on climbing the tree and hadn't paid any attention to the time. What was he to do? Andy looked down toward the ground and his legs couldn't help but tremble. Oh my god, it's so high!

After much deliberation, Andy decided to sleep in the tree for the night. He didn't dare climb up and down this tree in the dark; if he were to be careless and slip, it would be a regret that lasted a lifetime.

After taking in the view of Teldrassil, Andy sat quietly on a thick branch—one large enough for him to roll around on. He had spent the whole day climbing, and while he hadn't felt hungry during the ascent, now that his mind was relaxed, his stomach began to protest.

Andy looked around; there was nothing to eat, not even water to drink. He deliberately tried not to think about his hunger, lay crookedly on the branch, and closed his eyes. Thanks to the exhausting day of climbing, his mind and body were already worn out. As soon as he lay down, a wave of drowsiness hit him, and Andy drifted off into a hazy sleep.

A bird's cry made Andy jump up in a start. The morning sun filtered through the gaps in the leaves, scattering over his body. A gentle breeze blew, and a hint of coolness made Andy feel refreshed all over.

Andy stretched his body. He had to climb down today, but whether he could climb back up, he had no idea.

"Gurgle!"

Andy rubbed his stomach. It had caved in; having gone without food for a day and a night, he had no strength left.

Just as Andy was worrying about his belly, a "squeak-squeak" sound caught his attention. A small beast with a large tail ran down from the canopy and stopped in front of him. Man and beast stared at each other.

"Squeak-squeak!" The little beast seemed to be asking Andy something.

Andy felt a headache coming on. He wasn't some Druid or a beast-speaker; how could he understand what this little thing was saying? Yet, its expression clearly looked like it was asking a question. Could it be that the animals of Azeroth were all this intelligent? This reminded him of the rabbit from a few days ago, which had clearly been mocking him at the time.

"Gurgle!" Andy's stomach growled uncooperatively, seemingly in response to the little beast.

To his surprise, the little beast humanly covered its mouth with two paws, and a smile appeared on its animal face. Holy crap, it's actually laughing!

The little beast squeaked a few times and scurried away on all fours toward the top of the canopy. Before long, it returned, seemingly carrying something on its back. When the little beast reached Andy and threw the item in front of him, he realized it was a cluster of wild berries hanging on a vine.

"For me?" Andy asked, not caring if the little beast could understand.

"Squeak!" The little beast actually nodded.

Andy looked at the berries suspiciously. They were fiery red, each the size of a strawberry. Seriously, is this unknown thing actually edible?

The little beast seemed to sense Andy's hesitation, reached out a paw, grabbed a berry, and tossed it directly into its mouth, munching away. Red juice flowed down the corners of its mouth.

Andy slapped his forehead. The little beast looked harmless enough; surely it wouldn't try to poison him. Andy sat on the branch, reached out, picked the berries one by one, and tossed them into his own mouth.