Chapter 1: The Little Goblin's Summer 1

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July.

The sun blazed as if setting the world on fire.

The sky was a boundless, cloudless blue.

Wavelike mountains rippled in the distance.

Atop a lush, green peak stood a solitary, thriving tree.

Beneath its dense shade, a figure covered in white fur sprawled out shamelessly in the grass, snoring loudly.

Beside him, two humanoid creatures exchanged glances—one with a black bird’s head, the other with a pig’s head and a yellow gourd strapped to his back.

Without warning, the black bird-headed creature kicked the white-furred figure and barked, “You’re supposed to be patrolling the mountain, not napping!”

“Damn—” The slumbering Lu Fei was jolted awake, snapping upright with a scowl. “Which bastard—”

He cut off mid-sentence, his eyes landing upon the two oddities: one with a black bird’s head, the other a brownish-red pig’s head, both clad in grass skirts and brandishing wooden spears.

Lu Fei’s eyes widened, and the words he’d meant to spit out were swallowed back in surprise.

“What are you staring at?” The crow monster, seeing the white-furred wolf’s dumbfounded gaze, sneered, “Did you sleep yourself stupid?”

“Hurry up! The chief is calling a meeting... If we’re late, Bear Leader’s whip will be waiting…”

With that, the crow monster turned and walked away. The pig-headed, gourd-carrying monster followed.

Lu Fei watched, dazed, trying to process their words as his brain scrambled to make sense of what was happening. Even with his usually calm temperament, he was utterly at a loss, his mind spinning so fast it threatened to break.

Only when he glanced down at himself did realization begin to dawn.

Fur—white fur—covered every inch of his body.

“Holy—” Lu Fei stared in shock, his hands—also covered in white fur—trembling as they reached up to his head. Two furry, upright ears, a long nose, and four sharp canine fangs met his touch.

In that instant, Lu Fei finally understood.

He had crossed over into another world—becoming a monster much like the two who’d just left.

Upright ears, a long nose, fangs... He was either a dog, a wolf, or perhaps a fox. Judging by his build, he figured fox was unlikely—he was either a dog or a wolf.

Soon, a more pressing question came to mind.

He hurriedly lifted his leafy grass skirt to check.

“Thank goodness…” Relief washed over him.

Just then, he noticed a new sensation in his mind—memories that weren’t his own.

He focused, allowing the influx of information to settle.

Now he understood: this was Langlang Mountain, and he had become a young monster, freshly awakened to intelligence and only recently able to take human form—a wolf demon.

With the memories of the body’s original owner, Lu Fei immediately grasped what the crow-headed monster had meant.

There was no time to dwell on it. He stood, glanced around, found his weapon—a wooden spear with a crude iron tip—then hurried after the two monsters, calling, “Wait for me…”

“What’s the chief’s meeting about?” He caught up with the crow monster and the pig-headed, gourd-carrying monster and asked.

Thanks to the inherited memories, he now knew exactly who these two were. The black bird-headed one was a crow demon with no formal name, usually called Crow or Blackfeather. The pig-headed one with the yellow gourd was a wild boar demon, also nameless, generally called Boar Monster or Redskin.

These two were the original wolf’s closest friends. When the chief called a meeting, it was natural for them to come looking for him.

As for the original owner, he was a wild wolf demon, all white fur, nicknamed “Whitefur.”

“No idea…” The little boar demon, Redskin, shook his head at Lu Fei’s question.

“I heard…” The crow monster paused, glanced around warily, and then whispered to his two friends, “Our Langlang Mountain might be going to war with the monsters of Serpent Coil Mountain to the west.”

“How do you know?” Redskin immediately asked.

The crow monster grinned, “Three years ago, our Langlang Mountain fought the Serpent King of Serpent Coil Mountain. After the battle, I’d just taken human form and come to serve our chief.”

“But just yesterday, I overheard some things…” He pointed proudly at his black-feathered ear and strode on ahead.

With the original owner’s memories, Lu Fei recalled that the crow monster’s innate talent had to do with his ears—he could hear things from very far away, sounds beyond the reach of other small monsters.

That was also why Crow was such a gossip and loudmouth.

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“What did you hear?” Redskin’s curiosity was insatiable; he hurried to keep up.

Lu Fei followed closely behind.

His friends’ eager eyes clearly delighted Crow, who loved to show off. But having suffered beatings for gossiping before, he was careful now—he slowed his pace, looked around, and then said quietly, “I heard that our Chief Wolf and the Big Boss were saying it’s time. They mentioned there are too many little monsters on Langlang Mountain…”

“And I heard that six years ago, there was another fight with Serpent Coil Mountain. Given the three-year cycle, it’s just about time for another…”

Before Crow could finish, Lu Fei, sensing danger, stepped forward and clapped a hand over Crow’s beak, asking seriously, “Besides the two of us, did you tell anyone else?”

Crow, clearly surprised by Whitefur’s sudden seriousness, shook his head vigorously. “No, just the two of you.”

Lu Fei released him. “Good. Don’t mention this again…”

He was interrupted by a harsh voice: “The chief called a meeting, and you three are still dawdling?”

Startled, the three monsters turned to see a towering, burly bear-headed man blocking the fork in the path, glaring fiercely at them. “You want a taste of my whip?”

As he spoke, the Bear Leader yanked a long, black whip from his belt and cracked it with a loud snap.

A spark flashed in the air with a sharp, ringing crack.

Lu Fei, Crow, and Redskin all blanched, stammering apologies as they bolted toward the chief’s cave.

They ran until the Bear Leader was out of sight, finally slowing when they neared the cave entrance, where monsters of all shapes and sizes were gathering.

“That was close…” Crow finally showed fear, patting his chest.

If Whitefur hadn’t stopped him, Crow might have said too much and been overheard by the Bear Leader. The stronger the monster, the sharper the senses. To spread rumors about the leaders was a crime punishable by death.

Crow only wanted to share secrets to feel important—his loose lips often got him in trouble, and though he regretted it later, he just couldn’t help himself in the heat of the moment.

“Whitefur…” Crow turned to his friend, who seemed different today.

“Shut up!” Lu Fei glared. “Save it for later, when we’re back.”

“Oh…” The more Whitefur acted this way, the more Crow wanted to talk, but he knew better—Bear Leader had scared him enough to keep quiet.

Redskin, the pig demon with the yellow gourd, kept glancing at Whitefur, sensing something different but unable to say what.

For a time, the three little monsters fell silent, following the others toward the chief’s cave.

Half an hour later, they found themselves on a winding mountain path.

Crow’s eyes sparkled. “See? I was right…”

“I knew the chief—”

He stopped himself, covering his mouth and glancing around before continuing, “I knew we’d be fighting Serpent Coil Mountain…”

“Isn’t that dangerous?” Redskin asked.

Crow hesitated, then said, “I’ve never been in a battle, but it must be dangerous. Still, it’s a good thing. Only by fighting can we earn merit, and only with merit can the chief reward us with treasures and food… That’s how we get stronger, maybe even strong enough to be like Bear Leader someday…”

The two monsters talked back and forth.

Lu Fei listened silently, lost in thought.

Crow noticed and asked, “Whitefur, why so quiet?”

Lu Fei snapped out of his reverie. “Let’s hurry, or we’ll only get the scraps.”

At his reminder, the other two monsters started and rushed ahead.

“Quick, or we’ll go hungry again…” Crow squawked as he ran.

Redskin, despite his looks, reacted fastest and was already ahead.

Watching them race for food, Lu Fei couldn’t muster a smile.

Langlang Mountain only provided one meal a day for the lowest-ranking monsters—hunger was normal.

So, at mealtime, the low-ranking monsters were always the most eager.

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Growling hunger gnawed at Lu Fei’s belly, leaving him no choice but to hurry after his friends.

Soon, the three small monsters, along with other stragglers, arrived at the usual open-air dining ground—a spacious clearing in the woods.

But all they found were a few overturned food buckets, one still being licked clean by another monster, and jeers from the well-fed monsters who’d finished before them.

Every day, some unlucky ones went hungry.

“What now?” Redskin looked to Crow and Lu Fei for an answer.

“We should go back and sleep for now…” Crow’s beady eyes darted around before he whispered, “We’ll figure something out tonight…”

In these circumstances, they’d have to fend for themselves.

Soon after, the three parted ways—Crow and Redskin returned to their den to sleep, since sleep staved off hunger.

Lu Fei, however, had to continue his patrol.

With the original owner’s memories, Lu Fei followed the familiar patrol route, soon slipping into a dense patch of grass and thorns.

There, he eagerly summoned forth something within himself.

Shhh, shhh, shhh…

Rows of faintly glowing characters appeared before his eyes.

[Host: Lu Fei]
[Level: First Rank Monster Soldier (33/100)]
[Technique: Monster Breathing Method (Beginner) (12/100)]
[Skills: Spearmanship (Beginner) (18/100); Archery (Beginner) (6/100)]
[Divine Abilities: None]
[Innate Talent: Celestial Wolf Devours Moon (Beginner) (7/100)]
[Soul Power: None]
[…]

Staring at the inky, brush-stroke-like data, Lu Fei’s eyes widened.

This must be his golden finger.

He’d noticed it earlier during the chief’s meeting, but only now had the chance to call it forth.

Studying the panel and combining it with inherited memories, Lu Fei pondered.

The “Level” section was straightforward—it marked his strength as the body’s white wolf demon: a First Rank Monster Soldier, the very lowest rung on Langlang Mountain.

Under “Technique,” the “Monster Breathing Method” was the basic cultivation technique taught to new monsters by Bear Leader after they joined the mountain and pledged loyalty to the chief. All the low-ranking monsters practiced this art; only the leaders and higher-ups cultivated more advanced methods.

The “Skills” of spearmanship and archery were also self-explanatory.

As for “Divine Abilities,” Lu Fei guessed this referred to special powers or spells—but as a bottom-tier monster, the original owner had yet to learn any.

The next section, “Innate Talent,” was easy to grasp. Any monster that awakened intelligence and took on human form would gain a unique innate talent. Crow could hear great distances, Redskin’s bristles were especially tough and sharp.

This body’s talent was a cultivation aid: at night, under the moonlight, his cultivation speed increased.

“Soul Power,” at the bottom, was a mystery for now.

But time was on his side—he could study it at leisure.

Looking around, Lu Fei realized this thicket made the perfect place to slack off.

He lost all desire to patrol further.

Settling into a more comfortable spot, he sat cross-legged as memory dictated, forming hand seals, touching his tongue to his palate, eyes half-closed, and began practicing the Monster Breathing Method.

As time passed, the sun drifted westward and the light dimmed.

He emerged from meditation as dusk fell.

After glancing around to make sure he was alone, he picked up his spear, stretched, dusted himself off, and walked onward.