The mountain range stretched endlessly, a sea of ancient wood and stone shrouded in mist.

Sunlight pierced the canopy, slicing through the churning fog to weave tapestries of gold and silver light upon the forest floor. It was a breathtaking, mystical scene.

Yet, beneath a withered tree at the foot of the mountain, a creature huddled in the darkness of a burrow, gazing up at the towering woods with a very un-animalistic sorrow.

It was a brown rat.

Its body was the size of an adult human’s palm, trailing a tail nearly as long as its torso. Its fur was a coarse, muddy brown along the spine, fading to a dull grey-white on its belly.

“Sigh.”

It seems I really have turned into a rat. There’s no going back.

Wu Yuan was in a terrible mood.

He had been a rat for a full month now, yet the reality of it still refused to sink in.

In his previous life, he had clawed his way to success. He had finally earned his master’s degree, passed the grueling civil service exams, and his family had even prepared a house for him. He was standing at the threshold of the good life.

Then, he bought a strange bead while traveling.

And then, he saw a delivery truck flying toward his face.

When he woke up, the only thought in his mind was: Life is just too hard for a little rat like me.

When Wu Yuan first transmigrated, he was merely a pup.

Have you ever opened your eyes to find yourself crushed inside a writhing black mass of rodents? Creatures several times your size, squeezing you from all sides, their cold, naked tails dragging across your face?

Wu Yuan had.

In that moment of pure horror, he had let out a piercing shriek.

“Squeak!!!”

By the time he calmed down and realized he was one of them, despair had nearly consumed him. He wanted nothing more than to bite his own tongue and end it.

But fate had offered a consolation prize.

The bead he had purchased in his human life had followed him. It was a Karma Bead, a mystical artifact capable of displaying information about nearby karmic connections.

Relying on these spectral prompts, he had survived the brutal mortality rate of infancy. He had evaded the day a serpent invaded the nest to slaughter his colony.

And thanks to the bead, he had found his current sanctuary.

It was a burrow nestled within the gnarled, chaotic roots of a giant tree. Elevated slightly above the damp ground and concealed beneath thick layers of decaying leaves, it was invisible to the naked eye. Without the bead’s guidance, Wu Yuan never would have found it.

He had claimed it as his main base, expanding the tunnels inward. He excavated three distinct chambers: a nesting room, a food storage cellar, and a designated toilet. He even dug multiple decoy exits to confuse potential predators.

As he tidied his new home, Wu Yuan tried to console himself.

Even as a rat, one must live with dignity.

Look on the bright side. At least I have my own studio apartment now.

He glanced at the Karma Bead suspended in his spiritual perception.

The intel this thing provides is crucial. It’s saved my rat life more times than I can count. I wonder when the next tip will appear?

As the thought crossed his mind, the Karma Bead flickered.

A line of blue text floated into existence.

Wu Yuan froze. This was the first time he had seen blue. Before this, the prompts had always been common white or green.

Green intel led me to this safehouse, he thought, his heart rate spiking. What kind of secret warrants blue?

He focused on the text.

[Blue Information: Tonight, when the moon reaches its zenith, the Moon Spirit Grass in the mudflat 200 zhang to the west will mature. Consuming it can nurture a wisp of Demon Power.]

Wu Yuan sat back on his haunches, stunned. He unconsciously scratched his ear with a small pink claw.

Moon Spirit Grass?

Demon Power? Is this related to the legendary Yao—the monsters of myth?

Does this mean this world is like the Cultivation realms in those novels I used to read?

A frantic cascade of questions flooded his brain.

If I eat this grass and gain Demon Power… can I become a Demon? And if I become a Demon, will I eventually be able to shed this weak, furry body and take human form again?

The thought was electric.

Even if he didn’t become human immediately, becoming a Demon might extend his lifespan. A rat only lived a year or two. He didn’t want to die of old age before he even understood this world.

I have to find this Moon Spirit Grass.

It was the first ray of hope in his bleak, subterranean existence. A chance to evolve. A chance to be more than vermin.

Wu Yuan watched the sun rising outside his burrow, forcing himself to remain still.

He could not act hastily. The distance was significant, and the dangers were real. His mind was a mess of excitement and fear; he needed to cool down.

He retreated into his storage chamber and gorged himself on the high-quality nuts and seeds he had been hoarding. Then, he curled up in his nesting chamber and forced himself to sleep.

He needed to be at peak condition. Tonight, he would fight with everything he had.

When Wu Yuan opened his eyes, the sun was high in the sky. It was noon.

This was the strategic window. Most of his natural predators—snakes, owls, wild cats—were nocturnal or crepuscular. They would be resting now.

The target was 200 zhang away—roughly 700 meters.

For a human athlete, that was a brisk three-minute run. For a rat, it was also a three-minute sprint at full tilt.

But that calculation assumed a flat, paved track.

This was a wild forest floor cluttered with debris, roots, and predators. For a weak, singular rat like Wu Yuan, this journey wasn’t a jog.

It was a gamble with his life on the table.

Yet, he stepped up to the betting table without hesitation.

I would rather die on the road trying to change my fate than live a meaningless life in the dirt!

Guided by the Karma Bead, Wu Yuan moved.

He scurried along the twisted lines of tree roots, darting under dead leaves and behind jagged rocks. He treated open spaces like lava, clinging to the shadows.

Every few meters, he paused, standing on his hind legs. His nose twitched furiously, scenting the air, while his ears swiveled to catch the snap of a twig or the rustle of scales.

His greatest fear was the silent killers. Snakes hiding in the leaf litter.

Despite his paranoia, the forest was unforgiving.

Halfway to the target, a Black Brocade Snake, as thick as a man’s fist, lunged from a bush.

It was an ambush.

Fortunately, Wu Yuan’s nerves were pulled taut as piano wire. He reacted instantly, leaping into the air just as the jaws snapped shut beneath him.

He hit the ground running. His hind legs kicked off the earth with explosive force. He scrambled over rocks and drifted around tree trunks, using the chaotic terrain to break the line of sight.

The snake, disoriented by the frantic, erratic movement, couldn’t lock onto its prey. After a few moments, Wu Yuan left it hissing in the dust.

Stop. Listen. Run.

Stop. Sniff. Run.

By the time Wu Yuan reached the mudflat, the sun was setting.

He crouched at the edge of the clearing, staring at the object of his obsession.

The Moon Spirit Grass looked… disappointing. It resembled a common weed growing by the roadside. There was nothing magical about it.

But Wu Yuan trusted the bead.

Actually, this is better, he reasoned. The more ordinary it looks, the less likely some random deer has eaten it.

Wu Yuan scanned the perimeter of the mudflat. With his beady eyes and hunched posture, he looked every bit the shifty thief casing a jewelry store.

To mask his scent, he gritted his teeth and dove into the mud. He rolled thoroughly, coating his fur in the foul-smelling sludge.

Fighting back the urge to gag, he dug a small foxhole near the Spirit Grass and burrowed inside.

Now, he just had to wait for the moon.

Night fell.

As the moon climbed the sky, its pale light washed over the mudflat.

The transformation was instant. The unremarkable weed began to stretch, drinking in the moonlight. It glowed with a silvery luminescence, standing out against the darkness like a beacon.

Wu Yuan watched from his mud-hole, his heart hammering against his ribs.

Damn it. It’s too bright!

As the grass neared maturity, the glow intensified.

Wu Yuan could hear them now. The rustling of leaves. The shifting of shadows. The forest was waking up.

He pressed his belly into the dirt, muscles coiled like springs. His claws dug into the mud, back arched, tail rigid.

If things go south, I’m eating it right now. Mature or not.

Time dripped by, agonizingly slow.

Miraculously, no one attacked.

The Moon Spirit Grass reached full maturity, suddenly releasing a burst of crisp, clear fragrance into the night air.

Now!

Wu Yuan didn’t hesitate.

He exploded from his hiding spot. He didn’t bother digging it up; he bit clean through the stem, clamped the glowing grass in his jaws, and bolted.

He dared not stay. Hiding in a hole now would just mean getting dug out and eaten.

The fragrance swept through the clearing. The predators lurking in the dark finally pinpointed the source of the treasure.

When they saw a filthy little rat running away with their prize, the forest erupted in rage.

Above, an owl banked silently, diving like a ghost.

On the ground, the Black Brocade Snake slithered out, carving an S-shape into the mud as it accelerated.

Wu Yuan ran for his life.

The scent of the Spirit Grass was right under his nose, intoxicating and rich. He didn’t wait to get to safety. As his legs pumped, he chewed frantically, swallowing the grass chunk by chunk.

Within seconds, the two fingers long stalk had vanished into his stomach.

As the source of the fragrance disappeared, the trail went cold. The confusion in the air was palpable as predators lost the scent.

But one hunter remained.

The owl was locked on visually. It circled overhead, a silent reaper staring down at the scurrying brown dot.

Wu Yuan’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

Damn it!

Legs really can’t beat wings!

His lungs burned. His tiny limbs felt like lead.

“I can’t… run… anymore!”