The legend begins with becoming a white deer.

"This is a skill activation that has a low probability of triggering when you strengthen your constitution with 100 Spirit Points!"

"I'm so lucky! I gained a skill on my second physique enhancement!"

Qi Ji was very surprised, and the more he examined the effects of the skill [Agile Burst], the greater his surprise became.

【Agile Burst: Temporarily increases physical strength by consuming Spirit Points. The more Spirit Points consumed, the greater the burst of strength. Note that Agile Burst will put a certain burden on the body. Excessive consumption of Spirit Points will cause harm to the body. Use with caution.】

"This skill is pretty good; it can be used to save your life in crucial moments."

Qi Ji felt a surge of joy.

This skill came at the perfect time.

In these mountains and forests, encountering predators is inevitable. With this [Agile Burst], you have much more confidence whether you're escaping danger or confronting other wild beasts.

Qi Ji was extremely satisfied with the results of this enhancement.

He flicked his tail, feeling the new power surging through his body, and looked up at the other side of the mountain.

If his estimation is correct, the deer herd should be located over there.

Just as Qi Ji was judging whether they could find the deer herd today, he suddenly felt a light but firm downward pull on his back. The soft pressure, carrying the little girl's warm body temperature, spread along his spine.

Qi Ji froze and turned around.

He saw Yao Yao's little head leaning against his back, her eyelids tightly closed, her breathing even and long; she was so tired that she fell asleep right next to him.

The key was that the little hands that were gripping his fur were still tightly clenched, as if they were afraid that if they let go, they would be abandoned in this desolate forest.

"Oh my god, you little rascal..."

Qi Ji was immediately speechless.

He himself is just a little deer, how did he inexplicably end up as a nanny and a cushion for human girls?

Qi Ji lifted his hoof, wanting to gently shake her to wake her up, but the light weight on his back, and the little girl's tightly furrowed brows in her sleep, made him stop in the end.

That's enough.

Qi Ji sighed inwardly, but ultimately did not move away. He simply pricked up his ears and alertly watched the surrounding movements.

The search for the deer herd will have to be put on hold for now.

... ... ...

As the sunlight gradually sank westward, the light in the woods faded from warm gold to grayish-blue, and was slowly swallowed up by the approaching twilight.

Yao Yao was awakened by the cold wind in the forest.

"Um?"

Her eyelashes trembled, and then she suddenly opened her eyes. The dim light and the completely unfamiliar forest made her body tense instantly, her heart pounded, and her face filled with panic as she quickly scanned her surroundings.

When she discovered the little white deer munching on grass, her panic subsided slightly, and fragmented memories began to return, allowing her to recall what had happened before she fell asleep.

"Hmph"

Yao Yao pursed her lips, her nose tingled slightly, and her eyes gradually reddened.

Just as tears were about to fall from the corners of her eyes, the little girl blew her nose forcefully and bit her lower lip hard, managing to hold back the tears and prevent them from falling.

Qi Ji had already raised his head and took in her forced, strong demeanor.

He could roughly guess that the little girl named Yaoyao was missing her family.

Her identity in this world must be extraordinary; it's certain she's not from an ordinary family. Logically, her elders should be making efforts to find her now.

Of course, the people searching for Yao Yao may not only be her relatives, but also the kidnappers who abducted her.

Qi Ji looked in the direction of the wooden cabin in the woods where he had found Yao Yao earlier.

Based on the timeline, the kidnappers who abducted her should have realized she had escaped by now.

... ... ...

It was exactly the same as Qi Ji's guess.

Inside the wooden house, two burly men with menacing faces stared at the scattered hemp rope under the wooden pillar and the three precious medicinal herbs that had been eaten, their faces turning green with rage.

"You bastard, this is all your fault!"

One of the bald, burly men kicked over a wooden stool next to him, spitting as he cursed loudly.

"This morning she kept saying a new girl had come to the town outside the mountains, and she dragged me to drink some kind of brothel. We drank for so long, and now look what happened! That little brat ran away, and she even ruined the three precious medicinal herbs I had worked so hard to pick!"

"Did you pick those? We got them together."

"Anyway, it's gone now, and it's all your fault."

"You're talking nonsense."

The man next to him stiffened his neck and retorted without backing down, "It's clearly because you tied the rope too loosely. With your skills, even a rabbit could break free. Now that something's happened, you're blaming me?"

"Nonsense! Don't you know how tight the rope I tied was?"

"You can't blame me entirely for going to brothels; you agreed to it this morning, and you were even more enthusiastic than me when you were having fun."

"The idea of ​​drinking alcohol was yours."

"You tied the rope."

The two of them argued back and forth, shifting blame and getting increasingly fierce. Just when it seemed they were about to grab something and start fighting, they both suddenly deflated, slumped onto the creaking, broken wooden bed, their faces filled with anxiety and panic.

The bald man grumbled and complained, "This isn't our fault. It's all that bastard's fault for being so unreliable. He promised to come pick us up after kidnapping us, and we'd settle the money and goods. It's been three days, and we haven't even seen a trace of him. If we had sent him away earlier and gotten the money, this whole mess wouldn't have happened!"

"What's the point of saying all this now?"

The other person scratched his head in frustration.

"Now that they've run away, what do we do?"

"We can't just let it go like this. That bastard didn't come, but he promised a lot of money. Let's wait a while longer, but only if we find this little brat."

The two exchanged a glance, suppressed their tempers, grabbed the machete and bow and arrow from the corner of the wall, gritted their teeth, and walked out the door.

"Let's go, let's go into the mountains to search. That little girl has delicate skin, she couldn't have gone very far. Even if we have to turn this mountain upside down, we have to find her."

... ... ...

Night completely enveloped the mountains and forests.

Without the sunlight to block it, the forest was so dark that you could hardly see your hand in front of your face, with only the crescent moon overhead letting in a few scattered glimmers of silver light through the gaps in the tree canopy.

The wind whistled through the trees. Yao Yao clung tightly to the fur on Qi Ji's back, following closely behind him. Her small body trembled slightly, and she didn't dare to breathe.

Qi Ji deliberately slowed his pace, accommodating the little girl's steps, and followed the sound of water all the way to the riverbank in the mountains.

The area is open and free of dense trees, and the bright moonlight shines on the calm river surface, instantly making it much brighter.

Qi Ji lowered his head and took a few sips of the sweet spring water, his tongue swirling around the liquid.

The spring water in these mountains is completely unpolluted, sweet and refreshing, and there's absolutely no problem drinking it directly from the spring.

Seeing this, Yao Yao also took out her water bag from her bosom, squatted down by the river, carefully scooped out half a bag of water, and drank it in small sips.

But just as she finished drinking and put the lid back on, she suddenly saw a pair of bright green eyes staring intently at them from the depths of the woods not far away.

Those eyes were like two will-o'-the-wisps floating in the night, incredibly eerie.