The morning sun's rays slipped into the small hole where Zhou rested, stirring him awake. His body felt oddly refreshed, even the wound from yesterday had closed. But then his stomach growled—loud, insistent, almost painful. This hunger was different from before in the cave. It felt… natural, like something he couldn't ignore.
He slithered out into the swamp. The air was heavy with dampness, clinging to his scales as he moved.
Then it hit him. A fragrance, sweet and intoxicating, drifted into his nose. His tongue flicked out again and again, tasting the air. Drool pooled in his mouth before he even realized it.
For a moment, he nearly lost himself to the scent. His body wanted to rush forward, to devour whatever it was. But he shook off the daze and followed the trail carefully. The closer he got, the stronger the fragrance became, until he found the source.
A flower.
It floated just above the swamp water, petals shimmering with a rainbow glow. Each color bled into the next. Zhou's instincts screamed at him: Eat it. Drain it. Make it yours.
Yet another instinct hissed louder—danger. The scent was too rich, too perfect. Prey never offered itself so easily
His coils tightened. Hunger gnawed at him, but he turned away and slithered in the opposite direction.
Behind him, the flower rippled and shifted. In an instant, it became a girl—pink hair, green eyes, her beauty radiant as the sun. She giggled softly.
"Clever snake," she whispered. "Most of the others only saw what was in front of them."
With a flicker, she returned to her flower form, waiting for the next fool to wander close.
Zhou, meanwhile, dragged himself onward, stomach still empty, fangs aching and body contorting on intervals. Hunger clawing at him harder than before. For the first time, he wondered if turning away had been a mistake.
Almost on cue , his nose twitched , picking up the sent of something more ... Alive? He slithered low, body gliding over mud and reeds. Each flick of his tongue painted the world in scents—fur, fear, blood. His coils tightened with anticipation.
There—a frog, fat and careless, crouched on a rock by the creek, eyes half‑shut as if begging to be swallowed.
Zhou kept low to the ground , slithering slowly-- predatorily , as he got close to the frog, his tail hit a rock by accident , startling the frog. It instinctively went for a Jump back as it saw Zhou now.
Zhou didn't hesitate. His body coiled into an S, muscles . He launched forward, intercepting the frog mid‑jump. His jaws unhinged, and in a single motion the prey vanished down his throat--Devoured by a 1-inch snake.
As the frog consumed the frog whole, a blue glow flared in his abdomen. Sparks crackled across his scales and surrounding, and agony tore through him, as if fire had been put in his stomach
The pain was like his insides were being burnt from the inside, after a few minutes of excruciating agony , the pain just ... Stopped .
No warning , just nothing . He felt rather strange , like he was bigger . After a few minutes of inspection , he really had grown bigger--about by 2 inches , not just that but his fangs become pointier and sharper.
But by far the most perplexing change of all , he felt something which resembled a Ball in his abdomen--though small at the moment, about the size of a pea but something deeper urged , almost saying "more", "devour more."
As if he was being blessed by the universe , he felt another vibration , his tongue sticking out , as if tasting the prey's location.
Judging from the vibrations he felt , it was big and fast but the pride of the earlier successful hunt still lingered , he wanted a challenge.
He slithered through the mud and short grass and entered a clearing . There , a black cat layed there , lazily sun bathing inside a swamp ever so casually.
Zhou started stalking it , creeping up from behind , slowly and steadily and once he was close enough , he coiled off again into an S and propelled towards the cat eager to devour it.
When he was so close that he could almost taste the cat's succulent flesh , the cat recoiled back unexpectedly-- dodging with grace.
This was unexpected for Zhou as he thought this would be as easy as the fight with the frog , but he was sorely mistaken.
As he was trying to recover from the aftermath of the failed attack , the cat pounced on him , green fire flashing in its eyes. Claws raked across his scales , tearing deep gashes into his body. Zhou hissed , twisting--attempting a recovery.
But the cat , being faster and way heavier , pinned him to the ground , its teeth Mear inches away from Zhou's neck .
Suddenly , blue sparks rippled across his scales again , electrecuting the cat a bit , causing it to recoil back. the "pea" in his abdomen flared up , his abdomen glowing blue again , this time , not painful but urging almost saying "Attack"
His body contorted , muscles snapping tightly like a whip , propelling him into the air and the blue sparks impowered both his speed and fangs as his fangs sunk into the cats leg.
It staggered back , but Zhou pressed forward , wrapping its not so long body around the cats neck and squizing with all its might-- despite the injuries it sustained.
The cat thrassed , claws ripping at him further , deepening the wounds it already inflicted , but slowly , its movements weakened . Zhou's jaw snapped open , preparing to end it all.
"Enough"
The words ripped around the swamp , soft but authoritative.
Zhou froze . the air feeling cold and the rainbow flower from before appeared again , shifting into her human form . Her pink hair glowed in the sunlight , amplifying her beauty even more, her green eyes looked straight at him , as if peering into his very soul but then broke eye the scare and focused on the cat
"That one's mine," she said . Her voice , calm but firm. "your quite amusing , little snake. But don't touch what isn't yours".
Zhou hissed, his coils still tight. The hunger inside him screamed, but her words made him hesitate.
She reached out her hand and a single petal drifted down. It landed on his head and melted into his scales, enlargening the "Ball" in his abdomen by a good deal --to about the size of a cherry and leaving behind a warm feeling that eased his pain.
"A gift," she said. "Remember this moment. make sure to learn to control your Qi , Power without control will destroy you."
Then she smiled, almost like she was amused, and turned back into the flower. The cat limped away into the swamp, leaving Zhou alone.
His belly still burned, the ball inside still whispered more, but now another thought lingered in his mind.
Zhou's mind still churned , perplexed by the strange encounter and the girl's use of words like "Qi" and other strange words.
What was 'Qi'? The question lingered in his mind-- his first question.