Shen Tian learned an important lesson exactly ten minutes after stepping outside the residential block.
Bad luck had a tracking system.
He hadn't even made it to the main street when the pavement beneath his feet cracked with a loud crunch. Shen Tian yelped, flailing wildly, and somehow managed to twist his ankle while also dropping his backpack, spilling ration bars all over the ground.
The silver fox on his shoulder stared at him.
Slowly.
Silently.
With profound disappointment.
"…Don't look at me like that," Shen Tian muttered, trying to stand up and failing. "I slipped. The ground attacked first."
The fox flicked its tail and let out a sharp chitter that clearly translated to: I regret choosing you.
Shen Tian sighed. "Wow. Betrayed by my own spirit beast already. It hasn't even been an hour."
He picked himself up, dusted off his clothes, and finally made it onto the main street. The city looked livelier—and deadlier—up close. Evolution practitioners walked openly with glowing veins, hardened skin, or eyes burning with elemental light. Drones hovered overhead, scanning for mutant activity. Warning sirens pulsed faintly in the distance.
And then, because the universe clearly hated him, the sirens grew louder.
WEEEE—WOOOO—WEEEE—WOOOO
Shen Tian froze.
"Oh no," he whispered. "That doesn't sound friendly."
The silver fox's ears perked up. Its silver fur bristled, and its playful expression vanished entirely, replaced with something sharp and alert.
'T3 breach,' it chittered quietly.
"…You can sense that?" Shen Tian asked.
The fox gave him a look that said obviously, then leapt off his shoulder and landed beside him. For the first time, Shen Tian noticed faint spatial ripples following its movements—like the air itself bent slightly to make room for it.
Before Shen Tian could ask another question, the street ahead erupted in screams.
A massive shape burst through a containment fence, metal screeching as if it were paper. The creature that emerged had once been a wild boar. Now it was something else entirely—three meters tall, covered in jagged bone plates, tusks dripping with corrosive saliva, and eyes glowing a furious crimson.
"Ah," Shen Tian said faintly. "That's… that's not a rat."
Civilians scattered. Low-rank evolvers rushed forward, weapons glowing, but the boar slammed into them like a runaway train. One man was thrown into a wall hard enough to crack concrete.
Shen Tian's heart pounded.
Move, his instincts screamed. Run.
Instead, the dark halo above his head pulsed violently.
Text exploded into his vision.
[Threat Detected: Mutant Bone-Boar – Rank 1 Lv.7]
[Survival Probability: 12%]
[System Recommendation: Engage Carefully]
Shen Tian stared at the words.
"…Twelve percent? That's not even double digits!"
The silver fox glanced up at him, eyes gleaming.
'Better than zero,' it chittered.
"That is NOT comforting!"
The boar charged again, crushing a streetlight under its hooves. Shen Tian's body moved before his brain caught up. He stumbled sideways—and missed being impaled by a tusk by less than a hair's breadth.
The fox flicked its tail.
The space behind Shen Tian folded.
He vanished.
"W—WHAT—" Shen Tian reappeared three meters away, landing flat on his back. "WHY DID YOU TELEPORT ME WITHOUT WARNING?!"
The fox landed beside him, smug.
'You were about to die,' it replied. 'You're welcome.'
The boar skidded to a halt, confused. Shen Tian scrambled to his feet, breathing hard.
The system chimed again.
[Skill Activated: Basic Evasion – Rank 1]
[Proficiency Increased]
"Oh," Shen Tian muttered, eyes widening. "So that's how this works."
The boar roared and charged again.
This time, Shen Tian didn't panic.
He moved.
Clumsily—but intentionally.
He ducked, rolled, stumbled, and somehow avoided every lethal strike by the skin of his teeth. Each near-death moment sent a surge through his body, heat flooding his veins.
The fox darted around the boar, leaving afterimages as it warped short distances, snapping at joints, distracting, guiding the monster's movements.
They were… working together.
Shen Tian realized it mid-fight, and the realization stunned him more than the boar's roar.
We're synced.
The system confirmed it instantly.
[Companion Detected: Spirit Beast – Silver Void Fox (Dormant)]
[Synergy Established]
[Combat Efficiency +15%]
"…Void Fox?" Shen Tian gasped. "You didn't tell me you were fancy."
The fox preened mid-battle.
'You didn't ask.'
The boar lunged one last time.
Shen Tian sidestepped—cleanly this time—and drove a steel rod he'd grabbed from the ground straight into the creature's exposed eye. The boar collapsed with a thunderous crash.
Silence fell.
Shen Tian stood there, shaking, chest heaving.
Then the notifications flooded in.
[Enemy Defeated]
[Evolution Points Gained: +25]
[Bloodline Stability Increased]
[New Trait Available: Pain Resistance (Low)]
Shen Tian laughed. A breathless, slightly hysterical laugh.
"I lived," he said. "I actually lived."
The silver fox hopped onto his shoulder again, tail brushing his neck.
'Of course you did,' it chittered softly. 'You're mine.'
Shen Tian froze.
"…That sounded weirdly possessive."
The fox smirked.
For the first time since his rebirth, Shen Tian didn't feel cursed.
He felt chosen.