Waking from the darkness of chaos, Nian Ren Xiao Su wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at the thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy standing in the doorway.

"Liu Yuan, is there anything the matter?" Ren Xiao Su asked.

The child who is nicknamed "Liuyuan" is actually named Liuyuan.

Liuyuan looked harmless and innocent, but he held a bone knife in his hand as he guarded the door. It was deep into the night, and though he looked tired and weary, he hadn't closed his eyes once because he had to keep watch.

Liu Yuan, the headmaster of the school, said: "It's nothing. What exactly is wrong with your mind? Can't even the doctors in the town figure it out?"

"You don't need to worry about this, I'm not sick," Ren Xiaosu said resolutely: "The sky is about to brighten, I'm going out to hunt, you sleep for a while and go to school on time."

"Oh," Liu Yuan nodded softly, "What use is it to learn in this wasteland..."

"I said if it's useful, it is," Ren Xiaosu said in an unquestionable tone.

"I'm going hunting too," Liu Yuan said, his voice barely a whisper.

"Who's going to watch over things if you pull a stunt like that? Me, while I'm unconscious?" Ren Xiaoshu stood up and was about to head to the town center to fetch water. Things were less dangerous in the town once the sun rose.

Here, night is a lawless place.

……

The sky was overcast with rolling clouds. A drop of acid rain finally fell from the cloud layer, swaying in the wind before plopping down in front of Ren Xiaosu with a soft 'plop'.

Year after year, Xiaoshu would lie flat on the barren ground. He furrowed his brow and thought to himself that his luck was a bit bad today. Before he could even hunt anything, the acid rain had arrived.

Someone said that walking on this wasteland one must be careful of the wild.

But Ren Xiaosu felt that this person hadn't said everything, because there were many other things on this wasteland that could kill people, one of them being acid rain.

But Ren Xiaosu remained unyielding. If he didn't hunt today, before the acid rain brought disease, he and Liuyuan would be dead.

Suddenly, the sound of bird wings flapping through the air filled the air. Ren Xiaosu's eyes widened instantly, but his breath remained steady.

Right in front of Ren Xiao Su, supported by a branch, was a black iron pot. Beneath the pot were scattered a few crumbs of dark bread.

The large bird landed beside the iron pot, watching with a wary gaze and piercing eyes. This bird was actually almost as big as the iron pot itself.

It stood there, meticulously preening its feathers for half a day, while Ren Xiaosu patiently continued to wait.

It seems the big bird finally let down its guard and began slowly moving towards the iron pot, its footsteps as light as a whisper.

However, as it lowered its head into the pan just about to peck at the crumbs, Ren Xiaosu suddenly pulled hard on the rope in his hand. Then, he leaped up entirely, like a wild donkey off its reins, charging towards the pan. Before the bird could overturn it, he threw himself with all his might against the pan, holding it firmly shut!

"Hey!"

Ren Xiao-su exhaled a cloud of stale air. He had waited for this sparrow all night, and thankfully, his efforts hadn't been in vain. After all, such a good opportunity didn't come every day.

Beneath the iron pot came the struggling sound of sparrows, their sturdy wings striking the iron with sharp noises. At this moment, the melodious chime of the timekeeping clock in the refuge wall sounded.

Ren Xiaosu turned his head and glanced back, wondering when he would be able to bring Liu Yuan into the shelter.

For Ren Xiaosu, the people in the refuge wall were happy because they didn't have to face the dangers of the wasteland.

But, it's not somewhere anyone can just get into.

At this point, the noise in the iron pot had finally subsided. He sighed and once again confirmed that the tattered cloth strip in his hand was properly wrapped around. Then, he slowly lifted the lid of the iron pot, just a crack. Little Su's hand reached into that opening, trying to grab the large sparrow!

Life isn't always smooth sailing. As soon as Ren Xiaosu reached in, he let out a cry of pain.

Ren Xiaosu retracted his palm and saw that his tiger's mouth was already bruised. This tattered strip of cloth didn't even stop the sparrowhawk's sharp claws.

Ren Xiaosu got angry. He simply dropped his tattered coat and wrapped it around his hand, then thrust his palm into the iron pot. This time, he grabbed the sparrow's neck in one go.

He swiftly pulled the sparrow out, tucking it under his arm. With a hard twist, the sparrow's neck snapped with a crack and then went limp.

At this moment, Ren Xiaoshu suddenly felt a pang of sympathy. Because his jacket had been scratched by the big sparrow's claws several times.

Suddenly, a deafening boom echoed in his mind. Ren Xiaosu knelt down on the ground, as if a giant bronze bell had struck within his head, plunging him into the abyss of darkness and chaos.

Oh no, my illness usually comes at midnight, but this time it's arrived early.

This is not his first time "acting up". Almost everyone in the town knows he has a brain problem and suffers from recurring headaches.

It was merely that Ren Xiaosu understood very well, it wasn't pain, it was pure chaos.

But this time, it was different from all the others. The darkness in his mind seemed to lift, revealing a palace within!

Ren Xiaosu suddenly opened his eyes and stood up in disbelief, looking at himself: "This time I woke up so quickly?"

He originally had the opportunity to take a good look at the palace, but he was more aware that falling into a coma in this wilderness was no different from sending himself to his death. He now had to rush back to the town outside Refuge Wall 113 before the acid rain came!

Ren Xiaoshu tied the two claws of a sparrow together and hung them on his shoulder. Then, he hoisted his large iron pot upside down over his head and began to run wildly. Raindrops beat against the pot, making a "tat-tat-tat" sound.

At this time, Tiepo took his umbrella.

However, before he could run far, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him, brandishing a bone knife: "Give me the prey..."

Just as this man hadn't finished speaking, he saw a massive iron pot in his field of vision coming at him from afar. It slammed heavily into his face!

"Damn it!" The robber flew backward, never expecting Ren Xiaoshu to strike so decisively! He had such strength!

Only seeing Ren Xiaosu unload the pot, shake off the pot, and raise it again as an umbrella before running away in one breath, without a pause...Before the robbers even hit the ground, Ren Xiaosu was already running far away!

The robber lay face up on the ground, acid rain stinging his face. He was still feeling the burn, and some things just didn't make sense to him.

Generally, people have some kind of flow, this year is due to facing too many such situations that would have such an instinctive reaction!

No, the footsteps from that year are closing in again!

The robber jumped up in a panic and turned his head. He was stunned to find that the kid he had kidnapped years ago was back!

Ren XiaoSu originally didn't intend to return, but he clearly heard a voice coming from the palace in his mind: "Mission, bestow the prey upon another."

Who is speaking? Ren Xiaosu walked back towards the robber with a doubtful expression.

The robber panicked: "Let's talk this out... no, wait, I'm the bad guy..."

Ren Xiaosu carefully sized up the robber, and there wasn't anyone else around.

"Do you want this sparrow?" Ren Xiaosu asked.

The robbers' eyes lit up: "I want it!"

"Here you go," Ren Xiaosu shoved the sparrow into the other person's arms without a word.

That unfamiliar yet familiar voice sounded again: "Mission complete. Reward: Basic Skill Learning Chart, allows learning of other people's abilities."

Ren Xiaosu was stunned, because he distinctly felt that there was an extra sheet of parchment in his mind!

A skill learning map, does that mean I can use this to directly copy someone else's abilities? Hunting? Survival? Or something else?

The robber held the large sparrow in his arms, preparing to say some words of thanks: "You're a good person…"

Before he could finish speaking, he watched helplessly as Ren Xiaosu pulled the sparrow back and strode away.

Robber: “???”

He took charge of Xiaosu, who ran wildly all the way... What kind of person is this! What's the purpose?

(Editor in charge：the lorax novel)