Chapter 4: Eat Your Fill, Then Take a Nap

"Ugly thing? A nourishing item?"

Zhang Yi sneered in his heart; this little brat really had no sense of propriety!

He would like to see who exactly was whose nourishment!

Empress Sister moved with light, lotus-like steps, pretending to be weak as she approached Zhang Yi, muttering, "Little bird, little bird, don't be afraid, Big Sister... ah, ptooey, this Empress will not hurt you."

Yet in her heart, she was calculating, "This ugly bird looks quite plump; should I roast it or stew it? Forget it, I'll just swallow it whole, it's less trouble!"

Zhang Yi rolled his eyes; this little brat's acting was too clumsy, everything she thought was written all over her face, and she still wanted to ambush him with this?

He was a man who possessed a System and had cheats enabled!

Just as Empress Sister approached, her gaze sharpened, her slender fingers turning into sharp claws, aiming straight for Zhang Yi's neck.

The speed was so fast it even stirred up a gust of wind!

"Heh, little brat, is that all you've got?"

Zhang Yi curled his lip in disdain, nimbly sidestepping to dodge the Empress's attack.

The Empress missed her target and nearly tumbled headfirst into the bird's nest, looking utterly disheveled.

"You... you actually dodged it?"

The Empress widened her eyes in disbelief; since when did this ugly bird become so agile?

"Dodged it? We've barely even started!"

Zhang Yi shook his wings with a punchable expression, "Little brat, you're too green; if you want to eat me, you'll need to cultivate for a few more centuries!"

Empress Sister was so embarrassed she became angry, shouting, "Audacious ugly bird, how dare you mock this Empress! Take this!"

Her figure moved like lightning as she attacked Zhang Yi again; this time, she used all her strength, using both fists and feet, every move vicious, swearing to take Zhang Yi down.

However, Zhang Yi was as slippery as a loach, dodging the Empress's attacks at the last possible second every time, and occasionally pecking her with his sharp beak, causing the Empress to wail in pain.

"Ouch! You damn bird! You hit so hard!"

The Empress clutched the spot where she had been pecked, stomping her feet in anger.

"Hmph, being kind to an enemy is being cruel to oneself; you don't even understand this principle?"

Zhang Yi mocked her mercilessly, "Little brat, I think you'd better just admit defeat; you are no match for me!"

The Empress was not about to give up; she gritted her teeth and continued to attack Zhang Yi, only to find that Zhang Yi's speed was getting faster and his strength stronger, as if he were a bottomless pit that could never be defeated.

It turned out that during the battle, Zhang Yi was constantly devouring the surrounding Qi, his strength rising rapidly.

He was like a sponge, greedily absorbing all energy and converting it into his own power.

"What's going on? How is this ugly bird getting stronger the more we fight?"

The Empress was terrified in her heart; she felt as if she were fighting a monster, seeing no hope of victory at all.

Finally, after a fierce attack, Zhang Yi seized the opportunity, swatted the Empress to the ground with one wing, and then pecked her hard with his beak as a punishment.

"Ow!"

The Empress let out a miserable shriek, looking at Zhang Yi with teary eyes, her previous arrogance completely gone.

"Do you know you were wrong?"

Zhang Yi looked down at her from above, his tone icy.

"I... I know..."

Empress Sister nodded aggrievedly; she finally understood how great the gap was between her and this ugly bird.

She no longer viewed Zhang Yi as food, but instead felt a sense of awe.

Just then, Zhang Yi suddenly felt a powerful surge of energy within his body, which quickly flowed through his entire being, making him feel incredibly comfortable.

【Ding! Congratulations to the Host for absorbing a large amount of Qi during battle, awakening the innate divine ability—Taotie Feast!】

【Taotie Feast: Devour any energy entity and convert it into your own energy to increase cultivation!】

Awakening an innate divine ability?

Taotie Feast!

"Damn! This is too awesome!"

Zhang Yi was ecstatic; this Taotie Feast was a divine skill tailor-made for him!

With this divine skill, couldn't he infinitely devour energy and rapidly increase his cultivation?

"Hehe, now I'm really going to take off!"

Zhang Yi patted the Empress's little head with his claw, his tone arrogant, "Little brat, do you submit?"

The Empress clutched her sore, pecked bottom, eyes brimming with tears, daring to be angry but not daring to speak, "I... I submit..."

Yet in her heart, she cursed: Damn bird! Once this Empress recovers her strength, I will definitely pluck your feathers and roast you!

"Very good, from today on, you are my personal bodyguard, responsible for my safety, do you understand?"

Zhang Yi announced haughtily.

"Personal bodyguard?"

The Empress nearly choked on her own saliva.

This ugly bird actually wanted her, a dignified Empress, to be a bodyguard?

It was simply a supreme humiliation!

"What? You're unwilling?"

Zhang Yi narrowed his eyes, a dangerous aura permeating the air.

The Empress hurriedly shook her head, "Willing! I'm willing!"

Her life was more important; this Empress could bend and stretch!

Once she found an opportunity, she would definitely...

"That's good."

Zhang Yi nodded in satisfaction, then spread his wings and began to absorb the surrounding spiritual Qi.

"Taotie Feast!"

Following Zhang Yi's low shout, a powerful suction force erupted from his body, and the surrounding spiritual Qi surged into him like a tidal wave.

【Spiritual Qi +9999】

【Spiritual Qi +3166, +3572.....】

Nudi watched from the side, dumbfounded; this ugly bird actually possessed such a divine ability?

As he devoured more and more spiritual Qi, Zhang Yi's body began to undergo changes.

His originally black and messy feathers gradually became smooth and bright, emitting a faint golden light.

His physique also gradually increased in size, and his originally thin and small body became sturdy and imposing.

"This... this..."

Nudi felt her perception of reality had been overturned.

Could this ugly bird also be the reincarnation of some big shot?

Zhang Yi was immersed in the pleasure of cultivation and paid no attention to Nudi's shock.

He continuously devoured the surrounding spiritual Qi, and his cultivation base was also rapidly improving.

Not only spiritual Qi, he also began to devour surrounding energy bodies, including some weak Demon Beasts, spiritual herbs, ores, and so on.

"Awoo!"

An unlucky wild rabbit wandered into Zhang Yi's devouring range and was instantly sucked into a dried corpse, not even leaving behind a scrap of bone.

Nudi's eyelids twitched as she watched; this ugly bird was simply too ferocious!

After finishing the wild rabbit, Zhang Yi let out a satisfied burp and licked his lips, still wanting more: "The taste is not bad, it's just a bit too little, not enough to fill the gaps between my teeth."

Nudi: "..."

In the time that followed, Zhang Yi was like an unceasing machine, crazily devouring every energy body in the vicinity.

The Demon Beasts in the forest were in for bad luck and fled the area one after another, fearing they would become Zhang Yi's next "snack."

Nudi, like a little follower, trailed behind Zhang Yi step by step, responsible for keeping watch for him, and... picking up the scraps he left behind.

"When will these days ever end..."

Nudi was on the verge of tears; she, a dignified Nudi, had actually been reduced to picking up trash. If this were to spread, where would she put her face?

Night fell, and Zhang Yi finally stopped devouring, returning to his bird nest with great satisfaction.

"I'm exhausted, time to sleep!"

He flopped down and went to sleep, completely ignoring Nudi on the side.

Nudi looked at the soundly sleeping Zhang Yi, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

She was both afraid of Zhang Yi's powerful strength and full of curiosity about his future.

The next morning, Zhang Yi woke up from his sleep and stretched.

"Hm? This feeling... why does it feel a bit different?"

"Could it be..."