In the distance, the boundless sea stretched out, its shimmering surface carefully reflecting the gray sky.
"So...it's the sea."
"Am I...on an island?!"
The cave was located on a mountaintop. Yoriichi, wearing tattered linen shorts and a rough sleeveless animal skin jacket, stood in the open space before the cave entrance, gazing into the distance.
The climate of this world was strange. Last night, the wind outside the cave was biting cold, but by morning, the temperature had immediately warmed up. This bizarre temperature change left Yoriichi momentarily disoriented.
"Let's...look around."
After taking a few deep breaths of fresh air, Yoriichi returned to the cave. Soon after, he emerged with his long sword, looked around, and followed the only path leading down the mountain.
It was clear that the original owner had lived in this cave for some time; there were obvious signs of clearing around the entrance.
Soon, Yoriichi's figure disappeared into the dense forest.
...
This was a primeval forest, filled with ancient, towering trees.
The branches intertwined, their lush foliage stretching out like emerald clouds, completely obscuring the blue sky. A sea breeze rustled the leaves, like the sigh of a dragon.
Along the way, Yoriichi encountered many strange plants he had never heard of before. He was often drawn to these bizarre plants, stopping to examine them from time to time. It wasn't simply out of curiosity; he just wanted to see if any of these plants bore any familiar fruits that could satisfy his hunger.
Yoriichi hadn't forgotten the scene in the cave yesterday. The only thing that could be considered food in the entire cave was that mushy substance. If given a choice, he definitely wouldn't want to try that.
Unfortunately, however, he hadn't seen any plants resembling fruit trees along the way.
"Roar!!!"
Suddenly, a loud roar exploded from the dense forest. The next second, a gust of foul wind rushed towards Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
Instinctively, Yoriichi leaped back, his toes lightly touching the ground, instantly jumping several meters away. The instant he left his spot, a giant claw crashed down, slamming heavily into the ground, leaving it cracked and splintered like a spiderweb.
"What is that?!"
Focusing his gaze, he saw a massive, striped tiger, nearly ten meters long, appear before him.
However, this tiger was far beyond Yoriichi's comprehension. Leaving aside its enormous, exaggerated size, the two nearly half-meter-long fangs protruding from its mouth alone were enough to make his eyes glaze over. stared at by this monstrous tiger, Yoriichi's body involuntarily trembled with goosebumps. His long sword was already drawn from its sheath, and he stared intently at the unusually large "tiger" before him.
"Roar!!!"
With another roar, the tiger, having missed its attack, leaped forward, instantly appearing before Yoriichi and pouncing head-on. Its two enormous forepaws slashed down viciously at Yoriichi. In that critical moment, Yoriichi Tsugikuni's mind was remarkably clear, and his breathing subtly shifted.
The giant tiger's movements appeared to slow down in his eyes, and the world he perceived underwent a dramatic transformation.
the Transparent World!
By concentrating and shutting down superfluous senses, a creature's body appears almost transparent. His speed, his ability to predict and evade attacks significantly increase, the blood flow in his opponent's lungs becomes clearly visible, and he can more quickly control his own muscle contractions. He can even freely control his fighting spirit as needed, making the enemy's movements appear slower due to the accelerated perception.
In this world, Yoriichi Tsugikuni awakened this terrifying talent that should have been innate. From his perspective, every organ of the giant tiger became clearly visible; its enormous, beating heart, with each contraction and relaxation, contained terrifying vitality.
If Yoriichi had to make a comparison, the heart vitality of the demon he had once killed, known as the Lower Rank Demon, was roughly equivalent to that of the giant tiger before him.
"I can see it! Just like before, I can see everything!"
"Sun Breathing - First Form - Waltz!!" The familiar sight instantly dispelled Yoriichi's tension. In a flash, he unleashed three slashes, the giant claws attacking him like wild horses, flying past his sides.
The next second, blood spurted out, splattering onto the ground, the pungent stench filling his nostrils.
"Thump!"
The giant tiger, which had been swinging its claws, collapsed with a crash, its blood soaking the ground.
The tiger's carcass lay dead, its two front paws severed at the root, leaving clean cuts, blood gushing from the wounds. At the same time, a long gash ran across its massive head, blood flowing freely.
Just as Yoriichi was about to sheathe his sword and examine the carcass, he seemed to sense something, suddenly stopping and looking up.
"Whoosh—"
A loud crash echoed above Yoriichi's head.
A strange bird burst through the dense foliage, swooping down. The next second, a dark shadow flashed before Yoriichi Tsugikuni, its sharp claws gripping the tiger's corpse. In an instant, it spread its wings and took flight, carrying the tiger's body away from Yoriichi's sight.
"What kind of world is this?"
Yoriichi was stunned by the change before him. If he wasn't mistaken, the strange bird that had just swooped down had a wingspan of nearly twenty meters. Yoriichi had never seen such a creature before; its heart's vitality was even stronger than that of the tiger from before,
perhaps even reaching the level of a lower-middle-ranking moon.
Of course, this only referred to heart vitality and had no direct correlation with strength.
These two strange creatures filled Yoriichi with curiosity about the world he was in. What kind of world could give birth to such bizarre creatures?
Moreover, this body could effortlessly handle the "Total Concentration" breathing method without feeling any pressure. The smoothness of wielding the sword was even more comfortable than before.
The way he dodged the giant tiger's attack was entirely an instinctive reaction.
Without a doubt, this body in this world was even slightly stronger than his previous one!
Combining all these signs, Yoriichi began to speculate about the world he was in. Perhaps... could this be... a world of cultivation?
Thinking this, Yoriichi walked to the two tiger claws he had just severed. However, calling them tiger claws wasn't entirely accurate, since he had just cut them off by the roots; calling them tiger legs would be more appropriate.
Both tiger legs were three or four meters long,
"It should be edible."
"It's not a complete loss, at least I don't have to try that batter."
"If this were a cultivation world, this would be considered a spirit beast, right? After all, it's so big."
"I wonder if spirit beast meat is really like the legends say, making you strong and healthy, able to climb five Clouds in one breath without getting out of breath."
As he muttered to himself, Yoriichi Tsugikuni prepared to cut some meat from the tiger's leg, but as he approached, an absurd idea suddenly popped into his mind.
He sheathed his sword, put his hands on the tigers "claws," and actually tried to lift one of the tiger's legs.
Originally, he was just trying it out, but when Yoriichi exerted force, he found that the tiger's leg had completely left the ground, and what surprised him even more was that he didn't feel any effort at all!
"What kind of monstrous strength is this?!"
Yoriichi was completely baffled by the terrifying strength in his body, not knowing where it came from. However, he didn't dwell on it. After all, he'd already experienced time travel twice, so having immense strength was quite reasonable.
Yoriichi attributed it all to divine favor.