Things were happening so fast that Tu Xiao'an hadn't even had a chance to test the changes to his body.
Then, a virtual screen materialized out of thin air in Tu Xiao'an's mind.
A virtual wheel appeared, complete with a pointer. The wheel was divided into four major categories: Functional Class, Consumable Class, Special Class, and Attribute Class.
Each category was a different color and size. The Consumable Class was the largest, taking up almost half of the wheel. The Attribute and Functional Classes came next, each occupying a large part of the remaining half. The smallest section belonged to the Special Class; it was just a tiny sliver, making it almost impossible to land on.
The lottery interface was very user-friendly and came with detailed descriptions for each category!
Consumable Class: Single-use items.
Attribute Class: Permanent attribute items.
Functional Class: Permanent functions.
Special Class: Unknown...
The category where the pointer stopped determined the type of item won.
After looking it over, Tu Xiao'an fixed his gaze on the Special Class. Even an idiot could tell it held the best prizes. Not only was its section on the wheel pathetically small, but its description was just one word—"Unknown"—lending it a deep sense of mystery!
Since it was "special," whatever he drew from it was bound to be extraordinary.
Tu Xiao'an secretly hoped the lottery would bring him a pleasant surprise. After all, he only got one chance to draw every five levels. He couldn't afford to waste it. The next chance wouldn't be until Level 10.
Taking a deep breath, Tu Xiao'an activated it with a thought. The lottery began, and the pointer started to spin wildly.
It spun, and spun, and spun!
After spinning a dozen or so times, the pointer finally seemed to tire, slowing its pace. It slowly approached the Consumable Class, and Tu Xiao'an's heart sank. 'Don't, please don't.'
Consumable items could only be used once before they were gone. They were clearly the cheap prizes. Even a great item, if you could only use it once, would just be frustrating.
He hoped to draw a prize that would be of real, tangible help to him.
The pointer finally crawled past the Consumable Class, and Tu Xiao'an let out a heavy sigh of relief. Next was the Attribute Class. The pointer kept moving. Though it was slow, it still managed to move past the Attribute Class section!
Tu Xiao'an had no idea what the Attribute Class items were, but they were permanent, which would have been acceptable. A shame he missed it.
Tu Xiao'an's heart was in his throat. The pointer was now drifting through the Functional Class section. It was moving... still moving... about to approach the Special Class! His breathing grew heavy.
'Go, go, go...!'
Tu Xiao'an's heart was screaming, but alas... it was a shame. The pointer stopped. It stopped in the Functional Class!
DING... Congratulations, Host, you have drawn the Human Language Function!
DING... Now bestowing the Human Language Function upon the Host!
Tu Xiao'an froze when he heard this. 'Human Language Function?'
'What does that mean? Does this mean I can speak human words?'
At this moment, Tu Xiao'an wasn't the least bit dissatisfied that the pointer hadn't landed on the Special Class. Instead, his face seemed to twitch.
A faint excitement stirred within him.
He suddenly let out a cry!
"Ah...!"
The sound that came out was no longer a startled hiss. Tu Xiao'an felt as if his entire world had lit up, filled with a sky full of stars.
"Oh my god, I can talk!"
That's right, Tu Xiao'an could speak. The Human Language Function had granted him the ability to talk normally, turning him into a talking venomous snake.
Tu Xiao'an never expected that a single random draw would allow him, a reincarnated snake, to speak human words.
He suddenly felt as if a pie had fallen from the sky. Now that he could talk, could he finally reveal himself to his family?
He no longer had to be a venomous snake hiding in the darkness. He had a human mind and a human voice, just not a human body!
This was a good start. Being able to speak could solve a lot of problems for Tu Xiao'an.
He was so excited. He was so excited he couldn't contain himself!
Someone who can speak will never understand the suffering of someone who is mute.
Especially for Tu Xiao'an, who was born a human and then became a snake. The most painful part had been his inability to speak.
'Heavens, you haven't treated me poorly after all.'
"It is the Devouring System that has not treated you poorly," the system's voice suddenly interjected.
"Uh... all right then!"
After calming down, Tu Xiao'an spoke to Xiaobai, who was in the doghouse.
"Xiaobai, your master can talk now!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Tu Xiao'an stared at the dumb dog Xiaobai as if he'd seen a ghost.
'Is this still my family's dumb dog? Why does it look like it got plastic surgery?'
The dog's fur was as smooth as silk, without a single stray hair. It was so clean and bright it looked like it was wearing a white sweater. Its large eyes, like two black gems, darted about, shining with exceptional brightness and even holding a hint of intimidating power.
"Insight."
DING... Chinese Rural Dog, Xiaobai, Level 6.
'Huh? My dumb dog leveled up?'
Tu Xiao'an was so surprised it was as if a thunderclap had gone off over his head.
ARF ARF...
Xiaobai barked at the little silver-white snake. The barks weren't fierce; they sounded more like a friendly, fawning greeting.
Tu Xiao'an noticed Xiaobai was right next to him. 'Isn't this dog afraid of me anymore? Why is it so close?'
And it went from Level 5 to Level 6. 'Could it be that it was blessed by the light from my own level-up and received a huge benefit?'
Tu Xiao'an figured it out in an instant. It was an incredible realization. 'So that's a thing, huh?'
Was this what they meant by "when one man achieves enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven"?
He had leveled up, and Xiaobai had benefited alongside him. It now looked more like a pedigree pet dog than a common mutt.
"Good boy, Xiaobai. Stick with your master, and you'll have meat to eat."
The voice came from the silver-white snake's mouth. Xiaobai's big, sparkling eyes grew puzzled. The voice felt familiar to it.
WHIMPER...
Xiaobai obediently lay down beside Tu Xiao'an, stuck out its tongue, and licked the little silver-white snake's head, then its body.
"Stop licking, you dumb dog! It's gross! All slobber!"
Tu Xiao'an shouted in disgust, but inwardly, he was happy. Xiaobai had accepted him. It no longer saw him as an enemy or was wary of him.
For the rest of the day, an excited Tu Xiao'an stayed in the doghouse with Xiaobai, fostering the bond between snake and dog.
Tu Xiao'an could speak now, but how was he supposed to reveal his identity to his family? Making people accept that a snake was their relative was the most absurd joke in the world.
Should he reveal himself to his mom? Let her know her son had turned into a House Snake? That seemed too cruel to her.
Could she handle such a shock?
His mom's health was already poor; Tu Xiao'an didn't dare take that gamble.
He should probably reveal himself to his older sister first. Even if it scared her, she would eventually come to accept him once she had time to process it.
The facts were the facts, after all. She wouldn't be able to disbelieve it.
Tu Xiao'an now wanted to use his power as a snake to improve his broken family's situation, but there were many things he couldn't do on his own.
He needed someone to help him. For example, if he wanted to make money from snakes, someone would have to handle the transactions.
He currently had a Level 5 Tiger Snake. If he could sell it, he'd get the money for his mom's medical treatment.
This was something only his older sister could help him with.