Soon, Zhao Fen fell into a deep slumber. There were no proper blankets here, and Zhao Fen had only used scraps of cloth for modesty. No matter how careful she was before falling asleep, the inevitable happened after she settled in—an accidental turn exposed her delicate body entirely before my eyes.

The twin peaks, initially just drooping beneath those few pieces of cloth, lost their modest covering when she lay down, as the downward pull of gravity wasn't focused correctly. That recent roll had revealed everything.

This was my first time observing a girl's entire form at such close quarters. Zhao Fen’s skin was incredibly fine; under the firelight, it seemed dusted with luminous powder, emitting a faint, soft glow.

Her breasts were wonderfully full and upright. Though slightly inclined to sag due to her side-lying posture, it in no way detracted from their overall beauty. What captivated my gaze most were those two prominent points.

Last night, I had accidentally grabbed there once, but the moment was too brief to leave much impression. Just now, in that half-waking state, I had toyed with them a bit, but experiences and sensations in dreams always feel somewhat unreal. Seeing them now, I realized just how large those peaks were—even a nursing mother might not possess such magnificent big cherries.

The aureolae were not as outrageously large as the peaks; in fact, they were perfectly proportioned to the surrounding softness. Their color was a delicate, vibrant pinkish-red, like a large strawberry supporting a giant cherry—anyone who saw them would crave to take a bite.

At the mysterious junction of her thighs was a sparse patch of fine hair, not dark and not too thick, forming a small inverted triangle that sent a surge of heat rushing through my blood.

The brother below was already protesting vehemently to me, yet my stomach’s demands were even more urgent. They say beauty is nourishment, but looking at her only intensified my hunger. I had no choice but to settle for letting my eyes feast on ice cream and focus wholeheartedly on roasting my snake meat.

To increase the flame’s temperature and cook the snake faster to satisfy my growing need, I scoured the area for firewood. Once the roots along the cave wall were gone, I started breaking off dry roots from higher up, jumping to snap off those I couldn't reach.

I discovered that hunger can drive a person to do anything. Usually not good at jumping, I found myself leaping higher and higher just to gather wood for snake meat to fill my belly. Eventually, I even managed to snap off the desiccated roots growing at the very top of the cave wall, which was taller than two men.

From this, I drew a conclusion: to bring out a person’s maximum potential, you must starve them thoroughly. If they banned all high jumpers from eating for three days before the Olympics, they’d smash world records; I was living proof.

After eating for nearly another hour, the situation didn't improve; in fact, I grew hungrier, and my whole body felt increasingly uneasy, as if millions of ants were crawling beneath my skin. The discomfort made me desperately want to find a large, sharp-edged boulder to rub myself against.

Under these conditions, I truly wanted to stop eating, but the moment I did, dizziness clouded my vision, and all I could see were those fragrantly roasting pieces of snake meat. I had no option but to keep chewing.

Eating more only made things worse. My muscles ached, my bones pained; there was no part of me that didn't hurt, and it was a searing, piercing agony, as if my flesh itself were burning. In this state of torment, my mouth, already numb from ceaseless chewing, barely registered.

I deeply regretted ever taking a bite. Now that this hunger had been stirred, it couldn't be suppressed. I wouldn't believe the snake meat wasn't poisoned; how else could it cause me to feel numb, itchy, painful, and hot all over?

Taking advantage of the small space while roasting the snake meat, my hands flew over my body, scratching furiously dozens of times to relieve the itch. Perhaps I used too much force, as I actually managed to break the skin in places, but at least it offered some relief. If the skin tore, so be it.

After another half-hour of eating the roasted snake, a sudden wave of drowsiness washed over me. My head dropped, I tumbled onto the ground, and fell asleep instantly. What a bizarre night; my body didn't seem to belong to me, refusing to obey my commands.

In my dream, I soared through the starry sky at times, plunged through caves at others; sometimes it felt like ten thousand horses galloping, sometimes like a majestic mountain stream. Finally, I seemed to reach the clouds and was personally greeted by a celestial maiden. The scent of the maiden was intoxicating, like the fragrance of a field blooming with a hundred flowers in spring. The feeling of ecstatic happiness made my dream body tremble.

When I awoke again, the campfire had died out; a long time must have passed. I glanced at Zhao Fen beside me. Sometime during the night, the strips of cloth had flown away, leaving her curled up naked, an image of infinite vulnerability.

Huh, I wasn't that hungry anymore. Thank heavens, I was finally full. Thank goodness for such a large snake that let me eat my fill. If I were in a hospital, I probably couldn't have eaten enough even if I boiled every herb in the pharmacy.

I stretched my arms and legs. There was no pain. Wait, it wasn't that the pain was gone, but rather that my condition was excellent—a comfort I had never felt before. My body was filled with vigor, as if a casual punch could fell a great tree. Haha, this snake meat was clearly a powerful tonic.

Whoa, my little ding-dong had found its way outside. I felt around and realized my underpants must have torn sometime; I found some cloth scraps and tied myself up while Zhao Fen was still asleep.

I got up and relit the fire. After all, Zhao Fen was naked; she mustn't catch a cold. Plus, I needed to check outside to see if dawn had broken; we had to find our way home once the sun was up.

As I pushed off the ground with my hand, I felt something soft beneath me. I picked it up and brought it close to the fire for a better look.

What the heck is this? It looks just like the snakeskin under Zhao Fen, but wait—this has arms and a hand. This, this, this couldn't be skin I shed from my own body, could it?

I touched my own body and looked at the bloodstains on my arms and belly; they were all gone. However, the stains on that piece of skin corresponded exactly to where the marks had been on me. This meant that during my sleep, I had shed a layer of skin without realizing it?

If that’s the case, am I like a snake now? Did drinking its blood and eating its flesh turn me into one? What am I going to do? Surely I won't stop liking beds in a few days and prefer burrowing in holes, right? Worse yet, will I stop eating steamed buns and start eating rats? The snake must be taking revenge on me. I’m done for!

Frantic, angry, and vexed, I reached down to the area covered by the cloth strips—my thighs and the region where my underwear should be. Sure enough, there was a layer of soft, pliable skin there too. Because clothes covered it, it hadn't fallen onto the ground. I quickly tore them all off, including the layer shed from my upper body, and threw them into the fire. A great whoosh of flame erupted. Human skin burns surprisingly easily. The heat forced me to step back, and at that moment, Zhao Fen was startled awake.

"Brother Zhao, what are you scorching? There’s such a strange smell." Although Zhao Fen looked weary, her face held an undeniable hint of joy.

I muttered inwardly, "It smells strange because you’ve never eaten roasted human flesh, of course you wouldn't recognize it."

"Nothing, just some scorched snake meat I’m tossing into the fire. I’m going out to check the sky, I’ll be right back."

I absolutely could not tell Zhao Fen about the skin-shedding. What if she started despising me? No girl would want to marry a snake.

A faint light filtered through the pine forest; it looked like dawn had truly broken. With the sky still early, we should hurry on our way; otherwise, the way we look now would certainly frighten people to death.

I returned to the cave. Zhao Fen had already wrapped herself in that snakeskin. I had to admit, she looked rather like a beautiful young woman draped in sheer gauze—no, more like an innocent, beautiful child, given how utterly guileless and pure her face appeared.

Zhao Fen waved a cloth bundle in her hand at me. "Brother Zhao, I’ve wrapped up the beads. What do you think of my outfit?"

"Mmm, very pretty. Let’s hurry, it’s getting light."

Zhao Fen pointed to the stone glowing faintly green beside her and asked, "Brother Zhao, what about this rock? Should we just leave it? It seems like a gemstone; ordinary rocks don't usually glow like that."