In its previous life, Apophis had heard that bees were highly organized creatures with remarkable collective intelligence. The swarm of bees guarded the three unusual flowers with extraordinary caution, indicating that these flowers held great significance for them.

“Why do I feel like I’m becoming more strategic?” Apophis mused, shaking its massive triangular head. “This transformation into a new species is truly altering my way of thinking. I certainly didn’t have such thoughts in my past life.”

“Well, since I’m here, I might as well seize every opportunity to grow stronger!”

The sky was as blue as a sapphire, and the busy bees flitted among the flowers, showing no signs of stopping. Apophis didn’t want to miss its chance and slowly crawled out from the concealed grass toward the tree that housed the beehive.

Its enormous body left a winding trail in the earth, the scales brushing against the grass with a soft rustling sound. Apophis paid no mind to these subtle noises; its focus was entirely on the beehive and the strange flowers. Before long, it arrived at the base of the large tree.

“Crawling is truly an innate advantage; I arrived here so smoothly,” Apophis thought proudly, looking up at the crown of the tree. The beehive was nearby on a branch, and the three unusual flowers next to it emitted a captivating scent that drew it in.

A powerful desire surged within, not merely for food but for the potential opportunities represented by those unknown flowers. Its tongue flicked faster, saliva dribbling with urgency, and it coiled itself to begin climbing the tree.

The rough bark posed no obstacle for its scales, and it skillfully navigated its way upward, quickly nearing the beehive and the flowers.

With a decisive bite, it grasped one of the strange flowers; the stem snapped easily under its fangs. A peculiar juice flowed down its throat, and Apophis instantly felt a refreshing sensation spread throughout its body. It bit down on another flower.

As it prepared to go for the third flower, it hesitated.

“I can’t be too greedy. If I destroy all the flowers, the bees might retaliate fiercely and abandon this place, leaving me without another chance to benefit from them.”

Ultimately, Apophis decided against taking the third flower and began to slowly descend the tree trunk.

After swallowing the two strange flowers, a series of marvelous transformations began within its body. At the same time, a brand new physical enhancement system quietly awakened in its consciousness.

As Apophis digested these high-energy substances, it felt its muscles becoming firmer and stronger, and its bite force significantly increased. Previously, it had encountered limitations in strength while moving and hunting, such as struggling to drag larger prey, but now it could easily handle objects several times heavier than before. It tried to bite through a sturdy branch; something that used to require effort was now as easy as snapping a small twig.

Suddenly, a thought struck it, and it summoned the green interface. Sure enough, the content had changed, with a new line appearing in the skills section.

【Strength Enhancement: 5/10】
Skill: Hunter's Instinct (can sense and detect impending danger)

Just as it returned to the ground, it heard the furious buzzing of the bees. Apophis knew they had likely discovered the missing flowers and couldn’t afford to be surrounded; that would spell danger.

While the bees might not immediately identify it as the thief, it still felt uneasy.

“Head to the swamp!”

It thought of the giant crocodile, reasoning that even the fiercest bees wouldn’t dare approach it.

Decision made, Apophis swiftly turned and swam back toward the swamp.

Upon reaching the swamp's edge again, the rock was empty, and the giant crocodile was nowhere to be seen. The buzzing of the bees remained distant; they clearly dared not come this way.

Apophis felt satisfied with its judgment and crawled onto a flatter patch of mud beside the rock.

At this moment, the sun blazed overhead. Although it felt somewhat full after eating the two strange flowers, it sensed a strange heat within its body, prompting it to writhe restlessly.

Just then, a colorful water snake slithered from the other side of the swamp. Whether it was attracted by Apophis or the commotion, it swam over, twisting its body.

“Hmm! Why does this water snake look a bit special?”

For some reason, Apophis instinctively knew that the water snake was female. As it approached, the snake’s flicking tongue suggested curiosity, as if it wanted to communicate.

“No! I’m human; I’m not a snake!”

Apophis panicked, realizing its body's restlessness was unusual.

“I don’t want this! I can’t let anything weird develop with a female snake!”

It resisted the notion, yet its body seemed to move involuntarily toward the water snake.

“No! I must control myself!”

Apophis accepted the reality of being a python, but it absolutely couldn’t accept being driven by instincts to become entangled with another snake. Anxiously, it tried to recall knowledge from its past life to distract itself.

Suddenly, it remembered some theories about biological evolution it had studied before.

“Biological evolution occurs through natural selection; survival of the fittest…”

As it mentally recited this knowledge, the heat within its body gradually subsided. Seizing the moment, Apophis forcefully controlled its movements, no longer feeling the urge to approach the water snake. This time, it didn’t dare linger and quickly swam back toward its den.

Once back in the den, Apophis felt a wave of relief wash over it; it had narrowly avoided an embarrassing situation!

Having already felt some fullness from the strange flowers, the mental exertion made its head feel heavy, and before long, it fell into a deep sleep.

When it finally awoke, it slowly emerged from its den.

The sky was just beginning to brighten, and the morning breeze brought the swamp's characteristic dampness.

Apophis gazed into the distance, reflecting on the events of yesterday with a sense of emotion.

In this life, it was determined not to settle for being an ordinary beast.

“Right, that giant crocodile! Since this world has a giant crocodile that might possess special abilities, there may be even more mysterious and powerful forces. Perhaps there truly are supernatural beings akin to gods or spirits.”

“Even if I can’t become a god, I want to be a powerful demon!”

“I will roam freely in this life, dominating my destiny and enjoying the world!”

Apophis firmly set its resolve in its heart.

“But… how do I become a monsters?”

It recalled the data on the interface; as a python, it had only a twenty-year lifespan.

In the fantasy novels it had read in its previous life, those snake monsters often lived for hundreds or even thousands of years, meaning only by becoming a demon could it surpass the lifespan limit of an ordinary beast.

“Having read so many fantasy stories, no one ever explained how to take that first step!”