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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 371
｢We won!｣
｢Grrrrrr!｣
Number 26's body shimmered atop the corpse of the Magmasaur. Beside it, the ‘Right Head’ let out a triumphant cry as if to join in the celebration.
｢Grrrrrrr.｣
Even the ‘Left Head’, which had its spine broken by the enemy’s forelimb, participated in the victory ceremony. The injury had been severe enough to nearly sever its body, yet now it was perfectly fine. It had used the internal organ trait ‘Superior Homeostasis’ to heal itself.
‘Fighting in a divided state isn't bad.’
By using ‘Hydra Division’, I could separate my two heads and have them fight alongside me for sixty minutes. Since they inherited my combat instincts and fighting style, they moved efficiently without needing constant orders.
‘And they can use some of my traits too.’
Each new body retained my physical, special defense, internal organ, and environmental adaptation traits. They could also grow stronger in tandem with my own evolution. In fact, their survival rate had increased dramatically thanks to obtaining ‘Superior Homeostasis’.
‘It’d be ideal if they could share all my abilities, but that’s probably too much to ask.’
I watched them revel in victory.
Though they had divided while I was in my Symbol of Hunt state, they didn’t inherit its enhancement effects. Their forms remained that of an ordinary adult Amorph, with only a single head each. It would’ve been great if the Symbol of Hunt’s boost applied to them as well, since it would create powerful synergy but it was what it was.
‘Well, even as they are, they’re strong enough.’
The Magmasaur was notorious among Apex creatures for its exceptional durability and sheer physical capabilities. If this were a game, taking it down would have taken days.
Just then, the seemingly lifeless Magmasaur corpse twitched.
It didn’t have a resurrection ability. But as its severed neck convulsed, something long and slimy emerged from where its head had been.
“Since we won, how about helping me out of here?”
The figure that crawled out of the corpse was Isabel. Drenched in thick, black-red blood, she reached up with a hand near the creature’s head and wiped her face clean.
[ZZZZ (Good work.)]
“In the game, ‘Blood River’ is supposed to handle this role, but I guess that’s me now.”
She wasn’t wrong. One of the strategies for dealing with a Magmasaur involved using the Blood River ability, finding a way to inject it into the creature’s body so it could continuously drain its life force. The only downside was that it took a long time, but aside from that, it was the most effective approach.
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZ (More efficient than Blood River, isn’t it?)]
“Just because my body’s like this now, don’t start treating me like a machine.”
She grumbled briefly before sucking the blood off her fingers. That alone was proof she had long since left her humanity behind but there was no need to point it out.
‘Anyway, that’s one problem dealt with.’
Now, it was time to check on Salman’s situation.
After the antimatter bomb detonated, Mother of the Sky and PS-111 would have headed that way. If Salman had survived the explosion, they’d be fighting him right about now.
‘At this point, it should be safe to send them ahead.’
The two Amorph copies that had been celebrating with Number 26 had now turned their attention to the spoils of the hunt, hungrily eyeing the corpse.
Previously, I had avoided using Hydra Division for a simple reason: to stay off the enemy’s radar.
The copies couldn’t use traits like ‘Dark Veil’, which nullified enemy detection. As long as the enemy’s outpost remained intact, I couldn’t afford to expose one of my trump cards, so I had refrained from using it.
‘But that’s no longer the case.’
Salman’s base was destroyed, and Adhai had gone to deal with the communication satellites. With all external connections severed, there was no longer any need for caution.
‘Might as well send these two ahead.’
While I stayed to consume the corpse, they could go check on Mother of the Sky’s group.
‘You know where Salman’s base is, right? Go and assist them.’
The two adult Amorph copies turned their gaze toward me.
｢Grrrrrrr.｣
｢Grrr…｣
The two clones licked their lips, clearly reluctant to leave without eating. But since they were under my command, refusing orders was never an option.
The Right Head handed me the severed Magmasaur head before spreading its wings alongside the Left Head. With a powerful flap, they ascended into the sky, vanishing into the black clouds above.
｢Where are the little ones going without eating?｣
[ZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZZZ (They have a job to do. They’ll eat later.)]
｢Later?｣
[ZZZZZ ZZ ZZZ (So you should eat first.)]
[Okay.]
Not true in the slightest.
‘Well then…’
Back in the game, taste was never a factor when consuming enemies. VR devices couldn’t replicate flavors, after all.
But here, it was different. Every new meal came with the excitement of discovering a new flavor.
I gathered the two halves of the Magmasaur’s head and took a bite.
The first sensation was hardness. It felt like trying to chew through an uncracked walnut. Its skull was so tough that even my teeth couldn't pierce it.
‘I’ll have to eat this like I did with the Ice Horror.’
Giving up on the skull itself, I decided to start with the lower jaw.
Avoiding the thick jawbone, I tore into the tongue and the flesh inside its mouth. The tough hide ripped apart, releasing semi-cooled blood that mixed with the meat.
‘Hmmm.’
The outer hide was hard, and the inner lining was tough. Naturally, I expected the meat to be just as chewy. But it wasn’t.
‘That’s an interesting texture,isn’t it?.’
The meat closer to the hide had a satisfying chew, but the deeper layers were tender and fatty. Combined with the warmth of the blood, it created a rich and complex taste.
How could I describe it? It was like having a bowl of deeply flavored meat stew, where you scoop up a chunk of meat along with the broth. Every bite released sweet, savory juices, while the blood added a depth of flavor. I enjoyed all of it.
Then there were the lava fragments clinging to the hide. Chewing on them released an herbal aroma, adding an unexpected yet pleasant twist to the taste.
‘I like this.’
It had been a while since I’d eaten something like this.
‘Once again, I’m not disappointed.’
After stripping the lower jaw clean, I moved on to the rest. I shattered the thinner bones and scraped out every last bit of brain and flesh inside.
That was when Number 26 approached me. From the way its body shimmered, it was curious about how the fresh kill tasted.
｢Big One, is it tasty?｣
[ZZZ (Try it yourself.)]
Hearing my response, it reshaped its tentacle into a shovel-like form. Then, it plunged it into the wound where Isabel had burrowed in, scooping out some flesh.
｢Wow! It’s delicious! Delicious!｣
Delighted by the taste, Number 26 floated up and spun in place.
[ZZZ ZZ (You like it?)]
｢Yeah! It’s really good!｣
[ZZZZ (Glad to hear it.)]
｢Let’s eat together! The Little One, the Middle One, our friend, and the little ones—all of us!｣
[ZZ (Alright.)]
The Magmasaur was about 300 meters long. Even if we discarded the bones and inedible parts, there was still an enormous amount of meat. Just eating one of its forelimbs would be enough to replenish all the energy spent on Hydra Division. If we all shared, we could feast for at least two days.
｢Little Friend, you should eat too.｣
“I already ate plenty, so I’m fine.”
｢You need to eat more if you want to grow!｣
“Grow even bigger?”
｢That way, you can punish the bad humans!｣
“…Can’t argue with that.”
As Number 26 and Isabel continued chatting, I finished off the remaining lower jaw.
I ate the upper half the same way I had eaten the lower jaw avoiding the thick bones, crushing the thinner ones, and scraping out every last bit of brain and flesh inside.
Just as I finished extracting the final drop of brain matter, a text box appeared before me.
｢Predation effect activated! Successfully acquired the genetic essence of ‘Destroyer Carapace.’｣
｢Extracted ‘Destroyer Carapace’ from the biological traits of ‘Magmasaur.’｣
｢Would you like to apply ‘Destroyer Carapace’?｣
‘Yes!’
I had been nervous about failing to acquire a trait again, but thankfully, I got what I wanted. And it was exactly the one I had been targeting.
‘Destroyer Carapace, huh?’
Among the Magmasaur’s traits, only two were truly valuable for an Amorph.
One was ‘Destroyer Carapace’, a physical enhancement trait. The other was a unique trait that enabled the emission of ion lightning. Neither could be obtained from any other creature.
My real goal in hunting the Magmasaur had been to create a unique trait through the Transcendence System. Since unique traits couldn’t be used as fusion materials, I had hoped to get Destroyer Carapace instead.
‘Alright, time to absorb it…’
Just as I was about to apply the trait, a strange sensation pulsed from the Auxiliary Organ beneath my jaw.
‘What is this?’
Currently, I was in my Symbol of Hunt state, meaning all my auxiliary organs were protected by a layer of bone armor. Feeling any external stimulus through them was unusual.
Ignoring the text box for now, I focused on the auxiliary organ. A faint, tingling buzz ran through it one I recognized.
‘This feels familiar… Oh.’
I remembered.
It was the same sensation I had when I first used Hydra Division and attempted to link my consciousness to a clone. Back then, the moment I tried to control my left head, the same tingling had coursed through my auxiliary organ.
‘But I wasn’t trying to do that this time. What’s going on?’
Were my clones trying to send me something?
I focused on the signal they were transmitting, letting my consciousness drift.
Like when linking with a nest, my awareness detached from my body. Was it because of the distance? Last time, the link was established almost instantly. Now, it was taking longer.
‘I should remember this.’
After a few dozen seconds, a peculiar floating sensation spread through my entire being. A cool wind brushed against my carapace, volcanic ash and embers scattered around me the perspective of my two airborne heads had synchronized with mine.
‘Why did they call me?’
At first, I thought they had encountered an enemy ship that survived the explosion, but a quick scan of the area revealed nothing. Looking up yielded no clues, so I shifted my awareness downward.
‘Huh?’
Now I understood why they had called me.
On the ground below, a stampede of various creatures Vulcarox, Lava Raptors, Stoners was charging in the same direction.
Normally, they were predator and prey, but instead of fighting, they were running together in unison.
‘Could it be…?’
The way they moved was clearly unnatural. As if they had lost their minds to some external force.
And there was only one being on this planet capable of exerting absolute control over the wildlife.
The Equipment Keeper of the Returners.
‘I wondered how they found out I was here.’
I had suspected as much when they moved the antimatter bomb. Now, I was sure.
All the creatures below were under the Keeper’s command. He must have scattered them across the region to prevent intruders.
And now, that bizarre pack of beasts was heading in the same direction as my clones.
Which meant…
Salman was luring them toward himself.
‘I don’t have time for this.’
If the enemy was calling for reinforcements, Mother of the Sky and PS-111 would be at a disadvantage. I ordered my two heads to continue flying before severing the link.
‘Before I leave, though…’
The text box was still waiting for my answer.
I selected ‘Confirm.’
Immediately, the genetic essence of an Apex predator spread through my body.
Carapace, outer hide, internal organs every part of me underwent transformation.
All striving toward a single goal.
To become something greater.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
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