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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 398
Above the empty stretch of space, a wave of pink flesh surged.
Countless tentacles unfurled and entangled, resembling a sea caught in a storm.
And perhaps, a storm was the most accurate comparison. Steel vessels were swept up and dragged under by the tide of limbs crashing from all directions. Their screams and cries echoed through the raging psychic power before fading into silence.
The furious Sea Demon, Number 26, was leading ships and crews alike to their deaths.
｢Was Number 26… always this strong?｣
Isabel's shocked thought-wave spilled into the air as she watched the scene. Due to the starlight coordinate penalty, she couldn’t respond directly, but I shared her sentiment.
The largest Sea Demon I had ever seen until now was the corpse we found in the deep sea. Even in its dormant state, that body had been larger than Number 26 in its combat mode.
But the Number 26 now rampaging before me was incomparably massive, larger than any Sea Demon I’d encountered. With a mass of tentacles rapidly multiplying and growing in real-time, its size easily surpassed hundreds of meters. The main body had vanished within the ever-expanding bloom of limbs.
It now resembled a colossal rose made of pink tentacles and countless eyeballs, layered upon one another. Instead of a fragrance, it radiated psychic energy, sweeping across the enemy like a dazzling yet terrifying blossom.
Even as it mercilessly shattered enemy warships, it never once attacked me or the metallic gremlins. At first, the gremlins had cowered before Number 26, but they quickly shifted and joined it in battle.
The ships of Megacorp and Star Union, now facing Number 26's assault, reacted far more sluggish than before. Their comms systems were paralyzed by the psychic surge it unleashed. Disoriented, their forces either got swept up by the tentacles or torn apart by the silver demons attacking from every direction.
Even the warships that had been targeting me frozen by the coordinate penalty dispersed, faced with a greater threat.
'What happened to it?'
Even considering Number 26’s ability to reshape its tentacles, it had never undergone such a massive transformation. In the past, its body changed only after consuming Apex creatures or when I transferred traits to it.
But this time, nothing stood out as a catalyst for such growth.
'Was it the effect of consuming the Magmasaur? Or perhaps the Vortex One prey?'
As I reviewed the creatures it had devoured, one possibility suddenly came to mind.
'The Screamers.'
The Screamers Number 26 fought here were all created using special material namely, the corpse of Cult Ranker Jason, a being with immense psychic power. While I had been dealing with the enemy's main force, it had devoured multiple Jason-based Screamers.
'Could absorbing that much psychic power at once have triggered the transformation?'
Or perhaps the combined effect of its past feedings and this recent surge of energy had produced a synergy that spurred its evolution.
'If it transformed due to feeding on energy…'
Then once it exhausted its psychic power, it would likely revert to normal.
'That means I have to kill Akira Yujin now.'
Before that happens, the enemy’s head must be severed.
Akira seemed to be thinking along the same lines. He should have been engaged with my clones, yet he now flew straight toward me. Behind him, Star Union ships unaffected by Number 26’s EMP worked to delay my doppelgängers.
Akira broke free of the decoys and rapidly closed in on me. As he approached, he aimed his right wing in my direction, clearly preparing to fire. Isabel moved to intercept him.
She swam through the air like a snake gliding across water, drawing her pistol. The muzzle aligned with Akira’s right wing, and the power of Vortex One activated as she pulled the trigger.
But Akira, having been hit by it once before, dove sharply to evade the shot. Then, with a flourish, he unfurled his newly replaced left wing and gave it a powerful shake. Small objects launched from within and homed in on Isabel.
Realizing his counterattack, Isabel moved to dodge, but she was a heartbeat too slow. Razor-like projectiles sliced into her arm, the one holding the gun and across her torso.
｢!｣
She hastily retrieved her floating pistol. In the meantime, Akira had rushed in close.
His hook-claws gleamed like lightning, severing cables and metal tubing that scattered into space. Isabel narrowly avoided a strike aimed at her eyes. Twisting her elongated body, she tried to coil around her foe.
But Akira grabbed her torso with the two arms that lacked claws. As he applied pressure, the outer shell crafted from Vortex One’s flesh began to crumple. Isabel slashed at him with multiple arms, but it wasn’t enough to deal any real damage.
｢D-damn!｣
'This is bad.'
She should have escaped the moment she was caught, but she had misjudged. Akira, tanking her blows, raised his clawed arms high.
Just before the deadly claws pierced Isabel’s skull, a pink pillar erupted behind him. One of number 26’s tentacles slammed into Akira with tremendous force, sending him flying and freeing Isabel from his grip.
｢Little friend, are you okay?｣
｢Th-thanks.｣
Even after being struck by a tentacle several meters thick, Akira emerged unscathed. Still, he didn’t look pleased, probably annoyed at having his kill interrupted. He retaliated by firing an energy blast, blowing apart the tentacle that had hit him.
｢I’ll smack the bad guy again!｣
Burning with rage, just like him, Number 26 didn’t flinch. Instead, it responded by sending even more tentacles at him. Isabel, badly wounded from the close encounter, took cover among the limbs. From within the writhing forest, she fired her pistol and swung the Gallagon claw blade embedded in her tail to keep Akira at bay.
While Isabel and Number 26 kept Akira occupied, the coordinate penalty was lifted. Now able to move again, I dove back into the battlefield.
Green heat rays crisscrossed the chaos, and metallic missiles reeking of gunpowder grazed my vast wings. Debris from shattered ships, human corpses, and cybernetic bodies crashed into my carapace and broke apart.
Tearing through the mess, I launched an eroding tentacle at Akira to pin him down. He dodged with dazzling acrobatics, evading all six limbs. Then, with a swipe of his left wing, he fired another volley of sharp projectiles.
I quickly retracted the tentacles before they could be shredded. Immediately, Akira twisted midair and charged straight at me.
At the same time, I felt energy building rapidly in his right wing. He meant to snipe me at close range. But instead of dodging, I surged forward to meet him.
Just as he fired the energy blast, a pink wall appeared before my face. Number 26 had extended multiple tentacles to intercept the shot.
Though the tentacles were instantly reduced to lumps of scorched flesh, they saved me from the blast. Through the chunks of meat, I swung one of my auxiliary limbs lined with bony blades at Akira.
These bony blades, which appear when I enter the Symbol of Hunt state, are as hard as my head carapace and razor-sharp. Akira desperately raised his hook-claws to block the strike.
A fierce burst of flame flashed, and cracks split through both its hooked claws and my bone blades. As our weapons clashed, it suddenly kicked the tip of my snout with both legs. Despite being overwhelmingly smaller than me, the power behind that kick was anything but small.
My head was knocked backward, and at the same time, its body rapidly retreated. From that position, it unfurled its two wings and began preparing a barrage of attacks.
'But…'
Focusing solely on me in a battle like this isn't exactly a wise move.
A large head lunged from the side of my 'left head', which had been fighting off warships but came at my call. It opened its jaws wide like a serpent and bit fiercely into Akira’s right wing.
As the wing crumpled, its expression twisted in agony. It didn’t hesitate to tear off its own wing and then slammed its hooked claw down on the doppelgänger’s head.
The tough chitinous skull cracked open, and a gush of blood mixed with torn flesh spurted out. Akira, having driven its hooked claw into the clone, opened its mouth in awe as the crimson geyser burst forth.
Just then, the wounded left head wrapped its combat arm around Akira. A moment later, its head melted away like water Isabel had sniped it with a pistol.
Had it been a regular human, that would have been the end. But Akira was no ordinary being.
｢Not… done… yet.｣
Even with its head blown off, Akira didn’t die. It ripped apart the doppelgänger’s hand with its claw and quickly retreated.
Taking advantage of that opening, I approached my left head. It had suffered a fatal wound and could no longer continue fighting.
'You did well. Come back now.'
I pressed the secondary organ covered in bone blades against the clone and deactivated Hydra Division. The liquefied clone flowed through my secondary organ and snout, returning to my body. Moments later, the left neck rose again from between my shoulders and collar.
But due to Akira’s trap, I couldn’t use my regenerative traits at the moment. So the returned left head was restored in a damaged state.
That’s when Isabel sent me a pulse.
｢Don’t… consume… genetic material.｣
[ZZZZ (Is this a perk?)]
｢It’s a perk can mimic appearance… of consumed target.｣
The moment I processed Isabel’s pulse, Akira’s distant form began to change. Its body, having lost a head and a wing, began to twist violently then morphed into a disturbingly familiar shape.
｢Ate Amorph’s… blood, flesh….｣
A large chitinous skull, an elongated neck, a protruding horn where eyes should be, an auxiliary organ under the jaw, two wings, four arms, and a long tail. Though only about 10 meters in size, the shape was unmistakable.
'Amorph.'
Akira’s new form looked almost exactly like an adult Amorph with only one head, much like my own clone.
It grinned, seemingly pleased with how the world now felt through its new auxiliary organ. Mimicking my form must’ve satisfied it.
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ (Would’ve been nice to know about this perk earlier)]
｢No… time. Sorry.｣
Isabel apologized anxiously. She wasn’t wrong, so I didn’t press the issue.
'An enemy imitating an Amorph, huh.'
If this were a fight against any other ranker, taking on the form of a pseudo-Amorph wouldn’t be a bad strategy. After all, a full-grown Amorph equipped with various traits boasts powerful combat strength.
'If it were any other ranker, that is.'
It likely thought it could finish me off with this trump card. But that was its mistake.
I am the only Amorph ranker.
If my opponent is an Amorph I never lose.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 398
