I Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 172

Ep. 172

The first and only characteristic I gained in this world is ‘a complete organism.’ As the name suggests, it is a characteristic that changes my physical ability type to a state suitable for survival.

And complete organisms have special effects.

‘Embodiment of the Hunt’ mode.

When the symbol of hunting is activated, my body is optimized for battle and evolves into the ultimate biological weapon. The duration is 20 minutes and the cooldown is 24 hours, but it is so effective that all such shortcomings are ignored.

Like right now.

｢Grrrrrr｣

Although my eyes are gone, my senses are better than ever.

All the objects, including the passage where the communal ice horror is buried, where I am standing, feel as vivid as if I was seeing them with my own eyes. Thanks to this, I am fully aware of the changes that have occurred in my body.

My entire body, including my bones, muscles, scales, and carapace, is twisted. Optimizing the body to hunt stronger enemies and more prey.

As the head shell grew rapidly, the weight of my body shifted slightly forward. The six horns, which are useful when fighting powerful enemies, have grown into even more vicious forms to suit their roles.

After the ‘organic evolution’ feature was applied, the elongated head of the theropod form changed more dramatically. A bifurcated lower jaw developed, giving the impression that a metal protective device was worn under the chin.

Along with the change in the jaw, the auxiliary organ under the jaw was covered with a bone carapace, making it look like elephant ivory. This curved, blade-shaped bone carapace was considerable in size and weight, but it had developed jaws so it was easy to move.

‘The original function of the auxiliary organ remains the same.’

It is not just the auxiliary organs that have changed near the head. The biggest change is that the five face masks on the back have been moved to the head. Five pale faces were attached to the carapace on the back of the head like trophies, just as ancient warriors decorated their bodies with the skulls of their enemies.

As the head became heavier, the neck also evolved to support it. The monster’s tentacles covered its enlarged neck like hair.

In its normal state, the neck was not a prominent part due to the monster’s tentacles extending like a mane and the carapace on the back of the head. It was now thick and long like the neck of a crocodile or Komodo lizard.

And the part that extends from the neck to the back, in human terms, was tingling around the ridges of the wings. Soon, two bone blade arms, which could easily be said to be symbols of hunting, protruded from the holes in the carapace.

This arm with a biological scythe at the end is the sharpest and deadliest weapon I have. It can easily cut even hard materials such as the outer walls of ships or advanced reinforced suits.

In addition, other parts were transformed into shapes useful for battle.

In particular, the blunt claws on the lower body and tail have changed significantly. It has joints that grow like arms and has sharp claws at the end. The shape resembles a spider’s legs.

Although there was a change in the way that new parts grew, the weight became lighter than before. When I used the symbol of hunting in the past, it felt thick and heavy, but now it feels thin and light.

Just because it’s lighter doesn’t mean it’s less durable or hard. In fact, thanks to the densely intertwined scales, its defense power would have increased even more than before.

‘Plus, it seems like I’m more flexible than before.’

I bent and straightened my fighting arms, which were more than twice as long as before using the symbol of the hunt. The scales moved smoothly like flowing waves as the muscles and bones moved.

Aside from the body itself becoming lighter and more flexible, its overall length has increased. Based on detection with auxiliary organs, the length of the tail is approximately 35 to 40 m. It can be said that the body has grown to a little less than 10 meters from the 28 meters long.

‘It’s still small compared to the other side.’

The opponent is a very large creature that can easily overcome 100m. It’s less than a third of the size, but…

‘Size isn’t everything.’

After finishing the inspection, I raised my head, flicking at the four bone blades, or rather, the changed auxiliary organs. As if the timing was right, as soon as I raised my head, the ice and rubble piled up in the passage began to shake.

The pile of stones trembles more and more violently, as if representing the emotions of the beings beneath.

After a while, stones and ice fragments flew like an explosion, and the Ice Horror appeared.

To briefly summarize the appearance of Ice Horror, it looks like a centipede’s body combined with the head of the monster that appears in the classic monster movie series.

The head had four jaws strong enough to tear apart a ship, and the insides were full of protrusions and teeth that captured and sucked prey. At the back of the jaw were degenerated eyes and two long, thin antennae.

Those antennae, reminiscent of a chain whip, are its detection organs. Unlike mine, which has weak auxiliary organs, its antennae are quite strong, as can be seen from their appearance.

The lower part of the head is divided into segments similar to a centipede, and each segment has legs with sharp claws and a white stomach shell. What makes it different from a centipede is that its shell is very hard.

‘Even if it doesn’t have any special defensive abilities, it can ignore most attacks.’

In fact, even though it was hit from the front with the psychic breath I fired, it only got a few scratches on its armor.

｢Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

the guy, clearly angry at the fact that he was unexpectedly attacked. The antennae on its head waved like a cobra threatening its prey.

This is a space so large that even two large monsters can comfortably fit inside. I deliberately chose this place to fight this guy.

The Ice Horror’s large size may seem like it would be advantageous to fight in a narrow space, but in reality, this is not the case. It digs and moves around in the ground and ice more easily than I do. If it’s not an open space like this, it’s me who suffers the loss.

｢Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

at at me, but the guy turned his head towards me. The four jaws opened wide and a stream of clear venom was shot out at me.

The neurotoxin I often used when fighting bio-type enemies is highly concentrated and mixed with hallucinogens to become Ice Horror poison. Simply put, it is a poison that paralyzes or causes the victim to hallucinate.

But I didn’t avoid it. Instead, it rushed towards the guy who was standing still while shooting venom.

‘Poison is of no use to me.’

Thanks to the ‘complete immunity’ trait I received as a semi-adult perk, I am completely immune to poison and disease. No matter how powerful the poison it shoots, it won’t work on me.

I ran across the ice on the floor while being hit by poisonous liquid.

｢Sussss?｣

He looks perplexed as if this is his first time seeing an enemy that is impervious to venom.

‘It has to be that way.’

The only creatures around here that are immune to its poison are a few species, including the Black Gallagon.

While the guy stopped, I used my speed and weight to hit him with the horns on his head. The frozen underground cavity shook violently and its large figure was pushed back.

｢Grrrrr｣

Until now, he has never been stabbed by my horn without any harm, but this time is an exception. Ice Horror’s defense power is truly terrifying. Despite my blow, only scratches from the horns remained on its carapace.

｢Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

it it it it pushed back and started a counterattack. A body several times longer than me is wriggling like a snake and trying to wrap itself around me.

I grabbed its torso with six fighting arms. In that state, it swung its tail wildly. The pincer attached to the end of the tail turned into a heavy mace and struck the carapace near the abdomen.

“Ssssss!”

Ice Horror’s painful screams and roars mixed together and resounded throughout the underground cavity. When I looked at the area where my tail had hit, there were cracks like spiderwebs. I was hit so hard that the surface slightly cracked, so it was bound to hurt.

｢Susssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

At at me, the angry guy opens his four jaws wide and charges at me. It must be a plan to swallow me whole. The swirl-shaped skin on my back peeled off, and the erosion tentacles hidden inside came out all at once.

The eroding tentacles that spread out their appendages grabbed hold of its jaws.

And then the struggle of power began.

｢Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

to’re!’

It is a situation where two very large creatures measuring tens of meters and hundreds of meters in length are competing. In the aftermath, the ice walls surrounding the underground space shook greatly. The icicles hanging from the ceiling fell and the floor I was standing on was dented and cracked.

‘It’s incredible power.’

Even though it used the symbol of hunting, its power was truly incredible. Its six eroding tentacles hold its jaws firmly, but they cannot hold out for long. Because he put his weight on me and started putting pressure on me.

‘but.’

This much was expected.

I slightly relaxed my grip on the erosion tentacles. The body of the guy who was exerting force to push me down suddenly turned towards me.

The moment its huge mouth was about to swallow me.

The bone blade arm on my back flew like lightning and stuck in the guy’s mouth.

｢Suss?!｣

An ice horror that freaks out due to sudden pain. He must have been in quite a bit of pain and was shaking his whole body. As the hundreds-meter-long mass began to rage, not only the cavity but the entire underground space shook as if there had been an earthquake.

“Sssssss!”

Then he closed his jaw, grabbed me, and shook his head violently to throw me away. My body flew through the air and hit the wall hard.

‘Ugh!’

｢Pain Reduction Activated!｣

It’s been a while since the ‘Pain Reduction’ feature has been activated, but there is no time to be lost in pain. I quickly pulled my body out of the wall and dodged to the side. As soon as I dodged, its head hit the wall next to me.

I narrowly avoided it by just a piece of paper and scratched the opponent’s carapace near his abdomen with the four bone blades under his chin.

This bone blade is made of the same material as the blade on the arm on its back. In other words, it is very hard and sharp.

Along with the sound of a nut shell breaking, four wounds appeared on its carapace.

The guy was probably annoyed that I dodged the attack and even counterattacked, so he turned his body and hit me. I quickly raised my fighting arm to block it, but the results were not good. Two of my arms were completely shattered when I collided with its armor, and my body was thrown back against the wall.

‘Pfft!’

It was a simple movement without any technique, but he was faster than me and had great strength, so it was not easy to deal with him.

The guy who broke my arm removed his head from the wall and rushed back. Having expected that, I opened my mouth to look into its eyes. An acidic fungal gland located in the back of my throat near the esophagus shot a vicious acidic liquid into my stomach.

The one hit by the green liquid stopped attacking for a moment. While he was hesitating, I quickly pulled away and put some distance between me and him.

｢Sussssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss at him,

the guy shakes his head as if he’s annoyed. Because the carapace boasts a hardness that easily surpasses that of diamond, acidic fungi were unable to penetrate it at all.

The guy who shook off the green liquid looked at me and purred. I guess I’m starting to become cautious because new abilities keep coming out of me.

While the guy was on guard, I looked at the parts of the guy that I had ‘targeted so far’. The abdominal carapace, which had been slashed with pincers and cut with a blade under the chin, was heavily cracked.

‘Preparations are complete.’

There is only one thing left to do.

Waiting.

｢Sussssu｣

｢Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

The guy who had been keeping a close watch with his antennae fixed on me moved again. It rushed at me, sliding across the ice like a train on a track.

Just before colliding with it, I tightened my strength on the tip of the tail and the legs on my lower body. My body bounced toward the ceiling like a spring, and the surface of my claws brushed against its jaw.

I narrowly avoided the Ice Horror’s charge and landed on its back. He then used his remaining fighting arms and eroding tentacles to grab hold of the creature’s armor like a cowboy at a rodeo.

“Sssssss!”

I twisted my whole body as if I didn’t like the guy who was carrying me on his back. But I’m already close to his body. It didn’t fall off as easily as he had intended.

While he was running wild, I swung the blade under his chin and the arm on his back. Every time the wind hissed, the wounds on his armor grew one by one.

“Seaaaaaa!”

Finally, as if he couldn’t stand it anymore, he roared loudly and raised his body. Just as I jumped up, he also used his lower body and legs to lift himself up.

In just one leap, it soared to the ceiling of this huge underground space. The guy who had jumped to the ceiling collided with his back, and I, who was caught between him, felt like I had been pushed into a crushing machine.

｢Grrrr!｣

‘Ugh!’

I lost my strength without realizing it because of the immense pain I felt throughout my body. The back of the occiput carapace was now broken due to the impact, and the carapace of the back and thorax were also heavily cracked.

‘If you get hit one more time, it’s dangerous!’

I jumped off his back as he hit the ceiling and landed on the floor. It opened its jaw wide and bit my tail as if asking where it was running away.

As soon as I bit into it, the protruding protrusions and teeth inside its jaw and mouth grabbed my body. They’re probably going to swallow me like this.

Instead of hitting its jaw, I activated the barb-firing tail inside its claws. The pincers opened slightly and the thorns inside poured into the guy’s throat.

“Susssu!”

For someone like me who uses neurotoxin as a weapon, poison attacks are meaningless. However, anyone who gets a fish bone stuck in their throat is bound to feel uncomfortable.

Ice Horror got fed up and spat at me. After being inside its body for a short period of time, the tip of my tail was severely damaged.

‘It’s definitely strong.’

It is a creature that boasts tremendous fighting power, as if it were not an Apex creature. At least he was one of the weaker Apexes, so if it had been Black Gallagon or Sea Demon, I would have already had 2 or 3 fatal injuries.

｢Seaaaa!｣

It roared briefly and approached me, moving its legs quickly. This time, I didn’t dodge either, but rushed at him.

We lunged at each other’s heads like males fighting to determine who was superior. The Ice Horror’s jaw collided with the carapace of my head on an arena made of ice.

A tremendous pressure came over my head. The head carapace, which had barely been damaged until now, was broken and three of the six horns were broken.

‘If you fall here, it’s the end.’

I strengthened my legs and tail in my lower body to avoid being pushed away.

As a result of these two powerful forces holding on to subdue each other, the floor could no longer bear it and collapsed.

At that timing, I lowered my head down. The guy who was competing with me had no choice but to focus his strength on my head because I was avoiding it.

In an instant, its jaws broke the carapace on the back of my head and swept over the carapace of my back. Due to the impact, both arms on my back were completely broken.

A pain that was difficult to describe in words was immediately pierced into my mind. I almost lost consciousness from the pain that felt like the back of my head had been split open, but I was able to endure it somehow thanks to its pain-relieving properties.

‘now!’

I turned my head to the left. Then the bone blade under my chin pointed straight upward.

The target of the bone blade was the abdomen of the guy passing quickly above me. The two blades on the right side of my bone blades slashed the guy’s abdomen as he jumped forward.

｢Susss!｣

‘It’s broken…ugh!’

Without even having time to enjoy the joy that the attack was successful, I ended up lying on the broken floor. It was because the angry guy swung his tail at me.

‘this!’

I tried to get up again, but the guy’s mouth was just a stone’s throw away.

A huge, four-pronged jaw can be seen unfolding like a flower. The moment that jaw closes, my head and upper body will be destroyed.

I was trying to crouch down to somehow minimize the damage, but the thing suddenly stopped moving. It was a very fleeting moment, but it was enough for me to avoid it.

As soon as I removed my upper body, its jaw immediately closed. I realized that I could feel the movements of a familiar being on the other side of the half-collapsed passageway.

‘You’re here!’

And the rocks and ice fragments that had filled the passage floated up. They turned into cannonballs and rained down on the Ice Horror’s armor and tail.

｢Sussssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

at him at the sudden attack and it turned its head.

Three creatures appeared beyond the dark passage.

“…also. “You endured well.”

A griffon beastman holding the ‘priest’s golden spear’ in his hand.

｢Large Adult｣｢Big｣｢Snake｣｢Very｣｢Huge｣

Green Gallagon expresses surprise at the sight of Ice Horror and me.

“You wicked guy! “I won’t leave you alone if you bully a big baby! I’ll scold you a lot!”

And a 10m-tall sea demon that waves its numerous tentacles and fins menacingly.

After a long time, reinforcements finally arrived.