‘Endurance… Carapace… Isn’t this just a Guangdong twin-tail…’
[Mimic]
[Level: 1]
[Life: 2 Days]
[Talent: Assimilation (Blue), Endurance (Grey), Carapace (Grey)]
“Looks like eating just this one small beetle isn’t enough to level up.”
[You decide to devour more, but a single Carrion Beetle has no combat power]
[Suddenly, you become intensely interested in some of the humus on the ground]
‘If I eat the food of the thing I assimilated…’
[Devouring plant humus, EXP +1]
[Devouring plant humus, EXP +0.8]
[Devouring animal humus, EXP +2]
……
[Due to your unique digestive system, you never get full, and the Carrion Beetle can convert food into power. Unfortunately, this is ultimately limited; you cannot break through the racial ceiling]
After reaching level 2, devouring this humus no longer provided any improvement.
But the good news was that he was stronger now, a size larger than an ordinary Carrion Beetle.
Yet the problem remained: he had no offensive means.
Besides its fragile carapace, the only part capable of dealing damage was its mouthparts, which could only be used to feed on humus.
It was safe to say he was at the very bottom of the food chain.
Just as Rein was at a loss, several of his kind suddenly crawled out from the nearby grass and moved swiftly toward him.
[Your kind has mistaken you for a female beetle and intends to mate with you]
“I’m your brother, and you want to get with me?!”
[Host, the Carrion Beetle you assimilated is indeed female]
“Uh…”
Rein was ready to eat the newcomer, but then a few more beetles crawled out from the side, tumbling into a fight.
One was even knocked over, lying on its back with legs flailing—it wouldn’t be able to get up without help.
This was the first time Rein experienced being fought over, but he couldn’t exactly feel happy about it.
Finally, a lucky (or unlucky) winner emerged, walking over with confident strides.
The next moment, red slime oozed out from the carapace and enveloped its body.
[Devouring Carrion Beetle, EXP +10]
“How much?!”
Considering that devouring humus now only gave him 0.1 EXP, devouring one of his own kind gave this much!
Rein then formulated his next plan.
……
In nature, there are many parasites that survive by leeching off other species, like cuckoos laying eggs in others’ nests.
Rein was the same. Using the mating activities within the beetle population, he kept devouring his own kind, finally reaching level 3 as a Mimic.
[If the Host keeps eating like this, the Carrion Beetles in this area might go extinct]
In addition, Rein devoured many other species of beetles along the way.
[Devoured Stag Beetle]
[Devoured Dynastid Beetle]
[Devoured Rhinoceros Beetle]
……
[Various beetle mimics have met the synthesis conditions]
[Talent: Carapace (Grey) has faded]
[Awakened Talent: Chitinous Exoskeleton (White)]
[You can now form various shapes of chitin weapons and armor]
[The spiders that originally preyed on beetles have suffered. They had never seen a hedgehog-like beetle before; sharp spikes would suddenly sprout from the pitch-black shell, piercing them]
“This talent is way too useful. It greatly improves defense, offense, and mobility.”
[Various small animals also became your prey]
[Of course, you still had natural enemies. Avoiding the various predators in the jungle, you developed stealthily]
[Your level finally reached Level 4]
[Sometimes the highest-level hunter appears in the form of prey]
[Faced with a dead fawn’s corpse, you chose not to devour it, as eating it would only yield negligible EXP]
[You chose to burrow inside and wait for a sucker]
[Soon, a lone wolf trotted over lightly]
[It looked around before starting to feed]
[Suddenly, it felt something strange in its mouth, then a bunch of black spikes attacked inside]
[Assimilation complete. You have obtained Forest Wolf mimicry]
[EXP +50]
[Host awakens new talents: Wolf Fang (White), Keen Scent (White)]
[From now on, you are no longer that weak Mimic]
“The weak me from the past is dead!”
[As a wolf, you can hunt various medium-sized animals]
[Due to the Mimic’s talent, you are never satisfied]
[With the Forest Wolf’s speed and the protection of the Chitinous Exoskeleton, you can continuously hunt your own kind]
[You also began hunting natural enemies that once threatened your survival]
[Devoured Wild Boar]
[Host awakens new talent: Tusk (White)]
[Devoured Wild Dog]
[Host awakens new talent: Canine Tooth (White)]
[Devoured Forest Snake]
[Host awakens new talent: Venom Gland (White)]
[After a fierce battle, you devoured the most powerful creature so far]
[Devoured Forest Black Bear]
[Even though it was only a recently independent medium-sized bear, it still took a lot of effort. Your Chitinous Exoskeleton was shattered several times]
[As the bear’s body was covered by red slime, the chime for EXP and talent acquisition sounded simultaneously—extremely pleasing]
[EXP +200]
[Level increased to Level 5]
[Host awakens new talents: Super Strength (White), Bear Claw (White), Bear Tooth (White)]
[Forest predator talents have reached sufficient quantity. Talents: Super Strength (White), Bear Claw (White), Bear Tooth (White), Tusk (White), Canine Tooth (White), Venom Gland (White), Keen Scent (White), Chitinous Exoskeleton (White) have faded]
[Awakened Talent: Forest Hunter (Green)]
[You can now use all the powers of ordinary creatures in the forest. All stats are increased by 20% while active in the forest]
“It’s worth all my hard work these past two months. Finally got a green talent.”
Rein opened his status window.
[Mimic]
[Level: 5]
[Life: 2 Months]
[Talent: Assimilation (Blue), Endurance (Grey), Forest Hunter (Green)]
But just as Rein was feeling proud, danger crept in quietly.
Deep in the forest, a witch had noticed the recent anomalies.
[Witch Xima has lived in this forest for over ten years]
[She noticed that many creatures had died in large numbers recently, attracting many scavengers]
[“I could even summon ghouls now…”]
[Finally, one day, she found the culprit]
[At that moment, Rein was resting inside a tree]
[“This is… a Mimic?”]
[“What a good research subject.”]
[“Third-rank magic, Shadow Prison.”]
……
[When you wake up, you find yourself trapped in a prison of magical substance]
[You try to touch the bars with your Chitinous Exoskeleton or fangs, but they recoil as if burned. Luckily, you have the Endurance talent, so it’s not too painful]
[“Oh, awake?”]
[A girl in a sky-blue nightgown walked over. Her snow-white shoulders peeked out slightly, and the loose gown couldn’t hide the full curve of her chest]
[You sensed immense magical power from her—she could crush you anytime]
[She placed a piece of paper beside the cage]
[Host, a high-grade item has been detected nearby. It can be stored in the Safe Box]
[High-grade recipe detected: Xima’s Antidote Recipe (Blue)]
[“Third-rank magic, Shadow Enslavement.”]
[A dark ring of light formed around you, but had no effect]
[“Strange, can’t tame it. It must be a Mimic without intelligence. What a pity. I’ll have to kill it then.”]
[“Third-rank magic, Shadow Annihilation.”]
[Inside the cage, shadow energy gathered. You felt your body disappearing]
[In a blur, you heard the witch’s voice]
[“Huh? Where’s my recipe?”]
[You have died]
[Simulation ended. Evaluating results]