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Chapter 138

The king of the swamps, known in the language of humans as ‘Gel Alma’, possesses innate strong resistance to psychic powers, agile movements despite its size, tough exoskeleton, high intelligence, and the ability to nullify protective barriers. The cult faced formidable conditions in dealing with it.

It’s not just about the creature’s strength. The swamp where the Swamp King resides is the most dangerous place on this continent. One must face powerful monsters while enduring the toxicity of the swamp that penetrates even protective suits.

If one is in their right mind, they would never set foot in the swamp.

Fortunately, the Swamp King is a creature with an extremely strong territorial awareness. It means that it doesn’t pay much attention to what happens outside its territory.

However,

Now, due to the mysterious visitor, that common sense was being shattered.

Deep within the swamp, the Swamp King, who had been dormant, suddenly heard a sound. Although it was the first time hearing the sound, its distinctive rhythm felt oddly familiar. It resembled the sound made by the delicious prey it was fortunate enough to catch when it was young.

The creature with four eyes resembling fireflies emerged above the water’s surface to survey the surroundings.

“■■Give. Who ■■■■…”

Upon hearing the sound again, the creature became certain. A delicious prey was roaming within its territory.

Normally, the Swamp King would hide in the swamp and ambush approaching enemies, but not this time. The intelligent Swamp King remembers. Those preys never wander alone. This time, they will undoubtedly gather in a group.

Before other competitors arrive, it must go and devour them first.

Deciding that it’s time for a long-awaited prey hunt, the creature with a massive body rose.

With its pincers attached to the front of its body clicking, it moved in the direction of the prey’s cries, as its ten long legs diligently traversed the swamp floor.

“Who’s there!”

The sound was not far away, and this time, it was clearer than before. The four eyes all pointed in the direction from which the sound flowed.

“Please… I don’t want to live like this!”

The sound was coming from an area with many rotten logs. It was a place the Swamp King, burdened by its heavy body, rarely visited due to the low water level in the swamp.

｢Kiii｣

The creature hesitated for a moment. Is that prey really worth risking danger for?

In a few minutes, the creature’s legs began to move. The prey it remembered, those creatures with four appendages, had tender flesh and rich nutrients. Moreover, they had the habit of gathering in large numbers. Once preyed upon, it could relax for about a month, so it couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity.

With each movement of the legs over 10 meters long, the logs were crushed.

Dragging its hefty body, it approached a clear swamp ahead.

“Someone, please kill me!”

The one who made the crying sound was there.

However, the form of that entity was quite different from what the Swamp King remembered. Normally, the prey would have a body with a head, torso, and four appendages. But now, the prey in front of it had lost its torso, and a sharp-toothed mouth and two white eyes were visible on a sharp-edged log.

Moreover, familiar objects were seen next to that log.

“Heek! It came again! It came again!”

They were the corpses of Swamp Kings. Three corpses of its kin with heads and organs pierced lay piled next to the log.

Only then did the Swamp King realize that it had fallen into a trap set by an unidentified enemy.

And the entity resembling a log spoke,

“I·re·lo·net.”

The Swamp King couldn’t understand the meaning, but he could understand one thing – that the sound did not bode well for him.

***

‘Is this the fourth one with this.’

Contrary to its dull appearance, the Swamp King is a highly intelligent creature. In the setting, they never forget the smell, movements, sounds, etc., of a prey once they’ve encountered it. Therefore, it likely remembers capturing and devouring the cult that arrived on this planet. If it were the Swamp King, it would be aware that the taste of the cult is quite delicious.

I decided to experiment using their high intelligence. Two days ago, I acquired the ‘Humanoid Beast’ trait.

And my experiment was a success.

“It came! I did as instructed, now kill me!”

The face attached to my back screams.

The face looks almost identical to the MCAE pilot I last devoured in the research base, except for being paler. The original, the parasitic organism trait of the pale mask, and the Human-Faced Beast trait applied to Aymoph are completely different. The Human-Faced Beast in Aymoph’s body cannot use hypnosis or shock waves.

‘Instead, it has two effects.’

One is partially copying the habits and memories of higher intelligent beings, such as humans or cultists, that I have devoured. Even if the predation effect doesn’t kick in, the genetic essence of the target is stored in my body. I can use the acquired genes to create a Human-Faced Beast. Unlike the parasitic organism, I can only make a Human-Faced Beast with the information of the last consumed individual.

While the parasitic organism’s ability is to reproduce the dying state of the target as it is using pheromones, the Humanoid Beast copies the memories contained in the target’s genes.

In short, think of it as a cloned human with only the head left.

Therefore, the face attached to my back can loudly shout as if it has a self-identity. Of course, I have control over it, so I can silence it anytime if necessary.

‘If mixed with the parasitic organism, it could be quite helpful in getting information.’

The Human-Faced Beast trait can be quite useful when information is needed. Although a considerable part of the memories is lost when acquiring genes, most recently remembered things are preserved.

Thanks to this trait, I was able to complete the preparations for the departure of the research base, or the spaceship, before returning to the continent. Once my cooldown is over, I can leave this planet at any time by taking the spaceship.

Anyway, in addition to the information acquisition function, the Human-Faced Beast has effects directly related to combat.

‘Sonic wave attack that paralyzes the enemy.’

If the parasitic organism’s hypnosis is a kind of mazegi that seals some of the enemy’s skills, the effect of the Human-Faced Beast I possess is very straightforward.

It temporarily paralyzes the enemy through sound waves. The paralysis time ranges from a few seconds to a few minutes. Even at its longest, it doesn’t exceed 5 minutes.

It may seem short, but it is not.

It is a technique that prevents the enemy from acting for several minutes in a fight against a formidable opponent. The paralysis sonic attack of the Human-Faced Beast completely ignores the opponent’s psychic resistance.

‘Except for enemies without ears.’

Such enemies do not exist here. Especially the monster in front of me, resembling a mantis, the Swamp King, has very good hearing.

｢Ki-i-i-i｣

The four eyes attached to him wander. He is probably confused. The creature floating above the water is much smaller than him, and there are three corpses of his kin next to him.

‘Whether to run away or attack, it must be a dilemma for him.’

Unlike him, I’m not particularly worried. Like the three before, he will likely make the same choice.

I waited patiently, confident that he would attack.

｢Ki-i-i-i-i｣

And what he chose was a middle ground between attack and retreat. It was to call corpse-eaters and have them attack first.

White eels sprang out from under his backplate and splashed into the swamp.

‘Intelligent.’

So far, all three I fought either attacked head-on or turned and fled. But this one seems to be a smarter individual.

‘The corpses created by the Swamp King perform attacks that ignore defense.’

As a Quasi-Saint, my carapace defense has increased significantly compared to before, but it is useless against the digestive fluid of the corpses. I responded by extracting corrosive tentacles from my back, and every time the elongated tentacles whipped the surface, the corpses roared in agony.

｢Ki, Kiiii｣

It seems the Swamp King thought it was worth a try since I didn’t bring out other means of attack. The much larger creature approached me rapidly.

The two jaw arms at the front of its body creaked menacingly. It probably intends to tear off my head with those jaws. However, things won’t go the way it wants.

‘Maybe this is enough.’

Judging that the creature has approached a suitable distance, I initiated a genuine attack.

“I dislike… ki-iiii.”

The Human-Faced Beast under my control made a grotesque sound, opening its mouth wide. A second, whirlpool-shaped mouth emerged from inside its mouth.

From the sinister-looking second mouth, invisible ultrasonic waves were emitted.

｢Ki?!｣

The Swamp King, who was charging toward me, froze in its posture. It did not move an inch with its jaws wide open. Having paralyzed it, I followed up with a second attack.

My lower body and tail, buried beneath the swamp, writhed vigorously. My hidden body, concealed underground, shattered the ground where the Swamp King stood and sprang up.

｢Ki-i-i?｣

The Swamp King, as heavy as the Pale Mask, was hit by my tail and briefly floated in the air. It barely managed to stabilize its body with the legs at the back.

However, the posture had already collapsed. I quickly coiled my tail and lower body around the creature.

The Swamp King’s carapace is very tough. Even as an intermediate being, breaking its leg carapace is a limited option. Currently, the only way is to strengthen my body using the Hunting Emblem and then smash it.

I don’t necessarily have to break a leg. I just need to immobilize them.

Confirming that the tentacles and arms firmly held the creature’s legs, I began squeezing its carapace with my tail.

｢Ki-i-i-i!｣

The weakest part of the Swamp King’s carapace in terms of physical defense is the abdomen. Realizing that its life was in danger, the creature screamed in panic. It probably never dreamed it would be overwhelmed by a larger being in its lifetime.

The creature swung its claws at me like beating a drum, but it was inadequate to prevent the crushing death. A few minutes later, the carapace completely shattered, and the creature died, scattering its internal organs.

For a creature known as the king of the swamp, it met quite a pathetic end. Confirming that the creature’s breath had stopped, I released my grip.

‘It would be nice if it floats this time.’

This marks the fourth Swamp King hunt.

I came here to obtain materials related to the Nest Fusion trait.

The other creatures are in the nests I’ve prepared in the forest. The reason I hunt alone is that there are only Number 26 creatures with immunity to the swamp’s poison. Adhyana or Sky Mother also has some resistance to poison, but not enough to pass through the swamp.

Number 26 has high immunity, enough to swim in the swamp, but it’s not suitable for fighting the Swamp King. Although it has become strong enough to be close to the Seed Demon in its adult form, it cannot break through the Swamp King’s psychic resistance.

Since there is no one among the companions suitable for fighting, I have to hunt alone.

‘Please, let it work this time.’

I’ve already collected one corpse for each of my family members. If this creature exhibits the predation effect and if it manifests a trait that I need, then today’s hunt will be over.

I tore off the Swamp King’s carapace and thrust my head inside.

‘Tastes good, but…’

Chewing the meat with a flavor reminiscent of king crab is undoubtedly enjoyable, but it’s already the fourth time I’ve had the same food. Eating the same dish three times a day, no matter how delicious, can become monotonous.

Struggling through it, the text box I was hoping for appeared.

｢Predation effect activated! Successfully acquired genetic essence of the pincer.｣

｢Extracted the ‘Pincer’ trait from ‘Swamp King.’｣

｢Do you want to apply the ‘Pincer’ trait?｣

‘Ah.’

Although the pincer trait is very useful in combat, it wasn’t the result I wanted. I sighed internally and applied the trait.

As the pincer trait was reflected, the shape of the two arms at the lower part of my upper body changed. Like the Swamp King’s pincers, they are large and sturdy, but with smaller pincer hands.

This pincer trait also inherits the Swamp King’s psychic resistance effect. Therefore, it is applied redundantly with my ‘Psychic Reflection Gloves’ trait. Perhaps these pincer hands are the part of my body with the highest psychic resistance.

‘A matching psychic power pincer.’

I tapped the newly formed pincer hands with satisfaction. Although the predation effect occurred on the fourth try, it was still a rare occurrence. Unlike in the game, Swamp Kings are not endlessly generated here.

‘I wonder if there are a few more Swamp Kings left.’

There might be about two at most. If capturing the remaining creatures doesn’t work, I’ll have to consider devouring other creatures to obtain fusion traits.

Since the goal is to find fusion traits related to the transcendence second stage, I don’t necessarily need to create a perfect trait.

With my revised plan, I entered deeper into the swamp. I carried the corpses of the Swamp Kings I had secured so far with the corrosive tentacles.

And precisely 14 hours later.

I could finally obtain the fusion trait related to the nest.

The Cleansing Weapon of the Cult’s planet and one of the mass-produced motherships, Judicator of Damocles 08.’

Normally, the inside of the ship, which was as vast as space, was now extremely busy due to the crew members bustling around.

“In two days, we’ll depart, so everyone get ready!”

“How’s the adjustment of the psychic engines?”

“We’ve completed the adjustment to be able to operate in two days.”

“Pilots who have completed the simulated training shouldn’t forget about maintenance work!”

“The fleet sent by the Council has expressed their intention to participate in the purification operation!”

“For now, permit their participation, and the captains are requested to come to the mothership office. There’s something to discuss.”

“Understood!”

The captain looked at the complicated situation room with a satisfied expression.

Although all the crew members were moving busily, each focusing on their tasks, they all had one thing in common—a vibrant expression on their faces.

The captain always felt sorry that such talented individuals were stuck in such a remote place, and moreover, they voluntarily followed him as war heroes. It made him feel even more guilty.

‘Sigh. After this Damos 08 purification operation, I should visit my hometown.’

He felt irritation about being here due to the Council’s intrigue, but it wasn’t the case for his subordinates. It was nothing short of a crime to let the talents of the Empire rot away in a place like this, especially considering that they followed him voluntarily as war heroes.

‘I heard the priest of the seraph is clever. Should I go visit him?’

According to the captain’s recollection, before the appearance of the priest, the Seraphim was merely a faction with a deep history but not much to draw attention. The Seraphim claimed to be the supreme, ignoring the emerging powers in the universe such as Megacorp or Star Union, this made it difficult to garner support.

Instead, the faction emphasizing exchange and enlightenment with intelligent beings, the Innovative Faction, was much stronger.

Everything changed with the arrival of a noble from the Cult. He transformed the Seraphim into the leading faction in the Council in one go. While one might think of the Cult as only skilled in political maneuvering, surprisingly, he also excelled in military talent.

Thanks to his excellent defense against the Outspacer invasions, he was unanimously appointed as the priest in the Council.

The captain, having had a notable career leading Imperial fleets, was well aware of the competence of the young priest.

“There are rumors that his relationships with women are not good.”

There were rumors circulating about him sexually abusing female slaves, but the captain didn’t believe them. Successful individuals often have those who envy them.

“Well… even so, just in case, before starting the operation, I should go down and check on the slaves.”

A few days ago, the captain investigated information about PH-101. On one continent of the planet, there are Wolves maintaining a primitive level of civilization.

If the rumors related to the priest are true, female Wolves could be a good gift to win his favor.

“Anyway, if the purification operation begins, they will all die.”

Ironically, becoming slaves might be salvation for them. While the civilization they built would be extinct, living might be preferable to dying.

“I should inform the adjutant.”

Until the captains of the support fleet visit, the captain contemplated how he could gain the priest’s favor.