Morning light filtered through the roots of Ren's hideout, painting golden stripes across his scaled body. He uncurled slowly, still amazed by the new weight and power coiled in his muscles. His adult body was longer—nearly two palms in body length, plus a thick, muscular tail that stretched almost as far again. His scales had darkened to a rich earth brown, with faint green undertones that would help him blend into the forest floor.
He opened his panel to check his status.
Gene Upgrade Panel
[Name: Ren]
[Species: Forest Lizard (Adult).]
[Available Gene Points: 0.1]
[Abilities:]
Clawed Strike - Developed.
Grip Jaw - Developed.
[New Ability Detected: Mana Perception (Basic) - Required 10 Gene Points to develop the ability.]
Ten points, he thought, staring at that new line. That's a lot.
But he had felt the mana—that faint, teasing current in the air. If he could develop this ability, he might finally understand the power that made creatures like the iron mantis so terrifying. He might be able to use it himself.
First, he needed Gene Points. And he knew exactly where to get them.
The centipede.
Ren emerged from his hideout, his new legs pushing him faster than before. The forest felt different from this height—his eyes were now level with low ferns and mushroom caps, not buried in the leaf litter. He could see farther, react quicker.
He searched for nearly an hour, following the trail of broken twigs and disturbed soil the centipede had left behind. It wasn't subtle. A creature its size—a full meter of chitin and blades—moved through the undergrowth like a tank.
Then he found it.
The centipede was curled under a fallen log, its red and black mandibles clicking lazily as it chewed on the remains of a small rodent. Its body was a nightmare of armor: each segment bore a pair of razor sharp legs that glinted in the dappled light. The same legs that had pinned his tail to a tree trunk.
Today, you die.
He circled wide, staying downwind. His adult claws dug silently into the soil. The centipede hadn't noticed him yet—it was too focused on its meal.
Plan, he thought. Its head is armored. The mandibles are deadly. But the gaps between segments… that's where I strike.
He waited until it turned its head away, chewing a mouthful of fur and bone. Then he sprinted.
His new legs ate the distance in seconds. The centipede's antennae twitched—too late. He leaped onto its back, his claws finding purchase on the rim of a segment joint. The centipede bucked violently, its whole body thrashing. Blade legs scraped against his scales, drawing thin red lines, but his adult hide was thicker now. The cuts stung but didn't stop him.
He activated Clawed Strike and drove his razor sharp claws into the gap between two segments.
Green hemolymph sprayed. The centipede shrieked—a horrible, hissing screech—and twisted its head toward him. Mandibles gaped open, dripping venom.
He didn't give it the chance. He used Grip Jaw to latch onto the same segment gap, his newly strengthened jaw muscles locking down like iron. His teeth pierced the soft membrane. The centipede's thrashing grew frantic. It slammed its body against the fallen log, trying to crush him, but he held on.
Again and again, he stabbed with his claws, widening the wound. Green fluid poured out. The centipede's movements slowed.
With a final, shuddering convulsion, it went still.
He released his grip and stepped back, panting. His body was covered in scratches and green slime, but he was alive. The centipede lay in a twisted heap, its blade legs curled inward.
Revenge is sweet.
He dragged the corpse into a sheltered hollow and began to eat. The chitin was tough, but his adult teeth could crack it now, especially with Grip Jaw helping him hold and grind. Piece by piece, he consumed the centipede—legs, mandibles, soft innards, everything.
[Blade-Legged Centipede (partially consumed) - Obtained 4.2 Gene Points.]
Not enough. I need more.
The green snake was easier to find. He spotted it basking on a sun warmed rock near the stream, its scales shimmering like emerald silk. It was a meter long—twice his length—but slender, no thicker than his forearm. Not a constrictor, he guessed, but a racer. Fast. Probably venomous.
Speed against speed.
He approached from behind the rock, keeping low. The snake's forked tongue flicked out, tasting the air. It knew something was there, but it hadn't pinpointed him yet.
He exploded from cover.
The snake reacted instantly, its body coiling like a spring. Its head whipped toward him, mouth open, fangs glistening. But he was already inside its strike range, too close for it to bite effectively.
He slashed with Clawed Strike across its neck. His claws tore through scales and muscle, opening a deep gash. Green blood—no, snakes had red blood, he remembered—crimson sprayed across the rock. The snake thrashed, trying to wrap its body around him, but he was faster. He dodged its coils, leaped onto its back, and bit down on the wound with Grip Jaw.
His teeth sank deep. The snake went into a frenzy, whipping and slamming against the rock. One of its wild strikes caught his side, sending him tumbling, but his jaws never let go. He held on like a bulldog, grinding his teeth deeper.
Slowly, the snake's struggles weakened. Its blood pooled on the warm stone. After another minute, it lay still.
He released his bite and sat back, breathing hard. His side ached where the snake had hit him, but no bones were broken.
[Green Racer Snake consumed - Obtained 5.1 Gene Points.]
He dragged both carcasses into his hideout and finished every scrap of meat over the next few hours. The centipede's chitin crunched between his teeth. The snake's flesh was tougher than he expected, but rich and filling.
When he was done, he opened the panel.
[Available Gene Points: 9.4]
Nine point four. Just shy of ten.
He frowned. Then he remembered the centipede's leftover head—he had left the mandibles and some shell pieces behind. He crawled out, retrieved them, and ate the last fragments.
[Blade-Legged Centipede (remains) - Obtained 0.8 Gene Points.]
[Total Available Gene Points: 10.2]
Perfect.
He opened the panel and stared at the blinking line.
[New Ability Detected: Mana Perception (Basic) - Required 10 Gene Points to develop the ability.]
Develop, he commanded.
The Gene Points dropped from 10.2 to 0.2. And then the world changed.
It wasn't pain this time. It was like someone had taken off a blindfold he didn't know he was wearing. The air around him shimmered with invisible currents—threads of light and energy flowing through everything. The soil beneath him glowed faintly. The roots above him pulsed with slow, rhythmic beats, like a heartbeat.
Mana.
He could see it now. Not with his eyes, but with something deeper—a sixth sense that painted the world in colors of power. The forest was alive with magic. Every leaf, every stone, every patch of moss drank from that invisible river.
He reached out with his mind, trying to touch a thread of mana. It slipped through his grasp like water through fingers. But this time, he could feel its texture—warm, vibrant, humming with potential.
The panel updated.
[Mana Perception (Basic) acquired.]
[You can now perceive ambient mana. Further cultivation required to gather, store, and manipulate mana.]
[Suggestion: Hunt creatures with active mana circulation to accelerate growth.]
Ren sat in his hideout, surrounded by the glowing tapestry of the forest's magic, and smiled.
The centipede was dead. The snake was dead. And he had taken the first step toward real power.
Now, he thought, watching the mana flow around him like a river of stars, I learn to swim.