The sudden turn of events left Neva's mind blank.
The giant Worm, which had been full of life just moments ago, had died just like that?
It died so quickly, so miserably... Before Neva could even react, the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form directly crashed into the rock wall on the other side.
"Bang!"
Another loud bang.
The cave vibrated violently again, and the immensely massive Gluttonous Worm Complete Form disappeared from Neva's sight, adding a new, bottomless passage to this complex cave network.
The wind stirred up by the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form's movement whistled through the cave, leaving Neva disoriented in the gust... Throughout the entire process, the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form probably didn't even notice that a stunned spectator was present.
Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do?
Neva's brain completely lost the ability to think, feeling that everything was incredibly unbelievable. Looking at the cave where the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form had left, her horrified heart could not calm down for a long time.
If there wasn't a second Gluttonous Worm Complete Form in this cave, this should have been her nominal "mother."
The fear on Neva's body gradually disappeared, and she regained control of her body.
Was her inability to move just now due to the ability called [Intimidation]? Or was it an instinctive fear and obedience towards the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form?
Or was it both?
It was truly incredible; the scene here was like a horrific accident site, with shattered remains and flesh of that Adult Form Worm everywhere.
Just imagine if she had been in the position of that Glutton Worm Adult Form, she would surely have been crushed into nothing!
Neva couldn't help but shiver, feeling a deep sense of dread, as this was her first time encountering a powerful creature rated at level 10.
And even such a creature was merely a Low-grade Life Form. Since there are Low-tier, there should be Mid-tier and High-tier. How terrifying would those creatures be?
After witnessing the "mother's" true form, Neva deeply felt her own weakness. There were too many unexpected events in life, and weak creatures simply couldn't control their own fate, not knowing when they would be trampled to death by those powerful existences.
These powerful existences probably never cared about weak ants, just like this Glutton Worm Adult Form. Simply because it blocked the path of the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form, it was smashed into pieces. It was such a simple reason, and death was just that simple... Sigh! What a headache.
Worm life is tough. It's better to fill her stomach first... Although that giant Worm was smashed to smithereens, its sheer size meant that even its minced meat (shattered flesh) was enough to satisfy Neva... Neva continued to wander through the cave. After devouring the Worm's remains, her Evolution value immediately reached 9.8, just one step away from Evolution.
This was truly an awkward, in-between number.
Soon after, Neva finally spotted some Gluttonous Worms. Several Gluttonous Worms were engaged in "friendly" sparring, and the battle quickly entered a heated phase.
Whoosh~
This indicated that she had already left the territory of that Glutton Worm Adult Form.
What a familiar scene!
Neva let out a heartfelt sigh of admiration.
Seeing injustice, she drew her sword to help.
Neva joined their battle with such a noble reason.
Soon, Neva subdued all these already half-crippled Worms, ending their meaningless Worm lives.
She was no longer the weak Worm who would run away at the sight of an enemy. Dealing with a few half-crippled Worms was not difficult for her now.
After spending some time devouring several Worms, Neva finally met the requirements for Evolution.
Name: Neva
Race: Gluttonous Worm (Larva)
Rank: None (Data Rating: 0.8)
Evolution Value: 10.7 / 10
Profession:
[Main Profession]: None
[Sub-Profession]: None
Magic Energy: 3
Soul Strength: 13
Abilities: Unknown Data (??), Devour (2/10), Misfortune (1/10), Healing (1/10)
---
After this period of effort, all values had seen a slight increase.
Now that the Evolution conditions were met, Neva was very much looking forward to it.
She immediately sprang into action, preparing for the upcoming Evolution.
First, Neva found a relatively Concealment cave. She used her mouth to painstakingly move surrounding gravel, temporarily sealing the small entrance.
She didn't know what state she would be in during Evolution, or how long the process would take.
If she were discovered by other Worms during Evolution, she might unknowingly become their food.
To prevent that from happening, she could only temporarily seal the cave entrance.
However, if found by an Adult Form or Complete Form, this defensive measure would be completely useless.
But there was nothing she could do; if such a situation truly arose, she would simply have to consider herself unlucky.
After doing all this, Neva finally relaxed and considered the matter of Evolution.
Evolution, how does one evolve? Should she spit some saliva and wrap herself up?
This was her first Evolution, and she knew nothing!
[Complying with host's request, meeting Evolution requirements. Do you choose to Evolve?]
Oh! She almost forgot there was a prompt sound.
"Choose 'Yes'."
[Please select an Evolution direction. Currently available Evolution directions: Glutton Worm Adult Form, Glutton Worm Toxic Variant, Shadow-Prey Beetle]
[Glutton Worm Adult Form: F~E grade, the normal Evolution direction for Gluttonous Worms. It increases individual strength and defense based on ordinary Gluttonous Worms. During its growth, its body size will continuously increase until it becomes a Gluttonous Worm Complete Form.]
[Glutton Worm Toxic Variant: F~E grade, a rare mutated individual within the Gluttonous Worm species. It contains venom glands, and its individual strength is relatively weak.]
[Shadow-Prey Beetle: F~E grade, a common Evolution direction for insect Life Clan. A very small number of low-level insects will mutate into Shadow-Prey Beetles. It can detach from the Worm form. Shadow-Prey Beetles possess extremely fast speed and jumping ability, but their attack capability is low.]
After reviewing these options, Neva began to carefully consider their respective advantages and disadvantages.
She, of course, knew the Glutton Worm Adult Form; it was that guy who was smashed to smithereens, leaving not even a speck of dust.
Because she ate all of its remains.
She suddenly felt some sympathy for it, and mourned for three seconds!
Neva immediately ruled out this option because the Gluttonous Worm Complete Form was too clumsy, making it difficult to escape danger.
There was also an important reason: the Glutton Worm Adult Form was too ugly. Neva simply could not accept turning into that drooling, alien-faced Worm.
The Toxic Variant was also easy to understand; it was simply a regular Gluttonous Worm with added poison.
A special forces soldier among Worms?
Essentially, it was still a Worm... As for the third option, it was very interesting. Neva couldn't understand how a Worm could evolve into a beetle. Was this the beetle she knew, or something else?
However, this option greatly matched Neva's expectations. Just the speed and jumping ability alone were very good; in this dangerous cave, escaping was an extremely important skill.
"If you can't beat them, run" was the most correct choice. Would any Worm really choose to fight head-on?
And there was another crucial point: after turning into a beetle, she should have legs, right? She should, shouldn't she?
She had long wanted to escape this fat, round Worm form.
Without hands or feet, she could only use her mouth to pick things up; such a life was truly unbearable!
She hoped that the beetles of this world weren't too different from the beetles of her original world. As long as she could escape the Worm form, she could even accept becoming a dung beetle!
It seemed there was nothing to hesitate about.
Neva made her final choice.
She decided to evolve into a Shadow-Prey Beetle.
The moment she made her choice, Neva felt a strong drowsiness, and the black heart in her body's cavity emitted an eerie resonance.
A transparent liquid overflowed from the cavity, and within a few minutes, the liquid completely enveloped Neva.
When Neva completely lost consciousness, the liquid gradually solidified and became opaque, forming a membrane similar to an eggshell.
Facts proved that Neva's previous preparations were correct; during Evolution, she was completely defenseless. If discovered by other Worms, she would surely become their food.
[Beginning first Evolution.]
[Requirements met, individual strength increased, "Misfortune" proficiency +1]
Although Neva was already asleep, the prompt sound from the crystal heart continued to broadcast in a cold, numb, dull, and mechanical manner, speaking to no one in particular...