Chapter 2280 - 1141: Shirin

Chapter 2280: Chapter 1141: Shirin

Shirin woke up from a nightmare.

The hellish and terrifying scenes in her dream filled her with fear.

"Mother Superior, I want to go home."

The frail Insect Girl could only hug her knees powerlessly, curling her body tighter as weak murmurs escaped from her no longer sharp mouthparts.

Sadly, such a wish was destined to be impossible to fulfill, for her homeland, the Senhai World, had already been destroyed.

She was a member of a medium-sized tribe called the Taizi Clan among the countless tribes of the Insect Race in Senhai, and also the Clan Leader’s daughter, but her status was not considered high.

After all, her Clan Leader mother had tens of thousands of children.

The Taizi Clan, unlike the Hercules Clan which had naturally powerful Strength, or the Mantis Clan which had sharp claws and teeth, only had its formidable reproductive ability to boast of.

So, the Taizi Clan’s combat prowess was not strong; its members could only rely on their large numbers to take on various laborious tasks that other tribes were unwilling to do.

Yet Shirin was a rather special presence within the tribal clan.

She was an Alien Bug.

The so-called Alien Bug is essentially a deformity among humans; Taizi Insects, especially the Mother Worm, were often large and plump, as only such a body could support the substantial fertility required to produce countless offspring.

A normal Taizi Mother Worm could give birth to at least hundreds of children in her lifetime, and an exceptional one could give birth to thousands. As for someone like Shirin’s mother, that outstanding individual could produce tens of thousands of children, which was the reason she could rise to become the Clan Leader.

In the Taizi Clan, prolific childbirth was a source of pride, and individuals with strong reproductive abilities were naturally deemed worthy of respect.

However, Shirin was born with a frail and slender body. She could not even compare to her mother or other sisters with their enormous bodies that often measured tens or hundreds of meters. Her frame was not even as large as those three to four meters tall Ape neighbors in the Senhai World—the mere three-meter height truly was a laughingstock among the Insects.

In the words of her sisters, they had to be careful when walking to avoid accidentally stepping on Shirin, their Alien sister, and killing her.

Naturally, due to this Alien Bug form, Shirin grew up amidst ridicule and bullying.

Normal Taizi Insect People often matured by the age of three or four, and once matured, they would immediately start reproducing. They were a matriarchal clan; a Mother Worm would often have several Male Insect partners to ensure continuous reproduction.

Regrettably, Shirin’s frail insect body was considered too ugly by her fellow tribe members. She was now over thirty years old, yet not only did she not have a harem like her sisters, she couldn’t even find a single partner.

Initially, Shirin resented Fate’s manipulation, despised those Male Insects who always shouted, "Big is good," and envied her plump and voluptuous sisters. But now, she had come to terms with it, or perhaps become numb.

Insect life spans only a short hundred years; just bear it, and it will soon be over.

However, Shirin had always kept a secret, that she actually inherited her Mother Superior’s powerful reproductive ability, as her innate Talent was "Extraordinary Fertility."

Indeed, every Insect Person in the Senhai World could awaken a Talent; it was a gift and blessing from Senhai.

And within the Taizi Tribe, Extraordinary Fertility was undoubtedly the strongest Talent, and its owner was often the candidate for the next Clan Leader.

When Shirin was young, she had proudly told Mother Superior that she inherited this Talent, but her mother, always busy with endless production, could only look at her with helplessness and pity.

"Little Shirin, forget about this Talent. Your insect body is too frail, excessive reproduction will only quickly drain your Life."

To this, the Insect Girl had once despaired.

She knew Mother Superior was concerned for her, but such blunt negation still wounded Shirin somewhat. She wanted to tell Mother Superior that she could do it, that she was just small, but still quite strong.

But after some thought, she said nothing at all, as she couldn’t even find a Male Insect as a partner; how could she expect to bear children on her own?

Moreover, considering the usually seven or eight meters tall Male Insects of the Taizi Clan, Shirin grew even quieter.

Too many children could lead to death, never mind if she actually found a partner; she might not even survive to the stage of childbirth.

Ultimately, she decided to give up; being a smart, single insect alone was okay too.

Indeed, compared to her foolish siblings, Shirin was undoubtedly intelligent. As an Alien Bug, loss comes with gain; she had lost the plump body of a Mother Worm, but gained an exceptionally developed brain.

Her brain was even much stronger and more perfect than that of a Brain Worm. With such aptitude, had she been a member of the Brain Worm Clan, she would undoubtedly be the darling of the clan, possibly even becoming a legendary Wise Man in history.

Sadly, she was a Taizi Insect, so, intelligence? What was that? Could it help with reproduction?

Thus, Shirin inevitably remained quite isolated; she was tired of her kin who did nothing but eat, sleep, and have children.

Ultimately, she left the group to live alone and became a Scavenger.

Yes, what is called a Scavenger is essentially a Corpse Collector; the Insect People often waged War with the neighboring Apes. And Wars naturally brought deaths; where there were dead, there were bodies, and bodies needed people to handle them.