Chapter 333: A-Rank Talent: Body of the Hungry

"All set."

Qi Suian watched as the vast number of minuscule Fiber Worms in his hand moved slowly, ceaselessly craving food.

The moment they escaped Qi Suian’s control, they would become ferocious predators whose sole purpose was to satiate a hunger that could never be filled.

He then implanted them into his body as an upgrade patch.

A flood of information began to surge, upgrading the Abyssal Virus within Qi Suian.

Intense pain, an uncontrollable numbing itch—a whole series of inhuman, torturous sensations assaulted his body in alternating waves.

Yet Qi Suian’s expression remained unchanged. ’Immunity is impossible, but I’m already used to it.’

He would have liked some painkillers or sedatives, but they were useless on him now. Since he was no longer human—having become an energy-based, virus-type humanoid creature—such drugs had lost their effect.

He couldn’t be bothered to develop any new ones. ’It’s just a bit of torture, and getting used to it helps temper my will.’

Overall, the pros outweighed the cons, so Qi Suian paid it no mind.

Before long, another talent materialized on the Doomsday Game’s panel.

[A-Rank Talent: Body of the Hungry]

’It’s only A-Rank for now, but reaching S-Rank shouldn’t be a problem.’

’I’ll just need a little time to raise it.’

A-Rank was just the beginning; he could continue to upgrade it from here.

As for how to upgrade it, the answer was simple. ’Modification. What else could it be?’

However, this would be a major project. After all, it was an upgrade from A-Rank to S-Rank.

Qi Suian stretched out his hand, and countless amorphous Fiber Worms, as fine as dust, materialized.

Then, they swelled continuously, coalescing into the form of Fei.

’My Spiritual Intent has evolved, too. Infused with the Fiber Worms, it has become lethal.’

’Combined with the Abyssal Virus, they’re somewhat similar to nanomachines.’

’There’s just one side effect.’

Qi Suian watched as the Fiber Worms in his hand, driven by hunger, began to devour each other. This was one of the side effects of combining a consumption-type ability with the hunger effect.

When there was no external food source, the Fiber Worms would turn on their own kind. After all, these things had no sense of self, possessing only the brutal individual logic for hunting and predation.

However, this side effect was a double-edged sword. Without Qi Suian’s restraint, the Fiber Worms would transform into powerful predators, heedless of their own survival, their only purpose to devour everything.

Qi Suian could designate targets for them to attack; otherwise, what would have been the point of creating them in the first place?

’But possessing only individual logic isn’t enough.’

’The Fiber Worms are brainless and prone to problems. It would be best to have a server to act as a hub for command and control.’

Qi Suian’s gaze fell upon Fei. The creature’s physical structure had now been reconstituted with Fiber Worms as the material, modified through Spirit projection technology.

It would be perfect as a server for the Fiber Worms.

This way, the Fiber Worms could aggregate to form a variety of shapes.

If enough of them aggregated, they could form a veritable army of Fiber Worm viruses.

’The evolution of the A-Rank talent, Body of the Hungry, should be oriented toward a swarm-type growth.’

Qi Suian’s current Abyssal Form was now officially renamed the Body of the Hungry, though the name was admittedly a bit strange.

But it didn’t matter. The name would likely change again after the next evolution, and it would still be centered around the Fiber Worms.

As for its final form, that would depend entirely on Qi Suian’s modifications.

’No, wait. It’s not a swarm-type ability, it’s a direct enhancement of my own power.’

’Fundamentally, the Fiber Worms are just another derivative of the Abyssal Virus. They only formed this unique effect after combining with the traits of the Spiritual Root.’

’It’s equivalent to me releasing my own macrophages as a weapon.’

’So, while it looks like a swarm-type enhancement, it’s actually a tangible manifestation of my own talent’s growth.’

’And this... this is my chance to break my base attributes from 9 points to 10.’ Qi Suian quickly confirmed his new direction.

He had almost gone down the wrong path.

Whether it was Fei or the Fiber Worms, they might seem like his summons at first glance, but they were actually just secondary products of the Abyssal Virus, derived from his own Spirit and physique.

They weren’t independent entities, but merely extensions of Qi Suian’s own body. Therefore, it couldn’t be considered a swarm-type enhancement.

The zombies created through Abyssal Virus infection, on the other hand, were independent entities. Even though Qi Suian could command them, it wasn’t absolute dominion, but more akin to remote control.

Therefore, no matter how much those zombies were enhanced, it was of no direct benefit to Qi Suian himself. Conversely, any improvement to Fei and the Fiber Worms represented his own power increasing.

’The good news is, I don’t need to fight up close anymore. I can just slice off a piece of my flesh and let the worms eat people for me.’

’Not only will they bring back nutrients, but they’ll also kill my enemies. It’s killing several birds with one stone.’

Qi Suian had never been fond of close-quarters combat. Now that he had a better method, he couldn’t be more pleased.

The Fiber Worms were naturally not as strong as Qi Suian, but what they lacked in power, they more than made up for in sheer numbers.

If he were willing, he could dissolve his entire body into Fiber Worms and unleash their self-replication ability, developing an army vast enough to blot out the sun.

There was just one problem with doing so: Qi Suian’s consciousness wouldn’t be able to maintain control.

Therefore, at most, he could only enable the Fiber Worms’ self-replication ability, without completely disintegrating himself.

The Fiber Worms were a product of the modified Abyssal Virus, so they naturally inherited the virus’s ability to self-replicate.

As long as they consumed a certain amount of energy, the Abyssal Virus’s abilities—replication, transcription, translation, and so on—would activate within the Fiber Worms.

Once their numbers increased, they would begin to aggregate, taking on the appearance of a sandstorm as they continued to devour and expand.

As for forming biological structures, it was possible, but not particularly practical.

After all, swarming an enemy and devouring them until nothing remained was far more effective than simply beating them to death.

Qi Suian recalled the external Fiber Worms. Once they returned to his body, they converted back into the conventional Abyssal Virus.

Outside, they were Fiber Worms; inside, they were the Abyssal Virus.

Qi Suian planned to find a suitable location before releasing the Fiber Worms again.

"AI Brain, what’s the status of the Spiritual Root-targeting genetic weapon?" Qi Suian asked after filing away the various data and information.

[The rate of expansion has slowed. Mages are using spells and treasured artifacts for effective protection. The mutation within the general populace has reached its fourth generation.]

[In two days at most, the fifth-generation mutation will be complete. At that point, it will use Spiritual Root gene fragments to bypass all Spiritual Root-based protections.]

"Ignore the Mages. They’re just skeletons in their graves," Qi Suian said, completely unconcerned with their fate. It was only a matter of them dying sooner or later. "I want the data on the Spiritual Roots."

[Overall activity of wild Spiritual Roots has decreased by forty percent. Overall yield of cultivated Spiritual Roots has decreased by approximately sixty percent.]

[The Mage Families and the Yunhan Dynasty are actively seeking a solution.]

[Concurrently, the mortality and devolution rates for Spirit Demons have reached as high as seventy percent. Spirit Demons are predicted to be the first species to face extinction.]

Qi Suian read this and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

He hadn’t intentionally targeted the Spirit Demons, yet they were the first to fall victim.

But it made sense. The Spirit Demons hadn’t formed a complete social structure; they were essentially a special race dependent on human civilization.

Human Mages could protect themselves, but the Spirit Demons were slow on the uptake. By the time they realized what was happening, it was already too late.

If they were lucky, the Spiritual Root in their bodies would die, and the Spirit Demon would simply devolve back into an ordinary beast or plant, returning to its former unthinking existence.

If they were unlucky, of course, the Spirit Demon itself would die a sudden death, with no hope of survival.

’Who told the Spirit Demons to be the primary hosts for Spiritual Roots? They can only blame themselves for being collateral damage.’ Qi Suian felt not an ounce of pity.

He had long been willing to burn, kill, and pillage for the sake of his own survival; why would he spare any thought for the Spirit Demons?

Besides, they weren’t his species. Killing them required no mercy whatsoever.

"We can proceed with the second-wave deployment."

"After the deployment, I still need to get back to upgrading my talent, so let’s pick up the pace." Having finished the report, Qi Suian prepared to implement phase two of his plan.

Wiping out the Spiritual Roots wasn’t something that could be accomplished with a single deployment.

Either Qi Suian would exterminate every last Spiritual Root, or Luo Geng would emerge from his seclusion to fight him to the death, forcing Qi Suian to flee. Even if a third option existed, Qi Suian had no intention of compromising.

-----------------

「Ten days passed in a flash.」

Luo Yu once again arrived before Luo Geng’s secluded chamber.

"Your Majesty, ten days have passed. We implore you to grant us a cure for the plague."

He got straight to the point.

This was no time for pleasantries. Every day that passed meant another massive loss of resources.

After a long wait, Luo Geng’s voice finally sounded from within.

"Wait another half-month." Luo Geng’s voice had grown even stranger, stirring a vague sense of unease in Luo Yu’s heart.

But faced with Luo Geng’s immense power, he could only suppress these thoughts.

He replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. It’s just... the Spiritual Root yield has already fallen by more than seventy percent. If we wait another half-month, I’m afraid..."

"I said half a month, and I meant it." Luo Geng cut him off without hesitation. This was an order, not a negotiation.

Seeing this, Luo Yu could only reply helplessly, "Yes, Your Majesty."

’Clearly, not even an Immortal Mage has a cure for this plague,’ he thought. ’Otherwise, his attitude wouldn’t be like this.’

He turned to leave, resigned, but suddenly froze. His keen senses detected a spatial rift flash before his eyes.

He was about to say something when a line of tiny, intricate script appeared upon the rift.

Do not alert anyone. The Spiritual Root anomaly is possession by Insect People. Find the one who spreads the plague. Save...

The message collapsed before it could finish, but Luo Yu recognized the script. It was Luo Geng’s handwriting. Besides, only Luo Geng possessed such power.

Luo Yu understood the meaning of the message instantly. He couldn’t help but swallow hard, glancing back stealthily at Luo Geng’s secluded chamber.

A storm raged in his mind.

’Something’s happened to His Majesty!’ The thought screamed in his mind.

Things were spiraling out of control in a way he could never have predicted.

He had never imagined that the plague, the Insect People, and the Spiritual Roots could be so intimately connected.