Ch.57Transcendence (1)

I applied ‘Metal Absorption,’ but there weren’t any noticeable external changes.

This transformation happened inside my body. My internal organs felt like they were boiling hot before quickly settling down.

Now if I activate Metal Absorption and consume metal, I can apply the inherent properties of that metal to my exoskeleton.

‘Should I test it out?’

My nest is located in an underground secret passage. The ceiling and walls are made of solid alloy.

I activated the ability and scraped the wall with my claw.

When I put the metal fragments in my mouth and swallowed them, a change occurred immediately. My exoskeleton, which had a glossy chitin-like texture, transformed into a hard and rough metallic material.

When I poked my exoskeleton with my claw, it felt exactly like the wall.

‘The hardness seems similar.’

Even if the metal is too hard for me to chew, the effect applies as long as it enters my body. For instance, if I activate Metal Absorption and swallow a tungsten bullet from a Gauss rifle, my exoskeleton would become as hard as tungsten, and my body weight would increase.

‘Metal Absorption seems to be working well.’

Now that the ability is functioning properly, the only thing left is the Transcendence system.

A system that didn’t exist in the game.

‘Come to think of it, if the goal was to solve the problem of having too many abilities, couldn’t they just revamp the Fusion system?’

Fusion abilities can only be created by combining two non-fused abilities on a one-to-one basis. If they just relaxed the fusion conditions, the problem of having too many abilities would be easily solved.

Yet they introduced this new system instead. What does that mean?

‘It might be related to future evolution conditions.’

The evolution conditions hadn’t changed much until I reached the Juvenile stage. The conditions for evolving into a Subadult were also identical to the game.

Given that the Transcendence system has appeared at this point, it might be a condition needed for evolving from Subadult to Adult, or perhaps for reaching Ascended status.

‘Thinking about it won’t give me any certainty. Let’s just try it and see.’

「’Transcendence’ System: Fuse 3 or more abilities to transform them into a new ‘Unique’ ability. The newly acquired ability is completely new and didn’t exist before.

Available abilities: Chitinous Exoskeleton, Monster Skeleton, Horn Enhancement

*P.S.: It’s not all advantages. Choose carefully.」

「Do you want to use the Transcendence system?」

I answered yes to the final confirmation text box. As soon as I responded, mucus began flowing from my body, just like during evolution.

‘What’s happening?’

The mucus rapidly solidified and enveloped my body. Inside this massive cocoon, another translucent text box appeared.

「Transcendence System activated! Unique ability ‘Perfect Organism’ acquired!」

「Applying ability」

This was my first time experiencing this, so I was a bit confused.

Usually, even when gaining a new ability, I don’t enter a cocoon with my entire body changing like this. Except when evolving to the next stage.

‘Is this an ability comparable to evolution?’

Thanks to this, I realized something important.

Unlike other abilities, those obtained through the Transcendence system seem to be applied after creating a cocoon state, similar to evolution. If I had accepted the Transcendence system somewhere other than my nest, I would have been in great danger.

‘I’ll need to be more careful in the future.’

Since I’m in my nest, there’s no particular danger. I decided to wait patiently.

–

“You’re saying contact with Jade has been lost?”

Minseok Yujin, the butler of Siheyon Yujin, asked in disbelief.

The subordinate nodded and handed Minseok a message left by Hope, Jade’s subordinate.

The message contained news that all team members who had infiltrated the T&C Special Trade Center had been killed, along with descriptions of the creature that attacked them and its general specifications.

“The entire infiltration team wiped out by an unidentified creature…”

No matter how many times he checked, the recorded message wouldn’t change. Minseok sighed at this unexpected urgent report.

‘The young lady hasn’t been in good condition lately.’

Originally, Siheyon was like an emotionally worn-out machine. Her emotions had been eroded due to the modification procedure that turned her into a shadow.

Moreover, having worked as a spy and assassin under Akira Yujin’s orders for a long time, most of the emotional displays she showed were acts.

The absence of emotion wasn’t necessarily a bad trait for someone who operates and controls individuals and organizations. Siheyon had been a strong and cold-headed leader who never let emotions interfere with her work.

‘But now…’

Siheyon, who had been revived as a clone, was different from before.

Their master had been suffering from nightmares since her revival. Although she never spoke directly about these nightmares, Minseok suspected they were related to the entity that had killed her.

‘The young lady fears death.’

There is currently no clone to replace her. Creating a clone isn’t easy, and the Cult’s soul transfer technique requires considerable time.

If she dies this time, it would truly be the end, so it’s understandable that even someone as powerful as Siheyon would be afraid.

But Minseok shook his head.

‘We cannot delay the execution of our mission because of petty emotions.’

Siheyon is the rightful successor of House Yugin and an irreplaceable ruler. For the sake of those who follow her, she must adhere to Junwoo Yujin’s will.

In fact, Siheyon hadn’t completely ruled out the possibility that her clone might behave differently than expected.

Minseok had already received instructions from Siheyon on how to handle such a situation when the clone was created.

If the clone showed a negative reaction upon hearing of Jade’s death, such as refusing to go to the space city, Minseok would have no choice but to use forceful measures.

‘I hope I won’t have to use that method…’

Minseok glanced at the safe in the secretary’s office. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided not to touch it.

“I’ll make the report myself.”

“Understood.”

Leaving the secretary’s office, Minseok headed to the laboratory. His master was staying in the lab due to a new genetic modification.

When he arrived at the lab, the researchers silently bowed to him.

At his gesture, the researchers quietly left the laboratory.

Only he and his master Siheyon remained in the lab. Siheyon was floating in a test tube, having just had new genes implanted.

Her appearance had become much more grotesque than before.

Her originally flawless white skin now looked rough and tough like animal hide, and a sharp horn had grown on the left side of her forehead.

Minseok called out to his master, whose eyes were closed.

“Young lady. I have something to report.”

「What is it?」

She opened her eyes. Her left eye had been replaced with an animal’s eye, giving her a somewhat eerie appearance.

「I see you’ve come while I’m in the middle of calibration. It must be urgent.」

“Yes. We’ve lost contact with those who infiltrated the T&C Special Trade Center.”

「Contact with Jade has been lost?」

She frowned, apparently also finding Jade’s death unexpected.

「He had Metallic Gremlin genes implanted. Regular police or androids shouldn’t be able to eliminate him easily.」

“According to an urgent message from Hope, Jade’s subordinate, those who annihilated them weren’t human.”

「Surely Gallergorn hasn’t started rampaging already?」

“After checking with our informants, that doesn’t seem to be the case. It appears Jade’s team was taken down by an entity completely unrelated to our plans.”

「An unrelated entity…」

The annihilation of Jade’s team, who were to carry out the operation, was bad news, but it was somewhat fortunate that the enemy wasn’t related to Noble Capital.

“What would you like to do?”

「…Hmm.」

Siheyon remained silent at Minseok’s question.

If the board meeting were canceled, it would be difficult for her to obtain new information about it. Being officially considered dead limited her information-gathering activities.

She could have her subordinates collect information, but there would be an enormous gap between the information they could gather and what she used to obtain while at Akira’s side.

In other words, if she missed this board meeting, it would be nearly impossible to find another opportunity to eliminate Noble Capital as a group.

‘But forcing the plan now also carries significant risk.’

If by chance any of Jade’s team members had been captured rather than killed by House T&C, all information about the operation would have been leaked.

Noble Capital’s torture methods are beyond imagination, making it impossible for even highly trained agents to withstand them.

If House T&C knew about her plan, they might have set a trap.

‘I need to know who fought the team members.’

Minseok had told her it wasn’t human, but they both knew that whoever annihilated Jade’s team was no ordinary entity.

Of course, Jade’s team was dispatched to prepare for a terrorist operation, so their combat capabilities were relatively low. But they shouldn’t have been wiped out so easily.

Therefore, the enemy who could annihilate them was very likely related to Noble Capital. To confirm this, she asked Minseok:

「Who eliminated Jade’s team?」

“It’s an unidentified creature that hasn’t been discovered before. I’ll display the last message sent by Hope.”

Minseok inserted a data chip into the terminal next to the test tube. Shortly after, a holographic message window appeared on the surface of the test tube.

「!」

Her pupils dilated as she read the message. She trembled violently as if electrocuted.

“Young lady?”

Minseok was also surprised by her unexpectedly intense reaction.

The equipment in the laboratory began to shake violently, and cracks started to form in the test tube containing her. Her psychic power and emotional disturbance were affecting the surroundings.

Eventually, the test tube couldn’t withstand it and shattered. Simultaneously, nearby equipment was swept away, and Minseok was thrown backward.

“Ugh!”

“It’s him! That creature is in the city!”

Siheyon shouted as she emerged from the broken test tube. Her expression seemed both fearful and joyful.

“Y-Young lady?”

“We’ll proceed with the plan as scheduled. Since the operatives are dead, prepare a new team immediately. The enemy in the city is formidable, so select only the best elites.”

“U-Understood!”

“And prepare my enhancement suit.”

“Do you mean the White Maiden?”

She nodded.

This meant she would personally visit the space city to command the operation.

Unlike the concerns he had before coming to the laboratory, she showed no signs of fearing death.

Minseok thought it was fortunate that his master had returned as he left the laboratory.

After sending her subordinate away, Siheyon looked down at her body. The soles of her feet were bloody from the glass shards of the test tube, but she felt more discomfort than pain.

Unknown to her subordinates, even her butler, she had not overcome the sense of alienation she felt in her clone body.

She tried to maintain Siheyon Yujin’s thoughts and habits, but her inner self was becoming increasingly different from the original with each passing day.

One of the factors making her different from the original was the nightmares.

The memory of her original body being killed by an unidentified monster on Eusung’s spaceship. That memory appeared in her nightmares every day, tormenting her.

She knew she would never find peace until she confirmed the creature’s death.

But finding a monster of unknown identity, not even knowing if it was dead or alive, in this vast universe was nearly impossible.

Even if she sent her subordinates to search, there was no telling how long it would take.

Thus, her nightmare was set to become an incurable disease she would have to live with for the rest of her life.

That would certainly have been the case if not for the message she saw today.

‘This time, I will definitely kill it.’

Having finally found the opportunity she had been desperately waiting for, she smiled with delight.

–

「Application of ‘Perfect Organism’ ability complete.」

The application time for the transcendent ability wasn’t as long as evolution. It felt like about 2 to 3 hours.

I tore through the cooled cocoon and emerged. The mucus inside the cocoon poured out like water from a burst balloon.

After shaking off the mucus and cocoon shell covering my body, I stretched.

‘Huh?’

The ceiling of the secret passage, which was about 5 meters high, felt closer than before.

I lowered my combat arms to check. The appearance of my combat arms had changed significantly.

All four arms had changed from a structure similar to human arm bones to a more muscular shape. Compared to before, they were about 1.5 to 2 times thicker.

The shape of my hands had also changed. The fingers at the ends of the pair of combat arms attached to the upper shoulder area had become so large they could be mistaken for pincers.

The left arm of the lower pair, which housed the bone spike launcher, had become as thick and menacing as a mortar. The small fingers at its end had also grown proportionally larger.

Perhaps because my overall size had increased, the small arms on my chest had now grown to the size of a 7-8 year old child’s arms. This size would be sufficient to hold and fire pistol-class weapons.

The exoskeleton covering my chest, back, and head had also become much thicker, reminiscent of a Mountain Crawler’s shell. My weight must have increased significantly, making me wonder if I could still fly with my wings.

‘I’ve changed too much?’

While the overall shape hadn’t changed much from the Juvenile form influenced by the physical enhancement type, there were significant changes in detail—almost like a half-evolution.

I opened the text box to check the explanation for these changes.

「Species: Unidentified Agressive Space Morph

Status: Juvenile (Transcendence Stage 1)

Objective: Survive (2 successful evolutions).

Abilities:

① Physical (Type applied): Wings (unusable), Regeneration (fusion), Neurotoxin Gland (fusion), Acidic Blood, Mimicry Organ (fusion)(unusable), Serrated Tentacles, Bone Spike Launcher, Predator’s Claws, Bite Force, Metal Absorption, Perfect Organism (unique)

② Psychic: Predator Sense (fusion), Monster Tentacles (fusion), Humanity, X-ray Vision, Psychic Resistance

③ Infection: Parasitic Colony (fusion)

Type: Physical Enhancement Type

「Perfect Organism: Your body is optimized for slaughter and evolution. Enhances your type effect. Gives intimidation to all types of sentient beings. Can evolve into ‘Hunting Embodiment’ once per day.

*’Hunting Embodiment’: While active, greatly increases predation effect probability. Enhances the effects of all abilities. Gains resistance to all types of attacks. Duration is 10 minutes.

*Caution: In Perfect Organism state, concealment abilities and flight abilities cannot be used.

*P.S.: There is no end to evolution.」

「New message has arrived.」

‘What’s this?’

As soon as I activated the text window, I was greeted by numerous characters.