LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Taking the Offensive
"Skills can level up like this?"
Staring at the system notifications flashing before him, Fang Chang was both surprised and delighted. He had never imagined that the additional skills gained from devouring spirit beasts could evolve further.
With the acquisition of Low-Level Fire Immunity, his HP loss finally came to a halt.
Even though the Fire Ants continued to spray him with their high-temperature secretions, and his carapace remained searing hot, Fang Chang no longer felt any discomfort.
After devouring a few more Fire Ants, Fang Chang closed his eyes, feigning sleep.
He couldn't move much in his current state and had no effective way to deal with the pesky ants. Similarly, the Fire Ants couldn't harm him anymore. The two sides remained locked in a stalemate.
This lasted for several days.
Most of the Fire Ants, realizing their attacks were futile, eventually retreated back into their burrow. Only a handful of stubborn ones lingered, occasionally spitting their fiery secretions or clacking their mandibles against his carapace, seemingly out of boredom.
Finally, Fang Chang opened his eyes.
He tested his body, finding that the injuries from his fall had largely healed, and his broken legs had completely regenerated.
Name: Fang Chang
Species: Dark Armor Demon Spider
Spirit Power: 2283 years
Evolution Points: 2040
HP: 515/550 (Recovering)
Strength: 131
Attack: 140
Defense: 217
Speed: 178
During his recovery, he had devoured several Fire Ants that wandered too close to his mouth. Though their individual spirit power was negligible, their sheer numbers provided a significant boost.
Under the horrified gaze of the remaining Fire Ants, Fang Chang slowly propped himself up.
His two shield-like legs pressed into the ground, and his other legs pushed his body out of the pit.
Sweeping a cold gaze over his surroundings, his attention finally landed on the few remaining ants.
These persistent little creatures had kept him company over the past few days, ensuring he wasn't entirely alone.
Fang Chang approached them.
The Fire Ants tried to flee, but they were no match for Fang Chang in speed or size.
In just a few steps, Fang Chang blocked their escape route. Activating his Venom Spear skill, he impaled them one by one before sending them into his mouth.
His attention then shifted to the nearby burrow.
That must be their nest, he thought.
These Fire Ants had nearly taken his life during his weakest moments. Now that he had recovered, he wasn't about to let them off so easily.
The entrance to the burrow was a flattened oval, barely 30 centimeters wide and just over 10 centimeters high.
It was perfectly suited for the Fire Ants' small frames but far too small for Fang Chang's massive form.
Fang Chang had no intention of squeezing through the entrance.
Since there was no path for him, he would make one himself.
Raising his shield-like legs, he began to dig furiously.
The soil here wasn't particularly firm, and his legs were sharp enough to cut through with ease. Within minutes, he had dug a pit over half a meter deep.
The Fire Ants within the burrow soon noticed the disturbance.
A stream of them scurried out, but those that emerged first were swiftly bisected by Fang Chang's legs and devoured.
Those still in the burrow scurried aimlessly, spitting their fiery secretions at the encroaching spider.
Unfortunately for them, Fang Chang's Fire Immunity rendered their efforts entirely ineffective.
The pit grew deeper and wider.
Suddenly, the ground gave way entirely.
Caught off guard, Fang Chang fell through, landing in what appeared to be an underground chamber.
The space was roughly five or six meters square and situated several meters below ground level.
Though a bit cramped for someone of Fang Chang's size, it wasn't suffocatingly tight.
Three passageways led out from the edges of the chamber, likely connecting to other areas. Fang Chang guessed he could just barely squeeze through them if needed.
"This makes things easier," he thought.
The chamber contained about a hundred Fire Ants, likely the same group that had swarmed him earlier.
Their rage at the intrusion was palpable.
Despite the overwhelming disparity in strength, they charged at him recklessly, ready to die for their home.
Fang Chang, however, had no sympathy for their plight.
With his mouth wide open, he devoured every ant that came close.
Thanks to his Fire Immunity, their secretions posed no threat to him, and the ants couldn't even put up a proper fight.
Within half an hour, nearly every Fire Ant in the chamber had been wiped out.
Swallowing the last ant, Fang Chang surveyed the now-empty room.
His gaze landed on the three passageways. Most of the remaining ants had fled into the middle one.
Cautiously, Fang Chang poked his head into the tunnel.
The winding passage led to who-knew-where, but there were no signs of movement nearby.
After a moment's hesitation, Fang Chang squeezed his body into the passage.
His reduced size from evolving into the Dark Armor Demon Spider allowed him to just barely navigate the narrow tunnel.
After several minutes of crawling, a faint light appeared at the end of the passage.
Emerging from the tunnel, Fang Chang found himself in a massive underground hall, at least 70-80 meters wide.
The sheer size of the space dwarfed the previous chamber.
The floor was packed with Fire Ants, far more numerous and powerful than those outside.
Among them, Fang Chang spotted several ants with spirit power exceeding 300 or even 400 years.
At the center of the room stood a raised platform, several meters tall.
The platform was covered in milk-white eggs, each about the size of a child's fist.
From time to time, the eggs would hatch, releasing newly-born Fire Ants.
Seated atop the platform was the Fire Ant Queen, her body over three meters long—two sizes larger than Fang Chang.
The Queen's appearance was surprisingly refined, with a face almost human in its expressiveness.
When Fang Chang's eyes met hers, they locked in a mutual glare of hostility and disdain.
The Queen let out a series of sharp clicks, and the worker ants immediately froze, turning their attention to Fang Chang.
For a moment, Fang Chang was taken aback.
Why does she look... kind of pretty?
Between the Queen's refined features and her indignant glare, Fang Chang felt a strange, inexplicable urge stirring within him.
Was it the influence of his spider instincts, or just the absurdity of his situation?
He shook his head.
No matter what, he couldn't ignore the fiery anger that burned in her gaze.
"If you're so upset, come and fight me!" Fang Chang thought, his blood boiling.
And with that, he lunged forward.