Saving the World in an Apocalypse-Style Text Game-Chapter 647 - 325: The Past of Jinmu, the Fully Adaptive Parasite_2
[Shell Skill: Perfect Metamorphosis (Special skill): Using this skill, you can shed the current bug-human container you are parasitizing without any loss, returning to a Parasite state. The shed container will retain a brief activity of three minutes, during which you can parasitize the shed container again.]
"Ah... Being uneducated sucks, just saying ’darn it’ seems to work everywhere."
Parasites with defects can only target ’chitinous’ bug humans, such as the mimic moths on the first level of the Nest, which can’t be parasitized.
But the current ’Perfect Parasite’ can parasitize all bug-humans, no matter what type they are, shelled or unshelled, winged or unwinged.
The only limitation is size, you can’t parasitize too large bodies, a calf can’t pull a big cart.
The molting skill has also leveled up to ’Perfect Metamorphosis’, which allows the parasitized shell to retain a certain level of activity after being discarded.
Don’t underestimate this skill. With three minutes of activity time, Lin Xun can first molt from his previous container after defeating an enemy, then parasitize the enemy, view the comparison panel, and decide which container to choose.
There is also one other thing in which Flandre has helped.
[’Flandre’s Firefly Stone’ (Special Item): An odd stone flickering with a soft glow, similar to the gem material at the rear of the Miniature Statue ’Initial Firefly’.]
[Because Flandre is imprisoned, you cannot use this ’Firefly Stone’ to summon ’Flandre the Oathbreaker’. But with this item, you can prove your identity as the ’Firefly Envoy’, and gain the favor of the creatures of the ’Initial Firefly’ covenant.]
"Damn it, the correct path was to first save the Maggot Man, then find Jinmu..."
In an attempt for both sides to benefit, Lin Xun went through a big detour.
It is only now that he realizes that upon receiving the ’Firefly Stone’ from Flandre, he can achieve both sides’ objectives.
But what he doesn’t know is, if he had chosen to save the Maggot Man on the spot, Jinmu would have attacked. Either the Apostle would die, or Jinmu would...
After he has explored the ’ancient nest’, there are two places left unexplored, ’Frontier Prison’ and the ’Crawlers Tribe’.
Before exploring, however, Lin Xun decides to first confront Jinmu. In front of the legitimate ’Firefly Envoy,’ Jinmu is expected to divulge a lot of information.
As for whether he will die or not, what does that have to do with Lin Xun?
[...]
[After a long journey, the ’Transport Bug’ finally returned to the ’Firefly Temple’.]
[You jumped down from the abdomen and strode forward, pushing open the temple door...]
[The ’Missionary Jinmu’ sat dumbly on the ground. From under his mask came murmurs, how did it disappear, how did it disappear...]
[When he noticed your arrival, he suddenly brightened his eyes and hastily asked if you have ever heard of a disappearing ability?]
[The Maggot Man he had saved desecrated the statue of the God. He originally wanted to teach him a lesson, but he didn’t expect the Maggot Man’s body structure to be too fragile, losing all activity with a single touch, and then it disappeared...]
Lin Xun twitched the corner of his mouth, too tired to retort.
"You sliced open my belly, how could I not die?"
He opens his Item Panel and clicks on Flandre’s given Firefly Stone.
[You shook your head indicating you didn’t know what Jinmu was talking about and then took out ’Flandre’s Firefly Stone’ to flicker in front of him...]
[’Missionary Jinmu’ was about to continue questioning when he suddenly saw your token. His words were stuck in his throat as if he was a chicken being strangled.]
[His expression was as if he had seen a ghost, pointing at you incredulously, you, you, you are...]
[You nod indicating that he sees correctly, you are the messenger of the God, the genuine ’Firefly Envoy’, not an imposter!]
[Jinmu muttered, then it, it, it... Suddenly Jinmu covered his mask, turned around with a sprint, and ran out the door...]
[You hurriedly followed, only to see Jinmu climbed onto your ’Transport Bug’, yelling loudly, kickstart, go as far as you can! He would rather go to the central Holy Nest and confront the Wet Nurse than continue to lose face!]
[The ’Transport Bug’ blinked its enormous compound eyes and didn’t move.]
[Jinmu seemed to be extremely humiliated. He continuously kicked the ’Transport Bug’ several times angrily, cursing about knowing only to eat.]
[It pulls out an unknown species of fungi, extending its body out of the shell and flings it towards ’the Scavenging Beetle’. However, before it could reach the beetle, you rush over and intercept it.]
[You have obtained ’Milk Mushroom’*1 (Item)!]
[You cheerfully accept the ’Milk Mushroom’, blocking Jinmu’s path. You question him as to why he ran at the sight of the ’Firefly Envoy’?]
[As a ’Firefly Envoy’, you should help each other...]
[’Jinmu’ suddenly realizes, saying, "Oh, so you’re a ’Firefly Envoy’ too? What a coincidence, because it turns out I am too."]
[...]
[After you ’acknowledge’ Jinmu’s Firefly Envoy identity, he finally hops off the ’Scavenging Beetle’s shell and returns to the Spirit Temple with you. On the way out, he doesn’t forget to give the ’Scavenging Beetle’ a few more kicks.]
[Jinmu sits across from you on the bench, explaining his identity...]
[He was born in a hidden nest deep beneath the earth. From the moment of his birth, he knew he was different from the others.]
[Surrounding him were the Maggot Men sleeping within their vessels, all of them were failures, gradually dying in their sleep. Only he was blessed with an incredible parasitic ability, and through this, he awakened and acquired self-awareness.]
[As the only semi-successful organism, he indulged in the falsified memories created by the ’Wet Nurse’ like any other insectoids...]
[He was supposed to sacrifice his own body for the sake of replicating and studying this parasitic capability. But thankfully, he met a beautiful and pure-hearted maiden.]
[The maiden was the youngest and most beloved daughter of the ’Wet Nurse’, who was managing the entire nest and leading the research on the parasitic ability.]
[It was the maiden who revealed to him the truth about everything and helped him escape from the den of evil.]
[The escape was fraught with peril, but there’s no need to go into detail...]
[After escorting him to ’Tentacle City’, the closest city to their nest, the maiden returned alone. He didn’t even have the chance to ask her name, nor can he remember the exact location of the nest...]
[Despite this, he still remembers the maiden’s voice and smile...]
[He wandered through Tentacle City for countless years, using his parasitic ability to gradually enhance his strength...]
[...]
[He rescued each mutated Maggot Man, fabricating his ’Firefly Envoy’ identity, in an attempt to convert the mutated Maggot Men to a new faith...]
[He knows that even mutated Maggot Men have a very slim chance of producing parasitic genes, with most being utterly useless.]
[And even when some parasitic genes do manifest, they usually only possess the ability to molt, not necessarily awakening the memory of the underground nest...]
[But as long as there is one in a million chance, he could potentially learn the location of the underground nest from the memories of the mutated Maggot Men.]
[He hopes to find the nest one day. By then, he would no longer be weak and could kill all of the villains’ followers; he could save the maiden who still remains trapped in the den of evil...]
[’Jinmu’ seems to have been holding onto this story for a long time, and now that he’s finally found someone he can confide in, he spills it all out.]
"So that’s what happened... No wonder when I was pretending to be a Maggot Man, I heard Jinmu say that he has the same abilities as a mutated Maggot Man."
But Jinmu probably isn’t aware that the ’maiden’ he’s been talking about, Flandre, has now turned into something horrifyingly similar to a ’War Broodmother’. Her upper body still resembles a human, while her lower body is simply indescribable.
"Should I bring Jinmu to see Flandre?"
Bringing Jinmu to the ’Ancient Nest’ at this time would undoubtedly trigger a special event.
However, Lin Xun suddenly realized that Jinmu isn’t a real ’Firefly Envoy’. He doesn’t have the ’Firefly’ ability that exists on the edge of consciousness.
And as a mutated being who possesses some parasitic abilities, once Jinmu sets foot in the ’Ancient Nest’, he could possibly be detected by the ’Desire Wet Nurse’.
By then, not only Jinmu and he will die, but even ’Flandre the Oathbreaker’ might not be able to survive.
"In this case, these two are probably not going to see each other in this lifetime..."
He could only temporarily put aside the idea of bringing the two together.
