Whoosh~
The tide washed over the shoals, seemingly awakening the shell-dwelling snails resting there.
Something slowly crawled out from a shell's opening.
Hiss hiss~ Several long, slender roots swayed as they extended, digging into the beach... dragging out the main body that had been lodged inside the shell.
Splat~
A slick, highly elastic brain squeezed its way out.
The shell-dwelling snail was directly wrapped inside the brain instead, to be taken out again as a temporary shelter whenever it needed rest.
Using the feelers at its front and the crab legs that had grown from its sides, it moved across the beach.
Ordinarily,
this Brain Crab would instinctively crawl toward the lake to replenish its water.
Yet, it seemed to have caught a different scent and moved toward a certain spot on the shoal.
Rustle rustle rustle~
It was not the only one.
Tens of thousands of Brain Crabs awakened by the rising tide converged on this area.
A living body lay here, its brain giving off an extraordinarily enticing scent.
The approaching Brain Crabs grew sharp mouthparts, attempting to pierce the target's skull and suck out the delicacy.
Clink clink clink~ A series of metallic impacts rang across the shoal.
The mouthparts snapped apart as they struck the skull... From a certain angle, the living body seemed to be covered in an indestructible gray metallic sheen.
As the impacts continued, the unconscious young man slowly woke up as well.
He had no idea how long he had slept. Hunger flooded every inch of his body.
The instant he awoke,
he instinctively grabbed a Brain Crab crawling nearby and crammed it straight into his mouth.
Only after eating nearly twenty of them, crushing even the shell-dwelling snails inside, did he barely fill his stomach.
Not only did the nutrients spread