Magic Element

Chapter 3: Magic Element

After laying his companions to rest, Lu Minghao dissolved and absorbed the remaining half of the sword. He then began to ravenously devour everything around him—rocks, iron blocks, bones, and sparse vegetation were all swept away. Correspondingly, his nascent Slime body grew considerably.

Although the information on his status panel remained unchanged, Lu Minghao could feel his Slime body had become much stronger. The most obvious change was the significant improvement in his body's elasticity, and he could now leap forward at will. This was far better than before, when he would get tired after just a few jumps.

Only when the hunger within him subsided did Lu Minghao stop. It was then that he noticed he was surrounded by many Slimes, and quite a few of them gave him a feeling of immense power—at least, immense power relative to his current state.

"These should be the previous generation of Slimes, but I feel like they possess a power within them that I don't know about?"

Lu Minghao surveyed the Slimes gathered around him, hopping and bouncing. He had a strange feeling about them, as if some kind of power was flowing within them. Based on novels and anime he'd read and watched before, it was likely something akin to magic power.

"But how do you obtain this thing? Logically, as a monster, you should possess it innately, right?"

Lu Minghao then began to sense his own body. However, perhaps because he had only just been born and was too weak, Lu Minghao couldn't sense anything like magic power within himself. Of course, it was also possible that he hadn't yet evolved organs capable of such perception.

"Whatever, I'll know once I grow for a while longer. The most important thing right now is to survive."

The next second, unable to find anything, Lu Minghao stopped dwelling on it. Anyway, with his 'Encounter from Another World' talent, he would eventually possess this power. And even if he didn't, Lu Minghao wouldn't mind devouring some monsters that did possess this power. With his Gluttony ability, there was a chance he could acquire their abilities when he devoured them.

As long as the quantity was large enough, possessing this power was only a matter of time.

"Alright, let's get motivated and keep eating!"

Lu Minghao then glared fiercely at the farther reaches of his surroundings. There were still plenty of things to devour. With his Gluttony ability, he didn't have to worry about overeating and being unable to digest. His bottomless stomach and digestive capacity were enough to support him eating continuously.

Every bit of sustenance he consumed would become nourishment, empowering his weak Slime body to survive.

Over the next few days, Lu Minghao continuously devoured everything around him, even occasionally eating dirt. However, compared to other things, dirt had too low a nutritional value to be worth eating.

Additionally, during these few days, Lu Minghao figured out his location. Although his vision was blurry, his perception was fine. Combining what he had devoured with his surroundings, Lu Minghao had confirmed he was in a place resembling a sewer.

And not just any sewer, but one filled with garbage and filth. Besides Slimes and a few insects, there was no other life in this sewer.

Drip!

In the dark, messy, foul-smelling sewer, a Slime was perched on a bone, dissolving it at a visible rate. The bone belonged to an unknown monster. Not far away, in a filthy gutter, the sound of dripping water occasionally broke the silence of this dead space.

"Still nothing."

After the bone within his body was completely dissolved and absorbed, Lu Minghao's elastic body leaped towards a nearby rock. Skillfully wrapping it within his body, Lu Minghao began to carefully sense all the changes within him. There was still the usual pervasive feeling, but still no sign of magic power.

But the problem was, based on Lu Minghao's observations over the past few days, some Slimes born at the same time as him, who weren't growing as fast, already possessed a faint power within them.

"Could it be…"

The next second, having digested the rock in his body, Lu Minghao looked at a Slime not far away. Within that Slime, Lu Minghao clearly sensed a faint power flowing. The only difference between this Slime, born at the same time as him, and himself was that on the day of their birth, it had followed the main group to devour the corpse of a human.

"I went to see that corpse yesterday. Although I couldn't see clearly, it was indeed human. Judging by the remaining clothes, it should be an Adventurer. This means that devouring powerful beings, or beings with magic power, is more conducive to growth."

With this thought, Lu Minghao seemed to make up his mind and slowly hopped towards the Slime. As Lu Minghao got closer, the Slime still hadn't noticed anything, quietly staying in place.

The next second, Lu Minghao directly slammed into the Slime in front of him. After days of frantic eating with his Gluttony ability, his body was already several times stronger than that of his peers born at the same time. Coupled with the sudden sneak attack, he sent the other Slime flying, smashing heavily onto the ground. Its round, streamlined body rolled several meters across the floor.

Looking at it lying there motionless, it was clearly on its last legs. After all, Slimes were universally recognized as the weakest monsters; even an ordinary human child could easily stomp them to death.

"Rest in my body!"

Lu Minghao leaped in front of the Slime he had knocked away. He silently recited the phrase in his mind and then completely enveloped it with his own body. A strange sensation surged from within him, and the entire world felt different. His originally black-and-white vision turned colorful, and he could even sense the Magic Elements flowing in the air.

"Magic Element. So that's what it's called."

At this moment, in Lu Minghao's vision, his status panel underwent a new change. A new talent had formed.

[Magic Element] (White): This is the symbol of a monster's power, the starting point of evolution. Having just been born with Magic Element, you have become a true monster. Although it is only a weak trace, it is the initial beginning.

"And Magic Element plus Nameless Monster… so this is the world from 'That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime,' Rimuru the Tempest."

Feeling the power called Magic Element within him, Lu Minghao had guessed the world he was in. After all, if it were called 'magic power' or something similar, Lu Minghao wouldn't have so easily identified the world. There were many worlds with magic power, but only one with Magic Elements.

"So, the other Slime reincarnated into this world, Rimuru Tempest, have you already become a Demon Lord, or have you not yet reincarnated into this world?"

Lu Minghao's voice, filled with an inexplicable emotion, echoed in his mind. A new, bold idea began to form. However, all of this would have to wait until he got out of the sewer and understood the situation in the outside world.