Curiosity

So how could he enrich his gene pool?

The method was incredibly simple. If he liked the abilities of some creature, he could just eat it!

That is, if he could beat it.

"That's not simple at all," Rowan grumbled.

Still, there was a creature nearby that he could beat.

Rowan began considering what the White Grub had that he needed.

Its plump, tender body? Its slow movements and short, clumsy limbs? The only thing he'd previously found appealing was its pair of big teeth—but unfortunately, he'd already grown a pair of his own.

Thinking about it that way, the only White Grub he could beat was completely useless to him. He felt a little dejected.

But then he reconsidered. It did have some value after all: meat could provide far more energy than root sap.

Rowan had wanted to taste White Grub for ages. Did it really taste like chicken and crunch like a cracker? Unfortunately, his mouthparts hadn't been up to the task before, and neither had his claws. He'd been powerless against the grubs' tough skin.

Now, with a pair of sharp teeth, he could finally give it a try.

Efiash's body was subtly influencing his mind.

Back when he'd been human, he would never have eaten a disgusting White Grub, much less raw. But now, he didn't think there was anything wrong with it. In fact, the grub looked delicious and tender.

Looking at the White Grub in front of him, Rowan didn't attack. This one was an old friend. It had been his tool grub for a long time while he was recovering.

After hesitating for a while, Rowan ultimately decided to let it go. I really am a kind insect. He sighed, then silently gave himself a pat on the back.

He dug a little farther to the side and soon found another White Grub. This one had never helped him with any work; it wasn't a familiar grub. No need to hesitate before taking a bite!

His sharp teeth scored an impressive victory in their first battle. The tough skin that had once left Rowan helpless split open with ease.

Ignoring the White Grub's writhing struggles, he inserted his lapping-sucking mouthparts into its body.

Then Rowan discovered a new problem: his mouthparts still needed to evolve. Eating meat just wasn't working well.

His mouthparts sucked and licked as they ate. They were efficient with soft foods, but they struggled with anything a little tough, like meat.

The White Grub gradually stopped struggling, its body slowly drying up.

Rowan pulled out his mouthparts, brushed his belly with his middle legs, then moved over to a nearby tree root. He bit a hole in it and sucked out some sap. At last, he was full and satisfied.

Overall, it tasted pretty good. Rowan nodded in satisfaction. From now on, he could consider himself a carnivorous insect.

Leaving behind a white grub skin, Rowan dug his way home. Nothing had changed since he'd left, so it seemed no unexpected visitors had stopped by.

Lying in his room, Rowan began thinking after his meal.

He definitely needed to enrich his gene pool, but there was no rush. In this round of evolution, he'd learned some things about himself. Besides his gene pool, he'd also discovered something about his lifespan.

Efiash was, after all, a supernatural species from another world. Its larvae lived for at least a hundred years, and their lifespans grew longer as they matured.

Nobody knew exactly how long they could live. Growth clearly came with multiple evolutions, and even their mothers had no idea what they'd look like once they reached maturity.

On the other continent, any creature that looked strange and had an unknown origin was labeled an Efiash. Which ones really were Efiash and which weren't was known only to heaven.

Of course, that wasn't what the information Rowan had received said. The insect that left it behind had no real concept of time; it only knew it had lived a very, very long time.

Its unit of measurement was peculiar, too: the rise and fall of three kingdoms.

Rowan pondered this for a long while. A kingdom couldn't possibly be founded and destroyed in just a year or two. Going by his memories from his previous life, three kingdoms—good grief, how many years would that be? He hadn't studied history well enough to work it out.

In any case, he now had an answer of sorts about his lifespan, and he felt much more at ease. After all, he'd always thought of insects as short-lived creatures.

As for how the insect that left behind this information had managed to get itself killed, Rowan went over his memories several times but found nothing related to it.

If he didn't know, then so be it. Rowan wasn't concerned; he was simply curious.

There was no longer any sense of urgency about time, and he had plenty of food stored up.

He had no idea how far the roots of that great tree stretched, but they were covered in White Grubs. At his current size, Rowan wouldn't be able to eat them all anytime soon.

Besides, White Grubs were clearly the larvae of some kind of insect. What did the adults look like? How often did they reproduce? How long did their new Insect Eggs take to hatch? How long did it take them to grow as big as White Grubs?

Rowan felt he'd found a long-term subject of observation. The White Grubs might even be a rapidly replenishing renewable resource. If so, his long-term food supply problem would be solved.

As for the ants, Rowan didn't consider himself a vindictive person. But now that he was an insect, he had to avenge himself. There was no rush, though. He decided to lie low and develop for a while first.

Even if he didn't evolve any new abilities during that time, he could still strengthen his existing gene segments. He could become stronger, with thicker armor and better defense and resistance.

Those ants were the second kind of creature he'd encountered in this strange place, and they were also excellent sources of genetic material.

Their Catapult Start, their hook-shaped teeth, and the magical attack where they sprayed dung from their rears! Once he got stronger, they would all be his.

Still, thinking about that last one made him angry. They'd all been fighting hand to hand, and then the ants had suddenly launched a ranged attack—and such a disgusting one, too. What kind of person would do that? Right, they weren't people.

But if the ants hadn't ambushed him from a distance, Rowan felt sure he wouldn't have fled so miserably. He might even have killed a few of them.

Amid his daydreams, his consciousness gradually sank into darkness.

A strange sound and intense, dense vibrations jolted Rowan awake. He scrambled to his feet.

The fine hairs all over his body stood on end. The strange sound continued, and he had no idea what was happening on the surface.

Who knew whether insects could feel curiosity? But Rowan had a human soul, and he was curious—very curious.

He crawled around again and again, unable to resist. In the end, he decided to go up and take a look, to see what was happening.

On the way, Rowan let his imagination run wild. Maybe two super-beasts were fighting, and a few drops of their essence happened to fall on his head. Then he'd rise to the pinnacle of insect life!

Heh, that was how it always happened in books. The more he thought about it, the happier he became, and the faster he dug.

As the saying went, you couldn't die if you didn't go looking for trouble.

By the time Rowan neared the surface, he'd figured out that the strange sound was just the howling wind, and the vibrations came from sand striking the ground.

He felt a little disappointed. There probably wasn't much to see in a sandstorm. He was just about to turn back the way he'd come.

Suddenly, it was as if a huge danger had closed in around him. Every hair on his body sprang upright.

But before he could react, a mighty force hurled him into the air along with the sand and stones around him.