First Molt (Part 2)

An irregular rhythm from his bloodline pulsed during the metamorphosis, as though it were conveying a voice to System, urging him to make a choice.

What choice?

System pondered endlessly and carefully felt every pulse in his trembling blood, yet he still discovered no further information.

However, as his body continued to metamorphose, that voice gradually grew clearer, and System gradually came to understand its meaning.

The data in [Self-Information Generation] also displayed the content of that voice.

Metamorphic Growth Mode: A mode entered by some insects during metamorphosis. The body transforms according to the power within the bloodline, and one ability may be selected for enhancement. An exclusive mode of the Metamorphic Growth talent.

Choose one bodily ability to enhance.

He could enhance his mandibles, strengthen his powerful hind legs, or reinforce the talents and derivative skills within his body.

He had many choices.

Unlike ordinary, mindless grasshoppers, which generally enhanced their mandibles, hind legs, wings, or shell hardness, System had a deeper understanding of this enhancement.

System's first thought was to use this power to enhance Metamorphic Growth. If he could raise Metamorphic Growth to the maximum level of 13, he would then have a chance at his third metamorphosis.

If he underwent a third metamorphosis, setting aside that mysterious, elusive voice that listened to the world, his body would certainly receive an enormous boost. Even against insect hunters like mantises, he should have the strength to fight.

But System immediately thought of a talent even more important than Metamorphic Growth: Numerical Code.

Numerical Code was rarely felt or used by System in ordinary times, but his ability to grow rapidly by leveling up relied on this very talent.

The information from the bloodline of Metamorphic Growth made System naturally understand the growth patterns of ordinary grasshoppers.

Life in this world generally possessed the concept of levels. Ordinary grasshoppers also had levels, and theirs could likewise rise through eating.

However, compared to System's leveling, ordinary grasshoppers leveled up through a slow process.

When an ordinary grasshopper's experience bar reached its threshold, it would not level up immediately. Instead, it would slowly advance through eating. Usually, each level took a full day, and as their level increased, the time required would grow even longer.

Thus, even if an ordinary grasshopper were exceptionally diligent, eating day and night without rest, it would still need five or six days to reach level 5 and undergo its first metamorphosis. It would never be able to molt for the first time after merely two days like System.

Of course, because ordinary grasshoppers leveled up slowly, they would not experience the overwhelming hunger System felt after leveling up.

But this flaw did not diminish its brilliance. Numerical Code was unquestionably the ability with the greatest potential and the most peculiar nature among everything System possessed so far.

Having made his decision, System guided the power in his bloodline into that sea of 0s and 1s within his mind.

As the power from his bloodline flowed in, for the first time, System did not feel as though his mind would explode while sensing the Numerical Code talent. There was only a slight stabbing pain.

Within the sea of numbers, System felt that his consciousness was like a pure white sphere of light. Around him orbited a sphere composed of numbers, like a planet revolving around a star.

System was very familiar with this planet of numbers, because it was the derivative skill he had possessed ever since awakening: [Self-Information Generation].

As the bloodline power generated by Metamorphic Growth poured in, System discovered that the sea of 0s and 1s had become vastly broader, while the numerical ocean itself seemed to have grown heavier.

Not far from him, System saw the numbers churn violently, gradually converging to form a brand-new numerical planet. This planet was several dozen times larger than the one belonging to [Self-Information Generation].

The planet quickly found its own orbit and began slowly revolving around System.

Just as the planet stabilized, the bloodline power of Metamorphic Growth suddenly began to fade. Violent pain struck, and System's consciousness exploded within the sea of numbers.

System fainted...

When System awoke, bright light shone through the gaps between the dead leaves. The night of his metamorphosis had clearly passed into the following day.

The hunger following metamorphosis was clearly far more intense than the hunger caused by leveling up, as if he had gone hungry for several days.

A rustling sound arose. As System moved his body, the insect molt clinging to him shattered, exposing the brand-new exoskeleton beneath.

After one round of metamorphosis, his body had grown from 1.6 centimeters to 2.3 centimeters. The antennae atop his head had become longer and more sensitive, while the exoskeleton covering his body and the mandibles on his head had grown sturdier. Even the limb bitten off by ants had now regrown intact.

A pair of wing buds had also emerged on System's back. As he continued to grow, it would not be long before he mastered the power of flight.

More than his body, System's Numerical Code (1/1) had broken through its talent level limit through the power of Metamorphic Growth, becoming Numerical Code (2/2).

Moreover, thanks to the enhanced Numerical Code, he had gained an entirely new talent, Data Storage, along with two derivative abilities based on it: [Information Input] and [Information Reading].

Data Storage (1/2): A special talent acquired from Numerical Code and Metamorphic Growth. Possesses the unique talent of recording and simply analyzing data. System's exclusive talent.

[Information Input] (1/1): A derivative ability gained from the Data Storage talent. Passive ability. Possesses the ability to record things System comes into contact with.

[Information Reading] (1/1): A derivative ability gained from the Data Storage talent. Activatable ability. Possesses the ability to organize, sort, and read information after [Information Input].

These newly acquired abilities were support abilities. At first, System found them somewhat useless, but after crawling out from beneath the pine's dead leaves, he understood their true power.

The effect of the derivative skill [Information Input] was not very obvious. It merely passively recorded the things System came into contact with. But after he activated [Information Reading] by expending mental energy, he discovered that the entire world had changed in his eyes.

Though distant objects in his compound eyes were still blurry, the outlines of all things gave off a faint glow. Once he activated [Information Reading], no insect hunter lurking nearby would have anywhere to hide.

Not only that, [Information Reading] could also retrieve information about plants he had eaten. If he had eaten a plant before, he would recognize it the moment he spotted it from afar.

System, who had just leaped down from a tree branch, immediately used [Information Reading] to identify three nearby plants he had eaten before and view their information.

Not only could it show the plants' taste and hardness, it could also estimate how many leaves he needed to eat to reach level 6.

The respective weights of the three plants required for him to level up were 1,028g, 225g, and 78g.

This [Information Reading] ability was somewhat like the digital optical brain from the science-fiction novels of System's previous life, helping humans process and analyze information.

However, System's [Information Reading] was clearly far less intelligent, with virtually no computational ability. Moreover, after using it for a short while, his mental power would rapidly drain. He estimated that after five or six consecutive minutes of use, he would have to rest.

Even so, this derivative skill was still enormously helpful to System.

Following the image displayed by [Information Reading], he quickly circled around and jumped onto the plant that would allow him to level up after eating 78 grams of it.

He easily avoided a mantis disguised as a plant branch...