At first, the seven-spotted ladybug did not move from its spot. It merely shifted its limbs, as though getting used to its new body.
The giant ant did the same, moving its limbs rather than scurrying around in panic.
After quite a while, the seven-spotted ladybug moved first. It crawled across the table, wandering aimlessly without any sense of direction.
Then the giant ant began moving too, wandering around with no discernible pattern.
Occasionally, the giant ant stopped and moved its back, but nothing happened. Then it continued walking.
Ke Meng touched the seven-spotted ladybug's wing case with his fingernail.
Normally, a startled seven-spotted ladybug would either play dead or spread its wings and take flight.
But this seven-spotted ladybug neither tucked in its six short legs to play dead nor opened the wings on its back. Instead, it reacted like an ant, switching from crawling to running rapidly.
Ke Meng tried five times in a row with his fingernail, but he never managed to scare it into using its wings.
He figured that an ant was controlling the seven-spotted ladybug at the moment. Since this giant ant had no wings, it did not know how to fly with them. That was why it never took off, instead fleeing with the instincts of a startled ant.
Ke Meng reached out and scooped twice, catching both shadows back in his palm.
Watching them crawl wildly around his hand without any sensation of weight, he marveled at how incredible they were.
Holding the two shadows, he opened the side bedroom door and saw the Strange Knowledge Cat staring blankly ahead.
The cat sat in its basin, maintaining the same motionless pose for a long time without ever changing.
Ke Meng looked straight into its eyes. Fifteen seconds later, strange knowledge appeared in his mind, just as expected.
These are two insect shadows separated from their bodies, held by someone.
"Seriously, that's all? Can't you give me more detail?" Ke Meng rolled his eyes at the Big-Faced Cat. He already knew all that without being told.
Ke Meng moved the Big-Faced Cat beside the dining table in the living room so he could learn any new information promptly.
When he returned the two shadows to their original owners, the seven-spotted ladybug could fly again, while the ant ran around as usual.
Then Ke Meng swapped the two insects' shadows again and stared into the Big-Faced Cat's eyes for a full fifteen seconds.
His strange knowledge increased!
These are two living insects parasitized by shadows. Their bodies are currently controlled by the shadows' consciousnesses, but because these are not their original bodies, their coordination is poor. They need time to adapt.
This time, the knowledge was finally useful. Ke Meng understood what swapping shadows meant.
"So a shadow can represent consciousness?" Ke Meng murmured.
If a shadow could represent consciousness, what was the brain for?
The Big-Faced Cat offered no explanation.
Next, Ke Meng began a new round of testing, placing both shadows on the ant.
With a casual wave of his hand, Ke Meng tossed the seven-spotted ladybug's shadow into the giant ant's shadow.
The giant ant's shadow swelled and twisted for two seconds, then returned to normal. Its shadow was still that of a giant ant.
Ke Meng poked the giant ant. Its manner of fleeing was still that of an ant.
He looked at the Big-Faced Cat, trying to obtain more strange knowledge from it.
Fifteen seconds later, Ke Meng looked dazed.
So that was it.
This is a creature invaded by a shadow species. Its primary personality currently holds control, while its secondary personality is dormant. Some unpredictable events may occur in the future.
According to the Big-Faced Cat's explanation, the seven-spotted ladybug's will had already merged into the giant ant's shadow.
He reached out and grabbed, and the giant ant's gray shadow immediately appeared in his palm.
"Strange. Where's the seven-spotted ladybug's shadow?" Ke Meng murmured.
Could two shadows have merged into one after sharing a body?
If so, Mrs. Chen was in serious trouble.
Ke Meng looked at the motionless seven-spotted ladybug on the table. One thing was certain: the seven-spotted ladybug had no shadow, but it did not die.
However, Ke Meng did not know how long a creature without a shadow could survive. Insects were too small and difficult to observe.
Animals like lab mice would be better suited to experiments, Ke Meng thought.
Ke Meng looked back at his palm and used his left hand to grab the shadow in his right. The shadow he caught was still shaped like an ant.
He would not catch his own shadow, because the Shadow-Grasping Hand judged his intent and would not grab the wrong one.
Ke Meng did not know what would happen if he actually caught his own shadow. In any case, he dared not imagine it.
Maybe he would never be able to put it back, or maybe it could find a chance to slip back in on its own?
Right, Mrs. Chen's shadow could leave her body and slip back in. That was a living example.
Ke Meng suddenly snapped to attention. He had not considered that before, but now that he thought about it, grabbing his own shadow was not necessarily a dead end.
Still, he had no desire to try. Curious as he was, his intuition told him it was best not to attempt it.
He would only try if he had no other choice and needed to grab his own shadow to escape danger.
By then, Tangyuan had finished eating the rice balls in the pot and gave a satisfied bark.
"Can you wash dishes?" Ke Meng asked.
Tangyuan had not understood before, but after receiving the meaning through Synesthesia, it vaguely grasped what washing dishes meant.
"Want more rice balls? If you know how, go wash the pot. I'll treat you again next time," Ke Meng instructed.
Hearing there would be more food next time, Tangyuan excitedly picked up the pot with its fur and rolled all the way to the kitchen.
It alternated strands of fur to hold the pot, ensuring it did not drop it as its body rolled.
Before long, the sound of scrubbing came from the kitchen.
Ke Meng nodded in satisfaction. Having a pet dog really was convenient.
Then he returned the shadow to the giant ant, repeatedly grabbing it and putting it back as he tried to extract the seven-spotted ladybug's shadow.
The more Ke Meng grabbed, the more proficient he became.
Ke Meng could feel that whenever he designated the ant as his target, the Shadow-Grasping Hand did indeed grab the giant ant.
But because the seven-spotted ladybug had merged into the giant ant's shadow, it was difficult to separate them. Like two objects stuck together with chewing gum, it was forced to come along whenever he grabbed the ant.
If he used both hands simultaneously instead of making a single grab, one hand grabbing the seven-spotted ladybug and the other grabbing the giant ant at the exact same moment, he might be able to separate them even with a piece of chewing gum stuck between them.
Ke Meng acted on the idea immediately. He returned the giant ant's shadow to its body, then moved both hands together, scooping toward the ant while intending to grab the ant with his right hand and the seven-spotted ladybug with his left.
He turned his right palm upward. An ant's shadow was running wildly around it.
He opened his left hand, revealing a small, round shadow: the seven-spotted ladybug.
It worked!
Before you continue