Worm Chapter 3: Lesser Phase Worm

Worm Chapter 3

Lesser Phase Worm

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[Abyth Mole] has been dissolved.
-Health has been recovered.
-Mana has been recovered.
-EXP has been gained.

Level Update: Level has risen. Current level: 14.

Racial Ability Update: <Reform Lv. 5> has upgraded to <Reform Lv. 6>. | <Worm Slime Dissolution Lv. 4> has upgraded to <Worm Slime Dissolution Lv. 5> | <Telekinetic Movement Lv. 4> has upgraded to <Telekinetic Movement Lv. 5>|<Split Body Lv. 1> has upgraded to <Split Body Lv. 2>

Skill Update: <Dualism Lv. 3> has upgraded to <Dualism Lv. 4>

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I’ve been dissolving for almost a week now. All I’ve encountered are corpses, I’ve never encountered another living monster ever since.

I’ve only leveled up 4 times after I dissolved monsters without resting and with both Body #1 and Body #2.

A question popped in my head as I dissolved bodies… Why would a monster just kill something without eating it?

For every monster I dissolved, a large puncture wound was always the one blow that killed it. Based on this information, I assume it’s a big monster than can kill a mole with just the tip of his claws.

…I’ll better be careful and thread lightly.

Anyway, this’ll take me forever until the next evolution.

As if responding to my needs, I felt a change in airflow from Body #2. Based on the vibrations, this is a living being.

…?

Based on my animal knowledge without any source… this monster is larger than the monsters I’ve encountered before.

…It’s about five times the size of the mole!

Well, I’m larger than before, so the size gap isn’t as huge as the ratio of a mole to a worm.

Its shape is weird…

It has a body shape of a chicken, but its skin has scales. It has a mouth on its head but no eyes or nose.

…The shape of these wings… they’re not actually wings, but arms with webbed fingers.

What a bizarre creature…

This guy must be the same as me. Something that cannot see but can feel things through vibrations and the change in airflow.

Meaning it will be useless to sneakily dissolve it.

This time, I won’t be able to avoid fighting.

There’s no danger anyways, I have multiple bodies. If Body #2 dies, there’s still Body #1.

Alright, knowing that the risk of dying is low, it’s time to test out my strength!

Battle Start!

♦

I used <Telekinetic Movement> to jump towards the monster as fast as possible. I hit its flank, making it roll a few feet backwards because of the impact.

It quickly stood up to its balance and it charged towards me with a kick. I dodged it easily with <Telekinetic Movement> then used <Reform> to create a tentacle.

I whipped it while it was regaining its balance from the kick.

It jumped back then turned around.

…And ran away.

Wait!? I didn’t know that some monsters run away! I thought they’ll fight to the death!

You won’t escape!

I used <Telekinetic Movement> to propel myself towards it.

I aimed for the back of its head.

But before impact… it turned around and bit half of the body I’m using which is Body #2.

What the!? it was a trap!?

Monsters aren’t dumb as I thought! They can make simple strategies!

Damn… escaping is the best option here, I can’t win with Body #2 at this state. Even if I don’t die, splitting Body #1’s size will be inconvenient.

With all my might, I used <Telekinetic Movement> to escape the monster.

♦

…I lost, damn it. I didn’t know that monsters aren’t stupid. Do they get smarter as they evolve?

…Hmmm? What is this sensation?

I can feel something… as if my body being slowly dissolved.

...!? I can feel the parts of my body that it ate!?

Oh! I leveled up <Split Body> from the previous level up! I didn’t notice it!

Now I have Body #3, and it’s inside that monster!

Who knew that it counts as a split body even if I didn’t make it myself?

Maybe I’ll consider cutting myself to make bodies on emergency situations.

Anyway, this burning sensation is probably the stomach acids of that monster digesting Body #3.

Of course, I won’t let you do it!

Based on my knowledge with no source, the stomach of the chicken is called gizzard and there is a pathway to get to the esophagus and to the trachea.

If I can go to that direction…

I felt a small airflow coming from a hole. I used <Telekinetic Movement> to propel Body #3 to that direction.

While moving on the pathway, I felt its heartbeat. This must be where the heart is, but I don’t have any piercing attacks to pierce through it. Even if I reshape myself into a pointy shape, it will not have any effects. A slime is just a slime after all.

I moved myself to the base of the part of the chicken which is the crop. I propelled myself towards its esophagus.

The monster had started squirming around. Hehehe, who has the advantage now?

I used <Reform> sand turned into a thinner worm slime and moved Body #3 up from the esophagus to the trachea.

Lastly, I used <Reform> to compress Body #3 into one ball of thick slime to not let any airflow come in the lungs.

The monster now kept trying to cough me out, only to fail.

After minutes of coughing and squirming…

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[Abyth Exhobane] has been killed. Kill participation has been recognized. EXP has been acquired.

Level Update: Level has risen by 4. Current Level: 18

Racial Ability Update: <Reform Lv. 6> has upgraded to <Reform Lv. 7>. | <Worm Slime Dissolution Lv. 5> has upgraded to <Worm Slime Dissolution Lv. 6> | <Telekinetic Movement Lv. 5> has upgraded to <Telekinetic Movement Lv. 6>|<Split Body Lv. 3> has upgraded to <Split Body Lv. 4>

Skill Update: <Dualism Lv. 3> has upgraded to <Dualism Lv. 4>

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...What? 4 levels!?

I’ve been working very hard to level up for these past week, but with just one monster, I leveled up by four?

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Answer
Abyth Exhobane is an Evolution Level: 3 being. Defeating a being with a higher Evolution Level will result to higher EXP gain.
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Oh, I see… wait, how do you have info about it!?

…

Show me information about the Aybth Exobane.

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Answer
Unable to obtain information. Panel Intelligence Level is insufficient.
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So, I’ll be able to get their information if you level up? That’s good, I’ll be expecting something. Getting information before a battle is a great advantage.

Whoops, time for a snack!

Hmmm, it’s bigger than the other I dissolved before… I better get all my bodies in here to start dissolving.

<Split Body> had also leveled up, so I’ll be able to split my body into four now.

I brought all the bodies together using that {Inventory} gate trick and started dissolving.

While dissolving it, I felt a small amount of my slime in its mouth.

Come to think about it, this is the first time I got damaged. Even though I can feel vibrations, I didn’t feel any pain. Meaning I have no pain receptors…

Can my lost slime return back to my body if I tried eating it?

I tried merging my lost parts with my body.

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Skill Update: <Regeneration Mastery> has been acquired due to acquiring skill proficiency with the being having the skills <Reform>, <Telekinetic Movement>, and having a [Race] capable of regeneration.

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A new skill!

…Why is it Mastery? I can master regeneration? I didn’t think regeneration can be mastered…

…Maybe a worm slime can regenerate itself consciously?

How do I level it up? Should I cut myself again and again?

Guess that’s the only choice…

I’ll do that later, I’ll eat up this whole corpse first.

I was able to dissolve it all in a few minutes.

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[Abyth Exhobane] has been dissolved.
-Health has been recovered.
-Mana has been recovered.
-EXP has been gained.

Level Update: Level has risen by 2. Current Level: 20

Racial Ability Update: <Split Body Lv. 4> has upgraded to <Split Body Lv. 5>

Skill Update: <Dualism Lv. 4> has upgraded to <Dualism Lv. 5>|<Regeneration Mastery Lv. 1> has upgraded to <Regeneration Mastery Lv. 2>

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Being Update: Level limit of current race has been reached. Evolution conditions are met. Evolution is available.

Evolution Process Update: [Lesser Phase Worm] evolution has been unlocked due to evolving with the racial abilities, <Reform> and <Split Body> as well as the skill <Regeneration Mastery>.

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Another unlocked evolution, lucky!

Okay Pane, show me the evolution options!

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Evolution Options

[Giant Splitting Worm]
[Exploding Splitting Worm]
[Lesser Phase Worm]

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Show me the information about the evolution options.

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[Giant Splitting Worm]: A Slime Worm that is larger than usual. Is able to devour and store beings inside its body.

Racial Skills: <Devour>

Example: Ability to move even when dissolving something inside its body using <Devour>.

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With this evolution, I’ll be able to continuously dissolve something while moving. I don’t need to stay on one spot when dissolving a body.

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[Exploding Splitting Worm]: A Slime Worm that is able to sacrifice its body to create a big explosion.

Racial Skills: <Self-Destruct>

Example: Exploding near other beings to damage them using <Self-Destruct>.

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Since <Split Body> is available, <Self-Destruct> won’t kill me. It’s an option that gives a great attack power.

Lastly…

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[Lesser Phase Worm]: A worm that has the ability to liquify itself. It can also change the properties of itself at liquid form.

Racial Skills: <Phase Change: Liquid>

Example: <Phase Change: Liquid> can turn the being’s body into liquid to slip into tight places then change the form back to original form.

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The ability to change myself into liquid… this was the one unlocked. If used properly, this will be a good choice.

[Exploding Splitting Worm] is a good choice because it has more firepower and has a high attack power, but the problem is making myself explode. If I explode, a loud sound will be emitted and will attract many monsters in this dungeon. It will be a good way to find live monsters, but it’ll also attract stronger monsters than me. The risk is too high.

Meaning [Lesser Phase Worm] is the best choice. I can change myself into liquid and go into the target’s body then turn back to original form and kill it using the same method I did with the [Abyth Exhobane].

Well, it should’ve been the choice from the start because it was the one unlocked. It gives of a feeling of more importance.

I chose [Lesser Phase Worm].

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[Lesser Phase Worm] has been chosen to be the superseding race.
-Being will be in a stasis state during evolution process.
-Being will be in full recovered status after evolution process.
-Evolution time is set to 5 seconds due to ‡Baron of Sloth‡.
-Level will not reset after evolving due to ‡Baron of Sloth‡.

Evolve to [Lesser Phase Worm]?

Warning: Changing into [Lesser Phase Worm] will lock evolution options for the next two levels into [Phase Worm] and [Greater Phase Worm].

Confirmation: [Yes][No]

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It locks my next evolutions?

...Well, I guess there's no choice?

I confirm it with [Yes]. Thank you and good night!

I lost consciousness.

…

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Race Update: Official race has been changed from [Splitting Worm] to [Lesser Phase Worm].

Title Update: ‡Baron of Sloth‡ has changed to ‡Viscount of Sloth‡.

Evolution Level Update: Evolution Level has risen. Current Level: 3.

Panel Intelligence Level Update: Panel Intelligence Level has risen due to acquiring the ‡Viscount of Sloth‡ title. Current level: 4.

Racial Ability Update: <Phase Change: Liquid> have been acquired due to the change in race.

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Excess EXP from before evolution has been acquired.
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Now, show the panel that shows my information.

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Name: Worm
Being Category: [Monster]
Race: [Lesser Phase Worm]
Racial Classification: [Formless]
Title: ‡Viscount of Sloth‡
Evolution Level: 3
Panel Intelligence Level: 4

Statistics
Level: 20
EXP: 1%
Health: 458
Spirit: 426
Strength: 445
Agility: 431
Magic: 436

Racial Abilities
<Reform Lv. 7>|<Telekinetic Movement Lv. 6>|<Worm Slime Dissolution Lv. 6>|<Split Body Lv. 5>|<Phase Change: Liquid Lv. 1>

Skills
<Dualism Lv. 5>|<Regeneration mastery Lv. 2>

Special Skills
{Mind Activation}|{Inventory}

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I just noticed this, but my stats jump a hell lot whenever I evolve. This is due to my level not resetting.

If you add the levels I skipped due to not resetting, the amount of levels I should’ve leveled up in total is…

1+10+20=31.

31 levels. I didn’t need to level up this much and only leveled up 20 times. Because of the reset cancel, I skipped 11 levels.

That title really makes my life a lot easier… I guess it was called “sloth” to make me skip hard work.

I wonder what was added to the title...

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‡Viscount of Sloth‡
-Increase EXP gained by 50%+(Level*1%).
-Increase skill level up rate by 50%+(Level*1%).
-Increase skill acquiring rate by 50%+(Level*1%).
-Grants {Mind Activation}.
-Grants {Inventory}.
-Earning EXP increases Skill Proficiency.
-Earning Skill Proficiency increases EXP.
-Level reset when evolving or class advancement has been removed.
-Upon evolution or class advancement, the world average of the statistics of the superseding race will be applied. If conversion of statistics from previous race or class to the superseding race or class is above the world average, the conversion is done instead of applying the world average.
-All evolution process lasts 5 seconds.
-Increase Panel Intelligence Level.

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What? Now I can just level up by increasing my skill level? Also, whenever I gain EXP, my skill proficiency will increase. I’m guessing that this is separated to the increase during level up.

Lastly, the new racial skill… <Phase Change: Liquid>.

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<Phase Change: Liquid>: Ability of the being to liquify parts of its body and change its properties.
-Speed of phase change depends on level.
-Maximum and minimum viscosity level of liquid depends on level.
-Maximum and minimum adhesion level of liquid depends on level.
-Maximum and minimum acidity level of liquid depends on level.
-Maximum and minimum toxicity level of liquid depends on level.
-Maximum and minimum temperature level of liquid depends on level.

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This is how specific I can change its properties?

I can change viscosity level to make it thinner or thicker I can change adhesion to make it stickier or less sticky. I can change acidity or toxicity to be able to make it a safe liquid or a dangerous liquid. I can change its temperature to hot or cold.

In a way, I’m still a slime worm but I can still control the properties of my body.

With this, I can easily poison anything or I can even dissolve anything easier than usual.

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Pane
No, you still need to use <Worm Slime Dissolution>. You can help dissolve it quicker by making the corpse of the monster easier to dissolve, but you really need to use <Worm Slime Dissolution>.
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Oh, I see…

Wait, Pane?

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Pane
Because I reached a certain level of intelligence, I am now capable of making conversations.
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Seriously? That’s amazing!

For some reason, I feel really good right now… is this because I’ve never had anyone to talk to before?

Is this because a being with intelligence naturally sought the company of others?

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Pane
I’m just something that is part of the system, I don’t know if you can actually classify me as “others”…
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System?

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Pane
I don’t know that much, but I am part of this certain “system”. I can get information from it, but my access is limited. I think you need to get more Panel Intelligence Level for me to be able to access more information.
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I see... then, what information do you know? Information that will be useful to my current situation.

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Pane
I can get some information about monsters. I can get their Name, Level, Race, and Evolution Level. Getting their Statistics and other Skills is impossible.
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That’s a great help! I’ll run away if its two evolution levels above me. If it’s only one level above me, or lower than my level, I feel like I can defeat it.

Are there any more useful information you can provide?

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Pane
I don’t know if there is useful information, but the max Evolution level is 10.
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Hmmm, starting from 0 to 10, means that there’s 11 evolution levels.

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Pane
I think that’s all the useful information I can give… If you need me, just give me call.
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Okay, thanks…

I have <Split Body Lv. 5> now meaning I can make 5 bodies and have a wider area to search in.

After splitting my body into 5, I moved around in the area.

For some reason, I feel very happy that I now have Pane…

I guess this means I am capable of feeling emotions. So, emotions also come from the soul and not the brain…