Chapter 16

Ling's plan was to continue occupying this rock, monopolizing all the food cracks, but a sudden surge of water interrupted her thoughts.

Water, which Ling knew as something that permeated the world, was essential for her cells to move. Water had always been quiet, but sometimes it could instantly turn into lethal ice crystals, and at other times, it could become violent and terrifying, as it was now.

A powerful current swept past at high speed, sweeping over the entire rock area. Countless cells were instantly carried away, disappearing without a trace.

Ling had most of her cells hide behind some higher rocks. The diggers and conical cells could also use their serrations to anchor themselves in rock crevices, but this did little to prevent the massive reduction in the colony.

Another strong current rushed through, and a large number of cells were instantly swept away, quickly disappearing from Ling's sight.

Over three thousand cells were lost.

Ling silently tallied the numbers. The cells that were swept away were still within her consciousness, and she could still sense them. However, when she tried to guide them back, they were quickly carried even further away by the currents. After several attempts, Ling realized there was little hope of them returning.

Ling didn't know why the water had become like this, just as she once didn't know why water would suddenly freeze. Even though her colony had grown significantly, there were still many things she didn't understand. Faced with the water's violence, Ling had no chance to resist and could only endure.

These surges were not continuous but intermittent, with no discernible pattern, making it difficult for Ling to time her actions.

Another surge swept away a large number of cells. Ling no longer wanted to stay and wait for death. Who knew how long these surges would last? If this continued, Ling would lose at least 90% of her colony, leaving only a few cells hiding behind the rocks. Although being swept away wouldn't kill them, being scattered made them highly vulnerable to viruses and other cells. Even with Ling's consciousness guiding them, she didn't know how long it would take for them to return.

So, Ling took action, but not to fight the currents. Instead, she decided to venture deeper, to a place where no current could affect her.

Ling needed to hide within the rock.

However, none of her cells could dig through the solid rock, so she had only one way to enter it.

Through the crack that spewed hot water.

The crack was wide enough to accommodate dozens of cells. Ling had previously observed that the hot spring crack widened as it went deeper, and she estimated that there might be a vast space inside.

The hot spring actually only spouted from small cracks on the walls of the fissure. Once inside, the water would definitely be less hot.

Thus, the remaining problem was how to survive the initial hot spring.

After the next surge passed, Ling immediately gathered a large number of cells and swam toward the hot spring crack, aiming to enter before the next surge arrived. She had already prepared for the hot spring.

Ling had the large storage cells form a shield at the front, blocking the hot spring, while the other cells followed behind, moving deeper.

The force of the hot spring was much weaker than the external currents. Even with the shield, Ling's colony could easily advance, especially since the hot spring was intermittent.

Ling had previously trained these storage cells to resist high temperatures. Although they would eventually die if exposed for too long, once they were killed, Ling would have the conical cells hook their bodies and use them as a heat-resistant shield. Using this method, Ling successfully guided a large number of cells into the hot spring crack.

As they went deeper, the space widened, as Ling had expected. From initially accommodating only dozens of cells, it expanded to hold thousands. Ling felt that at the bottom, even her entire colony could fit.

At this depth, there were no more cracks spewing hot water, and the water temperature had returned to normal.

It seemed that luck was on Ling's side, as no more surges had passed since she entered the crack, and a large number of her cells were now safe.

Just as Ling was thinking this, a sudden, powerful surge swept over the rock, carrying away many of her cells that were still outside the crack.

However, Ling had already managed to get over 70% of her colony inside, and there weren't many left outside.

Ling noticed that her colony was approaching the bottom of the crack, which was very spacious, like a large cave.

But there was a problem...

It was particularly dark.

Ling tried to judge the size of the space by the faint light from the entrance, but she couldn't see any more detailed information.

Beyond the area where the light from the entrance reached, it was endless darkness.

Should she venture into the darkness or wait for the currents outside to stop?

Neither option seemed good to Ling.

...Hmm?

Ling suddenly saw a flash of light in the dark cave.

What was that?

Blue light points flickered in Ling's vision, appearing and disappearing in the darkness, which piqued her curiosity.

Ling had never seen light in the darkness before. She wanted to understand what it was but was more concerned about whether it was a threat or safe.

So, Ling sent a few diggers to the light points.

She felt it; from the diggers' touch, she learned that the light points emitted vibrations in the water... Were they... living organisms?

Indeed, as the diggers got closer, the entire cave suddenly lit up!

Light...

Countless small light points lit up in Ling's vision, instantly forming a bright sea of light like a starry sky, dispelling all the darkness.

A starry sky?

Ling realized that upon seeing this light, she had gained a new word, one that seemed to describe vast, boundless things.

Ling noticed that these lights were actually composed of countless small, oval-shaped cells, each about one-fifth the size of her cells, but they emitted a mysterious blue light.

With the help of the light, Ling also noticed the full extent of the cave. It was indeed very spacious and large, comparable in size to her territory outside. Most importantly, it was covered with those white, soft food.

However, the food here wasn't emerging from cracks but seemed to be a layer of white paste stuck to the rock walls, covering the entire cave.

White paste? Yes, let's call this food "white paste."

These glowing small cells were eating the white paste. Because of the abundance of food, they almost covered the entire cave. However, despite their numbers, they seemed very afraid of Ling. Ling noticed that whenever the diggers approached, the surrounding glowing cells would immediately flee.

It seems I've found a good place. There don't seem to be any powerful enemies here, and it's not affected by the currents. Where could be better for developing my colony?

That's right, just eliminate these weak things...

Ling focused her gaze on the large group of glowing cells. With just a thought, a large number of diggers, conical cells, and acid injectors could easily destroy these weak cells.

But Ling hesitated.

Although they glow, eliminating them would give her a larger colony and a safe territory. Ling might even evolve the ability to glow in this environment. Keeping them around seemed useless...

Despite this, Ling watched the flickering small cells and couldn't bring herself to act.

...This feeling...

It seemed familiar.

Previous page AD starts

Previous page AD ends