Chapter 4

No, this is actually the second half of Chapter 3, which wasn't posted yesterday...

...

The strange cell seemed to sense the danger and began to shake its body, spraying out a large amount of green liquid. Several cells that were closer were dissolved and rotted.

"Kill it!"

Lin's movements did not stop. More cells rushed forward, and when a few more cells were dissolved, a figure with saw-like protrusions burst out from their remains.

It was the Digger.

The saw-like protrusions on the Digger's body came into contact with the strange cell's body, which was full of holes. The Digger began to twist left and right, as if digging for food, using its saw-like protrusions to scrape the strange cell's body fiercely.

The cell membrane on the surface of the strange cell was scraped off in large pieces. The strange cell twisted in pain, but it did not counterattack with the green liquid. It could only spray out a very small amount of liquid, which was not enough to harm the Digger's harder body surface.

Lin noticed that these strange cells could only secrete a certain amount of liquid, and it seemed they had run out.

The Digger did not stop for a moment, until it completely shredded the strange cell's outer layer, inner layer, and even the cell nucleus.

Joy, victory, happiness.

Lin experienced new feelings, which were completely opposite to pain. It felt as fulfilling as obtaining food.

Lin had a few cells eat all the fragments of the strange cell. These strange cells, which could secrete a terrifying dissolving liquid, tasted no different from the white, soft food. They were easily digested, except for one cell that seemed to be damaged by the residual dissolving liquid, causing some damage to its body.

Suddenly, this damaged cell split.

Cell division was a very special behavior. It not only produced a new cell but also completely repaired the original damage.

However, the new cell that split off did not seem different to Lin, except for a slightly darker cell membrane.

Lin did not know what special use it had, so it left it alone for now.

Lin looked into the distance and saw that the other strange cells were far away, seemingly unaware of what had happened to their companion. They were still eating their big meal.

Do they not share a common consciousness?

Lin found this strange but did not care.

Now, Lin had thirty-nine cells. Eleven had been dissolved by the strange cells, so Lin planned to continue eating to replenish the previous number and then attack these strange cells.

Lin knew it had the ability to counterattack, so it was not hesitant to use this ability to kill the things that posed a threat to it.

Thinking about this, Lin continued to let the cells eat the white food beneath them. It needed more strength, quantity, and intelligence...

...

Lin's cell cluster continued to devour the huge food, creating a large and deep cave in it. Lin had the Diggers dig at the front, while the rest of the cells followed behind, eating the debris they dug up.

Lin wanted to see what would happen if it kept digging. Maybe something interesting would happen.

Lin's cell cluster had grown to one hundred cells, with thirty Diggers, but there was still only one Observer. Lin was puzzled as to why the new cells produced by the Observer did not have vision.

Now, all one hundred of Lin's cells were in the large cave they had created. As for the strange cells outside, Lin ultimately decided not to kill them. After calculating, Lin felt a new word.

...Not worth it.

Attacking the strange cells would sacrifice many cells, probably about a dozen due to the dissolving liquid, but eating the strange cells would only produce three new cells, so it was not worth it.

As the cell cluster grew, Lin slowly developed the ability to calculate. It believed that it would become increasingly intelligent in the near future.

Therefore, Lin decided to continue digging and eating the huge white food.

As the digging progressed deeper, Lin found that the food was no longer as soft and fragile as the surface. Instead, it gradually became harder. Digging deeper, the Diggers found it increasingly difficult to chip off pieces, and the ordinary cells could not even scrape off any debris.

Although Lin wanted to continue digging, it seemed it had to give up. Looking back, Lin saw that its cluster was already very deep, and the cave entrance looked very small.

Suddenly, Lin had an idea.

The strange cells used dissolving liquid to dissolve food. If they could be used, maybe they could dissolve the hard parts of the food here.

But how to use the dissolving liquid? Grabbing them over was probably impossible, but Lin remembered that a cell that had eaten the fragments of a strange cell with residual dissolving liquid only showed some damage and successfully split into a new cell that was a bit different.

The new cell had a darker color, and its outer cell membrane was not as clear and transparent as other cell membranes. It was a bit cloudy, and the cell nucleus inside was not clearly visible.

Therefore, Lin decided to use this new cell to approach the strange cells.

Re-emerging from the cave it had created, Lin's Observer cell quickly found the traces of the strange cells. Lin noticed that they did not eat and dig like it did, but rather ate a little here and there, using the dissolving liquid to create a pitted and uneven surface on the huge food.

Speaking of the huge food, Lin still did not know what to call it. It was soft and white, from small fragments to a vast, indistinguishable mass. Lin could not think of a good name, so it just called it food.

However, it was clear that food was not limited to this soft, white substance. The types of food were endless.

For example, those strange cells could also be considered food.

Lin's cell cluster swam above them, including the Observer and the new cell. Lin also brought ten Diggers, a total of twelve cells.

As for the others, Lin let them continue to eat in the cave, growing and thriving.

The strange cells had no eyes, so they did not notice Lin's cluster. However, Lin knew that if it got too close, they would sense it, though it was unclear how.

There were five strange cells, one more than before, possibly due to overeating and splitting.

Lin slowly swam closer to the one farthest from the group and let the new cell approach first.

When the new cell got close, the strange cell reacted, spraying out a large amount of dissolving liquid, which easily surrounded the new cell.

However, the new cell did not immediately rot into powder like ordinary cells. It only showed some signs of decay on its outer membrane, but it did not affect the cell as a whole, and Lin did not feel any pain.

...So, the new cell had the ability to resist the dissolving liquid.

This thought instantly appeared in Lin's mind.

I understand what's happening...

The previous cells, due to constant friction with the food, suffered damage, so the cells they split off became harder and developed saw-like protrusions, which led to the birth of the Diggers.

This new cell, which split from a cell damaged by the dissolving liquid, had the ability to resist the dissolving liquid.

What is this phenomenon called?

That's right... it's...

Evolution!

Although Lin did not fully understand the deeper meaning of this word, it knew it could use this method to improve its cell cluster.

Pain interrupted Lin's thoughts.

The new cell's outer layer was already dissolved and decayed. Due to the invasion of the dissolving liquid, the entire cell appeared on the verge of collapse. It seemed that even with resistance, it could not face the strange cell alone.

The strange cell, however, was also weakened by releasing a large amount of dissolving liquid, appearing sluggish and almost exhausted.

This was impressive. Previously, Lin had to sacrifice over a dozen cells to deplete a strange cell's dissolving liquid.

This time, it only took one.

The strange cell, without its dissolving liquid, was quickly torn apart by the Diggers. Lin had the Diggers eat the fragments.

Next were the other strange cells.

However, Lin realized it no longer had any new cells with resistance to the dissolving liquid.

So, Lin decided to let the Diggers that had eaten the strange cell fragments eat and split, hoping to produce cells with resistance to the dissolving liquid.

After they ate and split, Lin noticed that the cells produced by the Diggers looked strange.

First, their shape. These Diggers were no longer the round cells they used to be. One side had become sharp and protruding, forming a conical shape, with saw-like protrusions arranged in a spiral pattern.

They seemed better suited for digging and tunneling.

These cells' shapes made Lin think so, but their resistance to the dissolving liquid was still unknown.

Therefore, Lin decided to let these new conical cells attack the other strange cells to see the effect.

There were only three conical cells. Although ten Diggers had eaten the strange cell fragments, only three split into conical cells, while the remaining seven split into ordinary Diggers. Perhaps the amount they ate was related?

Lin sent two conical cells first, keeping the third one in reserve, not wanting to lose them all like last time.

The conical cells attacked the strange cell with their sharp tips. The strange cell did not have time to spray the dissolving liquid and was pierced by the conical cells' powerful attack, causing its body to burst, releasing a large amount of dissolving liquid.

One conical cell was covered by the dissolving liquid and quickly rotted into fragments, while the other, which Lin promptly retreated, only had some damage to its hardened membrane.

It seemed the conical cells' resistance was not strong, but it was much better than the basic cells.

Perhaps the damaged cell could split into a cell with resistance to the dissolving liquid.

Wait...

Lin suddenly remembered its original goal. It was not to create cells with resistance but to bring the strange cells' dissolving liquid into the cave to try to melt the hard parts of the food.

Since that's the case...

Lin focused on the large amount of dissolving liquid released by the strange cell after it died.

Maybe it could eat this liquid?

Lin felt its thoughts becoming increasingly rich.

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