I Became an Evolving Space Monster
Chapter 432

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[Translator – Seraph]

[Proofreader – Draxx]

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Chapter 432

Inside a factory on AG-01.

Conveyor belts whirred. Small drones and industrial robots moved busily along their paths.

Amid this mechanical kingdom devoid of human life stood an anomalous figure.

A woman’s face sculpted from metal, a body fused with warm flesh and cold components like a grotesque exhibit, still incomplete. That was PS-111.

At present, it was in the process of fusing itself with the remains of the Supreme Councilor and parts from a new-model Prometheus unit, using the factory's machinery. Though its face appeared serene, as if in slumber, all of its internal systems were fully dedicated to the assembly work.

‘Core component transplant complete. Running compatibility simulation and simultaneous sub-brain contingency routines. Estimated time remaining: 9 minutes 45 seconds.’

The operation, which had lasted nearly four hours, was now in its final stages.

PS-111 sent a message to the ‘Little One’ outside the planet, informing it that the upgrade would soon be complete and to prepare for battle.

The sub-controller Amorph had encountered a dangerous life form earlier than expected. It was currently engaged in combat with an unclassified threat: Arcane Orca.

The Little One had warned it Arcane Orca wouldn’t be easy for Amorph to handle.

So PS-111 had prepared.

To support Amorph. To slay the threat. It would upgrade itself.

‘Simulation complete. Final test required. Estimated time for Stage-5 test completion: 17 minutes 31 seconds.’

Its newly transplanted auxiliary brain alerted it that the final transition was ready. Without hesitation, PS-111 responded.

‘I will substitute the final test with live operation.’

As soon as the decision was made, light flared within its new body. The surrounding drones and robots silently withdrew.

PS-111, now fully upgraded and reborn, began to move slowly, steadily.

***

‘What number was that again?’

The 59th? Or maybe the 60th?

It couldn’t remember after hours of enduring its entire body being scorched over and over, the pain had blurred its memory.

‘I’d really like this to end now.’

The Amorph shook its body, shedding burnt scales and charred fragments.

New flesh was already forming at the wounded sites. A sight it had already witnessed hundreds of times.

And the cause of all this ruin was still alive.

Darkness had fallen, and in the dim sky above, light began to gather. The cluster of radiance condensed into the golden skeletal shape of a whale.

Arcane Orca had once again recovered from injury through quantum teleportation, reverting to a form nearly identical to when they first met. The only difference was in its energy-shielding skin: the once-clear coat with a hint of pale blue now appeared thinner, paler.

A sign that its energy reserves had significantly diminished.

‘Feels like I’ve drained about half of it.’

If it could repeat the same cycle once more, it might finally be able to kill it.

The silver lining was that events continued to unfold exactly as they had in the simulations and games. So far, no unexpected variables had appeared. If that continued, the hunt could end smoothly.

The Amorph hovered in flight, keeping its senses focused on the next incoming attack. But Arcane Orca didn’t move.

‘What’s it doing?’

Until now, the creature had always counterattacked aggressively after healing. It had never stayed still like this, no attack, no evasion.

‘Is it afraid?’

The privilege effect used by the 25th Rank had long since been deactivated. Even afterward, Arcane Orca had continued to unleash a fierce onslaught. There was no reason for it to suddenly cower now.

‘Whatever it is, I’ll just move in.’

If the enemy won’t approach, then the Amorph would.

It accelerated and darted toward the creature.

As the gap closed, Arcane Orca finally responded by forming an energy sphere.

Hundreds of radiant orbs came flying toward me. I braced for impact but the spheres swerved mid-flight. They bypassed me and plummeted toward the ground.

‘What the…?’

It didn’t take long to figure out what Arcane Orca had targeted. Craters, as if from meteor strikes, began forming all across my nest.

‘No way…’

That last attack had incinerated countless Hiveformers, reduced to ash by the searing energy.

Arcane Orca began charging another energy shot. Once again, it wasn’t aiming for me but for the Hiveformers in my nest.

‘It’s trying to cut off my means of recovery!’

Was it because this wasn’t a game anymore, but reality? I’d never seen it act this intelligently before.

And there was more in that nest than just Hiveformers.

Around the time the special privilege effect ended, I had dropped off the 25th Rank still barely breathing in the nest, hidden within my left mouth. Ten young Wolfs had carried him deeper inside and were keeping watch over him.

Of all things, I could not afford to lose a Ranker.

Without hesitation, I launched myself toward the enemy.

I closed the distance quickly and thrust my combat arms forward, aiming to tear into the creature’s true body concealed beneath the translucent skin. Just as I was about to rip it apart, the pale skin suddenly deepened in color.

｢Pain Suppression Activated!｣

At the same time, the temperature spiked. My arms instantly vaporized.

I nearly screamed but gritted my teeth and held it back. In place of my lost limbs, I swung my pincer tail.

That tail was one of the hardest parts of my body, an organic flail of carapace and bone. It smashed into the creature’s flank.

Beneath the pale blue skin, I saw shards of shattered golden bone floating inside. Not a fatal wound, but based on past behavior, it was about time for it to use quantum teleportation.

But the creature didn’t run.

Instead, it slammed its head into my abdomen.

｢Pain Suppression Activated!｣

‘Damn it!’

Right now, Arcane Orca’s body was like a miniature sun, compressed to a few dozen meters. If I miscalculated, the heat alone could tear my upper and lower halves apart. I pulled back immediately.

As soon as distance opened between us, it launched another barrage of radiant spheres. It was far more aggressive than before.

‘It’s afraid of me.’

When are wild animals at their most vicious?

When they fear for their lives.

The same held true for Arcane Orca. Fear had triggered its survival instinct.

‘…This won’t be easy.’

It was already strong and now it wasn’t behaving predictably. A troubling development.

I activated the skill I’d been saving: Hydra Division.

The two necks on either side of me turned to a jelly-like purple and separated from my body. As they fell toward the ground, the amorphous mass reshaped itself into Amorph’s form. Just before impact, the left and right heads completed transformation, spreading their wings wide.

The right head rocketed upward like a launched missile, ramming straight into the enemy. The force split Arcane Orca’s core body in two. Critically wounded, it immediately triggered quantum teleportation.

The left head pursued, streaking through the sky after the enemy as it regenerated at a distance.

While the two heads bought me time, I made my way to where the young Wolfs and the 25th Rank were.

‘I need to move them underground.’

My nest extended deep below the surface. If I relocated them there, I could buy precious time while I fought.

I flew swiftly toward an isolated structure rising alone on the horizon. A towering column several kilometers tall, venting mist from its upper exhaust ports, a terraforming machine, responsible for regulating the planet’s atmosphere and weather.

As soon as I landed, a Wolf with a jackal’s head burst out from inside. If I recall correctly, his name was Tané.

“Bring everyone out from inside.”

“Yes, Divine One!”

With a loud, determined voice, he rushed back in. Moments later, he emerged with the others, carrying the half-dead Ranker between them.

I concealed them in my mouth and crawled into the large pit I’d prepared near the facility. The underground nest, filled with mucus, welcomed me. I swam downward with only my head above the surface.

Then, in an instant, the surrounding darkness lit up and a powerful shock struck my back and tail.

‘You maniac!’

Arcane Orca had chased me even underground.

The intense heat it released began to vaporize the mucus and collapse the nest. Despite the interference from my clones, it targeted only me.

With no choice, I fled the collapsing nest.

‘I didn’t expect it to chase me this far.’

If I’d known, I would’ve transferred the cargo to a clone instead. Because of this surprise, moving the Wolfs was now impossible.

‘What do I do?’

If I kept fighting like this, not only the 25th Ranker but all the Wolfs would be burned alive. But with Arcane Orca focused solely on me, it was impossible to set them down.

‘In that case, it might be better to just swallow them.’

At the very least, I’d still gain the special privilege from doing so.

The Wolfs inside my mouth remained still, unaware. Whether it was trust in me or something else, there was no fear in them.

‘…Do I have a choice?’

Arcane Orca began charging another attack. There was no time. I was about to finalize my decision when something appeared in the night sky.

What looked like a star or satellite was growing larger. Its front split into three prongs like a trident

It was a Zax Beta-class battleship.

‘Zax Beta? No way…’

Arcane Orca also noticed the sudden arrival of the warship. Perhaps because it was a completely new threat, half of its glowing orbs diverted toward the newcomer instead of me.

The situation veered off course yet again. Instead of swallowing what was in my mouth, I bent my neck sharply toward my abdomen. Then, I tore out my remaining corrosion tendrils and hurled them at the incoming spheres.

Meanwhile, the remaining energy blasts rushed toward the ship.

From the ship, still only the size of a fingertip in the far distance, something like white clouds began to pour out. Arcane Orca’s guided missiles, under its control, struck the ship enveloped in cloud.

Even a Zax Beta-class warship shouldn’t have been able to withstand an assault from a top-tier Apex predator.

Yet surprisingly, the ship remained operational. Its forward cannons had been destroyed, but considering the sheer brutality of the attack, it was in decent shape.

‘This is my chance!’

Thanks to the Zax Beta, the enemy’s focus was divided. I rushed in close and grabbed the bone-like core with my wing-arms. My clones bit down on it from behind.

Arcane Orca, severely wounded in the lower body, attempted quantum teleportation.

Just before its entire body turned to particles and dispersed into the air, its skin flickered with a noisy distortion. After a few brief flickers, only the parts not bitten by the clones vanished.

“You can’t run anymore.”

A familiar voice echoed nearby.

I turned and there floated a being with a new form, suspended in mid-air.

[ZZZ (PS-111)]

It resembled a fusion between a round, saucer-shaped ship and a Screamer drone. It was PS-111.

[ZZZZ (That form?)]

“Due to unavoidable circumstances, I’ve fused myself with Prometheus V2.”

Originally, PS-111 and the Mother of the Sky had split from me to capture a High Commissioner. The Commissioner possessed both the instructions to control Prometheus and the locations of its critical components.

But now, PS-111 had merged with Prometheus itself. Something must have happened during the mission that forced a change of plans.

[ZZZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ (Let’s talk later. First, let’s deal with this thing)]

“Copy that.”

While we were speaking, Arcane Orca completed its quantum jump.

But its body wasn’t intact. The wound at the base of its tail inflicted by my clones remained faintly visible.

The warp particles emitted by Prometheus’s reactor fully controlled faster-than-light movement within its domain. Arcane Orca couldn’t avoid that effect. Even if it succeeded in teleporting, the interference from the warp particles meant its injuries wouldn’t heal properly.

In other words, with PS-111 merged with Prometheus now on the field, the enemy’s regenerative ability and its greatest strength was effectively sealed.

‘And on top of that…’

The damaged Zax Beta approached us, leading a swarm of drones veiled in white clouds, an unfamiliar design I had never seen before. The Mother of the Sky, who had seized control of the ship, was coming to assist.

The panicked enemy began generating dozens of guided missiles, but I wasn’t worried. The tide had already turned.

In the end, Arcane Orca attempted quantum teleportation one last time, its ninth.

And that… was the moment of its death.

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[Translator – Seraph]

[Proofreader – Draxx]

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