HISSSSSSSSS
I snapped my head around and what I saw made my heart seemingly drop as the pale face of a woman looked at me desperately before being sucked down the throat of a snake.
Her lower jaw had been completely removed, meaning she could only make very light groans of pain as she slowly slid away.
The massive snake coiled around the massive tree and its dirt brown color made it blend in with its surroundings.
If it wasn't for the slight hissing noise that it made through its nose, I probably wouldn't have even noticed it.
"A-A monster…? Am I in the glades?" I muttered to myself as if there should be no monsters from where I come from.
I know I was thrown into a raging river… so that means I tumbled down that now dried up waterfall into this extremely deep pond… which can only mean I entered the scaly glades.
"Shit…" I muttered before turning in the opposite direction of the massive brown snake with demonic-like horns atop its head and sprinting as fast as I could.
For some reason, my legs and body felt lighter than before, but that could just be from the lack of using them.
As I maneuvered through the trees, I suddenly ran into a scaly monster that was as big as a large dog and as intimidating as a dragon.
Its slim green pupils mixed with its camo brown and green scales made it even more threatening as even though it was in front of me, I was having a hard time even seeing it.
Csh
Suddenly, it spat something green in my direction, and my body moved on its own as it dodged the green spit with utmost efficiency.
There were no careless moves… but the thing I was most concerned about was that I didn't even think of moving.
Everything just went downwards, and before I knew it, I was crouching on the ground.
Grrrrrrrr
The monster, which reminded me of a lizard, growled like a dog before charging in towards me, its jaws wide open.
I almost shit myself since it moved so fast, and as I backed up, I suddenly hit a firm tree trunk behind me, stopping my sporadic escape.
CHOMP
The lizard's teeth wrapped around my entire shoulder, but as they dug into my skin… I felt… nothing… I felt nothing at all.
When I looked down, I noticed the lizard was sweating since it couldn't penetrate my cracked and bone-gray skin.
"Kekekeke… AHAHAHAHA! YOU STUPID LIZARD!" I shouted before sticking my thumb into its eye and then wrapping the rest of my hand around the back of its head.
I stuck my thumb farther and farther inside its skull as the squishing noise of its flesh penetrated under the force of my thumb.
"ARGHHHHHH!"
I cried out before doing one last push and… I killed the lizard.
The cracks of my body let out a long trail of gray steam that slowly formed into the shape of a snake above me.
Its eyes glowed a dim white, and for some reason, I could see a small white orb float out of the lizard's corpse and towards the snake.
[2 XP]
[Soul Devoured]
[System has been altered]
[Real Status has been revealed]
[The Soul Devouring Snake has approved your might]
『Status』
[Name: Kaiser]
[Race: Lizardman]
[Level: 1/10] (2/100) XP Needed
[HP: 15/15 MP: 15/15 SP: 15/15] - Normal Human
[Strength: 1] - Sub Human
[Speed: 1] - Sub Human
[Magic: 1] - Sub Human
[Intelligence: 1] - Sub Human
[Poisonous Miasma: 5] - Non Human
[Skills: [Poison Manipulation]
[Passive Skills: [Toxic Immunity]
…
"What? I'm not… a human anymore? How is that even possible? I didn't even know humans could evolve… wait, did I even evolve?"
So many questions flooded my mind, but before I could even mull over them, a few panels appeared before me, and a pack of the same lizards stepped up to me.
[A few of the gods raise their eyebrows with suspicion]
[Next Side Quest has been revealed]
.
[Side Quest: Absorb The Souls of Five More Monsters]
[Description: This side quest has been revealed because you've finally seen the true potential of your body, but do you have the skill and intelligence to use it to its fullest? Will you be able to survive this event despite having such a powerful body? The gods are awaiting either your failure or success.]
[Reward: [Skill Book - Soul Absorption]
[Penalty Upon Failure: Death]
[Time Left: 10 Minutes]
.
On an instinctual level, like a rabid beast, I knew exactly what I had to do, and the souls of the monsters before me revealed themselves to me like separate beings.
The only thing I could see were their souls, and everything seemingly disappeared as I was left in a pit of darkness.
Six flowing white orbs that kind of had a fiery touch to them began to slowly stalk me as I tried to get back onto my feet.
The souls flickered their skewered tongues, and as they hissed at me, I felt my mind become clearer, and the instant fear I had previously felt washed out of my body.
"Fooooooo…"
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM
HISSSSSSS
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM
HISSSSSSSSS
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM
"AHAHAHAHAHAHA! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!"
Soon, the souls all flopped to the side and began to float upwards, and just as my vision returned to normal and revealed the sight of the forest around me, I saw the smoky silhouette of a snake floating above me.
The smoke once again came from the large cracks on my skin, and as soon as the snake ate the six souls, a few new panels appeared.
.
[You have completed the Side Quest: Absorb The Souls of Five More Monsters]
[Reward has been granted]
[The next Side Quest will be revealed once ready]
.