In the royal palace of the capital of Luo Kingdom,
The giant infant floated in the air with its eyes closed, having dispatched a large number of its attendant spirits, causing its form to shrink considerably. Aside from its grayish-green skin and excess eyes, it looked like a fetus developing and sleeping in the womb.
Around the Gumantong, several masked figures continuously channeled supernatural abilities into it to maintain stability.
As the first monster to reach SS-rank, its strength might not be the highest among SS-rank monsters, but it was certainly stronger than most.
With carefully customized amplification abilities, various enhancement powers, and multiplication techniques stolen from Gao Changze, the masked figures could take any decent monster and elevate it to the peak of monstrous existence.
The Gumantong's mind, full of confusion, was quickly corrupted by the power given by the masked figures. It soon morphed into the tool-like shape Qi Yuan desired, working diligently to become SSS-rank as soon as possible.
But today, its work was particularly difficult, with a constant "buzzing" sound in its ears.
Born surrounded by toxic mist, leaving no life in its wake, no insects could approach it, so it naturally had no resistance to them.
This noisy and stifling sensation was a brand new experience for the Gumantong.
Damn it, where did this mutant insect come from?
Will it ever stop?
A raging fire ignited in its chest as the Gumantong's already massive head grew even larger. Its twelve eyes snapped open, filled with murderous intent.
If it didn't kill this insect, it couldn't quell the hatred in its heart!
It stared with all twelve eyes searching for its target, but after scanning around, found nothing. The nearby masked figure impatiently scolded it: "Don't waste time on nothing."
Without the translation from the psychic masked figure, the Gumantong couldn't understand his words, but the masked figure's gaze and aura were easy enough to comprehend. It had no choice but to lie back down.
A small insect flew unsteadily to a corner and settled down.
At that moment, the red-cloaked masked figure led a group of people into the room.
The masked figures inside stopped their work, bowed respectfully, and addressed him: "High Priest."
The red-cloaked masked figure raised his right hand, indicating they need not stand on ceremony. Another masked figure beside him stepped forward, and his unique intonation played in the Gumantong's mind, revealing his identity.
"Things are developing much faster than we imagined. They probably already know."
"How are the preparations on your end?"
They?
The Gumantong was momentarily confused, then suddenly understood - the reapers had come.
It blurted out: "How could it be so fast..."
In an instant, the gazes of all the masked figures converged on it, and a sense of foreboding welled up in the Gumantong's heart.
"That's a question for you. Only the second round of the game and already someone yearns for the outside world. How exactly have you been ruling?"
The Gumantong stared blankly, then retorted: "Didn't you say to give them freedom, to cultivate their desires..."
They were trying to pin this on it?
The Gumantong saw a masked figure glance at it and emit a disdainful snort. This was too much to bear...
Never mind, it couldn't win a fight, so it would tolerate this for now. Once it advanced in rank, it would deal with him first.
"That was the final step. Otherwise, how could you be the bait?"
The red-cloaked masked figure raised his hand, terrifying power gathering in his palm. "If you don't know how to communicate, I'll help you learn."
The Gumantong closed its mouth, which had been about to argue. A person who couldn't communicate was offering to help them learn how to communicate...
At the bottom of the food chain, it had taught itself the art of flattery during this time. "High Priest, whatever you say, I'll do it without question..."
Hearing this, the High Priest directed the power in his palm towards the psychic masked figure, who once again made a surrendering gesture in front of the Gumantong, with utmost fluidity.
The psychic projection got straight to the point: "You certainly won't be of help in battle, so just focus on accelerating the infection rate."
"As a creation of the Supreme God, the Lord can project into the world through your domain. Although the Supreme God cannot directly assist, facing a deity will put immense pressure on them."
"God... creation..."
The Gumantong was shocked by the psychic projection's words. It recalled a video it had seen online, a part it couldn't understand before, which now finally lifted a corner of the veil.
Its spirits lifted, and it hurriedly asked: "What is the Supreme God? Are we His creations?"
"God is omnipotent. He generously bestows power upon us. Once the deity descends to the mortal realm, He will lead us on a journey to a new world. Our conquest doesn't end here."
The High Priest rarely joined the conversation, but now his voice rose as he praised the deity.
The Gumantong thought the High Priest was just spouting nonsense, but its power level prevented it from complaining.
This guy couldn't take a joke; one wrong word and he'd threaten spatial collapse!
"Words mean little compared to personally beholding the deity. We've set the anchor point in your domain, which requires your cooperation. That's the purpose of our visit."
The psychic masked figure spoke urgently, his impatience buried beneath his words.
"Wait...!"
The Gumantong hurriedly called for a stop. Although it would eventually have to cooperate due to the power difference, it still wanted to salvage what it could, at least to understand the situation.
"If you don't explain the precautions clearly, what if I accidentally offend the deity? Wouldn't that be a grave sin..."
The High Priest's gaze turned dangerous, immediately gathering energy, ready to crush it to dust.
The other masked figures also revealed murderous looks.
"I'm just making a hypothetical... you're telling me that definitely won't happen..."
The Gumantong trembled under everyone's gaze, weak, pitiful, and helpless, muttering softly.
The masked figures, surrounded by murderous aura, reined in their killing intent. The psychic masked figure explained the origin of monsters to it in an unfriendly tone.
The Gumantong's twelve eyes widened. One of the sources of monsters was actually humans!
The impact it felt was equivalent to humans discovering that chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs were their ancestors.
But it also explained why humans ate various foods, while they only ate humans. So there was this connection.
It sounded absurd, but upon reflection, there was some logic to it.
With truth and falsehood mixed together, the Gumantong was half-believing, half-doubting the psychic projection's words, just needing one final verification.
If the Supreme God the High Priest spoke of was as unfathomable as he claimed, even if it were false, it would believe it wholeheartedly as truth.
"Let's get on with it, I can't wait to face... to behold the glory of the Supreme God..."
Realizing its slip of the tongue, the Gumantong quickly corrected itself.
The monster, immersed in this new world, had long forgotten about the sinful insect. In the corner, the insect had transformed into a human figure at some point, silently observing the Gumantong, its power steadily rising.
The genuine killing intent towards himself, the use of telepathy by his main body within range, plus the anchor point of the clone disguised as a Luck Stealer, easily secured the experience card.