Zeyarila.

The swamp forest after the heavy rain was busier and more lively than usual, with many foreign slimes competing for territory within the swamp.

The arrival of these monsters, whose ecological niche was equivalent to grassland or humus layer, didn't cause much impact on the swamp forest. Like grass growing after rain, they simply grew silently in unnoticed corners.

The Poison-stinger Wasps were still managing their Moss Monster farm under the tree. Compared to Moss Monsters, they weren't very interested in these slimy monsters crawling everywhere, mostly using slime mucus as nest adhesive or emergency rations.

But because of a certain slime's behavior, the Poison-stinger Wasps' attitude toward these foreign slimes had subtly changed, slightly expanding their hunting range.

Many unfortunate slimes had consequently died from the Poison-stinger Wasps' toxic stingers.

Whether due to the heavy rain's influence or the Poison-stinger Wasps' boundary-crossing behavior angering certain monster tribes, the usually peaceful and tranquil underground today welcomed an uninvited guest.

A patch of growing grassland might be worthless in the eyes of predators like Poison-stinger Wasps, but to certain monsters, it was practically no different from a buffet falling from the sky.

Especially for the Burrowing Beetles, the springy and juicy slimes were the perfect choice as food.

These monsters covered entirely in chitinous shells were skilled at burrowing and stealth, most fond of finding hidden underground slime nests, then hooking their barbed limbs onto the slimes, extending their slender mouthparts to feast heartily.

After a full meal, they would occupy the slime nest as their habitat to reproduce and nurture the next generation.

They were also a group of thieves, occasionally preying on the Moss Monsters raised by Poison-stinger Wasps, with quite an extensive diet.

Underground in the swamp, the Swamp Worms wriggled through the damp, soft soil as usual, using their mouthparts to absorb the rich nutrients from the humus layer, sustaining their daily growth needs.

But some subtle vibrations quickly caught their attention. The originally slowly wriggling Swamp Worms silently accelerated their pace, burrowing away from the direction of the vibrations.

Ssss ss ss...

A Swamp Worm that crawled too slowly suddenly convulsed all over, its body visibly shrinking and withering at a rapid pace, until only an empty husk remained in the soil.

The perpetrator responsible for this was a Burrowing Beetle that had intruded into the Poison-stinger Wasps' territory.

Its entire body was covered in black carapace, full of ferocity and hardness, like a knight wearing heavy armor. The sharp, arched horn on its head was the sharpest knight's sword.

Bzzz...

The knight's sword chopped into the soil, the vibrating sound seeming to announce death's arrival.

At this moment, this death knight was searching for traces of monsters in the soil, then steadfastly crawling toward the upper right.

And that direction was precisely where Chen Yu's slime nest was located, also currently the only slime nest in this swamp area.

As an underground-dwelling monster, slimes, like Swamp Worms, also possessed weak "vibration perception."

When the springy, sensitive slime gel began to tremble slightly, a sense of unease like an electric current would spread along the nerves deep into the slime's heart, thus forming a rudimentary ability similar to "danger perception," allowing them to detect predators' approach in advance.

Chen Yu was startled awake from sleep by his body's instinctive trembling. The originally faint, barely noticeable underground vibrations continuously amplified in his auditory tissues, rustling and hissing, full of chaotic, disorderly noise, harsh and unpleasant to hear.

An inexplicable restlessness surged within him, as if warning him of approaching danger.

The usually playful Little One also sensed the danger's arrival, trembling fearfully in the grass nest, pressing closely against Chen Yu to seek safety and comfort.

"Something's approaching underground?"

While alert, Chen Yu quickly hopped out of the grass nest with plopping sounds, pulling out the dozen or so Poison Stinger Swords hidden under the nest's tree roots and storing them inside his body, clearly preparing for battle.

Several breaths later, the ground suddenly shook violently!

A hard, arched horn burst through the soil like a piercing sword, tearing apart the nest's tranquility. Immediately after, a ferocious, glossy black carapace emerged with crushing momentum, as a giant beetle comparable in size to Chen Yu, carrying soil and the deep earthy scent, rudely invaded the slime's territory.

That glossy black carapace reflected deathly gleams under the dim light, the ferocious horn seemingly capable of easily piercing through the hardest rocks.

Though called a beetle, its aura was more like a solemn, terrifying knight.

Was this a monster that invaded the Poison-stinger Wasps' territory after the heavy rain?

The moment that colossal shadow crashed into his vision, deep within Chen Yu's gel, an alarm originating from life's very beginnings, carved into instinct, exploded!

Every inch of his gelatinous substance screamed wildly—Danger! Extreme danger!

Without needing to think, his viscous body, under instinct's absolute control, violently contracted and trembled, almost uncontrollably preparing to eject backward in panicked retreat.

Standing before him was definitely a Black Iron Level 3 predator!

[Willpower Check·Passed!]

[Race Check·Failed!]

[You have fallen into abnormal status (Fear)]

"Not this again."

For Chen Yu, the trouble wasn't just this Burrowing Beetle, but also the slime's fear instinct.

It was equivalent to being slapped with a weakness debuff before the battle even started.

He wanted to move, but his body still trembled violently disobediently, each contraction pulling at his clear thinking, as if his soul and gel were being forcibly torn apart.

This fear originating from bloodline was like a layer of sticky, cold mud, tightly wrapping around his will to resist.

His body completely couldn't move.

But fortunately, Object Manipulation had nothing to do with slime instinct, being purely a technique skill. Even in this situation, he could barely manage to use it as long as he concentrated.

Just as he was about to act,

The Burrowing Beetle's massive body turned, abandoning the seemingly troublesome Chen Yu, its ferocious horn pointing directly deep into the grass nest—where the trembling Little One slime was curled up.

Their pure, fragile glow under the beetle's enormous shadow was like a candle flickering in the wind.

"---!!!"

The moment he witnessed this scene, for some reason, Chen Yu felt unprecedented anger for the first time.

Although he found these little ones annoying sometimes, that didn't mean any random monster could bully them as they pleased.

No matter what, this beetle had managed to anger him.

He was furious, and the consequences would be severe.

A completely different, scalding torrent suddenly exploded from the deepest part of his gel.

The instinctive fear still roared, every component of his body's gel still screaming.

But those faint points of light in the grass nest, like red-hot branding irons, seared fiercely into his consciousness. A more primitive, more fearless emotion erupted violently! It ruthlessly tore open the cold shackles woven by fear instinct!

An unprecedented power began to madly concentrate! The gel that had contracted due to fear, attempting to scatter, was now forcibly forged together by his will.

It was as if his soul had grabbed the slime instinct by the throat, slapping its face repeatedly, demanding whether it submitted or not.

Submit or not.

If not, then slap again, until it submitted completely.

At this moment when will overpowered instinct, when soul broke through the barrier walls built by physical instinct, when reason and wisdom returned to his body, a light screen suddenly flashed before his eyes.

Huh?

Reputation title?