The Bone-Leech was dead.
Its twisted armor, once so formidable, now floated in fractured pieces around Xerion. Bits of bone. Fused tissue. Fragments of things it had consumed.
But this time… he was the one who absorbed.
[Bone-Leech Larva: Consumed][Energy +0.043] — [Bio Points +4][Unique Trait Scanned: Bone Memory Plate][Trait Available: External Shell Lv.1 — Status: Installed][System Integration Progress: 58.3%]
A layer of flexible armor now shielded Xerion's core. It was not invulnerable—no, it shifted with his movement like the skin of a living predator—but it was a symbol.
He was no longer the lowest link on the chain.
And more than that…
He had grown again.
But even now, the hunger remained.
Not the crude need to devour.
Not even the compulsion to climb ranks.
This was different.
A desire not for power, but for refinement.
[Mutation Node Unlocked][Host eligible to apply next-stage Adaptive Mutation][Available Bio Points: 5][Warning: Adaptive Mutations are irreversible until Tier II Evolution.]
Three icons shimmered in his neural interface.
Not traits. Not upgrades.
Paths.
Adaptive Mutation Options:
1. Echo Lattice (Neural Expansion)
Increase memory capacity
Unlock basic thought communication
Buffs predictive threat mapping
Enables passive thought-linking (to unknown future nodes)
2. Spore Divergence (Multipoint Sensor)
Deploys micro-spores as scouts
Enables blindside detection
Weakens main body but enhances perception range
3. Memory Bloom (Self-Evolution Archive)
Allows retention of defeated enemy skills (1 max)
Expands DNA storage buffer
High metabolic cost
Xerion hesitated.
He remembered what the system had said the last time: "This will define your mutation path until Tier II."
Echo Lattice promised intelligence. Strategy. A chance to connect with others—maybe even her.
Spore Divergence offered survival. Safe hunting. Defensive power in numbers.
Memory Bloom, though…
That was dangerous.
It was raw power. But costly. Risky. Every stolen skill could destabilize his system if overused.
And yet…
His mind pulsed with clarity.
He hadn't come this far by playing safe.
[Mutation Selected: Memory Bloom][Warning acknowledged.][Installing…]
The process hurt.
Not like before.
This time it was internal.
The core of his being unraveled. Not physically—but on the data layer. The system pulled his genetic template into open structure, weaving in a foreign memory matrix.
He saw images flash as if they were his own:
—A lightning eel ripping through a pack of shadow shrimp.—A fungal crawler melting its prey with digestive mist.—The Bone-Leech dragging its last victim into the black, twitching with hunger.
Then it ended.
And he remembered it all.
Not just images—but process. Behavior. The way they moved. The way they killed.
The system spoke once more:
[Memory Bloom: Activated][Skill Slot 1: Empty][Next enemy defeated may provide absorbable active skill]
He trembled.
This wasn't just mutation.
This was choice inheritance.
Xerion had stepped onto a path no other organism in the zone could take. He would not simply evolve. He would learn.
And he would become the sum of all things he devoured.
For several cycles, Xerion avoided conflict.
Not from fear—but from control.
He tested his new perception in silence, absorbing the environment, scanning through threat zones. His body now processed chemical trails in real time, distinguishing enemy signals from territory markers.
He no longer relied on reaction.
He predicted.
At one point, a Toxin Mantid lunged toward a prey clump.
Xerion watched from above.
The instant it turned its focus, he dropped.
Fast. Silent. Perfectly timed.
[Toxin Mantid Neutralized][Absorbable Skill Detected][Skill: Caustic Spray — Acidic stream; directional attack.][Integrate into Bloom Slot? Y/N]
He hesitated.
The Bone-Leech had had other techniques—defensive types. More complex mutations.
But this…
This was clean. Simple. Useful.
[Confirmed][Skill Slot 1: Caustic Spray Installed][Cooldown: 8 Seconds. Energy Cost: Medium]
A new muscle-layer curled within him.
Not organic. Not conscious. But there.
Waiting.
Later, as he floated near the edge of a radiant biomass cluster, he sensed it again.
A familiar signature.
Not from the system.
From something else.
"Still choosing paths I wouldn't?"
The voice was soft, melodic. Not in tone, but in feeling. Like a ripple in sunlight across still water.
Her.
"Memory Bloom will change you. Be careful. Some things we devour don't let go."
He turned.
Nothing.
Just shimmer.
Faint. Fading.
But the presence lingered.
Xerion didn't have words. Not yet.
But in the pulse of his body, the swirl of thought, he echoed back.
I remember you.
[Neural Thought-Link: 74%][Skill Adaptation Efficiency: +3%][Dominance Rank: 25th of 64]
He was still climbing.
Not fast.
Not loud.
But with purpose.
And one day soon, the ones above him would feel it.
A predator with memory.
An anomaly with will.
A mistake no one would forget.