Hunter of Mysterious Creature-Chapter 583 - 140: Reverse Parasitism (Part 2)

"But you didn't." Wang Xiyi turned slightly, a pale blue flame igniting in the palm of her right hand hidden behind her back—the energy contained in this flame was continuously being compressed, and its color gradually approached white.

"Yes, I didn't… I wasn't consumed by the mysterious creature. In my self-awareness, I'm still a human, just like you, like most Hunters who haven't reached the end of their life's path." The opponent's tone carried a hint of pride, "Aren't you curious about how I managed that?"

"Our policy has always been confession for leniency and resistance for severity." Wang Xiyi nodded, "Whether you talk is up to you, but whether I kill you is up to me."

"Then I have a question for Ms. Night Slayer to answer first." The octopus man's right arm extended, making a gesture of invitation.

"Go ahead."

"How do Mysterious Creature Hunters acquire the powers that belong to mysterious creatures?"

"Your question is useless to me. I'm a Hunter, not a researcher." Wang Xiyi sneered, "Even if you asked a proper researcher, they wouldn't be able to give you an accurate answer immediately."

"If you think the answer to this question requires lengthy academic papers, you're wrong." The other party said, "The answer is simple. Hunters use their bodies as vessels to accept the memes originally belonging to mysterious creatures, thus gaining power... and as the erosion of the human body by these mysterious creature memes deepens, sooner or later, the Hunters will become mysterious creatures themselves, and their self-consciousness will drown in the power that wasn't supposed to belong to them... This is an irreversible process." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"The stronger the Hunter, the more dangerous it becomes." The octopus man spoke slowly, "This is true not only for the enemies of the Hunters but also for their allies."

"Isn't that all nonsense?" Wang Xiyi couldn't help but retort.

The flame in her palm had been compressed several dozen times, expanding in size to that of a quail egg, as Wang Xiyi struggled to control the violent energy within... Once this energy spilled out, the vast underground space would instantly become a sea of fire.

Literally, a "sea of fire."

"No, no, no... I thought about it for a long time and conducted many experiments... I discovered that our approach was wrong from the start." The octopus man said.

"Then tell me, what is the 'right' approach supposed to be like?"

"It shouldn't be the mysterious creature's memes infecting humans, but humans 'infecting' the mysterious creatures." The octopus man said loudly.

"What did you say?" Wang Xiyi's expression became very strange.

"We should reverse this order, not letting human bodies accept mysterious creature memes, but allowing the bodies of mysterious creatures to accept our human will." The octopus creature's massive body crawled out of the underground lake, lifting the octopus man's body dozens of meters into the air, leaving only a few meters from the shattered dome, looking down at Wang Xiyi from above.

"Humans are the rulers of this world, as it was ten thousand years ago and as it is now." The octopus man said.

"Do you think you still qualify as human in your current form?" Wang Xiyi mocked coldly.

"And you, Ms. Night Slayer? Do you think your form—bearing a pair of dragon horns, a pair of dragon wings, a dragon's tail, covered in scales, capable of spewing fire from your throat—qualifies as human?" The octopus man retorted, "At our core, we are no different; it's just that my method of fusion is more advanced than yours."

"How can you be sure you can always control this giant octopus? Perhaps one day, it will swallow you whole." Wang Xiyi laughed coldly, "That would certainly be quite the spectacle."

The octopus man was not angered by Wang Xiyi's words. It moved closer to Wang Xiyi, the high, human-like body slowly lowering, speaking in a tone as "gentle" as possible: "I can sense that you've managed to tame the force within you. Though different from my method, I must admit, you're exceptional…We are the same kind of people, we are the future of humanity... and those who cling to the past are merely inferior species destined to be eliminated in the process of human evolution."

"Are you trying to persuade me to defect?" Wang Xiyi paused, "I think... you might be a bit... humorous."

"You've just experienced that pain, haven't you? That pain beyond the limits of physical endurance." Asked the octopus man.

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"I wonder if that pain reminded you of the experimental modifications you underwent in the research institute," continued the octopus man, "Have you ever thought that those high above never regarded you as humans, never as their comrades? They only saw you as a weapon, as expendables—that was the meaning they assigned to your existence... When you were just a little girl, did you not ponder every day upon waking if today might be your last day alive? When you swallowed those regularly distributed nutrient doses, did you not think it could be your last meal?"

"You seem to know quite a lot about my past?"

"Indeed. Besides you, I've interacted with a few survivors of that plan," the octopus man continued slowly, "Their situations aren't great, or rather, they're far from yours... I couldn't help them; the only thing I could do is avenge them... for those who destroyed their lives."

"Did they entrust you with their revenge? Or are you just being overly sentimental?" Wang Xiyi retorted.

She could see that the octopus man was stalling for time.

She was also stalling for time.

At worst, let's see whose ultimate move is more powerful.

She's not at all intimidated.

"Those in power never considered you as their peers, but in my eyes, you are all my kindred, my compatriots," the octopus man continued to persuade, "There's no need for you to die for a federation doomed to be destroyed by mysterious creatures... You should join us and become the new master of this world after the old human civilization perishes."

"I think I've figured out the task you assigned to Wen Ya and Yao Yu," Wang Xiyi suddenly said.

The octopus man paused, momentarily failing to respond.

Its mind seemed to have encountered a temporary lag, the distorted body frozen in mid-air, arms still held in the same "speech-giving" posture.

"You're planning to have someone chosen to 'parasitize' Chimera 17, right?"

"Ha... Hahaha." The octopus man chuckled dryly, "Night Slayer, you're far smarter than I imagined. You not only possess great strength but also remarkable intelligence. People like you are exactly the kind of talent our organization needs…Join us, and you won't be disappointed!"

"Nah, dude." Wang Xiyi sighed, "Even a shady employment agency would at least paint a rosy picture before deceiving people into factory work, but you haven't even offered a pie, not even a sesame seed. Why should I join you? Just to turn into something as disgusting as this?"

"Disgusting?!" Wang Xiyi's words seemed to hit a nerve with the octopus man, making its voice more shrill.

"Yes, disgusting." Wang Xiyi nodded seriously, "To me, mollusks are quite gross… and you're disgusting after merging with one."

"You..."

"Look, at least I retain a normal human sense of aesthetics." Wang Xiyi shrugged, "Seems like your cognition might have already been twisted by the mysterious creature... As for humans parasitizing mysterious creatures, how is that different in any way? Do you think you can maintain this state for long? Half a year? Or two months? It shouldn't take long before your way of thinking becomes vastly different from humans, right?"