Chapter 163

Chapter 163: Big Sister, Are You Really This Long? 7/7

"Um…"

"The situation outside seemed off."

Trilobite lay in his "cave," thinking carefully.

He had planned to wander around the lake earlier, searching for easy prey.

But as it turned out…

Prey existed, yet none proved easy to catch.

"Olfactory Membranes and Lorentz Jar revealed several large creatures moving slowly through the shallow mud pools surrounding me."

"Based on scent analysis, they were either large predatory fish or fierce four-legged beasts."

"Though smaller than me, I couldn’t overpower any swiftly."

"Perhaps this strange world suffers temporal chaos, but its ecosystem setup remains quite logical…"

Large predators require vast hunting grounds, keeping their numbers sparse. Yet medium-sized and small-sized predators measuring one to two meters? Their density might not follow that rule.

This holds especially true in fertile water bodies.

More intriguingly, these aquatic predators now scattered and encircled Lake Valaharl in a loose formation.

"This predator density feels normal."

"A lake as vast as Valaharl having just one large predator like me? That’d be bizarre."

By Trilobite’s reckoning, the sprawling Lake Valaharl covered substantial territory—enough for at least a township-sized administrative unit.

Perhaps even a county.

Yet across this expanse, he spotted few large predators or even little fish. Beyond the underwater "sea spiders" and drifting plankton, life seemed absent.

Plant life fared worse, verging on "extinction" along the shores without a single proper plant.

Instead, towering "mushrooms" and "fungi" colonized the lakeside and islets, temporarily occupying plants’ ecological niche.

"Mm. Likely recovering from some great catastrophe."

"Still, outside predators staying out for whatever reason works in my favor—no territory disputes."

"Food stays scarce here, but safety isn’t."

"And I can occasionally sneak out to hunt."

Trilobite propped his chin on his claws, deep in thought.

Truth was, he’d already ventured out once.

"Um…"

"Good thing I kept Olfactory Membranes and Lorentz Jar. These tools serve me well in the swamps!"

"They helped me dodge several big fish!"

"Ah… though ‘big’ might be overstating it."

"It could also be a very powerful four-legged creature!"

At that moment, although none of those predatory fish were a match for Trilobite’s strength, it seemed they weren’t all moving together; Trilobite wasn’t sure he could quickly take down prey about his size.

If an ambush or strike failed and a fight broke out, he’d face reinforcements coming one after another.

That was tough.

"And not just underwater—there are creatures in the branches too!"

"Speaking of which, this tree is huge!"

"Indeed, the vascular bundle plants from the coal age are massive!"

"The Serpent Tooth Dragon can even climb around in the trees."

"However, I spotted another very interesting fellow."

A small figure popped into Trilobite’s mind.

That fellow wasn’t exactly tiny, at least a bit bigger than the "Coelurosaur" he had eaten.

But compared to the Serpent Tooth Dragon chasing it, it was still a little thing.

"But this fellow found the right way for vertebrates to fly."

"It sacrificed a pair of limbs!"

"Yet, it sacrificed the wrong ones!"

He recalled how it had wing membranes on its legs!

Plus smaller ones on its arms…

"What a biological duck wing design!"

"Only the Sharovisaurus flies in such a wrong way."

The Sharovisaurus lived in the Early Triassic Period as a medium-sized protorosaur. According to paleontologists, it might have been closely related to pterosaurs.

They were likely cousins sharing a common ancestor.

So, the Sharovisaurus probably had feathers like pterosaurs.

When Trilobite first heard of it, he wondered if they were serious about being so long.

Did they really think they could reach the sky like that?

That day, he realized these creatures weren’t aiming to fly seriously but focused on gliding.

This evolutionary path converged independently many times in life’s history, with attempts in both archosaurs and lizard-like groups. Even now, it has followers in tropical rainforests.

But this path was too narrow.

Gliding creatures stuck to habitats in thick forest canopies.

If their habitat collapsed, they were doomed without a chance.

So, oddballs like the Sharovisaurus never took off and dropped the strange triangular wing design.

"I learned something new."

"Still, now’s not the time to think about the Sharovisaurus’s wrong turn."

"I should start considering my path."

"Hmm…"

Trilobite stared at the one hundred thousand units of Chaos Energy he’d just obtained, deep in thought.

"This time, I must boost my predation efficiency. Can’t let those predatory fish use attrition tactics!"

"So…"

"You’re the one!"

Trilobite pressed evolution’s fast-forward button once more.

—-

"What the heck?!"

"This is the Fantasy Tree of Subspace’s eighth prison, right?"

"Why are the defenses so thin?"

Thousands of feet stomped across the outer bark of the Fantasy Tree of Subspace, steadily climbing.

"BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—!"

Massive footsteps and thunderous roars shook the Fantasy Tree’s trunk as the colossal "Ye’s Foolish Act" charged forward relentlessly!

This place should’ve been defended by powerful chaos deities.

By all logic, seven or eight "Honorary Chaos Councilors" should dwell here. Moreover, Elioerg, possessing "core councilor" strength, ought to be stationed here.

But…

"Agh—!"

"No!"

"Save us!"

"Star-Eater Plutonium Dragons! Star-Eater Plutonium Dragons!"

…

Demons shrieked in terror.

Yet those able to scream were the fortunate ones.

They had to be "Demon Lord"-tier powerhouses—demigods of the chaos faction.

Sadly, that sliver of strength-bought luck proved utterly useless.

"SPLUTCH—!"

"ZZZ…"

These once-savage beings froze under the crushing divine pressure, unable to move. Then, like fodder beneath treads, they were pulverized into bloody paste and splinters by the Star-Eater Plutonium Dragons, collapsing in wailing heaps.

Yet the Star-Eater Plutonium Dragons’ target wasn’t these demons.

Demon-slaying was merely incidental.

"Oh?"

"The Fantasy Tree’s entrance is right there?"

"Just as I thought…"

…

"ZZZZ—!"

A massive Chaos Demon God blocked the path, issuing a warning to the Star-Eater Plutonium Dragons, braced for a fight to the death.

His radiating power marked him as a core councilor, likely highly ranked.

While still no match for Ye’s Foolish Act, defeating him would cost significant time.

"Heh."

Ye’s Foolish Act sneered inwardly.

"Fool!"

"Only an idiot storms the front gate!"

With that thought, she shook her immense body!

"SWISH… SWISH… SWISH…"

Countless golden specks clinging to her armor’s seams rained onto the Fantasy Tree of Subspace with the violent tremor.

They landed on the Fantasy Tree’s bark, slick with chaotic demon gore, greedily sucking nutrients from the pulverized remains!

"Hiss…"

Silently, the mycelium spread.