The ground trembles beneath Aaron as he senses something massive heading his way. His instincts scream at him to move, but he’s still adjusting to his sluggish body. Panic surges through him as his stat screen reappears, highlighting an incoming threat: Whatever is coming is far more powerful than him. Aaron’s survival instincts kick in. He quickly activates Burrow, tunneling deeper into the earth, trying to hide. His body wiggles through the soil, but the shaking only intensifies, and he realizes that the creature is gaining on him. It knows he’s there.
He presses the Regional Chat Channel, hoping for some guidance from the chaotic voices.
“Something’s chasing me! What do I do?!”
he types frantically, but most of the responses are useless.
“Just eat it!”
“I’m stuck as a snail, someone help!”
“Don’t run. You can’t escape anything in this world.”
Aaron curses under his breath, closing the chat. He needs to think. Fast. His Heightened Sense picks up more vibrations—a nearby cave only a few meters away. It’s his best shot at survival. He digs toward it with all the speed his small body can muster.
Just as he reaches the edge of the cave, the ground behind him explodes. A monstrous centipede, at least 5 feet long, bursts through the soil, its long, segmented body thrashing violently. The creature’s pincers snap at the air, its hundreds of legs scrambling over rocks as it scans the area for prey.
Aaron doesn’t stop to think. He dives into the cave, his Burrow ability guiding him deeper into the darkness, just out of reach of the centipede’s snapping jaws.
The centipede screeches, frustrated, but it doesn’t give up. Its massive form follows him into the cave, squeezing through tight spaces as it chases him deeper underground. Aaron can feel the pressure building inside his small body. The need to evolve is becoming more urgent. He’s too weak to fight this thing. He needs to get stronger—fast.
Number of cores devoured: 1/5.
Evolution: Locked.
He has no choice. Aaron scans the cave with his heightened senses, searching desperately for anything he can devour to gain more strength. His senses pick up movement ahead—smaller creatures, feeding in the dark.
Aaron presses forward, ignoring the centipede’s terrifying screeches behind him. He bursts into a cavern where small, rodent-like creatures scurry across the cave floor. They are small, but in his current form, they’re perfect targets.
He lunges, sinking his rotating teeth into the first rodent, shredding it apart. He devours it whole, feeling the core dissolve inside him as a fresh surge of energy courses through his body. He doesn’t stop there. Frenzied with hunger, he grabs another, then another. His teeth spin like a saw, and green blood splatters the cavern floor.
Number of cores devoured: 4/5.
Evolution: Nearing completion.
Aaron can feel himself growing stronger, but it’s not enough. One more core. He needs just one more core to evolve.
Suddenly, the centipede’s massive head bursts into the cavern, blocking his escape. It screeches again, its pincers snapping at him with deadly precision. Aaron knows he can’t outrun it this time. He has to fight.
Aaron lunges at one last rodent, his teeth grinding through its core. As soon as the core dissolves, his stat screen appears, flashing bright red.
Number of cores devoured: 5 out of 5.
Evolution Available: Evolve
Now?
Without hesitation, Aaron presses the button.
A wave of pain and power crashes over him. His body begins to shift, expand, and strengthen. His segments thicken, his teeth grow sharper, and his once 1 foot long body stretches and bulges into something far more dangerous.
Evolution Complete.
Name: Aaron
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
Species : Level 2 Lesser Earthworm (Evolved)
Stats:
attack:7
speed:6
defense:5
Weight 300 pounds
Size -5 feet long , 1 feet wide
Skills: Burrow (enhanced level 1), heightened sense (enhanced level 1), Body Reinforcement (New).
Skill description: (Burrow just digging now upgraded digging speed is increased) (heightened sense ability to sense your surroundings threw vibrations, sound and heat now upgraded sense range is increased to 50 meters around the host) (Body Reinforcement it makes the body tougher adding a layer of stone skin armor)
Aaron’s new body is still worm-like, but it’s far stronger, and now over five feet in length. His teeth spin faster and more viciously, and his body is tougher, able to withstand greater pressure. He feels a surge of confidence—he can fight now.
The centipede lunges, pincers snapping down toward him. But Aaron is faster. He twists out of the way and launches himself at the centipede’s side, sinking his newly evolved teeth into its armor-like exoskeleton. The rotating teeth cut through the centipede’s shell with ease, spraying green blood everywhere.
The centipede thrashes in pain, but Aaron holds on, his teeth grinding deeper. The centipede tries to shake him off, but with one final bite, Aaron tears through its core. The centipede’s body goes limp, crashing to the ground.
Aaron pulls himself away, panting but victorious. His stat screen pops up once more.
Number of cores devoured: 0 out of 10.
Next Evolution: Available at 10 cores.
Aaron surveys the massive corpse of the centipede. He feels the hunger gnawing at him again. He’s stronger, but he’ll need to get much more powerful if he’s going to survive in this world.
As he prepares to devour his kill, “a message pings in the
Regional Chat Channel, catching his attention:
“Boss monster detected near cave System 4. Beware.”
A warning… and an opportunity. Aaron lingers over the centipede’s carcass, its lifeless body sprawled across the cave floor. He can still taste the bitter, metallic blood on his rotating teeth, but his hunger has not yet faded. The constant need to devour, to grow stronger, gnaws at him from within. Aaron isn’t sure where he is, but there’s a sickening feeling that this boss monster might be closer than he wants to admit. He presses the chat icon, hoping to glean more information.
“I saw it. That thing is massive.”
“We need to group up if we want to take it down!”
“No way, as if I’ll trust you, I bet you’ll sneak attack me once you see me focused on the boss”
“It’s only one core we can’t possibly split it teams won’t work and besides who the hell even has the strength to even face the boss we only been here for a few hours how strong can you even be the that boss is LEVEL 4
“How do I even evolve?!”
“The voice said it—you have to eat other creatures. The stronger the core, the faster you evolve.”
Aaron reads through the messages, Most are terrified, others are desperate, and some are already accepting their fates. But Aaron has no intention of dying in this world.He needs to get out of here before the boss finds him. Determined, he turns back to the centipede’s body. His body is larger now—longer and thicker, his five-foot length coiled with newfound strength. His Rotating Teeth grind with greater speed, and his Body Reinforcement makes him tougher. But none of it will matter if this boss is as dangerous as the chat suggests.
Aaron’s teeth sink into the centipede’s shell, shredding through it as he devours the creature’s core. A familiar surge of energy flows through him, his strength increasing again.
Congratulations You devoured a Red skin centipede
Number of cores devoured: 1 out of 10.
As Aaron finishes consuming the centipede, he senses movement in the distance. His Heightened Sense ability alerts him something massive approaching from deeper within the cave. Vibrations ripple through the earth, faint at first, but growing stronger with every second His body stiffens, instinctually he burrows deep into the ground. The cave floor parts easily as his Burrow ability kicks in, allowing him to tunnel faster and deeper than before. He can feel the cold, damp earth envelop him, muffling the sounds.He Glances at his stats, the reminder is glaring:
Number of cores devoured: 1 out of 10.
Not nearly enough.
He feels the ground trembling again. The monster is getting closer, the vibrations pounding through the soil like the beat of a drum. Aaron knows his only chance is to flee. He needs to escape, find more creatures to devour, and evolve before facing something this dangerous.Without wasting a second, Aaron begins to move, his Burrow ability allowing him to slip effortlessly through the dirt. He feels the cold, damp earth pressing against his slick, 1 feet wide body as he glides deeper underground. He slithers as fast as he can, the soil parting around him with ease, but the boss’s presence looms over him like a shadow. Even from underground, the vibrations of its footsteps shake the earth violently.
Aaron continues to dig further out the cave trying to put as much distance between himself and the beast as possible. But the tremors are too close, too powerful. The boss has arrived. He feels the weight of the creature directly above him—its growls deep, guttural, and sending shivers through the soil. Aaron’s body goes completely still. He buries himself deeper, hoping to stay hidden, not daring to make a single move.
For long, agonizing moments, Aaron remains perfectly still , holding his breath as the boss prowls above him. He can feel the creature’s presence—its hunger, its malice—radiating through the ground like a predator searching for prey. He knows if it detects him, it’s over.
The earth shakes again. But this time, it feels like the boss is moving away. Aaron’s heightened senses pick up the subtle shift in the ground as the footsteps grow more distant, fading into the darkness of the cave. He lets out a silent sigh of relief. He had narrowly avoided disaster.
But he can’t rest yet. Aaron begins to burrow once more, heading in the opposite direction of the boss. He needs to get far away and find stronger prey—something that can push him to the next evolution. The centipede wasn’t enough. He knows now that devouring small creatures won’t be enough to face what lurks in this world.