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墨書 Inktalez
I couldn't help but take a step back.
Jack remained still, standing in front of the orange-red Monster Bug, gazing at it with a sigh before crouching down.
The Demon-Faced Bug also did not move, maintaining its stance as it faced off against Jack.
I glanced around, feeling something was off. It surprised me that the Monster Bug did not attack Jack; he wasn't directly in front of it, yet crouching down didn't provoke any reaction from the Monster Bug. I found it hard to understand. It was as if its pair of Compound Eyes were blind, unable to see the threat right in front of it, yet it could see me standing directly in its line of sight.
Of course, I found it hard to believe that it was lifeless, but its form and posture were certainly not those of an inanimate object. Its short claws gripped the Ground powerfully, which was essentially a sealed vacuum jar, and this did not rob it of life. After the sealed jar was opened, regardless of how it ended up on the Ground, once it landed, it clung to the surface.
Perhaps it lacked the strength to overturn the jar that covered its head, but its terrifying Mouthparts definitely had the capability to bite a hole in our bodies and chew off a piece of flesh. Its vibrant colors hinted at toxicity; it could fly and with just one movement could send us into panic. If it managed to escape, aside from Heimanluo, we would have another terrifying and unpredictable opponent.
My hand awkwardly reached for my backpack behind me, only to realize that I had no weapon suitable for dealing with this creature. The pistol, grenades, Fire Oil Bombs—none of the weapons I carried seemed appropriate. At that moment, I remembered the Engineer Shovel. If only I had that; one good swing could flatten it.
Jack didn't look up at me. He must have sensed my fidgeting, and calmly said, "Don't be nervous. It—at least it's dead."
I glanced at Jack in surprise, then looked back at the bug on the ground, unsure of whom to believe—Jack or my own eyes.
I cautiously took a step to the side, almost stepping on Tang Yumo's foot, as my gaze remained fixed on that devilish Monster Bug.
I was being overly dramatic; the Monster Bug didn't shift its gaze or posture because of my movement. It was like a specimen—yes, it was just a specimen.
I relaxed a bit and boldly took a step closer, crouching down. "Damn, even dead it still looks scary. What do you mean by 'at least it's dead'? Dead is dead; not dead is not dead. There’s no third option."
Finally, Jack turned his gaze toward me, his blue eyes revealing a hint of melancholy. Those eyes were strikingly blue; if they belonged to a girl, they would be utterly captivating. What a shame.
Jack extended a finger, pointing at the Monster Bug. "It’s not dead."
In an instant, I felt the muscles in my thighs tense up, some nerve involuntarily sending signals for me to jump back. However, I held myself together; I couldn't let Jack see my reaction. I felt he was deliberately trying to scare me with his half-truths.
But my expression betrayed me.
Jack looked into my eyes and surprisingly revealed a warmth that bordered on ambiguous. "Sorry for scaring you."
"Don't you dare look at me like that," I snapped. Fatty was right there, letting him gawk at it. Haven't you had enough of Fatty's teasing?
A figure appeared beside me, crouching deeper than I was, almost lying on the Monster Bug.
It was Fatty. His presence made Jack lose interest in continuing the conversation.
Fatty squatted down and stared for a moment before extending a finger to poke at the bug.
Just as Fatty's finger was about to touch the creature, Jack said slowly, "I advise you not to move."
Fatty chuckled and pulled his finger back a bit. "That's what I was thinking too."
Damn it, I could tell he never intended to poke that bug; his finger moved as if in slow motion, barely reaching out.
"Is it alive?" Fatty asked, switching from poking to pointing at the Monster Bug.
This Fat Man, really. If you're going to ask someone, at least be sincere about it; otherwise, just stick to your guns. But clearly, he was asking Jack while directing his question into thin air, as if conversing with nothing.
Jack wasn't one to take that lightly; his patience had run out. He scoffed at Fatty's dialogue with the air and ignored him completely.
I watched where Fatty pointed, but inside, my heart sank.
When Jack said "it's not dead," he was referring to the bug while looking at me.
Fatty was conversing with the air, pointing at the bug.
At that moment, I noticed how similar their finger positions were; both were pointing at the same spot and uttering similar words. They weren't pointing at the bug itself but rather at its wispy antennae.
These antennae were indeed peculiar. Earlier, my attention had been drawn to the bug's fierce head, and I hadn't paid much attention to its antennae. Even its claws gripping the ground were more captivating and terrifying than those antennae.
However, once the two of them focused on the Monster Bug's antennae, I suddenly realized something. The shock and horror that Jack displayed upon first seeing the upside-down can were not due to the Monster Bug trapped beneath it but because of this wispy antenna extending from the can's exterior.
He wanted to show me that very antenna.
This bug had three antennae. If they hadn't pointed it out, I would have struggled to notice this detail in such a short time. But once I did, my mind began to spin. This bug was too bizarre; while I could understand its fierce appearance and warning colors, having three antennae was beyond my comprehension.
Typically, a bug's antennae are used for communication among their kind; some insects use them to search for prey or detect danger. Antennae serve a searching function; they are not weapons, and having more is not necessarily better. I had never seen or even heard of a bug with three antennae. From an evolutionary standpoint, it seemed unnecessary.
These three antennae were quite different; the two on either side were identical—thin and delicate—with a sesame-sized round orange bulb at the top of each, seemingly designed for secreting chemicals or receiving and releasing certain types of information.
The tentacle in the middle, the one that Fatty is currently pointing at, is vastly different from the other two.
This particular tentacle extends from the bullet hole in the jar. Besides its more vibrant color, its appearance is also quite distinct. It resembles an unspread feather, with fluffy filaments attached to a main stalk, much like an ear of corn but finer and softer, hanging down on both sides of the stalk.
The main stalk resembles Zhang Fei's long hair; it is not straight but rather bends and curves outward. This tentacle has a very peculiar overall shape.
I patted Jack. "Hey, is this tentacle alive?"
Jack looked up at me. "Did you not realize? Your arrival has excited it."
(To Be Continued...)
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