After assigning the tasks, Shi Ming began his friendly exchange with the Colorful Insect.
"..."
"Do you see this beautiful, starry sky?"
"This is the world outside the ancestral land of the Star Spirit Race! A place you’ve never reached. Just hand over control of your consciousness to me, and your wish will be granted. You’ll be able to truly experience this world..."
Shi Ming’s voice was filled with temptation.
He was patiently coaxing the Colorful Insect sealed within his body.
"D-don’t even think about it!"
"You liar! I’d rather die than hand over control to you."
The Colorful Insect’s voice echoed from within the Heaven-Reaching Tower.
After being suppressed and subjected to the gnawing of the borers, the Colorful Insect was already mentally and physically exhausted. However, the countless layers of tangled corruption on its body were endlessly regenerating. Whenever the gnawing pushed it to the brink of death, it would reboot—preserving its consciousness and becoming a new corrupted body. This would reset the borers’ stacks, allowing it to escape the execution threshold.
In this way, it achieved a state of undeath. As long as it didn’t hand over control, it could eke out an existence.
There was still a sliver of a chance to turn the tables.
’Once I hand over control, this detestable human will immediately use his own skills, turn on me, and steal all my power!’
’How could I possibly surrender control?’
The negotiation failed, but Shi Ming wasn’t discouraged.
’If the soft approach doesn’t work, I’ll have to use force.’
He had plenty of ways to deal with a prisoner like this.
"You really don’t know what’s good for you."
"In that case, don’t blame me for what happens next!"
The Right Arm Red Pattern had long been stirring, unable to contain its craving for power. The Colorful Insect, suppressed in his Sea of Spirit, was a natural target for it to draw from. It would just be a bit more troublesome if the creature didn’t cooperate.
But it didn’t matter. Good things don’t come easy.
The Colorful Insect felt the borers’ movements stop, giving it a moment’s respite. But in the next instant, vibrant, almost brilliant red patterns swept in from an unknown place like a pack of hungry wolves. In the blink of an eye, they had it tied up tight!
’What is this?’
’A Consciousness Chain?’
The moment the crimson patterns bound it, the Colorful Insect felt its power slowly draining away, siphoned off and stolen by these markings. Although the speed didn’t seem very fast, the red patterns were exceptionally brutish, drawing out its most fundamental power—the purest form of its Variegated Corruption!
???
At first, the Colorful Insect was astonished.
Then, it was ecstatic!
’This idiot! Is he absorbing my corruption?’
’How dare he?’
’What’s the difference between this and a free gift?’
’Wherever my Variegated Corruption goes becomes my territory—not even the companion secret treasure, the Wishing Star, is an exception! Any being that takes my corruption without permission is essentially choosing to be corrupted! I was suppressed by some strange trick before, unable to use my abilities. But right now, this human’s actions are simply suicidal!’
’Yes! This is perfect!’
The Colorful Insect didn’t resist the siphoning of its power. In its eyes, this was a golden opportunity to turn the tables.
Unopposed, and seemingly with permission, the crimson patterns grew even more impatient. Like an inexperienced youth on his wedding night, they instantly and crudely crawled all over the imprisoned Colorful Insect’s body, wanting to possess it completely.
WHOOSH~
On the deck, a jolt ran through Shi Ming, and his body trembled.
’Amazing! This feels incredible!’
This feeling reminded him of his first awakening on Black Tortoise Island. A powerful force that made his body and mind boil with pleasure was being siphoned by the Right Arm Red Pattern and infused into him, converted into his own power. This new power was pure, loyal, and would never betray him. It had truly merged with his body and soul, becoming a real part of him.
’As for any "corruption"?’
’A piece of cake.’
’If anything could corrupt the process led by the Right Arm Red Pattern, or even corrupt the Eye of the Divine... well, I’d really love to see that...’
...
...
...
Time trickled by, second by second, and the Colorful Insect finally sensed that something was wrong.
’What’s going on?’
’So much of my variegated essence has been drawn out, but not only do I not feel my "territory" expanding, I don’t sense any corruption taking hold of him either. Instead, I’ve completely lost contact with that portion of my essence. It’s as if it simply vanished without a trace...’
’Wrong! This is all wrong!’
It was finally jolted into awareness!
’I’ve been tricked again!’
It panicked!
’The corruption that was siphoned away didn’t corrupt him at all! Instead, it was converted and became his power! No! How can this be! This is the power I worked so hard to evolve! How can someone else just take it?’
’Stop!’
’Stop, I said!’
But alas, it was too late...
Once the floodgates were opened, they couldn’t be closed.
This wasn’t a simple agreement you could just take back!
An iridescent torrent of power surged forth. The red patterns coiled around the Colorful Insect’s body stripped it away layer by layer, converting it into the most basic physical attributes. All this effort served only to benefit Shi Ming, becoming his own greater power.
This draining process continued for a full day and night.
Finally, as if completely satiated, the red patterns became saturated for the time being. They retreated from the Colorful Insect’s body, departing from the Heaven-Reaching Tower in the depths of the Sea of Spirit. And the poor Colorful Insect, as if squeezed dry, remained suppressed at the bottom of the tower, exceptionally weak and listless.
’Damn you... damn you, human.’
As one waned, the other waxed. On the deck, Shi Ming opened his eyes.
It was like another awakening.
His power had surged.
The Colorful Insect truly lived up to its reputation as one of the most peculiar creatures in the entire Star Sea. A single day of siphoning had brought him an attribute boost far greater than any of his previous awakenings—even more than the increase he’d received when breaking through to the Nirvana rank! His Endurance, in particular, had increased by nearly one thousand points!