Stray Chapter 21: The eve of the parasite
Gold!
It's actually gold!
This color is a rare and noble quality in almost all games! Just like the white equipment in most games is the real whiteboard equipment, the golden equipment sounds all kinds of tall.
This is not an absolute rule, but no one can deny it. This is almost a conventional cognition, and it can even be said that it has become a judgment mechanism in the subconscious of many people.
Xia Ran is no exception. After seeing the golden light, he immediately became excited, and his anticipation surged to the highest level in an instant.
Just—
What finally appeared in front of his eyes was a strange thing similar to a snake. It was only the size of a normal person's finger. Appears very stiff.
At first glance, it looks like a sculptural model of some small object.
“…!!”
And Xia Ran is even more like an enemy. The first time this thing appeared in the air, the whole person jumped up like a conditioned reflex.
He rushed out of the door quickly, assuming a defensive posture, his eyes fixed on the sculptural baby snake lying motionless on the floor.
It took more than a minute, until he heard footsteps coming from the stairs downstairs, as if someone was going upstairs, then he bravely walked back, because It looked like a dead thing and didn't move.
And in a sense, it is something that has been identified by the white space, and there should be no uncontrollable danger.
The identification information obtained through the touch also proved Xia Ran's idea, but he was embarrassed——
"Name: Parasite Hatchling (Special)"
"Category: Equipment"
"Rarity: Bronze"
"Main attribute: Implant the item in any part of the body to trigger the parasitic mechanism, it will assimilate with the limbs and organs of the part and grow into a partially parasitic non-complete parasitic beast"
"Warning: If implanted in the brain to trigger the parasitic mechanism, it may become a complete parasite, and the host is at risk of death"
"Hint: Incomplete parasites will rely on the nutrients in the host's blood to survive, and no longer have the genetic instinct to eat their own kind"
"Hint: The host increases the mental attribute value to a certain extent, which will form an overwhelming advantage over the parasitic beast and gain dominance or control"
"Comment: It is definitely one of the most friendly choices for newcomers. You no longer need to do it yourself, and you can even have no guts and will at all. The parasitic beast will automatically fight for you. The hands are completely freed..."
…………
It is such a thing, a special piece of equipment that is, in a sense, alive.
It seems to be a small snake with a strange shape. It looks very pocket-sized. With its metallic color, and its rigid and motionless performance, it really looks like a sculpture without any breath of life.
And it's only bronze-level equipment. Although it's special, it really doesn't count as a jackpot, so the previous golden light was just an unboxing special effect?
——Are you kidding me?
Because according to the most basic information that Xia Ran has, it seems that white will use different levels to distinguish the quality of some equipment items with special attributes.
The lowest level is naturally a whiteboard outfit that doesn't even deserve the name of the level. The upper level is the black iron level, bronze level, silver level, gold level and so on. As for whether there are higher levels, it is not clear. .
So compared to the previous golden light effects, he now feels that he has been greatly deceived. But the most troublesome thing is that he actually pulled out such a special piece of equipment.
“…”
“…”
Xia Ran stared at the pocket snake on the floor and fell into contemplation, although at the beginning, he considered a variety of situations based on his own weaknesses and shortcomings, and came to a conclusion.
For a scumbag like him, let alone a melee battle with a parasitic beast that is the strongest creature on earth in this world, even if you are fully prepared, you have pistols, rifles, and machine guns. The odds of winning against monsters are not high.
The only way out is to use a righteous style of play and be an old-yin ratio. If it wasn't for the impression of the plot, remembering that sulfuric acid can make the parasitic beast's body consciousness no longer unified, and can continue to corrode and cause damage, he may be on his knees now.
At that time, he also felt that the best way was to copy the experience of the protagonist and borrow the power of parasitic beasts to allow humans to survive——
Or even gain the power to fight this monster that seems to be the earth's purpose to clean up humans.
It's just that there were no conditions at the time. He couldn't find the spores of the parasitic beast, and he wasn't sure whether he could really copy the protagonist's golden finger. Therefore, this method was just a thought, and he didn't expect it to be feasible.
But now, this opportunity seems to be right in front of him, and it is guaranteed by white space, absolutely safe and reliable - as long as he is not stupid enough to put the hatchlings in his head.
However, Xia Ran was just staring at the larvae of the parasitic beast, with an extremely strange and tangled expression.
"Sure enough, in the end, I'm just a strong talker. No matter how nice and sensible I say it, I start to cringe when I want to see the real chapter..."
Sighing with a wry smile, breaking the dead silence in the room, Xia Ran raised a forefinger and rubbed between her brows.
He was having a headache, a headache in every sense.
This special equipment may be really powerful, because parasites can manipulate cells to deform at will, stretching and twisting like eating a rubber fruit, or they can instantly become extremely hard, just like steel.
Let's not talk about the weak and dying chicken before, the normal parasitic beast's movements are so fast that the human optic nerve response ability can't catch it at all, and even the afterimage can't be seen.
So Tamiya Ryoko, who pretended to be a teacher, would say that if she wanted to do something, she would kill all the dozens of students in the class in three seconds... This is an underestimate at all.
In addition, the parasitic beast's learning ability is super strong. It doesn't take a few days to master a language. Completing it requires mastering all kinds of daily knowledge.
They can also monitor various subtle changes in the host's body at any time, paying attention to repairing various hidden dangers and injuries.
It is said that the body they manage can easily live to one hundred and forty years old. The theoretical limit of human lifespan is only normal lifespan for them. As long as they don't die due to external forces, they can live easily until that time. Loose...
In addition, the current parasitic situation can be chosen by itself, and it will not be replaced by swallowing the brain. It can be said that the disadvantages have been minimized and the benefits have been maximized.
But when this opportunity appeared in front of Xia Ran, he couldn't help but start shrinking. In all fairness, he felt that he could accept strengthening bloodlines, changing life forms or something.
But letting a foreign species parasitize one's body is not the same thing at all.
For example, if it's Nero's demonic right wrist in "Devil May Cry 4", no matter how terrifying and terrifying it looks, Xia Ran will only think it's handsome and strong and accept it readily. There will be any repulsive thoughts.
However, one of his arms can be maintained normally at ordinary times, and he also has the power to transform and attack at critical moments, but the arm itself will also have independent consciousness, which can be regarded as an alien species... It is somewhat unacceptable.
"It's just a hand, it's not lost, it's just having my own thoughts..."
"And the function of the comprehensive repair is very clear. If you don't want it in the future, you can restore it at any time..."
"Take advantage of this opportunity to get through the early stage, if you're timid, you may die in a few days... Really, what qualifications do I have to pick and choose now?"
Speaking to himself, Xia Ran is trying to build himself up psychologically, and his rationality is also admonishing him that he is not qualified to pick and choose, nor is he qualified to say that he has mastered the power of self-protection.
The strength is not as good as the standard of ordinary people, the physique is just qualified, and the spirit is also the same.
Although intelligence and perception are higher than the horizontal line, it is obviously impossible for this level of attributes to be converted into combat power. He does not think that he can create a few spells now, or master extraordinary powers such as psionic power and telekinesis. strength.
Only agility reaches 12 points, which is more than twice that of normal people, but it has no decisive strategic significance.
How should I put it, after thinking about it, he has nothing to show. Although the righteous play is useful, in case of encountering a parasitic beast like Tamiya Ryoko, calm, cruel, and more human-like than humans, strong acid tactics are useless.
He'd even be killed before he could, or he wouldn't even know how he died.
To be honest, other parasitic beasts that behave mechanically and rigidly seem to be two species compared to the parasitic beasts like Tamiya Ryoko.
Xia Ran finished psychological construction, and then looked at his left hand, and now there is still a burst of swelling and pain, which is one of the reasons that prompted him to make up his mind.
In this dangerous world, he is not much more special than other people, and he should not give up any opportunity in the luxury.
The repair function is not available now, and it is not worthwhile to exchange some medicines directly from the system. The current resources are already tight, and points are spent to repair the left hand, and the resources are also reduced while the ability value is not improved.
It's just right, the left hand can't be used for the time being, so let's just sacrifice it... Speaking of which, Izumi Shinichi's golden finger is the right hand, maybe he can also rub the protagonist's luck.
Thinking about whether there are some or not, Xia Ran went downstairs to the owner of the hotel and asked for a knife and a rope, and then returned to the room.
He took a deep breath, and then carefully cut a very shallow wound on his left wrist, and blood quickly flowed out.
As soon as the larvae of the parasitic beast touched the blood, they came to life immediately. They cut the flesh with sharp mouthparts and twisted their slender body to get in.
It didn't feel too painful, but Xia Ran still tied the rope above the left elbow joint, tightly entangled and tightened - he was learning Quan Xinyi's method, after all, although he believed in white space , but inevitably psychological fear, worried about accidents.
But there was no accident. He just lost the perception of the entire left hand in a very short time, and for a very abrupt moment, the nerves in the parts below the elbow seemed to be suddenly cut off. look.
But before his brain cells had any fear or panic, this feeling disappeared again, and the neural connections seemed to be reconnected.
Also, the damage I suffered from the recoil of the grenade launcher... seems to be gone.