Chapter 283: Chapter 282
There were many kinds of creatures here, such as fluorescent jellyfish, fluorescent segmented creatures, fluorescent lizards, and a new kind of creature that Lin had never seen before. Their bodies glowed like stars as they wandered in the jungle.
Lin caught some of them and dissected them. These creatures were all infected by fungi, just like the wyverns and locusts that Lin had seen before. However, the fungi that infected them were more unique. Some of them grew so long that their bodies glowed. At the same time, the fungi did not seem to be controlling their behavior. They still had the habits they had before they were infected, and there was no predatory relationship between them. These creatures fed on fungi, and the fungi would grow special structures for them to eat.
It felt like the fungi were feeding them, but she had not seen these creatures being eaten by the fungi yet. Perhaps it was not time yet?
Among these creatures, there was one that Lin was particularly interested in. It was a kind of beetle with a crystal-clear carapace …
A fungus seeker found this group of creatures by a small lake. They were swimming in the water, collecting mycelium in the water.
These beetles were … Chibucha beetles? They looked like they only had four segmented limbs, and their shape was very similar. They should have been extinct in the Twisted Jungle.
However, upon closer inspection, they looked a little different. Regardless, she caught one and dissected it first.
However, when the fungus seeker approached the surface of the water, the beetles ran away in an instant. They hid in the mud at the bottom of the water and moved quickly. It was a strange feeling because the other creatures on the island would not run away like this. It was probably because they had not encountered any threats for a long time, but these 'Chibucha beetles' still retained a sense of threat.
Although they hid at the bottom of the lake, they did not bury themselves deep. The faint glow of their carapace exposed their tracks. The fungus seeker reached out with a tentacle and easily grabbed a beetle from the mud underwater.
The beetle struggled wildly as soon as it was caught. It tried to bite the fungus seeker's tentacle with its mouth, but in this environment. The beetle's sense of attack was still strong, but it was still easily swallowed by the fungus seeker and quickly dissected.
Sure enough, this beetle was also parasitized by fungi. They were quite different from the Chibucha beetles, including some of their internal structures, but generally speaking, they could be considered the same species. The difference was like the difference between a large pterosaur and a small one.
When Lin differentiated species, she didn't just look at their appearance. She also looked at their reproductive cells. If the reproductive cells of two creatures couldn't fuse to produce offspring, then they were considered two different species. Of course, their offspring had to be able to reproduce. Some species with large differences could reproduce together, but they couldn't produce offspring.
The biggest difference between the Kibucha here and the Twisted Jungle was that they were not a division of labor species. They were exactly the same size and seemed to need sound to communicate with each other.
The shells of these beetles were very transparent, like crystals. However, these shells weren't actually crystals. Instead, they were made of a kind of transparent shell. There were many mycelium inside, and these mycelium shone like stars inside their shells.
The biggest difference between them and the other species here was that they didn't have fungi in their organs. The fungi were only in their shells. Moreover, it did not extend to the brain.
Come to think of it, the first time Lin saw a fungus was with the Chibucha Insects in the Twisted Jungle. They grew fungi for food. Could it be that this plague fungus was also the result of another Chibucha Insect?
It didn't look like it. Besides, how could they produce such a destructive species? However, if they were really related to these fungi, it would be better to call them 'Plague Chibucha'.
As expected, she needed to continue researching. Additionally, the proportion of brains of these Chibucha Insects was very large. It was about%, a whole% higher than Gusquo!
However, Lin had never dissected a Skeletal Dragon before, so she didn't know how many Skeletal Dragons there were.
Next, Lin had the explorers return. After confirming that the fungi here didn't have the ability to infect others, she sent some Flyers to explore deeper parts of the island. Some of them were sent to track Monte II's location.
While the Flyers were exploring. Lin discovered a lot of those spherical structures. They were constantly sending out pom-poms containing fungal dust outside the island. However, some of them weren't operating for some reason.
Apart from a few species of creatures living in the fungal forest. There weren't any other animals here. The environment here wasn't complicated at all. It was a rather ordinary state. Some species relied on the fungi on the island to survive. The richness of the organisms here couldn't even compare to the beach at the edge of the island. Lin had Bechymos grab a handful of sand and she found dozens of species there. However, there were only a few species in the fungal forest.
The two Flyers who went to explore the fungal forest had also found Monte II's location.
What was going on here?
Lin discovered that Monte II was in an open space in the forest. He was stuck to a mushroom tree in the middle of the open space. He seemed to be stuck to something and couldn't move at all. A large group of Chibucha Insects were surrounding him. They seemed to be making some kind of noise.
Lin continued to observe them for a while. They seemed to be in that position all the time. There were almost no changes. However, these Chibucha Insects would occasionally 'change shifts'. Some that stayed for a long time would leave, and new ones would come running out from the forest to join them.
Suddenly, Lin noticed a Chibucha Insect running into the group of Chibucha Insects. It was filled with nervousness. It ran in front of one of the Chibucha Insects and seemed to be saying something.
This Chibucha Insect seemed to be the leader? Lin noticed that the light on its carapace was a little different. It was darker in colour and had more spots of light. As expected, they weren't a division of labor type.
The leader also panicked after hearing that. It immediately let out a loud cry. The group of Chibucha Insects in front of it immediately turned around and rushed into the forest.
Another difference between them was that they couldn't fly. They could only move by running. Lin felt that the Chibucha Insect reported to the leader that Lin's Seeker had captured them. Now, they were mobilizing their troops to look for the Seeker.
These species were very strange. Lin felt the need to ask Monte II. It should understand the language of the Cerebrum.
It was currently trapped there and couldn't move. Since that was the case, she would show them what art was.
Monte II's position was roughly three kilometers away from the beach. Bechymos, who was on the beach, had already aimed his cannon at the target area. And then … Bang! If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it. Your support is my greatest motivation. Please search for Floating Astronomy.
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