This time, System's slumber sted much longer than the total amount of time he'd spent completing his previous metamorphosis. After he woke up, he estimated that he'd been unconscious for about two days, as the water level in the forest was already down to about ten centimeters.
As System was expecting after the scene he'd witnessed in the digital sea before he'd passed out, his [Digital Code] (2/2) had upgraded to [Digital Code] (3/3), but he didn't gain any new abilities.
However, setting aside the unsatisfactory enhancement of his [Digital Code] talent, System's physical changes were huge.
His body had grown from five centimeters to six and a half centimeters, and he was now nearly twice the length of an ordinary adult green-tailed grasshopper.
His hind legs had grown thicker and more powerful. He felt like he could now jump five or six meters in one go, which was more than double his previous maximum jumping distance.
At the same time, his newly enhanced mandibles were also very sharp and strong. He could even use them to bite through tree bark that he'd previously been powerless against.
System's back was adorned with a pair of strong wings. With these wings, he felt like he could fly for several hours without needing a break. However, his wings also had obvious shortcomings. When he tried fpping them for the first time, they made a loud roaring sound.
The roar was simir to that of a helicopter. It was very impressive and intimidating, but it was obviously not good news for System, who had always tried to keep a low profile and live a stable life after his rebirth.
In addition to the changes on the surface of his body, after becoming an adult grasshopper, some of his abilities had also improved. His [Green Camoufge] (2/4) was upgraded to its maximum level, [Green Camoufge] (4/4).
The leaf-vein patterns on his grasshopper body were now more realistic, and he'd gained the disguise ability of a chameleon. As long as he stayed on a pnt for a sufficiently long time, the color and patterns on his body would slowly change to match the appearance of the pnt.
Another ability that was enhanced was [Smelly Mucus] (4/7) that let him secrete a disgusting substance from his mouth. This skill had undergone a huge change due to System's second metamorphosis, becoming a brand new Derived Skill, [Corrosive Mucus] (7/13).
......
[Corrosive Mucus] (7/13): A Derived Skill obtained from [Smelly Mucus], [Molting and Growth], and [Insect Adaptability]. Provides the ability to secrete highly corrosive mucus for use in combat. This corrosive mucus can also be used to enhance digestion. System's unique Derived Skill.
......
System didn't know that the reason he'd obtained this brand new ability was actually reted to his long slumber.
The enhancement of [Digital Code] by [Molting and Growth Mode] had failed to generate any new abilities, so the power that should have been used to create a new ability was instead lost. Because of System's slumber, the remaining power had flowed through his body along with his blood until it randomly sank into and enhanced the gnds that secreted [Smelly Mucus].
In terms of results, this ability born out of coincidence could be considered a blessing in disguise.
The newly emerged [Corrosive Mucus] undoubtedly increased System's means of attack. The corrosive substance secreted by his throat gnds was very effective. It could corrode an equal weight of bark into goo in only a dozen seconds, and System could recycle any mucus he spat out simply by swallowing it again ter.
By relying on this [Corrosive Mucus], he was confident that he could easily break open those chrysalides that he'd previously cked a way to deal with, allowing him to finally turn the caterpilr pupae hiding inside into food.
...
System, who had just crawled out from under the leaf again, felt that the weather in the forest had become a little cooler. Because of his second metamorphosis, the cool weather didn't affect him too much. His body no longer stiffened in the cold like it used to.
He jumped around easily, fpped his wings, and tried a few short-distance flights. He then began heading toward the tree the chrysalides were on.
Even though he now possessed the Derived Skill [Hunger Resistant Physique], his body was still very hungry after his metamorphosis. He now urgently wanted to taste those pupae.
However, he suddenly saw a slightly dry yellow leaf falling from the sky while moving forward. System, who had just been focused on jumping toward the tree, suddenly stopped.
A single leaf revealed the coming of autumn.
An old saying from his previous life suddenly appeared in System's mind—grasshoppers in autumn could only jump for a few days.
...
Race: Green-tailed Grasshopper (Mature)Title: NoneName: System
Rank: NoneLevel: 8/15Lifespan: 63 daysHealth: 97%Special Energy: None
Special Talents: [Digital Code] (3/3), [Molting and Growth] (12/13), [Insect Adaptability] (11/21), [Database] (1/2)
Derived Skills: [Personal Information Generation] (2/2), [Insect Instinct] (3/5), [Limb Regeneration] (5/11), [Green Camoufge] (4/4), [Dark Vision] (3/5), [Acid Resistance] (2/4), [Information Entry] (1/1), [Information Reading] (1/1), [Fire Resistance] (2/7), [Hunger Resistant Physique] (5/11), [Corrosive Mucus] (7/13).
Combat Power: 0.2
...
The information from [Personal Information Generation] confirmed the accuracy of the old saying from System's previous life. Grasshoppers in autumn truly couldn't jump for long.
His [Personal Information Generation] analyzed his remaining lifespan in detail. Because [Personal Information Generation] (1/1) had been upgraded to [Personal Information Generation] (2/2), the information dispyed on the data panel was now much more detailed.
System had taken a quick look at his information just after waking up, but because he was very hungry after his metamorphosis, he'd decided to eat first before giving himself a more detailed inspection. He hadn't noticed the new information about his lifespan before.
He stared at the sixty-three-day lifespan dispyed by [Personal Information Generation] in a daze. At the same time, he also received even more detailed information about grasshopper lifespan from his bloodline.
Adult grasshoppers were very different from grasshopper rvae. Although the survival rate of grasshopper rvae was very low, they had no lifespan limit before becoming adults, and could live endlessly.
This was also one of the reasons why System had ignored the lifespan of grasshoppers when he was a rva. He couldn't feel the limit of his lifespan during the rval period.
However, although the lifespan of grasshopper rvae was unlimited, no grasshopper rvae could escape their fate of becoming adults.
Once grasshoppers metamorphosed into adults, although their physical fitness would be greatly improved, their unlimited lifespan directly became limited, generally ranging from a few weeks to a few months.
The lifespan of an adult green-tailed grasshopper was in the middle among all grasshoppers at slightly over two months.
Even so, few adult green-tailed grasshoppers could actually live for two months, because grasshoppers had a special mission after metamorphosis and maturity, which was to reproduce.
When a grasshopper successfully found a mate and finished mating, the lifespan of a male grasshopper would be directly reduced to three days, while a female grasshopper would die within a few hours of ying eggs.
As long as the task of producing offspring was completed, a grasshopper's life could be considered successful.
...
System stared bnkly at the calm surface of the water below. He didn't come back to his senses for a long time.
Because of his powerful wisdom, far superior to the wisdom of an ordinary grasshopper, and the bloodline inheritance of his level 12 [Molting and Growth], System now had a clearer and more detailed understanding of the green-tailed grasshopper species.
Thinking back to how he'd tried every possible means to speed up his leveling and metamorphose into an adult grasshopper, he wanted to sp himself a few times.
He'd been so desperate to metamorphose into an adult grasshopper in order to increase his chances of survival. That was no different from pushing himself into an endless abyss.
His chances of survival had increased now, and he was even confident that he could defeat any of those hyena-like ant teams, but so what? He would still die in two months!
System's human mind gave him wisdom, but it also made him subconsciously ignore the lifespan of grasshoppers, making him think he had a long lifespan like humans.
He thought that spring and autumn would come and go year after year, but he ignored that only a single summer and autumn existed in the life of a grasshopper.
He should have noticed it. If he'd considered a grasshopper's lifespan earlier, he wouldn't have metamorphosed into an adult so hastily. He would have at least made more preparations before becoming an adult.
But now it was all too te.
Yet, at this moment, a special figure suddenly appeared in System's mind—the old druid he'd seen reclining on the raft, a being who seemed to possess a sagely aura.
'Can he help me?'
System raised his insect head and looked at the sky through the canopy above the dense forest, an unusual hissing sound coming from his mouth.
Although he'd lost most of the memories from his previous life, System, who had been reborn, didn't want to end his new life after only a brief two months.
He wanted to live longer...
