SSS-Rank Evolving Monster: From Pest to Cosmic Devourer-Chapter 53: He would’ve died.

"Damn, not letting me rest even for a moment!!"

Ricky cursed while flying through the dense, ancient forest, his voice sharp with irritation. He was already reeling from the aftermath of his evolution, barely able to make sense of the changes within his body—and now, without warning, a strange spiritual force had appeared out of nowhere.

His antenna twitched sharply.

Something was moving.

No—it was moving toward him.

The unknown force seemed to be chasing after his breath, drawn to his very existence.

Cold wind howled past him like resentful ghosts crying in the night. Ricky’s massive form, brimming with newly awakened strength, carved a path through the forest canopy like a blade slashing through silk.

Ancient tree branches withered on contact, rotting away the moment they entered his pulsating spiritual field, corrupted by the thick toxins swirling around him like an invisible storm.

After half an hour of high-speed flight, he finally stopped.

Ricky hovered silently above a jagged ridge that tore through the earth like a scar, deep within the inner region of the Thousand Emerald Green Forest—roughly five hundred kilometers from the stone courtyard.

The forest, with the courtyard as its center, extended a full thousand kilometers in every direction. By Earth’s standards, it was unfathomably vast, an ancient expanse of life and death. But in this world? It was just another forgotten corner.

"It should be here..." Ricky’s compound eyes narrowed, locking onto the landscape below. The spiritual force he’d been sensing was strongest here, pressing against him like a silent tide.

He began to descend slowly.

A twist of unease stirred deep in his stomach.

The further he dropped, the heavier the air became. The surrounding air thickened, turning oppressive, suffocating. It was as if something down there was alive—watching.

Then the darkness below parted.

A massive crevice yawned open in the earth, wide and deep, like the world itself had been torn apart. From its depths surged waves of raw energy and fresh, untamed mana, spilling into the surrounding area.

Badum. Badum.

Heavy pulses echoed from the abyss, deep and deliberate—like the heartbeat of something ancient and slumbering.

Ricky’s wings fluttered subtly as he hovered midair, unease creeping down his spine.

"Such a rich concentration of mana..." he muttered. A cold edge entered his thoughts. He didn’t need confirmation. His instincts screamed what this place was.

"Forbidden land..?"

His eyes sharpened with sudden seriousness.

In this world, forbidden lands were death traps. Even the mightiest of beings—stage four or higher—could vanish without a trace within such cursed domains.

Suddenly, the faint light pouring from the crevice flickered.

And then something was ejected from the darkness.

Ricky’s attention snapped forward.

A shadow emerged.

It stood before the crevice like a sentinel. At first glance, Ricky thought—an ant?

No. A giant ant. Nearly three meters tall, its obsidian-black carapace gleamed under the pale glow of the spiritual light. Silver runes shimmered faintly along its armored body, flowing like divine script carved by time itself. Resting above its head was a jagged, crown-shaped spiritual stone—an Aegis Crown, twisting unnaturally like it had grown there over decades.

Its crystal eyes rose slowly, locking onto Ricky with mechanical precision.

Then, something shifted.

The calm gaze gave way to something far more primal. Raw. Bestial.

Ding!

A blue window popped up in Ricky’s vision.

[A peak Stage 2 being detected. Click to check status.]

He didn’t hesitate.

[Name: Obsidian Aegis Ant]

[Stage 2 - Rank 3]

[Specialty: Spiritual Defense]

[Status: Territorial]

[Intent: Eliminate intruder]

Even before Ricky finished reading, the ground trembled.

A sharp echo tore through the air.

The ant’s antennae twitched—and the next instant, it moved.

Without any warning.

Its entire massive frame launched forward like a cannonball.

"Aye! Quite violent are we..." Ricky muttered under his breath. He had descended too far while examining the crevice.

He shot upward in a blur, wings slicing the air. The ant’s mandibles snapped closed where he’d been just a second ago—an instant slower, and he might’ve been bisected.

A hissing trail of venom followed behind Ricky, thick and noxious.

But the ant didn’t even flinch. It walked through the mist with unsettling precision. Calm. Methodical. A translucent, barely visible barrier shimmered around its body—an aura of spiritual force protecting it from his toxins.

Ricky’s compound eyes narrowed.

"Fine. Let’s test you."

One of his legs rose.

Snap!

A black needle, laced with baleful mana, fired toward the ant’s eye—fast, deadly.

Just as it was about to strike home, the barrier shimmered once more.

Ting!

A sharp metallic ring echoed.

The needle bounced harmlessly off.

From the ant’s crown, a spiritual pulse radiated outward. Ricky’s attack was not only blocked—it was completely dispersed, scattered like dust into the stone behind it.

"You’re kidding," Ricky hissed, wings buzzing with tension.

The ant retaliated.

But not with claws.

A ripple of spiritual force burst from its crown, an invisible shockwave that slammed into Ricky’s spiritual field like a hammer striking glass.

He grunted, body twitching midair.

It didn’t hurt physically. But it rattled something deeper. His seed. It shook the very core of his spiritual space, trying to knock it off balance.

"Some kind of attack targeting spiritual space... this ant is dangerous..." Ricky muttered, analyzing rapidly.

The spiritual field around the ant wasn’t just strong—it was monstrous. Solid. Reinforced with spiritual defenses even Ricky couldn’t break through. And worse—its attacks ignored physical resistance, striking at the soul.

The ant lunged again.

Each movement was deliberate. Each footfall hit the rocky ground like a thunderclap. The stone trembled with every strike. It was using Earthen Anchor—reinforcing itself with each step, impossible to knock back.

Head-on confrontation? Suicide.

It was a full realm above Ricky.

He needed to change tactics.

Speed.

Precision.

Corruption.

"Hehehe... let’s see how you deal with this..."

He unleashed his trump card—Venomous Bloom.

From his body erupted a black field of toxin, expanding like an ink-slick dome. The air twisted, light dimmed. Vines pulsed up from the cracked earth, glistening with oozing poison. Fanged growths formed in the air, shrieking with unnatural hunger.

The ant stopped.

For the first time—it reacted.

It felt it.

The pressure. The corruption.

It flinched.

Ricky’s eyes glinted. Just as a satisfied grin began to curl his mandibles—

His instincts screamed.

"Not good..."

Without wasting a breath, Ricky bolted upward, wings burning with mana.

BOOM!

The crown atop the ant’s head rippled—and then exploded with spiritual energy.

An invisible wave surged in every direction.

Even at top speed, Ricky wasn’t fast enough.

The shockwave caught him.

His spiritual seed shuddered violently. Cracks spiderwebbed along its surface. Pain lanced through his mind, his vision dimming as vertigo struck.

"Damn... what was that attack..."

He steadied himself in the air, panting. His wings trembled slightly. His head throbbed as if struck by a divine hammer.

Only now did he truly grasp the ant’s strength.

Had he faced this monster before evolving...?

He would’ve died.

A chill crept through his entire body at that thought.

Foll𝑜w current novels on fre(e)w𝒆bnovel