SSS-Rank Evolving Monster: From Pest to Cosmic Devourer-Chapter 61: Guardian spirit

Some time later.

Ricky let out a loud, satisfied burp, his tiny body sagging as he clutched his stomach. For the first time in his bizarre, ever-changing existence, he felt... full. Deeply, thoroughly full. A rare sensation for a mosquito, especially one who had been force-fed by evolution into a gluttonous apex predator.

He was just about to retract his proboscis from the last twitching ant corpse when a flicker of light appeared before his eyes.

A translucent window shimmered into existence.

[DDD-Rank Iron Veil skill detected].

[Use one thousand years of Lifespan to learn it].

[Yes/No].

Ricky blinked, stunned for a moment as his swollen belly sagged further. Then realization slammed into him.

"Oh fuck yeah," he muttered with rising excitement. This was the same shimmering shield technique those Aegis ants had used so stubbornly to protect themselves—a spiritual skill that had nearly turned his meal into a prolonged deathmatch.

Of course he wanted it.

Without hesitation, he mentally clicked ’Yes’.

An instant later, a wave of lightheadedness struck him like a tide retreating from the shore. The air felt thinner. Something warm and vital slipped away from his body—Lifespan, disappearing into the air. But Ricky barely noticed. His vision pulsed, and then it came: a flood of alien-yet-familiar memories pouring into his mind like ink into water.

Knowledge that wasn’t his became his.

Another window blinked open, humming with quiet power.

[Skill Name: Ironveil Domain]

Type: Defensive – Spiritual

Rank: DDD-Rank

Description:

A DDD-Rank defensive spiritual skill that allows the user to harden their spiritual field into a semi-physical barrier. When activated, the Ironveil Domain condenses mana along the field’s edge, creating a durable shell that drastically reduces the effectiveness of incoming spiritual or soul-based attacks. The barrier can also destabilize probing spiritual techniques.

Effects:

– Reduces spiritual damage by 30–40%, depending on skill rank and mana quality.

– Blocks spiritual probes and mental interference from enemies of equal or lower stage.

– Reflects 10% of blocked spiritual damage as spiritual backlash.

– Consumes mana continuously while active].

Ricky almost whistled out loud.

"Holy shit, this is broken!" he thought, his six legs twitching in glee.

He could practically feel his survivability skyrocket. But he didn’t have the luxury of testing it now. The inheritance hall was still active, and there was no telling what kind of trap or guardian would appear next.

As for the thousand years of Lifespan spent on the skill? Ricky barely batted a metaphorical eye.

It was a tiny price.

After all, he had drained over two hundred peak Stage 2 Aegis ants dry—not exactly the juiciest prey, sure, but spiritual meat was spiritual meat.

He glanced downward at the mummified remains piled beneath him like discarded shells. Hundreds of husks stared back with empty sockets, their essence now part of his growing strength.

A new screen shimmered into view.

[Stage 2 Ravaging Beast, Rank 2]

[Name: Ricky Stormwind]

[Bloodline: Plague Fang Sovereign]

[Lifespan: 62,000 years]

[Evolution Progress: 10%]

[Spiritual Force: 6.2]

"Holy fucking cow!!!"

His voice echoed through his spiritual field, reverberating with raw disbelief. Ricky stared at the glowing display as if it had just handed him the keys to heaven.

Sixty thousand years of Lifespan... gained in just a few hours.

His mind struggled to process it.

A mere Stage 2 being like him—an insect—now possessed the longevity of ancient warriors from forgotten dynasties. He could hole up in some forgotten cave and sleep for eras. The world would change and fall and be born anew, and he’d still be here.

Unkillable.

Unaging.

Unnatural.

He swallowed hard. That was when he had only scratched the surface of his potential. If his bloodline’s lifespan-absorbing abilities evolved further...

He dared not even imagine.

One hundred thousand years?

Two hundred?

His heart pounded with giddy fear and reckless ambition.

There was still more life lingering in the Aegis ants, something his current skill couldn’t extract fully—likely a limitation of his current evolution stage. But that didn’t matter. The sheer potential was intoxicating.

After the awe, came elation. A manic joy bubbled up inside him, almost childish in its purity. He wanted to dance. To shout. To—

The ground trembled.

The distant walls of the ancient hall quaked with a low groan, the vibrations humming through Ricky’s tiny legs. The atmosphere shifted, thickening, as if the very air had taken notice of his gluttony.

Ricky froze. His high was interrupted by reality—cold and looming.

Just then, the space across the hall twisted like a liquid curtain. From that shimmering ripple, a woman stepped into the chamber.

Ricky’s vision locked onto her, and for a moment, the world faded.

"So... beautiful..."

The thought drifted unbidden through his mind.

She was mesmerizing.

Her skin was pale as untouched snow, glowing faintly in the dim hall light. Her silver-white hair cascaded straight down to her waist, shimmering like liquid moonlight. Lips the color of ripe cherries curved with no warmth. The sheer elegance of her figure was matched only by the distant chill in her aura.

If Demon Queen Noctyss had been a storm of seduction and menace, this woman was winter incarnate—quiet, frozen, and unreachable.

Even the scholarly robe she wore, meant to suppress allure, somehow only added to her mystique.

But then he saw her eyes.

Empty. Mechanical. Cold.

Like those of a doll made for war.

Her gaze swept the room, falling upon the withered corpses of the Aegis ants. She paused for a long moment, then finally looked toward Ricky.

Her lips parted.

"Interesting," she said, her voice colder than mountain ice. "A mere pest did this..."

The words weren’t even laced with contempt. Just detached observation, as if she were cataloging a mutation in a specimen jar.

Ricky shivered.

It wasn’t fear. Not exactly. It was instinct—deep and primal—telling him this creature before him could end him with a flick of her fingers. He stared at her, breath held, even though he didn’t need to breathe.

She spoke again.

"As you were transported to the dungeon by mistake, you shall not be punished."

Just like that, his fate was decided. Her words were law. Ricky almost collapsed from relief, the crushing pressure lifting in an instant.

He didn’t fully understand why, but he knew—deep down—if this woman had chosen otherwise, there would’ve been no escape.

But he wasn’t content to stay silent.

Gathering the remnants of his courage, Ricky projected his voice through his spiritual field.

"Who... are you?"

The words were clean, steady. He buried his anxiety under a layer of composure, unwilling to appear weak before such a powerful entity.

The woman blinked. A subtle flicker of surprise crossed her face.

As if she hadn’t expected a pest to speak.

Then, for the first time, she smiled—barely.

"Ah. How rude of me not to introduce myself."

She raised her chin, a strange pride gleaming in her expression.

"I am the guardian spirit of the Inheritance Ground left behind by Divine Researcher Saint Selene Veylor."

Ricky’s compound eyes widened.

He repeated the name softly, more to himself than anyone else.

"Divine Researcher... Saint Selene Veylor..."

The name tickled the edge of memory.

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