Chapter 136: Chapter 120: I, Shushu, Am About to Take Off

"SQUEAK SQUEAK~"

On a corner of the island, Shushu suddenly appeared on the branch of a large tree. After a brief moment of panic, it roughly understood its current situation and calmed down.

Emmmm...

’According to the books, the most important thing when operating alone is to be cautious. Staying alive is more important than anything!’

’And according to the books, to ensure caution, the most important thing is to use stand-ins. Stand-ins! They make everything safer!’

Shushu’s soybean-sized eyes darted around. It lifted a paw and rubbed it gently. Streaks of gray light fell and coalesced beneath the large tree into three skeletal mice. The three skeletal mice wiggled their bodies, and seeing nothing amiss, each scurried off in a different direction.

Shushu’s main body found a densely-leafed corner in the tree to hide in. It scattered some Death Magic Power around the area to serve as a warning system for its surroundings.

Then, it poured all of its focus into the three skeleton clones...

"CRACK!"

"CRACK!"

Shushu: "..."

To fall before the mission had even begun. In barely an instant, two of the skeleton clones were crushed. Shushu didn’t immediately create replacements, because their swift destruction meant an enemy was nearby.

Based on the final images seen by the clones before their destruction, one was killed by the Sea Race—a member of the Sea Race nearly two meters tall with shark fins on its arms and back. Shushu had seen the data; it knew this was a Sharkman from the Sea Race, an incredibly powerful fighter!

The other was killed by a large, cyan python...

"BOOM!"

The huge noise from not far away made Shushu’s body tremble, but it quickly calmed itself. It knew that it was most likely the Sharkman and the giant python clashing over there. All it had to do was remain hidden.

Splitting its focus, Shushu closely monitored the movements of the last skeleton clone. It moved cautiously through the damp Forest Land. Before long, it arrived at a boar’s den. The tiny Soul Fire inside the skeleton clone flickered gently.

It found a hidden spot and lay in wait. Then, back in the tree, Shushu’s Divinity Network emitted a silent ripple. An obscure power descended into the skeleton clone, shot out, and plunged directly into the heads of two boars, each over two meters tall, inside the den.

"Hnngh~"

The boar couple shook their heads, looking around in confusion. Finding nothing amiss, they flopped back onto the ground to sleep.

Having just performed the Ode to Life, they really didn’t have the energy to move right now.

What they didn’t notice, however, was that as they slept, a series of bewitching whispers began to swirl in their minds. Their brows furrowed slightly, instinctively repulsed by the sensation. But limited by their low intelligence, and coupled with their post-coital daze, they were completely unable to mount an effective resistance.

Of course, even if they were wide awake, their intelligence was so low it wouldn’t have made a difference.

Because this was a newly mastered ability of Shushu’s—the Divine Whisper.

This was a power Deities used to bewitch their Followers. All Deities possessed this ability, but Evil Gods were especially fond of using it, so much so that their every casual utterance could be a whisper full of bewitching power.

And since Divine Species and Deities are essentially the same, they too can awaken this power. This was also the primary method for a Divine Species to cultivate Believers.

After all, they weren’t as powerful as True Gods or Evil Gods. How else were they to gain Believers, if not by trickery?

This was Shushu’s plan!

Hide, use this trick to control a large number of Demons, and finally, bestow Divine Arts upon them. It would burn their power to enhance them, and then it could send them off to die.

Beast-horde tactics. This was a strategy it had developed on its own, inspired by Isaac and adapted to its own powers. ’It should be useful. At least, it’s going smoothly for now!’

After planting the seeds of Faith in the boar couple, Shushu had the skeleton clone immediately resume its search for new Demons. At the same time, the battle between the Sharkman and the giant python had concluded. Unsurprisingly, the Sharkman was the victor.

Of course, Shushu didn’t come out at a loss. The giant python’s corpse now belonged to it. Although the Sharkman had taken the python’s skin, gallbladder, and some of the choicest flesh, it had left the bones untouched.

This was a bargain for Shushu. With just a small expenditure of Death Magic Power, it had gained a powerful new fighter!

Even though only bones remained, the giant python’s combat stats were now even stronger than when it was alive. The python’s skeleton was already quite sturdy to begin with. And while it had lost its powerful flesh and tough scales, the bones themselves were enhanced by Death Magic Power. Moreover, the skeleton was now saturated with Death Magic Power, making it especially effective against the living.

For any living creature, this stuff was a potent poison!

While not quite a "touch of death," it was close.

So, Shushu had the skeleton serpent find its old lair and coil up inside. Shushu itself also relocated its main body, moving deep into the serpent’s lair and using the massive skeleton to conceal its activities.

This also made it more convenient to further its research on the Skeleton Divine Skill.

Although Shushu had grown quite a bit recently, the growth was mainly in its internal Divine Power. Its combat methods hadn’t changed much, and its intelligence had only just begun to increase. As a result, its Skeleton Divine Skill was still... the same as before.

When assisting its master, it was invincible—all it had to do was shoot things and blow things up. But when acting alone...

...it was somewhat inadequate. Take the skeleton serpent, for example. It looked terrifying, and its stats were stronger than when it was alive, but once a battle started, it was a completely different story.

The skeleton serpent could only move because Shushu itself was controlling it!

It wasn’t an independent Undead!

And since Shushu didn’t even understand its own fighting style, how could it possibly understand a serpent’s?

Therefore, its current research goal was to figure out how to make this big guy move on its own!

If it could achieve that, it would add another type of Soldier to its arsenal!

"Squeak squeak~ squea?"

Inside the cave, after circling the silent skeleton serpent twice, Shushu suddenly tilted its head while looking at the serpent’s pitch-black eye sockets. A bolt of lightning flashed through its tiny brain!

It remembered!

’A book once said that Undead, strictly speaking, are another type of lifeform. They can also die; they just don’t have flesh and blood!’

’And the key factor in determining whether an Undead is "dead" or "alive" is—the soul!’

’So if I stuff a soul into it, will that make this big guy move?’

Shushu’s eyes lit up. ’This could work!’

Immediately, an invisible ripple spread out as Shushu activated its Authority, summoning the nearby rats.

Shushu didn’t know how to insert a soul to make the skeleton serpent move, but that didn’t stop it from summoning rats to start collecting souls first. ’It’s fine if I don’t know. I’ll just figure it out through trial and error.’

’Besides, I have an army of Demons to fall back on.’

...

「Meanwhile, as for Isaac...」