Chapter 161 - 156: Dimensional Drop
The local delivery arrived the next day.
Luh Yao opened the cardboard box. Inside was a small, breathable plastic container.
In the box were several small, red insects. They were tiny, with arched backs and seven black spots on their elytra.
This was the target Luh Yao had finally decided on: the Seven-Spot Ladybug.
In the past, the things he had bestowed upon the Divine Hall through the simulator were either seeds and fruit or various tools.
But he had never sent an animal before.
Now that the Pixel World had mostly returned to peace, he could conduct further experiments.
Luh Yao thought about it for a long time.
’As the first animal to be introduced into the Pixel World, it should be small, structurally simple, not too aggressive, and have a low environmental impact.’
After a round of screening, he settled on the Seven-Spot Ladybug.
This small insect primarily fed on aphids, one of the most destructive types of pests, whose diet included a wide variety of crops.
Additionally, the Seven-Spot Ladybug was relatively small. It wasn’t ferocious like longhorn beetles or mantises, nor did it possess the strong social structure and mobility of ants, making it a rather suitable candidate for introduction.
But this was his first time introducing an insect, after all, so Luh Yao was still a little nervous.
The garlic, wheat, and grapes had all been normal before, but there was no telling with this one. ’It’s theoretically possible it could mutate into a super monster after entering the world.’
Before the official Blessing, Luh Yao took a series of precautions.
In the Divine Halls of the three cities, powerful Apostles stood ready: Selena guarded Yao City, the Blood Knight was stationed in Yan City, and Philos was permanently garrisoned in Saniluo.
Isabel, meanwhile, acted as a mobile unit, ready to provide support anywhere at a moment’s notice.
If the ladybug mutated into a monster and wreaked havoc, they could immediately intervene and control the situation.
...
Luh Yao picked out the smallest, slowest-moving ladybug and carefully placed it on his mouse.
A moment later, a dim ladybug icon appeared in the Divine Hall’s [Blessing] tab. It was labeled [Unknown Ladybug], with a small green progress bar beneath it.
A line of text appeared in the simulator.
[Unknown Ladybug is undergoing dimensional reduction...]
This was different from plants and basic artifacts, which appeared directly.
The progress bar gradually filled.
Luh Yao watched the entire process intently.
After about a minute, the progress bar finished loading, but nothing else happened.
Luh Yao waited a little longer, then moved his mouse and found that he could click on the ladybug in the [Blessing] tab and drag it out of the Divine Hall.
He selected the ladybug, dropped it onto a southern island, and then double-clicked to release it.
A new notification popped up on the screen.
[An Unknown Ladybug has entered this world.]
The little ladybug immediately sprang to life.
It flapped its wings and crawled unsteadily on the ground. The ladybug’s body swelled continuously until it was about the size of a dog, at which point it stabilized.
In the pixelated art style, it still looked harmless enough.
Even so, Isabel followed closely behind it, keeping a wary eye on the strange insect.
Luh Yao clicked on the ladybug with his mouse.
...
[Unknown Ladybug LV1]
Life Value: 42/42
Mana Value: 1/1
Damage: 2
Defense: 5
Speed: 6
[Hibernate]
Can reduce all forms of consumption and extend its lifespan by hibernating.
...
A brand new Extraordinary Creature was thus born.
Luh Yao continued to track and observe it.
The Hibernate ladybug wandered around the island, burrowed into a thicket of bushes, and then flew out a moment later, heading for a forest.
Seemingly having found edible insects among the plants, it quickly ate its fill. Then, it lay down in the bushes, and the word [Hibernate] appeared above its head.
Through this experiment, Luh Yao reached a preliminary conclusion: Blessed Animals were more complex than plants.
When an animal from a High Realm Dimension entered the Low Realm Dimension of the Pixel World, it would undergo a process of dimensional reduction by Rule Power.
After this reduction, subtle changes would occur. The end result was that an ordinary higher-dimensional lifeform would become a local Extraordinary Creature.
Luh Yao went to the bathroom. When he came back, he found a new notification on the game interface.
[Unknown Ladybug failed to integrate into the world.]
’Hm?’
Luh Yao clicked on the notification.
The screen immediately jumped to a corner of the island.
Two Blazing Chickens were there, pecking at their prey on the ground. Judging from the scattered remains, the prey was the Hibernate ladybug.
Luh Yao scratched his head.
’This is the first time I’ve encountered a failure to integrate.’
Meanwhile, the Believers in the cities were completely unaware of the animal’s pinpoint deployment, let alone its death.
Luh Yao began to introduce the second ladybug.
[Unknown Ladybug is undergoing dimensional reduction...]
The progress bar finished.
...
[Unknown Ladybug LV1]
Life Value: 36/36
Mana Value: 1/1
Damage: 2
Defense: 3
Speed: 6
[Anesthesia]
Sprays an irritating toxin that sends enemies into a state of temporary paralysis.
...
Insects of the same species yielded different results.
’It seems the dimensional reduction process has a degree of randomness.’
Luh Yao continued to wait.
「Five minutes later.」
[Unknown Ladybug failed to integrate into the world.]
Unlike the last one, this Anesthesia ladybug was highly aggressive. It immediately targeted the Cannibal Crabs resting on the beach. It did indeed manage to capture one using its Anesthesia ability and prey on it.
But on its second attempt, the Anesthesia ladybug was met with a righteous group beating, leaving behind nothing but scattered pieces of its elytra.
Luh Yao began his third attempt.
Another ladybug was born. Soon after, it was hunted and killed with spears by a few islanders due to its lethargy.
Another failure.
Luh Yao continued trying until he reached the nineteenth ladybug.
Finally, a third type of ladybug was born.
...
[Unknown Ladybug LV1]
Life Value: 40/40
Mana Value: 1/1
Damage: 1
Defense: 3
Speed: 7
[Musk]
Secretes a special, fragrant musk that makes nearby creatures feel pleasant.
...
This time, Luh Yao monitored it closely from start to finish.
Unlike its two pathfinding predecessors, the Musk Ladybug wasn’t particularly aggressive, nor could it be called lazy. It was like a bird in the shape of an insect, flying all over the island and resting in the trees when it got tired.
The ladybug attracted the Cannibal Crabs from the beach and the Blazing Chickens from further inland. Both species eyed it covetously, but they ended up fighting each other first.
In the end, the Cannibal Crabs won due to their superior numbers.
However, the crabs didn’t attack the Musk Ladybug. Instead, they just stayed and rested in the areas the ladybug frequented.
Gradually, the ladybug lost its fear of them. Before long, new Musk Ladybugs were born. Luh Yao didn’t know if they were born from the ladybug crossbreeding with other insects... In any case, the Musk Ladybug had miraculously established a foothold on the island.
A belated notification appeared in the simulator.
[Unknown Ladybug has successfully integrated into the world.]
You may name it ___.
’Success!’
The most popular ladybug had adapted to the new world after dimensional reduction.
Luh Yao named it the Musk Ladybug.
He sent in all the remaining ladybugs one after another, but only a few more [Musk Ladybugs] succeeded. All the other variations failed to integrate.
He twisted his wrist, exhausted.
’Just introducing a single ladybug required so much effort and so many attempts.’
’In Myth, Nuwa sculpted humans from clay, created musical instruments, arranged marriages between men and women, and even painstakingly mended the sky. She was just too dedicated...’
’Wait a minute.’
An irrepressible thought surfaced in Luh Yao’s mind: ’Could Nuwa have been a player from a higher dimension?’
Just then, another new notification suddenly popped up on the game interface.
[Shang Ji has written the first entomological book, "Ladybug Chronicles".]
’Shang Ji?’
’Isn’t that the name of the little person who was the leader of the Slave Traders?’
Luh Yao clicked on the name in the notification bar.
The view jumped to a small island not far away.
Shang Ji’s feet were bound with rope. He was on the ground picking cotton while a young islander whipped him with a leather strap.
A prayer box appeared above the head of the old man, the former Slave Trader.
"Lord God, a sinner like me dare not ask for your forgiveness. I only hope that you will bless and pity me, and safely deliver this book I have written back home so that everyone can see it..."