These ice demon worms have an extremely bizarre and twisted appearance, making it seem as if they belong to a completely different evolutionary tree than the other creatures on the Douluo Continent. Their
white-purple bodies are covered in a thick, slippery, transparent mucus, which forms a protective film, isolating them from the external oil.
At the same time, this mucus also reduces drag, allowing these ice demon worms to swim extremely fast in the thick oil.
The reason these ice demon worms are considered bizarre is because their bodies are covered with numerous fleshy buds, densely packed and irregularly distributed across their bodies.
These fleshy buds seem to have their own life, wriggling on the bodies of their prey, causing Huo Yuhao's sanity to plummet!
Moreover, the sheer number of these worms in the oil lake is enough to make anyone with trypophobia explode at the sight of them.
This giant oil field is probably unexploitable. Not only is the Passion Headquarters too far away, but the presence of these ice demon worms has drastically increased the danger level of this oil field!
Even Huo Yuhao was somewhat reluctant to use his mental energy to scan these disgusting insects.
These insects had no eyes on their heads, only two short white tentacles, the tips of which appeared to be mental energy transmitting and receiving devices.
Their way of observing the world was somewhat similar to the mental detection sound waves Huo Yuhao had used at the Dingyi Chamber of Commerce.
Since that was the case, things became easier; mental energy was Huo Yuhao's forte.
He used his Spirit Abyss Realm mental energy to set up a mental energy shield around his body.
To the Ice Demon Worms, Huo Yuhao was now practically invisible, like a character from anime, comics, and games.
Of course, even the most extreme furry in the world wouldn't like these monstrous insects!
He'd rather believe that someone in this world could control Cthulhu than believe that someone would control Ice Demon Worms in their fantasies!
If it really exists, then Huo Yuhao thinks people's whims are too free; he might as well see a psychologist.
Huo Yuhao, suppressing his nausea, used his telekinesis to capture a hundred-year-old Ice Demon Worm.
Even Tianmeng Ice Silkworm, another insect-type soul beast, found it hard to look at these worms.
He had only heard of these Ice Demon Worms in the far north and knew where they were, but he had never actually seen them before.
In the past, he was either showing off his Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Ice Marrow or playing Fast and Furious with the Ice Emperor, and had no time to learn about these Ice Demon Worms in detail.
"Yuhao, this soul beast looks too casual! It's different from other creatures on the Douluo Continent."
Huo Yuhao nodded, agreeing with Tianmeng Ice Silkworm's assessment.
However, he actually knew that the evolution of life was never about striving for perfection.
All organs in a living organism follow one principle: as long as they're functional!
For example, the human eye is just a lump, and frequent use can lead to decreased vision, a principle also followed on the Douluo Continent.
Because many people here wear glasses.
The reason humans can clearly see lush forests, clear skies, and azure seas
is primarily due to the incredibly advanced processing capabilities of the human brain within the biosphere.
In a sense, everything you see is a construct of your brain's imagination.
Chromosomes, DNA, and genes aren't as mysterious or sophisticated as people imagine.
They're simply the most basic brute-force method, accumulating bit by bit.
In the long course of evolution, life leaves behind a mountain of code in its DNA, sometimes without even understanding how it works.
If we consider evolution as an exam, life's goal is never a perfect score, but rather a passing grade of 60.
Reproduction and survival are the main themes of life; simply put, it's about the smaller head controlling the larger one.
Of course, Douluo Continent is a fantasy world, and the creatures there certainly can't be described this way.
At least in Huo Yuhao's view, the creatures of Douluo Continent are constantly refining themselves in their evolution!
Relying on the unique spiritual energy of this world, they have evolved various extraordinary abilities, honing their bloodlines bit by bit, striving for perfection in the path of evolution.
And the creatures closest to achieving perfect evolution are the dragons!
This is the conclusion drawn from the study of the three dragon king corpses beneath the emerald soil of Xilu City.
Having gathered his thoughts, Huo Yuhao used his mental power to scan the approximately three-meter-long ice demon worm, recording it in his catalog.
This time, the information in the catalog was exceptionally long. At the same time, the "special information (part two)" that Huo Yuhao had previously obtained emitted a faint golden light before dissipating along with the information.
"Ice Demon Worm: A special worm living in the southeastern part of the Far North."
"Millions of years ago, the Far North was a dense forest,"
"Where a large number of dragons lived."
"Later, the dragon throne shattered, ten thousand dragons cried out in sorrow, the sky fell, and the shadow of death loomed over this perfect race."
"Dragons were born of pride, and should have died for pride."
"But some dragons refused to die, refused to become outcasts!"
"They abandoned their pride!"
"They abandoned their solitary ways!"
"They embraced each other."
"They chose to become worms."
"In this frigid, icy far north, they degenerated in despair, abandoning the crown of evolution."
"The elegant dragon bodies transformed into worm forms; those repulsive fleshy growths are nothing but traces of where dragon scales once existed."
"They lost their eyes not because they liked the darkness, but because they refused to see their current ugly bodies."
"Ha, the worms are here, the dragons were once here!"
"Record: Due to the degeneration of their bloodline, the Ice Demon Worms possess a virus belonging to the dragon race, a virus that targets genes."
"Those with true dragon blood can ignore the virus."
"Beware of its three venomous fangs in its mouthparts; the virus can enter its prey through these fangs."
"This creature is not recommended for consumption..."
Seeing the "Special Information (Part Two)" link with his recording ability, the Ice Demon Worm's information appeared in the catalog in great detail.
Huo Yuhao also learned that the so-called Ice Demon Worm before him was once a giant dragon soaring through the sky.
Because of the Dragon God's madness, the dragon race became an outcast, and these dragons living in the far north could not accept this cruel reality.
They chose self-degradation, transforming from giant dragons into worms, eternally binding themselves to this oil lake.
"Heh, I wonder what Di Tian will think when he sees these worms?"
"Anger or sadness?"
"Probably anger, anger at these worms that have tarnished the honor of the dragon race."
Huo Yuhao stepped on the hundred-year-old Ice Demon Worm, looking at its giant white-purple body rolling in the oil lake.
It was an Ice Demon Worm with a cultivation of about 30,000 years, the king of these insects.
Its fleshy growths were almost like scales, but it still hadn't separated from its insect body, and there was still no sign of eyes appearing.
If it didn't want to soar, then it would remain an insect for life.
Huo Yuhao had no interest in helping these ugly, utterly devoid of beauty worms.
(End of Chapter)
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