Chapter 314
Chapter 314
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 314
Chapter Title: Relic (1)
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Anyone new to Space Survival would give pretty much the same answer if you asked them what Aimorphs and Outspacers have in common.
Both were inspired by famous alien creatures.
But the similarities go beyond looks. Play either race, and you'll feel echoes of the originals. Your form changes based on the genes of the creature you infect, or you build massive hives to harvest more genes—stuff like that.
Now, tweak the question for veteran players who've sunk years into the game.
Their answer? Both races use "gene essence" as their core resource.
Aimorphs and Outspacers devour other creatures to steal the gene essence locked in their flesh. The key is "specializing" those traits from the gene's original owner to evolve yourself or your hive.
So when do Aimorph and Outspacer players hit their biggest headaches?
No question—when something screws with "traits," the heart of their playstyle.
Get a trait that actively screws you over, lose one to death, or get blocked from using a key trait somehow, and the whole run grinds to a halt.
Players fighting those races need to prioritize shutting down traits. Rip out the body part that activates it, use gear or tech to nullify effects—whatever works.
But straight-up disabling or erasing an enemy's traits altogether? That doesn't exist. If it did, even I'd have a tough time climbing the ranks.
There is one trait with a similar effect, but...
Not something you'd see here.
Besides, what Sihyun used wasn't a skill or trait—it was a weapon.
Never thought both of them were decoys.
I knew Sihyun was baiting me herself. Figured she'd lure me in, then her buddy in that weird reinforced suit would snipe me.
My guess was half right. They tricked me to hide their real weapon.
They bet everything on that one shot.
...I got played.
To say I wasn't careless would be a lie. I was too busy obsessing over Sihyun's identity and plans to focus on the fight.
Daydreaming in a life-or-death brawl? The cost was brutal. My combat arm still wouldn't respond.
Focus.
What's done is done. No room for slip-ups from here on out.
Sihyun bailing doesn't mean the fight's over. I replayed her weapon draw in my head.
While I was distracted by her partner, she pulled parts from a floor cache.
To be precise, she grabbed the components for her weapon.
A crystal-looking thing paired with what resembled a vacuum cleaner hose.
She assembled them into one unit. Once done, the crystal spun and glowed.
That unleashed a wave of shimmering light from the barrel. Trapped in that sealed underground passage, I took the full blast.
No—even in open space, I doubt I could've dodged.
The wave hit the instant I registered it. Evasion was impossible.
Just like the text box warned, my "Parasitic Swarm" trait shut down. Parasites normally spawned from my combat arm. With it wrecked, that explained the arm's failure.
After landing that critical hit, Sihyun didn't press the attack. She grabbed her fallen partner and retreated.
That summed up the exchange. What questions did it raise? What intel could I glean?
Why'd Sihyun act like that at the end?
Biggest puzzle piece.
One more shot from that weapon, and I'd be done. She knew I was compromised.
Choosing not to fire meant some limitation on the weapon.
Right after using it, she asked if I wasn't an Outspacer.
Text box said something similar.
It specifically noted my Outspacer gene essence was destroyed.
Parasitic Swarm came from devouring an Outspacer worker drone—a fused trait, the only Outspacer one left in me.
In other words, her weapon targeted specific types. She tuned the wave to wipe Outspacers, per her settings.
That sparked a second question: Why target Outspacer genes?
Not that. She had no choice.
I use Parasitic Swarm a lot, sure, but she probably didn't know that.
More likely, she pegged me as an Outspacer.
Assumes the user has target intel upfront.
In-game, you'd input the race name to activate it. But this is reality—no way it works like that.
Probably generates waves from gene data input.
Guess: Feed it another creature's genes, and it fires a wave tuned to kill that species. Can't confirm, but it fits best right now.
Even so, it doesn't fully explain why she held fire. She could've targeted Metallic Gremlins or something else to hurt me.
Not "wouldn't"—couldn't?
Sihyun Yujin doesn't strike me as the type to waste a kill shot rescuing a buddy. She wouldn't have used herself and her partner as bait if she were.
Something I don't know restricted her. Makes sense.
Cooldown after one use? Massive energy drain per shot, no spamming?
Either way, that's her weakness.
If it's energy-hungry, that explains no follow-up.
From her view, failing the kill put her on borrowed time. No guarantee it'd finish me, so wasting remaining juice? Suicide. Empty the tank, and she's toast.
Circumstances say her plan half-succeeded.
Positive: Her weapon lacks my gene data. Even if it had some, she doesn't know what I really am.
She assumed Outspacer from the start—never saw this coming. Nailed the ambush, botched the kill. Now she's running.
So, what's my play?
Underground's crawling with Cultists hell-bent on killing me. Auxiliary senses picked up none incoming, though.
But luck won't last forever.
Decision time.
Chase her down, or pull back?
Truth: Pursuing in this state isn't smart. Run into more Cults mid-hunt? Disaster.
Cults aren't the issue. If their commander—the ranker on this planet—learns my condition, that's game over.
Still, I hesitated because of her weapon.
Who made it? Where'd she get it? Plenty of mysteries, but one overrides them.
What if she gets Aimorph gene data and we clash again?
That'd be bad. Real bad.
End it here.
Best case: Devour her. Turn her into a humanoid thrall, extract weapon intel. Perfect.
Worst case: Fail the kill, but smash the weapon. It's a dire threat to my survival.
Has to happen underground.
Problem: Easier said than done.
She saw my cards. Knows what I'll target next. She'll dodge direct confrontation.
Drag it out, and Cults find me.
No clue on Sihyun's ties to Berzan02's Cults. She and her partner moved solo—no sign of friendly relations.
But to Cults, she's just another intruder. Less threatening than me, easy. Their allegiance is clear.
Longer the fight drags, higher my odds of losing. Finish her on sight.
Decision made, I hauled myself up. My unresponsive combat arm dangled, dragging toward the floor.
Parasitic Swarm lockdown wrecked its functions. Even reshaping it with "Variable Bio-Weaponry" did nothing.
Lost the arm, but I'm fine.
Wings, legs, tentacles—all good. I extended erosion tentacles from my back to steady my wobbly frame.
Fail the kill? Still destroy that weapon.
No way a gene-specific wave weapon is mass-produced. Even craftable, it'd cost superweapon-level resources and time.
Smash it... or...
If possible, I'd devour the weapon itself.
New goal set, I tracked the enemy's trail and moved out.