"Master Johnson wanted to arrange a sparring match between the two next."
"But Mave refused. With her current speed and strength, sparring with Xia Shang would be nothing more than bullying a child."
After class ended, Xia Shang returned to his room from the training hall. By now, the integration progress on his interface had reached 100%."
At this point, Xia Shang finally felt he had the confidence to traverse various realms of existence."
He clicked on the staircase icon, and soon a prompt appeared."
[Would you like to spend 100 Fantasy Points to access a level one fantasy world?]"
"Confirm.""
[100 Fantasy Points have been deducted. Please select the fantasy world for this journey.]"
As the Fantasy Points were deducted, the panel before Xia Shang shattered, transforming into a radiant sphere composed of countless beams of light. Innumerable white rays peeled away and encircled him, gently floating around his body."
"I hope I can draw a familiar fantasy world." The dazzling lights made Xia Shang dizzy as he struggled to distinguish any differences among them. Eventually, he simply chose one at random."
Quickly, the beam he selected dove straight into his body."
Meanwhile, the brilliant light sphere reverted back into the panel."
[Fantasy World: Parasyte]"
[World Level: One Star]"
[Player's Staying Duration: Five Months]"
[Friendly Reminder: The time flow rate in the fantasy world is 150:1 compared to the main world.]"
Within the brightly lit room, Xia Shang's body disintegrated into countless specks of light and ultimately vanished into the air."
..."
On the way to Tokyo West High School, a sudden sharp slap echoed through the street."
"You idiot, Izumi!" An attractive girl stormed off angrily."
Xia Shang naturally couldn't forget this iconic scene. He looked at the high school student whose glasses had been knocked off and murmured softly, "Sure enough, it's the world of Parasytes.""
Then, he began reviewing the identity information provided by the panel."
His name remained unchanged—Xia Shang. The original inhabitant had transferred to Tokyo West High School half a month ago, sharing the same class as the protagonist of the Parasyte world. Within the class, he was rather inconspicuous—quiet and reserved, leaving little impression on others."
"Izumi-san, what you did just now could be considered sexual assault. I think I should call the police," Xia Shang said cheerfully while raising his phone toward Shinichi Izumi."
"No, no—it was a misunderstanding... Just now my right hand seemed to act on its own.""
Shinichi hastily explained, but only managed to make things worse. Finally, he drooped his head helplessly and admitted, "Alright, Xia-kun, I know how ridiculous this sounds.""
"Haha, I was just kidding. You and Murano Rimi are dating, aren't you? Even so, making such gestures in public will inevitably anger the girl," Xia Shang teased with a knowing wink."
Shinichi's face flushed redder than a boiled shrimp."
"Okay then, it's all my fault.""
Being mistaken for a couple seemed better than being seen as someone who molests women in broad daylight."
Just then, a girl with short hair approached the pair and bent down to pick up Shinichi's glasses."
Her name was Tachikawa, and she had witnessed the entire incident."
"How could you do something like that?""
As the two conversed, Xia Shang silently summoned the interface and used the Analyze ability on Shinichi. Similar to when he analyzed Queen Mave, a projection of Shinichi appeared on the panel."
[Please select the ability you wish to analyze.]"
However, Xia Shang's real target wasn't Shinichi himself, but rather the Parasyte named Migi residing within his right hand. Back when he watched the anime, Xia Shang had always admired the Parasytes' combat techniques. Now presented with the opportunity, he naturally didn't intend to let it slip away."
"Analyze all abilities of the Parasyte.""
[Analysis in progress, 1% complete. Please remain close to the target during analysis; effective range is one meter.]"
Xia Shang hadn't expected that analyzing all of the Parasyte's abilities wouldn't be completed instantly, unlike previous analyses. Perhaps it was because there wasn't a specific focus? Without an instruction manual, many aspects of the panel still required personal experimentation."
Fortunately, the analysis progressed quickly, visibly advancing along the progress bar."
"Come on, go apologize properly to Rimi. I'm sure she'll forgive you," Xia Shang patted Shinichi's shoulder encouragingly."
Shinichi nodded. At this point, there was no better option."
Compared to their previously superficial relationship, their bond had clearly improved significantly."
Coincidentally, they soon encountered Rimi heading to another classroom. Upon seeing Shinichi, she turned her head away in anger—but her small, exposed earlobes betrayed her embarrassment by turning bright red."
"It seems you really need to apologize to her properly.""
Entering the classroom and returning to his seat, Xia Shang smiled at Shinichi, who sat directly in front of him."
By now, the progress bar on the panel had reached 99%."
Ding ding ding..."
As the school bell rang, the once noisy classroom quickly fell silent.
At the same time, the progress bar reached 100%."
[Target Analysis Complete]"
[Talent Ability: Parasitism]"
[Prerequisite: Consume five Parasyte corpses]"
"After fusing this ability, the player will alter most of their genetic makeup, enabling parasitic attachment to a host. After consuming the host's brain, the player will begin homogenizing from the host's head until full control over the host's body is achieved."
"During this process, the player's emotions will weaken while simultaneously gaining powerful learning capabilities and enhanced physical constitution."
"However, the player must rely on the host's internal organs and digestive system to survive. Once separated from the host, the player will die immediately. Furthermore, food sources must come from organisms of the same species as the host.]"
The moment this talent appeared, Xia Shang immediately dismissed it. First of all, he absolutely couldn't abandon his current body to become a parasitic organism. Secondly, enjoying delicious food was his greatest hobby. If he became a parasite inside a human, would he have to live like Hannibal forever? This was completely unacceptable to Xia Shang."
Fortunately, there was another talent available on the panel."
[Talent Ability: Morphing]"
[Prerequisite: Personally kill one Parasyte]"
"After fusion, the player can freely deform their body—either as hard as steel or as soft as rubber. Using this ability will greatly consume the player's physical energy, with transformation extent determined by the player's physical condition.]"
After reading the second talent ability, Xia Shang finally exhaled in relief. This was exactly the ability he truly wanted. Although there were some limitations, the strengths far outweighed the weaknesses. He could fully accept it. Moreover, judging from the current situation, this ability might even exceed his expectations in potential."
"Mr. Xia, please pay attention.""
The teacher approached Xia Shang's desk and tapped on it."
"Sorry, I'll be more careful," Xia Shang replied slightly apologetically."
Actually, the teacher's target wasn't Xia Shang, but Shinichi, who had been secretly playing with his phone under the desk. Compared to Xia Shang spacing out, Shinichi's behavior was clearly much worse—he practically showed no respect for the teacher whatsoever."
Shinichi remained completely unaware of the teacher's death glare until Tachikawa, watching nearby, quietly reminded him, "Little Izumi."
End of Chapter