Nightmare Paradise : Starting as a Doctor

Chapter 160: First Success of [Mimicry Heart]

Lynn let his gaze sweep the lush landscape, taking in the verdant scenery. Small creatures were abundant in this untamed wilderness, and he saw them as the perfect subjects to experiment with.

Spotting a rodent scuttling along the forest floor, he swooped in, capturing it before it could flee. The animal thrashed furiously in his hand, but with a subtle hypnosis, it instantly calmed down.

Holding it suspended before his eyes, he delved inward, perceiving the basic genetic code through [Mimicry Heart]. The first step was easy - he could sense the essential building blocks of its biology.

However, when he tried to do something more, to resonate and grasp at the underlying components, he encountered the same struggle as before. They seemed to recoil from his probing like a living being flinching away from an unwanted touch.

In fact, the resistance felt even more intense than when he dealt with the lifeless, extraordinary arachnid. "Is it just a simple illusion, or is there something more?" he silently muttered, frowning in thought.

Determined to get to the bottom of the mystery, he decided to test again with something even less complex. Scanning the immediate area, he located a fruit fly scurrying among the undergrowth. Then thin, translucent threads rapidly and stealthily emerged from his hand, snaring it without a sound.

Bringing the trembling insect closer, he once more focused his perception, attempting to untangle its genetic information, but without success. "Indeed, the difficulty of using this skill on a living being exponentially increases."

Even insects, usually considered genetically simpler organisms, proved to be an immense challenge for the ability. It demanded an unwavering focus to see and grasp just a glimpse of chance.

Gritting his teeth, he poured more spiritual energy into the endeavor. However, the more he struggled and forced, the more the condition of the test subject changed and mutated in unsettling ways.

Patches of the exoskeleton sloughed off, revealing grotesque, pulsating flesh beneath. The wings proliferated and twisted at unnatural angles, their membranous surfaces warping into malformed shapes.

Shocked, Lynn stopped his movements and immediately severed the connection established with his skill. This sudden and decisive action caused the small body between his fingers to explode in a minuscule firework display of gore.

"Rather than disintegration into a chaotic mess like the dead spider, it absorbed my energy in a desperate attempt to resist the fierce intrusion, triggering a severe spiritual pollution that eventually led to a bang," Lynn calmly deduced.

His plan to derive an attack from [Mimicry Heart] had failed spectacularly. A mere touch from him could trigger the enemy to start dissolving or deforming, but executing such a maneuver amid battle was beyond his current capabilities.

Although with his unique talent, there was still a possibility to overcome these limitations, he doubted that anything capable of forcing him to activate [Gemini Soul] would not resist his intrusion.

Cleaned the mess on his hands and the sweat from the efforts, he sighed in frustration. Mastering this new ability would require more time and practice than anticipated. Still, he did not get discouraged.

All the testing was not without rewards - his class experience was steadily increasing, and he could feel the stable growth of his aptitudes. Activating the [Aura Reading] effect again, he resumed following the tainted path.

The further Lynn went, the more pronounced these corruptions became. The vivid green trees that had previously lined the route now stood gnarled and twisted, their bark blackened as if scorched.