Shapeshifter

Chapter 10: Female Wolf

"Owch," Xen muttered once the [Stunned]debuff finally wore off and he could move his jaw. The iron stench of blood filled his nostrils, and the bristly fur of the wolves he was buried in prickled his bare skin. Honestly, Xen struggled to see the purpose of the human form. Human magic was inferior to the elves. His sense of smell and hearing was far worse than a wolf's, and trying to run around on two legs was stupid. Four legs was far better.

So hot... I feel like I am dying.

It was getting tough to breathe being buried in so many dead bodies, and despite the nasty stench that made him scrunch up his human nose, his slime body was hungry. With a grunt, he pulled his hand free from between the legs of a wolf, and then he squirmed around to make some space. Using Mana Vision, he located a wolf's head in the darkness of the corpse pile and plunged his fingers into its eyes. There was some resistance before there was a warm pop as he didn't have claws as a human.

"Thanks for the meal, humans," Xen said as his pale skin took on a purple shade before splitting into a dozen tendrils.

[Devour in progress...]

Xen felt his tendrils greedily absorb the dead wolf's brain before delving deeper into its body. Fragments of memories from the dungeon-created wolf flashed through his mind. They were unremarkable and dull compared to the humans and elves, who seemed to live far more complex lives on the surface.

[Devour Complete]

You gained 77 biomass

You absorbed 8% of the Black fur wolf's memories.

I don't know how much time I have before that human who shot me with an arrow comes over and drags me out of here. I can hear some muffled shouts between them, but without my wolf hearing, I can't make out what they are saying.

[Do you wish to take on the Wolf form?]

Xen debated it for a moment. When he gained EXP, it only went to whatever form he was in, and this was a rare opportunity to farm as much EXP as possible, assuming the humans left him alone for a while.

Which form do I want to level up first? Maybe I should quickly check my status screen for an idea.

Human: Level 2 (F)

+5 Strength, +2 Vitality, +3 Agility, +2 Resistance, +6 Magic per level

Elf: Level: 1 (F)

+4 Strength, +2 Vitality, +5 Agility, +1 Resistance, +10 Magic per level

Wolf: Level: 2 (F)

+5 Strength, +3 Vitality, +7 Agility, +2 Resistance, +1 Magic per level

"Magic is powerful, but I only have one spell at the moment, Holy Smite. So, focusing on my human or elf forms before I have the magic skills seems stupid." Xen felt like he was missing something, but he was still new to all this, so all he could do was try to piece strategies together from the memories he had absorbed. "Hrrrggg, this is hard."

Since time was of the essence, he decided to pick the wolf form because he still believed that only having two legs was dumb. It also helped that he wouldn't need to waste biomass to shapeshift as he was surrounded by potential vessels.

[Shapeshifting in process]

Xen didn't waste time converting the human body he had created out of biomass and focused on turning it into a wolf. Leaving the human body through its nostrils, his slime body flooded the new wolf vessel until he had control over every muscle fiber.

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[Shapeshift complete]

[Name: Xen]

[Level: 4 (F)]

[Race: Mind Slime (Rare Variant)]

[Current Form: Wolf Female (Level 2)]

[Biomass: 291]

"Female wolf?" Xen let out a growl and noticed it sounded slightly different. His body was also notably leaner and smaller than the previous wolf body he had inhabited. Aren't female wolves quite rare? Since the dungeon births monsters from mana, there's little reason to spawn in wolves who are less capable in combat.

Actually, was that even true? He checked his stats and saw they were all the same as when he was a male wolf. So, the only difference is a leaner physical body? That could be useful in some situations, but I suppose having less muscle and fat between enemy fangs and my vital organs isn't ideal... I don't have time to switch bodies now. I need to feast while I can.

His ears twitched as he picked up on the conversation between the humans outside. To his relief, they seemed more concerned about the approaching wolves than interrupting his meal. Rotating his body, Xen used his superior sense of smell to find the corpses with the most intact brains. Then, using his jaw, he cracked open their skulls and devoured them with purple tendrils that erupted out of his throat.

I only get EXP for killing monsters or Devouring their brains. Wasting time devouring all of this wolf meat will only give me biomass—which, to be fair, is a handy resource as it lets me create a body I desire and heal my wounds, but right now, my focus is on leveling up and getting new skills. Those wolves out there are level five, according to the human who shot at me, and right now, my highest level is 4, and that's my slime form.

Minutes went by as he squirmed around, focusing on eating brains. Eventually, he was interrupted from his feast by the sound of a man in heavy armor charging past his cart and slamming a wolf into a wall. Spitting out the bit of wolf he had been absorbing, he decided to check on his progress.

"System, summarize my progress!"

[Devour Complete]

You absorbed 17% of the wolf's memories.

You acquired the following skills:

[Pack Call (E)]

You and the target shared similar skills:

[Savage Bite (F)] has been upgraded to [Predatory Strike (E)]

Experience split between [Mind Slime] and [Wolf] form.

[Mind Slime] has leveled up: 4 -> 5.

[Wolf] has leveled up: 2 -> 4.

Xen felt a cooling sensation wash over his body, followed by an explosion of power in his muscles and a buzzing in his mind as his body accepted the system's level-up.

"What the hell happened to me?" Xen whimpered out as he felt both exhausted and full of energy.

[Name: Xen]

[Level: 5 (E)]

[Race: Mind Slime (Rare Variant)]

[Current Form: Wolf Female (Level 4)]

[Biomass: 407]

[Class: Shapeshifter (Unique)]

[Strength: 5 (+20)]

[Vitality: 5 (+12)]

[Agility: 5 (+28)]

[Resistance: 5 (+8)]

[Magic: 5 (+4)]

I am an E-grade monster now? My wolf form is also level 4, and with the added stats from the slime form, I should be able to fight with the level five wolves out there with little difficulty.

Xen felt unbelievable gratitude to the humans—an emotion he was feeling for the first time—for kindly leaving out so much food for him. Judging by how two humans had just rushed down the corridor, it was as if they didn't even want the corpses!

In that case, maybe I did them a favor by eating them? Xen mused as he decided to check on his new skills.

[Pack Call (E)]

Unleash a mana-infused howl that will call fellow wolves to your location and give them a frenzied buff that boosts overall strength and reduces pain.

[Predatory Strike (E)]

Channel primal mana into a devastating bite, inflicting severe damage on the target. Also, it has a greater chance of striking weak spots.

"Yush, these are good skills!" Xen mumbled and spat out a clump of hair. Now that he had recovered and had grown in strength, he decided it wasn't a good idea to stick around as the wolves of this dungeon weren't exactly friendly to him.

But first, I need to make some modifications: blonde fur, increased muscle, longer claws, and hardened skin. Oh, and bone spikes around my neck.

Over two hundred biomass vanished from his system screen as his body morphed and changed. Rising up from the pile of corpses and shaking them off, Xen let out a grateful howl that echoed down the corridor the humans had escaped down. The wolves below his cart dispersed in fear, revealing a... human?

Xen lowered his head and met the terrified eyes of the robed human. A very faint grey aura still shrouded his body, but it was clear he was badly injured as his robes were stained with blood and his face was terribly pale.

"Human, why are you lying there?" Xen used his Multilingual skill to translate his growls into human speech, and he tilted his head in confusion.

The human's eyes widened, and he wheezed, "A wolf? That can speak?"

Xen lept down from the cart and towered over the human.

"I wonder what I should do with you," Xen hissed through his teeth as he licked his lips.

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