Chapter 18 Jumping Five Levels in a Row "Clap, clap, clap, clap!" ...
"Slap, slap, slap, slap!"
The applause rang out one after another, and all the insects turned their eyes to the source of the sound. They found it was Murphy, who was not afraid at all, but instead clapped with great interest.
Clark frowned, looking at Murphy with a strange expression. Had he gone mad?
"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant."
"Actually, I thought you could hold on for a little longer, but it seems I had too high expectations of you."
Murphy sighed and commented on Clark's performance, then, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, turned his gaze to the judge.
"Judge, I request a grade update."
Before the judge could speak, Clark couldn't help but laugh, looking at Murphy with disdain. "Ha, I thought you had come up with some brilliant plan. Level update? Have you forgotten that you only had your level tested when you were brought back from the garbage planet a while ago?"
Oh, I see. The bugs on that garbage planet didn't teach you these basics, did they? Did they make you think pheromone levels were like rainbow lights, where you press one and it increases by one?
Murphy smiled and said, "Why not? I just went through my transformation period last night, and I'm really looking forward to my new level."
Clark clapped ironically, imitating him. He had thought Murphy had come up with some brilliant and ingenious plan, but it turned out to be a pipe dream and a death throes.
"To be honest, I can't believe what I just heard. An F-rank has gone through the transformation period? What's the difference between transformation and not transformation at your level? Are you saying you went through transformation and skipped a level to reach E-rank? Congratulations then." His words were full of sarcasm.
Murphy remained relaxed, and upon hearing this, he even thought about it seriously for a moment. "Thank you. I'm also very much looking forward to what it is. Maybe I'll accidentally be a level above you."
He turned his gaze back to the judge at the front. "Judge, the law stipulates that higher-ranking males have certain privileges over lower-ranking males, but my rank is unknown. Isn't it inappropriate to use this law to pronounce judgment?"
“That makes sense…” The judge nodded hesitantly, then looked at Clark, asking for his opinion.
Clark was very interested in the way Murphy was struggling. "Okay, judge, I agree to let him do the test, but it has to be done publicly, right here. I think the results from a public test will be more convincing to the insects."
Before coming today, he specially bought traffic for the live stream, with the aim of making the image of Murphy crying and begging for mercy famous throughout the Federation. Even though Murphy's way of humiliating himself was very novel, he could not escape the inevitable result.
Clark glanced at Little White, lowered his voice, and said smugly, "Today I'll show you that a lowly worm can never rise above its limitations, no matter how hard it struggles."
Murphy chuckled softly, showing no sign of the tension of impending exile, as calm as if he were watching a play.
"I'm waiting, hmm, I have a feeling today will be a good show."
Before long, several bailiffs worked together to carry up a cylindrical testing instrument. This is currently the most popular and accurate portable testing instrument, capable of measuring up to Grade A. For even greater accuracy, testing can only be conducted at specific hospitals. Those instruments are immovable and cannot be brought to the courtroom.
The bailiff instructed, "Sir, you just need to stand inside and follow the machine's guidance to clear your mind."
Murphy nodded and stepped into the machine as instructed. The machine was closed again, and soon he smelled a strange yet familiar scent. In an instant, he fell into a daze, his mind completely blank, and he could only feel his strength being drained away little by little.
Murphy fell into a deep sleep.
Hmm, I have a strange feeling.
Unseen by any insects, inside the machine shrouded in a hazy mist, the black-haired male insect opened its eyes on its own. The golden markings around its dark pupils brightened, and it curiously surveyed its surroundings, a half-smile slowly spreading across its lips…
Most of the jury members did not understand Murphy's actions, and in their view, it was already beyond saving.
Is this a delaying tactic?
To be honest, I'm only at the F level, and many of my friends are too. Transformation is useless, really useless, sigh.
[I guess they're taking a gamble, what if they transform into an A-level?]
That would probably go down in history, hahaha.
...
"What...what should we do?" Rupert hesitated, believing that no matter how hard Murphy tried to stall for time, the outcome would be difficult to change.
But they are just the lowest-ranking females. They were powerless to do anything about the legionary worms back then, and now they are even more helpless about the affairs between the males.
"This might be a good opportunity."
Palmer suddenly said.
Palmer took out a small bottle from his pocket; the liquid inside was clear and transparent, with a faint glow.
He told Attiyah, "This is a Grade B pheromone that Rupert collected. With this, you should be able to recover at least half of your strength."
"Rupert and I have already planned the route. As long as we get out of here, the Chaos Starfield is too complicated and the Federation will not be able to catch you. From now on, you will be free."
Rupert's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he thought it was indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Yes, Corps Commander, you can know a bug's face but not its heart. Today is the best opportunity. They are all focused on the trial right now. Murphy is too busy to notice that you are missing. By the time the assets are liquidated, you will have long since gone far away."
"Besides, in the end, you are just a female slave that Bennett gave to Murphy. When Bennett wants you back, will he really go against Bennett because of you? Bennett is not an ordinary A-level. His father is a powerful insect in the council. Even if Murphy doesn't want to, you can't go against him."
What Rupert said was undoubtedly true, and everyone present knew it.
Atiyah lowered his gaze. In the courtroom livestream, Murphy had already entered the testing equipment. The scene was equally quiet, with only the soft whirring of the equipment.
“Thank you,” Attiya said.
Palmer thought he had agreed and his face lit up with joy.
Atia shook his head. "But I don't need it for now. Let's save it for the insects that need it more."
His eyes were fixed on the projection. "I'll wait for him to come back."
If Murphy is indeed sentenced to permanent exile, he will take him with him.
Rupert was a little anxious. "But then all eyes will be on him. Even if you destroy your own core, you might not be able to take him with you." He didn't believe that the Legion Commander wouldn't understand such a simple truth.
Attiyah said, "It's alright."
Even if the final result is bad, he still wants to give it a try.
"..." Palmer's expression was complicated, and he was very puzzled. "Legion Commander, forgive me for being blunt, but how long have you known him? Is he worth doing this for?"
Attiyah looked at him and said calmly, "There's no question of whether it's worth it or not. I just feel that I should do it."
Rupert and Palmer both fell silent; they knew they couldn't persuade him.
The Legion Commander has always been that kind of worm. He can't bring himself to run away alone. Back on the battlefield, weren't all his brothers able to survive because the Legion Commander carried them back one by one?
Rupert said in a low voice, "I understand. We'll stay here with you and wait."
court.
All the insects' eyes were focused on the cylindrical instrument. The level information was displayed through the rings of the outer display strips. The higher the level, the more bright display strips there were.
A few minutes later, a ring suddenly lit up at the bottom of the cylindrical instrument, indicating an F-class rating. There were gasps of surprise, but it didn't cause much of a reaction, as it was to be expected.
Clark felt incredibly pleased as he listened to these voices. The pent-up frustration he had been feeling for days dissipated. He had only intended to exile Murphy, but Murphy himself had chosen to humiliate himself and put on a grand show for everyone, which made him feel truly delighted.
He's not so keen on letting Murphy go into exile now. If Murphy were to kneel down and beg him, he might soften and spare his life. Of course, that's just a possibility.
Suddenly, the testing instrument, which should have been turned off, lit up again with two faint, yellowish circles, representing Level E.
Ha, not bad luck, you did level up, but what's the use of that...?
"Whoosh!" Another circle lit up on the instrument, the bright yellow turning into light orange. Three circles represent Level D!
"Ha!" This is the threshold of intermediate male insect. The onlookers were surprised and at the same time felt a little regretful. He jumped two levels. If Murphy hadn't provoked Clark, his life would definitely be much better than it is now.
As for now, well, what a pity.
Clark scoffed, thinking they were really ignorant. Intermediate level was just as useless; why were they making such a fuss?
"That's the end of it..."
Before he could even utter a sarcastic remark, the instrument suddenly lit up with another circle! The color changed to a richer, more vibrant bright orange; four bright orange circles represented a Grade C!
What?
Clark had a bad feeling. Was the instrument broken? How could it possibly ascend step by step?
But this time the ascent was faster than he had anticipated.
With another "whoosh," the bright orange circles turned light red, and the five light red circles represented Grade B!
Even if we put Clark in for testing now, that's the best we can do!
The speed of the upgrade from D-rank to B-rank was so fast that many insects hadn't even reacted yet. Just moments ago, the comments section of the live stream was discussing how Mofeier could actually reach the intermediate rank and still had quite the potential. Now, suddenly jumping to the advanced rank, the comments section went wild.
[My God, I take back what I just said. I was blind to his greatness.]
How is this possible? How is this possible? How is this possible?
Could it be that F-rank has a hidden transformative ability? My brother is about to transform into an F-rank, and I'm really starting to look forward to it.
[Holy crap, am I really going to go down in history?]
Have you noticed that Lord Clark's face looks a little green...?
How could this be? Clark gritted his teeth. No, the instrument must be broken. How could a lowly F-class possibly reach the advanced level just through metamorphosis? Impossible.
Just when all the insects thought it was over, suddenly, the instrument lit up again!
The light red light turned into a deep crimson as the last ring lit up. Six crimson halos lit up in the center of the courtroom, so dazzling that the courtroom fell into a state of astonishment for a few seconds, and for a moment there was complete silence. This represented Grade A!
This caused an uproar not only in the live stream room, but also throughout the entire jury and audience in the courtroom. It's important to know that there aren't many Grade A male insects in the Federation, and each one is extremely precious.
Suddenly, the circle representing Grade A darkened again, turning a light red.
ah?
The insects, who were excitedly discussing the matter, looked at each other in bewilderment, not understanding what was going on.
Suddenly, that circle lit up again, turning crimson red.
It went dark and then bright again, and the onlookers' hearts began to race with excitement and doubt. The instrument seemed to be the embodiment of Murphy, teasing them like a monkey, going dark and bright repeatedly.
Ultimately, the entire cylinder detector remained fully illuminated, with a vibrant crimson light indicating the level before the announcement.
"Beep beep beep—"
"Beep beep beep—"
"Pheromone detection complete, detection level A, blood purity... beep beep beep... blood purity... beep beep beep... unknown!"
A note from the author:
----------------------
Thank you so much for the nutrient solution from Sunny Moon Baby! [Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers]
Thank you for your adorable paws, babies! I'll give each of you a little rub! [starry eyes]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com