"There’s a dangerous beast here—its body is harder than mine. Be careful!"

  The message flashed through Ryan Carter’s mind unexpectedly, leaving him stunned.

  What the hell?

  Where did this warning come from? Was he hallucinating? Was something wrong with his mind?

  Before he could make sense of it, another message arrived: "That beast is terrifying. Be cautious, everyone. Its location is..."

  The description made little sense at first—references to "the third circle," and "broad reeds."

  Looking up, Ryan noticed a reed that wasn’t particularly tall but was as wide as a man’s palm.

  Ever since the resurgence of spiritual energy, plants, like animals and humans, had undergone terrifying transformations. Some had even developed lethal capabilities.

  Next to the reed was a millstone-sized stone with a chipped edge—the "broken-corner rock" mentioned in the message.

  It clicked. The message wasn’t about a beast nearby—it was about him. The one speaking... was a Steel Thread Worm.

  He could understand what the Steel Thread Worms were saying!

  Ryan’s mind reeled. Somehow, he’d become the subject of their conversation—a terrifying monster in their eyes.

  "That beast’s body is even tougher than ours. It must be a Spirit General. Avoid provoking it."

  "I’ll alert the others nearby. We don’t want to mess with this one."

  "Man, this swamp is getting crazy. When are we getting our own Spirit General? I want a big boss too!"

  "Big boss, take me with you! I want meat!"

  "Same! Let’s eat some meat together!"

  The sheer absurdity of the chatter overwhelmed Ryan. Was this what the skill Resonance did? It felt exactly like being in a massive group chat.

  "Hey everyone, west-side scouts say a Three-Eyed Green Toad just poisoned a Twin-Horn Crocodile. Lots of meat left—who’s hungry?"

  Ryan was trying to figure out how to mute the buzzing in his head when another message popped up.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  He had never heard of the Three-Eyed Green Toad or the Twin-Horn Crocodile, but from the names alone, they sounded nasty.

  And now these Steel Thread Worms were organizing a feast.

  "Meat? I’m in!"

  "Count me out. Twin-Horn meat’s dry and hard to digest."

  "It’s free meat, you lazy worm. I’m going!"

  "Don’t compare laziness with me. I invented lazy!"

  "Who even are you? You don’t get to diss me!"

  Ryan gave up trying to make sense of it. He had only one thought left—would they start saying “LOL” or “666” next?

  He had unlocked a literal telepathic group chat with insects.

  And while he had no interest in the meat, the chaos of trying to find the Cherryfall Fruit had him wondering—maybe he could use this accidental gift.

  Following the mental chatter, Ryan moved in the direction of the reported fight.

  When he arrived, he found the corpse of a crocodile nearly twenty meters long, half-buried in the muck, one claw torn off, a massive hole in its head.

  "Ugh, they didn’t save us any meat!"

  "All that’s left is scraps. Should’ve stayed home."

  "Stop whining and eat what’s here. Ungrateful worms."

  The group chat had grown massive. Dozens—no, hundreds of worms were talking at once.

  "Hey, another beast just showed up. Should we eat it?"

  Ryan paused. Another beast?

  His senses should’ve picked it up before they did.

  "You mean that upright one? Poor guy. Looks like he’d taste bad."

  "Yeah, not worth it. Let’s focus on the Twin-Horn. Its meat is primo."

  Ryan nearly burst out laughing. They were talking about him again.

  And apparently, walking upright made him suspicious.

  Not wanting to provoke a swarm, he instinctively replied, “I taste awful. Stick to the crocodile.”

  To his surprise, the message transmitted without speaking—a mental projection through Resonance.

  He could not only listen to the Steel Thread Worms—he could talk to them.

  "Yeah, he’s got a point. Crocodile meat can help us evolve."

  "He’s just a passerby. Let him be. Not worth the trouble."

  Relieved, Ryan started scanning the area and noticed something beside the crocodile corpse—a dark, broken horn about a foot long.

  Though small, it radiated far more energy than the Skyblade Antelope’s horn—which had been valuable enough for a bloodline elixir.

  Without hesitation, Ryan picked it up. His enhanced strength helped, but even so, the horn weighed over three thousand pounds.

  The denser the material, the better the weapon.

  He stashed it in his storage pouch, then continued scanning the area. No second horn. But he did find four or five dagger-sized teeth.

  Though caked in mud, their sharpness was obvious. Ryan collected them—until the worms chimed in.

  "Seriously? He’s taking the Twin-Horn’s teeth? What a waste."

  "I once saw a tusk longer than half my body. Now that was a real find."

  Ryan’s eyes lit up. Half a worm’s body? That meant two to three meters long.

  Something that left behind a tooth that size... had to be terrifying.

  An idea struck.

  He replied sarcastically: “No way a tusk that long exists. Total exaggeration.”

  "Exaggeration?! It’s real! You don’t believe me? Fine—go look for yourself!"

  "It’s about a thousand body-lengths from here, near a small fruit tree. The tusk’s lying beside it. Ever since it showed up, the tree stopped bearing fruit."

  Ryan was thrilled.

  Could that be the Cherryfall Tree?

  While they searched blindly, these creatures had lived in the Dreamsworn Marsh for ages. They might know something.

  “Sure, sure. If you’re so smart, answer this—know where I can find a Cherryfall Fruit?” he challenged quickly.

  "Hey! What kind of question is that? You’re just trying to trick me!" the worm snapped.

  Ryan held back a grin. Manipulating worms with internet logic might just be his new favorite skill.