Game Over!?

The ant jumped from the hole. They pointed their menacing jaws toward his neck. The Krell scout took the hammer that Ben had made from the ground and jumped upward to meet the attack. 

BAM!!! 

It succeeded; the ant soldier was sent flying into the wall. But more leaped down, pouring out from the hole, overwhelming the Krell. 

Seeing this, Elvira gritted her teeth. She pointed her finger, then yelled, "My beloved, withstand this… Lightning Magic! Chain lightning!" 

Elvira's expectation was for her magic to incapacitate them, even for a moment. This would allow Ben's consumption to do its effect completely, eating the ant king. 

As for the rest of the ant soldiers, after the ant king died, control of them would be given to the ant princess. But she didn't feel worried, even if she fainted after the spell; her chain lightning would stun all of them for a second. 

Giving enough time for Ben to recover and take care of them all. As she expected, after casting the spell, everything turned dark, and she became unconscious. The lightning shot out, jumping through everyone in the vicinity, not even sparing the Krell scout. 

Ben could feel his head getting dizzy, his muscles spasming. But a screen appeared in front of his eyes, making him smile.

[Ant king consumed. Acquired 129 biomass, and Ant king body part, enhanced carapace.] 

The ant king's body fell limp to the ground. Recovered, Ben quickly looked around; he could see many of the ant soldiers were collapsed on the ground. He also looked at the ant princess, who stood there like a statue. 

Turning his gaze further, his eyes widened. Ben leaped forward and then took Elvira from the Krell scout. He felt her pulse, 'Thank God she is alright. It's just overexertion; is this one of those states like mana deviation?' 

Elvira had told him about this before, and he felt curious. What would happen if someone ran out of mana? 

In most stories or games he played, running out of mana wouldn't give them any side effects. If there was any, it wouldn't be permanent like qi deviation in cultivation novels. Ben looked back, hesitated for a moment, but with steeled gaze, he ran back toward their territory. 

The two Krell scouts also joined behind him. One was really wounded; it had lost one of its arms while its carapace was cracked open, showing its purplish flesh. 

While the other barely had any damage. Ben looked forward at the path, but his senses were focused on his back. "Seems no one is coming after me. Tch, what a loss! I should have taken at least one of the ant princesses." 

Ben was sure the ant princess would escape far away using the opportunity. Now, he needed to think of more ways to gain a farm to produce biomass. 

Halfway through the journey, Ben suddenly stopped. The tunnel started vibrating. He turned his gaze to the side, feeling something big was coming at them. 

'Dammit! One after another!' At this point, Ben was sure he would face many bad luck in this new life. If something happened, it would never stop at one point. 

'Where the fuck is my plot armor or lucky encounter!' Ben cursed in his mind. 

He was transmigrated and got a system. It gave him a lot of things that should have been a cheat, but so far, his journey has not been smooth at all. 

Don't protagonists usually get lucky by now? For example, finding something by accident that just fills what he needs. But no! Not only did he face many problems, but even after expanding the base and sending out scouts, he failed to find the gemstone mine. 

Ben kicked the ground, raising his pace, sprinting toward his base. Fighting it out was not an option. He was now carrying Elvira on his back, and his mana was almost depleted. 

Even though with biomass, his wounds had all recovered, without mana, his attacks would be limited. His only hope now was the trap. 

The wall cracked with a loud boom; Ben could only see a giant hole filled with an array of sharp teeth. He could not even see the whole creature. It turned toward him like a black hole, eating everything in the path. 

As the tunnel expanded, Ben got a clearer view. He still couldn't see the body, but now he could see part of its jaw. 'Is this the Hell Worm Elvira talked about?' 

This worm randomly roamed between floors, and everyone treated it like a catastrophe.m 'Fuck! With that size, even my trap won't work!' 

A thought came to his mind to use salt as the opponent was a worm, but he didn't have any in stock to try it. No need to mention the amount needed to cover the whole creature when he couldn't even see it now. 

'Metamorphosis!' Ben used his remaining mana, creating two extra arms. 

BANG! BANG! 

Ben started digging a new tunnel to escape from the Hell Worm. Bringing it to his base would only destroy it for nothing. His hands moved fast, digging only enough for him to pass by. 

'Shit! Shit!' Ben could see the jaws coming closer toward him. Seconds felt like an eternity. The digging that he had done thousands of times with ease now felt so slow. 

"Faster!! Faster!!!" Ben's hands moved in a blur as fast as possible. 

The sound of the ground being eaten, the cracks of the tunnel, each one felt like a countdown to his doom. Dust flew, and notifications appeared in his eyes as he kept acquiring more blocks, but it all didn't matter to him now. 

In a few seconds, Ben had dug five blocks deep, but it was not enough to completely avoid the Hell Worm. His adrenaline surged, and his speed raised even further. Ben could feel it; the presence was now only a block away from him. 

[Ding! You get 1 Stone Block!] 

[Ding! You get 1 Stone Block!] 

Ben's lips curled into a resigned smile; he turned his gaze to the side. Sharp, smelly, and pitch dark. That was what greeted him. "Is this it!? Game Over!"