Chapter 588

Chapter 588: If I want agility, I’d better achieve true endothermy first!

"Hmm…"

"Let’s start with you!"

"True Endothermic!"

In the mud pit he’d dug, wrapped in his self-secreted slime blanket, Trilobite finally felt ready to begin his grand ascension project.

Yet the first organ—or function—he chose was surprisingly "True Endothermic."

Logically, shouldn’t dinosaurs have inherited "endothermic" traits?

Actually, it’s far more complicated.

By common understanding, endothermy means body temperature stays nearly constant within a narrow range.

Mammals and birds are endothermic animals.

Ectothermic animals have body temperatures that shift with their surroundings. Most creatures besides birds and mammals fall into this category.

But real-world classification isn’t so simple.

Some large lizards, for instance, display near-endothermic traits—though their temperature fluctuates more widely.

While evidence suggests dinosaurs had feathers early on and likely possessed "endothermy," this was probably the broader-fluctuation type seen in modern giant lizards.

Their temperature dropped lower but never too low, rose higher but never too high.

This is often called "mesothermy."

Beyond mesothermy, there’s also "gigantothermy."

Gigantothermy means huge bodies retain heat: when an animal grows massive enough, surface heat loss can’t keep pace with internal heat from food digestion and organ function.

Trapped heat then maintains stable body temperature.

Giant Canglong, many sauropod dinosaurs, large ichthyosaurs, and plesiosaurs are thought to be gigantothermic—maintaining steady temperatures effortlessly.

That’s one perk of growing larger.

And don’t assume endothermy always beats ectothermy. What matters is how well the trait suits the environment.

Crocodiles prove this perfectly.

Their ancestors were likely endothermic or at least mesothermic. But to adapt to freshwater and reduce metabolic rate, they ditched endothermy entirely, reverting to ectothermy.

Though this left them less cold-tolerant than some amphibians, it granted unmatched freshwater adaptability.

Otters—mammals in freshwater—are burdened by their "advanced" endothermy. To stay warm, they must spend most days eating.

Without consuming one-fifth their body weight daily, otters risk starvation or freezing.

"Me, this Saber-toothed Beautiful Nodosaurus…"

"…was originally mesothermic."

"That means imperfect endothermy."

"My body temperature ran lower than modern mammals and birds, with wider swings!"

"Now, upgrading to true endothermy should boost my physical capability further."

"So, it’s you!"

"One hundred thousand units of Chaos Energy it is!"

"Right now, I’ve got plenty of Chaos Energy to spare!"

"Buy it!"

One hundred thousand units of Chaos Energy meant nothing compared to Trilobite’s three million.

"Next up!"

"First, let’s grow larger!"

"Then lengthen those forelimbs!"

"Being a fantasy species means breaking the mold!"

"Got forearms? Why not get big claws!?"

"Make the head tougher and boost that bite force!"

…

"And how could I forget the dinosaur order’s signature skill!?"

"Grow larger! Grow larger!"

After all that, Trilobite burned through two million units of Chaos Energy.

Most went into repeated growth.

After growing larger, his frame hit about 6.5 meters—matching a Ceratosaurus in size!

"But I’m no primitive Ceratosaurus!"

"My look is downright unique!"

He examined his preview and nodded, satisfied.

The dinosaur on the system display boasted powerful, elongated forelimbs, a massive yet balanced skull, muscular hind legs, and razor-sharp claws!

Up front, the revamped "Plate Saber Teeth" inherited from Duncker’s fish still dominated the giant jaws.

Trilobite adored the "saber teeth instant kill style."

His "True Endothermic" capability granted elite mobility, perfect for wielding those saber teeth.

As a Kill in One Strike specialist, skipping agility upgrades was unthinkable!

One snag: lengthening forelimbs, reinforcing the skull, and strengthening neck/jaw muscles made his front half heavier.

His center of gravity shifted forward.

When standing still or walking slowly, he even had to go down on all fours!

"Hah!"

"Now I’m truly a fantasy species!"

Honestly, seeing Trilobite’s current form might remind dinosaur fans of Jurassic World’s Tyrannosaurus Rex or ferocious Velociraptor!

But…

"I was some kind of unprecedented… uh… well…"

"It really might not be unprecedented…"

"Maybe I hadn’t even evolved beyond the Megalodon superfamily!"

As Trilobite envisioned the glorious form he was about to take, a thought of a dinosaur from the Megalodon superfamily suddenly popped into his mind.

This dinosaur was very unique and had been discovered in China!

However, he remained quite obscure; despite many academic controversies over his fossil form and preservation, ordinary people—even enthusiasts—knew very little about him.

"Um…"

"My future self would probably be…"

"Ah…"

"Too tired… can’t think…"

Just then, the System sent a timely reminder.

[Dear host, since you’ve repeatedly used the grow larger function, you’ll enter a brief slumber period.]

"Uh…"

"The System’s sense of time was always unreliable."

"Who knew how long ‘brief’ meant…"

"Well…"

"Whatever…"

"I’ll sleep first."

"Hope I get proper rest!"

What Trilobite didn’t know was…

"Zzzt—"

"Hiss—!"

The bracken fern he’d planted began spreading roots across his dormant body, its hungry mouth sucking the slime secreted from him.

—-

The moment Trilobite closed his eyes into the deep "evolution dream," the earth rumbled violently.

The "turtle-shaped deity" fled in panic, howling chaotically.

Fortunately, their prolonged stay near the "Holy Tree of Giant God" allowed most mortals to evacuate inside.

Those who couldn’t escape entered the "turtle-shaped deity’s" body directly, becoming "Damage Controllers" and "Immunizers."

The "turtle-shaped deities" willingly accepted these mortals.

This emergency shelter formed through mutual "contract" favored deities and mortals alike, diminishing Trilobite’s gains as the "middleman."

Simply put, Trilobite’s commission shrank considerably.

After all, free "probiotics" weren’t to be refused.

These opportunists escaped just in time; any slower, they would have been stomped by that enormous foot!

"Roar—!"

"Ugh—!"

Long, distant calls echoed.

One massive mountain of flesh after another rumbled closer; perhaps calling the other "Vast Dragon Gods" a "mountain of flesh" was an exaggeration.

But this thing before them seemed much closer to a true mountain of flesh!

Their Divine Bodies were basically huge, unmatched "mountains of flesh" with two pairs of short legs that couldn’t lift their bellies off the ground, a tail as thin and long as a whip, and a tiny skull so small it was completely out of proportion and almost invisible.

"Vast Dragon God · Small Skull Species!"

"The dumbest species ever! Almost no match!"

"Crush through! Run fast!"

The "turtle-shaped deities" shrieked sharply and vanished in a flash; they had lived in the Primal Wilderness for ages and knew the "Vast Dragon God · Small Skull Species" well.

These creatures were famous for their huge size and total stupidity.

Of course, the stupidity stood out more.

After all, their legs were hooked to their Divine Bodies like a lizard’s, so they couldn’t lift their heavy bodies high off the ground; this gave them a low chassis.

With a low chassis, their shoulders and hips weren’t much to see; being short made them look smaller.

Though the stout, plump ones were heavy, they didn’t seem "big"; instead, tall, thin beings often looked scarier.

As for their total stupidity…

They weren’t just stupid—they were numb, rigid, and stubborn.

These creatures dragged their mountain-like Divine Bodies around the Primal Wilderness all day; they followed the "ether sensors" on their noses and chased the thin ether in the void, letting ether energy, Fire Domain energy, and primordial energy drive their Divine Bodies.

As deities, their whole long lives seemed to mean nothing else.

They felt no hate or kindness, and they barely reacted to anything outside; they just patrolled the Primal Wilderness on fixed paths.

They hated all change.

Any little disturbance made them very angry,

and if something blocked their path, this stubborn bunch would roar and crush whatever was in their way!

"Roar, roar, roar!"

"Ugh—!"

Now, the new "World Tree" planted by the Giant God seemed to block the path of these "Small Skull Species" Vast Dragon Gods a bit.

"Roar—!"

"Ugh—!"

They crawled forward angrily, their heavy Divine Bodies and thin tails dragging deep marks on the ground.

"Boom—!"

Soon, their Divine Bodies scraped hard against the "World Tree" planted by the Giant God!