King of Games C12 Apex Predator and Gene Modification

Shinro returned to his apartment, the treasure "Purple Nails" in hand. He sat down in front of his computer and turned it on, only to find that the downloads for the video game "Super Mario Bros" on Steam had skyrocketed since he last checked. The downloads were converting into points at an incredible rate.

Muttering under his breath, he couldn't help but think, "This is all thanks to Markiplier and PewDiePie's videos." He navigated to YouTube and saw that PewDiePie's video of him playing "Super Mario Bros" had already amassed 900,000 views, while Markiplier's video had reached a staggering 210,000 views.

The game's popularity seemed to have taken off, with many other YouTubers now jumping on the bandwagon and creating their own content around the game. Both Markiplier and PewDiePie continued to produce more videos about "Super Mario Bros" two weeks after they first started playing it.

Shinro couldn't help but notice that his own channel had also benefited from the sudden surge in popularity. He had gained 5,0000 new subscribers and his videos were now receiving thousands of views each.
After a quick glance at his YouTube analytics, he decided it was time to call it a day. He turned off his PC, crawled into bed, and drifted off to sleep.

***

Early in the morning, Shinro woke up and went about his usual routine: brushing his teeth, taking a shower, and cooking himself a hearty breakfast.

After eating, he made his way to the "Tiny World"—a world that resembled an aquarium but housed a 500,000-square-meter world complete with clouds above and terrain, rivers, and even small seas below.

As he peered into the miniature world, a smile crept onto his face. A thousands of years had passed inside since he last checked on it, thanks to the accelerated time flow of one million times the normal rate.

The creatures Shinro had brought into the "Tiny World" yesterday had multiplied: monkeys, fish, tigers, crocodiles, cows, sheep, goats, orangutans, gorillas, and more. Thanks to the blood samples he'd received from his uncle, he'd been able to bring these creatures to life within the miniature world. Without those samples, the ones he'd bought from the "System Marketplace" would have remained mere placeholders, unable to materialize.

Observing the miniature creatures inside the "Tiny World," Shinro noticed that they were thriving. The monkeys, orangutans, and gorillas munched on bananas as usual, while predators hunted their prey—a variety of insects, birds, and other creatures that weren't difficult to acquire legally.

Thanks to his connection to the "Tiny World," Shinro could observe the world in real-time, even though it was moving at an accelerated rate of one million times the normal speed. He had complete control over the environment, weather, and everything else within the world's confines. Deciding he'd seen enough for now, he sped up the world even further, causing the creatures inside to move like lightning bolts, almost a blur before his eyes.

Shinro suddenly remembered the "Purple Nails" gemstones he'd acquired earlier. He carefully removed the gems from the high heels and decided to place them in the center of the "Tiny World" to observe the creatures' reactions.

Slowing down the time inside the "Tiny World" to match the real world's pace, he lowered his hand into the miniature world, ensuring the creatures wouldn't age too quickly due to the time difference. Once inside, he placed the glistening gems on the ground and observed the creatures' reactions with curiosity.

---

In the lush greenery of the forest, it was daytime. Monkeys frolicked in the trees, some playing around while the older ones munched on bananas or groomed each other for lice. Meanwhile, other creatures went about their lives: crocodiles feasting on sheep, tigers chasing cows, and lions stalking hyenas.

Suddenly, the sky darkened, and a sense of an overwhelming presence enveloped the miniature world. Instinctively, every creature—from tigers and lions to bears, monkeys, orangutans, gorillas, even crocodiles and hippos—fled to their respective hiding spots, sensing something far mightier than themselves was near.

Birds took to the skies, chirping in panic as they scattered. Even the insects sensed the change in the air; bees rushed back to their hives, ants scurried into their nests, and only a few stray bugs remained exposed.

Land creatures scurried into caves, up trees, or burrowed underground, while aquatic creatures dove deeper into the water.

A curious young monkey, however, braved the commotion and ventured out onto a tree branch to get a better look. The adult monkeys trembled with fear below him.

The clouds above parted, revealing a colossal hand descending from the sky. In its grip, a massive gemstone could be seen, which then began to shrink in size.

The monkeys chattered and squealed, orangutans hooted and grumbled, gorillas grunted and barked, tigers roared and snarled, lions roared and snarled as well, bears growled, roared, and snuffled. Each creature in the forest, by the rivers, and near the seas reacted differently to the descending hand holding the glistening gems.

The hand moved so slowly and deliberately that it felt like an eternity to the terrified creatures. Finally, the hand planted one gemstone in the valley and another in the sea.

The almond-shaped gems, which seemed gigantic to the miniature creatures, glowed brightly, illuminating the valley and the depths of the sea where they'd been placed.

Although these creatures had limited intelligence, they couldn't help but feel insignificant and awestruck in the presence of the colossal hand and the glowing gemstones. Instinctively, they knew to both admire and fear the being before them.

Once the hand had planted the gems—one in the valley, another in the sea—and retreated back into the clouds, the creatures breathed a collective sigh of relief. Even without the cognitive abilities of humans, they all knew that they'd just encountered the apex predator, the very pinnacle of the food chain.

It might seem unbelievable, but the creatures couldn't help but cheer. The gorillas beat their chests and roared, as if celebrating the giant hand and the glowing gemstones it had left behind. Other creatures joined in, each expressing their awe in their own ways.

In that moment, the memory of the colossal hand was etched into their very DNA, ensuring that future generations would carry the instinctual knowledge of their encounter with the a being far mightier than themselves.

---

Watching the creatures' reactions inside the "Tiny World" brought a smile to Shinro's face. They were so adorable, yet their behavior also made him realize that the gemstones had significantly altered the miniature world. The purple glow they emitted was visually stunning, but he couldn't help but wonder if it would affect the plants' growth due to the changed light spectrum.

He also considered that the gems might absorb heat, which could potentially alter the environment's chemical composition, and if the minerals within them leached into the soil or water, it could change the pH levels. However, it would take hundreds, if not thousands of years inside the accelerated time of the "Tiny World" to observe any noticeable changes.

[Ding! You have made significant changes to the "Tiny World." A notification popped up, awarding Shinro 100 XP.]

Grinning, Shinro leveled up and unlocked the "Gene Modification" skill. Although it was only at level 1, he could still nudge the creatures' evolution in certain directions over time—hundreds or even thousands of years.

He scanned the available options and noticed he could modify the monkeys', gorillas', and orangutans' central cortexes by adding the "FOXP2" gene, which was associated with speech and language. He could also add genes like "MCPH1," "ASPM," and "CDK5RAP2" to promote natural development and brain size.

The possibilities excited him; he could create human-like creatures inside his "Tiny World," albeit it would take a considerable amount of time.

"I don't need to kidnap anyone anymore… This is perfect," Shinro joked to himself.
He then scooped up several monkeys, orangutans, and gorillas from the "Tiny World" and began modifying their genes, focusing on those associated with brain development.

The creatures in his hands, however, died one by one.

[Modifying Genes: Failed.]

[Modifying Genes: Failed.]

[Modifying Genes: Failed.]

Scratching the back of his head, Shinro returned the lifeless bodies to the miniature world and grabbed more specimens.
It took many attempts, but finally, he succeeded.

"…I see, I can only add one gene at a time," Shinro sighed. No wonder the apes kept dying; he'd been trying to modify too many genes at once.

This time, he added only the "FOXP2" gene to the selected specimens, and it worked—albeit at the cost of weakening them significantly. Shinro fed them before returning them to the "Tiny World."

"I guess their offspring will inherit the changes gradually and slowly," he mused, stroking his chin.

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AN: Early Chapter for "King of Games".