Fred knocked on a room door, slowly entered, and closed the door behind him.
Inside the room, the light from two oil lamps intermingled, casting a long shadow of a rather slender figure. This figure had a thin face with full cheeks and a pair of slightly narrow, calm eyes. He had a pile of documents on his desk and was currently flipping through a thick book. He didn’t stop even when Fred walked up behind him.
Just when Fred was unsure whether to call out to him, the slender man casually gestured for Fred to sit on the side and softly said, “Fred, please wait for me for a moment.”
Fred remained silent, sitting quietly in a chair on the side, watching their leader flip through the book page by page.
After an unknown amount of time passed, the slender man let out a long sigh, closed the book, and muttered to himself, “That should be enough!”
He then pushed the book forward and turned to ask, “What happened, Fred? How did tonight’s operation go?”
Fred replied earnestly, “It failed, Boss An.”
Although Boss An didn’t seem imposing, Fred dared not act recklessly in front of him. Perhaps this was what they called respect and fear – first, respect, then fear.
Boss An nodded nonchalantly, “It’s alright, this matter isn’t the focus.”
Then, he indicated Fred’s arm and asked, “What happened to your arm?”
Fred moved his arm and said, “I can repair it in a while; it’s not a big issue.”
Boss An leaned back comfortably in his chair and said casually, “Did you cut it yourself? There aren’t many people in the Temple Forest City who would voluntarily cut themselves.”
Fred nodded and said, “Indeed, I encountered a very short and strange individual, as well as a ‘Shenjia People’ member who was completely wrapped in darkness, making it impossible to see anything. That short person appeared to be an ordinary human, but he could easily pierce through my armor in an instant, which gave me a very strange feeling.”
Boss An became serious and furrowed his brow, asking, “Do you know which sequence he belongs to?”
Fred shook his head, saying, “I don’t.”
Then he speculated, “Could it be a Level 4 anomaly from the ‘Nightwalker’ sequence, ‘Night Demon’?”
Boss An slowly responded, “It’s possible.”
Fred hesitated and said, “But in our Temple Forest City, we don’t have any ‘Night Demons’…”
Boss An lightly scratched his forehead with his sharp nails, saying, “It might not necessarily be from Temple Forest City; it could have come from somewhere else.”
Fred suddenly felt worried. The more high-level anomalies there were, the more dangerous it was for someone like him, who was only at Level 2.
But there was no other choice. Small cities like Temple Forest City were the best option for those Level 4 anomalies who had completely failed in the competition in larger cities.
Boss An muttered, “Fred, don’t worry. Let chaos reign in this city; when it’s chaotic, we’ll have our chance! The appearance of the ‘Night Demon’ doesn’t matter; it might even be advantageous. We’re just missing an opportunity. Soon, the ‘Skylight Society’ and the ‘Divine Light Society’ will engage in a life-and-death battle. We just need to wait for the spoils. Wait and see!”
Then, he turned to Fred and said seriously, “Fred, once we successfully advance, I’ll take you away from here to a larger city, and you’ll see the real world of beauty.”
Fred had always believed in Boss An because An was the one who brought him hope.
Fred asked, “So, what should I do next?”
Boss An tapped his forehead with his finger and said slowly, “I’ve already identified the locations of the ‘Skylight Society’ and the ‘Divine Light Society’ and found out their identities. In other words, I’ve caught onto their weaknesses.”
Then, he pulled out two scrolls from the side and slowly unfurled them. They depicted a girl and a boy, respectively, with detailed annotations about their identities and common locations.
Boss An took out two different badges and said, “You and Yiyi will go assassinate them! Each of you will choose a target. But remember, the first assassination must fail. Leave behind this replica badge. The second assassination must be a one-shot kill, and then leave immediately!”
Fred understood Boss An’s intention and nodded, accepting the portraits and badges.
…
Su Hao closely watched Yashan lying on the side, observing Yashan’s changes. Every so often, the small knife in his hand would swiftly make a cut on Yashan’s arm, collecting some blood in a bottle.
Yashan seemed unaware of this, still deeply asleep.
Soon, Yashan’s body underwent changes. The scales covering his entire body gradually receded, and his figure shrank, turning into an ordinary person.
Then, his skin began to darken, gradually turning black.
Su Hao took advantage of the opportunity to stab once more, collecting a blood sample. At this critical moment, his frequency of blood collection increased, almost every ten seconds.
However, what surprised Su Hao was that as Yashan’s body turned black, the wound he had just stabbed seemed to heal instantly, as if Yashan possessed an incredibly strong regenerative ability at this moment.
Soon, the surface color of Yashan started to fade, returning to its original appearance. In just a minute, his body turned black again, gradually transforming towards his armored form. Simultaneously, his entire body expanded, becoming thicker and taller, like inflating a balloon.
“What a miraculous life, what incredible transformations… How is all of this achieved?” Su Hao observed the entire process with a face full of curiosity and, more importantly, puzzlement.
Su Hao’s heart rate quickened, and he became increasingly excited. He thought, “In this world, everything must have its underlying rules, it doesn’t just happen randomly, nor does it disappear without reason. There must be a principle behind these transformations. If I can understand the underlying rules of how life evolves and changes in this world, it would mean more to me than just gaining control over the ultimate power of this world. It would also unveil a glimpse of the mystery of life in the universe.”
Thinking about these questions, Su Hao’s hands moved swiftly. Soon, only one bottle remained. Yashan’s evolution was also nearing its end.
He reverted back to a normal human appearance, wearing only a pair of shorts.
A few minutes later, Yashan gradually woke up, and the excitement in his eyes was undisguised.
“Boss Wei, I succeeded!” He flipped over and jumped up, extending his hand and slowly making a fist. His body quickly turned black and sturdy, turning into a tall and robust armored figure. Even his face was covered with a thick layer of armor, making it impossible to distinguish his features.
At this moment, Yashan noticed the neatly arranged small bottles at his feet and curiously asked, “Boss Wei, why do you have so many small bottles here?”
Su Hao waved his hand and said, “It’s nothing. How do you feel overall?”
Yashan jumped up and exclaimed, “Fantastic! This is the ‘Rover’ sequence; I’ve never felt so full of vitality before. I feel invincible right now. However, my energy consumption is almost depleted, and I feel somewhat weak.”
Su Hao said, “I’m not asking if you’re happy; I want to know what abilities you’ve gained. Tell me.”
Yashan grinned and said, “My scales have completely regressed, turning into the current armor, like wearing a thick suit of armor all over my body. Blades and spears can hardly harm me. The thickest part is about this thick…” 𝘪𝘳.𝘤𝑜
Yashan gestured with his hand, and Su Hao estimated it to be around five centimeters.
Five centimeters of armor…
Su Hao handed the last empty bottle to him and said, “Come on, fill this one up!”
Yashan subconsciously reached out to take it but suddenly remembered something. He glanced at the neatly arranged small bottles on the ground and said, “…”
Is this what Boss Wei meant by experimental subjects?
Just as he was about to find a spot on his body to make a small incision to collect blood, Su Hao, being very considerate, handed him a short knife.
The tip of the knife still had some fresh bloodstains, making Yashan inexplicably fearful. What exactly did he experience while he was unconscious?
Yashan reached out to take the knife, but Su Hao, with a flick of his wrist, retracted it. He said, “I’ll do it myself. Besides, I want to test the strength of your armor.”
Yashan suddenly recalled the scene where another “Rover” had a hole poked in his lower back by Su Hao and swallowed hard. He said, “Boss Wei, please be gentle!”
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