Under the guidance of the system, Lu Yan found the passage leading to the underground.
This place was cramped, resembling a rat hole. Dirty mud surrounded him, emitting a foul odor.
When facing powerful, unknown enemies, Lu Yan never considered retreat. In the face of external pressures and the need to assist the vulnerable, he never thought of backing down. But at this moment, he really wanted to turn around and leave.
After much psychological preparation, Lu Yan, suppressing his nausea, crawled through. He felt that he had sacrificed too much to save the world.
The system consoled him: "[It's okay, at most it will stink for three days. Sewer mermaids are also a classic image in film and television.]"
For some reason, Lu Yan felt even more inclined to turn and run.
The system continued: "[Since you're here, might as well tough it out! I'll call you Dad.]"
Lu Yan: "..."
After difficult mental preparation, Lu Yan finally saw Michael.
Michael was swinging a heavy sword, cursing while chopping at the wall in front of him. With no way forward and no path above the stairs, he became particularly frustrated after losing contact with his teammates.
When Michael saw Lu Yan emerge, a clear look of surprise appeared on his face: "You can come out of such a small sewer? The bones of Easterners are always surprisingly small. Is it some kind of kung fu?"
Lu Yan shook off the dirty water and looked like he was ready to attack: "If possible, I wouldn't want to come out from there."
The entrance to the underground, a mechanism hidden in the corner under seaweed-covered sculptures.
Lu Yan forcefully inserted the key into the eye of the plaster statue, and the sculpture made a clattering sound.
Soon, the wall in front of them slowly opened to the sides.
The true appearance of the underground was finally revealed.
It looked like a waterlogged underground garage. Dim small electric lights on the ceiling slightly improved visibility in the underground.
Perhaps due to the long absence of flow, the water here was green, emitting a pungent smell.
[The basement is close to the outside lake. Over the decades, a lot of lake water has seeped in, and the deepest part of the water is about 3 meters.]
Floating on the green water surface were eyeballs, resembling fishing floats.
In the murky water, something like eels occasionally flashed by.
[Parasitic fish. K City was contaminated by these things. They look a lot like seven-gilled eels. Bite onto a person and suck blood tightly to the skin, similar to leeches. They can also burrow into the body.]
[But don't worry, there are kingfishers around. They dare not come over. After all, it's bloodline suppression. But I suggest you still use fish scales to protect yourself. Where they grow, there are many parasitic fish eggs in the water.]
Michael thanked himself again for being able to fly.
He lifted Lu Yan, trying to find a foothold on the water surface.
However, as they went further in, the light became dimmer, and the ceiling became lower.
Towards the end, the height didn't allow Michael to fly anymore.
When he had to land, his tone was somewhat melancholic: "Are we civil servants forced to go to sea?"
Lu Yan, six feet tall, had water just below his hips.
Michael, two meters tall, had water up to his thighs. The feathers on his back were mostly wet; if he wanted to fly later, it would definitely be affected.
While they hadn't reached the bottom yet, Michael recounted the merchant's diary he had read in the study.
He summarized: "This sister is really miserable. With such wealth at home, why get married?"
Lu Yan agreed. After a while, he remembered that Tang Xunan also seemed quite wealthy, so he said: "Maybe it's for love."
Michael said with emphasis: "The love in a man's mouth has a shorter shelf life than eggs in the refrigerator."
The system nodded: "[Yes, that's right!]"
Lu Yan fell into contemplation.
Well, couldn't figure it out, didn't want to anymore.
Michael: "According to the intelligence, the pollutant we ultimately need to deal with is likely the mistress of this mansion. I estimate the pollution value to be around 8500, weakened due to pregnancy. After all, there are no humans here, and no other pollutants to provide energy for evolution. The pollutant probably retained a humanoid form."
Michael, with over sixty years in the profession, had killed more pollutants than Lu Yan had seen. His analysis was logical, and most of it was accurate.
"You forgot one thing," Lu Yan reminded. "The wife is pregnant."
Michael recalled the last image he saw in the book, nodding slightly: "The child in her belly has many hands, probably some kind of collective entity."
The pollution value displayed on the phone kept increasing.
When the data exceeded 7000, Michael directly put away the phone to avoid attracting anything with the light.
Now, they were very close to the final boss of this dungeon.
The water here had reached Lu Yan's neck. If not for the dirty water, fearing drowning, Lu Yan would have switched from walking to swimming a long time ago.
Otherwise, evolving into a fish tail for nothing would be a pity.
As they moved, in the silent underground, there was only the faint sound of flowing water.
Soon, another sound reached Lu Yan's ears. It was the heavy breathing of a monster.
After turning corners and passing through corridors, they finally caught a glimpse of that monster.
[Jennifer, who grew by devouring people after becoming a pollutant, finally welcomed her moment of childbirth.]
[This stingy mother doesn't allow any threats to disturb her childbirth, especially considering the numerous people who have been eyeing the child in her belly over the years. Pregnancy indeed could trigger her motherly instincts, even if she doesn't particularly like children. Jennifer prefers to resolve all dangers in the cradle.]
Dim light vaguely illuminated the delivery room. Jennifer turned her head, staring motionless at the intruders.
Lu Yan had encountered many monsters. Among all the aberrant creatures, Jennifer's repulsiveness easily ranked in the top three.
Her belly protruded high like a hill, her entire body crawling on the ground like a beast, with limbs that seemed indistinguishable between arms and legs. Five in the front, four on the sides, and the two thickest were hind limbs.
Apart from the abdomen, the wife's entire body was skeletal, without skin, only a wriggling mass of flesh remaining. Her head had lost all human features long ago, resembling a monstrous formation of intertwined flesh. Thorns covered her body, and a long, slender tail with reflective hairs shone with a cold light.
When it detected a strange scent, it revealed its ferocious fangs, resembling a meat grinder.
Viscous saliva dripped onto the floor.
The system asked with regret: "[Do you like this kind of tail? Or do you only like tails of the same sex?]"
Lu Yan: "..."
The monster's body was extraordinarily massive, at least five meters tall, yet its movements were exceptionally agile.
It roared and approached; in an instant, Michael raised the holy sword, blocking its attack.
The monster's body collided with the sword, producing a piercing collision sound.
[The only somewhat burdensome thing for it is the fetus constantly moving on its belly. You better find a way to kill it soon. You have only 15 minutes left.]
15 minutes later, at 5 a.m., just before dawn.
From a scientific perspective, at this time, the angle between the planet and the sun was minimal, resulting in the weakest sunlight reflection in the atmosphere, and the moonlight was obscured. Therefore, this was also the darkest time of the day.
Pregnant for decades, Jennifer's belly swelled, almost translucent.
A tiny fissure opened in the center of her abdomen. Several delicate little hands, like birds pecking open an eggshell, forcefully peeled away the mother's belly.
The creature inside her wasn't humanoid. It was a combination of the merchant and his wife, not only possessing the wife's bizarre and deformed physique but also covered in eyes.
[Both physical and mental damage maxed out at birth. Truly worthy of summoning an evil god in five minutes.] The system gave a high evaluation, [If you hadn't come, the mother would have been its first meal after birth. The wife was indeed a preordained vessel.]
Michael's holy sword emitted a golden light. Where the divine light reached, it purified the world, suppressing evil spirits.
However, the monster did not retreat but roared and advanced, ignoring the erosion of the holy light, reaching out to grab Michael.
It had nine usable hands, using one pair to grab the sword and the other pair to reach for Michael.
Michael soared into the air, evading its attack.
The strength of the monster was unbelievably great; its tail forcibly pierced through the stone wall behind it.
Lu Yan gripped the dagger tightly, lurking in the water, searching for an opportunity to stab Jennifer's belly.
The injuries caused by the flames of hell were not as potent as the holy sword, but they were numerous and difficult to heal.
The monster was filled with anger, attempting to crush the golden mermaid beside it, but Lu Yan's underwater movements were extremely fast.
Jennifer could only splash a huge spray of water, raging helplessly in place.
The surging degree of mutation made Michael's attacks increasingly impatient, and he let out a heavy sigh.
The scent of blood spread in the delivery room. Lu Yan suffered some injuries, inevitably attracting agitated parasitic fish.
The kingfisher, at this moment, opened its mouth, emitting a low and threatening moan.
The tube-like parasitic fish hesitated not far from the water pond, afraid to approach.
Jennifer's tail swept heavily into the water, creating waves over ten meters high. In the splashes, Lu Yan's figure was revealed.
It lunged forward to bite, but Lu Yan transformed in an instant, narrowly escaping from its jaws. His hooked-like nails deeply pierced into the fleshy mass on the monster's face, leaving several bloodstains.
Lu Yan's blood flowed, splashing onto Jennifer's body, causing a momentary pause in the monster's movements.
Seizing this gap, Michael swung his sword towards its mango-like head.
...
In the beginning, the battles here followed some order and techniques, but as it progressed, combat reduced to the most primitive instincts. The monster's body was covered in wounds, with several arms broken. Large gashes adorned its belly, blood-soaked flesh rolling, and the intense pain of childbirth made it difficult to focus on the fight, only letting out a mournful wail.
The Hellfire dagger was embedded in its belly. Twenty-six years ago, this dagger had pierced her head, forcing both her and the child in her womb into a forced state of suspended animation. Others didn't fare much better.
Michael's arm had started to degenerate, with feathers growing on one arm, turning into wings. Another arm awkwardly held onto the sword, needing to continuously pluck feathers from the wing to reduce the deformity. Lu Yan's fish scales had grown up to his neck, and four nails were broken. Regeneration could restore his original hand, but not the newly grown claws.
Finally, this mountain-like monster knelt on the ground. Its body could no longer support the weight of its belly. Michael's expression briefly showed joy: "Is it over?" But reality proved him too optimistic.
The baby's cries rang out. The gap on the mother's belly had finally opened enough for it to burst out. Lu Yan hesitated for no moment, pulling the dagger out of the mother's body and shot it, hitting the fleshy mass squarely.
On the flesh, several eyes withered. However, the baby's actions were unaffected. He watched helplessly as a sticky mass squeezed out through the gap.
The rapidly rising pollution value caused Michael's dropped phone to emit intense alarms!
The system provided detailed data: [Kingfisher, mature phase.]
[In theory, it should only have half the eyes and not be this strong. However, decades of incubation have already fused it with the monster. Its form is a combination of the wife and the merchant, yet stronger than the two combined.]
[Talents: Mental Reconstruction, Delirium, Proliferation]
[Mutation Direction: Alienation, Evil Eyes]
[Pollution Value: 12000.]
The baby had just been born, yet its pollution value exceeded that of its mother.
The surrounding water surface quickly froze.
Since becoming a Harbinger, Lu Yan had long forgotten what cold felt like. But now, he felt a chill rushing into his body, and his limbs stiffened in an instant.
The little monster landed with a cry, searching for food while crying. Despite the cry, its face displayed a terrifying smile, and its eyes, completely degenerated, couldn't shed a tear.
[Talent 111 - Delirium]
Lu Yan also had this talent, barely able to resist. But Michael, already heavily injured, covered his ears in agony, coughing up large amounts of blood.
Michael crawled on the ground, no longer the majestic Archangel but a songbird with broken wings.
The little monster moved instantly to Michael's side, biting into his neck, emitting the sucking sound of feeding.
The intense pain caused Michael's body to convulse.
Its eyes, grown on its body, stared fixedly at Lu Yan, filled with undisguised greed and malice.
Michael's pupils dilated. He turned his head, looking at Lu Yan with difficulty, his voice as low as a moan: "...Go quickly."
A warm flow surged in Lu Yan's chest, an extreme warmth dispersing the cold in his body.
This was another talent of Michael's, a gift. It could temporarily lend his talents to others.
Michael lent Lu Yan the talent of Holy Light.
Lu Yan regained his mobility. He thought of the red flower Yan Bei gave him in his pocket, but this idea was quickly dismissed. Even ten red flowers wouldn't solve the problem of the child in front of him. But he couldn't leave. Lu Yan had encountered several pollutants with pollution values exceeding ten thousand, and the chances of escaping from these pollutants were zero.
This was pure force suppression. The infant in front of him, with just a glance, made him unable to move.
Lu Yan's tone was unprecedentedly calm and rapid: "You must have a way."
The system replied: [Yes. But you should be able to guess what I'll say.]
Yes, Lu Yan knew what the system wanted to say. This was the final trump card the system allowed him to use despite his frequent ventures into danger.
Lu Yan asked: "You had planned for him to come out early, didn't you?"
The system replied anxiously: [No, this is not the outcome I hoped for.]
Lu Yan took a deep breath.
From a very young age.
Lu Yan had heard his voice, saying, "If you're tired, you can entrust everything to me." Although the temptation was immense, Lu Yan never compromised.
Only once, due to the excruciating pain, he lost consciousness, allowing his brother to come out for an instant.
Without warning, Lu Yan began to cry.
It wasn't that Lu Yan wanted to cry, but his body could no longer resist the instinctive fear. Lu Yan called out his name: "Lu...Yan."
This was his own name.
But in an instant, Lu Yan heard his brother's soft laughter.
Lu Yan knew very well that this was an illusion in his mind, but his autonomous consciousness could no longer resist this kind of illusion.
After a moment, "I'm here."
A calm smile appeared on Lu Yan's face. Clearly smiling, yet devoid of any warmth.
He muttered to himself: "Then leave it to me, it's okay. Brother."
The dark clouds dispersed at this moment, revealing the moon that had been obscured for a long time.
The last bit of white halo on the moon was engulfed by the red light.
This was an extremely rare Blood Moon.
The "Kaiyuan Astrology · Moon Divination" once recorded: Blood Moon appears, the galaxy's energy exhausts, as if falling into hell.*
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