It's 7:19 AM, and there's no sign of the sun rising yet. In the pitch-black night, the crimson moon casts a hazy blood-red glow. The streetlights are dim, and amidst the moonlight and blood-red hues, Lu Yan, cloaked in black, appears inconspicuous. With each step he takes, drops of blood stain the ground, his clothes soaked with the crimson liquid. Even the freshly washed white rabbit would now appear dirty. It's human nature to seek advantage and avoid harm, and pollutants are no exception. As the scent of blood grows stronger on Lu Yan, even the pollutants avoid him, not just humans. This complicates Lu Yan's hunting, as some of the high-level butchers on his list start fleeing upon catching his scent, adding unnecessary complications to his task.
"Your scent is too mixed; anyone can tell it's not just one pollutant. Before, there was a butcher who contracted mad cow disease and ate infected meat. That mad cow was slaughtered by Lu Zhi when the contamination value was about to break ten thousand."
Lu Zhi hires butchers, unaware that in her eyes, they're merely livestock.
"After that incident, a rule was established at the abattoir prohibiting the killing of the same kind. However, there are still some bloodthirsty butchers who find slaughtering livestock unsatisfying."
Extended use of his talent has made Lu Yan's mutation features particularly pronounced. He feels that if the workers from the Disease Prevention and Control Center were to record him now, he might even earn himself a nickname like "Scissorhands" and be registered as an advanced pollutant.
Just as Lu Yan prepares to set out in search of Zong Yan, the system suddenly alerts: "Your fishpond is on fire."
"07 has found 03 and, based on the location of the flies at the abattoir, located 05 and 06."
"They may be a painter and an animal science graduate, but neither stands a chance against 07, whether or not he's turned into a pollutant. After all, even military academy cadets must learn combat techniques."
Though they've received special operations training, having just been released from life pods, their combat experience is still too limited.
Lu Yan's expression darkens. "Where are they?"
In the next moment, a small orange dot lights up on the map in Lu Yan's mind.
A bit far away...
...
...
07 slowly raises a hand, and a black flame gathers in his palm.
Yan Bei opens his headset and tells Li Ping, "Lead the others to evacuate first. Head east, 14 kilometers away. Bai Qiu and Zhou Kaiwen are nearby."
After urgent repairs by the workers, the Bluetooth headsets have regained some basic functionality over short distances.
Li Ping's tone is urgent, with a hint of tears, "What about you? Yan Bei, you're not fit for combat now. Please... come with us."
"He won't let me go."
With that, Yan Bei hangs up the phone.
He attempts to negotiate with 07, "We'll go with you if you let go of Zong Yan. Or let me carry him."
07 tilts his head slightly, puzzled.
Yan Bei explains, "The pope is in poor health, and being too close to you could easily push his mutation rate over 100."
Butterfly wings have pierced through Zong Yan's shoulder blades. The burns make the pope furrow his brows in pain even in his unconscious state.
07 ponders for a moment before replying, "It doesn't matter."
Pushing the other test subjects' mutation rates over 100 was 01's goal from the start.
Even if they can't integrate into human society, it doesn't matter; after all, humanity may not even exist in the future. They will establish a new order and kingdom amidst the ruins.
Upon hearing this, even Yuan Chen, who had remained silent all this time, visibly pales.
He studied animal science, entomology. He frequently ventured into rainforests and interacted with various small animals. Unfortunately, during a research expedition, they encountered multi-legged larvae that turned into pollutants. His mentor was engulfed by the swarm, and before he died, he pushed Yuan Chen out of the deep pit with all his strength.
Yuan Chen narrowly escaped that part of the rainforest, but because the wound kept sprouting larvae, he was rushed to the first research institute for emergency treatment.
During the funeral, Yuan Chen vowed to relentlessly pursue these pollutants because his teacher was watching him from above.
Regardless of their initial intentions for becoming volunteers, there's no doubt they all harbor the same hatred toward pollutants.
If given the choice, Yuan Chen would have preferred to be an ordinary person. Without significant abilities, there would be no need to bear such great responsibilities. Unfortunately, fate never offers choices.
Yuan Chen's movement toward 07 comes to a halt.
He stiffly raises his head; 07 is tall, and becoming a pollutant has made him even taller, standing there like a tree.
Finally, Yuan Chen notices what's peculiar about Zong Yan on the other side.
The gaze from the opposite side resembles a calm lake, devoid of the joy and excitement of reunion, nor does it hold any warmth.
Subconsciously, Yuan Chen takes a step back.
In an instant, the black flame ignites, blazing fiercely, offering only scorching heat without light.
A golden feather floats down from the sky, landing perfectly on Zong Yan's face.
The feathers melted on Qin Woyu's face like butter sinking into hot water, quickly forming a faint protective film on his body.
[Ability 30 - Holy Light]
Michael's holy sword arrived on the battlefield before him: "Take people away. Do I agree?"
The holy sword, enveloped in holy light, pierced through the darkness like a spear of judgment descending from the sky.
07 didn't look up. Around him, black flames danced, intertwining into spears, thrusting towards the holy sword.
The nearby skyscrapers couldn't withstand the pressure, breaking like paper, with large chunks of debris falling down, causing panic among the crowds in safer areas.
At this moment, not only in the inner world but even in the outer world, cracks visible to the naked eye appeared in the buildings.
Hidden in the shadows, Bai Qiushi couldn't hold back anymore and cursed, "Damn it, stand still!"
According to the plan, he was supposed to sneak attack while 07 and Michael were engaged in combat. Obviously, now was not the best time.
Unfortunately, Bai Qiushi couldn't bear to watch ordinary people being crushed to death.
[Ability 392 - Heavy Pressure], but this time, the pressure wasn't downward but upward.
Huge stones were lifted by invisible hands and then moved aside, crashing heavily onto the ground.
Pits of various sizes appeared on the ground.
The interplay of fire and fire illuminated the sky with a brilliant light.
But the two kinds of flames were not evenly matched.
The black flames engulfed the golden light, Michael spat out blood, swaying unsteadily.
Bai Qiushi took out the Cicada Wing Blade, and the transparent cicada wings behind him trembled, emitting a buzzing sound.
He pierced through layers of flames, launching an almost suicidal attack.
In the blink of an eye, Bai Qiushi was engulfed in flames and appeared in front of Zong Yan.
07 still held Qin Woyu in his arms, while his other hand dealt with Michael's holy sword.
A fierce smile appeared on Bai Qiushi's face: "Does anyone really think that only Tang Xunan in the entire First Zone can fight?"
He wielded his blade, aiming for 07's forehead.
Zong Yan didn't dodge.
Or rather, he didn't need to dodge at all.
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