Chapter 11: The Equally Mysterious Survivor

【You have slain the Corrupted Mutant Beast-Human (Lv. 10).】
【You have completed the side quest—The End of Deformed Evolution.】
【Quest Description: With contamination upon us, those whose minds have been twisted have become obsessed with inhuman powers, deluded into believing they have found the path to evolution. Little do they know, this marks the beginning of civilization's destruction.】
【Your personal rating has significantly increased.】

Confidence stems from strength far surpassing that of cultivators at the same level. The vast majority of players, even upon reaching rank C, may never acquire as many resources as Lu Wenwu has. In this world, one must strive to be the best. The strong remain strong, and only grow stronger.

“I said, don’t panic. I’ll handle this.”

Lu Wenwu wiped the bloodstains from his right arm. Suddenly, his entire body surged with vitality, and the jet-black battle armor gleamed as if brand new. A black aura, visible only to Lu Wenwu, emanated from the massive corpse and swiftly flowed into his body.

【You have gained 1 free attribute point.】

This was the activation of the talent, Evil Nemesis.

Super Niu Niu wiped the fresh blood splattered on his face and sniffed the nauseating stench. Even now, it felt unreal.

So this is what it means to be a top-tier player!

Now, the way he looked at Lu Wenwu was as if he were staring at a god or a ghost.

One punch to instantly kill a D+ rank boss? Is this even human?

Is this something a D-rank player who’s only been in the initial dungeon once could achieve?

The dungeon bosses of the same rank are usually much stronger than the players!

No wonder this man earned the title “Unbelievable.”

I’m determined to cling to these thick legs of his—no one, not even Buddha, can stop me!

“Indeed, heroes emerge early. I underestimated you,” Ye Hongyuan said with a wry smile, bowing respectfully. “According to the usual dungeon logic, we would have had to kill or avoid that patrol squad first, then flee under the pursuit of the mutant beast-humans. Didn’t expect we could save so much trouble.”

“Brother Wu’s strength is extraordinary; he is destined to become a pillar of the nation,” Wei Long said as he stood up, dusting off the dirt and grime, his face full of admiration.

With Lu Wenwu’s power, they now had a real chance to clear this dungeon that had devoured many extraordinary beings’ lives.

The sheer might of that single punch unquestionably surpassed rank D.

Super Niu Niu and Yuan Shi also wanted to say something.

Just then, another quest notification appeared.

【Quest Notice: Locate the Survivor Camp.】

“This place isn’t safe to linger. The captain and I will go scout...”

Yuan Shi was about to suggest that he and Wei Long scout ahead, but Lu Wenwu interrupted again.

“Brother Yuan, you forgot—we have Mao Mao with us,” Lu Wenwu said, patting the dog’s head. “When it was circling earlier, it already found the location. We can just head straight there.”

Mao Mao proudly nodded, panting happily.

Yuan Shi: “...”

He couldn’t help but feel that the last ten years of his reconnaissance service had been wasted, with no place to prove his worth.

Damn it!

Though a bit frustrated, Mao Mao was so adorable that he decided to just accept it.

Wei Long smiled broadly at the disgruntled Yuan Shi and patted his shoulder, then stored the mutant beast-human corpse in his backpack to dispose of the evidence.

...

With Mao Mao leading the way, the group avoided a lot of trouble.

Not only did they easily bypass the patrol squads that appeared intermittently, but they also effortlessly found the so-called survivor camp.

Called a camp, it was actually a highly concealed underground facility.

Following Mao Mao’s lead, they twisted and turned until they found a hidden secret passage in the basement of a building that looked no different from ruins.

The entrance was narrow, barely wide enough for two slim people to walk side by side.

The strongest, Lu Wenwu, led the way holding the bulletproof heavy shield provided by Wei Long.

The spicy snack duo switched to submachine guns suited for close combat, turning on tactical flashlights mounted on their rails, ready to fire at a moment’s notice.

Super Niu Niu and Mao Mao took up the middle, while the healer Ye Hongyuan was protected at the rear.

However, they might have been overly cautious.

They moved through the narrow corridor for about three minutes without encountering a single attack.

There were no guards, not even a locked security door.

It felt like a place with the front door always wide open, welcoming invaders.

At the end of the corridor was a large hall crisscrossed with pipelines, constantly running ventilation fans, heavy double security doors, and dim but sufficient lighting illuminating every corner...

Everything about this place suggested it was a formidable, permanent underground fortress.

But the survivors still living here were somewhat strange.

Without the insight of his perceptive eye, Lu Wenwu would have trouble even calling them “normal survivors.”

From their appearance, these survivors were indistinguishable from the contaminated.

Their grotesqueness was like a riot of mutations.

Compared to them, even David Jones would seem handsome.

One might think they had arrived at some biochemical beast transformation base!

These survivors lay sprawled on the floor of the hall, sleeping rough without any order, not even sparing the assassination squad a glance upon their arrival.

Only Mao Mao was delighted, running and frolicking about the hall.

Now and then, it would stop to lick a survivor’s claw, sniff an unknown tentacle, or tap on a shell like a mantis shrimp.

“Wu, are you sure these are survivors? Mao Mao didn’t lead us into a nest of contaminated by mistake?” Super Niu Niu asked nervously.

Mainly because he was scared.

Lu Wenwu remained silent, frowning as he scrutinized the bizarre creatures scattered about.

Ye Hongyuan pushed up his glasses and said gravely, “Judging by their eyes, their minds haven’t been twisted into madness. But their bodies...”

“It’s the contamination’s doing, turning us into these half-human, half-monster abominations,” a voice croaked hoarsely.

One survivor appeared annoyed by Mao Mao’s licking, swatting a third tentacle on his right shoulder to scare it, then spoke in a hoarse male voice.

He sounded like a middle-aged man.

Wei Long frowned. “You have no defenses here? The contaminated patrol squads must be searching for you. Are you just waiting to die? They’ll find your hiding place soon.”

“What else can we do? We can’t fight them, we can’t escape, and we keep getting followed by a bunch of idiots who throw their lives away. Whatever—we live one day at a time.”

The middle-aged man sneered and closed the five eyes on his chest. His three arms and seven tentacles lifted in a helpless shrug, looking utterly defeated.

Everyone could see these survivors had given up.

They were like stray dogs under a bridge, agreeing to everything without hope.

Completely disillusioned, just going through the motions.

...

...

...

【PS: Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! An extra update every Monday at midnight, with the regular two updates daily at noon as usual.】