Threat

After forcibly relying on the computing power of his brain to restore all six sides of the Rubik's Cube without using any patterns,

Su Shijie could clearly sense Su Ren relax. Then he let out a strange cry.

"You're still suspicious of me? Am I really your biological son?"

"I'm just verifying it. Better safe than sorry."

Su Ren wore an indifferent expression.

"What if I hadn't solved it? Would you have executed your own son for the greater good?"

Su Shijie complained.

After saying that, he saw Su Ren fall silent. Then he gave Su Shijie a broad smile.

"Even if you turn into an evil god, you'll still be my son."

Looking at his old man's smile, Su Shijie froze for a moment before rolling his eyes and clicking his tongue.

"A Contaminated Beast has already appeared. It shouldn't be far."

This place was actually less than a kilometer in a straight line from Residential Zone 2. But because of the jungle's complex terrain, searching it by elimination was troublesome.

After all, the complicated three-dimensional terrain here was practically in a different dimension from the subway tunnels, not to mention the trouble they might encounter along the way.

Because they had found a Contaminated Beast, the two slowed down and began investigating the area bit by bit.

"Did you find something?"

As Su Shijie searched for clues, he saw his old man suddenly stop in front of a tree trunk as massive as a city wall and reach out to touch its bark. Finding it strange, he spoke as he leaped over.

He also took out a flashlight and shone it over.

With the fluorescent plants and fireflies, their eyesight was enough to move through the jungle. But to inspect anything carefully, Su Shijie still needed a light source.

Under the beam, the patch of bark Su Ren was touching appeared to differ slightly in color from the surrounding area if one looked closely.

Even with the flashlight and standing so close, Su Shijie could barely make out the difference. Yet his old man had spotted it from far away. The gap between them, whether in strength or experience, was obvious.

Still, the clue left Su Shijie somewhat excited.

"Dad, is this related to the Contamination Source?"

"Perhaps..."

Su Ren's tone suddenly turned grave. He took out a dagger and began cutting along the patch of bark with the subtle color difference.

The giant trees in this jungle were as hard as steel, and so was their bark.

Even with Su Ren's strength measured in tons and the special alloy dagger in his hand, cutting through it took some effort.

But Su Shijie soon realized that what Su Ren had cut out did not seem to be related to the Contamination Source.

It reflected a metallic sheen under the light.

"Bullet fragments."

Su Ren's words stunned Su Shijie.

Bullet fragments seemed normal enough, didn't they?

"Judging by the depth and the growth of the outer bark, the bullet was fired not long ago. It was also from an electromagnetic rifle. An ordinary handgun couldn't penetrate this deeply."

After blowing the wood chips off his hand and sheathing the dagger again, Su Ren stated his judgment in a low voice.

That made Su Shijie fall into thought as well.

In other words, armed personnel had come near here recently?

Had they possibly discovered the Contamination Source nearby?

"Not necessarily. We haven't found it either."

The jungle's complicated terrain could completely evade one's search even from just a meter or two away.

"No. Anyone who came here carrying an electromagnetic rifle would definitely know there was a Contamination Source nearby."

Su Ren used the wooden rod attached to his foot to nudge several clumps of black mushrooms growing atop the nearby roots.

"These are Ghost Mushrooms. Along with Ghost Flowers and Ghost Grass, they're the most common markers found near a Contamination Source. They must be reported as soon as they're discovered.

"Judging by the timing, I still haven't received any news. There may be a problem."

Even for a low-level Contamination Source, as long as someone provided clues and intelligence that were confirmed to be genuine, the first person to report it could receive a reward of up to a million.

That was equivalent to being directly awarded a livable home in the Floating City—money an ordinary person could never earn in a lifetime.

Su Shijie made money quickly because he had lived two lives, had researched games, and possessed a passion for them. Games in this era focused more on technology. Many of the wild techniques that had spread in his previous life had yet to appear here—or perhaps others had discovered them but would not willingly share them.

Combined with his quick mind, Su Shijie could still secure his own share of benefits. He was, in a way, standing halfway in the right place at the right time.

But even so, if not for using the Contamination Source to verify and improve themselves, neither Su Shijie nor Su Ren would have passed up the chance for that reward.

Yet there had been no news at all. That was indeed strange.

"Did something happen to them?"

Accidents in the wild were common. But this place was not far from Residential Zone 2 and was close to the shelter's perimeter. In theory, all potential threats should have been within controllable limits.

A low-level Contamination Source had a limited threat level over a short period. Otherwise, Su Ren would not have personally brought Su Shijie out to search for one.

"Someone who could bring a rifle out shouldn't go down that easily..."

But just as Su Ren said this,

he suddenly raised his head and looked up.

Then he grabbed Su Shijie and leaped backward.

The violent yank on his arm made Su Shijie feel as if it were about to break.

The howling wind by his ears and the rolling shockwave made his head buzz.

The world spun around him.

The agonizing pain in his arm made him suspect his bones and ligaments had been injured.

But when he recovered his senses, he saw a massive black wolf ahead of them.

Several extremely distinct claw marks had appeared on the giant tree root where he and his old man had been standing moments ago.

To leave such marks on roots as hard as iron, even his old man swinging at full force might not have done much better.

It was clearly just a wolf, yet it was sturdier than the wild boar from before.

All three of its eyes were filled with madness. Another mouth had grown on the side of its head, dripping saliva. Jagged fangs interlocked within it.

Its exaggerated claws, utterly disproportionate to its body, all indicated that this was another Contaminated Beast!

And a very powerful one at that!

Just standing before Su Shijie, its savage bloodthirsty aura made his heart race and left him feeling as though he could barely breathe.

Its ambush had failed, and this Contaminated Beast had likely already realized how powerful Su Ren was.

If it had been an ordinary beast, or even a Spirit Beast, it would have retreated at a time like this.

It was only a meal. Why risk its life?

But a Contaminated Beast's madness and bloodlust gave it no option to retreat.

It paced around the two of them step by step, seemingly searching for an opening.

"Be careful. I may not be able to watch over you anymore. This was at least a Level 7, perhaps even a Level 8, Awakened Rank Spirit Beast before it was contaminated. It may be stronger than me."

Su Ren drew the alloy Tang Heng Dao at his waist with his right hand. The hook on his left wrist pulled the handgun from the holster beneath his arm.

With a twist, it locked into the notch on the iron hook.

This handgun was clearly different from the ordinary Electromagnetic Handgun Su Shijie had used before. It was far bulkier—a M-7 pistol known as an electromagnetic hand cannon.

Clearly, against a Contaminated Beast of this level, an ordinary Electromagnetic Handgun had very limited killing power. But Su Ren's weapon would still be effective.

If it were a Spirit Beast, even one at Awakened Rank Level 9 would normally be unable to threaten Su Ren.

However, after being contaminated, not only would its temperament become violent and bloodthirsty, but its overall strength would increase by at least twofold!

The difference in raw stats across an entire Awakened Rank level was only around forty-five percent. With its strength at least doubling, if this had transformed from a Level 8 Spirit Beast, it would be even more troublesome than a normal Late Level 9 Spirit Beast.

But encounters in the wild were not decided by raw stats alone. All sorts of factors had to be considered.

If you were killed, you died. That was an iron law.

With Su Ren's wealth of experience, if he were alone, he would have a real chance.

But with Su Shijie, this deadweight, he would instead be under even greater pressure...