First Evolution

Su Ze knew at once that people from the mysterious organization had tracked Xu Sheng to his shop.

But they had only asked about Su Ze and had not tried to reclaim that vial of Tier 4 extract.

It seemed that even the mysterious organization was unwilling to clash with Evolution Technology over a single vial of Tier 4 extract.

After hanging up, Su Ze left the private room. It was already dark outside.

He went to the hot spring's front desk and said to the receptionist, "I'll be staying here for a few days. Extend my private room booking."

As he spoke, he directly paid twenty thousand.

"Oh, and have someone change my bedsheets. Also, don't arrange a masseuse for me."

"Y-Yes, sir." The receptionist froze for a moment before coming to her senses and nodding quickly.

Su Ze turned and left the hot spring, then hailed a taxi to a Life Pharmaceutical branch.

Life Pharmaceutical had two branches in Black Rock City. Su Ze went to the one closer to him.

Unlike Evolution Technology's branches, Life Pharmaceutical mainly sold various evolution medicines. Extracts and rare items were only secondary products, and there were not many of them for sale.

The Body Conditioning and Digestion Tablets Su Ze wanted were one of Life Pharmaceutical's flagship products. They were also the most expensive among similar medicines, but Su Ze was not short on money. He bought seven or eight bottles in one go, along with several bottles of Body Strengthening Pills, and applied for an unregistered Life Pharmaceutical membership card.

While applying for the card, Su Ze struck up a conversation with the store manager and asked him about Black Rock City.

Su Ze had spent several million in one purchase at their store, making him a major client. The manager treated him with great respect and answered every question he could.

Half an hour later, Su Ze left Life Pharmaceutical in high spirits.

The information he had asked the manager about was all in preparation for leaving Mu Kingdom. He could have simply asked Xu Sheng, but if Xu Sheng sold him out and leaked his information to the mysterious organization, he would be in danger. One could never be too careful.

Now that he had medicine to assist him, he would be able to completely digest the Rock Scorpion Extract and complete his first evolution in two or three days. After that, he needed to leave Mu Kingdom as soon as possible.

Su Ze's best option was to go to the neighboring Luofan Kingdom. There was no special reason for it—it was simply close.

Only the Black Rock Mountain Range stood between Black Rock City and Luofan Kingdom.

If he wanted to go to another country, he would first have to leave Black Rock City and head to another border city. He did not even have a legal identity, so the journey would certainly not go smoothly.

"To get to Luofan Kingdom, I'd have to take the border highway. It's an official road between the two countries, so it's safe, but the Zhao Family and the mysterious organization will definitely be guarding against me leaving the country. Taking that route would be walking straight into a trap!"

"If I want to get to Luofan Kingdom, I can only cross the border illegally..."

Su Ze took a deep breath. Crossing the border illegally was also extremely dangerous. It meant traversing the Black Rock Mountain Range, which was crawling with Exotic Beasts.

The Black Rock Mountain Range stretched across the border between Mu Kingdom and Luofan Kingdom. It was an obstacle that could not be bypassed.

"There are Tier 3 Exotic Beasts in the Black Rock Mountain Range. They may be rare, but encountering one means death. There are also plenty of Tier 2 Exotic Beasts, and I'm no match for them at all."

"I need to follow a team..."

Black Rock City, outskirts.

The foul-smelling Old Man who had once fought Zhang Fantie was now bent over, respectfully welcoming a figure shrouded entirely in shadow.

The man stepped out of the shadows. He appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with sharply defined features and a handsome, steady look. Unfortunately, his rainbow-colored punk hairstyle completely ruined his bearing.

If Su Ze saw his face, he would certainly recognize him. This was the mysterious man who had struck a deal with Zhao Lingxiao in Qinggu City and sent Zhao Lingxiao to kill Princess Zhuzhi.

"Elder Feng." The foul-smelling Old Man bowed.

"Steward Diao, have you found that Zhao Family brat?" Elder Feng, the punk-haired middle-aged man, asked.

"Not yet, but I've already had people keep a close watch on several key routes, including Black Rock Airport and the border highway. I've also sent Spider to conduct a carpet search across all of Black Rock City. He can't hide for long," Steward Diao, the foul-smelling Old Man, said.

Elder Feng nodded. "Find him at all costs. Every Bloodline Crystal is crucial. There can be no mistakes."

"Your subordinate will do his utmost!" Steward Diao hurriedly said. "There is one more matter. Your subordinate discovered that the Zhao Family has also been searching everywhere for Zhao Lingxiao today. They have stationed people at every major transportation route. This morning, that Zhao Family enforcer received a phone call and immediately moved to capture Zhao Lingxiao. We feared something might change, so we acted ahead of time."

"As I recall, Zhao Yuanyi has only this one son. Why has the Zhao Family suddenly changed its attitude and decided to capture him?"

Elder Feng frowned slightly and scratched his rainbow-colored afro. "After I guided that Zhao Family brat into agreeing to the deal that day, I left Qinggu City. The capitals of every nation are forbidden grounds to us. Even I would not dare linger there for long. It seems some interesting things happened after I left. What a pity. It looks like I missed a good show."

Steward Diao said, "Should we send someone to Qinggu City to investigate?"

Elder Feng nodded. "Make the arrangements."

Two days later.

Jade Sea Hot Spring City.

To reduce the risk of exposure, Su Ze had stayed inside his private room at the hot spring for two days without leaving. All his food and drinks had been delivered by the establishment.

After two days and nights of nonstop pill-popping, he had finally completely digested the Rock Scorpion Extract.

His physical condition had improved again, and he had adjusted himself to peak condition. At last, he could begin evolving.

Huff!

Su Ze let out a long breath. Though he felt that his evolution was a sure thing, he could not help feeling nervous at this crucial moment.

Su Ze closed his eyes and lay down on the large bed. Evolution did not require him to sit cross-legged like someone practicing martial arts in a novel. Any comfortable position would do; there were no requirements for posture.

Once he had found his most relaxed position, Su Ze sensed the Evolutionary Force within his body. As a Mortal Lifeform, the Evolutionary Force in his body had no color. It merely emitted a faint, transparent Evolutionary Light, like a lightbulb with insufficient power.

Evolve!

With a thought from Su Ze, the Evolutionary Force within his body began flowing on its own, coursing through his entire body like blood. It was as though this was an instinct. Su Ze did not need to control it, nor could he control it.

As it flowed, the Evolutionary Light emitted by the Evolutionary Force gradually took on color, slowly turning crimson.

Crimson Evolutionary Light represented the Pupal stage after completing the first evolution. The Evolutionary Force within Su Ze's body had already transformed into Pupal-stage Evolutionary Force.

Yet the evolution was not over. The crimson Evolutionary Force began slowly traveling through Su Ze's body. Wherever it passed, Su Ze's body underwent transformation under its influence.

From his skin to his blood, muscles, fat, bones... every aspect was transforming, evolving!

Every cell in Su Ze's body was undergoing a complete rebirth, while his genes were rewritten under the influence of the Evolutionary Force.

When the Evolutionary Force reached Su Ze's heart and brain, it lingered for an especially long time, as if remaking those two places was a massive undertaking.

Finally, the Evolutionary Force traveled through his entire body and gradually faded away into him.

Su Ze suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze shone brilliantly, bright as stars.

The evolution was complete!