Someone at the base saw Yang Bo rushing out and muttered to himself that there was something wrong with Bird-Slaying Bro. Even the people at the base were puzzled.
When Yang Bo arrived at the mission turn-in point, the staff opened the bag and froze. The silver fur proclaimed its status, and they hurriedly summoned the base administrator.
In Yang Bo's view, the base administrator looked like an NPC. In reality, after seeing the Silver Mouse's corpse and the crude third-generation Blade Mecha, the administrator was stunned. This was a Rank A Mutant Creature. Since the base had been established, they had never killed even one.
Yang Bo waited boredly for the test results. The base did not believe that a mech of Yang Bo's level could have brought in such a haul.
"This is that Rank D Mutant Rat?" Several people at the base looked at the test report and immediately identified it. This Rank D Mutant Rat had been around for a long time. The terrain in that area was complex, making it hard to capture, so it had survived for years.
"I never expected it to be an A-Class creature. It must have some unique ability. Report it," the base administrator said.
Tens of thousands of kilometers above, aboard a colossal warship over a hundred kilometers long, a woman in a Federation Brigadier General's uniform was reading the report sent from Base 16 on the planet below.
"Send the specimen over immediately." Her loose military uniform concealed her figure, but her face was undeniably beautiful, though it carried a frosty air. She spoke only a few quiet words.
"Activate the Grade S Research Laboratory. I want to know everything about this rat as soon as possible. Use its materials to develop Gene Serum and begin testing immediately."
"Do not announce this news for now."
"As a personal reward, we can grant him a military rank."
Orders were issued one after another from the woman. The warship's optical computer carried them out. On the warship, however, the optical computer only served an auxiliary role, because anyone capable of becoming a Captain was at least an A-Class Gene Enhancer and had evolved in the intelligence direction. It was said that the terrifying processing power of such Gene Evolvers exceeded even that of an optical computer.
"A military rank? No thanks. I just want Gold Coins." After waiting an hour, Yang Bo finally received the results. It was an A-Class Mutated Creature, and an extremely rare Special A-Class Mutated Creature at that.
"Uh, are you sure you don't want it?" The base administrator was somewhat dumbfounded. Once he accepted a military rank, he would learn many things and receive numerous privileges.
Yang Bo sneered inwardly. Yes, military rank came with plenty of benefits, but Yang Bo knew clearly that this game was not a game—it was fucking real. Once he accepted it, his identity would become an issue. More importantly, he could be drafted at any time. Although he was not sure whether military rank in the game was linked to reality, Yang Bo did not dare gamble on it.
Yang Bo had no particular attachment to the Alliance. If the Alliance was ever invaded, he would hurry his ass off to another country.
"No. What's wrong with you people? Why are you being so damn long-winded over a game?" Yang Bo answered impatiently.
"Then, dear player, we would like to conduct a survey. Would that be convenient for you?" the base administrator asked again. They truly wanted to know exactly how Yang Bo had killed an A-Class Mutated Creature.
"Not convenient. Unless you're offering Game Coins, of course," Yang Bo said with a shake of his head.
"Uh, all right. Turning in an A-Class Mutated Creature earns thirty million Game Coins. Since the player turned in a special Mutated Creature, the reward is increased by twenty million, for a total of fifty million Gold Coins." The base management felt conflicted. This was fifty million.
If one of the base's large teams had encircled and killed an A-Class Mutated Creature, that would have been understandable. After all, their mechs and equipment were powerful. But this? A basic mech and an unreliable player...
"Hehe." Yang Bo had checked beforehand. An A-Class Mutated Creature was worth thirty million, A-Plus was worth one hundred million, and Grade S was worth one billion.
But Yang Bo also knew that whoever was behind the game would not lose money. If they took an A-Class creature back and made Gene Serum from it, then once it succeeded, who knew how many A-Class Gene Evolvers it could create.
Of course, there was also a chance of failure. A-Class Mutated Creatures came in many varieties. Some were weaklings without any special abilities and were not worth much.
Yang Bo was not envious of those who used Gene Serum at all, because his own abilities were even more awesome than theirs.
"Dear player, we would like to view your battle recording. We are willing to pay five million Gold Coins."
"Isn't five million too little?" Yang Bo muttered inwardly. Don't you officials have access to the backend?
What Yang Bo did not know was that the officials could view it, but they had to file an application and obtain authorization. The whole process was troublesome, involving data security, the military, mech manufacturers, players' game terminal devices, and more...
In the Federation, procedure always came first. As long as the procedure was correct, even killing a hundred people would not be a crime...
"Our base's authority is limited."
"Five million, then five million." Yang Bo nodded. Under their guidance, he signed an agreement and handed the recording of this battle over to the base.
"Haha, haha!" Yang Bo logged out of the game. Though he had not figured everything out, the gains were real enough.
He looked at his Stealth: Advanced (105/1000), Camouflage: Master (8210/10000). At the base, those who watched the recording slapped their thighs and swiftly dispatched dozens of guards and dozens of fighter jets to collect every corpse at the site. They gathered even the tiniest scraps of animal tissue.
During the process, they discovered five relatively intact Rank C Mutant Rat corpses, along with other blasted remains. It was roughly estimated that they belonged to a family group led by that A-Class Mutated Rat.
"Tsk, tsk." High above, inside the warship, the female officer finished watching the battle recording. Yang Bo had only provided the recording from this battle and none of the earlier footage. Her eternally icy expression finally changed.
The female officer closed her eyes. The next second, she began typing continuously. Several minutes later, the information was sent to a higher-level department.
The base also received the report. This A-Class Mutated Creature had purely fallen for a trap. Having lived for so many years, it was cautious, vigilant, and timid.
This time, it had caught the scent of food. Combined with other small animals feeding there, the Mutated Rat had brought its whole family for a meal. Who could have expected Yang Bo, that sneaky bastard, to place a Hydrogen Bomb beneath the cow's corpse?
The rat's powerful defenses had withstood the Hydrogen Bomb's shockwave, but its internal organs had been injured by the immense impact. This was related to the confined space at the time. On open ground, a Mutated Creature's speed could have allowed it to escape disaster.
Having grown from a D-Class creature, the rat had developed a timid and cautious nature.
At that moment, aboard the warship, the female officer's small mouth fell open as she stared at the paper report in disbelief. "Are you certain its special ability is Stealth?"
Before you continue