The Beginning of the Experiment

Chapter 29: The Beginning of the Experiment

Beneath the stone wall, white cooking smoke continuously drifted from a dilapidated wooden house. The faint aroma of meat mingled with the fresh scent of fruit, filling the air. Not far from the house, the clear stream gurgled incessantly.

"Gulp!"

Sally squatted before the bonfire, hugging her knees, looking incredibly well-behaved. Her large purple eyes were fixed on the cured meat simmering in the iron pot, its fragrance wafting out. From time to time, she'd raise a small hand to wipe away the drool.

"Slime, is it ready to eat?"

"Wait a moment, Sally. And I have a name, it's Lu Minghao."

As he spoke, Lu Minghao grabbed a wooden stick and stirred the cured meat in the iron pot. He then turned to look at Sally, who was like a little greedy cat, and smiled gently. Only at times like this did she reveal the childlike side belonging to her age.

"Got it, got it."

Sally pouted and glanced at Lu Minghao. Her big eyes couldn't hide her happiness. She really liked this feeling. She was no longer alone.

"Alright, let's eat."

A few minutes later, Lu Minghao looked at the cured meat, which was almost cooked. He casually picked up two wooden bowls from the side, placed most of the meat into Sally's bowl, and then handed it to the little greedy cat beside him, who had been eagerly waiting.

"Hehe, thank you, Minghao."

Sally giggled foolishly at the meat in her bowl. Without bothering with the heat, she grabbed the largest piece, but then offered it to Lu Minghao.

Seeing Sally's stubbornness, not eating unless he ate, Lu Minghao could only nod. Sally's smile grew even brighter. She directly shoved the meat in her hand into Lu Minghao's mouth. Only after it was completely digested did she pick up her bowl and bury her entire little head in it.

"Still, after being away for so long, I wonder how my old neighbors are doing."

Looking at Sally, whose face was smeared with oil from eating, Lu Minghao gently wiped the corner of her mouth. He grabbed a worm from the wooden basket, skewered it with a wooden stick, and placed it over the fire to roast. Watching the worm writhe under the flames, Lu Minghao inexplicably thought of his former good neighbors.

While Lu Minghao and Sally were enjoying their lunch, far away from them, in the deepest part of the sewers of a border town in the Eastern Empire.

At this moment, in the Underground Kingdom of the Giant Rat tribe, Dikas was excitedly watching his body transform. His originally dark scales were becoming deeper, and his rodent-like face was gradually becoming more human-like. The claws on his arms grew sharper, and his entire body was enveloped in an ominous black aura.

Beside Dikas, the Shadow Rats looked at him with increasing fear. A Giant Rat closest to Dikas accidentally touched a wisp of black energy from Dikas. Its eyes widened abruptly, as if they were about to be squeezed out, and its body instantly withered.

Crack!

The next second, under the terrified gazes of the other Shadow Rats, cracks began to appear on the body of that Shadow Rat. It fell to the ground with a bang, exploding into pieces, its two eyes filled with terror rolling out.

Its flesh, soul, and Magic Elements had all vanished, completely devoured.

The moment the Giant Rat died, a flush appeared on Dikas's face. His human-like face couldn't help but become greedy and excited.

"Hoo hoo... Where is that human?"

Dikas trembled, his scarlet eyes fixed on the increasingly fearful Shadow Rats before him. He asked in a hoarse voice, word by word.

The next second, all the Shadow Rats turned and ran towards Diri's room. They knew that if they were any slower, Dikas, who was about to lose control, would tear them to shreds and devour them.

"They're finally here?"

Inside the room, Diri expressionlessly wiped his short sword. Just now, the moment Dikas successfully adapted to the ancient human hero bloodline gene he possessed, the bloodline factors within Diri also began to stir, urging him to kill and devour the one who had stolen his power.

"Charles, you're watching, aren't you?"

Suddenly, Diri looked up at a certain spot in the room, his dark pupils fixed there as if he were making eye contact with someone. During his recovery period, Diri had noticed the strangeness of his escape from the laboratory.

The passage, which should have been patrolled by soldiers 24 hours a day, was empty. The laboratory's once impenetrable defense mechanism was full of loopholes. At the time, Diri, only concerned with escaping, had attributed it to the laboratory's lack of records of invasions and escaped test subjects, and the soldiers' complacency.

However, when he escaped the laboratory and was secretly led here by Dikas, Diri began to doubt his successful escape.

But, severely injured as he was, he had no possibility of escaping when surrounded by so many Giant Rats. Moreover, Diri harbored a sliver of hope: what if the laboratory's defense mechanism really had loopholes, and the soldiers had become complacent?

But recently, when Diri discovered that the human doctor responsible for his treatment took his blood every day, his unease grew. Until just now, when he sensed that someone had successfully stolen his ancient human hero bloodline gene.

At that moment, Diri understood. He had never truly escaped the laboratory. What he thought was an escape was actually just part of the experiment. And Diri was absolutely certain that Charles was watching him from the shadows at this very moment.

"I will definitely survive!"

The next second, Diri, having figured everything out, regained his composure. He quietly hid the short sword in his clothes and pushed open the stone door. Outside the door, the numerous Giant Rats who had just arrived looked at the human who had suddenly emerged. They felt that his aura was somewhat similar to their king, Dikas.

Faced with this turn of events, the Shadow Rats froze, momentarily unsure of what to do.

"Lead the way!"

Diri looked at the numerous Shadow Rats before him with a blank expression. As soon as he spoke, the Shadow Rats instinctively parted, revealing a path leading to Dikas's location.

Snap! Snap! Snap!

In the dark passage, only Diri's increasingly heavy footsteps echoed. As he drew closer to Dikas's location, Diri's dark pupils grew deeper, and the blood within him became more agitated, with wisps of black energy coiling around his body.

From a distance, Diri at this moment resembled a demon god from ancient times. The numerous Shadow Rats trembled and lowered their heads, daring not to approach Diri.

"You've come!"

Inside the room, in the dim light, a pair of scarlet pupils lit up in the darkness. Dikas, nearly three meters tall, slowly emerged, his tyrannical aura pressing down on the air like a physical entity.

"Dikas, you should know, this is just an experiment."

Diri calmly looked at the greatly transformed Dikas before him, stating the facts in a calm tone.

"I know, but so what? Right now, I only want to become the 'perfect' creature and possess great power. Even if this is an experiment, what does it matter?"

Dikas's human-like face slowly split open, revealing jagged teeth that made him look even more ferocious and terrifying. Driven by his desire for power and evolution, Dikas no longer cared if this was an experiment. Even if it was an experiment, as long as he devoured Diri and became an Upper Demon, he wouldn't be eliminated as a failure!

Therefore, for the sake of power and survival, Dikas had to make Diri his nourishment.

There is one more chapter. I had to go out today and returned too late, so the update time is a bit delayed.