Splash~
The river churned, and a green Giant Python burst from the water with a fat pig clamped in its jaws, heading toward the woods. But moments after entering the trees, its pupils suddenly contracted.
Whoosh~
The green Giant Python dropped its prey and darted over to the half of a snake's tail that had been roasted to perfection. "Wife!"
The green Giant Python could actually speak human language. That was the mark of a Third-Order Mutated Beast!
His wife was dead, and all that remained was half her body?
"Child!"
The green Giant Python seemed to remember something and hurried toward its nest. When he reached it, he found his home already overturned, shattered snake eggs scattered about, and the rich, charred aroma of roasted eggs in the air.
"My child!"
The green Giant Python roared, its pupils narrowing to slits. "The scent of humans. A cultivator killed my whole family!"
"I'll have my revenge. I've memorized your scent. I'll make you pay, even if I have to chase you to the ends of the earth!"
The green Giant Python let out a low growl, then darted away from the woods.
He knew that after humans exterminated Mutated Creatures, they would send people to clean up the battlefield. If he showed himself now and drew the attention of powerful humans, he would never be able to avenge his wife and child.
To get his revenge, the green Giant Python had no choice but to leave for now, search for his enemy in secret, and wait for the right moment to strike!
Lin Chen had no idea that a Mutated Beast had already set its sights on him. But even if he had known, he wouldn't have worried. He would have been delighted instead.
A source of origin essence had practically delivered itself to his door!
By the time Lin Chen reached the Eastern Suburbs, it was nearly noon. He decided to get off early and find somewhere to fill his belly first. Only then would he have the strength to bring warmth to the Mutated Beasts.
He picked a restaurant at random. As soon as he entered the dining hall, he spotted a table piled high with chicken, duck, and fish. A burly, bald man was wolfing down everything on it.
"Monks these days drink and eat meat?"
Seeing the precepts scars on the man's head, Lin Chen was slightly taken aback. He wasn't an ordinary person at all, but a monk who had left home to join the clergy.
As if sensing Lin Chen's gaze, the monk glanced up at him, then lowered his head and continued eating, completely ignoring the strange looks from those around him.
Lin Chen shook his head and didn't make a fuss. He found a seat and ordered a few meat dishes. Since becoming a cultivator, he had clearly noticed that his appetite had grown considerably.
By the time Lin Chen started eating, the monk had already finished. He quickly paid the bill and left the restaurant.
"Monks these days drink and eat meat—and he just ate enough for three or four people." The owner couldn't help sighing as he served Lin Chen's food.
While customers were around, the owner couldn't very well say anything. Now that the man had left, he had nothing to hold back.
"Enough for three or four people? He can eat that much? Could he be a cultivator too?"
Lin Chen was slightly taken aback, and couldn't help wondering whether the monk was a cultivator. But then he shook his head. Cultivators weren't cabbages—how could you run into them everywhere you went?
After lunch, Lin Chen headed toward the Unfinished Building. It took him more than ten minutes to reach the area. But as soon as he arrived at the entrance, he froze.
"Someone's here?"
Lin Chen looked at the Off-Road Vehicle parked beside the Unfinished Building. The tire tracks in the dirt were fresh; whoever owned it had clearly parked there not long ago.
"Don't tell me someone beat me to it again?"
Lin Chen's face darkened. Were Bounty Missions involving Mutated Beasts really so popular now?
"Hope the Mutated Beast is still here!"
Lin Chen hurried into the Unfinished Building grounds through a gap in the blue metal sheets someone had torn open. Weeds covered the ground, and he could just make out traces of people passing through. Even though it was an Unfinished Building, people still came by now and then.
There was also a clearly fresh trail. It had to belong to the person in the vehicle outside. Lin Chen hurriedly followed the tracks toward one of the buildings.
Crack~
A crisp sound suddenly came from beneath his foot. Lin Chen looked down and saw the white bones of some unknown animal. Its flesh had already vanished.
The closer Lin Chen got to the Unfinished Building, the more bones he found on the ground. He couldn't tell what kind of animals they belonged to.
"That's..."
Lin Chen's eyes were drawn to a pile of bones in the corner of the Unfinished Building. His expression shifted. "Human bones!"
He couldn't identify the animal bones, but human bones were easy to recognize. Their size and shape were almost exactly like the human skeletons he'd seen in movies and TV shows!
"Looks like there really is a Mutated Beast here!"
Lin Chen's eyes lit up as he examined the bite marks on the bones. The flesh had clearly been gnawed away by something; there was no way it could have rotted that quickly on its own.
The trail left by those people vanished once it reached the concrete floor of the Unfinished Building. Lin Chen had no choice but to go inside and investigate. But as soon as he entered, a loud crash suddenly came from underground, and the whole building shuddered.
"No wonder this place was left unfinished. This thing's built like tofu!"
Lin Chen rushed right back outside. Looking up at the dozen-story Unfinished Building, he couldn't help feeling speechless. If it collapsed, even he probably wouldn't be able to withstand it.
"If Buddha Lord doesn't lose his temper, you think I'm Hello Kitty or something?"
Just then, an angry shout came from underground, followed by several dull thuds.
"A cultivator. A Mutated Beast!"
Hearing the sounds of fighting below, Lin Chen's expression changed. He hurried back into the Unfinished Building and rushed toward Basement Level 1. Someone had indeed gotten there first. If he waited any longer, the Mutated Beast would be gone!
Bang~
After finally making it to Basement Level 1, Lin Chen slammed into a dark-red wall and was stopped outside.
"What is this thing?"
Lin Chen stared at the dark-red, semi-transparent wall, slightly bewildered. Was this an Array Barrier? Mutated Creatures could use this kind of thing?
"Benefactor, you can't get in! Hurry and notify the Demon Suppression Division. An Evil Cultivator here has been refining Corpse Puppets!" A booming shout came from inside the wall.
The burly monk Lin Chen had seen once at the restaurant was inside, swinging his Prayer Beads as he fought off the strange bugs swarming toward him.
But there were far too many of them, and the burly monk was clearly at a disadvantage. Several places on his body were already torn and bloody.
"So many..."
Lin Chen looked at the ground, where at least dozens of strange bugs crawled. His breathing quickened, and his face was alight with excitement. Even if they were all ordinary Mutated Creatures, so many bugs had to be worth several thousand source points.
"Hey! Stop!"
Suddenly, Lin Chen saw the burly monk strike one of the bugs with his Prayer Beads, smashing it to bits. His eyes nearly popped out of his head as he shouted.
"My source points!"
Lin Chen was furious. At least a hundred source points were gone in the blink of an eye. And now the monk wanted to notify the Demon Suppression Division? If he waited any longer, there wouldn't even be a drop of hot soup left!
Lin Chen immediately channeled the Blood Qi True Flame in his dantian around his fists and slammed one into the dark-red wall. With a soft pop, the wall vanished.
Whoosh~
Lin Chen dashed forward and charged toward the burly monk, throwing punch after punch to smash several attacking bugs into pulp.
"Slayed a Corpse Beetle. Source points +100"
Corpse Beetles?
The kill notification told Lin Chen that the strange bugs were Corpse Beetles, not Mutated Creatures. But what did that matter?
As far as Lin Chen was concerned, all that mattered was that they gave him source points!
There were dozens of Corpse Beetles still in front of him. That meant thousands of source points!
The burly monk looked at Lin Chen, who stood in front of him, and sighed. "Benefactor, thank you. But you shouldn't have come in!"
Before you continue