Polymorph

"Little Fatty, are you still alive?" Listening to the fat Walker's stupid chuckle, its wet chewing, and the screams of the living, Kirk knew it was eating people again to restore its health. He panted hard. A broken rib had just pierced his lung, and blood was starting to fill it. He coughed up blood with every breath.

"Big bro, I'm still alive, hehe. We're lucky to be alive... It's just a shame we didn't take out that pig-head..." Little Fatty struggled to crawl.

Suddenly, Kirk and Little Fatty received a System Prompt: "Contractors No. 4444 and No. 4445, the cumulative damage you have dealt to the six-times-mutated Walker has exceeded 40% of its total Health Points. In consideration of the Plot Difficulty, the system is opening the elevator so you can escape. Warning: if you escape, the mission will fail, and no rewards will be issued. Additionally, since you have dealt 40% of the Walker's total Health Points in cumulative damage, the system has opened the disinfection option. On the wall to your right is a button. Pressing it will immediately disinfect the research facility with high heat. Pure alcohol and pure oxygen flames deal 300 points of damage per second. One of you may choose to die alongside it. Rewards will be issued at the minimum rate for mission completion."

"Looks like that pig-head mutated again after eating the mutated Batman just now. Otherwise, how could something weighing a ton jump so high?" Little Fatty said with difficulty. "Big bro, let's get out of here. Rewards are just a bunch of nonsense."

Kirk stared thoughtfully at the System Prompt from a moment ago. Then he asked Little Fatty, "Give me that bottle of [Polymorph] potion, and all your healing items. Hurry and take Mori out. He's lying by the door. Don't attract the Walker King's attention."

Little Fatty cried, "Big bro, if we die, we die together! I, Little Fatty, am not the kind of person who abandons his brothers and escapes alone!"

"I have a way to kill it and complete this mission! And I won't die either!" Kirk roared. "Did your master T-Dog, Guillermo, and all the others die for nothing?!"

Little Fatty fell silent for a moment, then traded him several bottles of potions and struggled toward the door. "Big bro, take care. Don't push yourself. I'll do what you say."

Kirk swallowed a [High Protein Potassium Injection]. His stamina and injuries recovered rapidly, and he sprang to his feet. The Walker King spotted another living person it could eat and chuckled excitedly as it charged, raising its steel pillar.

Little Fatty had evidently eaten a healing [Delicious Toast] too, because his crawling speed suddenly increased.

The Walker King didn't notice him. He reached the door and struggled to drag Mori into the elevator. The elevator doors slowly closed.

Kirk relaxed. He watched the charging Walker King coldly, dodged its lunge, and plunged his dagger into its leg. He spotted a red button on the wall nearby. That must be the button that would let him die alongside it. The system had designed this suicide option so desperate Contractors wouldn't be eaten alive. It also gave volunteers a way to sacrifice themselves so their teammates could survive and claim the rewards.

But as the Walker approached with a stupid chuckle, a smear of fresh blood and scraps of flesh still at the corner of its mouth, Kirk gave a cold smile and smashed the button. A sharp alarm rang out: "Warning! Warning! The highest-level biochemical leak has been detected in the laboratory. Initialization procedure activated! Initialization will begin in 10 seconds. Everyone, evacuate to the elevator! 10, 9, 8, 7..."

Kirk drank the [Polymorph] potion. The smell of sheep was so foul it made him want to throw up. But none of that mattered. He felt his arms and legs shrinking, his body convulsing, and soon white wool grew all over him. (Kirk: Damn it, how'd this turn into Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf? Little Fatty's the village chief!)

Then the Walker King slammed him with its steel pillar, and stars danced before his eyes.

But a mysterious, gentle Magic Power enveloped Kirk's body. The blow only gave him a headache and forcibly deducted 1 Health Point.

How many Health Points did Kirk have? The answer was 90.

That meant he could take 90 hits. As a human, he could only take two. (Big Big Wolf: Now I finally know why Pleasant Goat never dies.)

He hopped around adorably, bouncing this way and that. Because [Polymorph] had a property that made it attract the Walker's attention first, the Walker King didn't even bother escaping. It just gripped its steel pillar and busied itself playing whack-a-sheep.

At last, the 10 seconds were up. With a "screee" of metal, a row of metal nozzles extended from the ceiling, spraying pure alcohol and pure oxygen. A few sparks flashed, and flames instantly filled the narrow metal room!

Kirk burned miserably, his beautiful wool catching fire. (Kirk: Damn it!) But that didn't matter. The Walker King beside him began to howl in pain.

It didn't matter if he turned into roast meat. What mattered was that this world needed him.

With 300 points of damage per second from the high-heat flames, the Walker King, which had just undergone its sixth mutation, had around 4,000 Health Points. It could last about 14 seconds.

To prevent Contractors from exploiting the system, the fire would burn for three minutes. Kirk figured that even a body converted into a "fire person" or "fire elemental" wouldn't completely negate damage this powerful, especially when it lasted a full 180 seconds!

Purebred Alpine Sheep Kirk stared wide-eyed as the battle records updated every second: "Contractor No. 4444, you have taken 300 points of fire damage. Due to the effects of [Polymorph], your Health Points have been forcibly reduced by 1."

"...1 Health Point forcibly deducted."

"...1 Health Point forcibly deducted."

"Pleasant Goat" bleated happily. His 90 Health Points would let him last 90 seconds in the Sea of Fire, and he still had three [High Protein Potassium Injections]. This advanced item, worth 2,000 Survival Points and 1 Skill Potential Point, could be used in combat. It was more than enough to keep him alive.

Inside the elevator, Little Fatty watched the flames roaring outside, tears in his eyes. The elevator was scorching hot, and he could feel that the temperature outside had already exceeded the limits of the human body.

Mori woke up. "Is that idiot outside?"

Little Fatty nodded. "He told me to take you away first. He said he had a way to deal with the Walker King..."

Mori nodded and fell silent for a moment. "He's a real man."

The flames died down. The two stepped out and saw a plump, round Alpine Sheep lying naked by the door, giving off the delicious aroma of roasted meat. It was on the verge of death.

Thanks to his [Abnormal Metabolism] talent, Little Fatty was ravenous after the battle. He quickly pulled out some salt, cumin, and skewers. Mori grinned wickedly as he licked the knife in his right hand, ready to carve up the roast...

Fortunately, Kirk immediately turned back into a human, and the tragedy of a man eating a sheep never happened. He had used his last [High Protein Potassium Injection] five seconds earlier, and soon recovered from the near-death state caused by [Polymorph]. Regaining his strength, he stood up and spat a thick mouthful of phlegm at the Walker King's remaining bones and rotting flesh.

"Big bro, it's really you!" Little Fatty ran over, overjoyed. Mori grinned, showing his big white teeth. "I knew you wouldn't die that easily, you idiot."

Kirk, too, was glad to have survived. He had been lucky to spend all his Survival Points before the fight, trading them for all those one-use items and potions. Otherwise, he would have died ten times over at the hands and in the jaws of that vicious six-times-mutated monster. It seemed that when facing a shameless, lecherous boss, he needed to prepare all kinds of aphrodisiacs.

Then the system's announcement sounded: "Contractors No. 4444 and No. 4445, you have successfully completed Silver hidden main quest step 02—[Survival]! You have begun to uncover the mystery behind the great cataclysm that befell the century. Reward: World Plot Deviation +20%. Your current total is 25.6%. World Plot Deviation will be converted into rewards when the Plot Chapter is evaluated. You have learned that Governor Philip may be the direct culprit behind this great cataclysm. Continue exploring and uncovering more Hidden Plots."

"Because you used a function provided by the system to kill the six-times-mutated Walker, your mission completion rating is 'Minimum.' The mission completion reward bonus is 0%."

"Calculating rewards..."

"Your mission circumstances were unusual, and there are many factors to consider. Calculation time extended..."

"You dealt 40% of the six-times-mutated Walker's total Health Points during this mission. After taking the difficulty bonus into account, you will receive only 40% of the base rewards for Survival Points, Skill Potential Points, and Base Attribute Points, in addition to the equipment the Walker is guaranteed to drop. Calculating..."

"The six-times-mutated Walker's base rewards are: 8,000 Survival Points, 8 Skill Potential Points, and 8 Base Attribute Points.

"The reward bonus is calculated as 'mission completion bonus 0% + novice trial bonus 50% + difficulty reward bonus 50% = 200%. After the 40% reduction, the reward is 80% of the base amount.'"

"Forming reward pool..."

"You have received 6,400 Survival Points, 7 Skill Potential Points, and 7 Base Attribute Points."

"Because you killed the six-times-mutated Walker, you are rewarded with 1,000 Walker kills. Contractor No. 4444's Silver rank title [Walker King] has reached 1,712/1,000, upgrading to the Gold rank title [Enemy of Walkers]. Current progress: 712/3,000. Damage dealt to Walkers increased by 30%. Contractor No. 4445's Black Iron rank title [Walker Slayer] is complete and has upgraded to [Walker Hunter]!"

"Because you completed the downgraded Dark Gold Hidden Main Mission in This World, you have received +1 World Plot Legend. This mission cannot be accepted or completed by anyone else."

"[World Plot Legend]: A famous figure who commands influence across multiple Plot Planes, whose reputation is far-reaching and who can turn the tide of events. Such a person can obtain greater benefits from Plot Missions and access more information. This reward is issued only upon completing the world's unique Dark Gold Hidden Main Mission."

"Next, equipment will be drawn. For a Silver Main Plot of this difficulty, the highest possible equipment rank is Silver plot equipment, and the lowest is light blue. There is a tiny chance of obtaining Dark Gold Equipment. Forming equipment pool..."

Then, a silver-white spatial vortex appeared in front of Kirk and Little Fatty! All kinds of equipment glimmered inside it! They could make out silver, light green, deep blue, and light blue glows, as well as the faintest glimmer of Dark Gold! It was like a rainbow had appeared before them, mesmerizing them so completely they couldn't look away from the enchanting vortex.

"System Prompt: Since your participation in the kill was 40%, you may each make two draws."

Little Fatty's voice trembled. "Big bro, we're rich. You draw first."

"No, you go first." Kirk was nervous too. "I'll see how it goes."

Little Fatty didn't argue. He thrust his hand into the silver-white vortex. "I'll test my luck first! I love gambling!"

He fumbled around for a while, then suddenly shouted, "I got something good!"

Kirk grew excited too. The kid had great luck. Let's see what he got.

Little Fatty pulled it out with all his strength. The equipment was still covered in a hazy layer of mist, which was gradually dissipating. They both eagerly leaned in to look. It was a light, thin suit of armor.

[Soft Armor]

[Quality] Light green growth-type equipment

[Level] level-1

[Weight] 870 g

[Equipment] Stamina +3, Health recovery speed +50%.

[Special Ability] [Soft Porcupine Needle] Passive skill. Reflects 50% of melee damage back at the attacker.

[Description] Hero Huang Rong's personal collection. The Soft Armor has a hidden proficiency attribute. It absorbs damage when hit and can be upgraded. It has excellent growth potential and is the first choice for those who value their lives.

Little Fatty was stunned, then leapt up in delight. Kirk was grinning too. Neither of them had ever seen light green equipment before. Now they'd finally seen something special. All three of its attributes were top-notch, not to mention its growth potential. It reduced damage taken, could be upgraded, and reflected melee damage. What a deal!

Without a doubt, the equipment suited Little Fatty perfectly. His [Abnormal Metabolism] already gave him 25% faster Stamina recovery. With the armor, that would rise to 75%. With his high Stamina, he'd recover at an astonishing rate, raising his survivability to a whole new level. At Kirk's urging, Little Fatty immediately put on the Soft Armor, then pulled his own jacket over it in a very sleazy fashion. The fat guy was so sleazy that anyone who tried to ambush him would be in for a huge surprise. But if Little Fatty knew that Kirk had his eye on him as a long-term meat shield because of his fast recovery, he probably wouldn't be smiling.