Giant Mutant Rat Atlas

Following the path into the park.

Lin Zichen felt the rotting meat he was carrying was becoming a nuisance, so he opened the bag and tossed it into a bush by the side of the road.

The stench radiating from the rotting Ghost Shadow Squid meat was growing heavier and more pungent; just the smell of it made him feel nauseous, and there was no longer any reason to keep it.

He might as well put the waste to use, giving back to the nature that nurtured all things and letting the saprophytic organisms in the wild have a feast.

As for how to explain it to his parents when he got home, he would just say he ran into some Heretic Cult fanatics causing trouble and accidentally lost the meat in the ensuing panic.

Also, to avoid unnecessary trouble, he would have to find a way to have someone else purchase Exotic Beast meat for him to devour in the future...

Lost in thought, Lin Zichen followed the Public Security Team into the park.

At a glance, the air was still filled with purple-blue smoke, though it had mostly dissipated, vaguely revealing a large expanse of scorched earth still emitting wisps of smoke.

Stepping closer, one could see a crater with a radius of about one meter at the very center.

Moving even closer to inspect the pit, what came into view was a completely charred corpse.

It was none other than the Heretic Cult member who had mutated into a Giant Mutant Rat.

Lin Zichen was somewhat surprised.

A Laser Cannon with such immense power couldn't completely erase this Ratman, leaving only a piece of charcoal?

It seemed that genetic fusion was indeed powerful.

"Unauthorized personnel, stay back! Student, please leave this area immediately!"

At the edge of the pit, a public security officer saw Lin Zichen standing nearby and immediately shouted to drive him away.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the captain of the Public Security Team spoke up: "Let him stay. We have to take him back to the station for a statement anyway."

"A statement?"

The officer was confused, not understanding why Lin Zichen needed to give a statement at the station.

He was still unaware that it was Lin Zichen who had intervened from the shadows, allowing the hostages to escape the Heretic Cult member's clutches.

Just then, Lin Zichen's phone rang; it was a call from Shen Qinghan.

As soon as the call connected, Shen Qinghan's worried voice came through immediately.

"Xiao Chen, it's been over ten minutes. You haven't come back yet—did something happen on the way?"

"I'm fine, don't worry. The Ratman has already been taken care of by a Mechanical Cyborg. I'm staying behind to check the scene. You stay at the convenience store for a bit, I'll be back soon."

"Should I come find you?"

"No, it doesn't feel very safe. I'm coming to pick you up now. Wait for me, I'll be there in a moment."

Lin Zichen hung up the phone quickly and ran to pick up Shen Qinghan.

In just a moment, he had brought Shen Qinghan to the park.

Shen Qinghan looked at the charred ground before her, her small face full of astonishment.

She found it hard to imagine what had happened here to cause such a scene.

By now, the Public Security Team had already retrieved the corpse from the pit, placed it on a stretcher, and loaded it into the trunk of their vehicle.

Fortunately, the trunks of public security vehicles were designed with enough space to carry various large tools, otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to fit the stretcher.

Lin Zichen looked at the completely charred corpse, recalling that when the captain had requested reinforcements earlier, he seemed to have mentioned the Rat King Gene.

He had said that this Heretic Cult member, now reduced to charcoal, had most likely fused with the Rat King Gene.

And the Rat King Gene was certainly a type of Exotic Beast gene.

So... could he devour the Rat King Gene from the corpse?

Lin Zichen suddenly thought of this.

He pondered it for a moment and felt it should be possible, deciding to find an opportunity to touch the corpse when they got out of the vehicle at the Public Security Station to verify his hypothesis.

Soon, everything at the scene had been handled.

The captain of the Public Security Team looked at Lin Zichen and asked, "We're heading back to the Public Security Station now. Do you two know where it is? Can you ride your bikes there yourselves?"

"Our bicycle chain broke, we can't ride it."

"In that case, just ride with us in the vehicle."

"Can you take our bicycle too?"

"Sure, go ahead and push it over."

"Thank you."

After a brief exchange, Lin Zichen went outside and pushed over the bicycle with the broken chain.

Because there was no room left in the trunk, a tall public security officer used a rope to secure the bicycle to the roof of the vehicle.

Afterward, the group headed toward the Public Security Station.

In the vehicle, Lin Zichen did not see Teacher Strawberry, thinking she must have been sent to the hospital by the officers earlier to treat her wounds.

On the way, because both Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan were minors, the captain of the Public Security Team had them both notify their respective parents to come to the Public Security Station.

Both of them made phone calls to notify their respective parents.

About ten minutes passed.

The car finally arrived at the Public Security Station.

After getting out, Lin Zichen took the initiative to help lift the corpse of the Heretic Cult member from the back of the vehicle.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Public Security Team members weren't paying attention, he suppressed his nausea and reached out to touch the corpse, wondering if he could devour the Rat King Gene within it.

To his surprise, he discovered that he really could!

Genes were Life Origin, or rather, a form of Life Origin!

Without a second thought, he decisively chose to devour it.

[You have devoured a trace of "Giant Mutant Rat" Life Origin]

[Giant Mutant Rat Atlas: 5%]

5%? That much?

Looking at the progress bar behind the atlas, Lin Zichen felt somewhat surprised.

However, compared to the progress bar, he was more concerned about what abilities he would gain after unlocking the Giant Mutant Rat atlas.

He thought about it seriously; other than having eight eyes and being rather thick-skinned, the Giant Mutant Rat didn't seem to have any particularly special abilities.

Of course, it was also possible that humanity's understanding of the Giant Mutant Rat was insufficient.

After all, the Giant Mutant Rat had only recently appeared in human society, and there was still much about it that remained unknown.

Forget it, nothing to dwell on. Once the atlas progress bar is full, I'll know everything.

With that thought, Lin Zichen took a deliberate look at the corpse on the stretcher.

It looked unchanged; it seemed that losing the Rat King Gene hadn't caused any visible impact.

Of course, it was also possible that, like the Ghost Shadow Squid meat from before, there was a certain delay.

In the time that followed.

Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan sat together to give their statements.

The captain of the Public Security Team was very interested in the process of Lin Zichen's act of bravery, wanting to know how he had managed to injure the Heretic Cult member with a stone.

After all, the distance was quite far, and visibility at night wasn't very good either.

Under such conditions, accurately hitting the hand holding the knife with a single stone was not something a middle school student should be capable of.

Lin Zichen didn't want to expose too much of his strength, so he recited the excuse he had prepared, claiming he had used a slingshot.

"Where is that slingshot?"

The Public Security Team captain didn't believe him and asked Lin Zichen this question.

Lin Zichen didn't even blink, answering with a calm expression: "I accidentally lost it while fleeing the scene earlier."

"Are you sure?"

"I am very sure."

Lin Zichen replied without hesitation.

The Public Security Team captain nodded and didn't ask any further.

Soon, the statements were finished.

By this time, the parents of both Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan had arrived at the Public Security Station.

The faces of both sets of parents were filled with anxiety; none of them had expected that their children would run into a Heretic Cult disturbance just by going out for the evening.

Fortunately, the outcome was lucky, and neither child had been harmed.

Otherwise, neither family would be able to go on living.

Lin Zichen chatted with his parents for a few moments, then looked at the Public Security Team captain and asked:

"Hello, I'd like to ask, when can I apply for the reward for my act of bravery?"

"Go do a fingerprint comparison now. Once the results come out and everything is confirmed, I can apply for it for you on the system," the Public Security Team captain replied.

After understanding the process, Lin Zichen followed a young Public Security officer to have his fingerprints taken.

Seeing this scene, the parents of both families were a bit bewildered.

A reward for an act of bravery?

What was this?

The parents only knew that their children had encountered a Heretic Cult disturbance; they didn't know that Lin Zichen had performed an act of bravery to save someone.

It wasn't until they asked the Public Security Team captain and looked at the statements that they finally understood what had happened.

"Your son is truly remarkable; to have such courage while only in middle school, and to remain calm and composed in the face of a crisis—he is a little hero."

A passing female officer offered this praise.

After hearing this, Zhang Wanxin merely offered a polite smile in return, not a shred of joy in her heart.

She did not want Lin Zichen to be a hero; she only wanted him to grow up safe and sound.

PS: Bowls out, begging for monthly tickets and recommendation votes!