Vitality Value Increase

Even Captain Lei raised an eyebrow this time. "If I remember correctly, this field training only lasted five days. You killed over a hundred First Rank beasts in five days?"

"Yeah."

The others sucked in sharp breaths. Instinctively, they felt it had to be fake, but Song Chen had just demonstrated his strength in full view. He truly had the ability to do it.

Zhao Hu sighed in amazement. "Fuck, when I did field training back then, I only killed five First Rank beasts—and that was over a full ten days."

Captain Lei suddenly laughed and patted Song Chen on the shoulder. "Not bad. I was thinking of looking after the newcomer, but instead, a real beast showed up."

Song Chen looked at him. "Captain, how do we fight next?"

Captain Lei looked toward the depths of the distant ruins, where the roars of even more mutant beasts could faintly be heard. He grinned. "How do we fight? Simple. Let loose and fight."

He pointed at the sky. "No need to worry too much about high-rank mutant beasts. This incident is too big. The higher-ups specially assigned a satellite to Anning City to provide intelligence. If high-rank mutant beasts launch a surprise attack, we'll be warned in advance."

Over the next few hours, the Fierce Tiger Squad learned what true slaughter looked like.

Song Chen was like a tireless killing machine. He charged at the very front, killing the fastest and the fiercest. Whether they were Lower First Rank or Upper First Rank, no mutant beast could last more than three strikes before him.

The Lightning Ability paired with the Blood War Blade Technique was simply a match made in heaven. With one slash, lightning coiled around the blade, instantly paralyzing the mutant beast. Then the second slash harvested its life. Even in group battles, he could handle more than a dozen mutant beasts of the same rank at once with ease.

At first, Zhang Lie and the others wanted to help, but they later discovered there was no need. Later still, they began following behind Song Chen to pick up the scraps.

Song Chen killed the main force while they dealt with the stragglers. They worked together as seamlessly as veteran teammates who had fought side by side for years.

In one afternoon, they killed nearly a hundred First Rank mutant beasts. Song Chen alone killed sixty of them.

By nightfall, all seven returned to the Armored Vehicle drenched in blood.

Zhang Lie dropped onto the ground with a thud, gasping heavily. "Damn it, I've been a Martial Artist for ten years, and this is the first time I've seen a monster like this."

Zhao Hu smiled foolishly, his eyes filled with admiration as he looked at Song Chen.

Li Xiao and Zhou Li leaned against the vehicle, too exhausted to speak. Yet their eyes sparkled as they kept looking toward Song Chen.

Captain Lei lit a cigarette and took a deep drag. Looking at Song Chen, he suddenly asked, "Kid, are you really only First Rank?"

Song Chen paused, then replied, "My Vitality Value is 2.2. Early First Rank."

Captain Lei stared at him for several seconds before laughing. "Bullshit. What Early First Rank kills Upper First Rank beasts like chopping vegetables? Do you take me for an idiot?"

Song Chen said nothing.

Captain Lei exhaled a stream of smoke. "But it doesn't matter. No matter what your strength is, I'll remember this favor from today."

He pointed at Zhang Lie and the others. "If you hadn't been watching out for these guys, they would all have been injured today."

"Enough. Get in. It's dark. Time to head back."

The seven of them squeezed into the vehicle. The Armored Vehicle started up and drove toward the camp.

Song Chen leaned back in his seat, closed his eyes, and opened the system panel.

[Current Killing Value: 413 points.]

The mutant beasts outside the city were clearly a cut above those inside. On average, each one gave nearly seven Killing Value.

The corners of Song Chen's lips curled upward slightly. He was delighted. Entering the city was indeed much more efficient.

Late at night, Song Chen sat on his bed with his eyes closed.

The system interface unfolded before him, its translucent screen giving off a faint glow in the darkness.

413 points were enough to buy plenty of things. Spirit Blood Serum cost 20 points per bottle, so he could buy twenty bottles. He should raise his Vitality Value first. His ability and combat technique were enough for now; upgrades could wait until his Killing Value was more plentiful.

He took a deep breath and tapped the air twenty times in quick succession.

[Confirm purchase of Spirit Blood Serum ×20? This will consume 400 Killing Value.]

"Confirm."

Light flashed repeatedly, and twenty transparent little bottles appeared out of thin air, lined up neatly before him. Each was filled with pale golden liquid that glimmered faintly in the dark.

Song Chen picked up a bottle, twisted off the cap, and tipped it back. The familiar scorching heat exploded from his stomach.

But this time, he was not in as much pain as before. His body had already adapted to this kind of enhancement. The burning sensation was more like a warm current flowing through his blood vessels and into every limb and bone.

He closed his eyes and sensed the changes within him. His Blood Qi surged, his Life Core pulsed, and every cell greedily absorbed that golden energy.

Ten minutes later, the first bottle's effects faded. He picked up the second bottle, then the third, the fourth...

One bottle after another, he drank those priceless Spirit Blood Serums as if they were water. If anyone had seen him, they would have cursed him for squandering treasures.

By the sixth bottle, the effects began to weaken. The stronger his Blood Qi became, the less the serum could improve it. By the tenth bottle, the weakening was even more obvious, but he did not stop. He kept drinking.

Fifteen bottles, eighteen bottles, twenty bottles.

When the liquid from the final bottle slid down his throat, Song Chen opened his eyes.

Outside the window, dawn had begun to break. He had absorbed the serum for an entire night.

He stood and moved his body. It was different—completely different. Clenching his fist, he could feel the surging Blood Qi within him. His strength was more than twice what it had been yesterday. Every movement carried an explosive sensation.

He walked to the simple mirror in the corner. The person reflected there made even him freeze for a moment. It was still the same face, but his aura had completely changed. His gaze was deeper, his skin carried a faint sheen, and his entire body seemed as if it had been tempered and washed clean, exuding a restrained sense of power.

He closed his eyes, sensed the Blood Qi within his body, and opened the panel. His Vitality Value had already reached 4.5.

From 2.2 to 4.5, twenty bottles of Spirit Blood Serum had raised it by a total of 2.3. The first five bottles had raised it by 1.2, while the remaining fifteen had only raised it by 1.1.

The further he went, the worse the effects became. That was expected. But a Vitality Value of 4.5 had already far surpassed people his age.

Song Chen took a deep breath. This was good, but not enough. 4.5 was still far from Second Rank, and Third Rank was even more distant than the horizon. But he had time.

Song Chen pushed open the door and walked out of the camp. The morning sunlight fell over him, warm and comforting.

At the gathering point, the rest of the Fierce Tiger Squad had already arrived.

When Captain Lei saw Song Chen, his gaze tightened slightly. "You..."

He stared at Song Chen, his brows knitting together.

"What is it?"

Captain Lei stepped closer and looked him over from head to toe. "You brat... Why do you feel different after just one night?"

Zhang Lie also came over. He looked at Song Chen with a face full of confusion. "He has changed. His complexion is much better. No, that's not it. His aura changed. It's stronger."

Zhao Hu scratched his head foolishly. "Has it? Why can't I see it?"

Wang Hai pushed up his glasses. "His Vitality Value has indeed increased. It's now... at least above 4.0."

The others sucked in a breath of cold air. In a single night, it had increased by that much?