Mantis Stalking the Snake

"Kill technique."

There was no emotion in Ye Xiaojing's voice; she was as cold as an executioner about to carry out a sentence.

At that moment, anatomical diagrams of invertebrates and vertebrates—including the human body—flashed chaotically through Jiang Qian's mind.

The animal specimens he had once prepared with his own hands still retained their vivid, lifelike forms as if they were still alive.

"If you walk in the Super-Species World without the skills to harvest life, you will become the prey others harvest at any time."

Ye Xiaojing, beautiful but icy in temperament, stood under the spotlight with her hands tucked into the pockets of her trench coat. The combination of a khaki beret and a long coat gave her a distinctly British flair.

Dead-leaf mantis, Ye Xiaojing...

For the first time, Jiang Qian looked at this low-profile girl with genuine seriousness. He imagined the hunter Lan Junxian described as having a stellar record, picturing her graceful yet fierce movements as she manually shredded spiders.

No, mantises preferred live prey; they preferred using their mouths over their hands.

"Want to try?"

Ye Xiaojing suddenly locked eyes with Jiang Qian, a hint of provocation mixed into her cold gaze.

Jiang Qian was stunned for a moment.

Huh? I haven't offended you, have I...

"Have you studied any combat arts? Karate, kickboxing?" As she spoke, Ye Xiaojing walked toward Jiang Qian, who was sitting in his seat listening intently.

Her unwavering gaze made it seem as if she were ready to draw a blade the next second.

"Wait! Xiaojing, how can you bully a new student in front of the teacher?" Lan Junxian could no longer watch. "Let me finish the theory first, it won't take long."

Judging by his expression, he wasn't worried about Jiang Qian getting beaten up; he was worried about getting blood splattered on himself.

"Understood, boss."

Jiang Qian: "..."

And so, Lan Junxian began to explain the power structure of License Holders in the country, the "dungeons" that were unavoidable for vertical evolution, and the application of special resources.

First, the power divisions of License Holders were basically categorized into four types:

1. Orderly official elites and the License Holder employees within the Wanzhong Group;

2. Wild rogue practitioners and civilian organizations not registered with the authorities;

3. Non-orderly organizations primarily composed of Mutants;

4. Lone Mutants.

Orderly License Holders were mostly concentrated in the Special Affairs Centers across various regions and within the local branches of the Wanzhong Group. These were official positions or non-official personnel on file.

Orderly rogue practitioners and civilian organizations not recorded by the authorities did exist, but they were few.

The rest were organizations and individuals primarily composed of Mutants.

In Lan Junxian's words, while this group was small in number, their negative impact on society could not be underestimated.

As a member of the Orderly License Holders, Jiang Qian would likely have no shortage of contact or conflict with Mutants in the future.

Among the Mutant organizations Lan Junxian had specifically named, besides the "God Mountain" and "Black Alliance" that Jiang Qian had already encountered, there was one other mysterious and representative organization that was mentioned repeatedly: "Ashes."

If the Black Alliance were like rats in the street—burning, killing, looting, and swindling, committing every despicable act without a bottom line—then the Ashes were the exact opposite.

It wasn't that the Ashes lacked a bottom line; it was that their bottom line was abnormally high!

They claimed that Mutants were the final destination of evolution, a superior species detached from biology, and they referred to mutation as "metamorphosis."

They held themselves in high regard, demanding strict moral standards from themselves and equally strict standards from others.

They would often draw blades and kill over the most trivial matters, calling it: letting the seeds of all evil turn to ashes.

"These lunatics are much harder to deal with than the rats of the Black Alliance. Because they are extremely self-disciplined, most of them are quite strong," Lan Junxian described.

Hearing this, Jiang Qian asked, "What kind of 'trivial matters' usually trigger them?"

"Anything!"

Lan Junxian rubbed his brow and thought for a moment. "A case handled in the East Sea last month involved over a dozen students living in the same apartment who were collectively murdered."

"The killer has been caught. According to this follower on the fringes of the Ashes, the motive for the murder was simply because the others were throwing a party in the middle of the night and disturbing the peace."

Well, disturbing the peace in the middle of the night is indeed quite serious, but it doesn't warrant death... Jiang Qian seemed to have found the root of these patients' illness: paranoia and narcissism.

"If you encounter such people in a dungeon, it's best to stay far away from them. There's really no need to be hunted down for a reason like spitting on the ground."

As he spoke, Lan Junxian transitioned the topic to the upcoming Evolution Dungeons.

Jiang Qian's claim to fame was clearing the nightmare-level trial "Whispers of the Inner Demon," which had rewarded him with the Little Devil Set—perfect for guarding his home and providing a safety net—and the Secret-Seeking Notebook with its tricky functions.

Therefore, he still had some expectations for the arrival of his next dungeon:

He wanted to become stronger and gain more chips and trump cards!

He felt that experiencing the loss of control brought by the Peacock Spider once was enough.

And the only way to avoid that loss of control was to enhance his own strength.

"The cycle for the arrival of an Evolution Dungeon is one month. Except for the first trial dungeon, every subsequent dungeon will have a countdown notification, usually one hour before, informing you of the dungeon type so License Holders can make necessary preparations."

"For example, moving my body home and hiding it?" Jiang Qian joked.

"That's not necessary. Your body enters the Evolution Dungeon with you; you will disappear from where you stand. Of course, when you return, you will appear in the same spot."

Lan Junxian issued another warning:

"Don't ever try to find excitement in the middle of the road. Otherwise, even if you make it out of the Evolution Dungeon, there's no guarantee you won't be sent away for good the next second."

Jiang Qian nodded while taking notes.

The remaining content, such as dungeon difficulty levels, was mostly consistent with what the girl had told him earlier.

The final part involved two types of special resources in the Super-Species World: items and the application of Super-Species Crystals.

Items went without saying; all information was contained within them like an instruction manual, and one could learn to use them through contact like touching.

Whether it was a living item or a one-time-use item, they strictly followed the functions and costs in their exclusive "manuals."

For Jiang Qian, who had received two top-tier items at the start, this was nothing new.

What surprised Jiang Qian was the Super-Species Crystal!

As the veritable hard currency of the Super-Species World, Super-Species Crystals could be used to save one's life.

At Jiang Qian's current rank, using 10 Super-Species Crystals could complete one unit of betting:

Super-Species Crystal * 10 = Life * 1.

There were 10 lying in Jiang Qian's virtual cabinet.

Next dungeon, he was set!

Watching the corners of Jiang Qian's mouth slowly rise, Ye Xiaojing had already begun warming up her wrists.

"That's it for today, class dismissed."

Lan Junxian wore an expression of anticipation for a good show. "Don't stay up too late, you two. Helping a junior is part of a senior's duty, but know when to stop and take care of your health."

"No problem."

Ye Xiaojing said as she slipped a pair of wrist guards onto her hands.

That was a shielding item; once worn, any mutant abilities above the second state could not be unleashed.

Watching Lan Junxian's dashing departure, the girl turned her gaze to Jiang Qian. "I won't use abilities above the second state. I will only conduct a training drill with you within the first state to test your skills first. Then I'll consider what to teach you."

Test my skills? You aren't still holding a grudge because you didn't get to eat the Peacock Spider, are you... Jiang Qian was speechless.

He even suspected that Lan Junxian and Ye Xiaojing were doing this on purpose...

Squeezing his limits, forcing growth by pulling on the seedlings!

"I haven't studied any combat techniques," Jiang Qian confessed truthfully.

"Oh, then get ready to be beaten, rookie."

It was useless; Ye Xiaojing was completely heartless!

She went to the weapon rack, picked up two wooden long blades, weighed them in her palms, and with an expression that said "this will have to do," she walked to the center of the combat arena.

"Hurry up, it's getting late."

As she spoke, she raised her hands above her head. With a swish, the girl's body stretched elegantly, and the twin blades opened up on either side of her.

Just from that opening stance, Jiang Qian was certain he was done for.

"Alright."

Whether he stretched his neck or retracted it, he was going to get hit anyway.

Jiang Qian also picked up a long weapon from the rack—a wooden sword—and, imitating Ye Xiaojing, weighed it in his hand.

His movements couldn't be called elegant, but he tried his best to be composed.

He turned to face his opponent. "Actually, I don't really want to fight you. After all, you're a girl."

"Save that talk for when you can crush me."

As soon as the words fell, Ye Xiaojing's figure flashed, instantly closing in on Jiang Qian's unarmed left side—the twin blades slashed horizontally!