Li Qiang!

The massive outline of East Forest Base City resembled a steel behemoth lurking at the end of the gray wasteland, its hard, cold lines visible beneath the thin daylight.

The hundred-meter-tall alloy ramparts reflected an icy gleam in the distance. Faint pale-blue light flowed across the energy-shield generators atop them—the symbol of human civilization holding its ground in the wilderness.

Less than ten kilometers remained to the rampart entrance. Across the flat wasteland, sparse mutated shrubs and heavily weathered building ruins were the last obstacles in this region.

Xia He stood beneath a half-collapsed concrete bridge pier, supporting herself against a cold metal wreck. As she gazed at the increasingly distinct outline of the ramparts in the distance, a trace of color finally returned to her pale face, and a light called hope kindled in her eyes.

The relentless pursuit of the past several days had left her utterly exhausted.

"We're here... We're finally here..." she murmured, her voice choked with sobs.

Once they entered East Forest Base City, neither the Chen Household nor those demons and monsters within the research institute would dare openly lay hands on her again.

At the very least, no one would dare publicly attack a researcher carrying vital research results within a major base city.

She turned toward the person beside her. Lin Ming leaned against a modified off-road vehicle "confiscated" from some unlucky pursuers, now riddled with bullet holes and scratches, carefully wiping the tip of the Silver Frost Spear with a rag.

Under the dim yellow light, his profile was sharply defined. It was stained with blood, yet calm without the slightest ripple.

Over three consecutive days of slaughter, he had cut down no fewer than fifty groups of bounty hunters and mercenaries—more than two hundred people in total. More than thirty had been Third Tier experts, including two troublesome opponents at Tier Three, Ninth Level.

Such a horrifying record was enough to make anyone who knew the truth shudder, and enough to turn the name "Lin Ming" into a legend steeped in blood and terror throughout the Wilderness circles around South River.

Yet Lin Ming himself, the architect of it all, seemed neither excited nor weary.

He simply killed in silence, collected spoils in silence, and used the Kill Points he gained to strengthen himself again and again.

Xia He did not know how Lin Ming did it. She only saw that after every brief rest, his aura became even more unfathomable, and his attacks more ruthless and terrifying.

Three days ago, a siege by Tier Three, Late Stage opponents could still force him to suffer injuries. Three days later, even Tier Three, Ninth Level fighters could not last ten moves beneath his spear.

This young man was like a machine born for battle and evolution, undergoing a mad transformation at a jaw-dropping pace amid the tempering of blood and fire.

"Lin Ming, we're almost there!" Xia He could not help confirming it again, her voice filled with the joy of surviving a disaster.

"Once we enter East Forest Base City, we'll be safe! The Water of Life I promised you—once we reach the safehouse, I definitely..."

"Safe?" Lin Ming's hand paused slightly as he wiped the spear, cutting Xia He off.

He raised his head. Rather than looking toward the base city so close at hand, his gaze fell upon the seemingly peaceful, empty wasteland ahead.

His eyes were calm, yet carried a sharpness that seemed capable of piercing the void.

"Do you think they'll let you... get in?"

The joy on Xia He's face froze instantly, and a chill crawled up her spine. She followed Lin Ming's gaze, but ahead lay only wild grass, rubble, and an abandoned roadbed. There was nothing there.

"You... you mean?" Xia He's voice was slightly dry.

"It means," Lin Ming said, slowly lifting the freshly cleaned Silver Frost Spear, its tip angled toward the ground as his gaze locked onto a point ahead.

"The last—and hardest—trial has arrived."

As if to prove his words.

About five hundred meters ahead, in the center of what appeared to be an ordinary patch of wasteland overgrown with waist-high yellowed grass, the air suddenly rippled like water, forming a visible ring of waves.

At the center of those ripples, a figure slowly solidified from illusion into reality.

He was a man who looked to be around thirty. His features were ordinary, but a fierce sharpness rested between his brows.

He wore an immaculate moon-white martial outfit, utterly out of place amid the desolate, bloody surroundings.

His build was well-proportioned, and he stood casually, yet he possessed the steady presence of a mountain peak and a deep abyss.

Most eye-catching was the spear in his hand. It was silver-gray throughout, roughly the same length as Lin Ming's Silver Frost Spear. The shaft had flowing lines, while a cold gleam condensed at its tip without dispersing. Even from hundreds of meters away, one could feel the sharp intent that seemed capable of piercing skin.

He stood there so casually, without releasing any particularly terrifying aura, yet the air around him seemed to grow heavy and viscous because of him. Even the wasteland wind automatically curved around his body.

Tier Four!

And among Tier Four, he was clearly someone with an exceptionally condensed and profound aura!

The instant Xia He saw him, her face turned paper-white. Her body trembled uncontrollably, her lips quivered, and she could barely remain standing.

"Li... Li Qiang?! East Forest's Soul-Severing Spear, Li Qiang?!" Xia He cried out, her voice filled with incredulous terror and despair.

She knew this man! Or rather, among the circles of researchers and martial artists active in East Forest Base City and its surroundings, few had not heard the name of Li Qiang, the Soul-Severing Spear.

He was at Tier Four, Second Level. His Seven Soul-Severing Forms spear technique was fierce and vicious. Famous for many years, he was a renowned lone expert of East Forest Base City, roaming the Wilderness year-round. Neither righteous nor wicked, he recognized money but not people.

He was immensely powerful and erratic in his ways, a figure many factions were unwilling to provoke lightly.

Why was he here? And he was clearly here for them!

Hearing Xia He's cry, Lin Ming's eyes shifted slightly, but his expression remained unchanged. Tier Four, Second Level... he was indeed a tough opponent.

Stronger than any enemy Lin Ming had killed before. But not invincible.

Li Qiang's gaze crossed the several hundred meters between them and settled on Lin Ming and Xia He.

His eyes were calm, even carrying a trace of amusement, as though he were examining two prey animals that had wandered into a trap.

Especially when he saw the equally extraordinary Silver Frost Spear in Lin Ming's hand, a flash of barely perceptible surprise—and greed—passed through his eyes.

"Miss Xia He, little brother Lin Ming," Li Qiang said. His voice was not loud, yet it reached them clearly, carrying an unhurried superiority.

"I didn't expect you to truly make it this far. I heard a little about the 'excitement' along the way, even back in East Forest. Little brother, impressive skills. Impressive killing intent."

He paused, his gaze lingering briefly on Xia He's pale face, while a faint, mocking smile curled his lips.

"Someone offered a hefty price for me to... stop you here. To keep you from taking even half a step into East Forest Base City."

Li Qiang's tone was casual, as though he were discussing some trivial matter. "I'm actually a reasonable man. All this fighting and killing hurts goodwill—and wastes effort."

He looked at Lin Ming, then at Xia He, and said leisurely,

"How about this, Miss Xia. Hand over the Water of Life on you. I, Li Qiang, guarantee it with my reputation: once I have the item, I'll turn around and leave immediately. I won't make things difficult for you. Go wherever you want. What do you say?"

A guarantee of reputation? Xia He sneered inwardly. How much was the "reputation" of someone like Li Qiang worth in the Wilderness? The instant he got the item, he would probably turn on them and kill them to silence them!