30%

30%

This guy's breath stank.

With his gaping, roaring maw and the savage fangs inside, he proclaimed his strength to Li Zu.

The difference in both size and strength between them was enormous.

Killer Croc's massive hand gripped Li Zu's head as easily as if he were holding an egg.

Sharp claws lightly scraped across Li Zu's neck, leaving red marks behind.

What Li Zu was considering now was whether, if he did not want his head crushed immediately, he should clench his teeth and keep his mouth shut, like a raw egg, so he would not be crushed.

That was right. Even with his life in the other man's hands, he still had time for wild thoughts.

Killer Croc had no intention of crushing Li Zu's head either. He wanted a full meal more.

And before eating, he hoped this "little fellow" before him would sob and beg for mercy. That would put him in a much better mood.

The standoff did not last long.

Roar!!

Killer Croc suddenly roared. Perhaps hiding down here for too long had cost him his ability to speak. With an angry howl, he flung Li Zu away, smashing him hard against the iron door, while his other hand scratched at the back of his own hand.

His sharp claws moved rapidly.

Scratch, scratch!

As his claws scraped, several scales fell away and floated on the sewage.

The fallen scales were plastic!

Only then did foul-smelling blood seep out.

The blood fell into the sewage and vanished, leaving only the plastic scales bobbing with the ripples.

"Cough, cough—hahahahaha!" Li Zu struggled but could not get up. He was laughing.

That blow had made his ribs crack loudly.

Li Zu's laughter greatly displeased Killer Croc, like some terrifying monster from Gotham had appeared before him.

It had the appearance of a human, yet was even less human than he was.

He had had countless chances to crush that person's head, yet he had always been toyed with.

Now, he felt that the guy before him resembled that person.

Killer Croc lunged forward and easily hoisted Li Zu up. He intended to give him a swift end first.

Even if Gotham had been occupied by Batman and those cops, even if working with Joker had only meant being toyed with one-sidedly, at least here, he could declare—

"I am the king of the sewers!" Killer Croc roared.

"Your ambitions are really grand." Li Zu stopped laughing and pressed both hands against Killer Croc's gaping lower jaw.

This was the third time Li Zu had come so close to death.

Whether during his confrontation with Batman or his showdown in Harvey Dent's office, he had been given the premonition that he would surely die in the next moment.

Being caught by Killer Croc this time was the same.

Those fangs were right before his eyes.

Whoosh~

Blood gushed from his nose like a turned-on faucet, spraying hotly across Killer Croc's scales.

"I wonder whether you'd be interested in fighting our way back to Gotham with me? Trample those lofty people beneath our feet and let them see who truly rules freedom~" Li Zu asked with a smile, despite blood streaming from every orifice and his miserable appearance.

Murderous intent filled Killer Croc's eyes. Right now, he only wanted to kill the bastard before him.

Bite off his head in one mouthful, then stuff his eyeballs into the left pocket of that disgusting green suit.

But he discovered that his body could barely move.

"Looks like you refused~"

Thud. Killer Croc released Li Zu and toppled sideways into the sewage.

What Killer Croc found even harder to imagine was that he was floating on the surface.

His mind gradually grew muddled until he completely lost consciousness.

Li Zu bent down and picked up the thumb-sized plastic Killer Croc toy.

Then he used his sewage-soaked sleeve to wipe the blood that kept pouring from his nose.

Turning a giant like Killer Croc into a toy should have been difficult, yet it felt somewhat easier than the last time he had turned Harvey Dent into a toy.

Perhaps it had something to do with [Toyfication].

Before this,

Toyfication: Mastery (21%)

had become,

Toyfication: Proficiency (1%)

With the world exploration level at 30%, what he could obtain was clearly different from what he had received at 20%.

His ability had improved directly. But he was in no mood to study it now.

Li Zu staggered over, pulled open the iron door's lock, and went inside.

The four women huddled in the sewage at the corner, watching in terror as he heavily threw himself onto the bed.

The stench spread unchecked.

The festering wound on his arm, together with the pain of his broken ribs, woke Li Zu from his groggy sleep.

He opened his eyes. The stench in the sewer seemed even stronger.

"Two days?" He had a countdown timer. Waking after fifty hours of sleep left him mentally refreshed, yet physically weak and empty.

"Mm~" A muffled cry escaped from behind a covered mouth.

The four women imprisoned here were still hiding in the corner. Even though Killer Croc had been dealt with and Li Zu had fallen unconscious, they still did not dare leave.

They were like dogs that had been chained for too long. Even after their chains broke, they did not dare step beyond the range they had grown used to.

Li Zu merely glanced at the four women, rolled out of bed, and waded through the sewage toward the exit step by step.

The women watched his staggering retreating figure, exchanged looks, and silently followed.

Traveling through the sewers was agonizing. Fortunately, the rain had stopped, and the water level had fallen considerably, so the sewage did not soak his festering wound.

Several gray rats swam across the water in panic.

Bats lived here as well.

Li Zu still held the crocodile-man toy in his hand.

He tried activating his ability in reverse. The crocodile-man toy grew from thumb-sized to the size of a head, and his own head began to grow muddled again.

In the end, the half-human-height crocodile man was tossed into the item box.

After walking for more than two hours, the space ahead suddenly opened up.

It was a clear morning.

The weather was somewhat cold. His dry, wrinkled green suit had turned pitch-black and gave off a sickening stench.

Those women looked like savages too, but at this moment, they cheered for regaining their freedom. Yet when Li Zu turned his gaze toward them, they gathered together in fear and fell silent.

Pressing a hand against his injured arm, Li Zu returned to the villa where Joker had previously been staying.

The crumbling villa still had its iron gate wide open.

A scarecrow had been set upright at the entrance like a prank, as though warning off any passerby who wandered into this terrifying playground.

Crows perched on the treetops. When Li Zu returned, they flapped their wings and welcomed him with hoarse caws.

"Ah!"

"Mm!"

"Wuwu!"

The women shrank into a frightened ball.

Though no one had invited them, they still chose to follow behind Li Zu into this villa castle that resembled a haunted house.

Li Zu entered the first floor, and the painting of the holy child angel on the wall disgusted him.

"Ah!!" The women who followed him inside pointed at the wall and screamed, as though they had seen something horrifying. Unfortunately, Li Zu paid them no attention at all and went upstairs alone.

He violently tore away the dust-covered white cloth. Amid a cloud of dust, he picked up a dining knife.

He was going to treat himself.

Even without any medical knowledge, he knew there would be no good outcome if a bullet stayed in his body too long.

He was lucky. There was a medical kit here.

The rabbit-like women stood in the distance, watching him tear open his clothes, cut open the festering wound with the knife, dig out the bullet, and bandage himself.

Sitting on the bloodstained sofa, he tilted his head toward the women.

"Do you think this world is unfair?"

Thanks to "Forged Intestine Man" for the tip.

(End of chapter)