The flickering overhead lights went out completely with a sharp crackle.
The only light left came from the black box in front of the checkout counter, spitting sparks.
The supermarket plunged into darkness.
"Tap... tap... tap."
The same sound continued.
But it wasn't the sound of dress shoes striking the floor.
It sounded more like a rhythmic tapping against the ceiling.
Chen Mo and Red Hare looked up at the same time.
The man in the immaculate suit was gone.
In his place was a black silhouette.
Chen Mo narrowed his eyes, peering closer as his vision slowly adjusted to the darkness.
The details of the silhouette emerged.
The Store Manager's body still retained its human features.
His crisp suit had burst apart and hung loosely on his body.
It looked almost like... the upper half of a pair of overalls.
Six jointed spider legs had sprouted from his back.
Those spiderlike limbs tapped against the ceiling, producing the sound.
The monster's head still belonged to the man with the center-parted hair.
Not a trace of composure remained on the Store Manager's face. His features twisted together.
His mouth stretched all the way to his ears, drool streaming down, while nothing remained in his eyes but pure madness and murderous intent.
An invisible pressure bore down on them.
Chen Mo could clearly sense the transcendent power inside him boiling uneasily.
Red Hare's thick donkey legs bent slightly, his muscles tensing.
The outlines of his leg muscles were clearly visible beneath his oversized pink shorts. He was ready to spring into action at any moment.
A man, a donkey, and a monster faced off in the darkness.
Hu Yaya had already run out of the supermarket.
She hid behind the car, clamping a hand over her mouth, terrified of making even the slightest sound.
Everyone thought a battle was about to erupt.
Yet just as they braced themselves-
The dark figure on the ceiling suddenly flickered into the shadows and disappeared.
Darkness and silence settled over their surroundings once more.
One minute.
Three minutes.
Five minutes.
Nothing happened.
Chen Mo turned to Red Hare.
The donkey's ears stood straight up, twitching back and forth.
"Fuck! Coward!"
The donkey burst into curses.
"That bastard made such a big fucking show of it, then ran away!"
"Not a single variant is worth a damn!"
"Except the great Red Hare."
As though something had just occurred to him, Red Hare hastily added that last line.
Chen Mo was stunned too.
A feint?
"After him!"
Red Hare couldn't accept this outcome. How could he let prey that was practically in his mouth escape?
If he ate this fellow second-tier variant, he might just break through to tier three.
Chen Mo had the same idea.
The two were just about to move.
"ROOOAR!!!"
A terrifying bear's roar swept through all of Apricot Blossom Town on a blast of air.
Hu Yaya staggered under the blast, then dropped to the ground and started vomiting.
A foul, bloody stench slammed into her nostrils with tremendous force.
Chen Mo was clearly uncomfortable with the smell too and held his breath hard.
"Fuck, that stupid bear got in!"
"Let's get out of here. Our prey got away. What fucking rotten luck!"
The donkey bounded over to the wall and yanked out the Sales Assistant, who was still waving her limbs helplessly in the air.
He forcibly stuffed her into the truck bed packed with supplies.
"Run! Hurry!"
The donkey jumped into the passenger seat and urged Chen Mo on.
A chill of fear ran through Chen Mo as well.
Without the slightest hesitation, he jumped into the driver's seat and started the vehicle.
Hu Yaya recovered, stumbled into the E300, and started it with trembling hands, following close behind the dump truck.
Blue and black sped one after the other toward the toll station to the north.
"Aaaah!"
They hadn't gone far before a shrill female scream rang out from the center of town.
The voice was filled with rage and madness.
"That's the Apricot Blossom Lady."
The donkey looked back as he explained to Chen Mo.
"Apricot Blossom Town's native overlord. She devoured almost everyone in town and forced her way up to tier four."
Chen Mo glanced back, clearly not having expected a tier-four being in this town.
"Who'll win?" he asked the donkey instinctively.
The donkey fell silent for a moment, rubbing his chin with a hoof.
"Hard to say. The Spectral Bear's only tier three, but it isn't from here. Invasive species can basically sweep through native anomalies of the same tier."
No sooner had he spoken-
"Aaaah!"
An even more agonized scream rang out.
But this one was noticeably short, like a rooster whose neck had been seized.
"It's over!"
"Keep moving. Once it eats the Apricot Blossom Lady, it'll come after us or the Store Manager."
Tier four...
Just a few hours ago, Chen Mo hadn't had a clear concept of what that level meant.
But after awakening, merely facing the oppressive presence of the second-tier variant, the Store Manager-
Had made him understand all too clearly.
Every tier in the sequence was separated by a chasm that was almost impossible to cross!
The donkey withdrew his gaze and turned toward the Sales Assistant stuffed into the truck bed.
He reached back, grabbed one plastic leg, and dragged her straight into the cab.
Then he raised a hoof and slapped her.
"Your central processor's busted, but you haven't gone stupid, have you?"
Li Xia glanced at the vicious-looking donkey, then slowly lowered her head, her body trembling slightly.
"Well, look at that. She's not stupid. Still knows how to be scared."
"Your master ran away. From now on, you'll serve Grandpa Donkey. Massage Grandpa Donkey's shoulders!"
Meanwhile.
In an alley not far from the supermarket.
The Store Manager, in his six-legged spider form-
Was frantically scuttling across the ground on all six legs.
Just as he had transformed and prepared to fight for his life-
He had sensed the Spectral Bear's presence.
So he ran.
At that moment, Wang Teng wished he could grow a few more legs.
As a variant, he possessed intelligence that other anomalies couldn't hope to match.
Instinctively, he fled toward the central district ruled by the Apricot Blossom Lady.
He wanted to use this native overlord as cover until the danger passed.
But before he could get close, he heard the Apricot Blossom Lady's two agonized screams.
Without hesitation, Wang Teng changed direction and ran for his life toward the northern exit.
Inside the dump truck.
Chen Mo glanced at the black E300 following closely in his rearview mirror.
"That woman knows you can talk. What do we do with her?"
It was a very practical concern.
Who knew whether, once they brought this woman back to the convoy-
She would spill the donkey's secret?
Red Hare chewed on the potato chips they had just looted and kicked the Sales Assistant, who was massaging his feet.
His donkey eyes shifted.
"Let her help drive the supplies for now. Once we're about to catch up with the convoy, just kill her."
"If you've got a soft spot for the little beauty, you don't have to kill her. You're a Transcendent now. She probably won't dare say much when she gets back to the convoy."
Driving her car, Hu Yaya could see Chen Mo and the donkey talking up ahead, though she had no idea what they were saying.
Too much had happened to her in a single day.
It had overturned everything she had known in her twenty-odd years of life.
She knew perfectly well that she had heard and seen far too many things she shouldn't have known.
Put my hopes in someone else's kindness? She didn't dare gamble again.
After what had happened in Wugui Village and the supermarket-
She knew all too well what kind of person Chen Mo was.
She still couldn't forget the look Chen Mo had given her when he learned that each travel permit required a human head.
She had to prove her worth.
Otherwise, the road ahead would lead straight to the end of her life.
Looking at the dump truck ahead, Hu Yaya bit her lip and slowly pressed the brake, easing down her speed little by little.
Chen Mo quickly noticed something was wrong. He pulled over as well and slowly reversed toward her.
Chen Mo leaned his head out, looking at Hu Yaya without expression.
"What are you trying to do?"
Hu Yaya lowered her window too, her voice trembling.
"My... legs feel a little weak. Can I rest for a bit?"
Chen Mo simply stared at Hu Yaya, his gaze seeming to pierce straight through her body.
Hu Yaya glanced at the donkey in the passenger seat and got out of her car.
Her long legs looked even straighter and stronger beneath her tight jeans.
She leaned against the front of her car and gave a bleak smile.
"I know I've heard and seen things I shouldn't have known."
"But I don't want to die."
Hu Yaya took a deep breath, as though mustering every last bit of strength she had.
"My car performs better than your dump truck. It's faster."
"If that bear catches up, I can act as bait and lure it away from you, buying you time."
"That's what I'm worth."
"If you won't agree, do it now."
Chen Mo watched the woman's resolute profile. Her high ponytail swayed gently with the trembling of her body.
An inscrutable smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
He got out of the truck as well.
He twirled the Surgical Knife.
Then slowly walked toward her...
Before you continue