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"Bang, bang! Bang, bang! Bang!"

Bullets poured out in a dense barrage!

Unlike ordinary Species, however, the Species that had burst out of the body instantly raised a white shield around itself. Large-caliber rounds powerful enough to shatter a skull swept across the shield, yet they only slowed it slightly, doing no damage at all!

Horror filled all four pairs of eyes at the sight of that bizarre ability!

Ye Lin's heart lurched as well, but fortunately, that sliver of time was all he needed.

He slid along the floor. With a ripping sound, the Species' claws missed their mark, grazing his face less than a millimeter above his eyeball.

As though they had simply swapped positions, Ye Lin was behind it within a single breath.

"Huang Liang! Stop it!"

"Give me ten seconds!"

Shouting sharply, Ye Lin rolled to his feet and charged toward the rear of the cabin.

Snapping out of his daze, Huang Liang saw the special Species whirl around in fury and roar at Ye Lin. His expression changed drastically, and he instinctively pulled the trigger.

Only seconds earlier, he had been at odds with Ye Lin, and now Ye Lin was ordering him to stop the Species.

But he knew that if this monster didn't die, they would all die sooner or later. It was only a matter of time!

"Rat-tat-tat! Tat! Tat!"

Two streams of gunfire opened up at once. He Zheng roared as he fired. At such close range, it was like holding a heavy machine gun-he didn't even need to aim, simply pouring out every bullet he had.

Caught between attacks from the front and rear, the Species shuddered under the kinetic force of the bullets amid the relentless muzzle flashes.

Yet it was all meaningless.

The monster pushed through the hail of bullets at speed. Then it suddenly leaped onto the cabin wall, and the stream of fire passed beneath it, showering the cabin with brilliant sparks.

Click, click. The sound of an empty magazine suddenly rang out like a death knell.

He Zheng kept his finger on the trigger, his mind utterly blank.

He had imagined this monster would be terrifying, but he had never expected it to remain completely unscathed even after they emptied their guns.

There wasn't even time for despair to set in.

The next second, the Species abruptly turned, and a huge, slime-covered hand filled He Zheng's vision.

"Bam!!"

As though struck by a heavy truck, He Zheng was slapped into the wall like a rag doll by a single casual blow.

Under the tremendous impact, his helmet shattered. His right eyeball was instantly squeezed out of its socket, and half his face seemed to peel away, exposing the mangled muscle beneath.

His spine snapped. One blow had utterly robbed him of the ability to fight.

Seeing He Zheng lying there, his fate unknown, An Ke went deathly pale.

Too fast! It had all happened too fast!

Less than three seconds after this "Species" appeared, they had been driven into a hopeless corner.

She hadn't even had time to hesitate over whether to reveal her strength!

But revealing it no longer mattered. Even if she was somewhat stronger than He Zheng, she was no match for this monster. Fighting to the death would only buy her another two seconds.

Only now did she truly understand what Ye Lin had been wary of.

"Huang Liang! Hold it back! Everyone else, grab the straps!"

Ye Lin suddenly shouted urgently from the rear of the cabin. An Ke instinctively looked over and saw him frantically fastening the safety straps on the wall tightly around himself.

Was he...!?

An Ke's heart jolted, and Huang Liang seemed to understand too, his entire body shuddering.

Both realized that Ye Lin intended to open the hatch and suck the monster out!

But...

Even if Huang Liang could hold the monster back, he would be sucked out with it!

"Roar!!"

The Species roared. With its high intelligence, it instantly realized this as well.

The next second, it abandoned everyone else and charged toward Ye Lin at top speed.

There was no time to struggle, much less think. Seeing the Species charge toward the rear of the cabin, Huang Liang roared, threw aside his gun, and lunged straight at it.

Did he need to die?

Fine. He could accept that. From the moment he took the mission, he had been prepared to sacrifice himself.

Besides, in a sense, he had been suspicious of Ye Lin all along. Under the circumstances, it was only natural for Ye Lin to send him to his death.

"Ye Lin!! I'll hold it back! But you have to get...!"

"Bang!!"

He had no time to say anything more. As Huang Liang lunged into the Species head-on, it was like flesh and blood colliding with a truck. His chest caved in, and a huge mouthful of blood spilled uncontrollably from his mouth.

The Species froze for a moment.

Looking down at Huang Liang clinging desperately to its body, it instinctively tried to shake this insect off. To its surprise, even after it tore off one of his arms, the damned insect still used his remaining hand and his teeth to cling to it!

Enraged, it simply seized both ends of Huang Liang's body and tore him apart at the waist as though ripping a book in half.

"Rrrip!"

With a teeth-grating sound of tearing flesh, Huang Liang screamed in agony. In the blink of an eye, his upper and lower halves were violently ripped apart, and his intestines spilled from his abdomen in a rush of blood.

The extreme pain knocked him unconscious on the spot.

Watching the gruesome scene, An Ke's expression turned ghastly. Even sacrificing his life, Huang Liang had stopped the monster for less than half a second!

Who else!? Who else could stop it!? Who else would die!?

Torn by hesitation, she had never felt time drag so slowly.

Before she could grit her teeth and decide, Zhang Tie suddenly charged forward from nearby as though he had gone mad.

"Ye Lin!"

"Forget about us! Open the hatch!!"

"Thud!"

Zhang Tie threw himself onto the floor and clamped both hands around the Species' ankle.

He was afraid too, but there was no one left!

Too many people had died!

He didn't know who else would step up, but if he didn't dare either, everyone might die here! He wasn't clever. That was all he could think of!

In the corner, Hu Jia curled up, kicking his legs as he broke down sobbing.

Unable to watch Zhang Tie, who had treated him better than anyone, die horribly before his eyes, he gripped the straps above his head and buried his face.

As though driven mad, he wailed and cursed this damned exam.

Why!? Why did they have to die!? What right did it have to send them here and make them face despair over and over again!

"Roar!!!"

The Species was utterly enraged. These insects' repeated struggles had exhausted every last scrap of its patience.

Now it intended only to stomp this insect to death, then swallow the most detestable insect whole!

But before it could stamp down in fury, it caught sight of Ye Lin, who seemed to have finished securing his straps and was reaching straight for the hatch release, disregarding everyone else's lives.

The Species flew into a rage, its narrow, snakelike eyes filled with alarm.

Abandoning the insect beneath its foot, it roared and launched itself off the floor like a cannonball, hurtling at Ye Lin!

"Boom!!!"

The recoil was tremendous. Like a blur, it appeared behind Ye Lin in an instant.

Seeing Ye Lin's utterly panicked expression, it smiled cruelly and, without hesitation, bit down on the arm still desperately reaching for the button.

"Crunch!"

Ye Lin screamed as it devoured his entire arm in one bite.

As though toying with him, it seized Ye Lin by the throat and pinned him firmly against the wall.

An unmistakably human sneer appeared on its long, streamlined, spike-shaped face.

"Damned..."

"Proto..."

"zoan...!"

Its voice was deep, like some hoarse, synthesized metallic sound.

Its eyes brimmed with mockery.

Although this insect had seen through its plan, against absolute strength, he had only hastened his own death.

The grenade still had fifty seconds before it detonated. Even setting aside whether it could destroy the control console, if it posed a threat, the remaining time was still enough for it to kill everyone.

It had intended to wait until the final minute, but now it seemed the game had ended early.

Deathly silence filled the cabin. The remaining three stared at the captured Ye Lin, despair filling their eyes.

They had still been a step too slow.

Even though they were alive, none of them could open the hatch in front of this monster.

An Ke suddenly regretted hesitating for that one second.

If what she carried hadn't been so important-so important that she was terrified of exposing herself-she would never have hesitated.

Although whatever she chose, the outcome would have been the same.

Was surviving a punishment exam truly impossible...?

If I could just survive this one, I could use "it" to find that answer...!

An Ke clenched her fists, her face full of defiance.

Suddenly.

Just as she was about to charge out, Ye Lin spoke hoarsely from where he was pinned against the wall.

"Idiot."

"Did my hand... taste good?"

The Species froze abruptly. Its narrow, vertical pupils instinctively shifted toward the left hand Ye Lin was struggling to extend.

There, in his palm, lay a grenade pin.

"Fucking moron..."

"Why would I ever blow up the control console..."

"Boom!!!"

Flesh and blood exploded everywhere. Even with its protective shield, the Species could only burst like a punctured balloon when faced with a high-explosive grenade detonating inside its body, instantly becoming a heap of shredded meat!

Foul-smelling, sticky chunks splattered across his face.

With a thud.

Ye Lin dropped from the wall and landed sitting on the floor.

The corners of his mouth twitched as he gave the two of them a feeble smile.

"What the hell are you staring at... come give me a hand..."

"Beep. Candidate Ye Lin has killed the special Species [Alesi], earning a reward of 90 points."

"Beep. Candidate Ye Lin has completed a hidden exam question. Completion progress: 21%. Please check your rewards and detailed information after returning."

A few seconds later, Ye Lin sat slumped on the floor, looking down at the updated information on his wristwatch.

What a huge reward...

Ye Lin was startled, but quickly realized that the system's generous reward was probably linked not only to the difficulty, but also to the hidden exam question.

He wondered what kind of insane "question" awarded ninety points for just twenty-one percent completion. If he completed it fully, wouldn't he be able to collect twelve hundred points in just two exams?

"What a shame..."

Sitting beside Ye Lin, An Ke sighed. A complicated look flickered through her eyes as she gazed at He Zheng's and Huang Liang's "corpses" on the floor.

Perhaps if they had held out a little longer, neither would have died.

But she was only a "passerby," with no real emotional attachment to them. Ever since entering the Death Exam, she had grown accustomed to her companions dying.

Ye Lin remained silent. Hu Jia sobbed softly, while Zhang Tie stood nearby with reddened eyes. He desperately wanted to put Huang Liang's intestines back into his abdomen, but didn't know where to begin.

Although Huang Liang hadn't gotten along with him, he had certainly been a good ally.

He Zheng wasn't very bright, but he had been willing to risk his life.

He didn't know how long remained before the base was completely destroyed, but judging by the time, it couldn't be more than a minute or two.

Still, he had done everything he could, and at the time, he had needed to deceive the Species.

"Ye Lin, how many points did you earn in this exam?"

Noticing the information flashing across Ye Lin's wristwatch, An Ke asked quietly. Although she had seen the astonishing reward, she felt no jealousy.

She couldn't earn any extra points in a punishment exam, so the stronger Ye Lin became, the better their chances in the next one.

Counting the Species in the base and God, Ye Lin, a newcomer, would probably be able to enhance himself to an astonishing degree before the next exam.

"Over a hundred and fifty, I think. The system said I exceeded the limit for a single exam, so I won't know the exact reward until we get back."

"And..."

Before Ye Lin could finish, a succession of system notifications suddenly rang out.

"Beep. The second round has ended. All Species have died. The system will award points based on exam performance."

"Beep. Due to changes to the second-round exam question, this exam will no longer include a third round. The system will automatically deduct the base points after the exam ends."

"Beep. Teleportation initiated. Remaining time: 10 seconds. All candidates, please prepare!"

"Final number of survivors in this exam: 6! (13)"

"Over a hundred and fifty points?"

Although she had expected Ye Lin to earn an extremely high score, hearing it confirmed still left An Ke reeling.

A hundred and fifty points! Ye Lin was a newcomer, yet he had actually...

Wait...!?

Six people?

An Ke froze as she scanned the system notification.

Counting herself, Zhang Tie, Hu Jia, and Ye Lin, there were only four of them.

With no time to think it through, An Ke seemed to remember something and urgently called out to Ye Lin:

"Ye Lin! Quick! Choose to return now!"

"Those two are still alive!"

Ye Lin froze, then looked at Huang Liang, who lay torn in half on the floor, and immediately understood.

Still alive?

Yes. On Earth, there would have been almost no chance of either of them surviving those injuries. But this was the Death Exam! He remembered He Zheng saying that as long as they returned to the Death Exam Space, all their injuries could be healed!

Huang Liang had only been torn in half, his heart no longer beating, while He Zheng had only suffered a broken spine. Both still had a breath left before they were truly dead!

"How do we get back?!"

"Bring them with you! Even if all that's left is a head! Then choose to return immediately!!"

"Return!"

A few seconds later, a flash of white light flickered and vanished.

After the six of them disappeared, nothing remained in the cargo hold but scraps of flesh strewn across the floor, as though none of it had ever happened.

Venus, twenty-five kilometers up in the atmosphere.

Within the base, crushed into ruins, a gaze remained fixed on the white speck gradually flying out of the acid clouds.

The white speck flew higher and higher, until it reached space.

Had Ye Lin and the others still been aboard, they would have been stunned to discover that in low orbit above Venus, countless warships, like dead bodies, crowded the space around the entire planet.

Inside the cargo hold, the scraps of flesh writhed as the navigation system mechanically pointed toward that blue planet.