Tyrant bloodline

Standing before the vortex, Ye Lin reached into it.

The vortex was a bewitching crimson. Stare at it for a few seconds too long, and it seemed capable of drawing in even his soul.

For some reason, he kept getting the strange impression that reaching inside to make an exchange was a kind of ritual.

"View the Grade C tyrant bloodline and the Grade C observer bloodline."

"Beep. Bloodline name: Tyrant (Test Subject)"

"Combat tier: Tier 2 (Superhuman+)"

"Bloodline description: Upon exchange, greatly enhances the body and grants regeneration and the Rampage skill."

"Bloodline advancement: Tyrant Test Subject (Grade C)-Tyrant Gene (Grade B)-Aberrant, virus king, corpse emperor (Grade A)-??? (Grade S)"

"System assessment: An artificial creation from a laboratory, possessing devastating power. As the price, you will kill yourself."

"Bloodline name: Observer"

"Combat tier: Tier 2 (Superhuman+)"

"Bloodline description: Upon exchange, greatly enhances willpower and perception, and grants third-person vision and the Suppression skill."

"Bloodline advancement: Observer (Grade C)-Interferer (Grade B)-mind controller, spirit controller, thought controller (Grade A)-??? (Grade S)"

"System assessment: Observe the past and the future, but you may die today."

The exchange screen appeared. Ye Lin carefully read the descriptions, making sure he had selected the right options.

According to An Ke, choosing both bloodlines before beginning the enhancement would fuse them directly.

On the left side of the screen, a Tyrant Test Subject floated inside a gigantic incubation tank.

Its crimson eyes brimmed with brutality. Its massive frame radiated an oppressive presence, as though it would destroy everything in sight.

On the right was an ethereal spirit with indifferent eyes, calmly observing everything. Above it, a gigantic golden eyeball gazed down upon the earth, like an observer of the world watching everything without emotion.

The two were absolute opposites.

One represented destruction and madness, the other peace and absolute reason.

The two bloodlines were so extreme that even the people behind Ye Lin stared in a daze.

"Holy shit... these two enhancements look like enemies no matter how you look at them... if he fuses them, won't he blow himself apart?"

Hu Jia swallowed hard, looking worried.

"Lin won't turn into that monster after the enhancement, will he? That thing doesn't even look human anymore..."

The Odin Warrior He Zheng had exchanged for had merely made him a size larger without changing his appearance much. The tyrant, on the other hand, looked even more terrifying than the Species from the previous exam. It was a complete monster.

"No. Aside from transformation types, bloodline enhancements don't affect your appearance. At most, they affect part of your mind, and your personality will gradually grow closer to the 'original.'"

An Ke explained softly, dispelling their worries.

As soon as she finished speaking, Ye Lin began the exchange.

Bzzzt!

Unlike the single beam of red light during He Zheng's enhancement, two pillars of light, one black and one white, instantly engulfed Ye Lin.

The sound of bones warping set their teeth on edge. Ye Lin seemed to be enduring tremendous pain during the enhancement, and beads of blood actually seeped out through his skin.

It felt as though his blood was burning. In unbearable agony, Ye Lin dropped to his knees. Words could not describe what he was feeling. He only felt his soul and body being torn apart and melting at the same time.

Thump-thump! Thump-thump! Thump-thump!

His heart hammered wildly at three hundred beats per second, while hundreds of millions of cells inside his body divided rapidly as though boiling.

Under everyone's horrified gaze, his genes rearranged themselves. His hair turned from black to white in an instant, then rapidly returned to black.

His consciousness was dragged into deathlike darkness, falling endlessly.

He had no idea how long had passed. Perhaps a second, perhaps a minute.

Ye Lin struggled to open his "eyes." Somewhere deep within, he sensed someone coldly watching him from the depths of his mind.

Two minutes later.

"Beep. Enhancement complete. Cost: 90 points, Grade B rating ×1. Access level retained."

The enhancement ended, and the light vanished.

The others, who had been waiting in the space for a long time, began to panic. He Zheng shouted anxiously.

"Ye Lin?!"

"Ye Lin!!"

Unlike what had happened after He Zheng's enhancement, Ye Lin had collapsed onto the ground upon completion, his back facing them.

Seeing no sign that Ye Lin would wake up, even An Ke lost her composure.

With no time to think, He Zheng called out several times. When there was no response, he charged over, and the others hurried after him.

As the strongest fighter on their team, nothing could be allowed to happen to Ye Lin.

He Zheng was the fastest. Taking long, hurried strides, he sprinted up behind Ye Lin.

Before he could reach out to pull him up, an utterly savage killing intent enveloped him.

Ye Lin, who had been unconscious a moment earlier, abruptly rose and opened his eyes. A brutal blood-red color filled them completely.

Giving He Zheng almost no time to react, Ye Lin threw a punch as he rose. The terrifying force compressed the air until it burst with a shrill scream!

He Zheng was horrified.

Even though the punch had yet to strike him, he felt locked in place. A terror that brought him infinitely close to death left him unable even to raise his twin axes.

It was as though his genes had been suppressed. In that instant, he felt as if he had returned to his first exam, facing a gigantic beast as an ordinary man!

This punch...?!

Even with the system's protection, I'll be smashed apart, whether I die or not!

He Zheng struggled desperately, but his body felt filled with lead. He could not move.

"Ye Lin!!"

He roared until his voice cracked, mustering the last of his strength in an attempt to stop Ye Lin.

In an instant, the fist stopped. The blood-red color rapidly faded from Ye Lin's eyes, leaving them empty as he stood motionless.

He Zheng dared not breathe. Looking at the fist less than a centimeter from his body, he swallowed with difficulty as cold sweat ran down his back.

It was hard to believe. They had both exchanged for Grade C enhancements, yet the difference in their power was enormous!

A few seconds later, Ye Lin's vacant eyes shifted slightly. Only then did the others dare draw deep breaths and cautiously call his name again.

"Ye... Ye Lin...?"

"I'm fine..."

Slowly lowering his right hand, Ye Lin swayed weakly and waved away their offers of support.

Looking at An Ke's anxious face, he nodded, indicating that the bloodline fusion had gone without any problems.

His weakness came not from his body, but from his mind.

Honestly, he had never expected the Tyrant Test Subject's side effects to be so terrifying.

When his enhancement ended, all his thoughts had seemed to vanish, leaving only biological instinct.

And He Zheng calling his name had instantly detonated his killing intent.

The price was even greater than the system's description had suggested. If he had not used the observer's skill to suppress that killing intent, he would probably have "killed" everyone already.

"Holy shit, as long as you're okay. Fuck, you scared the hell out of me."

"Do you realize you nearly killed me with one punch...?"

He Zheng was still shaken, lingering fear gripping his heart.

Good grief. After finishing his enhancement, he had been considering whether they should spar to test their strength. But now...

"Uh, Ye Lin, do I still have to fight you? Maybe we could..."

He Zheng swallowed and asked quietly, instinctively glancing at the treatment area.

If they still had to fight, he was afraid he would be smashed flat as a cracker.

"No need."

Ye Lin gave a wry smile and shook his head, instantly noticing where He Zheng was looking.

There was no way to test his strength now. With his current power, He Zheng probably would not last even a second, and they would only waste points on treatment afterward.

Just as An Ke had said, the Tyrant Test Subject far surpassed Grade C. It was as powerful as Grade B.

The tremendous increase in his perception also made everything look as though he were examining it through a magnifying glass. He could even clearly see the paths of dust particles falling through the air.

He even felt that his enhanced perception let him predict everyone's next move from the movement of their muscles. Third-person vision, meanwhile, allowed him to observe the entire world as though he were floating outside his own body.

Perhaps even An Ke had not realized this.

The observer bloodline did not enhance the body, but it fundamentally changed the way he fought.

Based on the system's strength assessment, Ye Lin could roughly confirm that his true combat strength after enhancing both bloodlines was around Tier 2, while He Zheng counted as Tier 1.

With a full tier between them, the difference was like that between an elite soldier and a superhuman.

The power he had gained from a single enhancement actually exceeded what He Zheng had gained over four exams.

"All right! Stop standing around! If you need to exchange anything, hurry up!"

Seeing that Ye Lin had let him off, He Zheng quickly hopped aside and called for the others to make their exchanges.

They answered him. Apart from An Ke, who had little to exchange for, everyone hurried toward the exchange vortex with anticipation in their eyes.

Half an hour later.

Everyone had changed into the combat uniforms they had exchanged for.

At a glance, aside from the somewhat incongruous weapons strapped to their backs, they looked reasonably convincing. They no longer looked like the students they had been.

"Ye Lin, this is the weapon you exchanged for?"

"This thing alone cost twenty-five points?"

"Fuck, that's extravagant. Everything I'm wearing put together didn't cost that much!"

Looking at the entirely black, cross-shaped longsword in Ye Lin's hand, He Zheng wore a pained expression, as though the points spent had been his own.

As long as an item had no supernatural properties, it was cheap. A complete set of their combat uniform and bulletproof vest cost only half a point. Even including his jetpack, the Antidote, a dagger, and assorted odds and ends, all his equipment had cost less than seven points.

Ye Lin smiled without speaking, continuing to get used to the weapon's feel.

After deducting the miscellaneous purchases, he still had forty points left after exchanging for the bloodlines, enough to buy a weapon.

He had originally had his eye on a saber, but had unexpectedly discovered this sword.

Its name was ordinary, but its strength was not.

The Ancient Blade had an extremely hard blade, and its size could change at the wielder's will.

It came with blood-burning damage and a dash ability. Of course, the main attraction was the Ancient Blade's highly unusual self-destruct effect.

At the cost of destroying the weapon, it released the ancient power remaining within the blade.

According to the system's description, that strike could flatten an entire building, with power equivalent to an all-out attack from an upper Tier 2 fighter.

It combined sustained damage, mobility, and a finishing strike. Although the cost was high, it suited Ye Lin perfectly and gave him a trump card outright.

As for the remaining fifteen points, he planned to save them for emergencies.

To upgrade both bloodlines to Grade B next time, he would need to make up the difference between Grade C and Grade B, which was 180 points. With a maximum of 150 points per exam, the points he had saved would bring him close to the total.

"Lin, what flavor of rations do you like? Do you like yellow peach?"

In front of the vortex, Zhang Tie held a large bag of field rations and looked at him expectantly.

Since they did not know how long the system would require them to survive, they had simply exchanged for ten days' worth of rations. Though unappetizing, they were a convenient way to replenish their energy.

Ye Lin turned and looked at Zhang Tie's fur-covered face, momentarily speechless. It was not because Zhang Tie had somehow found fruit-flavored canned meat.

It was because Zhang Tie had become a gigantic silver bear.

"Did An Ke tell you to exchange for this?"

Ye Lin sighed. Watching Zhang Tie clank over, he did not know what to say.

Besides exchanging for the silver bear transformation, Zhang Tie had bought a suit of alloy armor and a shield the size of a city gate.

Already tall and sturdy, he now stood over two and a half meters tall after transforming. At a glance, he looked like a polar bear hiding inside a fortress.

"Yeah! I asked An Ke what could take the most hits, and she recommended this!"

"I don't know how to fight, so I figured being able to take a beating would do."

His voice was deep and muffled. Zhang Tie gave a simple, slightly embarrassed smile.

Not knowing how to change back, he could not even reach his head to scratch it.

"Just think 'cancel.' But you can stay like that if you want. You're pretty cute."

Walking up beside Ye Lin, An Ke could not help laughing at Zhang Tie's clumsy appearance. She had not expected him to actually choose this enhancement. Though it was genuinely good, few people could accept turning into a bear.

"He Zheng, Ye Lin, take these."

Seeing that Zhang Tie had learned to cancel his transformation, An Ke turned away from him and handed the two men an earpiece each.

"The earpieces are translators. One point gets you ten, and they can translate ninety-nine percent of languages. If we run into a language barrier during an exam, at least we won't end up like last time."

He Zheng paused after taking the earpiece, then put it on with curiosity. Beside him, Ye Lin raised an eyebrow but did not refuse.

Although he had mastered the languages of several major countries before entering the Death Exam, no one could guarantee what world the next exam would take place in.

"Huh? They have these things here? An Ke, how did you find them?"

"Holy shit, if I'd known these existed, I'd have exchanged for them ages ago."

Glancing at the surprised He Zheng, An Ke sighed inwardly. She could only conclude that he was an idiot.

"I should be asking you that. Normally, after going through a few exams, people think of exchanging for things like these. They don't improve your strength, but they can often save your life."

"If we can afford it, we should actually each exchange for a few skills."

Opening the system's exchange interface, An Ke searched for the skills tab:

"For example, Vehicle Mastery costs five points. Once you exchange for it, you automatically master the driving skills for any vehicle."

"Language Mastery also costs five points. Once you exchange for it, you automatically learn every language. You can even understand alien bugs."

As she flipped through page after page of densely packed everyday skills, He Zheng stared, dumbfounded.

"Also, I exchanged for..."

Before An Ke could open the backpack behind her, a system announcement instantly rang throughout the entire space:

"The second exam will begin shortly. All examinees, please prepare."

"Countdown: 22 hours, 49 minutes"

As the announcement ended, all six people in the hall turned toward the vortex opening before them, their hearts jolting.

Though they had prepared themselves, their breathing still grew heavy at that moment.

They did not know, and neither did anyone else...

Who among them would come back out alive once they went in.