Chapter 87 - 85: Unique Mission: Supreme Evolution
Just as Lin Ye was observing in silence, the bizarre life-form seemed to sense something.
Its single eye turned toward him without any warning.
Lin Ye’s pupils contracted to the size of a pinprick in an instant.
His body reacted faster than his brain.
He jerked his head back.
Lin Ye immediately held his breath.
The beating of his heart became deafening in that moment.
Lin Ye even wished he could switch his heartbeat to manual.
He didn’t dare make a sound.
He didn’t dare make a move.
In the face of absolute, unknown terror, any unnecessary movement could lead to utter annihilation.
Dead silence.
Deep in the subway tunnel, only the cold wind whimpered.
Ten seconds.
Twenty seconds.
Thirty seconds.
Every second felt like walking on a razor’s edge.
Lin Ye’s back was already soaked in a cold sweat.
Just when he thought it had locked onto him, that he would be torn to shreds by the bizarre creature at any moment...
A sickening sucking sound rang out once more.
Following that was a strange, faint sound, like a baby’s cry, echoing in the empty underground space.
The sound carried a hint of greedy satisfaction.
Lin Ye’s taut nerves relaxed slightly.
’I managed to stay hidden.’
’The way it turned its head was probably just an instinctual warning, not because it actually spotted me.’
Like a lifeless statue, he waited silently for another dozen or so seconds. After confirming the sucking sound was continuous and steady, he slowly poked his head out again.
His gaze once again passed through the damaged crack.
He saw that the thing had already switched targets.
Its small body was now perched on another corpse.
It was a mutated giant python, over ten meters long and as thick as a water bucket.
The python’s corpse was still warm, clearly having been hunted and killed by it not long ago.
Wisps of blood-red mist, visible to the naked eye and mixed with life energy, were being forcefully extracted from the python’s massive body. Like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, they streamed continuously into the demonic single eye in the center of its face.
It was then that Lin Ye’s gaze caught a crucial detail.
’It’s severely injured.’
Its body, which seemed carved from amethyst, had a shimmering and energy-filled left side.
But its entire right side, from its right arm to its right leg, had crystals on the surface that were a dull, grayish-white. Some parts were even becoming translucent, as if they had lost their energy supply.
The energy-filled veins, clearly visible inside its body like blood vessels, seemed to be blocked by an invisible barrier as they passed through the center of its torso, completely unable to reach its right-side limbs.
And at that moment, the system’s markers finally appeared in Lin Ye’s vision.
[Crystal Spirit Race Hatchling (Severely Injured)]
[Level: LV.18]
[Evolutionary Tier: 2.1]
’Evolutionary Tier?’
This was the first time Lin Ye had seen this new marker on another creature’s status panel.
’What does it represent?’
’A classification of life forms?’
Before he could think about it further, a cold, mechanical notification suddenly rang in his mind!
[DING!]
[Presence of a high Evolutionary Tier life-form detected!]
[This is your first combat encounter as a BOSS against another BOSS!]
[Urgent Mission Issued: Supreme Evolution!]
[Mission Requirement: Kill the severely injured and dying Crystal Spirit Race Hatchling.]
[Mission Reward: +15,000 EXP, +12 Free Attribute Points, Unlock New Mechanism: Taotie!]
[Please Note: This is a uniquely triggered mission and will not be triggered again.]
[Note: In the vast cosmos, countless races stand. Life and death are a struggle, and evolution is endless! Can you seize every opportunity to ascend to the pinnacle of all races?]
Lin Ye’s heart gave a violent lurch.
He instantly recalled that the system had issued a similar mission during his first combat practice with Chen Meng.
That mission had rewarded him with the [Soul Furnace] mechanism.
These kinds of missions were one-time-only; if you missed them, they were gone forever.
And these missions were always challenging.
They were tests from the system, based on specific circumstances.
Lin Ye’s gaze became incredibly determined in an instant.
’I have to kill this Crystal Spirit!’
Lin Ye reduced his presence to a minimum, becoming like a cold rock, and began a long and patient observation.
It was as if he was back in the ruined city, during the five days he had spent meticulously plotting to kill the mutated black panther.
More than an hour later.
The massive mutated python had been reduced to a shriveled snakeskin specimen, unable to yield another drop of life energy.
The Crystal Spirit Race hatchling seemed to finally be full.
It let out a satisfied, dream-like cry and moved away from the python’s corpse.
The glow of energy flowing within its body was noticeably brighter than before, and even the dull crystals on its right side seemed to have regained a faint, almost imperceptible luster.
It found a relatively clean corner and curled up its small body.
The demonic single eye floating in the center of its face slowly retracted its light, finally closing completely, as if a light had been switched off.
’It’s asleep?’
Lin Ye knew that a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity had arrived.
But he still didn’t move.
He began to quickly scan the entire transfer hall.
Thirty meters to his front-left, there was a half-collapsed ventilation duct with an entrance narrow enough for only one person to pass through.
Fifty meters to his back-right, a huge gash in the wall led to another unknown tunnel.
Above him, the steel-reinforced structure of the ceiling was twisted but sturdy enough, providing ample space to use the Exoskeleton Armor’s thrusters for rapid flight maneuvers.
Before even thinking about how to attack, Lin Ye had already planned out more than three escape routes for himself.
’Always be prepared for failure. That’s how you maximize your margin for error.’
Only after running through all the routes and variables in his mind did Lin Ye begin to move.
Like a phantom melting into the shadows, he emerged silently from behind the train wreckage.
He had adjusted the kinetic assistance system of his T-3 Exoskeleton Armor to its lowest power setting. Each step landed precisely on solid ground without making the slightest sound.
He held his breath, all the muscles in his body tensed at the breaking point, ready to spring into action.
He could clearly sense that the Crystal Spirit Race hatchling ahead had indeed entered a state of deep sleep. Even the faint spiritual pressure it exuded had weakened to its lowest point.
Twenty meters.
Ten meters.
Five meters.
Lin Ye stopped, a mere three steps away from his target.
Now that he was closer, he could finally see the details of this alien creature clearly.
And its most fatal weakness.
In the very center of its chest, where its heart would be, there was a fist-sized wound.
The Crystal Shell there was completely shattered, forming a gruesome hole. He could even see the purer energy core slowly circulating inside.
This piercing wound was precisely what had disrupted the energy circulation in its body.
’That’s it!’
Lin Ye slowly raised the standard-issue spear in his hands.
The power of the Exoskeleton Armor was silently channeled to his arms.
The tip of the spear glinted with a cold, sinister light in the dim underground space.
He had even already planned his method of attack.
’A probing first strike. I’ll use [Power Strike] to stab the wound with all my might. Even if it’s not a fatal blow, I have to damage its energy core as much as possible.’
’Then, I’ll immediately retreat. Based on its reaction and strength, I’ll decide whether to pursue or flee.’
Lin Ye’s gaze was focused to the extreme.
The energy within his body began to gather at the tip of his spear.
’Now!’
However, just as he was about to thrust out this decisive spear...
PAT.
A crisp, abrupt sound suddenly echoed in the dead silent underground space!
The sound wasn’t loud.
But it struck Lin Ye’s heart like a heavy hammer.
It was a footstep!
His scalp prickled instantly!