Chapter 9

Third floor, fourth floor, fifth floor...

Lin Chao quickly arrived at the top floor. There were not many corpses in the fire escape, and they were easily dealt with one by one.

Lin Chao gripped the iron rod tightly. The corridor here was very quiet, with corpses lying in front of some doors, indistinguishable as either human remains or sleeping corpses.

Just as Lin Chao was about to move forward, a cold wind suddenly blew from behind, mixed with a strong smell of decay, as if a monstrous mouth was lunging at him from behind!

Lin Chao's body instinctively sensed the danger, and he crouched down reflexively, twisting his body and swinging the iron rod with the force of his rotation, striking hard!

Bang!

The iron rod hit something.

But the massive recoil force made Lin Chao stagger backward, almost falling over!

He was startled and looked up.

What he saw was not a corpse, but an indescribable monster, a mix of human and beast! At first glance, it looked like a giant lizard, with the size of an adult crocodile, covered in dark black scales, but its head was that of a human woman, with messy long hair and purple-framed glasses. The pupils behind the glasses were icy green, like a venomous snake staring at its prey!

"Dangerous Species...?" Lin Chao's pupils constricted.

Dangerous Species were rare in the future because the conditions for their formation were extremely stringent. Out of ten thousand special corpses, only one might emerge!

So-called special corpses were evolved from ordinary corpses, each possessing unique abilities. For example, some special corpses had three times the speed of ordinary corpses, some were immune to fire, and some wouldn't die even if their heads were blown apart...

Dangerous Species, on the other hand, were the result of genetic mutations in special corpses. They not only retained their original special abilities but also developed a second ability through mutation!

If Lin Chao were an Evolver, he would be overjoyed at this moment. The value of a Dangerous Species was enormous. Besides its research value, the most important thing was that it possessed "Multiple Life Energy" within its body!

Evolvers were divided into three levels!

Ordinary Evolvers, Special Evolvers, and Multiple Evolvers!

Obtaining the Life Energy from an ordinary corpse would make one an Ordinary Evolver. Obtaining the Special Life Energy from a special corpse would make one a Special Evolver. The Multiple Life Energy within a Dangerous Species, once obtained, would make one the most powerful Multiple Evolver, possessing more than two special abilities!

Ordinary Multiple Evolvers could evolve their bodies to the extreme, with strength comparable to Awakeners!

However, Lin Chao only had an iron rod in his hands, and his physical condition was too poor. Encountering a special corpse might still be manageable, but a Dangerous Species... there was almost no chance of survival!

Roar!

The female lizard hissed, and its body suddenly flashed, darting forward like a black shadow!

Block!

Lin Chao's mind instinctively reacted, but just as he was about to raise the iron rod, a hard object collided with his chest, sending him flying backward and crashing into the wall.

Lin Chao's heart sank.

Too strong, at least ten times the strength!

Lin Chao took a deep breath.

Grip the iron rod!

Staring at the gaping maw rushing toward him, he roared and swung the iron rod with all his might, not aiming for its head but shoving it into its mouth!

He thrust hard!

The female lizard's lips were stretched wide, and the iron rod almost reached its throat. The other end of the rod hit the wall with a thud, and the recoil force caused the female lizard intense pain, making it hiss sharply.

Lin Chao took the opportunity to roll to the side.

Run!

He didn't run down the corridor; with the female lizard's speed, it would catch up quickly, making it meaningless.

As for hiding in a room?

The quality of the door frames here was such that they would likely be broken with one headbutt!

He rushed to the fire cabinet by the stairs, grabbed the fire extinguisher hanging on the wall, and smashed it against the glass door. Inside was a fire hose.

He caught his breath and shook out the hose.

Roar!

A low growl came from behind, and Lin Chao turned to see the female lizard had shaken off the iron rod and was charging at him angrily.

Lin Chao quickly grabbed the hose and jumped out the window.

Rustle...

The dry hose quickly extended.

This was the eighteenth floor. Lin Chao was hanging outside the building, his feet dangling in the air. The corpses wandering in front of the building looked tiny. Finally, the hose tightened, and Lin Chao's body stopped falling.

Before Lin Chao could breathe a sigh of relief, he saw a red tongue appear at the window. The female lizard had climbed onto the window and, just as Lin Chao thought it would give up, it suddenly leaped at him!

Damn, this is the eighteenth floor!

Suicide?

Lin Chao was stunned. This Dangerous Species wasn't an ordinary corpse; its intelligence was similar to that of an animal, with some discernment and simple thinking. Such a great height, even with its robust physique, would result in severe injuries!

Wouldn't it be able to judge that?

What kind of grudge could it have to risk severe injuries just to kill him?

Lin Chao was speechless. In the moment it leaped, he kicked the wall and immediately controlled the hose to swing his body, narrowly avoiding it. The sharp claws were only 0.5 centimeters from his nose, and then it fell vertically...

Bang!

A faint sound came from below.

Lin Chao looked down. Due to its diving posture, it landed headfirst, and its brain had exploded, with red and white brain matter splattered everywhere.

"Why bother..." Lin Chao shook his head. Suddenly, he thought of something and his face showed a strange expression, "Could it be... those myopic glasses?"

People with normal vision wearing myopic glasses would see everything magnified. Dangerous Species, with vision 3-5 times that of humans, would see everything through myopic glasses as gigantic! So, it likely perceived the great height of the eighteenth floor as much closer, leading it to leap without hesitation...

Lin Chao found it somewhat amusing.

Such a powerful Dangerous Species, destroyed by a small pair of glasses?

Thinking about how he had dodged its first attack and shoved the iron rod into its mouth, Lin Chao became more confident in this theory. His body techniques were good, but the strength and speed difference was too great. Even with the most advanced techniques, if they were slowed down seven to eight times in its eyes, it could easily dodge.

It was clear that the glasses had likely caused it to misjudge the distance, leading to its mistake.

He immediately climbed back up the hose, picked up the iron rod, and ran downstairs.

"Early-stage corpses don't have Life Energy. I wonder if early-stage Dangerous Species have Multiple Evolution Genes..." Lin Chao was anxious.

If they did, he would be in luck.

If not, he would have to obediently transplant the genes and become a semi-Evolver.

Ten minutes later, he arrived beside the Dangerous Species. He used a stone to lure away nearby corpses and then took out surgical scissors to dissect its body.

There were too many scales, making it impossible to cut through. Lin Chao could only choose to cut the skin at the neck, then peel it off, bit by bit...

Soon, the outer skin of the Dangerous Species' upper body was completely peeled off, revealing the fresh, red flesh. The blood vessels, like earthworms, moved instinctively.

Lin Chao used a dagger to peel open the area around its heart.

There, inside, was...