Chapter 4

Gao Feng's determination also made it difficult for the others to say anything more.

Zhu Bin felt even more ashamed. At a critical moment, he was not as responsible and courageous as a child. He could only wave his hand and lead everyone to step back.

A man named Zhang Yong stepped forward and said, "I have a gun, let me give it to you."

Zhang Yong handed over a laser pistol, but Gao Feng shook his head and said, "I'm not old enough to use a gun." At seventeen, he was below the legal age, and most pistols had recognition systems that would forcibly prevent teenagers from using them.

In fact, the ferocity and terror of the lizardmen far exceeded the employees' imagination. The fact that the big man could hold his ground against the lizardman also demonstrated his formidable strength.

Gao Feng, holding his sword, ran quickly toward the lizardman. These lizardmen, who lived underground for a long time, had very poor eyesight but extremely acute hearing and sense of smell. They could even detect the slightest temperature differences.

Stealth attacks were impossible, so Gao Feng decided to run out openly, giving the big man some confidence.

Zhou Lei saw someone running over and couldn't help but show a hint of joy on his face. But when he saw Gao Feng's somewhat youthful face, his expression turned even more grim.

"That kid, go back. You can't help here, get out of here..." Although Zhou Lei admired Gao Feng's courage, he didn't want to drag him to his death. Zhou Lei sighed inwardly, thinking that if he could have a companion to distract this monster for a minute, he could free his hands to kill it.

In front of the lizardman, ordinary people were as fragile as paper dolls. Even ten or eight teenagers like Gao Feng wouldn't last a minute against the lizardman.

Gao Feng shouted, "Hang on, I'm coming..."

Zhou Lei could only smile bitterly. If Gao Feng hadn't come, he could have held on a bit longer. But now that Gao Feng had run over, he couldn't just watch him die.

"When I make my move, you two run as fast as you can..." Zhou Lei didn't dare to turn back and could only shout loudly to the mother and daughter behind him.

"Okay..." The wife behind him responded softly.

While they were talking, Gao Feng quickly crossed various obstacles and reached behind the lizardman. "Die!" Gao Feng roared, stepping on a chair by the pool and leaping to stab the lizardman's back.

Zhou Lei didn't expect Gao Feng to be so foolish, actually jumping to attack. It was like courting death. He couldn't bear to watch Gao Feng die, so he shouted to his wife behind him, "Run quickly..."

As he spoke, his long sword turned into a cold light, piercing straight at the lizardman's chest. With Zhou Lei's cultivation, he could stir up his qi and blood, making the sharp blade capable of piercing through the lizardman's thick skin.

The lizardman, though looking clumsy, had considerable intelligence. After millions of years of combat evolution, it had its own way of judging biological energy. From this perspective, Gao Feng's energy reaction was negligible. The real danger was the big man in front of it.

Seeing Zhou Lei's sword, the lizardman suddenly turned and swung its tail. The nearly two-meter-long, thick tail whistled as it approached.

Zhou Lei quickly crouched down and rolled along the bottom of the pool. The water in the pool was shallow, but the splashing water slowed him down a bit.

The lizardman's long tail grazed over his back, scraping the flesh and blood. The tail, still spinning, lashed out at Gao Feng in mid-air.

The lizardman, having spun around, drew a circle with its tail. Starting from Zhou Lei and then to Gao Feng in mid-air, both were within the range of the tail. The lizardman, having fought for countless years in the underground world, had a very keen sense of combat.

In mid-air, Gao Feng saw a dark shadow accompanied by splashing water rushing toward him. The shadow hadn't even reached him, but the whistling wind already made it hard for Gao Feng to breathe.

"Too weak!" Gao Feng couldn't help but sigh inwardly. His current body was truly too frail. Even a small lizardman posed a fatal threat to him.

However, in his memory, Gao Feng had killed millions of lizardmen. He was extremely familiar with their combat methods. Jumping high was to provoke the lizardman to swing its tail.

Suddenly taking a deep breath, Gao Feng's eyes flashed with a divine light. The intangible divine will he had cultivated for ten years in his spiritual core, like a needle, pierced three hidden acupoints in his abdomen. Stimulated by this, the qi and blood in his body, which were already flowing rapidly, burst out like ignited explosives.

The burst: originating from a low-level combat technique of the empire's army, theoretically, it could unleash up to ten times the strength. In practice, due to various limitations, it could only unleash 2 to 5 times the strength.

Although it was a low-level technique, not many people could master the "burst" skill proficiently. For ordinary people, the stimulation of qi and blood by the divine will was a huge burden on the body, hard to endure.

Moreover, the burst lasted for a very short time, at most five seconds. Most people couldn't truly grasp the timing of the burst. Instead, they were more likely to suffer from the side effects of the burst, leading to defeat. Furthermore, once one's strength exceeded level seven, this technique became useless.

Gao Feng's head swelled, feeling as if his entire body was about to burst from the surging qi and blood. Although his body felt extremely unfamiliar, Gao Feng was well-prepared mentally.

The surging qi and blood also made his eyes slightly bulge, distorting the world as if seen through water. However, the burst of strength made Gao Feng's senses more acute. In this state, he could see every movement and every tiny scale of the lizardman.

Suppressing the urge to roar, Gao Feng stomped on the edge of the pool. With a bang, the special cement edge cracked with fine fissures.

Using the force from this stomp, Gao Feng not only changed his direction but also increased his speed several times. Before the lizardman's tail could sweep him, he had already flown to its back. His eyes flicked, and Gao Feng found the slightly darker scale. His wrist flicked, and the Si Feng sword stabbed straight into the lizardman's back of the head.

On the other side, the intense pain made Zhou Lei's attention incredibly focused. After rolling, he also reached under the lizardman and quickly thrust his sword diagonally into the lizardman's abdomen. The lizardman, like humans, had a reproductive system, which was its most vulnerable and fatal weakness.

The lizardman's mouth opened slightly, and the stench almost made Zhou Lei faint. This wasn't an attack but a display of its smile. Unfortunately, the ugly and fierce lizardman's head couldn't show a smile that humans could understand.

Its huge claws suddenly descended, the long, sharp claws like ten sharp blades, grabbing the tip of the long sword.

Sparks flew as the sword blade and claws rubbed against each other, but they couldn't stop the lizardman's terrifying strength. Zhou Lei was about to be killed by the long claws, and his eyes showed a look of despair.

"Thud..."

A foot-long, bright sword tip suddenly pierced out from the lizardman's open mouth. Wounded, the lizardman's movements paused. Zhou Lei, an experienced warrior, quickly released the sword and rolled to the side.

The lizardman swayed and then fell into the pool, splashing a huge wave of water. Black-red blood slowly spread in the pool.

Zhou Lei, still in shock, looked at the dead lizardman and then at Gao Feng, who had landed on the other side, his mouth moving but unable to find words.

Everything before his eyes seemed unreal, like a dream. The burning pain on his back reminded Zhou Lei that this wasn't a dream, and it wasn't a time to be dazed.

"Did you kill it?" Seeing Gao Feng pull out his sword, Zhou Lei couldn't help but ask.

Gao Feng's cheeks were red as if dyed with blood, and his forehead was drenched in sweat. The aftereffects of the burst made his limbs weak. Fortunately, he had practiced this technique to perfection, able to control it freely. After the instant burst, he immediately returned to a normal state.

After several attempts, Gao Feng finally pulled out the Si Feng sword and grinned at Zhou Lei, "It might seem a bit unscientific, but that's what happened."

Being able to kill a lizardman with one sword stroke, Gao Feng felt quite elated. But these things were hard to explain, so he just gave a vague answer.

The defense team, having dealt with the underground races many times, knew that lizardmen had a nostril on the back of their heads, their most vulnerable and fatal weakness.

However, this nostril was hidden under the scales. Only very experienced veterans could find it. Zhou Lei dared to say that no one in the base could hit the lizardman's nostril in a fight.

Zhou Lei didn't believe Gao Feng's explanation. This wasn't just a matter of luck. Seeing Gao Feng's unusually red face, it looked like he had just used the "burst" technique. But the short duration of the burst was strange. Moreover, the strength of the burst was so powerful! This made it even harder for Zhou Lei to judge.

A teenager without power armor killing a lizardman with one sword stroke was itself an unbelievable miracle.

Gao Feng's smile had an extraordinary calmness, as if he had just stepped on a cockroach.

Zhou Lei wanted to ask more, but his wife and daughter, who had run back, stopped him. Zhou Lei's back was a mess of flesh and blood, making his wife very worried. "Zhou Lei, you need to bandage yourself..."

"I'm fine," Zhou Lei realized that this wasn't the time to delve into the details. He bowed to Gao Feng and said, "Young brother, you saved our family of three. I can't thank you enough. Zhou Lei will remember this."

The fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, Zhou Xu, hiding in her mother's arms, was timidly looking at Gao Feng. She had always thought her father was the strongest man in the world, but now she realized there was someone even stronger. Especially since this brother wasn't much older than her, it made her very curious.

Gao Feng didn't notice the girl's gaze and waved to the group of people hiding behind, indicating that everything was fine. He then said to Zhou Lei, "We'll talk about these things later. We need to get to the shelter in District D as soon as possible."

Zhou Lei was a straightforward person and didn't say more polite words. Seeing the over a hundred people approaching, he nodded and said, "Yes, the monsters from underground somehow got up here. It's safer to hide in the shelter."

Gao Feng forcefully turned the lizardman over. Its heavy body and long tail made it difficult to flip.

Seeing this, Zhou Lei quickly helped, somewhat surprised, "Are you going to take the crystal core?"

The lizardman's heart was different from humans, a semi-crystalline hard core. It contained high-concentration life energy, supporting the lizardman's massive body. This was the result of the lizardman's unique evolutionary path after living underground for millions of years.

The crystal core contained strange energy, which could be extracted through technical means and was very valuable.

Zhou Lei didn't expect Gao Feng to know this and to have the nerve to take the crystal core at such a time.

Gao Feng took a few deep breaths to stabilize himself and then raised his sword to cut. The tough lizardman's skin was like paper, sliced open with a foot-long wound.

Zhou Lei couldn't help but praise, "What a good sword, what a good sword technique." Zhou Lei then noticed that Gao Feng was holding a black iron Tang sword, and his swift cutting motion was textbook-perfect, flawless. Of course, the ease with which he cut through the scales was also because the lizardman was dead, and the scales had become soft and fragile.

Gao Feng reached into the lizardman's body, separating the tough muscles. The strange sensation of touching the flesh made Gao Feng feel an intense hunger.

The ugly lizardman seemed to turn into a tempting delicacy, and Gao Feng felt as if he hadn't eaten for days, wanting to devour the lizardman on the spot.

Relying on his strong will, Gao Feng suppressed the sudden impulse and skillfully extracted the crystal core. As soon as his hand left, the intense hunger quickly faded. Gao Feng knew something was wrong but couldn't figure out what. Fortunately, he had the crystal core, and he could study the issue later.

The crystal core was like a translucent egg, with a dark yellow crystal exterior and a slightly red liquid inside. The purer and more transparent the crystal core, the better its quality. The one Gao Feng obtained was only average.

Zhou Lei watched from the side, his confusion growing. The lizardman's heart core was very hidden, and Gao Feng's skilled movements were as if he had done it hundreds of times.

Facing Zhou Lei's puzzled gaze, Gao Feng just smiled mysteriously. He could say that he had killed tens of thousands of these creatures in his dreams, and he was already very proficient in this skill.

The crystal core could provide powerful life energy. Although direct consumption had significant side effects, it could suppress pain and stimulate potential. Having a crystal core could save one's life in a critical moment. Putting the crystal core in his pocket, Gao Feng felt secretly pleased.

Taking the crystal core didn't take much time, and the group gathered together, praising Gao Feng. Although they were far away, a few brave ones had seen Gao Feng kill the lizardman with one sword stroke.

"Young brother is truly a genius..."

"An unparalleled genius."

"Mature and calm, a born leader!"

"Thanks to you, we can survive..."

The admiration and respect were like a surging river, endless and sincere.

Gao Feng didn't take it too seriously, but being praised felt good. Moreover, the enthusiastic atmosphere made everyone less tense and anxious, which was better.

Zhou Lei silently followed Gao Feng, observing his every move.

People have a herd mentality, and with such a large group, they shouted and gathered more people along the way. Like a snowball, by the time they passed two long streets, the group had grown to over five hundred.

With so many people and no strict organization, the group was chaotic. They could only勉强组织一群人殿后，一群人打头，把老少妇孺都放在中间。

尽管人数越来越多，高锋却轻松不起来。蜥蜴人的出现意味着这些强大的怪兽已经闯进了基地，局势非常严峻。

已经能看到安福大厦巨大的玻璃金字塔，高锋却隐约闻到空气中飘散的一股血腥味。心中也愈发不安。

周雷突然拽住高锋，“等一下，前面有危险……”