This assassin is upright

Chapter 450 Monster in the Dark
"Boss, should we continue forward?"

In the darkness, the mouse couldn't help but speak.

"Who knows what kind of monster is ahead? I have a bad feeling about this. How about we go back the way we came, grab the gold we just got, and leave?"

The others nodded in unison, including Yu Zhun.

This is the home ground of that unknown monster. We don't even know what the enemy is like, so staying here is extremely risky.

Rather than taking the huge risks of going deeper, it's better to evacuate first.

"Hmm." Black Hawk nodded. The moment the monster started moving, he had already considered retreating.

Caution and caution are the survival rules for the excavation team.

“We’ll do it now…” Before Black Hawk could finish speaking, a deafening roar suddenly echoed throughout the ruins, followed by a violent tremor inside the ruins.

In an instant, everyone's expressions changed rapidly.

Got it!

Before they could make any move, the already chaotic ruins around them shifted amidst a massive tremor, and with a cloud of dust rising up, their original path back was instantly blocked.

"Damn it!" Iron Tower slammed his fist into the hard rock blocking their way back. "Those lunatics used a high-powered bomb in the ruins!"

"This is insane." Black Hawk's expression was equally grim.

Ruins are always very fragile inside, and excavation teams usually try to be as careful as possible to avoid damaging any structure when they enter.

Because they couldn't be sure whether a slab they carelessly destroyed would become the start of a domino effect collapse.

Using bombs in ruins is an act of madness beyond madness; a slight misstep could bury someone forever in the rubble.

"The people ahead are probably cornered and thinking of taking that monster down with them," Wolf Fang said coldly.

"But now, we've been tricked by them."

As he finished speaking, everyone else fell silent.

After a long silence, Yu Zhun suddenly spoke, "You all say..."

"Is that monster dead?"

Everyone looked at Yu Zhun, who silently pointed to the road leading deeper into the valley, "This road seems to be passable."

"Should we keep going in..." The mouse scratched its head. "The way out is blocked. It seems like this is the only way?"

"Boss, how about..."

"Let's give it a try." Black Hawk shone his searchlight around, and the previously ubiquitous black substance seemed to have faded away, making him decide after his hesitation. "Let's go down and take a look."

"Perhaps there are other exits deep within these ruins."

Having made their decision, the Black Hawk team cautiously ventured deeper into the area.

Soon, a corpse lying on the ground came into view. The body was covered in black substance and was still struggling, but the body was so shriveled that the bones were clearly visible, as if a layer of skin was hugging the bones.

"Hey! Wolf Fang, is this your long-lost brother?" the rat joked.

Wolf Fang glanced at the rat with his sunken eyes, then stepped forward and touched the corpse. "It's been drained of all its flesh and blood."

"It must have been done by that monster."

"This means we've reached the point where the enemy is fighting." Black Hawk shone his searchlight deeper into the area, revealing a landscape filled with bloodstains and splattered black residue, stretching into an unknown depths that sent a chill down one's spine.

"Keep going."

The group continued deeper into the ruins, and soon their view opened up to reveal a huge underground cavern.

The inner walls of the cave were covered with the same black substance they had seen before. The cave was filled with a strong smell of gunpowder and a nauseating stench. A humanoid corpse, its surface charred, appeared before them. Wolf Fang immediately approached to investigate.

“He’s dead.” He groped around for a while before speaking in a deep voice. “Judging from the condition of his bones and muscles, he should have been a second-tier evolver in life.”

"The other side must have been in dire straits, so they didn't hesitate to use high-powered explosives in an attempt to take the monster down with them."

At this point, Wolf Fang looked around, trying to find the monster's corpse.

"Up there." Yu Zhun suddenly shouted, pointing his searchlight sharply into the sky.

Upon hearing the sound, everyone looked up at the same time, and then, a cocoon-like object hanging above the cave was revealed before their eyes.

The cocoon was entirely black, woven from countless black, thread-like strands, with dark red veins surging across its surface, resembling blood vessels.

“It’s still alive,” Black Hawk said in a deep voice. “This is a type I’ve never seen before; perhaps it’s some kind of new corrupted beast.”

"The explosives that can kill a second-tier evolved being couldn't even kill it?" The rat couldn't help but grin. "What a terrifying creature."

“Although he’s not dead, he must be injured,” Yu Zhun suddenly said, pointing a searchlight at a specific spot on the cocoon.

A clear gash was exposed before everyone's eyes, and writhing flesh could be vaguely seen inside.

Seemingly sensing the danger from the outside world, the flesh and blood began to writhe at a visible speed, the black substance at the wound gradually healed, and at the same time, the dark red patterns rapidly changed between light and dark, like a heartbeat.

“This thing might be about to hatch.” Black Hawk said gravely.

With his special eye abilities, he could see more than the rest of the team. He could clearly sense what a terrifying existence would emerge from the cocoon.

It's at least Rank 3, maybe even comparable to Rank 4!

"Rat, do you have any high-powered time bombs?"

"Huh?" The mouse's eyes widened. "Boss, are you sure we want to blow it up again?"

"The explosion just now has made the structure of the ruins more fragile, and many parts may collapse at any time."

"If we were to die again, we might actually be buried under the rubble."

Black Hawk paused for a moment, then slowly drew his sword. "In that case, you wait here for me. I'll go and see if I can pierce their vital points."

As soon as he finished speaking, Black Hawk crouched down, then his body suddenly went limp, and he shot towards the cocoon, which was more than ten meters high, like a cannonball.

In the void, writhing black matter surged rapidly toward Black Hawk, attempting to block his attack on the cocoon.

"Boss, I'll cover you!" the rat yelled, pulling a laser gun from his waist. Beams of blue laser light shot towards the black substance, each beam piercing through it precisely and halting the attack.

"Whoosh whoosh—"

A series of cold lights swiftly pierced the void, flying towards the black substance with a whooshing sound; they were darts flashing with an unusual cold light.

The one who threw the dart was Wolf Fang.

Under the cover of the two, Black Hawk successfully reached the cocoon. His eagle eyes narrowed to pinpoints as he quickly locked onto the most active spot inside the cocoon. Then, he suddenly thrust his longsword with all his might, stabbing fiercely towards the cocoon.

"Pfft-"

With a sound like a blade piercing flesh, the dark red patterns on the surface of the cocoon, which had been shifting between light and shadow, suddenly stopped, then began to flicker wildly. The cocoon trembled continuously and emitted a horrifying scream.

Countless black substances surged toward Black Hawk as if they had gone mad.

"A desperate struggle." Black Hawk snorted and suddenly twisted the long knife that had already pierced into the cocoon. Then, using the force of the fall, he pulled hard, almost cutting the entire black cocoon in two.

As Black Hawk landed, a torrent of foul-smelling blood rained down. *Thump—*

A blurry mass fell from inside the cocoon.

Upon seeing what it was, everyone felt even more horrified.

"This looks like a baby!" the mouse couldn't help but exclaim.

“It should be said that it is a humanoid monster,” Yu Zhun said slowly. “If we hadn’t appeared, it might have actually hatched and had an appearance no different from an ordinary person.”

At this point, Yu Zhun felt a chill run down his spine.

How terrifying it would be if such a bizarre monster were to integrate into human society as a human.

"Look, there's something over here," Iron Tower said in a muffled voice, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

He emerged from the innermost part of the lair carrying a box, then carefully placed it on the ground. "This box doesn't look simple."

“Indeed, it’s not simple.” Black Hawk thrust his knife hard, but even with his strength as a second-tier evolved human, he couldn’t pierce the box. “These alloy boxes usually contain military or classified items.”

As he spoke, he frowned slightly, "This is clearly just a shopping mall, so why would there be something like this here?"

"Who knows?" The rat shrugged. "Maybe some unlucky guy was carrying this box and passing by the mall during the cataclysm."

"Make way, let me, the Rat Lord, give it a try."

"I'm not bragging, but I'm a professional locksmith," he said, taking the box from the tower.

Before unlocking the box, the mouse examined the entire box, and upon inspection, it suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "This box has a leak?"

As he spoke, he pointed to the side closure of the box, which was already very clean, but there were obvious traces of something having leaked out before.

"I wonder if there's anything good inside." Muttering to himself, the mouse quickly used his skills to unlock the door.

Soon, the lock on the box was opened, and inside were two glass bottles the size of test tubes.

One of them had a crack on it, and the liquid inside the bottle was empty, which corresponded to the part of the box that was leaking.

The other glass bottle was intact and contained a blue liquid that shimmered alluringly under the light.

"Thank goodness, there's still one intact bottle." With that, the mouse carefully took out the intact bottle, then rummaged through the hidden compartments of the box and quickly found a thin booklet. "There are instructions."

"Looks like we're in pretty good shape." With that, the mouse opened the instruction manual. "Let me see what this bottle is..."

"Ok?"

The mouse looked surprised. "A mutation inducer?"

"What is it?" Black Hawk couldn't help but ask, "Does this describe its specific uses and effects?"

"Yes, it did." The mouse nodded. "According to what it says, organisms that use this drug will have more unstable genes, making them more susceptible to genetic changes in response to changes in the external environment."

"I suspect that the monster just now probably absorbed the power from that leaked bottle, which is why it was able to evolve into its current form in the dark underground world." At this point, the rat couldn't help but click its tongue.

"Evolved from fungi and mosses to humanoid life forms."

"This thing is really a bit scary."

"How about it? Interested in having a bite?" The mouse chuckled, a hint of mockery on its face. "Maybe you can become like that too!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, except for Yu Zhun, who looked thoughtful. After a moment, he couldn't help but speak up, "Let me try it, I want to taste it."

As soon as this statement came out, everyone was shocked.

"Don't do anything reckless." Black Hawk couldn't help but frown. "Being more susceptible to genetic changes due to changes in the external environment may not be a good thing."

"This transformation is beyond your control, and it could very well turn you into a cyborg who has lost his mind."

"Yu Zhun, don't be impulsive," Tita couldn't help but say. "You've just absorbed the power of the gene drug, and your genes are already in an active phase. If you act recklessly at this time, it could very well lead to gene collapse."

"Think about the polluting beasts we encountered before."

"Do you want to become like that too?"

"Don't go crazy." Wolf Fang frowned as he looked at Yu Zhun.

"You little rascal." The smile on the mouse's face gradually faded. "I was just joking, and you actually wanted to try it."

“…I’m serious.” Yu Zhun said with a helpless expression.

He was naturally aware of the risks that everyone had mentioned.

But the moment Yu Zhun saw the liquid in the glass bottle, he suddenly felt a strong urge to drink it.

This desire is not thirst, but rather an almost instinctive craving from one's own body for the drug called the mutation inducer.

Yu Zhun had a strong premonition that this thing might be very important to him.

"You really want to try?" Black Hawk asked in a deep voice.

His eyes, which seemed to see through people's hearts, were fixed on Yu Zhun, and he had already sensed the firm attitude that Yu Zhun had not revealed.

"Really." Yu Zhun nodded emphatically without hesitation.

Black Hawk paused for a moment, then looked at the mouse.

"Give this to Yu Zhun."

"Boss, are we really going to give it to him?" Rat's expression changed, and he turned to look at Yu Zhun. "You kid, think twice before you act. Don't be so impulsive!"

Wolf Fang and Iron Tower, who were standing nearby, also tried to persuade him.

But clearly, their words were not enough to soften Yu Zhun's resolve.

In the end, the rat could only reluctantly hand the mutation inducer to Yu Zhun.

"Be careful!" he couldn't help but give one last word of advice.

"Don't worry, I know," Yu Zhun said with a smile as he uncorked the bottle and, under the tense gazes of the others, drank the liquid in one gulp.

"Clang-crack-"

The glass bottle slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. Yu Zhun's expression instantly turned ferocious. He clutched his chest tightly with his hand, as if every muscle in his body was straining, and stood in an awkward posture.

A moment later, he could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground.

That was a state similar to when he was using gene therapy; Yu Zhun felt his body heating up at a visible rate.

However, compared to the use of gene therapy, this time the treatment will be much shorter.

Before long, Yu Zhun felt his body temperature slowly dropping.

He slowly opened his eyes, then paused for a moment.

The dark, shadowless cave was revealed to him in perfect detail; the outlines of everything were crystal clear, as if he were viewing it in broad daylight.

This is... night vision!
(End of this chapter)