Chapter 55: Prime

Chapter 55: Prime

"You... who are you!"

The unconscious black-haired girl woke up, seeing a circle of unfamiliar men standing around, and shrank back in fear.

She didn't quite remember what happened last night, only feeling dizzy and disoriented now, her whole body aching and weak.

"It's okay, He Lu. Don't be afraid. We are Espers sent by the government to rescue you," said Jiang Yi.

"You are... Jiang Yi?" He Lu looked at the person speaking and asked hesitantly.

"How do you know?" Ke Lin asked, still remembering what Iddis said about destined individuals, feeling a pang of jealousy.

"A strange person showed me your photo and asked what I thought of it," noticing the two men in front looking displeased, He Lu hurriedly explained, "Don't get the wrong idea, I have a boyfriend. I originally wanted to escape, but suddenly lost control of my body and walked into this stone forest. Luckily, I ran into you."

"Do you know where the other two girls are?" Jiang Yi asked.

"I don't know the area. I only know we were initially locked in a cave, with many mutants guarding us."

"Ke Lin, can you track their location?" Jiang Yi asked.

Ke Lin still remembered the scents of the other two girls. He flared his nostrils and nodded, "Their scents were deliberately masked. I can only determine the general direction."

"I'll go with you," He Lu said.

Jiang Yi thought for a moment and agreed. Leaving her behind would require leaving someone to guard her, so it was better to bring her along.

The group followed Ke Lin out of the stone forest.

Behind the stone forest were countless low hills, nearly every one with a four- or five-meter-high cave opening.

"This is the mutants' nest," Xin Ziyu said. When he was conducting research with Bainasen, he had speculated about the mutants' behavior.

They shunned plants and animals, preferring rocks and gravel. The older the rocks, the more they liked them, as rocks contained the radioactive substances they needed—substances only mutants could sense.

"It seems we've found the mutants' lair!" Jia Zheyu used his Super Vision to scan all the caves within sight. His vision had already developed night vision capabilities, so even though the caves were pitch black, he could roughly see the mutants inside.

Jia Zheyu pointed at the huge cave in the northwest corner and said, "There are six mutants in that cave. Judging by the energy fluctuations emanating from them, they should all be mid-tier."

Ke Lin also nodded, "Their scents are indeed in this direction."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go quickly," Jia Zheyu began rubbing his hands together eagerly. With these heavy hitters by his side, even six mutants, or eight or ten, wouldn't be a problem.

Fighting six mid-tier mutants, as expected, was no problem.

What they didn't expect was that their battle attracted mutants from other stone caves.

Although mutants preferred to live alone and didn't interfere with each other, when someone dared to invade their lair, they temporarily united against the external threat.

Jia Zheyu hid behind Ji Ming and Lei Li, exclaiming, "Crap, there are more and more!"

He saw fifteen mid-tier mutants alone, dozens of low-tier mutants, not to mention the ones continuously emerging from the caves.

Moreover, they had to spare energy to protect the three girls, hampering their fighting.

Qin Zheng's ability was related to the fire element. He used his fire ability to blast a path open, with blazing flames half a meter high on both sides, temporarily blocking some mutants.

"Let's go!"

The group swiftly navigated through the flaming corridors.

Suddenly, a stone arm emerged from the blazing flames—a mutant forced its way in.

Qin Zheng's fire could only hold off low-tier mutants; mid-tier mutants weren't afraid of fire and actually seemed to like it.

Forged by the flames, the mid-tier mutants' bodies became scalding hot. When Ke Lin and the others jumped on to attack, they ended up getting burned instead.

Qin Zheng recalled his fire and threw a laser dagger, embedding it into the eyeball of the nearest mutant.

"This isn't sustainable," Ji Ming shouted toward Jiang Yi.

Even if they weren't injured by the mutants, killing so many of them would exhaust them to death.

Jiang Yi used his ability on the mutant with the strongest energy fluctuation, attempting to communicate.

"We mean no harm," Jiang Yi transmitted his thoughts through psychic energy.

"Intruders, kill! Intruders, kill!"

That was the mutant's mental response Jiang Yi read.

The intelligence of mid-tier mutants was still too primitive for normal communication.

The only high-tier mutant they had encountered—Iddis—had long since disappeared to who-knows-where.

The mutants swarmed forward like an endless stream of ants, completely cutting off their path.

Jiang Yi and the others formed a shifting circle, protecting the three girls in the center, doing their best to maintain formation and prevent the mutants from breaching their defensive line.

Already worn out mentally and physically from the previous night, and now engaged in such intense combat, they were gradually becoming overwhelmed.

Qin Zheng said, "There's another way: let Vites transform into a giant tree-man first. We can hide in his canopy and wait for the mutants to disperse or call for backup."

"Ah, ah," Vites poked his head out from Qin Zheng's embrace, indicating his willingness to transform into a semi-mutant.

Given the current situation, this seemed like the only option.

Jiang Yi nodded toward Qin Zheng and Vites. "Sorry to put you through this."

Vites jumped out of Qin Zheng's arms, rooted himself in the ground, and began to thicken and grow taller at a visible rate until he reached the size he had been in the mine shaft.

During his transformation, the others were lifted into his canopy.

Surrounded by pale yellow flowers swaying in the wind, they were now dozens of meters high, with a clear view of the hilly terrain below.

If it weren't for the horde of mutants on the ground, they could have enjoyed the high-altitude scenery.

"Damn, finally we can rest," Jia Zheyu lay back in the flowers, relaxing completely.

Ji Ming found a spot to sit down, clutching his arm without a word.

Seeing his pale complexion, Jia Zheyu sat up abruptly. "Hey, are you okay?"

Ji Ming forced a smile. "I won't die."

Jia Zheyu guessed that Ji Ming had been injured while saving him earlier. If Ji Ming hadn't pushed him aside in time, his head would likely have been smashed in two by a mutant.

Jia Zheyu pulled a medical kit from his gear bag. "Stop smiling, it looks awful. Come here, let me treat your wound."

Lei Li leaned against a sturdy vine, his arms were too weak to lift after overusing his earth-element ability.

He vaguely remembered seeing the girl next door he'd had a crush on for years last night and even holding her.

But she couldn't possibly be here, so the person he held must have been Jia Zheyu, who was closest to him at the time.

This left him feeling awkward around Jia Zheyu now, but fortunately, Jia Zheyu had been bickering with Ji Ming and hadn't mentioned the incident.

Zuo Lai and Xin Ziyu had been in a relationship for quite some time but had never taken the final step.

Last night's aphrodisiac pollen unexpectedly made them take that final step.

Though the pollen had them both in the heat of the moment, minimizing much of the pain, it was still their first time, leaving Xin Ziyu with soreness in his waist and legs and an embarrassing, throbbing ache down there.

During the earlier fight against the mutants, he'd barely been able to help, relying entirely on Zuo Lai to cover for both of them.

Zuo Lai found him a spot with dense vines. "Come and lean here."

Xin Ziyu clenched his jaw and sat down with his knees bent. His glasses had long been lost, and his nearsightedness of over two hundred degrees blurred his vision, so he simply closed his eyes.

Then, Zuo Lai's voice whispered softly in his ear, like a warm breath that made his ear tingle. "Is your waist still sore? Let me massage it for you."

Late into the night, even after the aphrodisiac effects had worn off, Zuo Lai's inner beast had taken over, insisting on another round.

That's why he was feeling so awful now.

Zuo Lai immediately said, "My bad. That pollen must hit werewolves harder."

Werewolves do tend to be more intense when they're in heat.

Understanding was one thing, but Xin Ziyu was still physically uncomfortable and wasn't in the mood to talk. To avoid burdening the others, he silently turned his back to Zuo Lai. "Make it good."

Zuo Lai's eyes lit up, and he started giving his partner a serious massage.

The group caught a brief break in Vites' tree canopy.

But the mutants on the ground hadn't backed off.

They were seriously pissed about the sudden appearance of the giant treant in their territory, especially since they sensed he only smelled half like a mutant.

Not only was he an outsider, but also a freak.

Drive him out!

The mutants on the ground attacked Vites, tearing at his vines and slashing his trunk.

Vites buzzed in pain, repeatedly flinging away any mutants that drew near.

"This is bad. Vites is about to enter a berserk state," Qin Zheng stood up and said.

Once berserk, Vites' power would skyrocket, but he would also attack anything near him indiscriminately.

Not only would the mutants below be targeted, but even his companions in the canopy would not be spared.

Several thick vines began reaching toward Jiang Yi and the others.

"Vites wants to wrap us in a vine ball like last time," Ke Lin said.

"This is too passive," Jiang Yi frowned. Iddis and Qiu Xing were watching them from the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.

Jiang Yi had been trying to use Mind Control since reaching the tree canopy.

Earlier, when he mentally communicated with the mutants, he discovered that with his S-class ability, he could now effortlessly sense their consciousness.

Since Iddis could manipulate mutants for his own use, why couldn't he do the same?

Jiang Yi tried to project his mental energy outward. He could feel it being twisted into a thin strand, probing into a mutant's mind.

But he didn't establish a connection with the mutant's consciousness.

It wasn't until he directed his mental energy into the mutant's eyeball that he realized mutants lacked vision—their eyes functioned as the central control hub for their brains.

"General Qin Zheng, how long will it take for Vites to revert to his original size?" Jiang Yi asked.

"Shrinking is faster than growing. About five seconds," Qin Zheng replied.

"Good. I can control the mutants below for roughly ten seconds. Everyone, seize the chance to get out of here," Jiang Yi said.

The others stood up and nodded.

Jiang Yi stood on the tree canopy, closed his eyes, and released all his mental energy.

Although his vision was dark, his psychic senses could clearly perceive everything around him.

His companions on the canopy, Vites on the verge of frenzy, and countless mutants on the ground...

These mutants had weak consciousness, requiring only a wisp of mental energy to control.

Jiang Yi split his mental energy into over a hundred strands, entering the mutants' eyeballs all at once.

"Go back!"

Jiang Yi issued the command.

Instantly, all mutants halted their offensive stances and turned to retreat in unison.

"Little Treasure, transform!" Qin Zheng shouted toward Vites.

The giant tree person, dozens of meters tall, immediately shrank. When he was only a few meters high, everyone jumped down from the canopy.

Vites instantly reverted to his previous form and leaped into Qin Zheng's arms.

At that moment, the mutants were still under Jiang Yi's control, walking back to their respective caves. Even as they passed by people, they did not attack.

Simultaneously controlling over a hundred mutants was extremely draining on mental energy.

Jiang Yi gradually began to feel dizzy. A sharp, needle-like pain throbbed at his temples. He lightly bit the tip of his tongue to stay conscious.

Ke Lin stayed by Jiang Yi's side, always at the rear of the group. Once he confirmed everyone had left the stone forest, Ke Lin immediately said, "Master, it's safe."

With a thought, Jiang Yi withdrew all his mental energy. He swayed slightly and was steadied by Ke Lin.

Once freed from control, the mutants immediately stopped walking and turned around.

Seeing that the intruders had left their territory, they did not pursue, instead emitting threatening roars to warn them not to approach again.

Behind the stone forest, Iddis and Qiu Xing watched them leave.

Iddis moved his mouthparts, making a sound. "As expected of the successor I've chosen. Jiang Yi has now reached the level of my prime."

Qiu Xing picked his ear and said nothing. He had no words for this old man whose voice was unbearably grating yet insisted on talking to himself.

"You are also exceptional, having evolved an S-class Enhancement Ability through genetic pairing targeted at Psychic Abilities."

Qiu Xing yawned boredly. "Enough. Don't perform your balancing act for me. The only reason I'm willing to stay by your side is that it's more interesting here. Nothing more."