Chapter 112: The Petrifying Serpent and the Petrifying Eye

Three hours later!

"Just 8% more progress, and I can successfully condense the third evolution point and advance to a level 4 Evolver! Let's see if I can find a level 4 mutated creature!"

Gazing at the condensation progress of the third evolution point on the chip, a fiery gleam flashed in Zhang Ran’s eyes. Filled with anticipation, he thought to himself silently.

"Beep! A level 4 mutated creature 'Petrifying Serpent' detected 700 meters ahead to your right. It matches your hunting criteria. Location has been marked for you!"

Ten more minutes passed. As Zhang Ran continued exploring the wilderness, the chip’s alert sounded again in his ear.

"A level 4 Petrifying Serpent? Excellent. You will be the offering for my advancement to a level 4 Evolver!"

Hearing the chip’s notification, excitement lit up Zhang Ran’s eyes. He immediately looked toward the direction indicated by the chip.

In that direction, coiled atop the terrain, was a massive serpent approximately five meters long, its body nearly half a meter in diameter, covered in dull gray scales that gave it a fierce appearance. A powerful aura emanated from the beast.

What caught the eye most were its eyes—unlike the common green or red eyes of ordinary snakes, this Petrifying Serpent’s eyes were a deep, somber gray, emitting a hazy, murky glow.

Moreover, upon closer inspection, the grass and weeds within about two meters in front of the serpent had all turned from green to gray, resembling patches of stone.

The name "Petrifying Serpent" revealed the cause of this phenomenon. This mutated beast possessed a formidable and eerie ability—the "Petrifying Gaze." It could emit a special petrifying wave from its eyes, turning any living or non-living thing struck by the wave into stone.

The "Petrifying Gaze" was a devastating ability. If the serpent fully unleashed this power, any ordinary Evolver two levels or more below it, and lacking special defensive skills, would be completely petrified within seconds.

For those petrified Evolvers, all life force would vanish instantly, leaving behind a lifeless humanoid stone statue. Unless one possessed legendary abilities such as "Resurrection," "Molecular Restoration," or "Time Reversal," regaining life was impossible.

Higher-level Evolvers, however, had stronger internal energy, cellular vitality, and resistance. While the "Petrifying Gaze" couldn't directly claim their lives, it would drastically reduce their agility, speed, and defenses, making it an extremely troublesome ability.

Furthermore, the petrifying rays emitted by the "Petrifying Gaze" could also petrify metal! For a level 4 Petrifying Serpent, even level 2 alloys would struggle to withstand the petrifying power, often becoming partially or fully petrified. Only level 3 alloys had a chance to escape this fate.

Despite the serpent’s dangerous ability, its eyes as the source of the "Petrifying Gaze" held great value. A single eye from a level 4 Petrifying Serpent could fetch over 5,000 Black Eagle Coins.

These eyes contained unique genes. With enough of them and some special materials, one could extract the genetic essence and craft a "Petrifying Gaze Ability Elixir."

For an Evolver, consuming this elixir would genetically modify them, allowing them to select "Petrifying Gaze" as their ability upon their next evolution, along with gaining additional evolutionary energy and attribute boosts.

"Petrifying Gaze" was a powerful C-tier ability. Even for a level 6 Evolver, the ability they gained might not surpass it. Therefore, the "Petrifying Gaze Ability Elixir" was a costly commodity, priced in the millions of Black Eagle Coins and only sold in Ancient Desert City.

[Target Name: Petrifying Serpent]
[Target Type: Mutated Beast]
[Hunting Level: 4]
[Special Abilities: Petrifying Gaze, Tail Sweep, Petrifying Venom, Body Constriction]
[Strength: 8.5]
[Constitution: 8.0]
[Agility: 5.6]
[Spirit: 10.0]
[Weakness: ......]

The information about the Petrifying Serpent flashed through Zhang Ran’s mind as he silently instructed the chip to scan the creature.

The chip began collecting data and analyzing it. Three seconds later, a silver glow appeared before his eyes as the complete dossier on the Petrifying Serpent materialized.

"This Petrifying Serpent’s attributes aren’t very strong! As long as I’m cautious of its Petrifying Ray, I can easily slay it!"

Looking at the serpent’s stats, a confident smile appeared on Zhang Ran’s face as he thought to himself.

Unlike pure strength-type mutated beasts like the Tyrant or pure spirit-type mutants like the Mind-Eye Monster, the Petrifying Serpent was a hybrid, balanced between strength and spirit. Its physical constitution wasn’t as frail as spirit-types, nor was its spirit as weak as pure strength-types — it occupied a relatively balanced niche.

However, compared to Zhang Ran, the serpent was completely outmatched in every attribute except spirit. Its agility was nearly three points lower than Zhang Ran’s, utterly unable to keep pace.

Having confirmed the serpent’s strength, Zhang Ran once again focused his will and activated his "Boiling Blood" ability.

With a thought, the "Boiling Blood" rune on his Evolution Tree glowed within his mindscape. His heart pounded faster, pumping blood filled with special energy particles throughout his body. His physical constitution surged to the next level, nearing that of a level 5 Evolver.

At the same time, Zhang Ran gripped his greatsword and charged fiercely toward the Petrifying Serpent like a black arrow, dashing across the wilderness.

As Zhang Ran launched his sprint, the serpent sensed his presence. Instantly, it turned its gaze toward him, emitting a hissing sound as it activated its "Petrifying Gaze."

With that, a dull gray light flickered in its eyes. Then, a petrifying beam infused with strange petrifying energy and exuding a terrifying aura shot forth from its eyes, traversing the space, and aimed directly at Zhang Ran.