Chapter 47: The Duel Concludes

In less than three breaths, the burning current from his abdomen surged into Mouse’s limbs and bones, drawing forth an immense power from deep within him.

“Hahaha! This is the strength I craved! Watch me shatter you to pieces!” Revitalized, Mouse raised his fist toward Wang Zhenhu, but then suddenly froze.

It wasn’t just Mouse—everyone present was seized by terror at Wang Zhenhu’s current state.

Wang Zhenhu was enduring excruciating agony. Thick veins bulged grotesquely under his skin, threatening to burst, his whole body trembling violently, sweat pouring off him like water.

“You… You lied to me…” Before the pain overtook him, Wang Zhenhu’s eyes, full of unwillingness, locked onto Cao Muhua.

Cao Muhua merely sneered. Victory was all that mattered; he hadn’t hesitated to produce even the unrefined forbidden drug. Silently, he thought to himself, let’s hope that superintendent hasn’t deceived me. Outwardly, he maintained a courteous smile and said sincerely, “Defeat him, and I’ll give you the antidote!”

But Wang Zhenhu seemed to have reached the very limit of pain he could withstand. He threw his head back and let out a beastly roar.

Clutching his head in agony, he stomped the ground. The arena couldn’t withstand his immense force and a corner collapsed. On Wang Zhenhu’s back, bony spikes began to sprout, growing rapidly in the wind.

At the same time, his arms became encased in armor-like bone.

“Ah! Monster! Run!”

“Oh my God!”

Those nearby scattered in panic, terrified that the beast-like Wang Zhenhu would slaughter them.

Chen Yukai leaped to his feet, shot a glance at Wang Zhenhu, then fixed his gaze on Cao Muhua.

“Uncle Chen! These are the terrifying things I saw in the files—drugs developed by the IAG organization after inhuman experiments on people!”

“I never expected there would be IAG agents hidden within the base!” Chen Yukai said gravely, turning to look at Wang Ji.

Wang Ji, feeling Chen Yukai’s eyes on him, shook his head slightly.

“There’s something deeply evil about this.” Wang Ji sensed a loathsome aura emanating from Wang Zhenhu.

Behind the crowd, a man in a robe and hat muttered softly, “Hehehe… The show is about to begin. But this drug is still imperfect. Still, surprises often come unannounced.”

He cast his gaze at Wang Ji standing at the edge of the arena. Wearing gloves, he stroked his chin with his right hand, revealing a wicked smile. If you looked closely, you could glimpse a scaly pattern on his hand.

Wang Ji’s keen mind sensed someone watching him. He whipped his head around, but the feeling vanished instantly and he couldn’t spot the observer among the crowd.

Not far away, Wu Gang watched Wang Ji and Mouse with a heavy expression.

“Impressive! Wang Ji’s strength is beyond our expectations!”

By now, Wang Zhenhu had completed his transformation. Breathing heavily, his crimson eyes glared at Mouse as he let out a beast’s roar and lunged.

Mouse, already prepared, showed no fear. The surging power within him sought an outlet, and he unleashed it all on Wang Zhenhu.

Wang Zhenhu seemed numb to pain, hatred burning in his gaze as he locked on Mouse. He attacked relentlessly, his arms sheathed in bone armor, his attacks growing ever more powerful.

Yet Mouse, with his attributes doubled, nearly matched the standard of a level-one warrior with fifty points of strength. Crushing a failed gene-drug monster in half an hour posed no difficulty at all.

Every punch left deep imprints on Wang Zhenhu’s body. The immense force made blood spurt from Wang Zhenhu’s mouth and nose, but the drug’s stimulus kept healing him rapidly.

Cao Muhua, witnessing this, fell silent, lost in thought. He hadn’t expected Mouse to be so formidable, nor that even after taking the gene drug, Wang Zhenhu could not gain the upper hand.

On the field, Mouse fought more ferociously, growing more adept with his newfound power.

Meanwhile, Wang Zhenhu’s injuries worsened and his regenerative ability slowed.

Finally, Mouse let out a mighty roar and struck Wang Zhenhu’s chest with all his strength.

Wang Zhenhu’s body shuddered. His expression changed drastically as he staggered backward, the madness fading from his eyes. For a moment, he seemed to regain his senses. He clutched his chest, staring at Mouse in disbelief.

“No!”

Wang Zhenhu screamed. Then, with a thunderous explosion, his entire upper body blew apart. His body could no longer withstand the drug’s force. Starting from his heart, it collapsed and burst.

Blood rained down as Mouse’s face turned grim and he quickly dodged aside.

The arena was now unrecognizable, littered with bloody remnants—a sickening sight.

Chen Yukai promptly stood and announced, “The final winner of this combat trial is the Independent Company! Tomorrow, the shooting competition will be held at the ruined village ten miles east of the base!”

Only now did the crowd react—Independent Company had won. Many stomped their feet and beat their chests in despair at their lost crystal cores, though some could not hide their joy and cheered aloud.

The combat match had been an eye-opener for all. Given the strange occurrences after the Cataclysm, people quickly accepted Mouse’s superhuman outburst.

Wang Ji accepted congratulations from the various faction leaders, then led his men away. Cao Muhua shot Wang Ji a venomous glare before storming back to his mansion.

As the crowd dispersed, in the ensuing chaos, the robed man approached the arena, took out a test tube, silently collected a sample of Mouse’s blood, and vanished into the throng.

“Captain! Haha, we’ve struck it rich!” He Guangsheng burst into the training camp, arms full of large sacks.

After half an hour, Mouse was still lying listlessly on the side. Seeing He Guangsheng rush in, he said weakly, “Old He! Did you get all the crystal cores back?”

“All collected! Captain Zhao, it’s all thanks to your heroic display. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have won so much!” He Guangsheng set down his sacks.

Wang Ji walked over and handed Mouse a chocolate bar.

“He Guangsheng, tell me—how much did we win?”

“Captain, thanks to your brilliant planning, we won a total of 7,500 crystal cores through bets and the book. Of those, 3,500 came from Cao Muhua’s operation.”

He Guangsheng exhaled with pride. “Captain, you didn’t see the look on Cao Muhua’s lackey’s face when I brought over the slip for 1,000 cores at five-to-one odds—it was as if he’d swallowed a fly!”

“He refused at first, so I brought our men to intimidate him, told him if he didn’t pay up, Captain Zhao would crush his head. He nearly wet himself! Then we took all 3,500 cores from their book and made him sign an IOU for 1,500 more.”

Wang Ji pulled a small bag of crystal cores from his pocket and handed it to He Guangsheng.

“Well done! Here’s your reward for all the hard work.”

He Guangsheng accepted it eagerly, weighed it, then bowed and thanked him before swaggering off with his team to celebrate.

“Captain! What about my reward? I helped you earn thousands of crystal cores this time!” Mouse said, eyeing the bags at his feet.

Wang Ji couldn’t help but grin. This time, he’d claimed more than half the base’s wagered crystal cores.

“These will all be put to use. Don’t worry, I’ve never mistreated you. Once you’ve recovered, I’ll give you your reward.”

Mouse looked at Wang Ji with gratitude, his heart full of anticipation as he silently imagined the future.

Some rejoice, others lament.

In Cao Muhua’s mansion, ever since his return, the sound of things crashing to the ground had not ceased.

From the guards to the maids, everyone walked on eggshells, terrified of drawing his wrath.

A minor leader knelt in the living room, cold sweat streaming down his face, bracing himself for Cao Muhua’s arrival.

It wasn’t until evening that Cao Muhua remembered the betting operation and called the subordinate in.

“Captain, I deserve death a thousand times over,” the underling said as he entered, immediately kneeling and slapping his own face.

Cao Muhua was momentarily stunned, but then realization struck and he sprang to his feet.

“Speak! Something went wrong with the book, didn’t it?” he barked.

The underling turned ashen and prostrated himself, begging for mercy.

“Captain, it wasn’t my fault! Wang Ji’s men brought the slip and demanded five thousand crystal cores. They set us up from the start! I refused, so they took all 3,500 crystal cores from the book and forced me to sign an IOU for 1,500 more.”

Cao Muhua stood motionless for a few seconds, then his rage erupted like a volcano.

“Useless fool! Letting 3,500 crystal cores be taken? Why not just die!”

In his fury, Cao Muhua drew his pistol and aimed it at the subordinate, his voice cold and menacing.

The man felt his soul nearly leave his body, his legs giving way as he cried for mercy.

Suddenly, from a shadowy corner of the room, a cold, hoarse voice spoke.

“Captain Cao, is this really the time to blame your subordinates?”

The voice emerged from the darkness, chilling and demonic.

The minor leader nearly lost control of his bladder in terror.

Even Cao Muhua’s blazing anger was instantly extinguished.

“Out!” he snapped.

Once he’d sent everyone away, Cao Muhua returned to the room.

The man in the shadows was already seated on the sofa, uninvited, swirling a glass of Cao Muhua’s fine wine as he regarded him with a leisurely gaze.

“Inspector, things didn’t go as smoothly as you promised. My losses were far greater than expected,” Cao Muhua said with open dissatisfaction, pouring himself a drink and downing it in one gulp.

In the dim light, the man raised his head, revealing a pale face—the same mysterious figure who had watched Wang Ji earlier.

“Captain Cao, there are always unforeseen circumstances. Yet, the gains this time are also quite unexpected.”

The inspector drew a pale blue vial from his pocket and tossed it casually to Cao Muhua.

Cao Muhua’s pupils contracted. With reflexes beyond ordinary men, he snatched the vial from the air before it fell.

“Do you want the power Wang Ji possesses? This AX01 vial can grant it to you.”

The inspector’s words detonated in Cao Muhua’s mind.

“Inspector, are you saying Wang Ji also gained his strength from this?”

The inspector shook his head, sipping his wine. “You really are a frog at the bottom of a well. Do you have any idea how vast and wondrous this world is?”

“How Wang Ji attained S-rank strength is something I wish to uncover as well,” the inspector said, a strange excitement flickering in his eyes. “So you did well this time. Though you lost the first match, you forced Wang Ji to reveal his hand. He’s a truly intriguing fellow.”

Cao Muhua lowered his head, overwhelmed by an unprecedented hunger for power. After a moment’s thought, he frowned and said, “But after I used the drug, that old fox Chen Yukai must have noticed something.”

The inspector’s pale face curled into a smile, his eyes gleaming with hidden meaning as he murmured, “Don’t worry. Everything is already arranged.”