Chapter 51: Frenzied Buff Stacking

A helicopter sliced through the sky, passing over the ruins of last night's battle. The long trail of devastation left by the railgun scarred the city like a wound, filling onlookers with both awe and a deep, solemn sorrow.

Qi Qiuchan stood atop the City Trade Building, waiting to receive the one disembarking from the helicopter.

She inclined her head slightly, her long hair whipping wildly in the wind. "Welcome, Fengshen Dongqi."

The tall, bald, powerfully built man let out a hearty laugh. "Qi Qiuchan, you’re as rigid as ever."

Qi Qiuchan leaned on her heavy Dragon Mace, both hands gripping its shaft. "The city is extremely dangerous right now. I can sense a malignant force growing stronger here. I can track them down, but there are simply too many."

Dongqi's expression turned grave. "The previous law enforcers mentioned a mutant, didn’t they? What’s the story there?"

Qi Qiuchan thought for a moment. "I heard it’s related to the Black Death Emperor."

"Let’s go down and take a look."

Qi Qiuchan cast a glance at the now-empty helicopter. "Are you here alone?"

He grinned. "What, do you think I alone can’t match a thousand soldiers?" His bravado faded quickly, replaced by a wry smile. "Forget it. The seal on the Three Venerables has been broken. Zhang Liaoyuan has escaped."

"Zhang Liaoyuan?" Qi Qiuchan couldn’t help but cry out. "The Invincible Diamond, the Emperor Star Zhang Liaoyuan? Wasn’t he sealed beneath the Great Snow Mountain? How could… Wait, what about the prison at the mountain?"

Dongqi’s smile grew only more bitter. "Zhang Liaoyuan killed over three hundred heavily armed guards, destroyed the entire prison, and released all the inmates. Some died in the ensuing chaos, some were recruited by Zhang Liaoyuan, and the rest have vanished who knows where."

Qi Qiuchan gritted her teeth. "The prison beneath the Great Snow Mountain held only monsters driven mad by martial cultivation. Now that they’re free, who knows how many more will die… Damn it, is everyone chasing after Zhang Liaoyuan now?"

Dongqi shook his head. "No. Some are just watching and waiting."

Qi Qiuchan was taken aback. "Watching for what? Do they also want to establish a divine kingdom on earth?"

Dongqi said, "Thirty years ago, Zhang Liaoyuan’s betrayal turned every pulse wielder into an enemy of the world, forcing us into hiding. But this only bred further resentment. Many pulse wielders crave achievement and power, things the Association can no longer offer. We’re said to be sages who comprehend the laws of the universe, but after decades of cultivation, we still have to hide in the shadows, and few are willing to accept that."

Qi Qiuchan sighed. "Slaying demons and exorcising evil—yet in the end, our greatest fear is the demon within our own hearts."

"Enough. Let’s just do what we’re supposed to do." Dongqi ruffled Qi Qiuchan’s hair. The corners of her lips twitched in annoyance. "Don’t pretend you’re not involved. You are one of the Three Venerables of this generation."

"Heh, the triad of Mind, Body, and Skill Venerables hasn’t been complete for a long time. As long as Zhang Liaoyuan, the Invincible Diamond, lives, who dares claim the title of Body Venerable? The Mind Venerable is elusive, not even their gender is known, and the Elder Council is riven by internal strife. What use am I? I’ll charge into battle when needed, but don’t drag me into these political intrigues." Dongqi, his bald head gleaming, descended the stairs.

Qi Qiuchan gazed at the gloomy sky, shook her head, and followed him down.

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In the city government building, Mayor Lu Shengen was in talks with a group of men dressed in black.

Lu Shengen addressed the leader before him. "My contacts in the Public Security Bureau say the pulse wielders have found clues relating to last night’s incident, but the suspect slipped away again."

"Find that person. He’s the key to fighting those monsters," the black-clad leader replied, his voice metallic and mechanical.

Lu Shengen narrowed his eyes. "I am not your subordinate. Our dealings must be fair and transparent. The city is already in chaos—taking extra risks now is too much for me."

The figure in black said, "A deal… Very well. I now have sufficient authority. If you cooperate with us, Amest will prioritize supporting your bid for independence and control during the coming civil war."

Lu Shengen nodded in satisfaction, though he knew such promises were hardly reliable. After a moment’s thought, he turned to his secretary, Tang Haoming. "We can’t deploy our own forces. Get in touch with Yuan Liming. Have him capture that person and deliver them to us."

Tang Haoming hesitated. "Yuan Liming is not exactly obedient…"

Lu Shengen smiled coldly. "Yuan Liming thinks he’s found protection among the pulse wielders, but he forgets this is still my city. A little pressure in the right place, and he’ll fall in line."

Tang Haoming turned to leave, failing to notice the flicker of violet light in his own eyes.

——————————————————————

Somewhere in an unknown basement, the space had transformed into a grotesque, organic chamber, like the insides of a living beast.

Warm, pulsating flesh covered every surface, and writhing tendrils swayed like a field of ripened grain.

At the center of the chamber was a colossal cocoon of flesh, taller than two people, beating rhythmically like a heart.

Within this cocoon was none other than the once-dead Liveda.

After being destroyed by Adonsa’s railgun, Liveda’s body should have been annihilated. Yet Chen Tu, exhausting himself, managed to retrieve her remains, and with Adonsa’s healing intervention, she had been brought back, though whether this counted as luck or misfortune was uncertain.

Through the thin, translucent wall of flesh, Liveda’s youthful face could be faintly seen floating in a liquid resembling amniotic fluid. Her entire body, however, had dissolved almost entirely, leaving only her spine, viscera, and brain, sustained by a few lonely strands of blood vessels.

What Adonsa truly desired was the unborn child in her womb—the Child of 666, the demon of hell.

The entire cocoon was dominated by a massive sac: Liveda’s uterus.

Adonsa had forced her womb to grow and proliferate, pouring all its efforts into salvaging the stillborn demon within. At last, there was some sign of success.

Liveda’s frail form was now fused with the vast gestation sac, grotesque and ungainly, like some bloated, clumsy queen ant.

A faint, malevolent current emanated from the uterine sac, as if the creature within could hardly believe it still lived.

Yet it kept silent, making no attempt to communicate with Adonsa.

Adonsa was in no hurry. It had plenty of methods to uncover the true nature of this demon fetus.

Leaving the demon child to grow strong in the underground lair, Adonsa set about launching its campaign upon the world.

With vast resources at its disposal, Adonsa began building its intelligence network from scratch, hunting for potential threats and keys to its own evolution.

Yet the matter that preoccupied it most was not the Amest Biohazard Center, nor the Martial Arts Association of the Heavenly Capital, but rather the splinter of itself that had inexplicably slipped from its control.

That monstrous insect, trapped in amber, possessed an even higher evolutionary authority. If it had not been so incomplete, it could have revived through Adonsa’s divided body and become its most terrifying enemy.

Rebirth from a single drop of blood.

The will of the gene.

Cellular holism.

Just these three phrases were enough to convey the terrifying power of the third stage of evolution.

It was true immortality: rebirth from a single drop of blood. Even if reduced to a single cell, it could hibernate or return to life through its vast vitality, though the process would take a very long time.