Chapter 221: Chapter 142: Devouring the Beast Egg, Breakthrough
That night, after midnight.
At an abandoned, unfinished building.
"Someone actually got killed in the rich district of the inner ring? I hear it’s causing a huge stir."
"You’re telling me. I heard one of the dead was the son of a director at the Biotechnology Company. Now there’s a city-wide bounty out for the killer."
"So who do you think was bold enough to kill someone like that...?"
The slurred shouts of passing drunks, reeking of alcohol, drifted up from the street below.
Lu Chao slipped into the abandoned building, his face a mask of indifference as he climbed the stairs toward the sixth floor.
He had been interrogated three times today. It wasn’t just the Patrol Department and the Superpower Bureau; even the Biotechnology Company had shown up at his door.
They had nearly searched his apartment, and he’d been tailed all day. The surveillance only let up late at night, when his followers finally, quietly, dispersed.
He had known the consequences of killing Ruan Hui would be severe.
But the situation was escalating beyond his control.
There was the rapid response from the Superpower Bureau and the Patrol Department, and the relentless pressure from the Biotechnology Company.
And worse, a director from the Biotechnology Company’s headquarters had reportedly arrived in Ring City.
This was someone with even more influence than Ruan Yongheng, the Deputy Chief of the Patrol Department—someone who could do something drastic at any moment.
As these thoughts raced through his mind, Lu Chao finally reached a corner on the sixth floor.
He faced a concrete wall and pulled open a slightly rusted iron fire door.
Inside were not only fire pipes but also a black baseball bag.
He hadn’t left the Beast Egg at home last night.
This abandoned building was where he had fought the members of the God-Worshiping Church. It had been sealed off afterward, so few people ever came here, making it the perfect hiding spot.
Even if it were discovered, no one would connect it to him.
He quietly activated his Fixed Star Observation Method.
Potent Spiritual Power enhanced his five senses, and as Lu Chao scanned the area, he confirmed no one had been there.
However, his eyes flickered as he finally unzipped the bag and took out the hidden Beast Egg.
His original plan had been to keep it for the time being—to hatch and tame it, raising it into a Superpower Level battle pet to maximize his gains.
But unfortunately, his plans had to change.
Given the current situation, as long as he remained a suspect, the Biotechnology Company wouldn’t back down. They might even put him under 24/7 surveillance or resort to other probing measures.
Every day the Beast Egg remained in his possession, his risk of exposure grew significantly.
Even if he managed to hatch and tame it, if anyone discovered he owned a pet like an Earth Dragon Lizard, the Biotechnology Company would likely grow suspicious and uncover the truth.
After weighing his options, he was left with only one choice.
[Beast Egg—Earth Dragon Lizard]
[Quality: Elementary (Excellence)]
[Consumption Effect: Upon consumption, you will obtain all the Life Essence of one Earth Dragon Lizard hatchling. High probability of increasing Life Energy!]
The panel’s information flashed through his mind, and his hesitation vanished.
’Rather than keep waiting and taking risks, I should focus on making myself as strong as possible right now!’
CRACK!
Lu Chao abruptly crushed the Beast Egg’s hard shell, creating a fist-sized opening.
The life inside had yet to fully form. Its Life Essence was a semi-solidified liquid, which now began to ooze from the crack in the shell.
In just over ten seconds, Lu Chao had swallowed all of the Beast Egg’s essence.
And soon...
VMM!!
A current of heat surged from within him, erupting uncontrollably.
Lu Chao’s face instantly flushed crimson, and thick veins bulged on his skin.
"So... so powerful... this energy..."
Bloodshot veins appeared in his eyes. Lu Chao could hear his own heart pounding, THUMP-THUMP-THUMP, while his blood felt like it was boiling, bubbling violently.
The Beast Egg’s essence was far more volatile than he’d expected. It surged through his limbs and torso, burrowing into every single cell.
Skin, tendons, flesh, bones...
Lu Chao felt the heat inside him swell uncontrollably, as if he were about to explode.
At the critical moment.
VMM!!
[Predatory Growth] activated once more. His digestive system kicked into overdrive, like an overloaded, overheating engine.
The violent energy from the Beast King Egg was suppressed and refined, gradually breaking down into the purest of nutrients. The explosive heat within him began to subside.
Even so, Lu Chao could still feel his tendons ache and swell, and his body trembled.
Even his normally insatiable [Predatory Growth] ability felt saturated for the first time.
It was obvious: a nutritional resource of Elementary (Excellence) quality was more than an Elite Level could handle, as it surpassed the normal tier of elementary resources.
According to Luo Qianshan, one had to reach the Superpower Level to be able to truly absorb and utilize a complete elementary resource.
With no time for second thoughts, Lu Chao quickly fell into a Fighting Skill stance. Following the training principles of the fourth level of the Golden Stone Skill, he adjusted his breathing and guided the energy in his body, channeling it through his skin, muscles, tendons, and bones.
All the while, he used his Spiritual Power to maintain perfect control over his body, helping to process the energy.
Gradually, the bulging veins on his muscles writhed like coiling serpents. His blood vessels pulsed, expanding and contracting as if they had a life of their own.
Lu Chao could feel it.
His tendons, bones, and every part of him were being nourished by the energy, gradually growing stronger.
His progress in the Golden Stone Skill skyrocketed, and his already Elite Level physique grew stronger still.
Time ticked by, second by second, minute by minute. No one was aware of the commotion unfolding inside the abandoned building.
Finally...
「Half an hour later.」
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!!
A series of pops, like the crackling of roasting beans, echoed from his body as his tendons and bones resonated in unison.
Comments