After Beating the Game, I Became the Villain BOSS

Chapter 553: Chapter 357: Safe Return

In the construct ruins, Su Mo trudged forward, beginning his final confrontation with the black spire.

He navigated through the dust-covered ancient pillars, while the pale crystal continued to emit a blinding white light, acting like an invisible barrier, blocking him.

The consciousness assaults triggered by abnormal wave signals relentlessly attacked him, attempting to drag him back into illusions, but his previous success in escaping had already built a protective mechanism in his brain.

These endless assaults brought about various anomalies, sometimes confusing calls, sometimes old scenes read from the depths of memory, yet none could completely occupy his mind as before.

He merely wiped the sweat off his forehead, unwaveringly continuing to move forward.

Earlier, Qi Ling had set the Black Extinction Virus to automatic mode, and the closer Su Mo moved towards the control core of the black spire, the closer he was to the effective range of the virus.

The pale crystal seemed to sense some threat, abruptly unleashing fierce light beams, the white light turned unprecedentedly intense, transforming into waves rippling through the air.

The intense consciousness assault nearly robbed Su Mo of all his strength, collapsing him to the ground in painful gasps, his consciousness verging on an ethereal state.

To counteract the assault, he painstakingly moved his right hand to grip his left hand’s fingers.

"Ka! Ka! Ka!..."

One by one, in the crisp sound of bones breaking, he snapped all five fingers of his left hand.

The intense pain gave back control to his consciousness, allowing him to stand again, facing the pale crystal that sheltered the construct embryo with a grim smile: "No tricks left? Then obediently come with me."

As Su Mo stepped forward one last time, the invasion device carrying the Black Extinction Virus finally entered effective range, successfully capturing the communication port.

At this moment, time seemed to have halted.

A spot of scarlet emerged on the surface of the pale crystal, like a sea of blood surging from the center of pure water, the red and white colors colliding and blending, the originally white light gradually replaced by scarlet, continuously disappearing.

Simultaneously, the crystal’s surface structure began to decay, cracks extending inch by inch, red fragments falling as if a rain of flying blood.

Suddenly, a bizarre howl reached Su Mo’s ears, emanating from inside the crystal, rapid and piercing, yet carrying a rhythm of life, akin to a newborn’s cry.

In the very center of the shattered crystal, Su Mo finally saw that thing.

It was a perfectly spherical orb, composed of some mysterious colorless crystal, presenting a transparent and lustrous texture, smooth and pure, without a single blemish.

Soft wool-like fibers grew on the inner walls of the crystal, unlike any material ever seen by humans, with each strand glowing faintly red, entwining together and shining brilliantly, resembling nebulae in the cosmos.

Suspended in the very center of the crystal was a semi-transparent embryo, its body connected with those glowing fibers, seemingly serving as its nutrient supply pathways.

The embryo’s form constantly shifted, sometimes a rounded sphere, sometimes changing into a mathematically elegant cube, and when Su Mo observed it, it transformed into a human shape, like a fetus developing in a mother’s womb.

Beneath the semi-transparent infant body, countless vein-like patterns were faintly visible, emitting a peculiar glow, instilling an indescribable beauty.

The construct embryo, the fourth major passage tool of the Dawn Realm, now lay before Su Mo, within reach.

Su Mo approached the crystal housing the construct embryo, slowly extending his hand.

The mysterious crystal seemed guided by something, despite Su Mo doing nothing, it silently floated into his hand, like a fledgling returning to its nest.

At the moment the construct embryo was taken, the entire black spire ruin began to shake violently, cracks appearing on stone pillars, ceiling, and floor, commencing a slow collapse.

Su Mo cradled the construct embryo in his arms, limping towards the exit.

"Time to go home..."

...

[Eastern Border Main Battlefield]

Amidst the prolonged and fierce battle, the mercenaries endured immense pressure; despite fighting for so long, the beasts they faced remained endless.

Though drone reconnaissance reported a sudden explosion in the northern border collapsing and sealing the Tunneling Insect tunnels, numerous beasts lingered on the border surface.

As time passed, be it the growing number of casualties or the nearly depleted ammunition, morale was gradually sinking to the freezing point.

Yet as the mercenaries gritted their teeth in continued combat, without any forewarning, the mutation suddenly arrived.

The vast battlefield seemingly came under the grip of an invisible giant hand, mercilessly halting the ferocious attacking beasts; they all simultaneously froze in place, like solidified statues.

The previously bustling battlefield plunged into eerie silence in an instant.

Following this, all the beasts went mad.

The beast horde, previously charging furiously at the mercenaries, erupted in a chorus of shrieks, as both large and small beasts began indiscriminately attacking the nearest of their kind.

A beast of the arthropod type swung its claws, whipping up a gust as it lunged at a feline beast, the two colliding in a heap, the clash of claws and fangs echoing around.

On another side, a porcupine-like beast abruptly leapt at a lizard beast, its sharp bristles tearing at tough scales like blades, blood spraying like a fountain.