Apocalypse: Master of Soul Beasts

Chapter 20: Chapter 20 Successful Planning_1

The number of mutant rats at the back door of the police station was small; most of them were concentrated at the front door, indulging in a delicious feast.

But that’s not to say Wen Yu and Wang Zhigang faced no resistance. According to Wen Yu’s observation, among this group of rats, there was undoubtedly a Rat King, and six fully-fledged Level 1 mutant rats were on guard at the back door.

”SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK.”

Seeing two humans charging straight towards them, the mutant rats emitted a series of sharp cries.

A chill ran down Wen Yu’s spine. I’m naturally familiar with this sound; it’s an alarm, he thought. Despite having dealt with mutant rats countless times in his previous life, he knew the sentinel rats would sound an alarm, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Rats are extremely cautious and disciplined under the authority of a Rat King. Once they spot an enemy, they sound the alarm without hesitation.

”Old Wang, hurry!”

For two powerful Level 1 professionists, a few dozen meters was a short dash. Swinging their steel sabers, they cleanly dispatched each mutant rat, whose individual power was considerably weaker despite their Level 1 mutant creature status.

Wen Yu paid no mind to the magic crystals inside the Level 1 mutant rats’ skulls.

Yes, magic crystals formed in the minds of graded mutant creatures and Demon Fiends, but not in zombies or humans. These were an added bounty from slaying mutant beasts or Demon Fiends.

These magic crystals were formed according to the creature’s innate attributes; in other words, they were Attributed Magic Crystals.

Most mutant beasts had Beast attribute magic crystals.

The two men catapulted forward while the rat herd, alerted by the alarm, swarmed crazily towards the back door.

Wen Yu saw the back door getting closer and closer. He instantaneously entered combat mode, grabbed the visibly lagging Wang Zhigang, and threw him directly through the back door of the station.

Seeing the rat swarm closing in, Wen Yu considered his mission accomplished. He didn’t linger and sprinted away at full speed.

The rats behind him were mostly below Level 1. In no time, he had left them far behind, out of sight.

Wen Yu glanced back in the direction of the police station. The deadly silent building gave off no sound. He didn’t know how likely Wang Zhigang’s plan was to succeed. After making a wide circle, he lay in ambush again near the police station.

「...」

Wang Zhigang was flung into the police station, his head dizzy and aching, watching as Wen Yu closed the door.

The formidable physique of a professionist allowed Wang Zhigang to quickly recover from the dizziness. Thinking back on his plan, his eyes became increasingly calm.

”Wenwen, wait,” he muttered, his resolve hardening. ”Once Daddy kills these damned rats, he’ll come down to be with you. Very soon, very soon.”

Hearing the dense patter of approaching footsteps, Wang Zhigang knew he was running out of time.

He rushed downstairs. The explosives were stored in a storage room in the basement.

「...」

The stairs leading down were devoid of light. Luckily, the night vision of a professionist was strong, preventing Wang Zhigang from being plunged into complete darkness.

He quickly scanned the underground area but found nothing. Absolutely nothing.

The faint sounds of footsteps from the floor above and the chilling squeaks of the rats gradually faded. Wang Zhigang felt like he had walked into a huge trap.

Regaining his composure, he seemed to step into the gaping maw of a giant beast, slowly vanishing into the darkness.

The underground was littered with rat droppings and the remains of dead zombies, all dragged in by the rats from outside.

The explosives were stored in the innermost evidence storage area in the basement.

「...」

Reaching the storage room door without encountering anything made Wang Zhigang heave a sigh of relief.

Knowing he was about to avenge his child, Wang Zhigang did not hesitate or falter, immediately pushing open the storage room door.

Just as Wang Zhigang’s figure was about to be swallowed by the pitch-black storage room, he was suddenly hurled out at an incredible speed—or more accurately, his body was sent flying backward.

”AHH!”

With a dreadful scream, Wang Zhigang’s entire chest visibly caved in, as though he’d been hit with a massive hammer. He lay on the ground, unable to get up for a long moment.

From inside the storage room, a pitch-black shadow loomed, growing larger. Slowly, a giant rat, half the height of a man, emerged.

A Level 2 mutant creature—this rat pack’s King.

「...」

Waiting was invariably the most torturous part.

Just as Wen Yu was lost in thought, a huge explosion thundered, nearly deafening him.

He watched the police station in front of him as all its windows spewed thick flames. Inside, burnt rats were catapulted into the air. Wen Yu clenched his fists. ”It worked!”

”Old Wang,” Wen Yu said with heartfelt respect, ”from now on, during every festival, I’ll definitely burn incense for you and your daughter. You were truly incredible.”

Seeing Wang Zhigang’s self-sacrificial plan succeed, Wen Yu hurriedly headed towards the police station.

As he passed the station’s back door, he searched for the bodies of the Level 1 mutant rats he had killed earlier. Sadly, they had already been eaten by other rats after he left.

The closer he got to the police station, the more dead rats he encountered, and he collected the carcasses with delight.

Unfortunately, the rats that died from the distant blast impact were definitely not Level 1, and mutant creatures below Level 1 did not produce magic crystals.

Wen Yu sneered and ignored these insignificant fry, heading straight into the police station’s main entrance.

The once-spacious lobby was now an unrecognizable ruin due to the massive collapse. He didn’t bother searching for rat corpses among the debris; there were enough carcasses scattered around for him to collect.

”One, Level 1, Beast attribute. This is for you, precious,” he said, digging a magic crystal from a corpse and feeding it directly to his Soul Beast.

”Another one, beast-fire dual-attribute. It has impurities; you can’t eat this.” Ignoring the Soul Beast’s eager Spiritual Fluctuation, Wen Yu put the magic crystal away.

”Tsk, tsk. This is quite a haul.” f.re(e) w.e(b)nov el.c.om

Wen Yu grew more excited as he collected them. Soon, he had cleared the entire ruined area and fed his Soul Beast to Peak Level 1.

In addition, he gathered a large pile of unneeded Level 1 magic crystals and placed them on top of the ruins.

He easily dispatched the remaining mutant rats that weren’t completely dead, then nodded in satisfaction.

”Old Wang really gets things done.”

Just as he was about to finish cleaning up the ruins, Wen Yu suddenly heard a noise.

”Still something alive?” he muttered, grasping his steel saber and slowly moving towards the source of the sound.

Wen Yu hadn’t forgotten that among this swarm of rats, there was definitely a Rat King.

He slowly approached a pile of debris and listened carefully.

”Hmm? There’s a space below?” Confirming the sound came from underground, Wen Yu lifted the stone slab covering it.

A set of stairs, mangled by the explosion, appeared before him. Simultaneously, the sound became much clearer.

”SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK!” The piercing cries of rats, accompanied by the sound of tearing flesh, reached his ears.

Wen Yu quickly descended the stairs. His Peak Level 1 physique allowed him to adapt to the darkness swiftly.

The basement looked even more chaotic; the entire space was precariously supported by a few stone pillars. The cramped area was filled with indistinct blood and flesh.

Gazing at the scene below, Wen Yu couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

A huge rat, half a man’s height, lay on the ground. Half of its body was crushed under the ruins, and torrents of fresh blood flowed out from beneath it, indicating that this Level 2 mutant rat was severely injured and wouldn’t live much longer.

What shocked Wen Yu the most was a person lying on the other side. Although covered in blood and missing an arm, the sight of him panting heavily confirmed that he was alive.

”Old Wang? You’re not dead?” Wen Yu asked in astonishment. The living person before him was indeed Wang Zhigang, the man who had intended to martyr himself.

”Quick, help me kill it! That’s the monster that ate my daughter!” Wang Zhigang implored as soon as he saw Wen Yu, the ferocity in his eyes startling Wen Yu.

For such a request that practically handed out free points, Wen Yu was more than eager to comply. Fixing his stare on the giant rat, he entered combat mode without a second word.

The Level 2 Rat King sensed the formidability of the human before it. It gritted its teeth fiercely, but seeing its intimidation had no effect, its narrow eyes suddenly flashed with a green light.

The Rat King opened its massive maw, and a stream of green liquid sprayed out, shooting towards Wen Yu like a Machine Gun.

Wen Yu was taken aback. His 20 physique points in combat mode allowed him to react instantly. He twisted his body and swiftly dodged the green fluid.

As soon as the green liquid hit the wall behind him, it immediately corroded a huge hole that continued to deepen, the corrosive substance still actively eating away at the material.

Seeing this, Wen Yu couldn’t help but shiver. If that had hit me, I would definitely be dead. My caution has saved my life once again, he thought.

Noticing the Rat King looked exhausted after its attack, Wen Yu rushed forward and slashed at it with his saber.

The wound wasn’t large. Even with Wen Yu’s enormous strength, the F-Class steel saber didn’t inflict much damage on the Rat King.

What was terrifying was the Soul Strike.

Currently, both Wen Yu and his Soul Beast were at Peak Level 1. In combat mode, his 20 physique points completely overwhelmed the Level 2 mutant rat. It was a known fact that even at the same level, a rat’s physical attributes couldn’t compare to a human’s.

With just one slash, the Rat King let out a miserable shriek. Blood poured from its eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. It twitched twice on the ground and then lay still.

”Ding! Killed Level 2 Mutant Rat. Gained 153 points.”

Letting out a long sigh of relief, Wen Yu split open the large rat’s skull and took out the yellow-green magic crystal within.

Level 2 Magic Crystal, beast-poison dual attribute.

After dealing with these matters, Wen Yu finally turned to carefully examine the half-dead Wang Zhigang.