I am the Clone of a Death Row Inmate

Chapter 125: Chapter 124: Hunting Gravity Demon

The surrounding scenery changed rapidly as Su Ze and Mr. Ya tunneled deep underground.

The temperature and pressure mounted, and Mr. Ya’s energy expenditure was constantly increasing.

Finally, at a depth of three thousand meters, they found a cave dug out by some unknown mutant beast and took shelter there for the time being.

The black soil of the Thousand Heroes Tomb hadn’t spread this far down; it had stopped at a depth of about seven or eight hundred meters.

Mr. Ya panted heavily, swallowing an evolutionary restorative to recover his stamina.

Tunneling this far would have been easy on the surface, but burrowing deep underground presented immense resistance, and the energy drain was even greater.

Mr. Ya slumped to the ground. ”Boss,” he said, ”where are you planning to look for the Gravity Demon?”

Su Ze thought for a moment. The data Xu Sheng had given him from Evolutionary Technology only mentioned that one of its hunting teams had successfully hunted a Gravity Demon beneath the Thousand Heroes Tomb on two occasions, but it didn’t specify the exact depth.

However, Su Ze had discussed this type of mutant beast with Liou Wenxin before and learned about its habits.

The Gravity Demon evolved from the Demon Worm. Before the Era of Evolution, the Demon Worm was the deepest-dwelling animal known to humankind on Blue Star.

The Demon Worm is tiny—only half a millimeter long. But after this nematode evolves into a mutant beast, its body swells by thousands, even tens of thousands, of times, and it develops a taste for devouring underground minerals.

”Once you’ve recovered, we’ll search the area for a mineral vein. The Gravity Demon probably lives near one.”

Once Mr. Ya had recovered, the two set off again. Movement deep underground was difficult, so they had to rely on Mr. Ya’s Earth Escape Skill to search the area.

It didn’t take much effort for them to find a massive mineral vein.

Directly beneath the Thousand Heroes Tomb, at a depth of over three thousand meters, a vast deposit of white, jade-like ore was piled high, forming a veritable mountain.

”What kind of ore is this?” Su Ze scratched his head.

With his extensive experience tunneling through the earth, Mr. Ya recognized the ore at a glance. ”This is Attracting Stone Ore,” he said.

”Attracting Stone? The kind used to make extractors?” The moment he heard the name, Su Ze understood.

This ore had only appeared on Blue Star after the Evolutionary Rain, and it was quite abundant.

Attracting Stone was the core material for making extraction machines, as the ore naturally possessed a strong attraction to Evolutionary Material and evolutionary power.

As for its value, the fact that nearly every Hunter owned a portable extractor was proof that the material wasn’t particularly valuable.

Still, this underground deposit of Attracting Stone Ore was truly massive. Su Ze and Mr. Ya made a circuit around it but couldn’t find its end.

If the entire deposit were a mountain, they were currently on its slope. The Attracting Stone Ore was riddled with traces of excavation and gnawing from mutant beasts, which had left behind a network of tunnels. Some were extremely narrow, like animal burrows, while others were so wide that Su Ze and Mr. Ya could walk side-by-side without it feeling cramped.

A thought suddenly struck Su Ze. ”Attracting Stone draws in Evolutionary Material,” he said. ”Do you think the black soil from the Thousand Heroes Tomb above is constantly seeping deeper underground because it’s being pulled down by this deposit?”

Mr. Ya’s eyes widened. After thinking for a few seconds, he nodded. ”That’s actually possible.”

The black soil of the Thousand Heroes Tomb was a chaotic fusion of various Evolutionary Materials and powers. Attracted by the deep deposit of Attracting Stone, it constantly seeped downward. The highest-quality Evolutionary Material and evolutionary power would experience the strongest pull, causing them to concentrate at the very bottom of the soil layer.

This would also explain why the soil of the Thousand Heroes Tomb became harder with depth, eventually becoming tougher than steel.

”If that’s true,” Su Ze said, ”then theoretically, any real treasure in the Thousand Heroes Tomb is most likely hidden at its lowest point, where the highest-quality evolutionary power and Evolutionary Material are concentrated.”

”After we’ve dealt with the Gravity Demon, we can check it out on our way back up.”

Mr. Ya grew excited. He loved this sort of exploration and treasure hunting. If helping Su Ze hunt the Gravity Demon hadn’t been the priority, he would have gone exploring the moment they arrived.

Su Ze activated Traceless Walk. ”Let’s just follow these tunnels chewed out by the mutant beasts,” he said as they ventured into the ore deposit. ”If we track them, we might find the Gravity Demon.”

Mr. Ya quickened his pace, moving to a position a meter ahead of Su Ze. ”I should take point,” he said. ”I’m better at staying alive, so I’m not afraid of running into danger.”

The two moved at a brisk pace, and after traversing the massive mineral deposit for about ten minutes, they finally discovered a mutant beast.

It was a worm the size of an arm, its entire body covered in wrinkled skin. Its head had no visible organs like eyes, only a large mouth, which was busy devouring the Attracting Stone. When it noticed Su Ze and Mr. Ya’s arrival, it immediately let out a strange shriek, its body suddenly coiled, and it sprang forward, pouncing at Mr. Ya’s face.

Su Ze reacted instantly. He stepped forward and threw a punch, causing the worm to explode in a splatter of fluids.

This worm had evolved from a Demon Worm, but it was only a tier-one mutant beast that had evolved once—an Abyss Worm.

The Gravity Demon Su Ze was looking for was a tier-three mutant beast that had completed three evolutions.

Still, finding an Abyss Worm meant they were in the right place. The chances of a Gravity Demon being nearby were high.

The two continued onward, occasionally encountering more Abyss Worms, all of which Su Ze dispatched with a single punch.

Su Ze couldn’t be bothered to harvest the extracts from these tier-one beasts.

After making a wide circuit through the ore deposit, they ultimately found only the desiccated, rotting corpse of a Gravity Demon.

”There are signs of a fight all around, and the valuable materials have been carved off the corpse,” Su Ze deduced. ”This is most likely the spot where Evolutionary Technology hunted that Gravity Demon.”

Evolutionary Technology’s hunting party had likely found this spot, discovered the Gravity Demon, and killed it. They had extracted its valuable materials, leaving the desiccated corpse behind.

Su Ze and Mr. Ya continued their exploration toward the bottom of the ore deposit. Since so many Demon Worms lived here, there was a high probability they would find another Gravity Demon.

”There’s a cavern here!” Mr. Ya called out, running a few steps forward after making a promising discovery.

It was a large cavern chewed out by a mutant beast, leading straight to the bottom of the ore deposit. Judging by the cavern’s width, whatever made it was massive.

Furthermore, the gnaw marks on the Attracting Stone walls were consistent with a Gravity Demon’s.

A look of delight crossed Su Ze’s face. Both he and Mr. Ya possessed a Flying Skill, so they immediately flew down toward the bottom of the cavern.

Relying on his superior speed, Mr. Ya flew down first to scout ahead. He returned a moment later and gave Su Ze a firm nod.

”It’s here!”

A smile spread across Su Ze’s face. ”Let’s go. Time to take it down!”

Finding the Gravity Demon was half the battle. If they couldn’t beat it, they could, as a last resort, ask Pei Wuhua for help. But that would surely mean owing him a favor and spending money—they couldn’t let him work for free.

So, Su Ze decided he and Mr. Ya would try to handle it first, just to see how tough this tier-three S-class mutant beast really was.

Soon, the two landed at the bottom of the cavern. Su Ze’s eyes immediately fell upon a giant worm curled up on the floor.

The classifier ”head” was practically universal in the Mutant Beast Realm, and Su Ze had gotten used to it. From a ”head” of a mosquito, to a ”head” of a rat, a ”head” of a maggot, and now a ”head” of a worm, he was no longer surprised by the usage.

The legendary ”Gravity Demon” before them was called a worm, but it had a body more massive than a giant python. Coiled on the ground, it resembled a stretched-out elephant.

Its appearance was not much different from the Abyss Worms Su Ze had encountered before; after all, they shared the same lineage. Its rough, bark-like skin was dark red, and its deep wrinkles made it look as if its body were composed of stacked rings. Toothpick-sized hairs were sparsely distributed across its ugly hide.

Its head also lacked organs like eyes and a nose, possessing only a massive maw. When it opened, it revealed rows of sharp, barb-like teeth, a ferocious and terrifying sight.

The Gravity Demon began to move the moment they landed. Its massive body writhed slowly, its fearsome maw turning to face Su Ze’s position.

Golden dust drifted down around it like a gentle spring rain. The next moment, the motes of dust converged, and an invisible chain quietly took form. This Gravity Dust Sand was like gold powder embellishing the chain, allowing Su Ze and Mr. Ya to perceive its existence.

Without a sound, the Gravity Chain shot toward Su Ze, fast as lightning.

In a flash, Mr. Ya moved to block Su Ze.

Their division of labor was clear: Su Ze was responsible for dealing damage, while Mr. Ya was responsible for their protection.

The Gravity Chain had no offensive power; its only function was to pull the target in. Mr. Ya felt an immense force pulling on his body, yanking him uncontrollably toward the Gravity Demon.

In an instant, Mr. Ya was pulled directly in front of the Gravity Demon. The beast had been waiting with its great maw wide open, and Mr. Ya flew straight into its mouth.

Mr. Ya swiftly wove a massive Golden Insect Cocoon around his body, which became wedged in the Gravity Demon’s mouth.

The Gravity Demon paused for a second or two before forcefully crushing the Golden Insect Cocoon. The moment the shell shattered, Mr. Ya darted out, successfully escaping.

Su Ze had already used this opportunity to dash to the Gravity Demon’s side. He unleashed a combination of ”Ant Power” and ”Needle Strike” on its bloated body, punching several holes from which a viscous, brown fluid sprayed out.

Su Ze pulled a vial of yellow toxic powder from his pocket and poured it over the Gravity Demon’s wounds.

He and Mr. Ya had come prepared this time. After their experience poisoning the Mutated Giant Crocodile, they certainly hadn’t forgotten to bring toxins.

Tier-four toxins were unavailable for purchase, so this was a tier-three toxic powder he had acquired from the Dongli National Treasury using contribution points. While it couldn’t kill a tier-three S-class Gravity Demon, it was enough to weaken its combat strength.

The Gravity Demon shrieked in pain. Su Ze suddenly noticed a layer of golden dust silently coating the ground beneath his feet. His body instantly grew heavy, and he fell to his knees with a THUD, feeling an immense, crushing weight.

Mr. Ya was also affected on the other side. His speed faltered noticeably, but he still rushed toward Su Ze.

Su Ze understood. The Gravity Demon was using its Gravity Dust Sand to manipulate the local gravity.

The Gravity Demon reared its head high, aimed at Su Ze, and spat a stream of corrosive liquid from its maw.

Hampered by the gravitational interference, Su Ze’s movements were sluggish, leaving him completely unable to dodge.