I am the Clone of a Death Row Inmate

Chapter 177: Chapter 162: Combo Skill: Laser Eye and Ten Thousand Thunders Celestial Prison Guide

As it happened, Su Ze also wanted to talk to her about his fourth extract for the Cocoon Stage.

His fourth Cocoon Stage extract wasn’t that far off. As soon as he finished digesting the Sand Blind Snake Extract, he could absorb the next one.

At his current rate, this would take a month at most—probably only ten to twenty days.

Therefore, Su Ze had to make a decision soon. For his next absorption, should he risk attempting to absorb a tier-four extract, jumping a level?

If he planned to do so, he needed to start preparing now.

At the very least, he had to consider which tier-four exotic beast’s extract to absorb and figure out how to obtain it. Tier-four extracts were not easy to come by. If he couldn’t buy a suitable one, he didn’t have the strength to hunt for it himself.

As for paying a Saint-level expert to help hunt, the cost would be absolutely staggering. Su Ze wasn’t even sure he could afford it.

This made Su Ze think of Mrs. Yun... ’Why hasn’t she finished digesting that single vial of tier-four extract yet?’

’If Mrs. Yun becomes a Saint, I can ask her to help me hunt.’

As his mind wandered, Su Ze arrived at Liou Wenxin’s laboratory.

...

After Su Ze walked into the lab, Liou Wenxin first had him demonstrate the effects of his ”Eye of Truth” and ”Thunder God Body” combination on a small scale, then fell into deep thought.

She had to admit, the wild idea Su Ze had come up with was surprisingly powerful.

Unlike the ”Electric Lock” formed by combining ”Gravity Chain” and ”Thunder God Body,” this new combination, while equally powerful, was not reproducible. The ”Gravity Dust Sand” ability was too unique; there wasn’t even a suitable substitute for it.

Finding a substitute for ”Thunder God Body” was easy, but ”Eye of Truth” was more troublesome. Still, Liou Wenxin already had a few ideas.

If lower-tier skills could be found to replace the ones in this combo, it would certainly have potential for widespread use. For example, it could be implemented in the military. Thousands of soldiers unleashing electric shock abilities in unison would be a magnificent and powerful sight.

Liou Wenxin made a note of it, planning to conduct follow-up research when she had time.

Seeing that the discussion about the skill combo was over, Su Ze got straight to the point. ”Sister, do you think there’s any hope of me jumping a level to absorb a tier-four extract for my next one?”

He didn’t hide anything, telling her about his previous level-jump absorptions to give her more context.

Liou Wenxin had actually discovered that Su Ze absorbed the Rock Scorpion Extract ahead of schedule back during his Pupa Stage, so she wasn’t too surprised to hear him admit it now.

However, when it came to his desire to absorb a tier-four extract, she immediately rejected the notion.

It wasn’t that she rejected the idea itself; rather, she believed that even after Su Ze fully digested the Sand Blind Snake Extract in his body, his physical constitution wouldn’t be strong enough to absorb a tier-four extract.

”Your physical constitution is very strong right now. Once you finish digesting the extract in your body, it’s unlikely any other Cocoon Stage evolver will have a stronger physique than you. This is especially true thanks to your ’Knowledge Is Power’ ability, which gives you a huge constitutional boost, making your physique almost comparable to the weakest of those in the Butterfly Stage.

”But you have to understand, not everyone in the Butterfly Stage can successfully absorb a tier-four extract. Many of them fail when absorbing their very first vial. Even Mrs. Yun only managed to absorb a C-grade tier-four extract for her first time. One reason was that high-grade tier-four extracts are extremely rare, and the other was her lack of confidence in succeeding.

”So, if you rashly try to absorb a tier-four extract—even the lowest-grade tier-four, a D-grade—you are almost guaranteed to fail!”

There were no E-grade tier-four extracts; the lowest was D-grade.

Liou Wenxin spoke with such certainty, which made Su Ze trust her judgment even more.

’Even after I finish digesting the Sand Blind Snake Extract, my physique will only be comparable to a weakling in the Butterfly Stage. It seems I really can’t be reckless and jump straight to absorbing a tier-four extract...’ Su Ze knew that many powerful individuals in the Butterfly Stage had to spend years building their foundation after their third evolution before they dared to absorb their first tier-four extract.

Although Mrs. Yun’s talent wasn’t top-tier, she was definitely outstanding among her peers in the Dongli Kingdom. Even she had to spend years using enhancers to strengthen her body after her third evolution before she dared to absorb a C-grade tier-four extract. This just showed how difficult it was.

”Isn’t there any other way?” Su Ze asked Liou Wenxin, unwilling to give up.

Liou Wenxin shook her head and advised, ”Honestly, your strength already far exceeds others at your level. There’s no need to take such a risk. It’s much safer to absorb another S-grade tier-three extract. It won’t threaten your dominant position among your peers. After all, others don’t even get the chance to absorb a fourth extract, yet here you are, thinking an S-grade tier-three is too low and wanting to absorb a tier-four...”

Su Ze was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, ”If I absorb an S-grade tier-three for my fourth Cocoon Stage extract, then after I complete my third evolution and become a Butterfly Stage expert, can I directly absorb an S-grade tier-four extract?”

Liou Wenxin thought for a moment before replying, ”Very few people can absorb an S-grade tier-four extract as their first one right after entering the Butterfly Stage. But for you, there’s a good chance.”

”Just a good chance, not a certainty,” Su Ze paused. ”Then for my fourth Butterfly Stage extract, would I have any hope of jumping a level to absorb a tier-five extract?”

Relying on her logic as an evolutionist, Liou Wenxin shook her head.

The Peak of Butterfly Transformation Stage was still just the Butterfly Stage. One wouldn’t even be a Saint yet. How could it be possible to absorb a tier-five extract!

Tier-five extracts were something only Saint-level hegemons could absorb.

Su Ze pressed on, ”If I can successfully jump a level and absorb a tier-four extract for my next one, will my chances of absorbing an S-grade tier-four as my first extract in the Butterfly Stage be much higher?”

Liou Wenxin nodded.

”If I absorb a tier-four extract during my Cocoon Stage, and then start absorbing S-grade tier-four extracts from my very first one in the Butterfly Stage, will the success rate for absorbing a tier-five extract for my final vial in the Butterfly Stage be greater? Could it go from ’zero chance’ to ’a tiny sliver of a chance’?”

This time, Liou Wenxin was silent for a long while before answering, ”I don’t know.”

”Sister, a moment ago you shook your head so firmly, certain that someone in the Butterfly Stage couldn’t possibly absorb a tier-five extract. But now you’re saying ’I don’t know.’ That in itself is the answer.”

Su Ze smiled. ”So... this is how an advantage is built, little by little, one step at a time. If I hadn’t jumped a level to absorb the Rock Scorpion Extract back in the mortal stage, I might not have had the foundation to jump again and absorb the S-grade tier-three Black-bellied Flood Dragon Extract during my Pupa Stage. And if that were the case, now in the Cocoon Stage, I probably wouldn’t even dare to think about absorbing a tier-four extract.

”If there really is a way for me to jump a level and absorb a tier-four extract, please tell me. No matter how hard it is, I have to at least try before I can give up.”

Liou Wenxin couldn’t help but re-evaluate this ”little brother” of hers. She knew Su Ze was a genius, a prodigy, but all she had ever seen was his talent and luck. This time, she finally saw something different in him.

—The heart of a true expert!

’Since I have a cheat, of course I have to exploit it to its absolute fullest!’ Su Ze himself wasn’t thinking that deeply. His thoughts were much simpler.

’If you have a cheat in life and don’t make the most of it, doesn’t that make you a waste?’

If he had no enemies and lived in a peaceful and prosperous era, then it would be fine. Slacking off a bit would be understandable.

But right now, he was surrounded by enemies—powerful ones he couldn’t afford to provoke and couldn’t hope to defeat. If he didn’t push himself harder, wasn’t that just waiting for death?

Liou Wenxin pondered for a long moment, then her face broke into a smile. ”Since my little brother is so ambitious, as his big sister, I’ll definitely help you. It’s not entirely impossible for you to absorb a tier-four extract...”

”What’s the method?”