The rankings are always fluctuating, brothers, it’s time for you to burst forth and surge straight to the top!! …… is the wealth of a race!
In prehistoric times, 199.6 million years ago, there was the Jurassic period—an age dominated by dinosaurs, which reigned supreme on the earth, known as the Dinosaur Civilization! Long before the Jurassic era, there were countless other civilizations, so ancient that even human technological civilization cannot probe their exact circumstances.
The Earth has existed for 4.6 billion years, witnessing countless civilizations rise and fall on this land. One after another, they have vanished into the river of time, leaving no ripple in the vast currents of history.
As far as Ye Chen knew, the Rune Civilization was an extremely distant predecessor to the Jurassic period! Among the treasures left behind by the Rune Civilization, one could find the power of runes, ancient cultivation techniques, and formidable cold weapons!
Ye Chen’s Phantom Ten Slashes was a technique acquired from a medium-level prehistoric civilization ruin, classified as a high-tier technique of the "General" rank! According to the ranking system established in the Rune Civilization, techniques were divided into: Soldier Rank!
General Rank! Marshal Rank!
Emperor Rank! Each rank was further subdivided into High, Medium, and Low tiers.
It is rumored— The progenitor of the Daoist priests obtained a ruin from the Rune Civilization, ultimately establishing the Daoist sect. Many of the runes Daoists use when exorcising ghosts were passed down from that founding ancestor.
Though they appear like tadpole script, they actually carry profound meaning capable of suppressing malevolent spirits. Of course, the truly miraculous runes that could subdue gods and ghosts have long vanished into antiquity; most modern Daoists are merely putting on airs.
Perhaps…… Many eons from now, humanity might also perish. In that future, artifacts like computers and cannons—the crystallization of human intellect—would become the legacy wealth of our civilization.
Martial arts forms like Tai Chi and traditional martial arts would similarly be regarded as cultivation methods, studied and utilized by the next emerging civilization. Although the Huayang Temple in Maoshan is now a famous tourist attraction, bustling with visitors who haven't discovered any ruins, Ye Chen knew that the prehistoric civilization relic hidden within was concealed in an alternate dimension, accessible only through specialized methods to enter and seek treasure.
The Rune Civilization! This was an epoch far more advanced than human civilization!
Consequently, human technological capabilities naturally could not detect it, given that the Rune Civilization's advancement had reached the level of “energy-matter conversion.” Currently— Humanity can only theoretically achieve matter-energy conversion, but after numerous repeated experiments, success remains elusive. So-called energy-matter conversion means transforming matter into energy.
For instance, turning an entire building into a few simple energy data streams that could be carried on one's person—how miraculous is that? In reality, this conversion is already possible within a computer.
For example, inputting simple lines of code can generate intricate images; these images and web pages are constructed from the data seen upon startup—this is a form of "data physicalization" technology! To take another example.
Humans consume food, which converts into energy to power movement. This is also a form of "energy-matter conversion." Currently, humanity only sees theoretical hope for success; practical research remains in its nascent stages, and how much longer until success is unknown…… Yet, civilizations achieved this level hundreds of millions of years ago.
One can imagine how advanced the relics they left behind must be! —At least extremely advanced compared to humanity's current civilization!
Therefore, Ye Chen absolutely had to obtain it; this held monumental importance for his future development. “I must obtain it…” Ye Chen lay down and drifted into an exhausted sleep as the last rays of the sun faded.
…… The next day, Ye Chen awoke early. Just as the sky began to pale, Ye Chen quietly made his way to the underground garage, roused the sleeping Xiao Hei, and mounting its tiger back, departed the research institute, heading toward the wilderness.
“Why drag me up so early?” Xiao Hei grumbled discontentedly, “Where are your buddies? I don’t see a single one.” “To the suburbs!” Ye Chen commanded.
“What for?” “I need to capture a Butterfly Monster!” Ye Chen had already planned that before embarking for Huayang in Maoshan, he would first awaken his sister, Ye Zhu, as a Super Soldier. With her current strength as an eighth-level New Human, coupled with the rigorous training derived from dissecting zombies daily over the past month and a half, her willpower had become incredibly strong.
There was an eighty percent chance she could integrate monster genes and become a Super Soldier! That would add another layer of security for her, granting Ye Chen greater peace of mind.
Ye Chen already had a plan regarding which monster genes Ye Zhu should integrate. To avoid unnecessary risk, he bypassed the notoriously violent monsters, choosing instead a creature that was relatively docile yet possessed formidable abilities: the Butterfly!
Butterfly! Innate Abilities: Flight, Camouflage, Tracking!
When encountering enemies, the Butterfly will release a noxious gas, emitting an intense stench to force opponents to retreat—a form of self-defense. Furthermore, evolved Butterfly Monsters can freely alter the color of their wings, making them extremely adept at disguise.
While not reaching the seamless color-changing degree of a chameleon, it is enough to deceive ordinary monsters. The final ability, Tracking!
Butterflies can leave behind ‘butterfly powder’ on an enemy, allowing them to locate the target regardless of the distance separating them. These three innate abilities each cover a distinct domain, yet they were still not the primary reason Ye Chen chose it.
The reason Ye Chen selected the Butterfly— was because once a Butterfly Super Soldier reaches the peak of the fifth tier and breaks through, it evolves into another exceedingly powerful creature known as the Phoenix Bird! The combat prowess of the Phoenix Bird is terrifying, capable of contending even with legendary super-monsters like the Vermilion Bird or Fire Phoenix!
Roar! A zombie hound, entirely crimson and devoid of any hair, bolted out of a small alleyway, fearlessly lunging at Ye Chen, driven mad by ravenous hunger and controlled solely by its appetite.
“Foolish!” Ye Chen scoffed, seated atop the Bloodtooth Tiger. The tiger leaped, easily evading the zombie hound’s attack.
Its sharp claws ripped down fiercely, tearing a large gash across the hound’s chest, spilling its internal organs. The Bloodtooth Tiger snarled, then lashed its tail, striking the zombie hound squarely on the head.
The immense force left the creature dazed and reeling. Splat!
The Bloodtooth Tiger swiftly tore off its head. Ye Chen sprang lightly to the ground, his fire axe dancing a few times, slicing open the zombie hound’s belly.
He glanced inside, found no nascent crystallization, stamped his foot once, and leaped back onto the Bloodtooth Tiger’s back, continuing forward. Along the way, they encountered numerous zombies, all of which the Bloodtooth Tiger dispatched!
Only zombies would blindly rush forward upon catching the scent of blood; normal evolved monsters, unless extremely starved, would typically flee far away at the sight of the Bloodtooth Tiger. Not long after, under the Bloodtooth Tiger's swift pace, Ye Chen arrived in the suburban area.
He immediately saw zombie corpses scattered everywhere, along with the remains of mutated ants, mosquitoes, cockroaches, and Shadow Hounds—evidence of having been overwhelmed by massive zombie hordes. Ye Chen pulled a small bag of candies from his pocket, ignited the plastic bag with a lighter, causing the candies inside to melt rapidly.
He placed the melted candy on a large rock, then concealed himself and the Bloodtooth Tiger within a nearby high-rise building to wait. Waiting patiently.
Ten minutes passed! Whoosh!
A fierce gale erupted, casting a massive shadow over the ground. An extremely colossal shape descended from the sky, its wings enormous, like a pair of sails, iridescent and intricately patterned.
At first glance, the wings seemed embroidered with a giant eye, appearing terrifying, but closer inspection revealed it was merely a natural marking. This pair of beautiful, expansive wings was attached to a butterfly monster the size of a small dog.
The creature landed on the rock, cautiously scanning its surroundings. Seeing no danger, it lowered its head, gazing greedily at the candy.
After extinguishing the flame, it settled down to lick it up. The perfect chance!
Ye Chen narrowed his eyes and gave a subtle hand signal. Whoosh!
The Bloodtooth Tiger shot out like an arrow loosed from a bowstring. Even from a thousand meters away, the travel time was less than the blink of an eye before it arrived before the Butterfly Monster.
Originally— Given this Butterfly Monster’s neural reaction speed, it should have been able to react to an attack and take flight to escape. However, the Bloodtooth Tiger possessed the strength equivalent to 500 men, and its instantaneous burst speed was a fraction faster than the butterfly’s neural response.
Thus, the Butterfly Monster shrieked, its wings just beginning to flutter— Splat! The tiger’s claw slammed down from above!
Both pairs of its beautiful, brilliant wings were instantly pierced and snapped onto the ground. As its soft body scraped against the claw, a bloody gash opened.
A level 1H2 Butterfly Monster typically only possessed the strength of 50 men, and its wings were as hard as steel. Ye Chen flashed out of the high-rise; the thousand-meter distance took only three seconds to cover.
He glanced at the heavily injured Butterfly Monster reeling from the Bloodtooth Tiger’s strike, then seized one of its wings, vaulted back onto the tiger’s back. “Where to now?” “Back!” The Bloodtooth Tiger shook its massive head and turned toward the street they had come from.
Just then— Click-click-click... Numerous fine scraping sounds arose, rapidly approaching from a distance, as if countless monsters were crawling toward them, a sound that made one’s scalp tingle.
Ye Chen turned to look and gasped. …… I organized the outline today, which is why the update is late.