The White Dragon and the others watched Ye Chen’s earlier battle with deep thought. They privately questioned if they could have handled the Azure Python, even though its strength was equivalent to ten of them combined—they simply didn't possess weapons capable of piercing its thick hide.

“Are you not taking the Azure Python’s corpse?” White Dragon asked in surprise as Ye Chen simply walked away.

Ye Chen shook his head. “The corpse is useless.”

Indeed, it was useless. The python’s head was smashed, and its most formidable fangs were pulled out. Even if the Black Snail Worm were inserted to control it again, it wouldn't be very effective. Furthermore, this python was an evolved animal, lacking the foundational mutation essence in its body. Therefore, its blood, possessing the strength of a hundred men, was useless to Ye Chen for enhancement; at best, it could fill a stomach. Even if White Dragon and the others, with their seventy-man strength, consumed it, their power wouldn't increase. After all, even though the python had the strength of a hundred men, its total power wasn't even double that of White Dragon’s group. It was like a person eating an ox—it only fills the stomach, adding no strength whatsoever. Only if the python’s strength were ten or twenty times greater than theirs would there be an effect on their foundational essence.

For zombies with the strength of a hundred men, the mutation essence within their blood ranked roughly fifty times higher than that of a hundred-man strength human—a factor of fifty!

Thus—

The effect was so pronounced. This higher grade existed because zombies were products of failed evolution. The mutation essence born within them was the total energy from the evolutionary process, which, due to the failed accident, condensed into that primal substance.

...

The group began walking toward the summit.

This peak was a relatively famous place, once a tourist spot bustling with visitors, though now sparse of large fauna, only plagued by insects that posed no real threat to Ye Chen and his group, all of whom were swiftly dispatched.

The lush green shade of the trees lining the path drew back like a curtain as they advanced, revealing a wide white stone plaza. The square was spacious, featuring leisure areas, and was currently swarming with numerous zombies. Bloodstains marred the ground everywhere, creating a chilling sight.

Ye Chen led the way across the plaza. Instantly, the zombies, previously wandering aimlessly, turned their attention towards them. Their eyes lit up with greed, ferocity, bloodlust, and excitement, and they howled as they charged forward.

Ye Chen did not move. White Dragon and Yue Heng, among others, rushed forward. Such low-level zombies were perfect practice, and they were certainly not going to waste such an opportunity.

“Little friends, come give Grandpa White a taste of death!” White Dragon roared with laughter, his figure darting forward, fire axe in hand. In his days as an ordinary man, he lived in constant fear and had even been hunted by these zombies. If not for meeting Ye Chen, he would have died that day. Now, slaughtering these zombies filled him with immense excitement.

Yue Heng pursed his lips, offered no words, and charged straight into the fray. While killing the zombies, he couldn't help but recall Ye Chen’s usual combat style. He began imitating the movements of the fire axe, executing a technique Ye Chen rarely used: the "Milky Way Hanging Moon." He instantly cleaved three zombies down, his eyes flashing with a mix of shock and exhilaration.

This technique was classified as a Single Blade Group Skill!

In terms of rank, it was comparable to the "Twin Blade Slaughter." If Ye Chen were to execute it, one strike could instantly blow the heads off any zombie within a three-zhang radius, splattering blood everywhere.

Yue Heng had only witnessed it a few times, memorizing the general attack angles and footwork. When he attempted it, it felt awkward, but he still managed to blow off one zombie's head, sever the neck of a second, and cleave the chest of the third.

Elsewhere, Zhuge Fan dashed and weaved through the horde, hacking left and right. Though he didn't imitate Ye Chen’s moves, during the fight, he occasionally threw out flashy, powerful skills lifted from movies, executing them in a rather comical manner.

Before long, many zombies lay fallen on the ground.

Ye Chen glanced toward the distant hillside and led the way forward. White Dragon and the others followed closely until they reached the base of a white stone bridge pier. Beneath the bridge flowed a gentle stream where green lotuses bloomed—a beautiful scene that had been further beautified by reconstruction efforts up to 2013.

In front of the stone bridge stood a tall mountain facade, upon which were carved the three large characters: "Huayang." The entrance was pitch black inside, with no discernible depth, resembling the gaping maw of a colossal beast.

“There shouldn’t be any monsters in there, right?” Zhuge Fan asked cautiously from the center of the group, peering suspiciously into the darkness.

Yue Heng tapped his head. “Stop tempting fate. This is a famous scenic spot; how could there be monsters…”

Roar!

A deafening roar interrupted him. A Bloodblade Hound burst from the mountain. It was the size of an elephant, its claws sharp and menacing, glaring at Ye Chen and the others with eyes filled with hunger, greed, and savage rage.

Everyone froze momentarily.

“You actually jinxed it,” White Dragon muttered, astonished.

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes, his body moving in a flash toward the Bloodblade Hound. Like an eel, he instantly closed the distance, pressing against its chest. He shoved, nullifying the hound’s momentum, and immediately transformed the palm strike into a punch—like a descending Arhat—hammering twice. The immense force sent the Bloodblade Hound staggering backward. Enraged, it lowered its head to bite.

Ye Chen’s foot slipped, his arm hooked around the creature’s leg, and his figure ghosted behind it. He whipped around and delivered a sweeping sidekick, sharp as a massive cleaver, aimed at the Bloodblade Hound’s rear leg.

Bang!

The elephant-sized Bloodblade Hound lost its balance and crashed down. Ye Chen leaped onto its body, grabbed a handful of hair on its head, and slammed it violently onto the stone bridge. The hound had no time to struggle before it was smashed against the structure, instantly becoming dizzy and disoriented.

Ye Chen slammed it down over a dozen times, creating a small indentation in the stone bridge. Only then did the hound’s skull shatter, blood leaking from its seven orifices, signifying its death.

This Bloodblade Hound possessed a strength comparable to the Demonic Wind Hound—about eighty men’s worth.

“Let’s go!” Ye Chen walked to the entrance, tossed a stone inside, and receiving no reaction, led the way in. The interior was pitch black, punctuated only by the sound of flowing water.

The group proceeded cautiously. After walking a short distance, they discovered a beautiful sight: a cascading waterfall feeding into a pool surrounded by blooming lotus blossoms. Ye Chen surveyed the area, frowning slightly, just as he was about to move on. Suddenly, his foot kicked something, emitting a dull thud. He looked down, pulled out a lighter, and flicked it open.

Hiss!

White Dragon and the others gasped.

On the ground, stained with thick blood, lay several mangled corpses. They were hardly recognizable as bodies anymore—just smears of gore and bloody bones, with even a clump of hair where a head had been ripped off.

What Ye Chen had kicked was a skull.

It belonged to a young man, his eyes wide open, the whites visible, his face displaying less terror than a look of profound disbelief mixed with anger.

Ye Chen glanced at the scene, and an image instantly formed in his mind: several young men and women hiding in the mountains during the outbreak, surviving cautiously. After ten days, isolated from the outside world and lacking food, one of them turned his target onto his companions. Driven by extreme hunger, this person designed a way to kill his comrades and consume their flesh. Finally, the rich scent of blood attracted the Bloodblade Hound, which tore him apart until nothing remained but bones.

In his previous life, Ye Chen had witnessed such horrors countless times. Those victims always died with disbelief and rage etched on their faces, not sheer terror. A person’s final expression reveals much.

“If I recall correctly, the entrance to that ruin should be near this lotus platform,” Ye Chen observed the surroundings, finally settling his gaze on the platform. After a moment’s thought, he retrieved the Azure Python fang from his backpack, then whistled outside. A moment later, a Three-Tailed Silver Hound trotted in and stood respectfully before Ye Chen.

“The Boss sent me to await your orders. Great Master, just say the word,” the Three-Tailed Silver Hound wagged its tail, looking up at Ye Chen with fawning eagerness.

Ye Chen considered for a moment. “Tell Little Black to find six materials: the Demonic Ape’s Eye, the Fish Monster’s Scale, the Fire Hound’s Fang, the Gray Bear’s Claw, the Swift Wind Wolf’s Lightning Leopard’s Horn!”

The Three-Tailed Silver Hound paused, looking strangely at Ye Chen, yet daring not to question further. It quickly nodded and bowed respectfully. “This one takes his leave.” With that, it departed the mountain.

White Dragon was curious. “What do you need all those strange things for?”

Ye Chen replied calmly. “This mountain hides a prehistoric civilization. These materials are needed to open it.”

Yue Heng exclaimed in surprise. “Prehistoric civilization? The Atlantean civilization?”

“No,” Ye Chen murmured. “This is a much older civilization, called the Rune Civilization. It is hidden in a different dimension; even technological power cannot penetrate it. One must find the key to enter.”

The ruins of the Rune Civilization were ingeniously constructed. Each ruin required various specific materials arranged in distinct formations to be activated, much like needing an account login to access a game. This particular ruin required seven materials of different attributes, combined with powerful blood, to map out the Eight Trigrams orientation. Based on the Sixty-Four Formations, when the Yang energy of heaven and earth reached its peak, the array would activate and unlock the ruin.

This concept completely surpassed the framework of modern human understanding. To Ye Chen and the others, this method of activation seemed bizarre and incomprehensible.

However, it was perfectly normal. If humanity went extinct, and the next dominant civilization happened to be beasts, those beasts, even if they found computers, firearms, and cannons, would never conceive of how to use such items—and even if they learned, they would still find the concept utterly strange and unbelievable.

Not long after, the Three-Tailed Silver Hound returned, carrying several materials on its back, all six Ye Chen required, though the Gray Bear’s Claw was missing.

“Little Boss is currently searching for the remaining Gray Bear’s Claw,” the hound reported respectfully.

Ye Chen nodded. On their journey in, he had killed the monsters carrying those materials and handed the corpses over to the Black Snail Worm. Now, he only needed to claim the parts. Originally, there were eight required items in total, and the remaining one was the Azure Python fang!

...

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