"Phew!! We're safe for now!"
Lin Yue looked down, only to see a dozen Mutated Dogs miss their leap and crash heavily into Xuanwu's shell, producing dull thuds. They could only jump and howl uselessly below, unable to even reach the edge of the shell.
"Hoo... hoo..."
Lin Yue leaned on his knees, panting heavily, yet a savage, delighted smile stretched across his face.
"Very good... now we have reversed roles!"
His gaze swept around, spotting a length of Steel Pipe, as thick as a child's arm, sticking out of the concrete debris nearby. It was about 1.5 meters long, and its broken tip formed a sharp bevel.
He cautiously leaned down, and with a pull of his right hand, the 1.5-meter Steel Pipe was firmly grasped in his hand.
"You enjoyed chasing me just now, didn't you?"
Lin Yue weighed the heavy Steel Pipe in his hand, a chilling curve spreading across his lips.
"Now..."
"It's my turn!"
As his voice fell, he slammed the 1.5-meter Steel Pipe fiercely down toward the Mutated Dogs below!
"Pfft!"
The extremely sharp break in the Steel Pipe pierced the Mutated Dog's skull without resistance, pinning it dead to the ground.
The Mutated Dog lost its breath before it could even struggle.
Blood and brains splattered everywhere, making the scene extremely gory.
This bloody sight caused a momentary commotion among the surrounding pack of Mutated Dogs.
But Lin Yue didn't give them any time to react.
He pulled out the Steel Pipe, bringing a spray of blood with it, raised it high again, and locked onto the next target.
"Bang!"
With another dull thud, the second Mutated Dog fell to the ground.
Protected by Xuanwu, Lin Yue had no worries about his own safety; he only needed to focus on killing the Mutated Dogs below.
Raising the Steel Pipe and smashing it down onto the Mutated Dogs was highly efficient.
Every swing took the life of a Mutated Dog.
Just as Lin Yue himself had said, the roles had been reversed!
Initially, the pack of Mutated Dogs still attacked wildly, driven by their bloodthirsty instincts.
But as the corpses of their companions piled up beneath them, and as that human harvested their comrades again and again, these Mutated Dogs, who originally knew nothing of fear, finally felt terrified!
At the rear of the pack, the largest Mutated Dog, the leader, let out a low, restless growl.
In its pale green eyes, an emotion called "dread" appeared for the first time.
It couldn't understand why its subordinates couldn't harm that gigantic turtle, or why this seemingly weak prey became so terrifying after standing on the giant turtle's back.
Lin Yue's movements did not pause; the Steel Pipe, whistling through the air, slammed down again, snapping the spine of a Mutated Dog attempting to flee.
"Awooo—!!!"
Finally, the leader let out a long, unwilling howl.
That was the signal to retreat.
The remaining dozen or so Mutated Dogs acted as if they had received a great pardon, immediately ceased their attack, tucked their tails, and fled desperately toward the depths of the street without looking back, vanishing into the shadows of the ruins in the blink of an eye.
The entire world instantly fell silent.
Only Lin Yue's heavy breathing remained, along with the "drip, drop" sound of blood falling from the Steel Pipe.
He looked at the corpses covering the ground and the foul-stained Steel Pipe in his hand. He was drenched in sweat, looking as if he had been pulled out of water.
Although Lin Yue felt completely drained of strength and was covered in injuries, he was extremely happy because he had survived.
Lin Yue propped the heavy Steel Pipe on the turtle's back, using it to support his exhausted body as he jumped down from Xuanwu's back.
Only when his feet touched the solid ground did he feel the reality of surviving the ordeal.
His arms were sore, numb, and trembling, and every breath pulled at his burning muscles.
He looked down at his feet. The area around the edge of Xuanwu's shell was covered in a ring of Mutated Dog corpses, roughly counting more than twenty.
"Well done, big guy."
Lin Yue gasped for breath, reaching out to pat the cold shell beneath him.
Xuanwu let out a low rumble from its throat, as if responding.
It slowly turned its massive head and rubbed Lin Yue's pant leg with its ancient eyes, showing a hint of affection.
"Time to take stock of the haul."
He muttered to himself, walking toward the first Mutated Dog corpse.
This was the one he had personally killed with the Police Baton.
He placed his hand on the monster's cold corpse and silently thought:
"Absorb."
[Deceased life form detected (level 1 Mutated Dog). No energy crystal detected. Absorbing scattered energy. Gained 1 energy point.]
"As expected, not every one has it."
If every level 1 Mutated Beast could produce a crystal worth 10 energy points, it would be too easy.
He walked toward the next one, the one Xuanwu had bitten to death.
[Deceased life form detected (level 1 Mutated Dog). level 1 energy crystal detected. Absorb?]
"Yes!"
[Absorbed level 1 energy crystal. Gained 10 energy points.]
Lin Yue was invigorated. The second Mutated Dog already had an energy crystal. Since he had killed over twenty Mutated Dogs in total, at this rate, Xuanwu would soon be able to advance!
However, ideals are beautiful, but reality is often cruel.
"Absorb!"
[... Absorbing scattered energy. Gained 1 energy point.]
"Absorb!"
[... Absorbing scattered energy. Gained 1 energy point.]
Seven or eight corpses in a row only provided negligible scattered energy.
Lin Yue frowned slightly. The drop rate for energy crystals was lower than he had expected.
Just when he was starting to worry about the lack of energy crystals.
"Absorb!"
[Deceased life form detected (level 1 Mutated Dog). level 1 energy crystal detected. Absorb?]
Another one!
Joy surged in Lin Yue's heart, and he moved on to the next one.
[Deceased life form detected (level 1 Mutated Dog). level 1 energy crystal detected. Absorb?]
[Deceased life form detected (level 1 Mutated Dog). level 1 energy crystal detected. Absorb?]
Three in a row!
"Not bad luck."
Lin Yue's breathing became slightly ragged.
In the end, the twenty-odd corpses contributed a total of 4 complete level 1 energy crystals, along with over a dozen points of scattered energy.
He immediately brought up the System Panel.
[Host: Lin Yue]
[Pet: Xuanwu (Level 1)]
[Species: Black Iron Profound Armored Turtle]
... [Required to advance to Level 2: 92 / 100 energy points.]
"Ninety-two points! Only eight points short!"
Lin Yue felt a little regretful.
However, this also meant that as long as he killed one more level 1 Mutated Beast that dropped an energy crystal, or gathered enough scattered energy from a few ordinary monsters, Xuanwu could immediately advance to Level 2!
At that time, Xuanwu's size, strength, and defence would all be significantly greater than they were at Level 1.
His capital for survival in this Apocalypse would also greatly increase!
... Meanwhile, on the roof of a six-story residential building.
A man with a hideous Scarface slowly lowered the military binoculars in his hand. His gaze was cold as ice.
"Boss, how is it? Is that kid done messing around?"
Behind him, a man like a Skinny Monkey approached, obsequiously offering a cigarette.
Scarface didn't take it. He merely rubbed the gleaming Machete tucked into his waist with his calloused hand, speaking in a hoarse voice:
"Done."
"That kid... is a tough character. One person, one turtle, slaughtered over half the pack of Mutated Dogs."
Skinny Monkey's tone carried a hint of lingering fear.
"That turtle..."
Uncontrollable greed burst forth in Scarface's eyes. He licked his chapped lips and said slowly, word by word:
"It's a treasure."
He had seen many Mutated Beasts; ferocious ones, strange ones, powerful ones, countless types.
But he had never seen anything like Xuanwu.
Indestructible defense, decent offense, and it could even be tamed by a human.
In this Apocalypse, a pet like that meant a trump card allowing one to walk unchallenged!
"Boss, that kid isn't easy to provoke. Should we..."
Skinny Monkey hesitated slightly.
"Hmph."
Scarface snorted coldly, interrupting him, his eyes filled with disdain.
"No matter how tough he is, he's still just one person. Two fists can't compete with four hands. He'll understand that soon enough."
He turned around, no longer looking in Lin Yue's direction, as if the prey was already in the bag.
He lowered his voice and gave an unquestionable order to his companions:
"That turtle is a treasure. Find a way to get it."