Chapter 355 Experimental Subject
The overseer pointed ahead, and a swirling vortex appeared before Alex.
"You have passed the first trial. Continue onward," she said, nodding at Alex before vanishing.
Alex took a deep breath and stepped into the vortex.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself surrounded by flames. The intense heat quickly drenched him in sweat.
Standing amidst the fire, Alex\'s face turned as pale as a sheet, his forehead covered in sweat. The temperature was unbearably high, and if not for his superhuman armor, he would have already been reduced to ashes.
Suddenly, the ground trembled, and a massive fireball hurtled toward him!
Gritting his teeth, Alex thrust his dagger into the fireball, but it had no effect.
The fireball exploded, sending searing embers flying in all directions, engulfing him completely.
The excruciating pain spread through his entire body, causing even someone as resilient as Alex to groan in agony.
The heat was too intense; he needed to escape quickly or he would perish here.
His consciousness began to fade, and his superhuman powers waned.
Suddenly, a cold sensation washed over him, and he summoned the last of his strength to stay awake.
But when he looked down at his legs, his face froze in horror.
His legs had somehow turned into ice, and the freezing cold was spreading through his bloodstream, consuming his entire body.
"Damn it…" Alex struggled desperately, but he couldn\'t stop himself from turning into an ice sculpture.
At that moment, thunder rumbled in the sky, signaling a foreboding omen. Find adventures on empire
"Crack!" Another bolt of lightning sliced through the night sky, followed by a massive meteor descending from above.
Seeing this, Alex\'s face was filled with terror. What kind of trickery were these people using to simulate such powerful weather?
There was no time to think. Enormous bolts of lightning crashed down from the sky, forcing Alex to evade.
He darted through the air, but each time he stabilized himself, another, more powerful bolt would strike down.
"Boom!" A thunderous explosion shook the entire mountain.
"Cough, cough…" Thick smoke spread, and Alex lay in a crater, blood trickling from his mouth.
His vision was blurry, but he could still make out his surroundings.
Where was he?
Struggling to sit up, Alex noticed a glimmer of light in the distance. That light seemed like a beacon of hope, reigniting his will to fight.
Alex staggered to his feet and painfully moved towards the light.
As he approached, he saw what the light was.
A blooming lotus flower floated in mid-air, radiating a soft glow that brightened the darkened sky.
Alex paused for a moment before slowly approaching the lotus.
"Plop…"
He reached out to touch the lotus, which instantly emitted a dazzling golden light. A soft sensation spread from the back of his hand.
Alex\'s expression froze. He felt a strange power flowing from his hand into his body.
It felt soothing, like soaking in a hot spring, warm and comforting.
Soon, he realized that his superhuman abilities were increasing!
Alex was overjoyed, never expecting the lotus flower to have such effects.
He stared at the lotus flower, ecstatic, wanting to embrace it. He tried to absorb its power, but found it impossible!
The power seemed inherent to the flower itself, beyond his control.
This realization left Alex a bit disappointed. He had hoped to gain more superhuman power this time, but it seemed he would leave empty-handed.
Just as Alex was about to give up, the lotus flower suddenly moved.
Alex\'s eyes widened as he saw the lotus flower fly into his hand, gently attaching itself to his palm.
A tingling sensation quickly spread, followed by the flower melting into a clear stream that flowed into his body.
Alex frowned slightly as the stream restored his depleted abilities almost instantly.
His mind became incredibly sharp, and his vision expanded significantly.
What was happening?! Alex was baffled, staring at his right hand.
His right hand was covered in frost, yet it didn\'t freeze. Instead, the cool sensation grew more pronounced.
Looking at his gradually darkening right hand, Alex felt a mix of curiosity and confusion, but didn\'t dwell on it.
As he considered breaking the lotus flower, a deep growl reached his ears: "Grrr."
Alex turned and saw a massive creature crouched about five meters away.
It was a beast resembling a tiger but towering as high as a three-story building. Its fur was a brownish color, covered in dense scales. Sharp fangs protruded from its mouth, and its blood-red eyes radiated a murderous intent.
"What is this?" Alex muttered, staring in astonishment at the massive creature.
Just then, Alex noticed a swarm of small, dark figures running towards them from the distance.
"Roar, roar—"
The small creatures were incredibly fierce. They ignored Alex and pounced directly on the massive beast, tearing into its flesh.
"Splat, splat..."
Bright red blood splattered, staining the ground, and Alex\'s pupils contracted sharply.
Those small creatures were ghouls!
They not only bit into the massive beast but also greedily extended their claws into its wounds to suck the blood. Soon, they became more and more excited.
Alex was stunned by the ghouls. Their ferocity was overwhelming; even a sixth-tier superhuman would retreat from them. Yet these creatures fed on carrion and even drank the blood of other beings!
Alex took a deep breath. Although his unique constitution allowed him to gain energy by consuming crystal nuclei or exotic plants, this wasn\'t a sustainable solution. If he kept absorbing crystal nuclei, he would eventually burst. The ghouls, however, were the opposite; their stomachs seemed like bottomless pits!
It looked like he would need to hunt ghouls for energy in the future.
"Hmph…" A ghoul looked up and belched, then turned its large head, its blood-red eyes fixing on Alex with a threatening growl.
"Hiss…"
The ghouls bared their sharp teeth and growled challengingly, as if declaring their victory.
"Ha, you\'ve got guts," Alex sneered, a cold smile curling his lips. "In that case, I\'ll oblige you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, dazzling silver-white light flashed under Alex\'s feet.
"Swish!"
In an instant, Alex teleported to the front of a ghoul and grabbed its neck.
The ghoul struggled angrily, but it was futile. Alex\'s strength was overwhelming, far beyond the ghoul\'s ability to resist.
"Crack."
A crisp sound came from the ghoul\'s neck as Alex squeezed hard, snapping its neck cleanly.
The massive body collapsed with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Alex stood atop the ghoul\'s body, his lips pressed tightly together, his dark eyes reflecting a cold, murderous intent.
With a wave of his hand, the ghoul\'s corpse vanished, as if it had evaporated into thin air, leaving no trace behind.
After doing all this, Alex breathed a sigh of relief. He looked around and realized that apart from himself, there was no one else. The area where he had been standing was now occupied by those beasts. There were at least twenty or thirty of them, all glaring at Alex, ready to attack at any moment.
"Hiss—"
The beasts finally couldn\'t hold back and charged at Alex simultaneously.
Alex sneered, and flames erupted from his hands, enveloping the beasts in an instant.
The searing fire burned their bones and flesh, causing them to scream in agony.
In less than two seconds, the beasts fell to the ground, lifeless.
Alex stepped forward and scavenged the materials from the beasts, then slowly walked to the lake.
The lake water was still clear, but it emitted a faint stench.
Alex frowned. He crouched down and dipped his hand into the lake water, immediately hit by a pungent smell that almost made him retch.
The lake water was poisonous!
Alex narrowed his eyes. He remembered clearly that when he first entered this city, the zombies didn\'t have any toxins. But now, the water was highly toxic and difficult to purify. He needed to completely clean the toxins before he could safely use the water.
Taking a deep breath, Alex closed his eyes, held his breath, and began channeling his mental power into the lake water.
His mental power was different from ordinary people\'s, and after studying the energy within Koko earlier, he now had the ability to purify water.
Under the influence of his mental power, the water began to clear up slowly.
"Roar, roar, roar!"
Suddenly, Alex sensed a dangerous presence approaching him. He quickly opened his eyes to see a giant crocodile covered in golden scales, with a gaping maw, lunging at him.
Alex furrowed his brow and focused his mental power, concentrating it in his palm before hurling it forcefully at the crocodile.
"Boom."
The mental power struck the crocodile\'s tough back with a dull thud. Alex felt a powerful force push back at him, causing him to stumble backward. His face turned slightly pale, showing that he hadn\'t gained any advantage in this exchange.
"Roar!"
The crocodile roared, shaking its head and slamming its tail on the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Alex narrowed his eyes. The crocodile\'s defense was stronger than he had anticipated. It seemed that the previous zombies had likely been dealt with by this very creature.
"Roar!"
The crocodile attacked again, moving even faster than before. It charged at Alex with a gust of wind, its sharp claws gleaming coldly, as if they could easily tear through anything.
Alex stood his ground, right fist clenched, and swung it at the crocodile\'s claws.
"Thud!"
Fist and claw collided, producing a deep sound.
Alex felt a tremendous force ripple through his arm, spreading throughout his body. His internal organs felt as if they had been severely injured, and intense pain covered his forehead with fine beads of sweat.
He quickly retreated to create some distance.
The crocodile didn\'t give Alex any time to recover. It advanced, relentlessly pursuing him, its sharp claws slicing through the air with a fierce wind.
Alex gritted his teeth, refusing to back down. He swung his fists, engaging in a fierce battle with the crocodile.
The crocodile\'s hide was incredibly tough, and each swipe of its claws had terrifying destructive power. Even though Alex\'s body was as strong as steel, he had sustained several wounds, with blood streaming down, presenting a gruesome sight.
"Roar!" The crocodile roared again, savagely lunging at Alex.
Alex\'s pupils contracted sharply. He quickly sidestepped to avoid the crocodile\'s attack, then leaped up, using the crocodile\'s shoulder as a springboard to propel himself into the air.
The crocodile\'s eyes gleamed with intense bloodlust. Its massive body flipped over, pressing down directly toward Alex, who was mid-air.
"Roar!"
Alex froze for a moment. How could he have forgotten the creature\'s enormous size, making escape nearly impossible?Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn
"Splash!"
Alex fell into the lake, the water soaking his clothes.
The toxins in the water made his movements sluggish. He struggled to swim toward the shore, but the closer he got, the more the corrosive toxins in the water invaded his body, eating away at his flesh. He had to get out of there quickly.
Alex swam desperately but soon realized he couldn\'t reach the shore. The toxins in the lake were too potent, and his skin had already started to fester and ooze.
"Splurt!" Alex\'s corroded fingers punctured his palm, and bright red blood dripped into the lake, turning the once clear water into a murky green.
"Cough, cough…"
Violent coughing came from beneath the water, and Alex\'s figure emerged.
His face was swollen, and he struggled to climb out of the water, staggering to his feet.
The lake water had turned completely black. Alex wiped his cheek with his hand, smearing it with dark green liquid.