Otherworldly Desert Dust-Chapter 500 - 455: Harsh Conditions for Survival in the Apocalypse

More live specimens?

This really seems like they're researching these mutated species. Are the Mutant Condensed Liquids extracted from live specimens fresher, or have some nobles of the Da Xuan Dynasty invented some bizarre predilection, using the unique high temperatures of the mutated Sang Demons to cook high-level ingredients?

That is to say, a lot of Gold Seekers have recently appeared in this area, basically all for the sake of Sang Demons, and they want them alive...

Wu Hen had actually collected a small portion of these Condensed Liquids before and found that they contained contaminated energy. For normal people, this energy was a terrifying toxin that would quickly destroy nerve cells, causing the body to mutate like that of nuclear radiation, leading to death.

However, some species with strong vitality might endure this radiative mutation, and after changes occurred within their cells and genes, there was a certain likelihood they could mutate towards higher forms of life – this could be considered as evolution.

But compared to Yuan You's pure and harmless evolutionary crystallization, the risks of these Mutant Condensed Liquids were extremely great. The life forms that succeeded in evolving often demonstrated deranged, crazed, and malevolent behavior... they fell into the category of alien monsters, akin to most fierce Evil Spirits, with nothing but slaughter in their eyes!

In any otherworldly civilization, all intelligent life forms share a consensus: species that are only driven by the instinct to kill are considered alien monsters, regardless of the level of their strength, after all, other life forms, whether brutal, cold-blooded, or predatory, have survival instincts, not merely existing to kill.

Wu Hen also discovered that in his own homeland, there were no life forms instinctively driven to kill... including in Otherworldly Dust, most life forms continued to exist because they adhered to their most primitive instincts.

Reaching Wu Hen's level of understanding, he was actually clear on one thing: in Desert Dust, any life form whose instinct is to kill, is undoubtedly a "God-created" life form.

It's a hallmark of the Da Xuan Dynasty, Evil Spirits.

The instinct of Evil Spirits is also to kill and destroy.

Similarly, the alien monsters on this wasteland kill just to kill, which means they're not naturally bred, but must have been influenced by some high-dimensional force, essentially "artificially" created.

Like the machines of war on a battlefield, their existence could not possibly be to continue their mechanized life; they have been transformed, programmed with an irresistible set of instructions...

Even though the aliens on this land are not mechanical species, high-dimensional insects have mastered the ability to implant genetic fear. It's quite normal for some overly powerful gods to influence those otherworldly small creatures through their Divine Miracles left in the Mortal World, leading them to evolve in the wrong direction and become monsters that know only slaughter.

So, what's the motive?

High-dimensional life doesn't act without reason.

It could be for fun, to see how powerful their Divine Power is, how many creatures they can influence in this world and how far these creatures can evolve. It's like dripping growth liquid into a pond of tadpoles, waiting for the birth of a giant frog, disrupting the original ecology of Desert Dust, making it impossible for other life to survive...

It could also be for collecting something.

Perhaps there is something on this land that benefits the cultivation of that high-dimensional life form. Just like the Green-tailed God collecting the Night Blood Stones scattered among the mortals, it is actually to solidify their own Primordial Spirit.

This land was once rich and prosperous, but has become the current state of ruin. Could that have anything to do with these Mutant Condensed Liquids?

It created these monsters, allowing them to absorb Mutant Condensed Liquid in the wasteland, and as these monsters kill each other, absorbing the Mutant Condensed Liquid from one another, as time goes on, there will certainly be an Ultimate Mutant that, like a Mutated Demon God, reigns over this land, until that time when the high-dimensional God reaps the rewards...

On this journey, Wu Hen has also been observing, contemplating.

There are two things he needs to clear up:

What's the source of these Mutant Condensed Liquids?

The high-dimensional life that created these killing alien species, what's its motive?

If both of these are related to Cangling, he can follow the trail and find them.

Of course, if Cangling really planted something in this soil, hoping to nourish it with vast lower-dimensional life and special Alien Soil, then Wu Hen can also take advantage while the other party is not paying attention and take away their mature fruit, allowing Little Yi to taste it happily, cutting in to swipe someone else's Evolution Fruit is too joyful – who needs to grow their own when stealing is sweeter?

"Then take your time to research, we're going to go ahead," said the sniper rifle man, waving his hand.

His team was well-rested and ready to move on.

This time their goal is to capture a live Sang Demon for a high reward.

Wu Hen did not overly use his Perception and wasn't aware of their strength, but their equipment was sophisticated; they probably bought advanced weapons from the black market of Da Xuan, and they themselves seemed to have evolved to the Third Rank and Fourth Rank. They belong to a very common mercenary group in the Cang Chu Divine Realm, minor self-evolutions supplementing their gaps with powerful Predators through equipment.

It can be said that the existence of Da Xuan really gave many people who evolved slowly another path and not be at the mercy of those terrifyingly strong Predators.

Since Wu Hen was in this land, he naturally concealed his Holy Cultivation power and sealed his Super sense. Seeing this group of Gold Seekers averaging Third-Rank and Fourth-Rank Life, Wu Hen also immediately unlocked some of his Physique, elevating himself from Second Rank to Third Rank to blend perfectly into this segment.

To seek the origin, to understand the motives of high-dimensional beings, one must start from the grassroots, clearly comprehending their way of life, clarifying their direction of evolution, recognizing where they will converge and metamorphose, and what form they will take once they enter the hunting grounds of high-level Predators...

"Our sword is broken; we need to find a more suitable weapon here. Cold weapons do seem somewhat out of place in the wasteland. We need to obtain an Elemental Weapon or a native weapon of this Desert Dust kingdom," Wu Hen told Bai Ze.

Bai Ze was next to Wu Hen, gloomy and depressed. Wu Hen discussed with it, but it did not want to speak.

"What's wrong?" Wu Hen asked, puzzled.

"That woman called me a dirty little stray dog!! I, the immortal Bai Ze, am a noble Divine Beast, don't you understand? I can't stand such arrogant and pretentious people. You should kill all her teammates right now, and then savagely desecrate her, after that kill her, and let her be eaten by the Alien Beasts here!" Bai Ze could not contain its anger, transforming into the Furious Heavenly Venerate Beast and unleashing a barrage of firepower; its words were extremely radical.

"Isn't that just telling me to desecrate first, then kill? Am I that kind of person? You're supposed to be an immortal, how could you spit out such crude and obscene words?" Wu Hen was speechless too.

"Isn't this the ultimate insult among you humans? I want her to suffer unbearable pain!" Bai Ze retorted.

"Alright, alright, no deep-seated hatred here. That woman is just stuck-up and likes to flaunt her sense of superiority. When we find a clean river later, I'll wash you clean. You really are too dirty, but I did tell you to stay in the gourd, yet you insisted on following and enduring hardship," Wu Hen said.

"I, the immortal, will stay wherever I wish!"

"Now listen, you'll have to seal your Divine Power and Divine Breath. Starting out as a mere dog in a place like this, all equipment must be scavenged. How could there be a Divine Beast from the Classic of Mountains and Seas roaming the wasteland? What would those Sang Demons, who have mutated into lords through hardship, think?" Wu Hen reminded again.

"I don't care what those Alien brains filled with sticky Condensed Liquid think. I just can't stand it!" Bai Ze said.

"Use your keen sense of smell and help me find some nearby weapons we can use. I can't always confront these Alien Species monsters empty-handed," Wu Hen said.

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"You really treat me like a dog!" Bai Ze pounced, attempting to bite Wu Hen.

Wu Hen hastily begged for mercy.

...

Heading towards an oil field, Wu Hen realized his nose was completely useless here.

The air drawn into his nostrils was thick with oil.

At the largest oil well ahead, a Corpse Worker was diligently pressing the oil pump.

Although there was a huge machine behind it, it chose to work in the most primitive way, like an idiot deprived of intelligence, mindlessly executing basic directives.

This must be a Lost One too—only those who have completely lost their minds would repeat their life's work like an NPC, even though the oil gathered here could not be traded for any resources. They were like NPCs that are respawned by the world, adhering to scripts that barely conformed to the environment without any real vitality...

When Wu Hen approached, he suddenly realized that after sealing his Perception, he had failed to notice that the other was not a harmless wandering Lost One, but was a wasteland Corpse Worker!

Corpse Workers were once workers of this land, who lost their souls in the environment of radiation and Mutation, leaving behind only their indestructible shells, essentially becoming zombies that fit into the local customs here.

The Corpse Worker staggered and, upon sensing Wu Hen's approach, slowly turned around.

Its entire body was covered in waste oil, with a large gash in its chest torn by an Alien, through which one could see black tar flowing in its veins instead of red lifeblood.

The flow of black oil quickened, and the Corpse Worker's movements sped up. It opened its mouth, uttering an unpleasant hiss, spewing poison oil, and lunged to bite Wu Hen.

Wu Hen certainly did not want to engage in a prolonged fight with such a creature, picking up a steel rebar lying nearby.

When the Corpse Worker came close, Wu Hen stabbed the rebar directly through the gap in its body, pinning it to a large drilling rig nearby.

Having a hollowed-out chest, the Corpse Worker did not feel pain even as its body was pierced.

As it lunged at Wu Hen, Wu Hen pressed the rebar into a bend with his palm, trapping the Corpse Worker on the drilling rig before heading over to the oil well it had been pressing.

Underneath the oil well appeared to be a device radiating energy—perhaps a Gold Seeker had died below, their weapon soaking in the oil of the well.

"Seems like it's an air-powered Elemental Weapon Pistol," Wu Hen remarked.

In Levi, Wu Hen had seen various elemental weapons; the air-powered pistols were transitional technology from the Da Xuan era to Dark Energy weapons. Though from a previous age, they could still be used for self-defense. Their principle was simple: compressing Dark Energy into a sustainable part, like a gun spring, requiring only a small reserve of Dark Energy to deplete the surrounding air, forming an air bullet...

It was an automatic air bullet pistol, with the Dark Energy inner spring intact, and it just needed a wipe down to be usable.

Survival in the post-apocalyptic world was tough—an Unlimited Magazine gun, it would have to do!