The woman clutched her bleeding abdomen with one hand, her face filled with disbelief as she felt her life signs slowly slipping away, mingling with the intense pain in her body and the shock in her heart.
Her worldview had been shattered. How could so many things have suddenly appeared on Li Ming’s body?
She had detected nothing just moments ago, and he certainly wasn’t any kind of Mechanical Transformation.
The towering black-armored general took a step forward, leaving a deep impression on the floor with his metal-clad foot, and just like that, Li Ming walked step by step towards him, unfazed.
"What... what are you?" the woman asked hoarsely, her face deathly pale.
"Who sent you?" A mechanical arm grabbed the woman’s neck and lifted her to face Li Ming, while another arm picked up a Cross Crystal that had fallen not far away.
The special properties of this mother ore seemed to go far beyond Li Ming’s imagination; it could even amplify superpowers.
"Heh... heh..." Blood trickled from the corner of the woman’s mouth as she glared at Li Ming with a look of abject despair, as though she wanted to devour him, yet she remained silent.
Li Ming’s recent action had left no room for mercy. The woman had only one way out—death—whether she spoke or not.
As her life signs faded, the mechanical arm tossed her into a corner, while Li Ming mulled over: "There’s another man. Do I leave or stay here and ambush him?"
Li Ming pondered that although his overall burst could now reach D-level, that man was not a superpower user, and his exact strength was unknown.
Should he use that "thermal pressure bullet" to reach D-level?
"No, it’s not worth wasting here. Better shake him off and kill him directly." Li Ming shook his head, finally deciding to leave.
One Controlled Object after another disappeared from his body as he stuffed the Cross Crystal into his chest.
He sped through the room check, found no surveillance probes, glanced at the window, took out his smart terminal, located Luo Chuan, and dialed.
The next moment, the sound of ringing came from outside the door, approaching from afar. Li Ming’s expression instantly tensed as the iron door silently disintegrated.
Standing outside was Luo Chuan, their eyes meeting.
"It really is you." Li Ming said in a grave tone. Luo Chuan had a much higher life level, being a C-level Life Form; there was no way he could fight him.
"What is me?" Luo Chuan seemed even more shocked than him, looking down at the corpse: "You actually killed her... What the hell!"
Luo Chuan was taken aback, for Li Ming had disappeared from the spot at a speed that shocked him.
"How can you be so fast?" By the window, Luo Chuan held Li Ming’s arm, full of surprise and doubt.
Although Luo Chuan had restrained him, as a C-level Life Form, it was to be expected, but Li Ming’s life level was much lower, and yet his speed was beyond imagination.
Even D-level Life Forms, not known for their speed, would likely have a hard time keeping up with Li Ming.
"Also, why are you running?"
Li Ming observed Luo Chuan’s reaction, which seemed slightly different from what he had anticipated.
Just now, all the Controlled Objects he used were materializations that didn’t occupy the main Control Bar, and the instant he saw Luo Chuan, he switched to four pairs of shoes, ready to make a run for it.
"You’re thinking too much. It’s not about him." A familiar voice came from behind Luo Chuan as Professor Wu stepped in: "Well done, boy. I underestimated you."
The moment he saw Old Wu, he realized Luo Chuan wasn’t the mastermind behind this.
Professor Wu was using him as bait.
Luo Chuan put him down, his eyes still heavy with inquiry, this kid was just too quick on his feet.
"Teacher, you could have at least given me a heads up..." Li Ming said helplessly.
"If I had informed you, the performance wouldn’t have been so convincing." Wu Yanqing surveyed the room, "The high-pressure bomb in the car had been dealt with a long time ago; at least five cars were following you the whole way, so there was no danger."
There was a high-pressure bomb in the car? Li Ming immediately replied, "That woman could search my memories; if you were any later, I’d have turned into an idiot."
"I was timing it. As a D-level Life Form, she needed the Cross Crystal as assistance. She would need at least fifteen minutes to prepare." Wu Yanqing seemed very knowledgeable, "I left you an additional five minutes."
Li Ming seized the opportunity to ask, "What’s the background of this group?""There’s the shadow of Star Creation Company," Professor Wu stated, an answer that did not surprise Li Ming.
"But the ones who made a move were not them, but another group of people. They were always watching me; the Star Creation Company sought them out."
My enemies and Old Wu’s enemies have joined forces? Li Ming pondered.
"Then let’s start with this group of people," he said, his voice carrying a killing intent as chilling as a cold wind.
"Alright." Seeing Old Wu confident, Li Ming felt somewhat relieved. Although the Star Creation Company was an interstellar conglomerate with formidable strength,
the local branch did not have that much power.
Old Wu walked to the front of the corpses, looked over them for a moment, and said indifferently, "Luo Chuan, dispose of all these bodies."
"They left a man behind," Li Ming reminded.
"He’s already turned to ashes," Luo Chuan explained, then said to Li Ming, "Junior Brother, did you just suspect that I had orchestrated these people?"
Li Ming shrugged, "I had no choice, Zhang Yong was arranged by Brother, the hover car I took was also arranged by Brother, and it was you who mentioned the teacher leaving; you suddenly appeared on the scene too. If I don’t suspect you, who should I suspect?"
Luo Chuan shook his head with a wry smile and said nothing more as the bodies on the ground began to dissolve silently into pools of blood foam.
Old Wu examined the room, pausing at the indentations on the walls, the missing corners, and the footprints on the floor.
"Clean up this room as well, leave no trace behind," he added.
Luo Chuan nodded while making a phone call as the room’s walls also began to dissolve.
Li Ming watched from the side, unaware if Old Wu had noticed the recent battle, or if he had figured anything out from these traces, but Old Wu did not ask.
Only when he walked out of the room did Li Ming realize that the staircase was filled with people above and below, some familiar faces seemed to be from the laboratory’s security team, who were all emitting an alarming murderous aura at this moment.
Leaving the place, he accompanied Professor Wu onto a hover car, unbuttoned his suit, and sat across from Li Ming, "I will be leaving Jingnan tomorrow afternoon."
"Really?" Li Ming asked hesitantly.
"Yes!" Professor Wu glared at him, "Some people are highly suspicious, always trying to uncover my secrets, and now they’re even in cahoots with the Star Creation Company."
"Those old guys at the University of Science and Technology may be only nominally accomplished but can be relied upon," Professor Wu stated.
Li Ming nodded, muttering to himself why it felt as if Old Wu might not come back.
"Also, for the customized gene seed, choose the Thunder and Fire dual Elements," Professor Wu again advised.
"Thunder and Fire?" Li Ming’s heart stirred, "Is it related to the gene sequence?"
"Yes, the first Element you fused with was the Thunder Element, which is very good. I know of several gene sequences that use the Thunder Element gene seed as a base," Professor Wu nodded:
"Among the stronger ones, you need to fuse the Thunder and Fire dual Elements from level D to form the prototype of the sequence."
"What gene seeds are being fused? Tell me about them first," Li Ming inquired.
Professor Wu shook his head, "At a higher level, I don’t know either. All I can say is work towards this direction, and if the opportunity arises one day, you may hold it in your hand."
He then sighed, "Actually, the most important thing about the gene sequence isn’t the gene seed."
"The most crucial is the Secret of Liberation, which, when combined with the gene seed, forms the true gene sequence."
The Secret of Liberation? What on earth is that?
Li Ming inquired, and after a moment’s contemplation, Professor Wu replied, "You should know about Genetic Release. The so-called Secret of Liberation is the specific ratio for Genetic Release."
"Each level’s gene seed must participate, and a slightly incorrect ratio could lead to deformity."
Li Ming could not help but be amazed. Higher civilizations restrict the military power of lower civilizations, which in turn restrict the military power of their citizens.
It’s a recurring cycle, everything so harmonious.
Professor Wu dropped him off at the laboratory and then left again.
Nearing nine in the evening, despite the twists and turns of the day, Li Ming still trained until he was utterly exhausted before stopping.
Having extracted a special power from the Cross Crystal Mother Ore he received, Li Ming considered which Controlled Object to strengthen.