The intricate patterns of its scales, the wear and barbs on its claw tips, the arrangement of its caudal fin scales, the detailed wrinkles on its ferocious head… Every feature was scanned and analyzed by his cold gaze.
Fear? Ferocity? In Chen Feng's eyes, this was nothing more than a primitive and ugly struggle of a deep-sea creature from the surface.
He had witnessed lava worms that devoured rocks by the magma rivers in the Geocentric World, and commanded Spiked Horned Tyrant Bugs that tore through the heavy armor of Ironblood Bugmen on the Iron-Blood World battlefield, not to mention those great Titan-level existences.
The life intensity detector in the corner of his glasses’ vision displayed a crimson number for the creature before him: 9.7.
Even a well-developed twelfth-order Army Ant posed a greater threat than it.
Its roars and impacts, to Chen Feng, sounded like the pathetic wails of an ant trying to shake a tree—weak and ridiculous.
“Samples, full set. Scales, blood, flesh, bone fragments, oral mucus, fin membrane tissue.”
Chen Feng’s cold voice echoed in the warehouse, filled with roars and impacts, utterly devoid of emotion, as if he were simply ordering a list of Materials for an experiment.
Behind him, two Lizardmen researchers immediately stepped forward, opening the silver-gray, specially made metal box and taking out gleaming alloy sampling tongs, thick syringes, and sharp dissecting blades.
One researcher, holding a thick, specially made syringe, ignored the monster’s frantic thrashing and roaring, his eyes as precise as a machine.
The needle tip aimed at the edge of a relatively intact black scale near the monster’s scapula and plunged in!
“Zzzzz-ga—!” The needle tip scraped against the tough scale, emitting a piercing metallic screech!
The needle forcefully Broke through the scale’s defense, deeply piercing the flesh.
Dark red blood, far more viscous than human blood, was slowly drawn out.
The monster erupted in an even more agonizing shriek due to the intense pain.
The other researcher used the alloy sampling tongs, aiming at a damaged scale on the edge of the monster’s dorsal fin, and clamped and twisted it hard!
“Crack!” With a crisp snap, a palm-sized black scale, with flesh and blood attached to its edge, was forcibly torn off!
At the same time, a cold dissecting blade swiftly cut a small piece of fin membrane from the base of the fish tail; the tissue, thin as a cicada’s wing, was precisely severed and placed into a sterile container.
The entire process was efficient, ruthless, and precise.
The monster’s struggles were futile under the restraints of specialized ropes and an iron cage; it could only emit desperate and painful shrieks.
Chen Feng watched expressionlessly as the samples were swiftly sealed, labeled, and placed into a thermostatic box.
In his vision, the number representing life intensity stabilized at 8.9 points after fluctuating wildly (due to blood loss and trauma).
A faint, almost imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of his mouth—a sense of absolute control tinged with a hint of pity, like a higher being examining a lower specimen.
This lowly creation was merely an insignificant piece in the Dominator's grand tapestry.
*
East Sea City, Haifeng Farm Pier.
The pungent smell of diesel, strong fish odors, and fresh blood mingled in the cold sea breeze.
Zhao Dahai stared intently as several black SUVs from the Special Administration Bureau, like steel behemoths, rolled over the rough stone pavement of the pier and disappeared into the dimly lit outline of the city in the nascent dawn.
His calloused hand clutched the electronic draft made of special Materials; the cold numbers on it were enough to buy an entire fleet, yet they could not fill the emptiness in his heart.
Li Qiang’s pale face, the five gaping claw marks on his chest, and the hot blood that splattered when his neck was bitten through, were seared into his mind like a burning iron.
“Hai-ge…”
The chief engineer, Old Wang, hobbled over, his voice hoarse; the severe pain from his broken leg was less than a fraction of the pain of losing a brother.
“Don’t say anything,” Zhao Dahai abruptly interrupted, his voice like sandpaper rubbing, “Take the money, settle Li Qiang’s family… This ship… it’s sealed.”
He took one last look at the “Ludong Fishing No. 768,” the vessel that had once carried all their dreams; the dark brown bloodstains on the deck were particularly glaring in the morning light.
He turned, his back hunched, and his figure merged into the noisy discussions of the onlookers and the flashing cameras of the reporters.
Fear, grief, and a colossal mystery weighed heavily over the entire East Sea City.
......
Special Administration Bureau East Sea Base.
Under the dazzling white light, the custom alloy box restraining the Blackscale Merman was placed on a platform completely isolated by an energy field.
Chen Feng expressionlessly swiped his highest-authority card, and the heavy alloy gate silently slid down behind him.
The unique hum of the base’s depths, a mixture of disinfectant and high-pressure energy operation, enveloped him.
He didn’t need an assistant.
Walking to the front of the platform, Chen Feng opened his palm, revealing a dark blue crystal—the evolution origin point—only the size of a ping-pong ball, yet seemingly containing a swirling nebula within.
It floated in mid-air above his palm.
This evolution origin point was specifically entrusted to the Special Administration Bureau by the Dominator, representing the Dominator's sincerest trust in them.
His gaze, sharp as an eagle’s, was fixed intently on this evolution origin point.
Buzz—!
There was no earth-shattering sound, only a subtle, high-frequency, teeth-grinding hum as space was forcibly folded and compressed.
The entire alloy box, along with the monster inside, was instantly enveloped by a layer of blue light so dense it warped light; the glow flashed and vanished.
The platform was empty.
Chen Feng retracted his hand, and the evolution origin point silently disappeared.
Iron-Blood World Main Base.
Command Center Plaza.
Space rippled like water into which a stone had been thrown, and Chen Feng’s figure suddenly appeared in this giant’s realm constructed of steel, biological carapaces, and energy streams.
The immense temperature difference made his skin tighten slightly.
He carried the specialized alloy box, walking steadily towards the dark golden giant shadow that lay like a mountain in the center of the plaza—Uka.
Now, with the continuous expansion of the Zerg territory, Zhou Qi was no longer someone his subordinates could easily meet.
Currently, Uka was the general supervisor in the Iron-Blood World, while Wang Yufei served as the Blue Star Ground Minister, responsible for all Zerg affairs on Blue Star, and Moga Luo was in charge of the Blue Star Earth's Core World.
“Lord Uka.”
Chen Feng stopped, his voice not loud, yet it clearly pierced through the base’s incessant mechanical roar and the distant rumble of the energy furnaces.
Uka’s eyelids, covered in thick Dragon scales, slowly lifted, revealing molten-gold vertical pupils; his gaze swept over Chen Feng and the box on his shoulder, and a deep voice resonated directly in Chen Feng’s mind, carrying the Soul pressure characteristic of a higher being: “Captured?”
The voice was like two heavy pieces of metal rubbing together.
“Yes, this monster appeared on the surface world, similar to the merfolk in myths and legends, codenamed Blackscale Merman. It was captured in East Sea City and caused three deaths and two injuries among human civilians,” Chen Feng stated concisely.
Uka’s massive nostrils exhaled two sulfur-scented breaths, as if capturing some pheromone in the air.
“Weak, but… not a creation. The Dominator has already issued a command. Follow me.”
Its enormous body stood up with extreme agility, and the ground trembled slightly with each step.