She thought for a moment, then pulled a steel pipe out of her spatial dimension—one she'd scavenged from a hardware store.
The pipe clattered to the ground with a loud bang. Xie Anze's expression remained calm as he picked it up and weighed it in his hand. Solid.
He looked at Mimi, who was using her spatial dimension so openly right in front of him, his eyes darkening slightly. With one arm, he scooped up Jiang Zhiying, who was crouching on the ground, and said to her puzzled gaze, "Mimi, don't take things out of your spatial dimension in front of others from now on."
Oh, so that's what this was about.
Jiang Zhiying meowed twice. She wasn't stupid—she definitely wouldn't use it in public.
Seeing Mimi nod obediently, Xie Anze smiled and ruffled her head.
Standing in the middle of the empty street, Xie Anze faced a mutant dog as tall as a person. The mutant dog stared at Xie Anze, its animal instincts telling it just how dangerous this person before it was.
It lowered its body, sharp claws scraping relentlessly at the ground, gouging small pits into the asphalt road. Its mouth hung open, emitting threatening growls as drool dripped from its razor-sharp fangs onto the ground.
Jiang Zhiying and Xiaobai stood far away, watching the standoff between Xie Anze and the mutant dog.
The moment Xie Anze moved his arm, the mutant dog lunged. Its blood-red eyes gleamed with murderous intent. Facing the ferocious charge, Xie Anze's gaze shifted slightly. The instant the mutant dog moved, he could sense the change in airflow around him. The mutant dog's movements seemed to be broken down into segments in his eyes, moving with unnatural slowness.
Bang! The steel pipe struck the mutant dog's head with pinpoint accuracy. Xie Anze grabbed the mutant dog's neck with his left hand and, with a single arm, lifted the meter-tall beast and slammed it hard into the ground.
"Yowl yowl yowl!" The mutant dog howled, its voice piercing and shrill.
Its thick, long tail whipped across Xie Anze's leg like a lash. Feeling a sharp pain in his calf, Xie Anze shifted his stance, and the momentary looseness of his grip let the mutant dog break free.
The freed mutant dog opened its massive jaws and twisted its head to bite at his arm. Xie Anze steadied himself, then launched a flying kick that sent the several-hundred-pound mutant dog flying. His strength was immense—the beast soared a great distance before crashing into a large tree.
The mutant dog's ferocity was fully provoked. It scrambled to its feet, barked several times, and charged at Xie Anze again at full speed.
Xie Anze easily sidestepped the charge, raised the steel pipe, and brought it down on the mutant dog's head with devastating force.
With a thunderous crack, the mutant dog let out a miserable howl, its massive body swaying. Xie Anze's brows furrowed, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes. Three more heavy blows from the steel pipe rained down on the mutant dog's head, caving in its hard skull.
The mutant dog staggered, then collapsed, its front claws swiping at Xie Anze's face. With a crack, its dark paw was snapped, blood splattering all over him.
Watching the still-struggling mutant dog, Xie Anze drove the steel pipe down like a sword, plunging it deep into the beast's skull and pinning it to the ground.
"Meow!" Jiang Zhiying swallowed hard. She realized she'd underestimated the Poop Scooper's abilities. She remembered that in the novel, the main villain was extremely weak in the early stages. For him to suddenly become this powerful—it seemed World Fortune really did play a huge role.
The mutant dog twitched a few times on the ground before going still, dark red blood pooling around it.
Xie Anze frowned at the blood and grime covering his clothes. He'd need to be more careful in the future—he didn't want to dirty his outfit.
"Meow." The Poop Scooper is really impressive. Jiang Zhiying ran over from a distance, wagging her tail happily. Excellent—the stronger the Poop Scooper, the closer she got to her dream of lazing around and doing nothing!
Since there was blood on him, Xie Anze didn't pick up Jiang Zhiying. He crouched down and scratched her chin. With the mutant dog dealt with, he continued forward. One man and two beasts strolled down the street as casually as if they were out for a walk, and no mutant beast dared to come near.
After crossing several blocks, Jiang Zhiying's ears twitched. She seemed to hear faint gunshots in the distance. The gunfire grew louder, as if drawing closer to them.
Xie Anze heard the gunshots too. He led Maomao and Xiaobai into a nearby building to hide. Before long, a dozen or so soldiers ran into the area, firing behind them as they ran. Over a dozen mutant dogs were chasing them.
The mutant dogs caught up, and one seized a straggling soldier, tearing and biting at him savagely. Their retreat plan failed, forcing them to engage the mutant dogs head-on. Xie Anze watched the fierce battle for a moment, then considered briefly. "Mimi, let's go out and give them a hand."
A steel pipe whistled through the air, piercing straight through a mutant dog's head. The soldier who'd been pinned under the beast was spared, scrambling to his feet in one motion and firing several shots into the mutant dog's eyes. The beast crumpled to the ground.
Jiang Zhiying hopped and skipped through the pack of mutant dogs, toying with these mutated canines. Every now and then, she found an opportunity to viciously rake her claws across them, her sharp claws easily tearing through their thick hides and leaving the mutant dogs bloodied and wounded. Xiaobai stayed close by Jiang Zhiying's side, occasionally spitting out strands of spider-silk to intercept any mutant beasts that slipped past her.
The bloodshed stirred up the ferocity of the mutant dogs. Jiang Zhiying noticed one of them whose form was slowly changing—its slightly soft fur gradually turning rock-hard, standing erect like countless needles. She used her Appraisal Skill to check.
[Mutated Dog LV.1]
[Body is undergoing Evolution. Skills: Claw Strike, Tear and Bite, Physical Defense are upgrading.]
It was evolving! She couldn't let it finish evolving. These soldiers weren't particularly powerful—if this mutant dog completed its evolution, they would all die! In this critical moment, she quickly scanned her surroundings. Every soldier was entangled by mutant dogs. The soldiers wore well-equipped gear with excellent fabric, and she noticed it could actually block one or two attacks from the mutant dogs! But this defense was merely a drop in the bucket—they still couldn't withstand the mutant dogs' assaults. Only by grouping together and helping each other did they manage to avoid being killed. As for Xie Anze, he was being besieged by four mutant dogs, focusing entirely on dealing with them with no energy to spare.
She could only rely on herself!
Jiang Zhiying wiped the playfulness from her eyes, took a deep breath, and in an instant formulated a plan. After silently communicating with Xiaobai, her gaze turned resolute. With a push from her hind legs, Maomao's petite body shot forward like a small cannonball toward the evolving mutant dog.
The mutant dog's evolution was faster than she had anticipated. Its body swelled to over a meter tall, solid muscles bulging, fur transforming into sharp steel needles draped across its frame. Its two canine teeth lengthened, protruding from its mouth. Its massive dog eyes fixed on the charging Jiang Zhiying, and it opened a mouth as wide as a washbasin, completely engulfing her furry body within its shadow.
"Mimi!" Xie Anze, who had been entangled by four mutant dogs but keeping constant watch on Jiang Zhiying's movements, saw her suddenly charge out and nearly fall into the mutant dog's gaping maw. His heart clenched violently, and an indescribable panic spread rapidly through him.
A flash of ferocity crossed his eyes. At that moment, without even realizing it himself, his pitch-black pupils shifted to a dark gold—mysterious and noble—before fading away in an instant. A surge of powerful energy suddenly erupted from deep within his body, coursing through his limbs. His long legs kicked away the mutant dogs closing in, and he sprinted toward Jiang Zhiying at lightning speed.
A deathly threat loomed over Jiang Zhiying's heart. Still mid-air, she puffed up into a ball of fur. At the critical moment, her flexible body forcibly twisted direction, her hind legs pushing off against the sharp teeth before landing on the ground. The surrounding mutant dogs immediately converged on her.
She landed lightly on the ground and activated her Stealth skill. Instantly, the mutant dogs around her could no longer sense her presence, looking around in confusion.
Cat Paw Strike!
Silently stalking up to the evolving mutant dog, she suddenly leaped, her sharp claws aimed straight for its eyes. The massive orbs were raked and wounded, two streams of blood dripping down from them as the evolving mutant dog shrieked madly.
Having landed her hit, Jiang Zhiying took the opportunity to slip away, activating Stealth and darting back to Xie Anze's side. He scooped her fluffy little body into his arms, his wildly pounding heart slowly returning to calm. Holding the soft Mimi tightly, he stared with icy eyes at the restless mutant dogs now charging toward him in unison.
With a squelch, Xiaobai's pristine white spider-legs sliced open the evolving mutant dog's belly. The evolving mutant dog let out a miserable howl, staggered, and collapsed to the ground, blood pooling beneath it. Xiaobai had quietly crept close while the evolving mutant dog's attention was fixed on Jiang Zhiying, slipping underneath its belly and delivering the fatal blow at the crucial moment.
"They're trying to retreat—kill them all!" The death of the evolving mutant dog ignited the soldiers' fighting spirit. Amid the blood-soaked battle, one soldier roared fiercely.
After the evolving mutant dog died, the remaining mutant dogs lost their will to fight. Howling and whimpering, they began to retreat, only to be picked off one by one by the soldiers pressing their advantage. When the battle ended, the wounded soldiers all turned their gazes toward Xie Anze, their eyes full of curiosity.
A tall man walked over and introduced himself: "Hello, I'm Liu An, battalion commander of the Vanguard Regiment stationed in City A. I was sent out to gather supplies and didn't expect to run into a pack of mutant dogs. Thanks to your help, my comrades managed to survive."
"It was nothing. In the current situation, only by helping each other can we survive." Xie Anze replied with neither arrogance nor humility, then proceeded to ask about the current state of affairs.
Liu An smiled bitterly. "The situation is very bad. Mutated flora and fauna are running rampant, launching large-scale attacks on humans. Human losses are severe. In the chaos, quite a few Evolved and Controllers have turned to violence. Modern society's order collapsed overnight. On top of that, the Earth's magnetic field has failed, communications are down, and no one can reach anyone else—it's like being on isolated islands. Now, quite a few survivor bases of various sizes have been established in A City. You can seek shelter at these bases. You're an Evolved, right? If you're interested in testing your abilities, you could also join the military or operate independently…"
His gaze then shifted to Xiaobai and Jiang Zhiying. Xie Anze subtly moved his body, stepping in front of the two, his eyes narrowing as he watched Liu An warily.
Seeing Xie Anze's defensive posture, Liu An chuckled. "Brother Xie, rest assured, we won't lay a hand on these mutated animals. Although most animals have mutated into violent and bloodthirsty creatures, a small number of mutated animals have retained their clarity of mind. These mutated animals are our good partners. In fact, several of our military dogs are this type of mutation and have saved many of our team members."
Seeing his sincere expression, Xie Anze relaxed his defensive stance.
"But Brother Xie, you should still be careful. There are many radical people who might attack mutated animals." Liu An gave a subtle warning.
"Thank you for the heads-up!" Hearing this, Xie Anze could guess what the situation was, and he expressed his gratitude warmly.
He agreed to go to the base with Liu An but declined his invitation to travel together, citing a need to gather supplies. Watching their retreating figures, Xie Anze withdrew his gaze. He had his own considerations.
He would go to the A City base, but he wouldn't stay long. Once he was fully prepared, he planned to head north to the capital. His parents and younger brother were all in the capital—he had no idea how they were doing now.
Xie Anze was deeply worried. The only comfort was that the capital, as the political center, had excellent management talent and military strength, so his family's safety should be somewhat guaranteed.
"Maomao, the base is safer. Let's pack up and head there too." Xie Anze said to the cat in his arms.
Jiang Zhiying didn't hear Xie Anze's words. She lay dazed in his arms, staring at the few large characters before her eyes.
[Sufficient experience gained. Evolution conditions met.]
[Race: Ragdoll kitten [Weak Slayer]]
[Evolution Paths: Assassination-type Evolution; Intelligence-type Evolution]
Assassination-type? Intelligence-type?
Jiang Zhiying pondered silently to herself.