27: Chapter 27 Harvesting the Origin of Mutation

Wang Xuan scrambled up from the ground, ignoring the dust covering her, and rushed toward Qin Ce immediately.

"Qin Ce! How are you?"

Qin Ce lay on the ground, panting heavily. That last strike had almost drained all the energy from him and the Azure Bird. But hearing Wang Xuan's voice, he still managed to lift his head and force a smile: "Still... not dead yet."

The Azure Bird also struggled to stand up; although its feathers were disheveled, its golden eyes were still filled with pride.

Wang Xuan looked at the man and the bird, her eyes suddenly turning red.

She knew that if it hadn't been for Qin Ce's desperate strike just now, she would already be dead.

"Thank you..." she said in a low voice, her voice choked with emotion.

"You're too polite, Class Monitor." Qin Ce wanted to sit up, but it pulled at the wound on his lower leg, making him wince in pain.

"Don't move!" Wang Xuan quickly held him down. "The wound is deep; it needs to be treated immediately!"

Other students also gathered around. At this moment, the way they looked at Qin Ce was no longer just admiration, but almost worship.

Black Iron killing Bronze! This achievement was enough to make Qin Ce's name spread throughout the entire academy!

"Qin Ce, from now on, you are my big brother!" the boy with a blood-covered face said excitedly. "I sincerely apologize for what happened at the start of school! From now on, whatever you say, I will listen!"

"Me too!"

"Brother Qin, please take care of us from now on!"

Qin Ce waved his hand: "Let's not talk about that for now. The Wolf Spider King's corpse needs to be handled; the crystal core and materials are very valuable. Besides—"

He looked in the direction where the Wolf Spider King had fallen, a trace of anticipation flashing in his eyes.

[Task Complete: Slay Sickle Wolf Spider King (Mutant)]

[Reward Obtained: EXP × 2000, Mutant Origin Absorption Opportunity × 1]

[Absorb immediately?]

"Absorb."

An invisible ripple spread from Qin Ce, enveloping the Wolf Spider King's corpse.

From a perspective that no one else could perceive, wisps of dark golden essence, carrying fluctuations of toughness and metal attributes, were extracted from the two halves of the Wolf Spider King's split corpse, condensing in front of him into a fist-sized, constantly wriggling, dark golden gelatinous substance that seemed to have a life of its own.

[Mutant Essence Obtained: Spider Silk Bone Tendon]

[Function: Transforms the internal microscopic structure of bones into a spider silk mesh, forming a "Bone Tendon" system. Effects: 1. Bone lightening (weight reduced by 30%); 2. Bone toughness increased by 500%; 3. Bone Tendon energy can spread and permeate muscles and fur, enhancing defense and toughness, and constantly strengthening muscles and fur; 4. Passively improves body flexibility]

[Please select the Pet Beast to use this on]

Qin Ce's eyes lit up.

He finally understood why the Azure Bird's Wind Blade couldn't break through the Wolf Spider King's defense—the Spider Silk Bone Tendon allowed its bones and carapace to form a dual defense system with astonishing toughness.

With almost no hesitation, Qin Ce thought to himself: "Use it on the Azure Bird."

The Azure Bird's potential is Bright Moon Level, and it is destined to become an aerial overlord in the future. Bone lightening is too important for it! Moreover, the continuous strengthening effect of the Spider Silk Bone Tendon will cause its defense to undergo a qualitative leap.

The ball of light turned into a streak of dark golden light, merging into the Azure Bird's body.

At the same time, the reward of 2000 EXP allowed the Azure Bird to cross the threshold of Black Iron High-grade.

Therefore—

"Chirp..."

The Azure Bird's body trembled violently, emitting a chirp that was both comfortable and carried a hint of pain. Then, it closed its eyes and collapsed softly into Qin Ce's arms, falling into a deep sleep, as a halo of intertwined dark gold and cyan light began to circulate around its body.

Qin Ce could feel a tough and heavy power spreading, merging, and transforming within the Azure Bird.

"What... happened to it?" Wang Xuan asked nervously.

"Oh, it's nothing; it's just exhausted and needs to rest." Qin Ce took the opportunity to recall the Azure Bird into his tattoo.

In reality, the Azure Bird was absorbing the Mutant Essence, undergoing a new round of evolution. This process required time, which could serve as a perfect cover.

"Let's drag the corpse back." Qin Ce looked at the Wolf Spider King. "This thing should be worth quite a few points."

The students' eyes immediately lit up.

That's right! A Bronze Rank mutant monster corpse! How many points must this be worth?

Under Qin Ce's direction, the students used branches and vines to make a simple sled, loaded the two halves of the Wolf Spider King's corpse onto it, and began to return to the base.

Under the setting sun, a group of people dragged a massive monster corpse across the wilderness. Although disheveled and injured, everyone's face was filled with an unprecedented radiance.

That was the glow that only appears after experiencing life and death and witnessing a miracle.

Qin Ce was supported by two people, limping at the very front of the team.

He looked back at the trail left by the Wolf Spider King's corpse, then looked at the sky.

Today's harvest was unexpected.

But what he looked forward to even more was—what would the Azure Bird become after completing its evolution?

When Qin Ce and his group dragged the Sickle Wolf Spider King's corpse back to the base, the entire training base was stirred into an uproar.

It was already dusk, and most teams had returned and were queuing in front of the exchange office. When they saw the massive creature, severed in two, being dragged into the base gate, everyone stopped what they were doing, dumbfounded.

"Wha... what is that thing?"

"So big! It's several times larger than a Blood Wolf!"

"A dark golden carapace? I've never seen this kind of beast before..."

"Wait, isn't that Qin Ce and Wang Xuan's team? What kind of monster did they hunt?"

Discussions erupted, and the crowd automatically parted to form a path.

Wang Yu stood in front of the exchange office, looking at the corpse, his face turning alternately green and white. He had led his team to hunt two Black Iron Mid-grade monsters today and had thought he could show off, but now... compared to that thing, his harvest was simply not worth mentioning!

"Move! Everyone move!" the boy with the blood-covered face shouted excitedly. "Brother Qin killed a Bronze Rank Wolf Spider King! A cross-rank kill!"

"What? Bronze Rank?"

"I heard Qin Ce did it all by himself!"

"Impossible! He's only Black Iron Mid-grade, right? How could he kill a Bronze Rank lord?"

"Bragging, right? The instructor must have helped in secret!"

Voices of doubt rose up again. After all, a Black Iron Mid-grade killing a bronze low-grade lord across ranks was a feat too unbelievable.