33: Chapter 33 Experimental Subject - Tyrant T01

Lin Xiao gripped the modified rifle in his hands, the beam of his tactical flashlight sweeping across the scratch-covered metal walls.

"Shen Man, Liu Ruyan, you two walk in the middle. Qing Qian, stay side-by-side with me."

His voice was steady and powerful, and in these deathly silent subterranean depths, it became the only anchor in the hearts of all the women.

Passing through a corridor littered with debris, a severely deformed explosion-proof glass door appeared before them.

Through the shattered glass, the scene inside could be vaguely discerned.

It was a massive circular laboratory, surrounded by various precision instruments. In the very center of the laboratory stood a huge cylindrical culture tank, over three meters in diameter and reaching all the way to the ceiling.

The culture tank was filled with turbid yellowish-green liquid, with countless thick pipelines inserted into it like blood vessels.

Vaguely visible, a colossal humanoid creature was suspended within.

It stood at least three meters tall, its muscles bulging like granite, and its skin had a sickly grayish-white color.

The most terrifying part was its right arm, which had undergone an extremely exaggerated mutation, transforming into a massive, razor-sharp claw covered in bony armor—it was even longer than the creature's own body!

Its body surface was further covered in layers of white exoskeleton that resembled armor.

** [System scanning...] **

** [Warning! Extremely dangerous target detected!] **

** [Name: Experimental Subject - Tyrant T01 (First-generation Prototype).] **

** [Level: Tier 3 Mutant Creature (Peak state).] **

** [Status: Dormant (Waking up).] **

** [Abilities: Strength Enhancement, Bony Armor, Rapid Regeneration, Berserk Slaughter.] **

** [Weakness: Extreme low temperatures can cause its bony armor to become brittle.] **

"Tier 3 peak?!"

Lin Xiao's pupils constricted sharply.

They were generally just barely past Tier 1, and even with the enhancements he and Su Qingqian had undergone, they could at most barely touch the threshold of Tier 2.

Challenging a higher tier, especially against a monster that was clearly a killing machine, was simply dancing on the edge of a knife!

"Retreat! Quickly! Don't disturb it!"

Lin Xiao made a decisive decision, pulling Su Qingqian as he prepared to retreat.

Without heavy weapon support, fighting a monster of this level head-on was suicide. He might be wild, but he wasn't stupid.

However, Murphy's Law always holds true in the apocalypse.

Just as they turned around.

"Beep—"

The lights in the entire laboratory suddenly flared on, switching back from the dim auxiliary power to the main power.

Luo Yao had just cracked the base's central system; while she had opened the passageway, she had also accidentally triggered the "wakeup sequence" for all the stasis pods.

"Pshhh—!!!"

A massive pressure-release sound instantly echoed throughout the entire B2 level.

The liquid in that huge culture tank began to drain frantically, and white steam gushed out.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

The dull sound of a heartbeat, like a war drum, exploded in everyone's ears.

That wasn't an illusion; it was the monster's heartbeat!

"ROAR————!!!"

A roar filled with violence and the desire for destruction instantly shattered the reinforced glass of the culture tank!

Countless shards of glass, mixed with green liquid, sprayed outwards like cannonballs!

"Run! Run quickly!"

Lin Xiao shoved Shen Man and Liu Ruyan, who were behind him, toward the corridor exit.

"Luo Yao! Seal the isolation door behind us!"

But it was too late.

The behemoth had already burst through the steam and landed heavily on the ground.

The hard alloy floor shattered like tofu under its feet, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Its scarlet eyes locked firmly onto these "tiny" creatures before it.

That was a thirst for blood, a killing instinct etched into its genes.

"BOOM!"

Tyrant T01 moved.

With that movement, it struck with the force of a thunderbolt.

They had originally assumed a monster of this size would be slow, but it was as fast as a gray streak of lightning!

With just a single stride, it crossed a distance of over a dozen meters, its massive mutated bony claw sweeping toward Lin Xiao and Su Qingqian—who were bringing up the rear—with a whistling wind.

"Get down!"

Lin Xiao roared, having no time to fire his gun, and lunged directly at Su Qingqian, the two of them rolling clumsily across the ground for several meters.

"CLANG—!!!"

The bony claw slammed viciously into the metal wall beside them.

Sparks flew everywhere!

The ten-centimeter-thick alloy wall was actually ripped open like paper, leaving a huge gash!

If that blow had landed on a person, it would have undoubtedly turned them into a pulp of flesh.

"Fire! Hit its eyes!"

Lin Xiao knelt on one knee, raised his rifle, and pulled the trigger frantically at the Tyrant's head.

"Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat—!"

Tongues of fire spat out, and bullets poured down like raindrops.

However, the monster's reaction was ridiculously fast; it merely lowered its head slightly, using its armor-covered arm to shield its face.

"Ding, ding, ding!"

The bullets struck the white bony armor, sparking a series of flashes, but they only left a few shallow white marks—they couldn't even break its defense!

"Damn it! Is it physically immune?!"

Lin Xiao cursed under his breath.

"Let me handle this!"

Su Qingqian gave a sharp cry and sprang up from the ground.

Facing such a terrifying monster, not only did she not retreat, but her fighting spirit was ignited.

The Tang dao in her hand, "water cutter," gleamed with a blinding cold light, and the surrounding air instantly condensed into countless tiny ice crystals.

"Frost Slash!"

Her figure was as nimble as a swallow; utilizing the narrow terrain of the corridor, she kicked off the wall, transforming into a blur as she charged at the Tyrant from the side.

The blade pointed straight at the inner side of the Tyrant's knee joint, where there was no bony armor!

"Pfft!"

This strike was fast, accurate, and ruthless!

The Tang dao sliced through the Tyrant's skin, drawing a spray of black, filthy blood.

The extreme icy energy instantly invaded the wound, attempting to freeze its muscles and nerves.

"ROAR!"

The Tyrant felt the pain and let out an angry roar.

It did not fall because of this blow; instead, it became even more berserk.

It violently swung its leg, and the immense force shattered the ice that had just formed.

Immediately following that, its massive bony claw swung backhanded, swatting at Su Qingqian in the air like she was a fly.

Su Qingqian was in mid-air, her old momentum spent, and new strength not yet generated.

She could only barely hold her blade horizontally to block.

"BANG!"

A muffled thud.

Even with her ability's enhancement, even with the Tang dao absorbing the force.

In the face of an absolute disparity in strength, all technique appeared pale and powerless.

Su Qingqian was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the wall in the distance before sliding to the ground.

"Cough..."

She opened her mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood; her beautiful face instantly turned deathly pale, and the Tang dao in her hand trembled slightly.

"Qing Qian!!!"

Seeing this scene, Lin Xiao's eyes instantly turned red.

An unprecedented rage rushed straight to his head.

Hurt my woman?

I'll kill you!

"Luo Yao! Take Shen Man and the others and get far away!"

Lin Xiao roared, and instead of retreating, he charged straight at the Tyrant.

While running, he fired frantically at the Tyrant to draw its attention.

"Big guy! Look here! Come eat your Grandpa's bullets!"

The Tyrant was indeed enraged.

It gave up pursuing the fallen Su Qingqian, turned around, and began to stride forward with heavy steps, charging at Lin Xiao like an out-of-control tank.

In this narrow corridor, every step it took caused the ground to shake violently; that sense of oppression was enough to make an ordinary person have a mental breakdown.

Lin Xiao's brain was racing.

Bullets were useless, and firing a grenade at such close range would kill himself.

Weakness... the system said its weakness was extreme low temperature!

But Su Qingqian's ability had just been broken, and she couldn't condense a powerful freeze for the time being.

What else?

What else could create an extreme low temperature?!

Lin Xiao's fingers swiped rapidly through the void; it was the interface for his system's storage space.

"There must be... there has to be..."

He searched frantically through the miscellaneous check-in items and the supplies scavenged from Black Rock City.

Suddenly!

His gaze locked onto a blue canister.

It was a box of industrial supplies he had casually picked up in a corner of the Black Rock City Chamber of Commerce's underground warehouse; at the time, the system had identified it as—**[Industrial Grade Liquid Nitrogen Freezing Spray]**.

This was originally meant for rapidly cooling large mechanical bearings, and its temperature was extremely low!

"You're it!"

Lin Xiao moved his mind, and a blue steel cylinder the size of a fire extinguisher appeared in his hand.

At this moment, the Tyrant had already charged in front of him.

That massive bony claw was raised high, carrying a foul-smelling wind pressure, preparing to swat this suicidal human into a meat patty.

"Now!"

Lin Xiao didn't dodge.

He was gambling!

Gambling that he was faster than it!

With an extreme sliding tackle, Lin Xiao kept his whole body pressed against the ground, sliding underneath the Tyrant's raised giant leg!

In the instant he slid past, he aimed the liquid nitrogen spray in his hand at the knee joint of the Tyrant's supporting leg and pressed the valve hard!

"Hiss————!!!"

A white, freezing mist instantly erupted!

The minus 196-degree liquid nitrogen was like the sigh of the Grim Reaper, spraying without reservation onto the Tyrant's knee.

"Crack, crack, crack..."

Even for a Tier 3 mutant creature, even for bony armor as hard as iron.

Under such an extreme and sudden temperature difference, it could not defy the laws of physics.

One could see a thick layer of white frost instantly forming on the bony armor and muscles at the Tyrant's knee, and it even emitted the brittle cracking sounds of something unable to bear the stress.

"ROAR?!"

The Tyrant's movement stiffened abruptly; it felt as if its leg had lost all sensation.

But it wasn't over yet!

Lin Xiao slid behind the Tyrant and sprang up with a kip-up.

He pulled a high-explosive grenade from his waist and bit off the pin with his teeth.

A trace of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

"Have a taste of 'Ice and Fire'!"

He shoved the grenade violently into the gap of the Tyrant's knee joint, which had already been frozen stiff and cracked!

Then, he exerted all his strength and lunged toward Su Qingqian, who was lying on the ground not far away.

"BOOM—!!!"

A massive explosion echoed in the enclosed subterranean space, making everyone's eardrums ache.

Firelight and cold air intertwined, forming a bizarre and violent scene.

The fragile bony armor completely shattered under the shockwave of the explosion!

"CRACK!"

Accompanied by a teeth-grinding sound of bone breaking.

The Tyrant's thick, sturdy leg was actually blown off halfway!

"ROAR————!!!"

This time, the sound the Tyrant let out was no longer an angry roar, but a shrill, miserable scream.

Having lost its supporting leg, that massive body could no longer maintain its balance and collapsed with a crash.

Like a collapsing small mountain, it slammed heavily onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Lin Xiao hugged Su Qingqian and rolled behind cover in the corner.

Although he had body armor and an enhanced body, the aftershocks of the explosion still made his back ache.

But he couldn't care about himself; he immediately looked down at the person in his arms.

Blood still hung from the corner of Su Qingqian's mouth, and her face was pale, but her eyes remained cold and stubborn.

"Are you okay?"

Lin Xiao's voice trembled slightly as his hand gently wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth.

In that moment, the dignity of a Conductor, the coldness of an apocalyptic warlord—all of it was thrown to the back of his mind.

He only knew that the woman in his arms had been injured because of him.

Su Qingqian looked at his eyes, which were bloodshot from anxiety, and a certain softest part of her heart was hit hard.

This man could have clearly run away by himself just now.

But to save her, he had risked his life to engage in hand-to-hand combat with that monster.

"I'm fine..."

She shook her head weakly, and then, rarely, took the initiative to reach out and hold Lin Xiao's large hand.

"It's just... a little painful."

This "a little painful," carrying thirty percent coquetry and seventy percent reliance, made Lin Xiao's heart melt.

"It's good that you're fine, it's good that you're fine."

Lin Xiao let out a long breath, and then his eyes turned fierce once again.

"Shen Man! Come over and save her!"

"Liu Ruyan! Give it everything you've got! Beat the drowning dog!"

There was no need for him to shout; Liu Ruyan and Shen Man had already rushed over.

Shen Man's hands glowed with a soft white light as she pressed them against Su Qingqian's chest, activating **[Healing]** with all her might.

"It's fortunate; she only has two broken ribs and some internal organ bruising, but she'll recover quickly." Shen Man checked her and let out a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, Liu Ruyan held her submachine gun and fired frantically at the Tyrant lying on the ground.

Although the Tyrant had lost a leg, its vitality was extremely tenacious.

It lay on the ground, using its massive bony claw to scrape the floor, dragging its mangled body as it still attempted to crawl toward them.

In those scarlet eyes, an undying killing intent still burned.

"Roar... kill... kill..."

"Not dead yet?"

Lin Xiao stood up from the ground and handed Su Qingqian over to Shen Man to care for.

He picked up the shotgun that had fallen on the ground and racked the slide with a click.

At this moment, his body was covered in dust and the monster's filthy blood, and his clothes were torn in several places, making him look disheveled.

But in the eyes of the women, he was taller and more handsome than ever before.

"You've got quite the tenacious vitality."

Lin Xiao walked step by step toward the monster that was still struggling.

The Tyrant no longer possessed its earlier majesty; the wound where its leg had been severed could not heal (due to being scorched and frostbitten), and black blood trailed across the floor.

Lin Xiao walked up to the Tyrant's head and looked down at it from above.

The Tyrant raised its head, and on its hideous, ugly face, a trace of an expression resembling fear actually appeared.

It could feel that this tiny human before it was radiating an aura even more terrifying than its own.

"This shot is what I'm returning to you on behalf of Qing Qian."

Lin Xiao said coldly.

The muzzle of the gun was pressed directly against the Tyrant's eyeball, which was not covered by bony armor.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three consecutive dull gunshots were deafening in the enclosed corridor.

The large-caliber slug instantly shattered the Tyrant's eyeball, mangled its brain, and finally blew off half of its skull.

The Tyrant's massive body twitched violently a few times, then went completely limp, and it made no further sound.