Chapter 223: Chapter 205: Superpowers ’Speed Enhancement’ and ’Pain Reduction

"Haaa..."

He had run for his life, a mad dash that had utterly drained his stamina. Now that he had stopped, the young man couldn’t stop himself from panting raggedly.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK..."

The giant rat Mutant Beast licked its blood-soaked claws, gazing at the delectable prey before it with a look of confusion.

Its simple mind couldn’t quite comprehend why this delectable prey, who had been screaming bloody murder one second, could undergo such a drastic change the next.

"DRIP, DRIP, DRIP..."

Blood oozed incessantly from the gash the giant rat Mutant Beast had torn across his chest, soaking the young man’s camouflage uniform.

The droplets pooled and dripped to the ground, splashing like crimson blossoms upon the green grass.

The young man, an Exotic Beast Hunter for only a few days, stared at the terrifying Mutant Beast he knew he couldn’t possibly defeat and muttered to himself.

’I was wrong. I never should have been arrogant enough to enter this dangerous wilderness alone.’

Judging by his actions, the young man was clearly one of those overconfident rookie Exotic Beast Hunters who venture into the wilderness alone, only to become another statistic in the Exotic Beast Hunter Guild’s annual report.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK..."

An excited gleam shone in the giant rat Mutant Beast’s eyes. It began to circle the young man slowly, periodically letting out a bloodcurdling squeal.

It could have easily rushed forward and finished off the grievously injured young man, but it held back.

The Mutant Beast had a peculiar hobby: it loved watching its prey display looks of absolute terror and put up a futile struggle right before death.

"Haaa..."

As the terrifying Mutant Beast slowly closed in, the young man’s body trembled more violently, and his breathing grew more ragged and quick.

’What do I do? The Mutant Beast is getting ready to attack. What am I going to do?’

The young man had originally owned a Spiritual Weapon worth over two million, but he’d lost it somewhere during his panicked retreat.

He was already no match for the giant rat Mutant Beast to begin with. Now, weaponless and bare-handed, he stood no chance at all.

’Run!’

The young man spun around and bolted, but he only made it a few steps before the giant rat Mutant Beast instantly caught up and blocked his path again.

He tried to flee in another direction, only to be cut off once more.

Trying to escape from a giant rat Mutant Beast that had awakened the Speed Enhancement Superpower was nothing but a fool’s dream.

With each failed escape attempt, the despair on the young man’s face deepened.

"Help! Somebody, save me...!"

Seeing that escape was hopeless, the young man actually started shouting for help—a truly jaw-dropping move.

In this deserted, peril-filled wilderness, what were the chances that shouting for help would actually accomplish anything? The odds were beyond slim!

The giant rat Mutant Beast watched the pale-faced, despairing human scream, and its eyes glinted with cruel amusement.

’The pre-dinner entertainment is just about over,’ the Mutant Beast thought. ’Time to finish this prey off and have a good meal.’

The young man knew that the chances of anyone hearing his cries for help in this desolate and treacherous wilderness were almost nonexistent. But at this point, he had no other options; it was his only hope for survival.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK..."

The giant rat Mutant Beast shrieked, ready to make its move. It crouched, coiling its body into an attack stance, preparing to finish off its delectable prey in one swift strike.

"Help! Somebody, please save me... *sob*..."

The young man continued to scream for help, one hand pressed against the gushing wound on his chest.

When he saw the giant rat Mutant Beast adopt its attack stance, his cries grew even louder.

But his desperate, heart-rending pleas were met with silence. As he kept shouting, his cries eventually turned into sobs.

"Somebody save me! I’m still young! I don’t want to die...!"

"SQUEAK..." the giant rat Mutant Beast cried, a faint golden Spiritual Light glimmering in its red eyes.

Its Speed Enhancement Superpower activated once more. Everything was ready. But just as it was about to launch its attack, a loud roar suddenly echoed from the distance. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"VROOOM..."

At the sound of the deafening roar, the giant rat Mutant Beast froze as if someone had hit a pause button, halting its attack.

"Squeak...?" Full of confusion, the Mutant Beast turned its head toward the source of the sound.

The already despairing young man, upon hearing the familiar roar, felt a spark of hope ignite within him. He, too, turned to look in the same direction as the now-stationary Mutant Beast.

"VROOOM..."

The loud roar grew steadily closer, and soon, both man and beast spotted a black motorcycle several hundred meters away.

A man with an air of effortless cool appeared before them. He wore a black helmet that hid his face, was dressed in a camouflage uniform, and steered the motorcycle with a single hand.

"Hm?!"

Steering his motorcycle one-handed, Lin Li was on his way back to the safe zone when he spotted an Exotic Beast Hunter in a standoff with a giant rat Mutant Beast up ahead.

He rode up to a spot about twenty meters away from the giant rat Mutant Beast and the young man before bringing his motorcycle to a stop.

Lin Li extended his Perception, instantly gauging the power levels of the dueling man and beast. He also saw the gruesome wound on the young man’s chest.

’A Tier One Peak Mutant Beast?’

’This fellow Hunter is badly hurt! Seriously, getting an injury this severe while fighting a Tier One Peak Mutant Beast... This guy’s pretty pathetic!’

Lin Li couldn’t help but roast the injured young man in his mind.

Then again, he thought, this was the normal disparity between humans and Mutant Beasts.

After all, at the same cultivation level, a Mutant Beast’s combat power was generally a cut above that of an ordinary human Cultivator. The only exceptions were the rare human geniuses with outstanding cultivation aptitude.

However, thanks to the Magical Little Fruit from the Magical Little Tree on the Mysterious Small Island, his own cultivation aptitude had been constantly evolving. This made him a cut above even Mutant Beasts of the same level.

As a result, the current Lin Li was one of the very few human Cultivators capable of completely overpowering a Mutant Beast of an equivalent tier.

"Hello, do you need my hel—" Lin Li began, his face hidden by the black helmet as he started to ask the injured Hunter if he needed assistance.

But before he could even finish, the man was already screaming desperately, "Help! Save me...!"

’Yep... definitely a rookie,’ Lin Li concluded.

He nodded to the young man pleading for his life and dismounted from his motorcycle.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK..."

Seeing Lin Li dismount and walk slowly toward it, the giant rat Mutant Beast let out a few cheerful squeaks.

In its eyes, this human who had ridden up on a vehicle was just another delicious meal, conveniently delivering itself right to its doorstep.

It was only then that the young man noticed the white gauze wrapped around Lin Li’s arm.

Recalling how this fellow Hunter had been steering his motorcycle with one hand, he realized that his savior was also seriously injured.

’This Hunter is injured, but he’s still willing to save me. What a good man! If he’s choosing to step in, it must mean he can still fight. This is a rare chance to survive, and I have to grab on to it with everything I’ve got.’

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