Chapter 25: Transcendent Creature

“Bang!”

Inside the abandoned zoo, a loud explosion echoed; in the darkness, a figure seemed to suffer a terrible attack, flying backward and crushing through grass and shrubs until it slammed hard against a thick cement wall covered in moss.

The powerful impact cracked the wall instantly.

“Wah!”

Qin Qing spat out a mouthful of blood, her body instantly withering; her green vertical pupils were now streaked with blood.

“Waaah!”

The eerie infant wail sounded again, echoing through the darkness, shifting unpredictably—sometimes distant, sometimes right beside you, sometimes behind your back—sending chills down the spine.

Qin Qing’s vertical pupils darted rapidly, trying to lock onto the position of the monster in the dark, but each attempt failed; she could only occasionally catch a fleeting glimpse of a strange humanoid shadow flickering at the edge of her vision.

“Front? Right? No, not right—it’s left.”

Suddenly.

The strange humanoid shadow burst forth from the darkness, striking again at an unbelievable speed; even though Qin Qing had locked onto it, all she saw in her eyes were afterimages.

This was because the movement was too fast for her vision to capture accurately.

A shadow even her evolved vertical pupils couldn’t track—clearly, the monster’s power surpassed Qin Qing’s current level; one moment of carelessness, and she would die here instantly.

“Die.”

Suddenly, Yang Yi’s roar echoed; white halos flashed around him, the darkness instantly dispersing as he emerged from another direction, attempting to intercept and kill the monster before it could strike Qin Qing.

The strange humanoid shadow seemed to sense danger, abandoning its chance to kill Qin Qing; it halted mid-movement in an impossible way, then sharply changed course and vanished, dissolving back into the surrounding darkness.

“Waa~!”

The infant-like wail sounded again, still echoing all around.

Yang Yi now stood before Qin Qing, watching as the monster vanished; his face carried a hint of fury. His current state was strangely supernatural—his hair and clothing seemed affected by static electricity, slowly floating; his eyes emitted a white glow, and around his right arm coiled a terrifying aura.

Fallen leaves and grass nearby instantly turned to dust.

Beneath the drifting dust, the faint outline of an invisible sword seemed to form on his arm.

“Compared to last time, this thing has grown stronger—its growth rate exceeds our cultivation speed, and it’s become more cunning. It knows it can’t beat you, so it’s been targeting me, trying to eliminate me first before wearing you down,” Qin Qing coughed weakly, then struggled to stand.

Though she could still move, she had lost all combat capability; even defending herself was barely possible.

“Yang Yi, retreat. Your body’s energy is draining rapidly—your ‘sword’ won’t last much longer. Once your strength fades, we’ll both die here,” Qin Qing said, staring at Yang Yi’s right hand.

In her line of sight.

Energy in Yang Yi’s right hand converged and condensed along a peculiar trajectory—invisible to the naked eye, yet dazzlingly brilliant in her vision; the gathered energy resembled a sharp, brilliant sword, as if capable of tearing through anything in reality.

“If I were weaker than that thing, I could accept defeat. But now I have the power to kill it—if I run away now, it proves I’m just Yang Yi, a waste of resources. I’m sorry, Qin Qing—I dragged you into this. I originally planned to hunt it down and split the spoils with you, to repay you for saving my life last time. I never imagined it would turn out like this.”

Qin Qing said: “It’s not your fault. After last time’s setback, it changed drastically. This time, its growth completely compensated for its previous weaknesses. Before, I could rely on my agility, excellent dynamic vision, and reflexes to outmaneuver it—but this time, it has utterly overwhelmed me.”

“I see. This thing has extremely high intelligence and rapid learning ability. If we don’t kill it this time, we’ll never get another chance,” Yang Yi’s gaze hardened: “So, Qin Qing—no matter what, let’s fight one more time.”

“If we lose, I’ll die here with you.”

Sensing Yang Yi’s resolve, Qin Qing stopped urging him to retreat: “Since you’re prepared to fight to the death, there’s nothing more to say. Kill it, and we go back together.”

“Alright.” Yang Yi gave a slight nod.

“Go.”

Qin Qing moved again, her body surging forward at incredible speed, as if gliding just above the ground; her green pupils spun rapidly, now locked onto the infant-like eerie wail from the distant darkness.

Yang Yi also surged into motion, flanking the monster from left and right.

The infant-like wail echoed again.

The humanoid monster sensed their killing intent and danger, so it avoided direct confrontation, fleeing swiftly—denying Yang Yi and Qin Qing any opening. As it ran, it deliberately maintained distance: close enough to turn and counterattack, but far enough to avoid being caught.

Clearly, the humanoid monster had no intention of letting Yang Yi and Qin Qing escape either—it wanted to kill these two evil Earth Prisoners here.

Perhaps to the monster, Yang Yi’s growth rate was just as alarming. Last time, it had a chance to kill him—but after a while, it nearly got killed itself. If it fails to kill Yang Yi today, and he keeps growing, it will be in grave danger.

Both sides were determined to kill the other—this battle continued, far from over.

“Not an illusion—my eyes can finally lock onto it. Is it deliberately slowing down to lure me in for a counterattack? Or has its speed dropped?”

After fighting alongside Yang Yi for a moment without success, Qin Qing noticed the monster’s movements had slowed.

“No—it’s not deliberately slowing. Like us, its strength is fading, so now my vision can track it. This is an opportunity—if my vertical pupils can lock on, I have a chance to kill it.”

Then Qin Qing glanced at Yang Yi.

Yang Yi was panting; the brilliant glow on his right arm had dimmed significantly, nearly extinguished—but he still struggled to maintain it, because once the ‘sword’ vanished, he couldn’t reform it today. If it went out, they’d both be killed by the monster.

“Still have a chance to strike?” Yang Yi seemed to sense Qin Qing’s gaze—he looked over.

Their eyes met; each clearly understood the other’s thought.

Qin Qing gave a slight nod.

Yang Yi hesitated slightly, then quickly hardened his resolve.

The next moment.

Qin Qing’s speed surged violently, burning the last of her remaining physical energy.

She would exhaust her final strength to create an opening for Yang Yi to strike.

In the darkness, Qin Qing’s figure flashed like a white rainbow—within a blink, she had caught up to the monster, even overtaking it.

“Waa~!”

A startled, piercing wail rang out.

The humanoid monster hadn’t anticipated this—it had been carefully controlling distance, and now its weakened state had left it vulnerable.

But when it saw Qin Qing was the one attacking, it roared in fury, instantly extending a furry humanoid arm—strangely, instead of a human hand, it ended in a beast’s hoof.

The hoof glowed faintly, forming a circular mark—visible even without spiritual sight.

“Qin Qing, retreat!” Yang Yi sensed danger and roared.

But it was too late.

At this speed, combat was decided in the blink of an eye.

Qin Qing’s figure briefly overlapped with the monster’s—then the two separated instantly. Qin Qing’s body flew backward like a severed kite, blood spraying midair; the air instantly filled with thick, cloying blood.

The humanoid monster merely paused, stepped back slightly—unharmed.

But Qin Qing’s desperate strike wasn’t meant to kill—it was only to halt the monster, giving Yang Yi his opening.

“Die!”

Yang Yi’s eyes blazed like a god’s as he lunged forward; on his right arm, the silhouette of a sword flashed into existence and slashed toward the humanoid monster at blinding speed.

Sensing imminent death.

The monster emitted a piercing infant-like wail, then turned its head.

But it was too late.

Surrounding light flared suddenly—a blade of invisible force had already cut through its body.

In that brief flash of illumination, the monster’s true form was finally revealed.

It had a human body, but a head like a goat’s—resembling Western demonic legends, yet subtly different: its mouth bristled with jagged fangs, bloodthirsty and cruel.

Clearly, this was an unknown transcendent creature.

But now.

The transcendent creature was severed at the waist; blood gushed from the wound, splattering the ground.

Even severed, it still lived—its humanoid arms, ending in hooves, pushed hard, lifting its upper body to lunge at Yang Yi.

But this counterattack was useless.

Yang Yi’s rage hadn’t subsided—he immediately raised his right arm and brought it down.

The monster’s head split cleanly in two.

Under this fatal strike, the transcendent creature’s life began to fade rapidly—but even as it died, its split skull still writhed on the ground, emitting faint, whimpering cries.

“Qin Qing, how are you?”

Yang Yi ignored the dying monster’s struggles and rushed to his teammate’s side.

“Won’t die—not yet. My lower body’s numb,” Qin Qing lay limp on the ground, twisted in a strange posture.

Yang Yi quickly examined her wounds—and his expression changed slightly.

Qin Qing’s back was a bloody mess; the monster’s hoof had torn away nearly half her torso, shattering her spine. Had she not been a cultivator with fierce vitality, such a wound would have been instantly fatal.

“Several vertebrae shattered—serious injury. But her internal organs are intact. Don’t worry—once we’re safe, we can heal her. It’ll just cost money. I’ll make sure you’re cured,” Yang Yi rapidly considered medical options, then exhaled softly in relief.

Cultivators evolve—and the world’s medical systems evolve with them.

“Good. We can’t stay here—this blood will attract other monsters. Let’s leave now,” Qin Qing’s face was pale, but her mind remained clear.

“Alright.”

Yang Yi nodded. He had no strength left to hunt other monsters—he had to retreat immediately. If they encountered more danger, neither of them would survive the zone.

He swiftly lifted Qin Qing onto his back, preparing to gather the corpse and leave.

But now.

In the darkened ruins of the abandoned zoo, the roars and growls of various beasts echoed everywhere.

“No—this monster’s cry is transmitting information to the beasts around it!” Qin Qing realized, seeing the goat-headed creature still whimpering, and felt dread.

“I see it too.”

Yang Yi understood—he delivered a final strike to silence the creature, bundled its corpse, and fled swiftly.