Chapter 23: Sudden Transformation

In a low-lying depression in the distant southwestern suburbs of Yicheng, surrounded by mountains designated as a restricted zone for citizens, several dozen martial warriors with solemn expressions and attired in white-bottomed, flame-patterned uniforms had now gathered.

Almost every one of them held various different Divine Machine boxes, all assembling in front of a specific location.

The leader was an elderly man with silver hair and silver beard. He possessed a calm demeanor and a natural authority that required no anger to inspire awe. Merely standing there, he exuded a pressure that nearly compelled one to bow in submission.

He was none other than Zhang Daosheng, the Elder of the Vermilion Bird Palace and the Fluorescent Sword Sovereign.

Scanning the scene to confirm that all participants had arrived, he nodded.

"This operation is relatively confidential, so the quality of personnel takes precedence over quantity. The operational plan was laid out during yesterday's meeting, and I trust that the intellect of my colleagues here will leave no room for oversight."

"The nature of the rift is special. Once humans officially enter it, it will transition into a special state of 'allowing exit but forbidding entry' within a very short time."

"After I release the seal of the rift, please follow me inside promptly."

With that, Zhang Daosheng took out a metallic object from his bosom that looked like a key.

"What is that key?" Zhou Yan, following alongside Chu Wan with Luo Xuan, asked out of curiosity when he saw this.

Hearing Zhou Yan's question, Luo Xuan also looked at Chu Wan with a curious gaze.

"The Key of Sealing and Opening, a Grade-3 moderately dangerous anomalous item contained by the headquarters of the Vermilion Bird Palace. It can lock objects possessing the nature of a 'door'. Once locked, unless a higher-grade anomalous item of the same type is deployed, it is absolutely impossible to open the door by any means other than this key."

Chu Wan smiled softly, "Although miraculous, the essence of the rift is a door connecting different worlds to our world, so it can be locked by such an anomalous item, preventing the vast majority of monsters within it from descending."

She then reminded them, "Elder Zhang is about to unlock the seal of the rift. When the rift returns to its normal state, it is a black, large suspended sphere. The moment we see that sphere appear, we must rush in immediately."

A huge black suspended sphere?

Hearing Chu Wan's description, Zhou Yan couldn't help but recall the "black hole" at the summit of Mount Fuji when he was wandering through the Hyakki world.

Could it be that all Chaos Rifts look like this?

While they were speaking, having confirmed the location with Cong Shiyun, Zhang Daosheng directly thrust the key toward the "air" in front of him.

The next moment, the front half of the slender key simply vanished as if swallowed by an invisible entity.

Then, Zhang Daosheng twisted the key clockwise.

*Click.*

A certain illusory sound of a lock opening echoed in the minds of everyone present.

The next second, a pitch-black fissure appeared out of thin air in front of them.

In another instant, the fissure expanded violently as if growing against the wind, instantly transforming into a massive black sphere.

*Whoosh!*

Zhang Daosheng and Cong Shiyun, who were closest, were directly swallowed by the black sphere.

The others showed no surprise; without the slightest hesitation, the group charged directly toward the black sphere.

"Let's go!" Chu Wan gave a low cry and took the lead.

Zhou Yan and Luo Xuan immediately followed.

Everyone present entered the black sphere within a very short time, disappearing silently into the valley.

Only five personnel arranged by Cong Shiyun at this location remained.

The team leader was a True Realm powerhouse, while the other four, though mortals, were at least at the Wonderful tier.

Their task was to stay outside the rift to prevent potential enemies from ambushing the area and to be on standby at all times to receive any injured personnel who might escape from within.

One of the subordinates glanced at the now-vacant area and turned to look at the leader, Captain Wang: "Captain Wang, for an operation like this to exterminate a rift, how long does it usually take?"

Captain Wang was a steady-looking middle-aged man of nearly fifty with a scar on his face.

He glanced at his curious teammate, thought for a moment, and said, "The interior of a rift is a special kind of environment, and generally they aren't too large. Therefore, under conditions of sufficient combat power, routine clearance time usually doesn't exceed half a day. With the Fluorescent Sword Sovereign leading the operation this time, I estimate it will take at most two to three hours—"

*Splat!*

Captain Wang's expression suddenly froze. He slowly lowered his head and saw sharp claws protruding from his chest.

Divine Machine—

He reached out toward his Divine Machine, attempting to release it.

The next instant, another pair of claws swept across, severing his head from his neck on the spot.

An experienced True Realm powerhouse had thus fallen!

Slain along with him were the four ordinary experts who had gathered around the captain to listen to his explanation; they hadn't even had time to release their Divine Machines.

Their mutilated bodies, broken into several pieces, crashed to the ground, revealing the figure of the assailant.

It was an extraordinarily sturdy, bipedal lion standing nearly three meters tall.

Its head was that of a standard lion, but its body resembled that of a muscular bodybuilder. Its upper body, covered in thick yellow fur, was exposed, while its lower body wore a pair of black trousers that had been stretched to shreds.

The lion slowly retracted its left claw. The elongated nails at the tips quickly shortened and withdrew, finally turning back into a normal, blood-stained palm.

Unable to help itself, it extended its tongue to lick away all the blood on its hand, its human-like eyes revealing an expression of extreme delight.

Then, it actually spat out human speech from its leonine mouth, its voice filled with panting and roars:

"The blood of a True Realm expert... so fragrant. I somewhat understand why those monsters love eating humans so much."

On the other side, several people walked out from the forest. They were representatives of Cronus Corporation led by Gene, a blonde middle-aged man.

Looking at the lion-man still intoxicated by the blood of the True Realm expert, Gene chuckled and said, "Hall Master He, how does it feel to transform into a beast warrior for the first time?"

The lion turned its head. Seeing several living humans, a flash of bloodlust instinctively crossed the depths of its eyes.

Suppressing this impulse, it laughed heartily: "It feels amazing! This kind of strength that doesn't rely on Divine Machines, this vigor that belongs uniquely to me—this is the path a true powerhouse should walk!"

The next second, saliva dripped from the corners of its mouth as it stared intently at the mutilated corpses on the ground, murmuring to itself, "I want to eat... I really want to eat..."

Watching Hall Master He, who seemed utterly enchanted, Gene smiled with the corners of his mouth upturned: "There is still some time, so feel free to eat your fill. Our Megacorporation Alliance believes in the survival of the fittest; a powerful beast warrior ought to devour every enemy he hunts."

"Then," the lion-man rolled his tongue and abruptly lowered his posture, "I won't be polite!"

The scene instantly turned extremely bloody.

A few minutes later, the lion-man transformed from Hall Master He stood up with a satisfied expression. The five fierce and terrifying corpses on the ground had now been reduced to incomplete skeletons.

He was still sucking on the hand bones of the True Realm powerhouse incessantly, saying with great satisfaction, "I'm full. It feels... very fulfilling!"

"Naturally!" Gene continued to smile.

"Unlike the pathetic energy restrictions of Divine Machines that rely on energy crystals, beast warriors can replenish their own strength by devouring living matter, and injuries can heal at an accelerated rate."

"Hall Master He, there are plenty of surprises waiting for you ahead."

Hall Master He burst into wild laughter, then immediately reined it in: "How long did it take me to enjoy my meal?"

"Just a few minutes," Gene replied with a smile.

"Not bad, didn't waste too much time." Hall Master He reached out the back of his claw to wipe the blood from the fur at the corner of his mouth. "Representative Gene, do as you please. As for me, I am going to strike directly at the Lihuo Pavilion."

Gene nodded slightly: "Rest assured and go ahead. The fifty beast warrior soldiers provided to your Fire-Worshipping Society by our company have all taken up positions near the Lihuo Pavilion. As long as you issue the command, they can be mobilized immediately."

"Good! Just wait for my good news!" Hall Master He laughed with absolute confidence.

The next second, he took a step forward, and the soil beneath his feet abruptly kicked up in a massive cloud of dust.

Raising one's eyes to look, he had already rushed nearly a hundred meters away.

Gene also led his subordinates and turned to walk back into the forest.

"A good show is about to be staged."

"How truly anticipated..."

***

Beneath the Lihuo Pavilion, in the Logistics Division's Divine Machine Department.

Luo Ke was persistently pestering Section Chief Cheng to teach her about Divine Machines.

" Grandpa Cheng, you tell me, why can Big Brother Zhou Yan's Divine Machine mecha create such a huge mount, and how is that mount able to be controlled so well by Big Brother Zhou Yan?"

Luo Ke scratched her head, unable to figure it out: "That dragon-horse displayed such a high degree of vividness and intelligence. Do you think that master named A-Guang got a new generation of intelligent chips or something?"

After initial days of appreciating this child's diligence and eagerness to ask questions, Section Chief Cheng was now feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Luo Ke's thoughts were boundless, and the questions she asked were particularly tricky. At first, he could answer some of them, but later on, he had to look up information just to reply.

Hearing Luo Ke's new question this time, he complained inwardly, but answered earnestly on the surface: "Compared to developing a new intelligent chip, I'm more inclined to believe that A-Guang used certain methods to heavily optimize the operational logic of that Divine Machine mount. Coupled with the fact that Zhou Yan's spiritual power is probably strong enough, the combination of the two achieved this effect."

"But..." Luo Ke was just about to continue questioning and discussing.

Suddenly, she saw Section Chief Cheng reach out to touch the button on his ear.

Two seconds later, with an ugly expression, he said, "Luo Ke, let's stop here for a moment. I just received a notification that vicious incidents of citizens being attacked by werewolves have broken out all over Yicheng. The Vice Pavilion Master is now temporarily acting in the capacity of the Pavilion Master and has called an emergency meeting. I have to go right now."

"Ah?" Luo Ke was momentarily stunned.

With a solemn expression, Section Chief Cheng said, "Luo Ke, stay right here in this basement with the older brothers and sisters of the Divine Machine Department. Don't run around during this special period. At the very least, the basement of the Lihuo Pavilion is the safest place in Yicheng right now."

"Okay!" Although Luo Ke couldn't fully understand Section Chief Cheng's words, she still knew the priorities. At a time like this, she didn't ask any further questions.

She silently watched Section Chief Cheng's hurried departure, a sudden, inexplicable sense of unease flashing through her heart.

A few minutes later.

*Boom!*

Along with several senior Divine Machine crafters staying at their workstations, she clearly heard an explosion loud enough to echo into the underground.

Immediately afterward, she felt a faint but distinct tremor in the space around them.

The young girl's delicate face instantly turned pale as paper!