Fantasy Game: Infinite City

Just as Han Zu was bypassing a pile of humanoid creature remains, the passage ahead suddenly narrowed, and a gigantic creation, far larger than any of the worms they had encountered before, blocked the center of the passage. This worm was five meters in diameter and over twenty meters long, almost occupying the entire width and height of the passage. Its body surface was covered with a layer of keratin as hard as rock, covered with sharp protrusions. Fluorescent pink blood flowed from the gaps between the protrusions, mixed with some tiny bone spurs.

The worm's head is cone-shaped, topped with a massive mouth filled with sharp teeth that gleam with a metallic gleam. Each tooth is as thick as an arm. Surrounding the mouth are eight robust tentacles covered with suckers and barbs, the suckers constantly contracting and emitting a gurgling sound. On its sides are dozens of pairs of small, vestigial legs that constantly scrape against the walls and floor, allowing it to move quickly through the tunnel.

The moment Han Zu came into its sight, the worm abruptly raised its head, its massive jaws snapping open with a deafening hiss. The sound carried intense energy fluctuations, causing fragments to fall from the ceiling of the passage. Then, it violently spewed a stream of pale pink liquid with a foul odor towards Han Zu. This stream far exceeded the volume of the smaller worms they had encountered before, forming a pink waterfall that instantly covered the entire area in front of Han Zu. The liquid expanded in the air, forming enormous droplets that exploded upon impact, corroding the ground and creating craters several meters deep, billowing thick white smoke. Han Zu's pupils constricted. He could clearly sense the intense corrosiveness and toxicity of the liquid; even with his powerful physique, contact with it would cause damage.

Han Zu slammed his left foot into the ground, his body rapidly retreating. Simultaneously, he waved his right hand, and the grayish-white aura surrounding him instantly transformed into blackish-red flames, which immediately condensed into a massive wall of fire, blocking his path. With a deafening crash, the pink liquid struck the fire wall, emitting a sizzling, corrosive sound. The flames on the surface of the fire wall immediately fluctuated violently, as energy was continuously corroded and evaporated, dissipating into specks of white light into the air. Han Zu felt a tremendous impact, his body involuntarily staggering back several steps, his feet leaving two deep gashes on the ground. After regaining his footing, Han Zu quickly channeled his internal energy into the fire wall, resisting the impact of the liquid. The liquid spray continued for nearly ten seconds before stopping, and the fire wall in front of Han Zu had become much thinner, its surface riddled with tiny holes. After spraying the liquid, the worm did not stop its attack. It twisted its huge body and crawled quickly toward Han Zu, its eight tentacles waving in the air as if to entangle and tear Han Zu apart.

Seeing the rapidly approaching worm, Han Zu knew he could no longer afford to be passively defensive. He took a deep breath and abruptly detonated the remaining fire wall. The violent energy erupted instantly, forming a powerful shockwave that swept towards the worm. The shockwave struck the worm's cuticle with a muffled "bang," slowing the worm's advance somewhat, though it didn't break through the cuticle. Taking advantage of this opening, Han Zu flashed forward, dashing towards the worm's side like an arrow—he had just observed that the cuticle on the worm's side was relatively thin and lacked many protrusions and bone spurs.

Sensing Han Zu's intention, the worm lashed out at him with its tentacles, which whistled through the air like steel whips, smashing into the ground and creating a massive crack. Han Zu nimbly dodged the tentacle's attack, rolling several times on the ground to avoid the worm's sweeping tail. Just before reaching the worm's body, he propelled himself forward, leaping onto its back. The worm's back was incredibly hard, covered in sharp protrusions; Han Zu's feet nearly pierced through the soles of his feet. He quickly regained his balance, grabbing a thick bone spike with both hands, and simultaneously channeling his energy into his right hand, slamming a powerful punch into the worm's hardened back.

With a crisp clang, the fist collided with the worm's keratinous layer, producing a metallic clang. Despite Han Zu's heavy blow, only a faint white mark remained on the worm's keratinous layer. Sensing the attack on its back, the worm frantically twisted its body, trying to shake Han Zu off, while simultaneously slapping its back with its tentacles. Han Zu gripped the bone spikes tightly, his body pressed firmly against the worm's back, refusing to let go no matter how the worm twisted. He knew ordinary attacks were ineffective against the worm; he had to find its vital point.

He looked up, his gaze sweeping over the worm's body. He suddenly noticed a thinner layer of cuticle where the worm's head connected to its body, with a noticeable gap—that was probably where the worm's nerve center was located. He took a deep breath, gathering a large amount of energy in his legs, and with a burst of power, he ran along the worm's back towards its head. The worm sensed Han Zu's movement and twisted its body even more frantically, occasionally slamming its head against the tunnel wall, trying to throw Han Zu off. Han Zu ran along the worm's back like walking a tightrope, nearly falling off several times, only managing to stay upright thanks to his exceptional balance and reflexes.

Just before the worm's head reached it, he leaped forward, spinning in the air and concentrating all his energy into his right fist, slamming it down into the gap where the worm's head and body connected. With a deafening crash, the violent energy erupted, like a sharp blade piercing the worm's cuticle and penetrating its body. The worm let out a piercing scream, its body convulsing violently, its eight tentacles flailing wildly, smashing the walls of the passage to pieces. Large amounts of blood and internal organs gushed from the wounds, splashing onto the ground like a fountain. Han Zu was thrown back by the impact, crashing heavily to the ground.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the worm's body gradually stopped convulsing and its head drooped limply. The battle had nearly exhausted half of his energy; the bone tissue inside his right hand had developed slight cracks, and his body was splattered with the worm's blood in several places, his skin beginning to redden and ulcerate.

After dealing with the giant worm, Han Zu leaned against the bone wall beside him and plunged his injured arm into the flesh and blood within, rapidly absorbing the biomass and energy. Soon, his energy levels were almost fully restored; Han Zu's ability to absorb this flesh and blood structure seemed far superior to that of other substances.

He looked down at his last remaining pair of pants, now tattered and mangled—the blood and entrails splattered from the worms were soaked into them, the highly corrosive liquid riddled with holes, the legs almost completely gone, leaving only a small section clinging to the waist. Worse still, some of the corrosive liquid seeped through the holes into his thighs, causing redness and blistering. While not causing serious injury, it did bring a burning pain.

He reached up and tugged at his trousers, the fabric at the waist unable to bear the weight, tearing with a "rip," and the already near-undone trousers completely lost their support. Han Zu shook his head helplessly, simply ripped off the tattered trousers and tossed them casually into the nearby pile of minced meat. Without the protection of his trousers, the cold air mixed with the stench of blood and flesh assaulted his senses, making his skin tingle slightly. But he didn't care; his body, having undergone multiple evolutions, was already adapted to all kinds of harsh environments, and the low temperature and stench were nothing to him.

He looked down at the corroded skin on his thigh, circulating his internal energy to cover the wound. The energy quickly penetrated the skin, the pain gradually subsided, and the reddened skin began to slowly return to normal. The little mouse perched on his head, its small eyes curiously staring at Han Zu's discarded pants, then at Han Zu's body. Its golden tail gently brushed against Han Zu's scalp, seemingly expressing its confusion. Han Zu raised his hand and touched the little mouse's head, a bitter smile appearing on his lips—he hadn't expected to be reduced to advancing naked, but it was what it was, and he could only accept it. After resting for about ten minutes, Han Zu pulled his arm out of the bloody wall, straightened his body, and walked deeper into the passage again. The little mouse adjusted its posture, pressing its body even closer, its golden tail wrapped around Han Zu's neck like a small scarf.

Continuing onward, the environment within the passage grew increasingly harsh. Corrosive liquid had accumulated to a depth of nearly half a meter, and walking through it produced a constant "plop, plop" sound underfoot. The viscous liquid clung to their ankles, feeling as if countless hands were pulling at them. The fleshy walls on either side of the passage had completely melted, turning into bubbling pools of fleshy pulp. From within this pulp, enormous limbs occasionally emerged, more complete than those seen before, some even possessing full arms and hands, their fingers still curling as if trying to grasp something. The bony structure at the top of the passage had completely collapsed, leaving only a few bare bone pillars barely holding it up. These pillars were riddled with cracks, threatening to break at any moment. Floating in the space above were numerous fragments of energy and flesh, creating a chaotic scene.

The energy turbulence in the air had reached its peak. The intense energy fluctuations severely hampered Han Zu's perception; he had to concentrate all his mental energy just to barely pinpoint the direction of the core area amidst the chaotic energy fluctuations. The energy fluctuations were sometimes strong, sometimes weak, and occasionally formed energy shockwaves that impacted his body, causing him to stagger. Worse still, numerous areas of energy turbulence began to appear around him, and the space within these areas was slightly distorted. Through the distorted space, he could see blurry scenes that didn't belong here, resembling passages to other areas, or perhaps scenes from the outside world.

Han Zu knew these were spatial folds caused by energy disorder. If he accidentally stepped into one, he could be teleported to an unknown area, or even torn apart by a spatial rift. He had to slow down, carefully avoiding these areas of energy disorder, taking each step with extreme caution. The malfunctioning creatures in the passage became even more frenzied. They stopped tearing at each other and focused all their attention on Han Zu, as if he were the root cause of all this chaos. Dozens of humanoid creatures crawled out of the fleshy mess on both sides of the passage, waving their tentacles and lunging at him; a dozen deformed birds circled in the air, constantly spraying green sap at him; and several small worms emerged from the liquid on the ground, trying to wrap around his ankles.

"so troublesome."

Han Zu's eyes turned cold. Black flames accompanied by scarlet lightning instantly engulfed his body and the little mouse perched on his head. Han Zu controlled the output of energy, transforming himself into a destructive avatar that pulsed with flames and lightning from time to time. Countless out-of-control deformed creations were devoured by the flames and lightning, and even the nearby decaying walls were quickly melted and evaporated. A strange aroma of roasted meat grew stronger.

Just as Han Zu dealt with the horde of out-of-control creatures that had surrounded him, the energy turbulence ahead suddenly lessened considerably. Then, a sound unlike the hissing of malfunctioning creations reached his ears—it was human speech. Though indistinct, it was unmistakably human language, mixed with the hum of machinery. Han Zu immediately stopped, gathering his energy. The flames and lightning dimmed, almost blending into the surrounding environment.

Han Zu knew perfectly well that encountering humans in this place was no coincidence; the most likely explanation was that they were members of the Ferdinand family. He slowly crouched down, pressing his ear against the still-weathered, bloody wall beside him, listening intently to the sounds ahead. The voices grew clearer, revealing at least a dozen people conversing, their tones a mixture of excitement and tension.

"...The energy reaction is getting stronger and stronger, it should be just ahead..."

"...The device has been debugged. Once the core is located, we can begin extracting energy..."

"...Be careful, the creatures here are dangerous. Two of my brothers have already been in trouble..."

These words reached Han Zu's ears intermittently, confirming his guess—they were indeed from the Ferdinand family, and their target was the core of the Creation Engine. Han Zu's eyes instantly turned cold. He slowly stood up, pressing his body against the half-melted flesh and blood wall beside him. At the same time, he raised his hand and pressed down on the little mouse above his head, gently pinching its body with his fingers to signal it to be quiet. Sensing Han Zu's action, the little mouse immediately held its breath, curling its body into a ball, only daring to peek out through Han Zu's fingers, its bright black eyes filled with vigilance.

Han Zu took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing rhythm to match his surroundings, and then cautiously moved towards the direction from which the sound came. His steps were extremely light, each footstep landing on a relatively hard surface to avoid making any noise. There were still many malfunctioning artifacts in the passage, but they seemed to be drawn by the presence of the human ahead, all moving in that direction, unaware of Han Zu behind them.