Ch. 2261..2270
Chapter 2261 He Is The New Dark Emperor
Even the Alliance of Kings was under the control of the Sacred Organization.
It was necessary as the Sacred Organization had been operating under the guise of darkness, they required the capacity and resources to carry out its operations.
The Alliance of Kings was one of the Sacred Organization’s strongest allies.
Besides, the top four strongest forces in Erudia, including the Erudian Alliance, were also under the influence of the Sacred Organization.
Aside from that, their influence stretched in all directions throughout the continent.
Nearly the entire world bore traces of the Sacred Organization’s operations.
This is simply too powerful!
Though the Lab of Gods was in charge of constructing training bases of a wide variety, the true power lay in the hands of the Sacred Organization.
Levi did not know much about Maya Industries.
A lot of people talked about how Maya Industries had replaced the Lab of Gods.
However, it seemed more probable that it was the Sacred Organization that had replaced the Lab of Gods.
How incredulous.
Levi memorized the names of the forces including the people in charge of the Sacred Organization.
“Eh? The Dark Emperor had a disciple?”
“She did! This disciple is so secretive that we have never met the person. Ms. Zoey was her new disciple, of which we were shocked to hear about.”
“This disciple is known as the Dark Prince. Both he and Ms. Zoey were the closest people to the Dark Emperor.”
Death Fiend and the rest hastened to offer their explanations.
Levi scratched his chin. “We must take precautions against this disciple.”
“Indeed! Aside from him, nobody would know that it is you behind the mask of the Dark Emperor! She was also the only one who knew where he is.”
Levi nodded. “I’ll kill him as soon as he shows himself!”
“Yes, Master! By the way, the surrounding nations are sending in queries about the disturbance earlier. What should we tell them?” Death Fiend asked.
Half of Adrune had been incapacitated from the shattering of Terra Blade.
“Send the words out that the blast was a result of the Dark Emperor undergoing training and attaining a higher level of power!” Levi ordered with a smirk.
Soon, the news about the Dark Emperor had once again attained godhood was spread.
The citizens of Adrune appeared appeased with the explanation.
The Dark Emperor is ranked first on the Divine Leaderboard!
The standards of fighters these days are immeasurable.
Now that his strength increased another tenfold, it is normal for a disturbance to be felt.
The recent disturbance in the air which had led to the damage in communication towers all over Adrune was simply another indication that the Dark Emperor had broken through to the next level.
With the new discovery, various organizations were frantically trying to introduce a new Divine Leaderboard which had a thousand fighters.
Then, there were another ten thousand fighters on the Provisional Leaderboard.
If any fighter on the Divine Leaderboard slipped down the ranks, the ones on the Provisional Leaderboard would take their place.
The competition was intense as anybody could be eliminated from the Divine Leaderboard at any moment.
With thousands of other fighters working hard, one was forced to either keep up or ship out.
Even a marginal improvement in skill would not guarantee one’s spot on the Divine Leaderboard.
The Dark Emperor sat at the top of the Divine Leaderboard with the ranks of second and third place being far beneath her skill level.
Ever since the news of the Dark Emperor’s training which resulted in Adrune’s disturbance was released, the other fighters had no doubt that the Dark Emperor’s skill level was stretched even further than those behind her place on the board.
Her dominance at the top of the Divine Leaderboard was secured without a doubt.
In their exaltation, many had declared the Dark Emperor to be God.
However, they were unaware that Levi was the new Dark Emperor.
On the other hand, with the Divine Leaderboard being opened to accommodate a thousand names, many fighters made the rank.
Though most were celebrating, some had their worries.
Zoey, being eliminated from the Divine Leaderboard, was one of them.
As a result of her incapacitation, her powers were ruined.
Being unable to maintain her abilities, she was forced to make way for other more ambitious candidates.
Most were happy with the news as they had been hoping for the opportunity to prove themselves.
To them, making it to the Provisional Leaderboard was an honor in itself.
Levi was not about to bother himself with such trivial matters as he had something else more pressing on his mind.
“Why was the old headquarters of the Sacred Organization relocated?”
Chapter 2262 Maya Industries Is Not Worthy
As the Sacred Organization operated from the shadows, the location of its headquarters was irrelevant.
Why does it need to be moved all of a sudden? Something does not seem right.
Levi had been undergoing solitary training during the period of detention. The Prison of Darkness cut him completely out of the outside world.
“We don’t actually know,” Death Fiend admitted. “But based on what we assumed, the headquarters had to be moved because it was discovered.”
“That’s right!” the others chimed in. “The Dark Emperor ordered for it to be moved after someone found out about it!”
The rest nodded eagerly.
“I have a feeling that the person who discovered it was Daxon,” Death Fiend added.
“It’s most likely him!” the others agreed. “The Dark Emperor did not suspect one bit when you mentioned Daxon’s name, Master!”
That means that the Dark Emperor would not be surprised at all by the fact that Daxon had discovered the Prison of Darkness! This points to the irrefutable fact that the headquarters had been discovered by Daxon!
“There’s more!” Death Fiend cried. “Erudia has long been a target of the Dark Emperor. She has been constantly pushing the limits of her power with the intention of merging Skyward Sword and Terra Blade to invade Erudia! Hence, gaining control of the top four forces in Erudia was the beginning!”
“I have heard of that.” someone else added. “The Dark Emperor once mentioned that it was due to the existence of one particular person which had prevented her from marching against Erudia. I think that person must be Daxon! The feelings of resentment toward him must have been intensified after she met him!”
Levi nodded. “It looks like Daxon was the one who has discovered the Prison of Darkness.”
Suddenly, Levi was forcefully reminded of the last words of the Dark Emperor.
It seems that the Dark Emperor was under the impression that I am Daxon’s disciple.
Only at the very last second did she realize that that was not the case.
Yes, that’s how things should be.
On second thought, everything the Dark Emperor did might have something to do with Daxon.
After Levi got everything clear, he turned to leave.
“By the way, Master,” Death Fiend reported, “I’d gotten word that Sammy’s life is in danger. The Triple Group has labeled her as a traitor.”
“Sammy?” Levi repeated, the expression on his face changed.
She has been through hell and back with me, not to mention helping me out more than once. Her current predicament is also caused by me indirectly.
Levi could not stand to watch his comrade in trouble.
How dare the Triple Group lift a finger against my friend?
“Master, the Triple Group is backed by Maya Industries,” informed one of the men with a look of worry on his face.
The Dark Emperor had once proclaimed Maya Industries to be the greatest threat to the Sacred Organization.
As a result, the name Maya Industries still instilled a certain fear within these men.
Death Fiend dispelled the fear with a fierce glare toward the speaker.
The current Dark Emperor is Levi! After proving his fearsome power by breaking both the Skyward Sword and the Terra Blade, who else would dare stand in his way? Even the mighty Maya Industries will easily succumb to Levi!
“Men, we’ll be heading to Keerea,” Levi announced as he met their gaze.
His intention was to get a feel for the changes that had occurred during his incarceration, at the same time, search for evidence regarding the Lab of Gods.
Something else must be behind the disappearance of the Lab of Gods.
They must still be around, plotting something.
At the same moment in Keerea, the high-ranking officials of the Triple Group stood outside Sammy’s cell.
“She won’t be able to hold on much longer! I’d give her tonight, at the very most.”
“Isn’t it a waste for her to just die like that?”
“You’re right. We should use her as an experimental subject. She can be added to the fresh batch of subjects.”
“At least her death would serve the glory of the Triple Group!”
“We’ll do that, then! Send her in with the other subjects!”
The recent experiments carried out by the Triple Group were brutal and heinous.
Chapter 2263 Tartarus
Initially, the experiments were started by Maya Industries.
Humans and other animals were injected with the experimental serum and the effects was observed.
After the Triple Group took over the project, many mutants began to emerge from their laboratory. They were the result of experiments that had gone horribly wrong.
The small town in Keerea where the Triple Group deposited the mutants was known as Tartarus.
In order to prevent the mutants from running amok into the cities, the Triple Group had built an enclosure made of specialized metal of a hundred feet tall to seal off the entire town.
From a distance, the structure appeared like a fortress.
It was built at great expense to the Triple Group as a means to contain the mutants.
If they were allowed to escape, the entire nation of Keerea would be plunged into chaos.
As a side effect of the experiments, the mutants were not killable and their martial abilities were greatly enhanced.
The drugs had altered their physiology to such an extent that they were more powerful than pure energy beings.
However, their most terrifying trait was their indestructibility.
Even the best fighters of the age could not even place a dent in them.
At first, the situation remained under control. After going against the advice of Maya Industries to conduct their experiments on increasingly larger scales, the Triple Group suddenly found themselves overwhelmed by their own creations.
In the end, the most practical solution for them was to dump all of the mutants behind the walls of Tartarus.
Since then, the Triple Group had turned its attention to the control of their experimental creations.
However, not much success was found in that endeavor, resulting in another large batch of test subjects perishing.
Given the urgency of the situation, these subjects were transported into the town.
With the increase in experiments being conducted, the town gradually became the hell that it was known for.
Sensing an opportunity in the midst of the calamity, the Triple Group began training fighters by placing them behind the walls of Tartarus to fend themselves for a couple of hours.
At the start of the experiment, the Triple Group had placed ten thousand fighters in Tartarus.
It did not take long before the death toll approached eight thousand, with the survivors suffering grievous injuries.
Out of that vast number, only several hundred of them had managed to pass their training.
With the fighters’ skills being pushed to their limits in an attempt to survive the horrors within Tartarus, they experienced massive growth.
The mutants were violent beings with no emotions. The majority of the fighters who had been sent in were ripped to shreds.
Not a single fighter had managed to survive for twelve hours in Tartarus as the longest made it to nine.
Even those who had made it through seven or eight hours within Tartarus found their ranks increasing within the newly implemented Divine Leaderboard.
If the fighters were left in Tartarus with nobody to open the doors from the outside, they would certainly die.
The reason that the experiments were being kept a secret was that the mutants were far too powerful.
Maya Industries and the Triple Group adopted all the methods at their disposal to keep it a secret.
The world cannot know about the mutants before we can gain control of them.
As the experimental subjects were scarce, the suggestion to volunteer Sammy was enthusiastically received.
It would have drawn suspicion if the search for experimental subjects were conducted on a large scale.
Since we are in need of test subjects, Sammy would do just fine.
At the order of one of the executives, Sammy was dragged out of her cell.
The laboratory was not far away from the town where the mutants were trapped.
Like the other test subjects, Sammy’s wrists and ankles were bound in chains as they awaited the serum to be administered.
Being held in captivity for so long, Sammy had resigned herself to the fact that her end was near.
Meanwhile, Levi arrived at Keerea and promptly made his way to the headquarters of the Triple Group.
Chapter 2264 Levi Enters The Fortress
Over the past three years, the Triple Group had evolved to such an extent that their headquarters looked sleek and futuristic with technology never seen anywhere else in the world.
“Levi Garrison is here to pay us a visit!” shouted an excited voice. Soon, the entire building was aware of Levi’s presence.
Many crowded around the lobby for a glimpse of their famous enemy.
“A rare honor this is, Levi!”
“Hah! Are you here for Sammy?”
“What a loyal guy you are. Here to rescue her, are you?”
It is hard to believe that they were terrified of me just three years ago. They would have run and hidden at the sound of my arrival back then.
Levi looked around at the smug faces.
After only three years, we are now the most powerful corporation in the world. Levi is still stuck in the past.
“That’s right, I am here for her!” Levi answered coldly. “I am here to take her away. Hand her over!”
The employees of the Triple Group burst out laughing.
“You’re pretty brazen to come here and make demands, aren’t you? You’ve chosen the worst possible way to die!”
“Levi, you have delivered yourself right to us this time.”
The Triple Group were beside themselves with glee.
With his pitifully limited powers right now, he is committing suicide by seeking trouble with the Triple Group.
There were many within the Triple Group who wished to exact revenge against Levi.
He is not even that powerful anymore! It’s just the sound of his name that strikes fear in the hearts of men.
The person who manages to kill him will have their name and reputation exalted beyond their wildest dreams.
“Since you have so kindly delivered yourself to us, we shall oblige you by claiming your life!”
Just when the crowd was preparing to call for his death, a voice called out.
“Wait! Where’s the fun in that? Let’s torture him for a bit!”
“How do we do that?” someone shouted.
“We have a party heading to you-know-where, don’t we? Let him join them!”
At that suggestion, the crowd’s eyes glinted malevolently, aware that he was referring to the town surrounded by metal.
Levi will be heading to Tartarus!
“You wish to see Sammy?” a voice called out.
“Haven’t I made myself clear? Where is she?”
Despite playing along, Levi had a vague idea of what they had in store for him.
Owing to the vast influence of the Sacred Organization and the powerful stakeholders affiliated with it, the numerous spies within the Triple Group have been keeping Levi well informed about the experiments and Maya Industries’ involvement.
“If you’ll come with us quietly, we’ll take you to Sammy!”
“Fine, I’ll go with you.”
Soon, Levi was led to the laboratory outside of the town.
It was fortunate that he arrived at that moment, as it was not yet Sammy’s turn to be administered the serum.
“Since Levi is here, why don’t we toss him in there with Sammy?”
“Doesn’t Sammy have a crush on him? How cruel it will be for her to be separated from her after such a brief reunion!”
The executives of the Triple Group changed their plans immediately.
Instead of administering the serum to Sammy, they had decided to torture her alongside Levi.
Sammy was moved to tears at the sight of Levi.
She no longer wished to die.
Sammy begged the executives of the Triple Group to let her and Levi go.
“Well, we can do that but we have a condition. Do you see the metal fortress in the distance? If you can make it past three hours in there, we’ll let you walk out of here alive!”
Sammy agreed to it at once.
She and Levi were not the only ones being sent there.
Aside from them, there was a group of fighters who wished to undergo training behind the metal walls.
Mace Schwartz, a fearsome fighter on the Divine Leaderboard, led the group. His record of surviving nine hours within the walls had not been broken by anyone else.
When Levi and Sammy joined him, he was aiming to break his old record and remain there for ten hours.
Chapter 2265 Fright Of The Divine Leaderboard Fighters
Levi listened silently while they made their arrangements. He was aware of the town which held the experimental subjects.
The secretive project conducted by Maya Industries was mostly carried out by the Triple Group.
Levi was not concerned as he felt confident that the Triple Group was no match for his abilities.
However, he was rather curious and wanted to see what the mutants looked like.
What the hell is Maya Industries up to? Do they have anything to do with the Lab of Gods?
Levi waited without raising any objections allowing them to make the arrangements.
Sammy did not have a clue about what lay behind those walls, nor did she care. To her, it was her only hope for salvation.
For the sake of our survival, I am going to try my best.
Earlier, she had heard talk of Levi’s arrival to the Triple Group’s headquarters and his weakened powers.
His arrival is a sign. I must not let this opportunity slip by without giving it a try.
He’s come so far for me. How could I repay him if I were to give up just like that?
Soon, Sammy’s parents arrived and slipped several bottles of medication into her hand and whispered for her to consume it before entering Tartarus.
Not wishing to see their daughter die, they have procured medication that would heal her completely and recover all her powers.
Before this, they did not have any means to rescue her when she was under the captivity of the Triple Group.
Since the executives of the Triple Group had declared that Sammy would be released if she survived three hours within Tartarus, Sammy’s parents saw it as a rare opportunity for her release.
They are not usually this generous. It must be due to Levi’s arrival that they agreed to do this. They are torturing Levi through Sammy.
Without hesitation, Sammy’s parents acted swiftly to secure the best chance of their daughter’s survival by bribing Mace and his men to protect her when they were inside the town.
Before departing, they warned their daughter to remain vigilant and take care of herself.
As Levi’s survival meant nothing to them, they had also instructed Mace and his men to leave Levi behind if they were left with no choice.
Before entering the gates, the most recent batch of experimental subjects numbering in the hundreds was administered the serum in the laboratory.
Then, they were ordered to remain behind for observation purposes.
“Ah!”
A dreadful scream rang out all of a sudden from somewhere within the laboratory.
Levi and the rest of his party stood at a training base which was a mess on the inside.
Not far away, there was a massive steel cage with a disheveled man behind its bars who was violently screaming.
Being bound from head to foot in chains and having his mouth clamped shut with specially made clips, he could only thrash and release muffled screams.
Levi glanced across and found him familiar, though he could not recognize who it was.
However, the prisoner seemed to recognize Levi as he began struggling at the latter’s appearance.
His violent movements in the cage caused the metal to clang loudly.
“Do you know who that is?” Levi asked.
Sammy shook her head.
“It’s a traitor to the Triple Group!” a voice barked harshly.
The next moment, the electric net around the cage was turned on. The surge of electricity was so fierce that sparks erupted as it coursed through the man who shuddered violently before slumping over in a dead faint.
Without sparing the man another glance, Levi followed the party as they made their way forward.
After half an hour of observation, most of the subjects that had been administered the serum seemed to have suffered its adverse effects.
Stuffed in containers as experimental failures, they were prepared to be sent to Tartarus.
Levi paid attention in his observation and found that there was nothing special about the mutants.
“Let’s move!”
Before long, the group arrived at Tartarus.
Though Mace was an elite fighter on Divine Leaderboard, he could not repress a shudder as he stood before the gates.
The other fighters did not fare so well, either. Most of them were shaking in fear.
Chapter 2266 Cruelty Of The Rules
Out of the entire group, there were several dozen of them who were survivors of Tartarus.
Mace, the fighter on the Divine Leaderboard, had entered multiple times.
Those veterans were most familiar with the brutality.
The other hundred or so of the party was there for the first time. At the sight of Mace’s fear, they too began to panic.
Standing on shaky knees, they turned their anxious and clammy faces to Mace for reassurance.
Being the most experienced member of the party, Mace addressed the party with some last-minute tips.
“Remember, if you can’t hold on any longer, press the button to call for help when you run toward the four doors. It’s your only hope in getting out of there alive.”
The fighters who entered Tartarus to train were allowed to call for help with a push of the button.
The staff of the Triple Group would then either open the doors for the fighters to exit or lure the mutants away.
However, the Triple Group was unable to guarantee their survival. Though they would provide assistance when called for, the chances of survival were slim as no one had no control over the mutants.
Furthermore, the doors were not allowed to be open for an extended duration for fear of the mutants escaping.
As a result, most of the deaths of fighters occurred during the path of escape.
Even after the doors were opened, they were ripped apart by the mutants who caught up to them.
After completing his briefing, Mace led the party in after the failed experiments that had been stuffed in containers were thrown in.
“All right, then. Here we go!”
The doors swung open with an ominous rumble and the party found themselves shoved in roughly by the guards who had accompanied them.
After the heavy metal doors swung shut, the silence was so deafening that it felt as if they were completely shut off from the outside world and into another that was far more sinister.
There was only a weak light ahead of them. If one strained hard enough, the surroundings were just barely visible.
The silence is too odd…
The party held its breath anxiously as they made their way forward on shaky knees.
It was the uncertainty that was the most frightening!
All of them were aware that the town contained tens of thousands of mutants and that thought alone sent a shiver down their spines.
As the group ventured deeper, more and more of them were beginning to regret being there.
“No, I want to turn back!” one of them suddenly whimpered. “I don’t want to die here!”
As the silence was broken, many more expressed a similar desire to leave.
Mace glared at them. “That’s impossible. The rules have been clearly stated that upon entry, the doors would be shut for the first hour.”
The measure was implemented to discourage deserters like them. If the rule was not enforced, everybody would leave before even coming into contact with the mutants.
It is a true test of patience against unknown dangers.
The party grew pale at Mace’s words.
“Let us just wait here,” someone suggested. “We’ll make a dash for it when the door opens after an hour!”
Mace chuckled in disdain. “The mutants have exceptional auditory sense. They’ve probably picked up on our arrival and are rushing here by now! The only way to make it out of this alive would be to group up and hold on for an hour before dashing out!”
“One more thing,” he added. “To prevent the mutants from escaping, the door that will open every hour will be the one with the least mutants around it. When one of you push the button for help, you will receive a message that the door is open and the most optimal path to your positioning at the moment.”
Holy sh*t!
The party stood frozen in fear.
So the standard for training is based on time. A door will open every hour and that is why the death toll is high.
Mace’s words turned the last sliver of optimism within the party into despair.
As they could not retreat, the only thing they could do was to get through it with Mace leading them.
Chapter 2267 Monsters
However, Levi smiled.
This rule set by Triple Group sounded very exciting and effective.
To open a gate within the hour was unthinkable.
It is the survival of the fittest!
It could maximize the fruits of training!
Way better than the shortcuts these days.
Only the strong could escape and survive.
There was no such thing as fair competition!
It was about who was stronger!
But of course, a small part of it came down to luck.
A few people might be lucky enough to be in the location of the gate and escape quickly.
But it was only a few out of the many few.
Ninety-nine percent of the challenge depended on their strength!
Sammy began to feel nervous as well.
Initially, she thought that her parents had arranged it so that she could take Levi away safely, but the current situation seems dire.
After all, even Mace didn’t have the confidence, let alone the others.
“Make sure you follow me!” Mace reminded Sammy before departure.
The crowd began to move forward steadily.
Of course, few dozens of people made a bet that the gate behind them would be opened in an hour. They found a place nearby to hide and waited for an hour while the majority followed Mace.
Along the way, everyone was gradually becoming frightened.
There were skeletons everywhere. There were even corpses rotting, discharging a rancid odor.
And not a single corpse was in its complete form. The bodies were all torn apart and scattered all over the place.
Upon seeing the cruel sight, everyone couldn’t but imagine the cruel fate that the corpses suffered when they were alive.
“There monsters are terrifying! If you’re caught, your body won’t be left intact! Even myself…”
Mace’s words made everyone’s heart shiver.
But they had no other option but to move forward.
A few steps later, they laid their eyes on a massive container.
They could recognize the container as it was thrown in from earlier.
Sammy almost became one of them.
“Normally, the drug will not take its effect until an hour after the injection. Based on that, it should be time…”
“Let’s walk around it quietly,” Mace warned everyone, and everyone followed Mace anxiously.
“Boom!”
Suddenly, a loud noise came from the container, and everyone stopped in their steps and looked at the container.
The next moment, the movements in the container were getting more distinct.
Bang!
Boom!
Everyone could notice the discernable fist prints protruding out of the container, and even more of them gradually appeared.
There was obviously someone inside hitting the walls of the container.
“Creak!”
“Squeak!”
Someone was tearing open the container.
Amidst the screeching noise, the container was torn apart, and everyone inside the container came out.
“Argh!!”
Everyone started shrieking as they saw the people coming out of the container.
Even Sammy screamed her lungs out. She was frightened by the people who came out.
The thirteen people hiding in the abandoned house near the east gate were waiting for the gate behind them to open in the next hour.
They were sure that they were in the safest position as they would be able to escape after an hour just by hiding.
At this moment, they suddenly heard brutal screams in the distance, and they grinned.
“Hahaha! That’s what you get for not listening to us! You just walked into your own grave!”
“Exactly! Do you think you’re safe by following someone from the Divine Leaderboard? When the actual danger comes, do you think he would save you? In your dreams!”
The previously tense atmosphere eased up as they heard the sounds not far away. Everyone sighed in relief.
They were all glad that they hid here. Otherwise, they might have been torn apart by monsters long ago.
However, something crept up behind them and stared at them without them realizing it.
“Huff… Huff…” The creatures wheezed as they exhaled an appalling stench.
Chapter 2268 Formidable Mutants
“Guys…”
As they felt the breath hitting the back of their heads and the stench penetrating their nasal cavities, the thirteen people finally realized that there was something behind them.
Everyone’s body stiffened and broke out in a cold sweat. Their souls left their bodies out of fear.
They slowly turned around and laid eyes on some terrifying figures.
“Argh!”
Everyone screamed in horror.
These people in front could be considered monsters. Their eyes were blood red, and their faces were almost monochromatic with no traces of bloodshot. The most distinct feature was that their bodies had doubled in size. Their arms and legs were as hefty as tree trunks.
They exuded a menacing aura.
After having been injected with drugs, these people appeared like mutants.
They were ultimately terrifying!
Otherwise, Triple Group would have been able to keep them under control.
Snap!
Swoosh!
A monster grabbed one of the hiding people and forcefully split him in two.
The other monsters charged at them, forcefully pulling the limbs of the remaining twelve, shredding them into pieces.
Not one of them survived.
Well, they were warned before.
Mace had been here many times.
He had abundant experience, and they served him well.
He knew that these monsters would find you no matter where you hid.
As long as the monsters could notice the slightest breath of life, they would hunt you down.
No hiding spot would be safe unless you’re lucky enough to be too far away for the smell to hit their noses.
At the same time, the large group led by Mace encountered the same situation.
However, the monsters they encountered were experiments that had just been injected with the drug for an hour.
These monsters were the specimens injected with the newly improved drug. Maya Industries wanted to continue the experiment to see if they could keep the monsters under control.
However, the results were disastrous for they were out of control.
After mutating under the effects of the drug, the specimens increased their body size, and their eyes turned scarlet red, becoming increasingly ruthless.
It turned out that the container bulged and broke apart was not because of the raging specimens but their increasing body size. The container could no longer contain them, so it broke.
This time, the specimens were not only uncontrollable but also more powerful than their previous iterations.
And the group led by Mace happened to encounter them.
In the end, they suffered severe casualties.
It wasn’t something that any ordinary fighter could handle.
Even after executing their most powerful moves and weapons, they barely left a scratch on these mutants.
On the other hand, if they got caught by one of the mutants, there would be no hope of surviving.
They would be torn to shreds on the spot, breaking every bone in their body.
Only a fighter from the Divine Leaderboard like Mace could have a chance at them.
Sammy fled with Mace and the others. They forced a way out, knocking the mutants away, and found a path toward survival.
Levi, who was dragged by Sammy, also escaped with them.
However, Levi was actually studying the mutants, but he was dragged away involuntarily.
The other fighters of the Divine Leaderboard also revealed themselves, unleashing their attacks from all directions.
After all, the number of mutants in the container was not just a few but there were about a hundred of them.
There was no way to stop them.
In this wave, a dozen of people were killed and torn apart. Fortunately, the others managed to make a break for it, much better than the group of people who hid.
But the biggest problem was that the situation here alarmed the entire town. Tens of thousands of mutants scattered around the small town rushed over.
The first thing they detected was the noise and the second thing they sensed was the smell of humans.
Everyone was separated from the first wave.
Hundreds of people divided themselves and formed ten teams.
The number of people following Mace was still relatively large—more than forty of them.
“Now is the most dangerous moment! Thousands of monsters are coming!”
Mace looked toward Sammy and advised, “Stay close!”
Then, Mace led everyone forward.
Mace was experienced in these, and he wouldn’t cower in the face of these monsters. Instead, he would charge forward and fight to improve his combat skills. However, now that he was with Sammy, he had to stay out of the way as much as possible and bring Sammy out after enduring for three hours. After that, he could let loose and begin his relentless slaughter.
Chapter 2269 The Maya Industries Conspiracy
Mace was very experienced. He always managed to navigate his way around groups of monsters or encounter few monsters that everyone could handle.
But the others were not as lucky.
Despite having a fighter from the Divine Leaderboard, they always encountered monsters.
In the beginning, they might have encountered dozens; then, hundreds and even thousands at the end.
Even the fighters of the Divine Leaderboard had to steer clear of endangerment, not daring to challenge the monsters head-on.
Hence, they tried their best to avoid the larger groups of monsters.
However, the others were not so lucky. They encountered a group of monsters and got surrounded. If they couldn’t escape in time, their only fate would be death.
The number of mutants would only increase. There could even be thousands in the end.
There was no way to keep them under control!
Even the newbies witnessed the terror of the monsters.
All kinds of attacks connected to the monsters had no effects, let alone damage them. Thus, destroying them was out of the question.
Their bodies would expand and become indestructible. Nobody knew what sort of drug Maya Industries used to produce such superhuman effects.
At that moment, nearly every monster in town was on the move.
The learners fell one after another, and the time continued to tick. Finally, came the one-hour mark.
An hour finally passed, and the west gate opened.
The newcomers rushed to the west gate after hearing the news.
However, the large group of monsters followed behind and chased after them.
“These idi*ts! They’re luring too many of them here. Close it! Close the gates!”
The members of Triple Group who were standing outside the west gate closed the gate quickly.
In the end, only two people made it out while the rest remained inside.
The majority of them ran away, and monsters surrounded a few.
Levi was curious to see what the mutants were injected with, but Mace had too much experience. He managed to circle their way around the monsters every time, and he couldn’t observe them.
He could only follow them.
The time continued to tick.
The fighters were all training themselves.
But soon, more of them fell.
After two hours, seven people escaped.
As for the others who did not escape, they were either training or couldn’t run at all.
The Triple Group analyzed some data in their laboratory.
“The specimens in the container got incredibly powerful after they transformed! It was so difficult to fight them, even for the Divine Leaderboards!”
“Look at the data! All four of the Divine Leaderboard fighters were having a hard time! Apart from Mace, the others were rather incompetent!”
“This means they are facing a greater difficulty now! The seven hours now could be more grueling than the eight hours in the past!”
The specimens were getting stronger, and everyone had mixed feelings.
They agonized at the thought of not being able to control these mutants.
“What is Maya Industries trying to do? If this continues, they might even produce a mutant that even the Divine Leaderboard couldn’t defeat! How is it possible for anyone to defend against this?”
“Exactly! Right now, shouldn’t we think about how to keep the mutants under control?” They were all working on the same idea.
However, Maya Industries seemed to not care about this issue! They continued to strengthen the drug, and the mutants became even more vigorous and violent!
All they wanted was to create the most aggressive mind and the most powerful physique!
On the other hand, the experimenters began to theorize that the experiments of Maya Industries were not that simple.
“Do you think Maya Industries already knew how to control these mutants and didn’t tell us?”
“Well, that could be the case!”
At the same time, their superiors arrived, and everyone stopped discussing.
Three hours had passed in the blink of an eye, which was also the longest time that Triple Group superiors promised Sammy.
As long as she could pull through, they would let her go.
Inside the fortress, Sammy was feeling both thrilled and afraid.
At last, three hours had passed.
This time, the north gate was opened.
Sammy guzzled down the drug given by her parents and hurried her way to the north gate excitedly.
Chapter 2270 Levi The Scapegoat
“Levi, it’s the three-hour mark! If we rush out of here, we’ll be safe! They will let us go!” Sammy announced with excitement.
Her parents arranged everything impeccably.
As long as she followed Mace, she could easily survive for three hours.
The inexperienced immediately rushed to the north gate upon the three-hour mark.
But before that, Sammy also gave the rest of her drug to Levi so he could use the drug to become superlatively powerful in times of crisis.
“Let’s go! Follow me to the north gate!”
Mace led the way, and Sammy followed him while dragging Levi along.
About ten minutes later, everyone arrived at the north gate. However, the gate only cracked a narrow opening, wide enough for only one person to pass through at a time.
“We’ll leave first!”
Seven to eight people immediately rushed out of the gate.
To them, three hours was more than enough.
Of course, they benefited from this. If it weren’t for Mace, they would have been dead long ago.
“You leave too!” Mace told Sammy. “Go!”
Sammy eagerly ran out.
Bang!
She felt a massive impact behind her that pushed her hundreds of meters away through the gate.
“The gate is closing!”
After Sammy went out, the gate quickly closed behind her.
“You cannot leave!” Mace stopped in front of Levi, blocking his escape.
Sammy, already outside the gate, was dumbfounded as she witnessed this scene.
She was confused about the fact that Levi hadn’t escaped.
“What… what are you doing?”
Mace responded without turning to her. “I promised your parents that I would only help you escape! My mission is complete! But he is not part of my mission!”
Sammy wanted to rush back into the gate, but the gate was already closed.
Moreover, more and more mutants were approaching, and there was no way anyone would open the gate again.
She could only watch the gate gap slowly close and eventually completely conceal Levi from her sight.
After Sammy escaped, her parents rushed over immediately.
“Lucky for you, Levi appeared and saved you. Otherwise, you will become a monster as well!” Her parents were delighted to see her come out safely.
“But having him exchange for my life? I can’t live with this.” Sammy’s lips were trembling as she was about to cry.
“Levi is going to die one way or another. What difference does it make if he died earlier?” Everyone was contemptuous.
The high-rank officials of Triple Group were all excited!
“We have waited very long for this opportunity, Levi! This is for all those miserable years of your suppression!”
“We finally got you! Let’s see how you plan to escape!”
“Could he ever escape? We’ll see how long he can survive instead.”
“Hahahaha…”
For them, being able to exact revenge on Levi was incredibly gratifying.
Torturing the tyrant who held them down in the past was indeed the best thing that had ever happened in their lives.
At the north gate of the fortress, Mace glared at Levi and the others.
“From now on, I will act alone! Don’t follow me! I will kill you!”
Then, Mace focused his stare on Levi. “Especially you! You must not follow me!”
Mace was about to start his training. Therefore, he didn’t want anyone to follow him.
He immediately dashed off in the other direction, leaving Levi with twenty or thirty people behind him.
Boom!
The sound of the ground shaking rumbled in everyone’s ears.
A swarm of mutants, teeming with more than a thousand of them, came from all directions to kill them.
Everyone was terrified.
“Run! Run quickly!”
However, before they tried to escape, they shoved Levi toward the mutants.
“Let him hold them off for us! Let’s run!”
In the end, Levi was pushed to the front while everyone ran away.
They even asked Levi to hold them off for a while.
Watching thousands of mutants rushing toward him, Levi unexpectedly smiled.
Now that Sammy was no longer a burden, he wanted to take on these mutants and see what they were all about.