Mechanical Alchemist

The spider's corpse bore resemblances to several types of mutated spiders, yet it wasn't exactly the same, suggesting another variant of the creature.

Upon identifying it with the All-knowing Eye, Su Lun immediately received information about it.

[Mutated Ghostface Spider]

Explanation: A beast variant skilled in psychic control, preferring dark and damp environments. Its Poison Fang can release a deadly blood toxin; do not look into its eyes, or it will evoke your most primal desires. Although lethal, its body is fragile.

"Is there a colony of spider mutants near this sewer?"

Seeing the body, Su Lun's brow furrowed.

Highly toxic, skilled in psychic control... this creature was clearly not to be trifled with.

The presence of a few here hinted that there might be many more in the depths of the cave.

He was close to the location of the scythe, and now a new creature had emerged. Should he proceed or turn back?

Suddenly, he thought of the bizarre human face pattern on the spider's abdomen, and a thought flashed through his mind: "Could it be that the student who claimed to have seen the 'nude woman' was actually controlled by this type of spider monster?"

So, it wasn't a case of seeing some "nude woman," but rather being psychically controlled?

Thinking this, Su Lun felt the creature's abilities were somewhat sinister.

He looked around the sewer pipes again, and a three-dimensional map began to form in his mind.

"Huh... calculating the distance, this seems to be right under Green Street's sewer. Could this mean that the people going missing are the work of these spider monsters?"

Upon closer inspection, the details all seemed to match up.

The case was solved—so that was it!

...

But reality didn't grant Su Lun much time to ponder, as at that moment, an abnormal noise suddenly came from deep within the cave.

"Biaji, Biaji, Biaji..."

Hearing the dense, wet scuttling sound, Su Lun immediately guessed that it had to be those large black dogs that had transformed from the mutant worms!

"They're still not dead?"

Even Su Lun was somewhat surprised.

Hearing the noise, he didn't hesitate. He quickly retreated, seeking a corner to hide from the "Reina," the student who was being chased by the monsters.

She was like a ticking bomb—bad news for anyone close by.

He didn't want to attract this deadly trouble.

Still, he thought if she were to be killed by the black dogs, maybe he could take advantage of the moment to search the body.

Soon after hearing the noise, Su Lun watched as an agile figure bolted out of the darkness, followed by seven or eight menacing black dogs.

"Beastification ability[Talent C-011-Catwoman]?"

Seeing her running on all fours with agility, Su Lun immediately thought of this talent.

Another look at the familiar liquid leather suit, although he couldn't see her face, wasn't that "Reina"?

No wonder she had survived this long; this talent was one of the few that brought agility to the utmost extreme.

While it wasn't good for fighting, it was excellent for escapes.

In that instant, Su Lun saw three more black dogs emerge from nowhere and intercept her. But like a nimble black cat, Reina skillfully spun three hundred and sixty degrees in mid-air to avoid the black dogs' pincer attack.

Seven or eight black dogs had become ten, and the situation was worsening.

And watching her heaving chest, the intense and sustained exertion must have left her at the end of her rope.

...

Su Lun had no intention of meddling, nor could he deal with those black dogs.

He even thought that if the woman dared bring the monsters over, he wouldn't mind taking a shot at her leg, putting an end to her troubles.

But evidently, Reina also saw this mysterious guide who had appeared in the tunnel.

What surprised Su Lun was that instead of leading trouble his way, she actually shouted a warning, "Be careful! Avoid me!"

Before the words even ended, she must have felt it was too late to dodge. With over ten dogs almost blocking the entire passageway, even brushing past her and the volatile corrosive gases they emitted could seriously harm Su Lun without his combat suit.

Knowing she couldn't escape, Reina didn't intend to drag anyone down with her. At that moment, she bit her silver teeth hard, suddenly changed direction, and didn't rush towards Su Lun but instead chose another, more energy-consuming vertical shaft to dart into.

Then, those ten-plus black dogs also snaked into the tunnel after her, vanishing within.

Watching this unfold, Su Lun's grip on his pistol loosened, upended by surprise: "Not all of these Inner City tycoons and young ladies are selfish and naive like that Jack..."

But sentiments aside,

Su Lun watched the fleeing figure with an undisturbed heart.

An unfamiliar noble lady, the very reason he had to "make a run for it," she was lucky he didn't kick her while she was down.

Thinking he probably wouldn't get a chance to search a body now, Su Lun stepped out from his hiding place, still determined to move forward and secure the scythe first.

But just then, he paused, tuning into a sound and retreating, "Huh, why is she coming back?"

The once-fading footsteps were approaching again!

Before Su Lun could grasp what was happening, he hadn't yet seen anyone in the tunnel when he heard Reina's voice, now desperate and anxious, shouting: "Mr. Su Lun, please, I beg you to give this to my dear aunt Qiandao, it's in your hands now!"

"???"

His own name catching him off guard, Su Lun's stare widened with bewilderment.

This... this Reina actually knew his name?

And listening to her subsequent words, Qiandao was her aunt?!

What was going on?

An Inner City underworld executive actually had ties to a native of the Inner City's great financial conglomerate—was this some melodramatic twist?

Su Lun felt that the amount of information in that sentence was a bit overwhelming.

And in the instant his heart surged with astonishment, the Catwoman had already torn off a crystal necklace from her neck and thrown it his way.

Then, like the wind, the woman, leading a pack of vicious dogs, ran off...

Su Lun looked at the necklace that had fallen not far from his feet, his expression suddenly becoming quite odd.

Did Leina know she was gonna die and was thus entrusting her possessions to him?

Considering her use of "auntie," Su Lun felt he should probably deliver her belongings to Qian Tiao.

...

Clearly, this necklace was far from ordinary.

But being cautious, Su Lun didn't immediately pick up the necklace; instead, he instinctively avoided it as if it were the plague.

Seeing that the dogs didn't chase after the necklace, he breathed a sigh of relief.

That meant the item wasn't the "specific scent" that was relentlessly attracting the mutated freaks.

"Huh... specific scent?"

Su Lun eyed the rapidly disappearing figure, then suddenly, a spark of realization flashed through his mind.

He saw a turning point in the situation!

And more... he had found the critical key to breaking the situation!

In that moment, Su Lun's thoughts raced.

If Qian Tiao was Leina's auntie, then Qian Tiao's influence in the Inner City must be extraordinary.

Accordingly, as a person under Qian Tiao's protection, Su Lun was not completely at the mercy of others either.

The premise was... that Leina didn't die!

A hundred Jacks dead wouldn't equal the importance of this one Leina!

Suddenly armed with this critical information, Su Lun's mind rapidly inferred all kinds of possibilities.

Right now,

if he just watched Leina get chased to death by the dogs, Su Lun would certainly save himself a lot of trouble now, but the "Su Lun" identity must die, and future troubles would be endless;

if she didn't die, Su Lun might risk a little now, but the situation would become much more manageable.

Instantly weighing the pros and cons, the best choice he could think of was to keep Leina alive!

....

But... those "shapeshifters" that could infinitely resurrect, merge, and split, they were essentially unkillable.

Even a Secondary level powerhouse might not be able to save her, so how could he possibly save her?

In a one in a million fraction of a second, Su Lun's thoughts raced, and all the means he had to save his own life flashed through his mind.

Suddenly, he thought of something, then urgently shouted at the figure almost disappearing at the end of the corridor: "Run to the third corridor on the left, circle back after a detour!"

He had thought of a way that might give this woman a chance to live.

But whether it worked or not, it was still up to her own fate!

After shouting that, Su Lun also chose another corridor and ran down it.

He installed directional explosives on the rock wall, then rigged them with a trip wire before hiding in the distance.

It wasn't long before he saw the Catwoman running back in disarray.

At the brink of death, with no other options, Leina followed Su Lun's guidance instinctively and circled back.

Su Lun shouted again, "There's a tripwire on the ground, be careful to avoid it."

Upon hearing this, Leina saw the marked tripwire on the ground. Instead of being relieved, her brows furrowed even more tightly.

Collapsing the corridor wouldn't stop these liquid beasts—they had tried it before!

The guide had a good heart trying to save her, but the method was wrong!

With no other choice, Leina leapt over the tripwire and had only run a few steps when an intense explosion erupted behind her.

"Boom," the sound echoed; the shockwave lifted dust and debris.

Stones collapsed in an instant, blocking the corridor.

But at that moment, black droplets could be seen quickly seeping through the gaps, and in the blink of an eye, figures of black dogs were once again taking shape.

Leina reached Su Lun, having lost all hope for survival. She didn't stop, speaking anxiously, "Go now, save yourself! And don't forget to give the item to my auntie..."

I appreciate the sentiment, but you can't save me!

As she spoke, she didn't notice that Su Lun had already calmly lit the thing in his hand that looked like a "smoke cake," the pungent smell permeating the entire corridor.

Now was not the time for idle talk; Su Lun abruptly cut her off, commanding sternly, "Stop talking, take off your clothes, quick!"

"Don't worry about me, go..."

Leina instinctively thought he still wanted to save her, but having already caused the death of Teacher Rosa, she didn't want to drag anyone else down.

Just when she was about to turn away, it finally dawned on her that her ears might have picked up some strange information.

Take off your clothes?

The moment she grasped this, she froze as if a Freezing Spell had been cast on her.

Time seemed to stand still.

She thought she had misheard, her body continuing to move on inertia, but her eyes instinctively turned to stare at Su Lun, her face full of question marks: "???"

We're in the middle of a life-or-death escape, big brother, what are you thinking?