The traps had to be set properly, the weapons fully prepared. As for failure... he didn’t think that far ahead—if he thought too much, he’d lose even his last bit of courage.

After a full day and night of preparation, Brian Carter rested for two hours, adjusted himself to peak condition, and signaled to Black Charcoal to open the door.

Zzz... zzz...

The thick mine door slowly opened. Still, there was no movement at all. Had he miscalculated?

Instinctively, Brian Carter extended his awareness outward. He “saw” that Zago—it was staring at the door with its green eyes. As soon as the door rose high enough for its body to pass through, the Zago shot in like an arrow. At this point, it was too late to try to close the door.

Seeing the Zago about to charge in, Brian Carter, who had just downed a bottle of liquor, let out a furious roar and hurled the iron plate in his hand. The Zago unceremoniously pierced the projectile with its sharp claws and charged in at the same speed. But as soon as its feet touched the ground, its body tilted and—boom!—it fell into the deep pit.

“Smash!”

Brian Carter felt his mind buzz. At this moment, he didn’t care about any eighth, ninth, or hundredth brain region—he just threw all the prepared hidden and open weapons into the pit. Black Charcoal wasn’t idle either; though not fast, it used all its strength to hurl heavy iron ore at the Zago, which was letting out a shrill roar.

The two of them kept throwing for over ten minutes, actually filling the pit and piling it up like a small mountain. Looking at their handiwork, Brian Carter couldn’t help but shiver.

Did I really do this?

“Haha, I’m a genius! Black Charcoal, we did it!”

After all, he was still inexperienced. Completing such a feat for the first time, Brian Carter couldn’t help but jump up in joy and gave Black Charcoal a fierce hug. That cold steel shell felt incredibly warm at this moment.

But he got a little carried away—shing...

A sharp claw pierced through the debris, slashing toward Brian Carter. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he dodged in time, but the claw still tore open his arm, leaving a gash over thirty centimeters long. Blood spurted out, and the battered Zago actually forced its head out.

Maybe it was the sight of blood, or maybe the liquor gave him courage, but Brian Carter didn’t know where his guts came from. He grabbed an iron rod, leapt onto the Zago’s head, and stabbed wildly in a near-frenzy. Dark green fluid splattered everywhere as the Zago struggled and convulsed, trying to slash Brian Carter with its claws. Luckily, Black Charcoal, fearless and relentless, clung to the claw, its whole body swinging back and forth. After a few swings, it went limp and stopped moving.

Brian Carter staggered as he wiped the liquid from his face, while Black Charcoal was so shaken its programming was unstable, its eyes spinning in circles.

“Damn... that was tough.”

Thud... Brian Carter, weak in the arms and legs, rolled off. Turns out he was braver than he thought. “Black Charcoal, quick... close the door!”

A lesson learned the hard way, drenched in cold sweat, the liquor’s effect completely gone. At this point, even a baby Zago could bite him to death.

Black Charcoal obediently closed the door. As the main door dropped, Brian Carter finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had actually killed a Zago.

In the dim light of the mine, only Brian Carter’s heavy breathing could be heard.

Analyzing...

Human gene purity nearly one hundred percent... primary priority met, initiating.

Self-check... 10%... 20%... 100% complete.

The spatial crystal, already stained red with Brian Carter’s blood, emitted an eerie glow. But at this moment, Brian Carter felt nothing at all.

Shing...

A beam of light shot out from the spatial crystal. The sudden light nearly made Brian Carter jump out of his skin. When he saw it came from his own spatial crystal, he relaxed a little—at least he didn’t have to worry about a Zago suddenly jumping out of it.

Light always brings hope. Brian Carter stared blankly at the beam... there really was something there. This spatial crystal had been with him for seven or eight years, always looking like some trinket an old man picked up at a street stall. But could a street stall trinket really do this?

Within the light appeared a very dignified middle-aged man, an overwhelming pressure filling the space.

Even a rookie like Brian Carter could sense it—this was a master, a true master!

The middle-aged man glanced at the Zago on the ground, then at Brian Carter, and even at Black Charcoal. “Trash with a combat power under one hundred.”

“Who are you calling trash!” Brian Carter immediately sprang up. Enough was enough!

“Of course I mean you. Hmph. Kid, where is this place?” The middle-aged man said with utter disdain.

Having lived with the old man for so long, Brian Carter was well-practiced at dealing with egomaniacs like this. “Uncle, where did you pop out from? At least introduce yourself first!”

“Me? You don’t even know who I am? Haha, there are still humans who don’t know me? Hahaha...” He burst out laughing, but strangely, it seemed his power couldn’t extend beyond the light.

“Cut the crap. Who are you?”

“I am...” The middle-aged man, full of presence, fell into deep thought.

A minute later...

“Uncle, have you figured it out yet?” Brian Carter had already bandaged his wound—stopping the bleeding was enough. As for viruses, he didn’t care. Either way, it was a single cut—leave it to fate.

The man in the light had already changed poses N times, but still couldn’t remember who he was.