With enhanced vision, even the pitch-black night, where one could not see a hand in front of their face, appeared as bright as day.
The darkness of the subway station was no longer a challenge.
His eyes scanned the surroundings.
His psychic sense expanded.
Once he confirmed that no mutated creatures remained on the first floor, Zhang Yang slowly approached a collapsed ruin.
This place...
This was the entrance to the staircase leading to the next level!
Logically, countless beasts and insectoid creatures, after fighting and killing in the first floor, could easily damage the walls and cause a collapse.
It was entirely possible that the staircase leading to the next floor could have been blocked.
However, the meticulous Zhang Yang could be certain.
This particular collapse...
Though it was indeed man-made...
It was no accident.
On the contrary...
It was deliberately destroyed by someone who, after descending the stairs, sought to block any pursuers from following this path.
As for the mastermind behind this action, there was no need for further speculation.
There was only one possibility.
It was the three-tiered insectoid creature that had long occupied the second floor.
The Venomous Scorpion!
Previously, Ba Dao had fought his way in.
Although repelled...
It had left a mark on the Venomous Scorpion, which led it to seal the entrance, hoping to prevent any future threats once and for all.
However...
While this tactic might have been effective against other mutated creatures, it was futile against Zhang Yang.
With his near-omnipotent psychic powers, the heavy debris, each block weighing several tons, was effortlessly moved aside.
The sound of rumbling echoed as the debris crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
And there, before Zhang Yang's eyes, lay the staircase leading to the deepest part of the subway station, to the second level.
A mixture of darkness, dampness, blood, and decay filled the air, assaulting his senses and tingling his vision, leaving an uncomfortable feeling.
But Zhang Yang remained unfazed.
His ethereal footsteps echoed through the silent space.
He calmly descended the stairs.
Finally, he arrived at the location of the treasure.
Before his eyes was the scene he had previously sensed with his psychic power—the wrecked train, the collapsed tunnel, the blood-red crystal... and the waiting Venomous Scorpion!
"Hiss—!"
A low hiss sounded.
The three-tiered Venomous Scorpion remained alert, its pincers snapping open and closed, capable of crushing steel, while its sharp tail stinger was raised high, seemingly preparing to unleash corrosive venom.
It was expected that the Venomous Scorpion had sensed the noise from above and adopted this defensive stance.
What surprised Zhang Yang, however, was that on the back of this five- or six-meter-long Venomous Scorpion...
There were dozens, even hundreds, of pale-white scorpion larvae!
Zhang Yang focused his gaze.
These larvae appeared to have hatched not long ago, with several leftover eggs half-buried in the soil nearby.
At this moment, the larvae were clustered together on the back of the three-tiered Venomous Scorpion, drawing in the faint energy leaking from the air.
They were growing at an accelerated pace, preparing to eventually leave their mother and live independently.
"It seems the blockade not only served to prevent other creatures from seizing the crystal, but also to protect these newly hatched larvae."
Zhang Yang stroked his chin.
His gaze towards the Venomous Scorpion shifted.
Rather than taking immediate action, he exuded the oppressive aura of a five-tiered Corpse King as a warning, then walked directly toward the wrecked train's remains.
Unobstructed, he prepared to claim the sole, most valuable treasure here.
The blood-red crystal!
The Venomous Scorpion watched anxiously as Zhang Yang moved toward the blood-red crystal.
It was a mix of urgency, resentment, and helplessness.
Urgency because this was the treasure it had long coveted, the crystal capable of aiding its evolution to a higher tier—now on the verge of being taken away.
Resentment because it had been the first to arrive, yet due to insufficient strength, it could not absorb the crystal's energy, leaving it to be seized by the newcomer.
Helplessness, because the Venomous Scorpion understood the vast disparity in strength between itself and the five-tiered Corpse King.
Even if three or four fully matured Venomous Scorpions teamed up, they would still be no match for Zhang Yang.
They could only resist for a while before being defeated one by one, ultimately reduced to lifeless corpses.
Thus, after weighing the pros and cons in its not particularly clever mind, the Venomous Scorpion reluctantly yielded to Zhang Yang's overwhelming presence.
It abandoned its steadfast defense of the blood-red crystal.
No longer did it fixate on the treasure.
Instead, it retreated into the dark, damp corner, carrying its swarm of larvae, quietly waiting for the powerful Corpse King to take what he came for and leave.
Zhang Yang, whose psychic powers were still extended, sensed the Venomous Scorpion's every movement with perfect clarity.
He was quite satisfied with its response.
His mind shifted as well.
He no longer planned to immediately eliminate the Venomous Scorpion, but rather had a new idea.
But that wasn't his immediate concern.
The most important thing now...
Was the blood-red crystal, the natural treasure now in his hands!
The crystal, the size of a human head, floated before him, supported by his psychic power, slowly rotating.
This allowed Zhang Yang to observe every intricate detail.
It was no wonder that three Corpse Kings, a massive zombie horde, and countless mutated creatures had all fought desperately for this treasure.
The blood-red crystal was clear and translucent, its color a deep crimson, even more flawless than a ruby.
And because it had accumulated vast amounts of mutated energy and blood qi in a special environment through a series of fortunate coincidences, this natural treasure had formed.
Within the blood-red crystal lay an immense amount of pure energy.
By the energy scale on his panel, it was roughly around 3000 points.
That was equivalent to the combined energy of three hundred first-tier zombies or evolved creatures.
Or, it could be compared to thirty tons of fresh flesh.
That was no small amount!
It's worth noting...
From zero-tier to his current five-tier, Zhang Yang had only consumed a little over ten tons of flesh.
If he were to absorb all the energy from this blood-red crystal...
He could rise at least three tiers, leaping directly from the fifth to the eighth tier!
He would leave all others and creatures far behind.
Truly, a leap of a billion steps!
With that thought in mind,
Zhang Yang carefully placed the blood-red crystal into his panel space.
He set it aside on a clear patch of space, treating it with the utmost reverence.
Once he returned to his villa, he would immediately begin the process of refining and absorbing its energy.
The grand prize was finally in hand.
Yet, Zhang Yang did not rush to leave the area.
Instead, his gaze slowly shifted to the three-tiered Venomous Scorpion, which had retreated to a corner of the ruins, wary and cautious.
Zhang Yang walked toward it step by step.
"Hiss—~!"
A threatening hiss echoed.
Although mutated insects did not have the foundational language skills like zombies, which could evolve the ability to speak early on, they could still communicate through special vibrations.
At this moment...
The Venomous Scorpion's hiss carried a clear warning:
"What are you trying to do?!"