The sunlight poured down from the sky, casting a dazzling golden glow on its body.
It was a golden lion!
Unlike the ordinary mutated lions, its body was exaggeratedly large, just like the super giant crocodile, towering to two stories high. Its fur was woven like golden threads, exuding a wild and fierce aura.
With the appearance of the golden lion, the super giant crocodile chasing behind Chen Chao suddenly stopped. It seemed to sense a dangerous presence from the lion. It opened its mouth, revealing sharp fangs, and roared twice at the golden lion, as if telling it, "This prey is mine, get out of the way!"
The golden lion stared coldly at it and let out a roar, showing the demeanor of a beast king. Instead of retreating, its front paws took a step forward, as if telling the giant crocodile, "This is my territory!"
Chen Chao looked at the golden-blooded mutated lion, feeling a bit confused.
Given the number of mutated creatures in this zoo, it wasn't surprising to encounter one with golden blood. However, this golden lion was different from the golden hounds—it was clearly not in its juvenile stage but had evolved three to four times, reaching its growth phase. Its body now possessed true golden blood!
However, Chen Chao dared not entertain any foolish ideas at this moment. He could only stand still, trying to minimize his presence and avoid drawing their attention.
Roar! Roar!
The two giant beasts roared at each other. The intense sound waves caused Chen Chao's eardrums to ache, and his heartbeat hammered in his chest, trembling uncontrollably.
After a brief standoff, the golden lion finally lost patience and roared as it swung its sharp claws toward the giant crocodile.
The giant crocodile took a step back to dodge. Just when Chen Chao thought it would turn and leave, it suddenly launched a lightning-fast surprise attack, opening its vicious mouth to bite at the golden lion's neck. If that massive jaw clamped down, it would be nearly impossible to escape—it could easily crush the lion to death!
Roar!
The golden lion reacted swiftly, its body jerking sharply to avoid the sudden bite. It countered by ramming its head into the crocodile's side, throwing the giant creature slightly off-balance. Then, it opened its mouth to bite the black, hardened crocodile skin.
However, the crocodile's skin was too tough, seamlessly covering its body and evolving sharp, raised scales on the surface. This hasty counterattack didn't seem to have any effect.
Seeing the two beasts fighting, Chen Chao immediately shrank back, carefully sidestepping their battlefield and quietly moving away.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, one of the crocodile's front limbs shot forward, as fast as lightning, heading directly for the path Chen Chao was trying to dodge.
Chen Chao's pupils contracted, and he immediately activated his speed enhancement, dashing sideways at full speed.
With a loud thud, although he dodged just in time, his right hand was grazed, and he immediately felt his entire arm go numb. His body involuntarily flew forward.
He crashed onto the grass, feeling a surge of blood rise to his chest. He forced himself to swallow the urge to vomit and looked down at his right hand.
His arm hung limply, dislocated.
Chen Chao immediately grabbed his shoulder and twisted with all his strength, hearing a sharp crack as the bone clicked back into place. His arm regained mobility, though it still lacked sensation, and blood began to seep out from the pores.
He lightly touched it and immediately felt that the bones in his arm were shattered. Without prompt treatment, his arm might be permanently ruined.
Chen Chao took a deep breath, clutching his arm as he ran towards the back of the giant crocodile.
Zhao Bingbing and the others had already taken refuge at the sewer entrance. Zhao Bingbing was the last to enter. Her toes were barely touching the iron ladder to the sewer, her head still visible above the manhole cover. Her eyes flickered with faint blue light as she observed Chen Chao leaving, her expression thoughtful.
Chen Chao continued to maneuver around the fighting beasts, reaching the broken iron fence before the super giant crocodile and entering the leopard habitat.
His cellular energy was completely drained, leaving him unable to use the speed boost. He could only maintain a speed of about eight times his normal pace.
Boom! Boom!
Behind him, the two giants were locked in battle, each impact causing the ground to tremble as if an earthquake of magnitude 3 or 4 had occurred.
Chen Chao glanced back, secretly relieved. If not for the sudden appearance of the golden lion, he might have never made it to the human activity zone outside the zoo.
He adjusted his breathing and retraced his steps.
He soon found a deep, dark trench that stretched ahead, with continuous footprints surrounding it. The trench had left a path of destruction, flattening everything in its wake—small woods and ponds were all destroyed, a testament to the destructive power of the giant crocodile.
Chen Chao followed the trail, quickly spotting several mutated creatures that had been crushed under the crocodile's massive feet. Their bodies were flattened against the ground, their internal organs and flesh splattered, like a bright red stamp on the earth.
Chen Chao knew that these mutated creatures were sources of gene energy.
As a multi-evolved individual, he couldn't let this opportunity slip by. The trench smelled strongly of the giant crocodile, and no creatures dared approach in the short term. He was free to collect the spoils.
He took out his throwing knives and carefully cut through the carcasses, retrieving gene energy from the broken bodies.
After swallowing several clumps of gene energy, Chen Chao felt his injuries healing rapidly, and his cellular energy was replenished. He immediately activated his speed boost and tore down the trench at full speed.
Leopard area, bear area, tiger area...
Chen Chao retraced his steps, collecting gene energy along the way. Within just three areas, he had gathered 26 clumps of gene energy, boosting his physical condition to around ten times the average human.
Ten times, the limit for an F-level evolver!
If he went beyond this, he would evolve into an E-level evolver, gaining not only more abilities but also an increase in physical strength!
Upon reaching the bird habitat, he saw numerous mutated birds—peacocks, swans, and other creatures—crushed underfoot by the giant crocodile.
Chen Chao collected gene energy from the dead creatures, and from the body of a peacock, he unexpectedly found a clump of green gene energy.
After ingesting it, Chen Chao immediately felt his physical condition improve significantly, increasing from ten times to around twelve times his normal strength. However, the expected gene mutation and evolution did not occur. His physique had only enhanced.
"How could this be..." Chen Chao wondered, "I've surpassed ten times, but I didn't evolve into an E-level? Could it be because I'm a multi-evolved individual, my cells are already closer to saturation?"