Ahan's entire body was drenched in sweat, but this wasn't ordinary sweat. It was the manifestation of his unleashed potential.
His job destined him to rely entirely on the viruses he cultivated.
In the past, before his job leveled up, he had been nothing more than a meat shield. In every battle or hunt, he had to charge at the front, absorbing the enemy’s firepower and attacks.
This had gone on for years.
If not for sheer luck, he would have died long ago.
The Virus Carrier job was unique and eerie, but before its upgrade, when he only possessed Explosive Fungus and Armored Scale, neither he nor his job had been highly regarded.
Every team wanted him. Yet no team truly treated him as human.
They called him a vanguard, a tank, a spearhead, a blade… but in truth, he was just cannon fodder.
As the storm of thorny vines lashed around him, Ahan’s mind flashed back to the early days of the apocalypse, when he had tiptoed on the edge of life and death, surviving by sheer luck.
His eyes turned bloodshot.After acquiring the Life-Devouring Tadpole ability, Ahan’s status had skyrocketed. At first, he had been satisfied. He thought everything had changed—that fate had finally smiled upon him.
But gradually, he realized nothing had truly changed. He had merely gone from being a low-tier thug to a high-tier one.
The ones giving him orders had shifted from second-rate figures to top-tier bosses.
But he was still just a hired muscle.
Even now, as the second-in-command of Hidden Snake Journey, he was still sent out to fight a life-or-death battle.
Was this an honor? Yes, in a way. But more than that, it was still just using him as a weapon.
For the first time, when the little golden-armored brat had arrogantly ordered him to fight, Ahan had felt the urge to break away and forge his own path.
So, he had to win this battle. He would claim the rewards, grow stronger, until…
He became the boss himself.
Until… others risked their lives for him!
This match—he had to win.
Amidst the sweat pouring from his body and his furious roar, the Virus Carrier unleashed his fourth skill.
No one knew Ahan had a fourth skill.
Centennial Rotting Pus!
A terrifying virus that caused instant necrosis wherever it touched.
This was the first time he had revealed this ability—a virus so agonizing to cultivate that even a tiny amount brought him unbearable pain.
The little brat had claimed Ahan could only produce one gram of Life-Devouring Tadpoles per day. What he didn’t know was that Ahan could actually produce five grams—if he focused solely on them.
The reason he only made one gram was because he diverted all his remaining energy and effort into cultivating Centennial Rotting Pus!
This was his trump card, his stepping stone to becoming a top-tier powerhouse!
Ahan had already made up his mind. Kill this woman, claim the rewards, strengthen himself—then bid farewell to this insufferable little bastard!
That brat wasn’t fit to command him. Without that golden armor, he wouldn’t even be a match for Ahan now!
Lost in these thoughts, Ahan unleashed his ultimate move—his final, hidden weapon.
The sweat-like, seemingly harmless pus transformed into a fine mist, splattering onto the surrounding vines.
No defense, no matter how tight, could block an omnipresent liquid.
The Centennial Rotting Pus clung to the vines, seeping through their gaps, heading straight for Red Hair!
Every vine it touched erupted in green smoke, the affected areas rapidly expanding as the terrifyingly resilient weapon rotted away.
Chunks of vines fell to the ground, piling up until they reached Ahan’s ankles.
He grinned savagely, watching as Red Hair—now midair with no room to dodge—was engulfed by his lethal mist.
Closer… closer…
And then, without fail, the pus splashed onto her body.
Though a few vines still writhed in the air, Ahan—and the entire Hidden Snake Journey faction—was certain: Cloud Peak had lost.
Because on the luminous dueling platform, Red Hair’s constitution points were plummeting!
A freefall descent—from thousands, to hundreds, in mere seconds!
Many in Cloud Peak instinctively stepped forward. If not for the barrier, they would have rushed in to save Red Hair.
Compared to Xia Bai’s cold detachment, Red Hair had become more human. She smiled warmly, treated everyone kindly, and with her increasingly ethereal beauty, it was hard not to like her.
Even the Female Guards—normally emotionless killing machines—saw her as one of their own. She was the only person in Cloud Peak, aside from Ye Zhongming, who could freely enter their camp.
Even Ye Zhongming’s women—Xia Lei, Liang Chuyin—didn’t have that privilege.
Xia Bai, for the first time in forever, bit her lip in regret. If she had been the one fighting, even if she died, she could have at least taken Ahan down with her.
A draw was better than a loss!
Everyone thought the battle was over.
In another two seconds, Red Hair’s points would hit zero, and she would die.
But as she hung in the air, her constitution evaporating by the hundreds every second, Red Hair showed no panic.
Instead, she spread her arms wide.
The corroded vines in her hands fell away.
The vines from her hair, the ones that had grown from the platform, even the broken ones on the ground—all rose into the air at once.
And then—
They exploded.
Every single vine detonated simultaneously, releasing a flood of crimson liquid.
"Useless! You—"
The little tyrant’s face flushed red as he pointed at Red Hair, ready to mock her, but his words choked in his throat.
Because the woman he thought would die was still alive.
And the man he was certain would win—Ahan—was screaming as he perished.
"Th-that’s…"
The boy stared in disbelief at the sea of red liquid filling the space, his voice failing him.
It wasn’t sap from the vines.
It was a scalding, glowing, viscous fluid, radiating unimaginable heat.
The vines were gone.
The only things left in the space were Red Hair, reborn as if through fire, and an ocean of magma.