Chapter 2576: Beast Fight
You Xin spoke with great interest to Xu Huo about some peculiar evolved plants, even mentioning that Zone 001 once had a Ten Thousand Plants Garden. Originally a natural forest park, some areas were still undeveloped. After evolution, many mutant plants in the undeveloped zones grew out, directly taking over the entire park, forcing the district government to find ways to seal it off. Because there were many mutant strains, each with different variations, it gradually gained the new name "Ten Thousand Plants Garden."
"The Ten Thousand Plants Garden is a true hell on earth. Some people ran in there and shared images of Human Head Roots and Corpse Tide Gourds. Just one look at those things can instantly make anyone recall the beauty of life."
"Is it really that terrifying?" Xu Huo asked curiously.
You Xin immediately opened her Message Collection Terminal to share with him. "I've collected a lot."
The first thing she opened was probably the Corpse Tide Gourd. It looked like some bodies strangled into the shape of gourds, inverted and densely packed together. They clung to a vine belt, and under the holographic recording, this vine belt was slowly moving, green and white interwoven, looking no different from a river filled with floating corpses.
"What do you think? Shocked, right?" You Xin said. "The first time I saw it, I also thought it was real corpses, but these are actually flowers blooming from the vine. The flowers are hollow—one poke and they burst."
In fact, it wasn't just this "river"; the holographic recording contained other content as well.
"Are those human heads?" Painting Woman propped up a communicator and came over to ask.
"Should be fruits from mutant plants," You Xin said. "It just looks a bit like a tower of heads, and only from a distance. Up close, it doesn't really resemble heads."
Sure enough, the camera then moved closer. After zooming in, someone cut open one of the "heads," and half of it fell off, revealing pinkish flesh inside. Someone else picked it up and tasted it, praising its flavor.
"So don't find it strange. No matter how bizarre, Zone 001 can grow anything," You Xin said.
Indeed, compared to Human Head Towers and Corpse Tide Gourds, fruits that look like eyeballs or beans that resemble insects are nothing.
After visiting the places recommended by the You sisters, Xu Huo went to Time Square to see the Time Tower. The square was still crowded. Two days ago, he had run into Shi Potian, and today he encountered Sister Zhong and that pregnant female player. The two had already teamed up. When they met, they were quite wary and quickly left.
"Old Mr. Xi is also here." You Xin pointed to someone in the distance.
That little old man who had left the shop was sitting at the edge of the square, gazing up at the floating Time Tower. His expression and posture stood out from the crowd around him.
The little old man hadn't been melancholy for long before he got into an argument with a few young people. Despite his age, he wanted to throw a punch, but ended up being countered. Chased by the young men, he screamed loudly. Strangely, he seemed to enjoy provoking them—twice the young men were ready to let it go, but he deliberately turned back to taunt them, gradually escalating the situation into a "beat him up or never stop" scenario.
"Let's go." Xu Huo turned around.
"Little Xu, don't leave! Come help me! These people have no morals—they can't out-argue me, so they resort to violence!" The little old man locked onto Xu Huo from the crowd and ran straight toward him, hopping and shouting.
The You sisters looked at this energetic old man with mixed feelings, but as Xu Huo and Painting Woman's bodyguards, they stepped in to stop the group beating before it could affect their employers.
Fortunately, the young men were reasonable and were persuaded by You Xin. As for the little old man, You Zhi directly used a Silencing Item to seal his mouth, and the small commotion quickly subsided.
Everyone looked at the little old man, who showed no sign of embarrassment. He chuckled, "You're here to see the Time Tower too?"
Completely immersed in his own world, he turned to gaze at the tower and said with deep nostalgia, "No matter how much time passes, this tower remains so exquisite. It is, in every way, the crystallization of human wisdom."
Xu Huo had already overheard the content of his earlier argument with the young men. First, a young man was sharing a little anecdote about the Time Tower's inventor with his companions. When the little old man heard it, he started cursing the inventor. The young men argued with him, and when the old man couldn't win the debate, he tried to fight.
Given his attitude toward the Time Tower, the inventor, and his conflict with the Clock Association, it wasn't hard to guess there was a story behind it.
The little old man stared at the Time Tower for a long while before letting out a deep sigh. Then he clasped his hands behind his back and left Time Square.
"Are all masters so... unconventional?" You Xin finally squeezed out a sentence.
"Yes," Painting Woman replied seriously.
Xu Huo glanced at her and said, "Let's find a place to eat."
After the meal, the You sisters took them to a famous Mutant Beast Arena.
"People come here to watch mutant beasts fight to the death." You Xin was also excited. "You can bet on the mutant beast you fancy. In the end, whichever beast is still standing wins. The stakes are high. Some beasts look tough with thick armor and flesh but have no brains, while others seem frail but have evolved special abilities. Who wins and who loses is really unpredictable!"
"Mr. Xu, are you interested in placing a bet?"
Xu Huo wasn't very interested, but Painting Woman followed the crowd and bet on a cat beast.
It was a special mutant cat. According to the host, it was vastly different from other mutant cats of the same species. After all, ordinary mutant cats don't suddenly grow larger than a tiger. This mutant cat was not only exceptionally large but also had fangs that had changed color, and it was said to have evolved toxins.
However, compared to its opponent—a beast evolved from a tiger—it was still smaller. The tiger beast's claws and fangs gleamed with a metallic sheen, and areas like its throat had grown rough, thick skin that looked like dried mud plastered on. But because the cat beast had evolved toxins, it was less favored.
"Roar!" The tiger beast let out a low growl, a deep, rumbling sound that seemed to pierce through the wind, instantly sweeping across the arena. The sound was terrifying, but the fear was followed by immense excitement!
The arena erupted in even louder cheers than before, and more and more people placed bets.
With the host's final countdown, betting quickly stopped. Half a minute later, the transparent hatch above the underground cage opened, and the two furious beasts immediately leaped out. Using sound and smell to quickly locate their opponents, they charged at each other without a moment's pause.
The tiger beast tried to use its size advantage to knock over the cat beast, but at the last moment of collision, the cat beast leaped up, directly pouncing onto the tiger's back and sinking its teeth into its neck!
The tiger beast roared and threw the cat beast off, its massive body crashing down toward the latter's spine. Although the cat beast seemed more agile, it still had one hind leg broken by the impact. Dragging its injured leg, it quickly fled, letting out increasingly loud warning cries as the tiger beast chased after it!