Infinite Evolution-The End of Bugs

"Done!" The girl dusted her hands theatrically, her smile radiant as sunrise. She turned to an elderly man dressed in antiquated butler's attire. "How'd I do, Grandpa Ophis?"

"Impeccably executed, Miss," the silver-haired steward replied with a bow. His gaze shifted to Chu Xun's unconscious form. "However, your father explicitly forbade collecting strays this trip. We must reach Sky Citadel promptly—you are Dragon Keep's representative."

"Ugh, why?" The girl pouted, crimson curls bouncing. "That Survival Game's disgusting!"

"An unfortunate necessity," Ophis sighed. "The ritual maintains order between city-states and determines which settlements advance in the Consortium hierarchy. Your father has... reasons for selecting you."

Reasons like tempering your bleeding heart, he added silently. The young mistress' habit of adopting every wounded soul they encountered made her ill-suited for this brutal era—precisely why Lord Yang insisted she attend the merciless tournament.

"Fine!" She waved dismissively. "But we can't leave him here to die!"

"Agreed." Ophis snapped his fingers. "Twelve. Deliver him to the nearest enclave. Alive."

Air rippled as a black-armored warrior materialized. "By your will." He lifted Chu Xun effortlessly. A spatial distortion swallowed them both.

"Now, Miss Yang Yan—" Ophis began.

"I know!" The girl erupted into a comet of flame, streaking westward. Twelve shadowy figures followed—Dragon Keep's elite guard phasing through dimensions in her wake.

Chu City Outskirts

Twelve rematerialized 500 meters from the city walls. Chu Xun thrashed in his arms, veins bulging grotesquely. Pinkish blood seeped from every orifice, hissing as it ate through flesh.

"Damn ability rejection..." Twelve grimaced. The boy's mutated blood was dissolving him from within—a common fate for those forcing incompatible enhancements. Most would let nature take its course. But Miss Yan's orders were absolute.

"Lucky brat." The warrior produced a cryo-tube. Inside writhed a mercury-like substance, simultaneously liquid and metallic. "This cost me five years' pay..."

The injection struck Chu Xun's jugular. The silvery serum surged through his veins, neutralizing acidic corrosion. Lesions healed instantly, leaving skin flawless.

Twelve vanished again, dumping his charge outside Chu City's gates. "Better be worth it, kid."

Chu Family Manor

Patriarch Chu Xiong materialized atop his citadel, senses screaming. A fading black streak marred the horizon—power eclipsing his entire clan. Memories of White City's annihilation resurfaced: thirty thousand souls devoured by engineered insects after offending a wandering Overlord.

"Passing through... must be..." He shuddered. "Seal the gates! No one leaves until Academy trials conclude!"

The order rippled through Chu City. Guards scrambled to lockdown protocols, ignorant of the unconscious youth at their doorstep—his right hand now sheathed in obsidian chitin, acidic blood crystallizing into fractal patterns beneath translucent skin.

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