15: Oh no, your baby is dead, laugh

The group followed the hospital elevator down to the morgue on the second basement floor.

Only the sound of their footsteps echoed in the empty corridor.

Perhaps it was the lighting, but the deeper they went, the more eerie it felt.

Wang Yaowen held Li Mo with one hand, while his peripheral vision secretly observed Lu Ming behind him.

Seeing his calm expression, Wang Yaowen felt much more at ease.

If Li Mo's words were true, that beast could break through to the Kaiyuan Realm at any moment.

Logically, an opponent of this level had already exceeded their team's capabilities and should have been reported.

But recalling the monstrous strength Lu Ming displayed, the three of them still resolutely followed.

With the missing persons case solved and a Soul-Devouring Beast nearing the Kaiyuan Realm, the group stood to gain a large sum of contribution points.

If used well, his own strength could also improve significantly.

All of this was brought about by the young man before him.

Most importantly, this was only his first day on the job!

What a dreamlike day, he never expected solving a case to be so simple!

...The end of the passage suddenly opened up into an underground morgue as large as a basketball court.

Dozens of shattered bones were strewn everywhere, and the air was filled with a strange mixture of formaldehyde and putrid smells.

From the cold storage door came a "clack-clack-clack" sound, like something being gnawed on, echoing through the vast morgue and making one's scalp tingle.

Zhao Li's spear "swished" out of its sheath again. She shifted her steps lightly, her gaze locked on the half-open iron door of the cold storage.

Wang Yaowen pulled Li Mo behind him and gripped the hilt of the knife at his waist, the cold sweat in his palm almost soaking the hilt.

He could feel Li Mo's body trembling slightly, not from fear, but more like... excitement?

"Why are you shaking?" Wang Yaowen snapped, tightening the handcuffs fiercely.

Li Mo grimaced in pain, but his eyes were fixed on Lu Ming's back, and a strange "ho-ho" sound came from his throat.

"You deserve to die for daring to hit me... you all must die... hahahaha..."

"Darling! Time to eat!!!"

"Bang!"

Accompanied by Li Mo's瘋狂 laughter, a giant claw covered in bone spurs pierced through the cold storage.

Lin Haowen, who was near the wall, quickly raised his knife to block.

The sound of metal clashing rang out, and Lin Haowen was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground.

"This strength..."

Lin Haowen struggled to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, his face filled with horror. "That beast was already in the Kaiyuan Realm, Li Mo lied!"

Boom!

No sooner had he spoken than five deep, bone-revealing gouges were ploughed into the sturdy wall.

Half of the Soul-Devouring Beast's head emerged from the hole, its millstone-sized eyes bloodshot, pupils locked onto Lin Haowen on the ground.

As its eyeballs rotated, turbid fluid dripped from the corners of its eyes, falling to the ground and "sizzling" as it corroded small pits.

The Soul-Devouring Beast's mouth stretched to its ears, revealing two rows of jagged fangs, with dark red shredded meat still caught in the gaps, evidently having just had a full meal.

"Haowen, retreat quickly!" Wang Yaowen seized the opportunity to draw his knife and stab directly at the Soul-Devouring Beast's protruding head.

The blade streaked through the air with a sharp whistling sound.

A flicker of disdain crossed the Soul-Devouring Beast's millstone-sized eyes, and its giant claw swept out.

The moment the twin blades collided with the sharp claws, an ear-piercing clang of metal rang out.

Wang Yaowen felt a massive force surge through the blade, his arm instantly went numb, his tiger's mouth split open, and the alloy weapon snapped in response.

"Damn it!"

Wang Yaowen's pupils constricted, and his shoulder was torn by the claw, gushing out a large amount of blood.

Fortunately, the accuracy of this beast was a bit off, otherwise he would have been dismembered.

Zhao Li seized the opportunity to thrust her spear, her figure like lightning, directly attacking the Soul-Devouring Beast's flank.

She knew that while such evil creatures had strong defenses, their joints were often their weak points.

The spear tip, imbued with a chilling aura, precisely stabbed the joint of the Soul-Devouring Beast's forelimb protruding from the broken hole.

"Sizzle!"

The spear tip pierced into the gap between the bone spurs, and ice spread, quickly freezing the Soul-Devouring Beast.

A hint of joy flashed in Zhao Li's eyes.

With a "crack," the ice shattered, scattering everywhere.

Zhao Li inwardly cursed, about to retract her spear and retreat.

The Soul-Devouring Beast's barbed tail had already whipped over like a steel whip, bringing a腥 wind directly towards her face.

Zhao Li knew she couldn't dodge it and could only endure it!

But in the nick of time, Lu Ming had inexplicably appeared close by.

He embraced Zhao Li's delicate body with one hand and grabbed the sweeping tail with the other.

The barbs pricked his hand, but didn't even break the skin, instead sounding like they had hit hard metal.

With a "crack-crack" sound, several barbs snapped off.

"Noisy." Lu Ming frowned slightly and gently twisted his wrist.

The Soul-Devouring Beast let out a mournful howl, and its massive body was actually pulled violently out of the hole by this force, half of its body being forcibly ripped out.

Its sharp claws ploughed five deep furrows into the concrete floor, sending gravel flying and filling the air with dust.

Seeing this, Zhao Li was completely stunned.

She leaned against Lu Ming's chest like a delicate doll, her heart pounding wildly.

Ding! Zhao Li's emotion +1, gained Kindling +1.

Zhao Li's favorability: 10 (First acquaintance).

"Roar—!"

A furious roar startled the dazed Zhao Li.

Her ear tips instantly turned crimson, and a rare hint of shyness appeared on her exquisite, icy face.

"Um... Team Leader Lu, could you... let go of my hand?"

Lu Ming looked down and realized that his hand was in an inappropriate position.

No wonder it was so... "My apologies, a momentary lapse." Lu Ming gave an awkward smile and released his hand.

As Zhao Li breathed a sigh of relief, she also felt an indescribable sense of loss.

When she looked at Lu Ming again, her eyes flickered with a different light.

"Team Leader Lu... please be careful."

...The completely unleashed Soul-Devouring Beast went berserk, its three-meter-tall body suddenly stood upright, its spinal bone spurs bristling like sharp war spears.

From its gaping chest, dozens of twisted faces emerged, and the long-missing Team Leader Zhou was among them!

"Team Leader Zhou?" Lin Haowen's eyes narrowed. "It really devoured Team Leader Zhou!"

"Hahahaha! Die! All of you, die!"

Li Mo roared maniacally behind Wang Yaowen, his profound iron handcuffs clanking as he struggled, his eyes gleaming with a near-insane light.

"Especially you, I want to watch you beg like a dog!"

Lu Ming ignored his taunts, simply staring at the Soul-Devouring Beast, his figure already darting out like a ghost.

Seeing this, the Soul-Devouring Beast instinctively swiped with its giant claw, but hit nothing.

It turned back furiously, its millstone-sized eyes filled with brutality. Just as it was about to open its mouth to bite, Lu Ming's fist slammed into it like a meteor.

"Bang!"

The Demonic Subduing Fist appeared unremarkable, yet it contained terrifying power and was most effective against such sinister creatures.

With the blessing of Thousand Jun Strength, this punch's force actually exceeded that of a Kaiyuan Realm first-layer cultivator.

The bone armor on the Soul-Devouring Beast's chest instantly shattered into dust, its massive body swayed, then crashed to the ground, twitching a few times before falling completely silent.

Only Lu Ming remained standing in the center of the carcass, dusting off his hands, as if he had only done a trivial little thing.

The morgue was dead silent, with only Li Mo's heavy breathing.

The madness on his face had long faded, replaced by a bone-deep fear.

His eyes, originally filled with venom, were now wide and round, staring fixedly at Lu Ming, as if he had seen some unbelievable monster.

"You... you're not human..." Li Mo's voice trembled uncontrollably, his teeth chattering, "...How is that possible..."

Lu Ming slowly walked up to him, looking down at him, his gaze as indifferent as ice.

"Oh, your darling is dead. Aren't you naturally fond of smiling? Come on, give us a smile."

Slap!

"Smile!! If you don't smile, I'll beat you to death!"