Chapter 26: I Am Your Queen

Volume 1 “Year of Calamity”

Just as An Sheng climbed onto the rooftop of the World Trade Center, he heard the sound of an explosion. Before he could locate the source, a series of piercing cries plunged him into a bizarre state.

Similar to his previous battle with Pighead Three, he could clearly sense everything about himself yet couldn’t control his own body. For the first time, without triggering it through physical harm, An Sheng’s body spontaneously entered the Demon State, emitting a blood-colored, viscous Pheromone.

An overwhelming pressure was enveloping and devouring his entire being, emanating from the direction of Central Park not far away. Along with this pressure came a peculiar scent permeating the air—the distinct odor emitted by his kind. An Sheng was all too familiar with this scent; it was the unique Blood-Colored Pheromone of Mutated Creatures. But this Pheromone was unprecedentedly powerful, so potent that even from a distance, An Sheng trembled uncontrollably just from catching a whiff!

“How annoying, of all times…” Andre reluctantly released the beauty in his embrace.

Yalan elegantly smoothed her slightly disheveled silver hair and said to Andre while gazing at the blood-colored mist over Lake Heart Island in the distance, “This must be the first Lord. If we capture it and offer it to the Emissary, we can obtain more Energy Quota!”

Andre naturally agreed wholeheartedly with Yalan’s suggestion. His face revealed a greedy expression as he stared at the crimson mist. Exchanging a glance, the two leaped directly from the dozen-story building, disappearing at incredible speed into the woods of Central Park.

Meanwhile, at the center of the blood-colored mist on Lake Heart Island, where the flesh cocoon once stood, a human woman now appeared. She could be described as a peerless beauty.

What met the eye was like the fresh halo of a new moon, like snow piled on flowering trees. Her face was exquisitely ethereal, her figure curvaceously graceful, and her moist lips were both sensual and enchanting. Through the swirling mist, her proud, ample bosom appeared and disappeared intermittently. Any man witnessing this woman would undoubtedly spare no admiration or covetous gaze—she was truly a celestial seductress.

The woman slowly opened her tightly shut eyes, revealing pupils like rubies that emitted a faint red glow, identical to An Sheng’s Blood Eyes.

Newly awakened, she gazed bewildered at her surroundings, her memories in disarray, leaving her momentarily dazed. However, as seconds ticked by, her consciousness rapidly recovered, memories flashing through her mind until a subtly sinister smile gradually graced her face.

“I am your queen, Medusa!”

A mature, enchanting yet gentle and mellifluous voice echoed across every corner of Lake Heart Island. The response came from hundreds of Mutated Creatures prostrating across the island—their unified roars serving as this land’s signal of submission to their ruler!

“A queen? How laughable. A lowly Infected dares to call herself queen? Oh~ well, among these filthy crawlers, I suppose you do qualify as a queen. Of course, that’s only if crawlers even need a queen.”A man’s voice filled with contempt drew nearer from the distance. Medusa looked up to see a young man and woman hovering mid-air about twenty meters above the ground, clad in black trench coats—the very same two Purifiers from earlier: Andre and Yalan.

Medusa watched the airborne pair warily, her voice cold as she demanded, “Who are you?”

The powerful sixth sense of a Mutated Creature told Medusa that the two figures in the sky could pose a threat to her, and they carried a scent that disgusted her. This innate revulsion toward such beings was ingrained in her very being, a hostility rooted deep in her genes.

“Vile Infected, we are Purifiers, Apostles who follow the will of the great Emissary to cleanse this world. What a pity—such a beautiful body, yet it belongs to a lowly, filthy Infected Body. Otherwise, I wouldn’t mind letting you experience the radiance of the chosen ones! Hahahaha…” Andre looked down from his superior position, wantonly mocking Medusa.

How could Medusa, whose intellect had just awakened, endure such ridicule? A strange crimson glow erupted from her entire body, and her previously flowing hair, scattered over her snow-white skin, began to move without wind, swiftly tangling and transforming into dozens of terrifying black venomous snakes in mid-air!

Meanwhile, on her snow-like skin, sapphire-blue Scales grew at a visible pace, covering her entire body like armor within a few breaths.

“Oho~~ Getting angry, are we?” Seeing Medusa enter combat mode, Andre first let out a scornful laugh, then continued with a cold, disdainful tone, “But what right does a lowly insect have to be angry with me?”

No sooner had he spoken than a fireball materialized out of thin air, shooting toward Medusa at incredible speed. At the same time, a dazzling white light emanated from Yalan beside Andre, forming a transparent white barrier eighty meters in diameter that enveloped all three of them, isolating the surrounding horde of Mutated Creatures.

The abilities they displayed were the Superpowers they had gained through so-called Sublimation. Andre’s power was the highly offensive “Crimson Flame,” while Yalan’s was the primarily defensive “Bulwark.The two Purifiers, one attacking and one defending, coordinated with seamless tacit understanding.

On the rooftop of the World Trade Center, An Sheng had just managed to regain control from his out-of-control state. After reverting his body to its ordinary form, his first action was to pull a telescope from a nearby backpack and train it on Lake Heart Island in the central park not far below.

The earlier oppressive sensation had emanated from that very spot. He was determined to see what kind of Mutated Creature possessed such formidable power.

The high-powered military telescope brought everything on Lake Heart Island into clear view for An Sheng. The small artificial island was crowded with thousands of Mutated Creatures of various forms, all collectively assaulting the center of the island.

There, a glass-like, transparent white shield blocked all attacks from the Mutated Creatures, creating an absolutely safe zone. Inside the shield, a man and a woman, dressed in identical attire, were locked in fierce combat with a humanoid Mutated Creature.”Purifier!” An Sheng instinctively exclaimed upon seeing the man’s combat style.

The man inside the protective barrier was manipulating flames to attack the humanoid mutated creature, while the woman accompanying him stood behind him. Whenever the creature launched an assault, she would emit a dazzling white light to shield her companion. Their coordination was seamless, completely suppressing the mutated creature.

An Sheng finally understood how terrifying Purifiers truly were. Just the protective barrier capable of blocking numerous mutated creatures’ attacks alone demonstrated that their abilities could be described as heaven-defying.

No wonder Nie Chong’s 200-strong Special Forces Team with various powerful weapons had been nearly wiped out by just a few Purifiers—their strength wasn’t even on the same level.

No matter how powerful your weapons and ammunition are, they must first be able to hit the target. With a protective barrier around them, your weapons become useless, while their superpower attacks leave you defenseless—utterly at their mercy.

Actually, An Sheng was somewhat overestimating the Purifiers’ superpowers. Human weapons aren’t completely ineffective against Purifiers; it’s just that Yalan’s ability happens to specialize in defense.

Without Yalan, Andre wouldn’t dare venture alone into Lake Heart Island swarming with thousands of mutated creatures. No matter how powerful his offensive superpowers might be, he couldn’t withstand collective attacks from so many creatures.

Moreover, Yalan’s superpower isn’t limitless—the stronger the barrier, the greater the drain on her energy. Thus, her ability is by no means an impenetrable absolute defense. However, An Sheng remained unaware of these details at the moment.

While marveling at the Purifiers’ formidable power, An Sheng couldn’t help but admire the humanoid mutated creature’s tenacity in holding its own against two Purifiers simultaneously.

Furthermore, this mutated creature differed from those An Sheng had encountered before. Beyond its obvious power, what struck him most was an uncanny familiarity, as if he’d seen it somewhere before.

“Where have I seen it? Wait… snakes growing from its head! Damn! The gorgon Medusa!” An Sheng finally realized why the creature felt so familiar—this was the exact image of Medusa from ancient Greek mythology.

This discovery left An Sheng sighing in disbelief. How incredible this world had become, now spawning creatures straight out of ancient myths. Actually, An Sheng’s amazement was quite hypocritical. After his own mutation, his appearance closely resembled demons from Western mythology, so why should the emergence of a Greek gorgon be surprising?