Chapter 17

The whole building was now in chaos. When the darkness suddenly fell, no one had time to react or understand what was happening.

Earlier, Dr. Wang, who had been muttering about something strange happening on the west side, stood up as everything suddenly went dark. He thought maybe the power had gone out.

Meanwhile, on the ninth floor, Fu Nanyao, who was getting his wounds bandaged, twitched his ear slightly—he had sharp hearing.

“Mr. Fu?”
The doctor who had been in charge of his treatment for a long time looked at him, a bit confused.

Fu Nanyao stood up and said, “No need to continue.”
“Hide.”

He only had time to say this before his face turned serious. After fighting with the “Man in High Heels” for so long, Fu Nanyao could sense things more sharply than most ability users.

As soon as the thunder outside boomed, a warning went off in his mind.

—Something’s wrong at the hospital!

The strange creature had crossed the city’s defense line and appeared in the city center—in the hospital! That had never happened before. Since they first started hunting the “Man in High Heels,” it had only appeared in the suburbs. It hadn’t come near the city for almost five years.

Why did it come so suddenly this time?

He looked down at the deep wound on his body.

Did it know he was in bad condition?

Fu Nanyao pressed his lips together. After closing the clinic door, he ignored the doctor hiding under the desk, shaking in fear. His hands quickly shifted into a fused state, and a Tang sword was pulled from the bone in his left arm.

He felt his body’s mutation level spike. Calmly, he listened to the familiar footsteps approaching as the tip of his blade buzzed.

A sharp click-clack echoed from the elevator. When the doors opened, Fu Nanyao suddenly turned and slashed.

The red leather paused briefly before stomping heavily.

In a flash, the familiar opponents—the man and the creature—clashed again.

Meanwhile, Shi Yu was on the third floor. When he heard the sounds, he looked up and saw the sky switching between dark and bright.

The pressure above was terrifying, like the air was shaking.

Shi Yu quickly checked his phone.

There was signal now?!

Earlier, he planned to go out and find someone from the Ability Users Association, but now he had a chance.

Taking a deep breath, Shi Yu found Dr. Shen’s number. When no one answered, he called Han Chuyi instead.

“Hello?”

Han Chuyi had just finished his morning class and was heading back to the association to rest. He saw Shi Yu’s call and frowned.

Wasn’t he being cold this morning? Why call now?

He raised an eyebrow, planning to ignore it—but after a few seconds, he answered the call, acting cool.

“Shi—”

Before Han Chuyi could finish, he heard Shi Yu’s low and urgent voice:

“Something’s wrong at Beishan Hospital. A high heel sealed off the whole building.”

“Come help us—fast!”

Right after that, the signal broke up. Han Chuyi’s face changed instantly, but the call had already been cut.

Beishan Hospital?

Damn it!

Fu Nanyao went to the hospital today!

Han Chuyi realized the problem immediately. He quickly called the duty room at the association and then sped off toward the city center.

But no matter how fast, help from the association would still take time. Inside the hospital, people were panicking, screaming, and confused.

Even though Fu Nanyao was holding the creature back, the doctors and patients left inside were terrified when they realized they couldn’t leave.

“What the hell is going on?”

“Why can’t we find the door?”

About twenty people were gathered in the lobby. After failing to find a way out, many collapsed on the floor, exhausted and scared.

Shi Yu came down the stairs and saw Dr. Wang, who had earlier given him a test slip, clutching the railing in panic. Clearly, no one knew what was going on.

Speaking carelessly now could cause panic, so Shi Yu quietly sat down among the group to rest and wait.

Even after running and pausing upstairs, his body still ached from the effort.

He looked at the time—twenty minutes had passed since the “Man in High Heels” appeared. Fu Nanyao had already held it back for half that time. If he could just hang on a little longer, the association would arrive and save them.

In the city center, if the creature couldn’t quickly kill Fu Nanyao, it would hesitate to stay.

The book said that SSS-level strange creatures had some human-like thinking. They were clever and would weigh risks and rewards. The “Man in High Heels,” long on the blacklist, was no exception.

In fact, Shi Yu remembered that even when it was just SS-level, it was already smarter than other creatures.

Above them, the fighting went from loud to eerily silent. No one knew what was happening up there, but no one dared to go check.

Just like Shi Yu guessed, the “Man in High Heels” came to sneak attack Fu Nanyao, thinking he was weak. But after fighting, it realized something was wrong.

Yes, Fu Nanyao was injured—but more than physical wounds, his mutation level was rising.

After a simulation room accident, he had barely been suppressing the chaos inside him. But now, fighting this hated SSS-level creature, he lost control.

His mutation shot up. When he sliced through half of the creature’s red leather, his body had already begun turning into a blade.

His entire body was covered in the same material as the Tang sword—only his eyes were still human.

The “Man in High Heels” didn’t expect him to suddenly mutate, and now Fu Nanyao’s power surged, ruining its plan.

It couldn’t waste time anymore. After analyzing their strengths, the SSS-level creature decided to retreat. Its strange domain had been cracked—this fight was a failure.

Both sides stood in silence, blades dragging across the floor. Fu Nanyao was clearly not doing well either.

Even though it looked like he was winning—wounding the enemy—he could feel something wrong inside himself.

His emotions were fading fast. He was being pulled into full mutation, transforming into a strange creature, fused with the Tang sword inside him.

Blade-like marks spread across his face like magic symbols. If the mutation finished, he would become the second SSS-level creature in the hospital—maybe even stronger than the “Man in High Heels.” Everyone inside would die.

His heart started to stiffen. As he watched the enemy retreat, he tried hard to resist the urge to kill, took a deep breath, and turned toward the stairs.

He had to break the strange domain and let the civilians escape first.

As for himself…

There was no time to think.

Fu Nanyao forced himself to the first floor. The lobby was dim, with no light in the gloomy weather.

Groups of people were huddled together, crying. His eyes changed instantly.

Shi Yu had just started to worry about the silence above when he saw Fu Nanyao coming down.

Just an hour ago, this captain of the Ability Users Association looked like a normal person. Now, he didn’t look human at all—Shi Yu had never seen anyone covered in deep, bone-like blade marks.

His heart jumped—Fu Nanyao had already mutated?!

Fu Nanyao himself hadn’t expected this. He had overestimated his control.

He thought he could break the domain before fully mutating. But once he reached the first floor, his mind went blank—he forgot his mission.

All he could think about was killing.

He could smell living humans. He turned his head, eyes completely black, and the mutation hit 100%.

Shi Yu: …
Crap!

The killing intent pouring off Fu Nanyao was terrifying.

Shi Yu froze—but suddenly, Fu Nanyao turned and walked straight toward him.

Was he going to kill someone he recognized first?

That ridiculous thought crossed Shi Yu’s mind. He forced a smile and, as Fu Nanyao stopped in front of him, gathered his courage and shouted,

“Don’t come any closer!”

It was a basic human survival instinct. And surprisingly, the fully mutated Fu Nanyao stared at him…

…and stopped.

After understanding what Shi Yu meant, he actually slowed down… and didn’t move.