A massive amount of Spiritual Energy surged out from the spatial rift. With the rift as its epicenter, the concentration of Spiritual Energy within a hundred-meter radius rapidly increased.
The black fox Mutant Beast, which had been about to leave in search of its next prey, stared blankly at the spatial rift above its head. It had no idea how a crack had appeared in the sky.
Through the massive rift, it saw a huge, full moon on the other side.
If the moon on Blue Star was the size of a bowl, then the full moon on the other side of the spatial rift was the size of a washbasin.
What was even more different was that the enormous full moon on the other side of the rift was actually blood-red, a stark contrast to the jade-white moon of Blue Star.
The Spiritual Energy pouring from the spatial rift was as relentless as a tide. The concentration, which had initially spiked within a hundred-meter radius, spread over time, gradually expanding to cover an area of one to two kilometers.
The concentration of Spiritual Energy in the air shot up to several times its normal level, stunning the nocturnal Mutant Beasts active in the affected area.
Although they didn’t know what was causing it, that didn’t stop them from abandoning their hunts and heading toward the areas of high Spiritual Energy concentration to cultivate.
The spatial rift, which had suddenly appeared deep in the wilderness, caused a rapid increase in the surrounding Spiritual Energy concentration, greatly aiding the cultivation of many Mutant Beasts within the affected zone.
It seemed like everything was for the better. Until...
Suddenly, a bestial roar filled with malice echoed across the wilderness.
"GRRR..."
A creature three meters long, with crimson eyes, protruding fangs, and fur as black as pitch, emerged from the tall grass. It had a tuft of white fur on its forehead and radiated a vicious aura.
It was a black fox Mutant Beast. Looking at the tuft of white fur on its forehead...
...it was hard not to associate this vicious creature with the small black fox Mutant Beast that had been hunting plump field mice earlier.
"ROAR..."
One after another, roars full of malice rang out in the pitch-black wilderness. Soon after, many terrifying Mutant Beasts, seemingly having lost all reason, appeared across the land.
The enormous blood moon behind the spatial rift emitted a red moonlight that shone through the crack onto Blue Star.
An owl Mutant Beast, out hunting for food, happened to pass by. It glanced unintentionally at the spatial rift in the sky, and the red moonlight bathed its body.
The owl Mutant Beast, originally only at the First Rank Initial Stage, suddenly let out a frantic cry as its body began to rapidly expand.
In just a few short minutes, the owl Mutant Beast grew to several times its original size. At the same time, the First Rank Initial Stage Spiritual Energy Wave it was emitting transformed into that of the Second Rank Initial Stage.
Influenced by the Spiritual Energy pouring from the rift, the affected area around it grew larger and larger. Gradually, numerous Mutant Beasts, drawn by the phenomenon, began to arrive.
The closer one got to the spatial rift, the denser the concentration of Spiritual Energy became. The arriving Mutant Beasts quickly made their way toward the rift’s location.
After that, the number of vicious Mutant Beasts continued to grow. If this kept up, the wilderness would soon be overrun with thousands upon thousands of terrifying, temperamentally altered Mutant Beasts.
Just as events were about to spiral in an unimaginable direction, the spatial rift in the sky, which revealed the red moonlight, suddenly began to shrink, eventually disappearing completely.
With the disappearance of the spatial rift, the sudden spike in Spiritual Energy concentration in the affected area gradually returned to normal over time.
However, the Mutant Beasts whose bodies and temperaments had been drastically altered by the blood moon did not revert back to their original state after the rift vanished. It seemed the effects were permanent.
Inside the Spiritual Energy Research Institute in Rongcheng, the advanced laboratory housing the Jade Token was pitch-black.
The Jade Token, which had been emitting a faint golden glow and a slight hum, had returned to a state of calm a few minutes ago, as if it had never shown any signs of activity at all.
「...」
The South District Prison was located at the southernmost edge of the city. Further south lay the perilous wilderness.
Prison Director Zhao Chi had just finished his duties, washed up, and gotten into bed, ready to sleep. He had barely closed his eyes for a moment when the prison’s alarm suddenly blared.
"RING RING RING..."
The shrill, loud alarm not only woke up Prison Director Zhao Chi, but also every single inmate serving time in the prison.
"What’s going on?"
"Why did the alarm suddenly go off?"
"An alarm this frantic means someone is breaking into the prison."
"No way! Someone actually dares to openly break into the prison? Are they suicidal?"
The awakened inmates gathered at the doors of their cells, chatting with each other. They looked relaxed, even happy that the prison was being invaded.
It made sense. This prison had robbed them of their freedom, confining them to this small world. It was only natural for them to revel in its misfortune. They just never stopped to consider why they had been locked up in the first place.
Tie Qiu Heng, also awakened by the alarm, stood at the door of his cell, listening to his fellow inmates laughing and chatting.
’It couldn’t be that Li Ying, the one who came to question me before, has snuck into the prison again and gotten caught, could it?’ he thought to himself.
Hearing the alarm, Prison Director Zhao Chi immediately rolled out of bed.
Still in his pajamas, he hurried out of his room. After exiting the dormitory building, he saw one of his subordinates pointing a flashlight at a massive figure circling in the sky.
"Get the searchlights on it." The flashlight beam was too weak. Still in his pajamas, Prison Director Zhao Chi gave the order to his subordinate.
"Yes, sir." A prison staff member nodded upon hearing Prison Director Zhao Chi’s command.
He then took a phone out of his pocket and made a call.
Before long, the searchlights mounted on the prison’s rooftops flared to life, focusing on the huge, circling figure in the sky.
"Holy shit, that’s a huge owl."
Bathed in the beams of several searchlights, the massive circling figure was revealed. It was an enormous owl, with a wingspan of three to four meters, far larger than any ordinary owl.
"HOOT HOOT..."
The owl, blinded by the intense glare of the searchlights, let out an agitated cry.
Then, the prison staff saw a faint golden Spiritual Light appear on its flapping wings.
Immediately after, gray feathers began to detach from its wings.
These detached gray feathers then shot like arrows toward the searchlights shining brightly from the rooftops.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH..."
The sound of the arrow-like gray feathers cutting through the air was followed by a series of bangs as several of the rooftop searchlights were shattered.
"It’s a Mutant Beast! That giant owl is a Mutant Beast!" a prison staff member who witnessed the scene shouted.
"You’ve got some nerve, you damn beast, coming here to cause trouble!" A furious roar erupted from the ground, and then everyone saw a fiery red light shoot into the sky.
Prison Director Zhao Chi, a pair of Flaming Wings sprouting from his back, sprang into action the moment he saw the giant owl Mutant Beast use its Superpower to destroy the searchlights. He had to prevent the crazed beast in the sky from causing any casualties.
"HOOT HOOT..."
The giant owl Mutant Beast, brimming with a vicious aura, showed no fear of the approaching Zhao Chi, its crimson eyes filled with madness.
Although its Perception picked up an incredibly powerful Spiritual Energy Wave from the approaching enemy, the savagery in its heart had stripped it of all reason.
Knowing full well it was outmatched, it didn’t choose to flee. Instead, it recklessly charged toward the terrifying approaching foe.
「...」