The narrator's sudden reminder caught Feng Qi off guard. If Little Black attacked, would he once again give Suction Cup a "next time for sure"? He hadn't considered it until now. He lowered his head and looked at the little Suction Cup still rubbing her head against his chest.
At the same time, Suction Cup looked up at him. Her big, watery eyes glowed with a crimson light, full of excitement. As she was held in his arms, her small legs kicked in the air nonstop.
"Ah Qi!" Suction Cup cheered again.
Feng Qi reached out and rubbed her small head, then curiously asked, "Little Suction Cup, how did you recognize me?"
Hearing his question, Suction Cup tilted her head, thought for a few seconds, and then replied, "(〃'▽'〃) Mama gave me a picture… I saw it all the time growing up… Also, Ah Qi has a familiar scent. Very comfortable, I like it a lot."
Hearing her response, Feng Qi immediately understood. It was obvious that Wei Wei had shown Suction Cup his photo after she was created and had pointed at it, telling her that this was Ah Qi.
And when Suction Cup said he had a familiar scent, that must have come from Mu Qing.
[Boss, hurry up and improve your strength, Little Black is already on the way!]
The narrator's sudden reminder snapped Feng Qi out of his thoughts. Knowing he needed to increase his strength as quickly as possible, he held Suction Cup and turned to leave the private laboratory, heading straight to the elevator on the second underground level of the secret base.
After identity verification, the elevator doors slowly opened.
Arriving at the first-floor plaza of the secret base, Feng Qi didn't stop. He walked directly toward the exit passage and left the Crimson Laboratory.
The moment he stepped out, the blood moon's light poured over him. The scene before his eyes shocked him.
The Star City he remembered, which was already in ruins, had now been completely reduced to a wasteland.
Everywhere he looked, there were piles of collapsed buildings, and no more crumbling skyscrapers. Strange plants had intertwined with the ruins, becoming the dominant new life of this abandoned city. They faced the blood moon, absorbing its energy, and he could even see fluids flowing within them.
The traces of human civilization had gradually faded under the erosion of time.
A new civilization of strange plants was thriving wildly, growing over the places humans once lived.
This dreamscape was completely different from any he had seen before.
Because he had changed Star City's history, the city had been erased from history earlier than expected. The Star City Shelter no longer existed. The city's destruction had come far earlier than the original timeline.
After a brief moment of shock, Feng Qi's expression became resolute.
He began walking east. Along the way, Suction Cup was causing absolute chaos, clinging to him like a little monkey.
At times, she wrapped her arms around his neck, swinging back and forth like a child on a playground. Other times, she suctioned herself onto his chest, rubbing her head against him nonstop. She even climbed onto his head, using it as a lookout point to gaze into the distance.
After walking for a while, Feng Qi glanced back at his path, and his telekinesis surged outward, wrapping around him.
Holding Suction Cup, he floated into the air.
After rising a certain distance, he hovered in midair, his gaze shifting westward, focusing into the distance.
Far away in the western ruins, a familiar black figure was rapidly approaching.
It was Little Black.
[History changes. Time moves forward. But Little Black's desire to kill you remains unchanged. What an unshakable, passionate love this is.]
"Maybe Little Black actually wants to kill you!" Feng Qi retorted instantly.
[Same thing. I'm inside you. If Little Black really wants to kill me, it'll have to kill you first. We're tied together now. Blood-bound, inseparable, practically family.]
Estimating Little Black's speed and distance, Feng Qi prepared to descend.
At that moment, the Suction Cup in his arms suddenly turned her head toward Little Black in the distance.
A crimson glow surged in her eyes, and she bared her teeth fiercely.
Just as she was about to leap toward him, Feng Qi held her tightly.
Suction Cup snarled in Little Black's direction, gritted her teeth, and waved her arms furiously in the air as if she wanted to grab him with her tiny hands. She even kicked her little feet aggressively, as if trying to stomp on Little Black from afar.
"What's wrong?" Feng Qi rubbed her head, trying to calm her down.
"ヽ(`Д) Mama said Little Black is bad… Suction Cup will beat it up… Protect Ah Qi!"
No doubt, this was something Wei Wei had taught her in advance.
[Oh ho! Suction Cup has evolved from a throwable auto-battle weapon into a self-directed combat unit. She just skipped the whole "next time for sure" and went straight to attack mode.]
Ignoring the narrator's nonsense, Feng Qi used his telekinesis to descend back to the ground.
With Little Black still some distance away, he had to increase his strength as soon as possible.
Feng Qi noticed that with Little Black no longer in sight, Suction Cup's emotions had stabilized significantly. However, she still turned her head occasionally, glancing toward the direction Little Black had disappeared to, eyes full of cautious anticipation as if she were itching for a fight.
As he comforted Suction Cup, he stepped over the wreckage of collapsed buildings, moving eastward. Ahead lay a dense overgrown garden, filled with twisting, eerie plants swaying under the blood moon's glow. The whole scene was unnervingly strange, with the rhythmic movement of the plants causing countless purple, cotton-like wisps to drift into the air.
A cold wind howled through, carrying the purple wisps far into the distance. Upon closer inspection, he realized that these wisps were shaped like claws, and whenever they touched the ruins, they clung onto them tightly. Clearly, these wisps were offspring of the eerie plants, a method for them to spread across the city, expanding their territory.
Faced with the forest of strange plants blocking his path, Feng Qi had no intention of taking a detour. He was no longer the weakling who had to hide and run in the early days of entering the future dreamscape. Though there were still powerful entities he couldn't contend with, in this area, he was almost unmatched.
Still, to be cautious, he asked aloud, "Ah Bai, can we take them?"
[Slaughter them all!]
Hearing the narrator's confident reply, Feng Qi felt his confidence surge. The narrator's assessments were always accurate, and if it said they could easily wipe out the enemy, then there was nothing to worry about.
With that in mind, he picked up the pace.
As he approached the overgrown garden, countless giant purple flowers twisted their bodies, as if sensing his presence. Their sharp leaves, which looked like razor-sharp blades, suddenly swung toward him, aiming to cut him down.
But before he could even react, Suction Cup whipped her head toward the flowers and threw a punch.
A jade-colored light gathered around her small fist, then exploded outward.
Boom!
The energy from her punch shot forward, slamming into the purple flowers. In an instant, the flowers burst apart with a deafening explosion.
The sheer impact sent Feng Qi flying backward, his feet lifting off the ground as he was hurled through the air, tumbling nearly ten meters before crashing hard onto the ground.
For a moment, Feng Qi lay there, completely stunned.
At the same time, the narrator's voice rang in his head:
[Tsk tsk, handheld cannon blast—the recoil on that punch was no joke.]
Staring at the obliterated remains of the purple flowers, Feng Qi couldn't help but break into a cold sweat.
Suction Cup had acted on her own, clearly trying to protect him. But the truth was—he didn't need protection, or else he wouldn't be able to grow stronger.
With that thought, he stood up, brushed off the dust, then turned Suction Cup to face him.
Just as he was about to speak, he noticed her gleeful expression.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement (o▽)o—practically begging for praise.
Feng Qi chuckled, ruffled her hair, and praised, "Suction Cup, you're amazing. Thank you for protecting me."
"()(._.`)"
Hearing the praise, Suction Cup shrunk her neck shyly, a bright smile blooming on her face.
"But these creatures are my prey, and I can handle them. Right now, I don't need your protection. Understand?"
"(v｀) Got it! Ah Qi wants to get stronger." Suction Cup nodded obediently.
Feng Qi was genuinely surprised.
Thinking about it, this must have been something Wei Wei had taught her in advance—saving him a lot of trouble.
Placing Suction Cup on the ground, Feng Qi stood up straight again and activated his Blood Source Form.
His heart rate skyrocketed.
A surge of powerful energy burst from his chest, flooding through his body and pouring outward.
As blood energy swirled around him, his body began to expand.
In mere moments, he had grown to a towering five meters tall, dark purple patterns etched across his blood-colored flesh.
With each breath, deep green flames ignited across his body, flickering wildly.
Under the blood moon's glow, he looked ferocious and terrifying—like an ancient demon crawling out of hell, his entire being radiating an overwhelming aura of evil.
Even though he had activated this form before, his current strength was far greater than it had been in any previous sacrifice timeline.
Power surged within him, and his battle instincts roared to life.
"Ah Qi… Awooo!" Suction Cup raised her small fist and cheered loudly, trying to hype him up.
Feng Qi glanced at her tiny figure, then nodded firmly.
Turning his gaze to the dense, eerie plant forest ahead, he grinned viciously.
His body tensed, his muscles coiled like a loaded spring.
Then—he launched himself forward.
The ground beneath his feet shattered, and his massive form shot through the air like a cannonball, hurtling toward the overgrown forest.
Sensing his killing intent, the strange plants trembled violently.
Vines and branches twisted unnaturally, lunging toward him like striking whips.
At the same time, the floating purple wisps in the air began to drift toward him, as if instinctively converging on their prey.
A dense fog of claw-shaped wisps surged toward him, blocking his path.
But Feng Qi had no intention of dodging.
Feng Qi didn't even need to lift a finger. The moment the dark green flames on his body touched the floating wisps, they ignited instantly, turning into specks of ash before they could reach him.
Charging through the burning wisps, a massive purple vine, nearly two meters thick, suddenly swung down from above, aiming to crush him.
Without hesitation, Feng Qi threw a punch.
The moment his fist shot forward, the flames of fist intent ignited in his chest, roaring to life.
Blood-red energy, mixed with dark green flames, formed a burning fist shadow, slamming into the descending vine.
Boom!
The thick vine shattered instantly, its severed halves crashing onto the ground, while the fist shadow continued forward, colliding into an ancient tree tens of meters away, leaving behind a scorching, blood-red imprint on its trunk.
At that moment, the Hellfire effect activated.
The dark green flames spread rapidly, engulfing the trunk, consuming it ferociously.
A grotesque face twisted into existence on the tree's bark, contorting in pain as the tree trembled violently, its branches shaking. In desperation, it released a fine green powder, smothering the flames before they could spread further.
But Feng Qi wasn't paying attention to the burning ancient tree—his focus was locked onto the cluster of purple flowers blocking his path.
He stepped forward and threw another punch.
This time, the force behind the strike was overwhelming, the air ripping apart as the fist blasted forward.
Crack!
With no resistance, the massive purple flower exploded instantly, its thick, viscous sap spraying everywhere. The air filled with a strangely sweet scent.
As the flower's remains fell to the ground, Feng Qi instinctively summoned his attribute panel, noticing a new ability had appeared.
[Lunar Assimilation (Active Ability)]:
Ability Description: Allows the user to actively absorb Blood Moon radiation, converting it into energy.
Before Feng Qi could even react, the narrator's sarcastic voice rang in his head:
[What kind of garbage ability is this? Even if we fed it to Three-Tails, he'd probably wag his tail a few times before walking away in disappointment.]
Feng Qi couldn't disagree. Just as the narrator said, this ability was completely useless—unless he planned to feed it to Three-Tails.
At that moment, a sharp whistling sound cut through the air, interrupting his thoughts.
Instinctively, he prepared to punch, but before he could act, a flash of jade-colored light streaked past his vision.
Not far away, a cactus-like plant was ripped from the ground, roots and all.
Suction Cup, holding the massive plant, jumped excitedly in place, her expression filled with joy.
"Ah Qi! Still alive!" she cheered, gleefully shaking the cactus.
Realizing that Suction Cup was actively helping him grow stronger, Feng Qi nodded and immediately punched the cactus.
The fist shadow shot forward, colliding with the cactus. In an instant, the entire plant exploded, its thick green fluids spraying across the ground.
Another new ability notification appeared on his attribute panel.
[Blood Thorn Assault (Active Ability)]:
Ability Description: When activated, Qi and blood energy condense into spikes, which then burst outward, dealing 360-degree area-of-effect damage to all surrounding enemies.
Yet another trash ability.
This time, Feng Qi didn't even need the narrator's input—he could tell it was completely useless.
But with the Evolution Token, even the most useless abilities could be fed to Three-Tails, turning trash into treasure and fueling his Blood Source abilities.
Meanwhile, as he continued to slaughter these eerie plants, his Bloodline Evolution Points were steadily increasing.
His current total: (6872/10000).
The next breakthrough was within reach.
The last time he evolved, he gained the ability to switch between Human Form and Battle Form.
He was eager to see what new transformation awaited him after the next breakthrough.
With this thought, Feng Qi charged forward like a tiger pouncing on its prey, plowing through the dense plant life.
To him, these strange plants were nothing more than stepping stones, mere resources for his growth, completely incapable of posing a threat.
As he moved through the battlefield, countless vines and branches lashed out at him, only to be torn apart by his iron fists, their remains burning in the green flames.
However, despite slaughtering dozens of these creatures, he still hadn't obtained a single combat ability that suited his fighting style.
At least his Bloodline Evolution Points continued to rise steadily.
Another punch.
Another flower shattered.
A surge of green energy flooded into him, converting into evolution points.
Looking past the remaining foliage, he finally spotted something different—a towering ancient tree in the center of the overgrown forest, standing dozens of meters tall.
A human-like face twisted into its bark, its dark eyes staring directly at him.
Feng Qi immediately felt a faint sense of pressure from the tree.
It was clear—this tree was the dominant ruler of this forest.
"Hope you give me a useful ability," Feng Qi muttered.
The moment the words left his mouth, the ground beneath him trembled, the soil collapsing inward as he launched forward, his blood-colored form streaking toward the tree like a comet.
A deep, guttural roar echoed through the air.
The ancient tree responded, shaking violently as the earth rumbled beneath it.
At the same time, an excited voice rang out beside him.
"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"
Turning to look, Feng Qi saw Suction Cup running on all fours, keeping pace right beside him, her stance like a dedicated bodyguard.
"Suction Cup!" Feng Qi called out, "Go rip that tree out from the ground!"
"AWOOOO!!"
Suction Cup threw her head back, howling in excitement, before shooting forward, transforming into a streak of jade-colored light, slamming directly into the towering ancient tree.
Watching her charge ahead, Feng Qi couldn't help but smile like a proud father.
Compared to previous future dreamscapes, this time, Suction Cup could actually understand his commands, moving like an extension of his will.
That, alone, was an unexpected and amazing surprise.