The Enigma of Gene Extraction and a Hero’s Unaware Might

As the room’s unique properties activated, the ‘Dungeon’s’ danger level escalated. However, the clear and easily understood markers at each entrance and exit offered a general overview of the room’s situation. This, in turn, allowed more powerful ability users to navigate and conquer the ‘Dungeon’ more effectively.

It was unclear whether this system was intended as a form of natural selection.

Naturally, without a manual, the meaning of these markers often had to be deciphered. Not all of them presented the inherent dangers with immediate clarity.

“Hmm…” Saint Lily stared at the wall covered in double helix icons, tilting her head. “What does this mean? An upward staircase?”

“This appears to be a gene fragment,” Dandelion mused for a moment, offering her interpretation.

“Ah…” Right! The DNA double helix. Having once strived through college entrance exams, Saint Lily was naturally familiar with it. Upon a closer look, it indeed resembled one, but its appearance in the ‘Dungeon’ felt somewhat out of place. Was this a tech tree? Or biotechnology? It certainly didn’t feel magical.

“Red Spider Lily, what do you think?”

“Me?” Red Spider Lily tilted her head, glancing at Su Xiaoqian beside her. ‘I have someone to help me see.’

[Host, this is a trap room—’Gene Extraction.’ It will inflict minor damage on intruders and then collect 1 to 3 gene fragments from their bodies. Once 100 gene fragments are collected, it will enhance one of the ‘Dungeon’s’ Calamity Beasts.]

Su Xiaoqian observed for a moment before providing the detailed explanation.

Only then did Red Spider Lily adopt a thoughtful expression and nod, responding, “I also suspect it might be related to genes. For rooms with such inscrutable meanings, we should try to avoid them. We aren’t limited to just one path, are we?”

Each room had four exits.

These exits were covered by transparent light screens, passable directly. However, from the outside, one couldn’t discern the internal conditions, relying solely on the marker’s hints for conjecture.

The others had no objections to her suggestion. Anything involving biological aspects warranted extreme caution.

To draw a comparison, it was like modern weight loss. People tended to favor physical methods, buying one ‘shaking machine’ after another for their bodies, applying countless topical plasters, and drinking endless packets of health-focused slimming tea. Yet, when it came to weight loss drugs—like L-carnitine and other incomprehensible, high-sounding terms promising super effective results—

people were generally very wary. They weren’t the first choice, and even if purchased, one needed significant mental preparation before ingesting them. Whether they worked or not was secondary; the primary fear was potential harm to the body from introducing chemicals.

Every medicine carried a degree of toxicity. Who would take medicine without good reason?

Well…

What was I talking about, anyway?

Never mind.

Trap rooms and combat rooms could be identified by their icons, specifically their borders.

The trap room borders were painted black on all four sides, with converging lines of varying lengths drawn towards the center, like dripping venom—eerie and terrifying.

The combat room borders featured continuous inward-facing serrations, resembling walls lined with steel needles. The mere sight of them was oppressive. However, these serrations weren’t directly connected to the border, which, from another perspective, made them look like the startled speech bubbles in a comic. ‘Gasp! A wild monster has jumped out again!’

Operating under the assumption that combat rooms were easier to deal with, Red Spider Lily pointed to the combat room before them, which depicted a muscular, human-like icon resembling a weightlifter.

“Let’s go this way.”

As soon as they entered,

“ROAR!!!”

The immense roar sent a wave of sound that made the two girls instinctively press down their skirts. Red Spider Lily? She was wearing pants.

Bell-bottoms were a terrible civilization!

The room contained only one Calamity Beast, but it occupied most of the room’s area.

Her gaze moved upward. It was so huge, so…

Was Daigu ready for a crash landing?

****

……………………………………….Time Skip ~……………………………….

“Miss Yuhan, we truly owe it to you. To be able to discern the connection between those patterns and the areas within—I really didn’t want to touch those disgusting traps. A true man should fight with real blades and spears!” With a golden physique and reflective white ceramic teeth, wow~ what a dazzling, sunny big boy! Little Brother He, do you know your initial shy persona has completely collapsed?

“Haha~ After falling into so many traps, I found it’s quite normal. And I agree, those trap-filled areas are truly disgusting. But as for Calamity Beasts, I’m not a combat type, Little Brother He, please protect me~” Tan Yuhan offered an embarrassed smile, appearing shy from the praise, then gazed at He Mo with eyes full of admiration.

“Don’t worry!” He Mo gave a thumbs-up. “With me here, I won’t let a single hair on your head be harmed!”

With that, He Mo stepped into the next area. Immediately, a wolf head clamped down hard on his skull, emitting a ‘bang~’ like the tolling of an ancient temple bell. The most remarkable part was that he maintained his radiant smile, completely oblivious.

“L-Little Brother He, doesn’t that… hurt?”

He Mo gave her another thumbs-up, then raised his hand. His large hands gripped the waist of the attacking wolf-type Calamity Beast. With a teeth-grinding crack of bone, the wolf-type beast howled and released its bite. The next moment, it was slammed heavily to the ground and repeatedly smacked.

[After watching so many livestreams, this one truly understands showmanship.]

[Wolf: What did I bite? Was it meat? Not sure, let me try again!]

[He Mo: I think you don’t understand the worth of a C-rank super ability squad!]

[True. Worth.]

[Copper head, iron bones, tofu waist. Why did you interrupt his flexing?]

[With a girl nearby, this wolf really doesn’t get the atmosphere. Smash it!]

[Hmm, truly appetizing, I can eat another bowl.]

He Mo watched as the wolf-type Calamity Beast, flattened into a pancake, succumbed to the torment and dissipated into a blur of light.

“AWOOO!!” The white wolf king finally reacted, letting out a howl of shock and fury.

He Mo shifted his gaze, turning towards the source of the sound.

His large fists collided with a clang of metal. He looked at the pack of wolves, exhaled a puff of white air, and his muscles swelled once more, revealing a very friendly smile. “Hehe~”

“Woof~~” Just as they were about to charge, the pack of wolves, still reeling from the shock, trembled at the man’s battle cry.

What was this?

He’s more monstrous than us!

[Why did you have to provoke him?]

****

“Guard me well! Redbud, don’t drag your feet again!”

“Yes~” Redbud already had several wounds on her body, blood seeping out and not healing. Her beautiful light purple dress was also torn in places, making her appear quite disheveled.

She possessed no defensive skills, relying solely on her physical body to block, triggering her passive Flower Seal Shield. However, this also had a cooldown. Moreover, the Flower Seal Shield’s defense scaled with her level, and at her current state, she was incredibly fragile. Her shield had just been depleted.

What to do? What to do?

Hugging her staff, she stared at the pouncing Calamity Beast. Her eyes closed, then snapped open, a surge of determination welling within her. She couldn’t evade; she had to grow stronger.

The next moment, the Calamity Beast’s fur stood on end, freezing in place, faint electric arcs flowing around it.

Looking back at Redbud, a small purple electric orb hovered around her, circling. This was an ability she had gained from her ‘Sprout’ skill—the Electro-Orb. It was typically used as an offensive skill, fired to inflict a ‘paralyzing’ effect.

Under immense pressure, however, she had now applied it in a completely new way.

“I… succeeded…”

“You bunch of mongrels, something big is coming.” A voice reached her ear, and Redbud froze for a moment, then hastily dove to the side.

“Rose Cannon.”

A pillar of light swept through all the Calamity Beasts.

“……” Redbud, having fallen to the ground, blinked as she examined her scraped hand, injured from the excessive force of her dive.

Hyacinth squatted down, and a faint light emanated from her hands, healing Redbud’s wounds.

“Senior Hyacinth…” Redbud felt a pang of tears and wanted to ask if the other woman had seen her application of the Electro-Orb, yet…

“Tsk, utterly useless. My coordination was almost ruined because of you again~” White Rose stood over her, frowning. She offered no praise, only a complaint. “Why are you so weak?”

“White Rose, Redbud is already trying very hard. How can you say that?”

“Hmph~”

“I’m sorry, Redbud, does it still hurt? Don’t mind White Rose, she actually means well, she just doesn’t know how to express it~”

“It’s alright, Senior Hyacinth, I’ll work harder~”

Redbud looked up, only smiling at Hyacinth, avoiding White Rose’s gaze. She didn’t continue the words she had intended to say earlier, simply clutching her staff tightly.