I Can Control Resources

’Can you really get the short end of the stick just for eating an Energy Breakfast?’

Shaximo looked at the half-eaten meat leg in his hand, then at the nearly finished breakfast in his bowl. For a moment, he was in a difficult spot.

Meanwhile, Yi Qinglian’s expression was thunderous.

To have her Energy Breakfast stolen by her own pursuer was a slap in the face. You can imagine how she felt.

"I’m not eating!" Yi Qinglian couldn’t stand it any longer. She spun around and stormed off, kicking over an innocent little stool on her way out.

"Sigh..." Yi Qingge sighed, shot a glance at Shaximo, and then chased after Yi Qinglian.

Gao Neng watched this scene unfold and couldn’t help but shrug.

’They do say monks can’t eat meat.’

’See? Now you’ve eaten your way into trouble.’

"CHOMP CHOMP. So yummy! Gao Neng, let’s come back tomorrow!" Fang Tangtang, naturally, didn’t care about any of it. Her eyes just sparkled as she looked at Gao Neng.

"Sure. I have more points than I can ever spend anyway." Gao Neng nodded. He wasn’t just bragging; according to his plan, he really would have a limitless supply of points in the future.

"..." Shaximo.

"..." The others.

...

With their pleasant breakfast finished, it was time for Gao Neng’s plan to officially begin.

However, before setting out, they still had to register their trip. The process wasn’t complicated, as the Federation Government didn’t restrict the exploration areas of geniuses.

All they had to do was make an electronic registration with their special passes.

The three of them swiped their cards.

They entered their destination, Zone 93, and then left the residential area.

The moment the trio walked out of the residential area, Zhang Hongying, in a simply decorated office, received the electronic registration information for Gao Neng’s group.

"Zone 93?!" Zhang Hongying’s expression changed slightly. She immediately picked up her communicator and dialed a special number.

"Speaker Wu, Gao Neng is heading to Zone 93."

"..."

"Besides Gao Neng, Shen Ning’Er and Fang Tangtang are with him."

"..."

"Understood. I’ll follow them covertly!"

"..."

The communicator disconnected.

Zhang Hongying glanced at the door, then went into the back room of her office. A short while later, she emerged, having changed into a black and green stealth suit.

The tight-fitting outfit completely defined her figure.

If the old Zhang Hongying looked more like a corporate beauty, then the woman in this black and green stealth suit was every bit the assassin from the shadows.

...

The drive from their residence to the outskirts of the Underground City took half an hour.

Shen Ning’Er and Fang Tangtang each had a mecha motorcycle. Gao Neng, naturally, sat behind Shen Ning’Er, pressing his body tightly against hers.

VROOOM!

The mecha motorcycles roared to life.

Both girls were speed demons, and with the Underground City being sparsely populated, they rode at top speed nearly the entire way.

As a result, the half-hour journey was cut down to twenty minutes.

After having their special passes checked, the two mecha motorcycles drove out of the city. They weren’t stored inside, a rather brazen move.

The reason was simple.

The wilderness areas near the city were basically safe for people like Gao Neng and his group.

Not long after the three left the city, an SUV drove up. The window rolled down, revealing Zhang Hongying in sunglasses, who looked toward the city guards.

"Instructor Zhang." A guard recognized her at a glance.

"Which way did Gao Neng’s group go?" Zhang Hongying asked.

"North. They should be heading towards Zone 93," the guard replied immediately.

"Mm, good." Zhang Hongying nodded and drove off. After she pulled away, a small screen appeared in her hand, displaying three hundred red dots, each labeled with a different name.

...

Zone 93 was a mountainous region.

In truth, there was very little forest in the Underground City. As a world beneath the surface, stone and tenacious weeds were the dominant features.

And the mountains were, of course, not smooth mountains.

The mountains in the wilderness of the Underground City were bizarre. Floating Magnetic Mountains hung overhead, while the mountains on the ground looked more like colossal boulders.

If one had to describe it, it was a field of jumbled rocks.

Of course, each rock was massive. The shortest were at least fifty or sixty feet high, while the tallest nearly reached the Magnetic Mountains in the sky.

After parking their mecha motorcycles, the three prepared to proceed on foot.

"Be careful of the gaps between the rocks!" Shen Ning’Er warned.

"Got it." Gao Neng nodded. He then released the Tier Seven Genetic Weapon and used his Spiritual Power to control it, sending it ahead to scout the path.

The three advanced in single file.

Gao Neng was at the very front.

Shen Ning’Er was at the rear.

And Fang Tangtang walked between Gao Neng and Shen Ning’Er.

"So this is Zone 93? It doesn’t feel very dangerous. Last time Sister Ning’Er and I went to Zone 148, there were at least a few shade-grown Cannibal Flowers," Fang Tangtang said after five minutes of walking, sounding a little disappointed.

"Tangtang, keep your Electromagnetic Cannon ready." Upon entering Zone 93, Shen Ning’Er’s expression had lost the carefree look she’d had while riding her mecha motorcycle.

"BOOM!"

Just then, a loud bang came from up ahead.

"Huh? A noise! What was that?" Fang Tangtang immediately exclaimed.

"I don’t know. Something between those two rocks to the right attacked my genetic weapon, but I managed to slash it and drive it back," Gao Neng said, shaking his head.

"Let’s go take a look."

"Mm."

The three quickly arrived beside the genetic weapon.

On the ground was a puddle of green blood, which looked like fluid from a plant and gave off a pungent smell.

"It’s probably some kind of vine creature," Shen Ning’Er quickly judged.

"Are there other life forms in the wilderness of the Underground City?" Gao Neng had actually wanted to ask this question for a while, and now was the perfect opportunity.

"Yes. Besides some special ’Natural Magnetic Zones,’ the wilderness of the Underground City also has some shade-dwelling life forms. They’re basically subterranean creatures, but because they’ve lived under the radiation of Energy Magnetic Heaps for years, they have evolved to be very powerful," Shen Ning’Er explained.

"Evolved?" Gao Neng frowned. He remembered what Xu Zilan had once told him: the Underground City was the source of human evolution.

’Does that mean this source of evolution also affects these shade-dwelling life forms?’

’If that’s the case...’

’...can these subterranean creatures be considered another kind of alien race?’

"They aren’t considered an alien race. Alien races have intelligence on par with us humans, and they are recorded in ancient texts. These shade-dwelling creatures, however, have merely undergone some changes due to long-term exposure to radiation in this environment. Essentially, they can only be considered mutants," Shen Ning’Er said, seeming to have read Gao Neng’s mind.

"I see. Then what are the Natural Magnetic Zones?" Gao Neng asked again.

"You can think of a Natural Magnetic Zone as a ’supernatural phenomenon.’ Of course, that’s just a way to describe it, because Natural Magnetic Zones are diverse. To date, the Human Alliance is aware of 109 different types."

"That many?"

"Yes. And the danger level of a Natural Magnetic Zone is far higher than that of mutants. If you encounter one, you should try to go around it. Only force your way through if you have no other choice." Shen Ning’Er was clearly the most knowledgeable of the three on this subject.

"Understood." Gao Neng didn’t ask any more questions.

The three continued forward.

In truth, there were no real paths in this "field of jumbled rocks." They were basically just weaving between the boulders.

And, to put it bluntly...

...this kind of traversing was inherently dangerous.

It was very possible to get lost while winding through the rocks and end up trapped inside.

For Gao Neng, however, this danger didn’t exist. He had a panoramic map in his mind, so a clear path was laid out in his head.

On the path ahead, the Tier Seven Genetic Weapon proved its worth several more times.

It not only acted as a decoy but also successfully slew a mutant—a rather cute-looking shade-dwelling frog. It was a dull gray color and a full two meters in size.

This shade-dwelling frog was hiding under a huge rock. When it saw the Tier Seven Genetic Weapon pass by, it shot out its tongue and swallowed it whole.

And then...

...the Tier Seven Genetic Weapon sliced its stomach open from the inside with a single strike.

Of course, due to the stomach acid, the Tier Seven Genetic Weapon’s skin was burned. And this was just from being inside for less than two seconds.

Gao Neng’s jaw dropped as he looked at the now-disfigured Tier Seven Genetic Weapon.

"Holy crap! If I had been scouting ahead, my face would be ruined! If I don’t score a huge haul today, it’ll be a real insult to my own face!" Gao Neng applied a layer of medicine to the genetic weapon’s body, then had it continue scouting for the group.

「An hour and a half later.」

Gao Neng stopped.

Because, if he remembered correctly, there should have been a growth area for fire-attribute raw materials here, but he couldn’t see anything.

’Is the map wrong?’

’That shouldn’t be possible!’

’It was there when I looked yesterday, and now it’s gone?’

"Gao Neng, what are you looking for?" Seeing Gao Neng stop and start feeling around, Fang Tangtang immediately sidled up to him.

"I sensed a soaring Spiritual Qi here, so I thought I’d look for some fruit or something. Would you believe that?" Gao Neng replied casually.

"Hahaha... You must be crazy for fruit! We’re surrounded by rocks, stuck in a crevice. How could there possibly be any fruit here?" Fang Tangtang burst out laughing.

"Surrounded by rocks?" Gao Neng’s eyes lit up. He called up the image from his memory again and quickly locked onto a huge rock to the east.

"Blast it!"

Gao Neng pointed.

"Huh?" Fang Tangtang was confused.

"I said, use your Electromagnetic Cannon to blast it!" Gao Neng pointed at the rock again.

"Are you crazy? What’s the point of blasting a stupid rock? Fine, fine... I’ll blast it!" Fang Tangtang was disdainful but ultimately complied.

Electromagnetic Cannon No. 4 was fired.

Blue electric light flashed.

"BOOM!"

A loud explosion rang out.

And a large hole appeared in the black boulder.