Chapter 46: Comprehensive Improvement and Return to Black Hawk Corporation Headquarters

“What’s happening?” Just as Zhang Ran was taken aback, the “Blood Plunder” ability rune had already settled onto the Tree of Evolution, attaching itself to one of its branches like a newly sprouted leaf.

At the same time, a faint radiance began to emanate from the Tree of Evolution. Waves of potent evolutionary energy surged from the tree and poured into Zhang Ran’s body, initiating a further strengthening of his physique. Bathed in this evolutionary force, Zhang Ran felt a comfort so profound it seemed every cell in his body was rejoicing, eagerly absorbing the power and continuously metamorphosing, enhancing his potential for future evolution with each passing second.

Moreover, as this power flowed through him, trace amounts of dark genetic impurities were expelled from his cells. As these impurities were forced out, a thin, blackish liquid formed on the surface of Zhang Ran’s skin, exuding a foul stench. But once the impurities had been purged, the evolutionary potential of every cell in his body underwent a qualitative leap, taking on a translucent, jade-like luster.

“Ding! Evolutionary energy absorbed. Physical attributes comprehensively enhanced: Strength +1.257, Constitution +1.250, Agility +1.203, Spirit +1.155.”

Fifteen minutes later, the evolutionary energy provided by the Tree of Evolution was finally exhausted, and at that moment, the chip’s notification sounded softly in Zhang Ran’s ears.

“Chip, conduct a deep-level scan of my body and establish a standard template for an evolutionary lifeform based on the results!”

With the evolutionary process complete, Zhang Ran instructed the chip to begin its analysis. As he did so, he stood up and made his way to the bathing area for a quick shower, rinsing away the genetic impurities that had been expelled onto his skin.

“Ding! Scan complete. Evolutionary template established. Would you like to view it?”

Nearly ten minutes passed before the chip finally completed its analysis of Zhang Ran’s body. A prompt sounded in his ear. Even though the chip in Zhang Ran’s mind had received a significant upgrade alongside his own evolution—its computational power increasing by several orders of magnitude—it still required a full ten minutes to scan, analyze, and model this entirely new, unprecedented type of being.

“Show it.”

As Zhang Ran gave the command, a flash of silver light swept before his eyes. Instantly, a three-dimensional holographic image appeared beside him, detailing every aspect of his body’s structure, resistances, and cellular activity. Next to the image was a detailed attribute panel.

“Name: Zhang Ran
Age: 8

Level: Evolutionary Stage 1
Evolution Points: 0/3
Current Evolution Point Accumulation: 0.00%
Abilities: Extraordinary Evolution, Blood Plunder
Strength: 3.257
Constitution: 3.250
Agility: 3.203
Spirit: 3.155”

After breaking through to a Stage 1 Evolutionary, Zhang Ran’s physical attributes had surpassed the ordinary human limit of 2, stepping into a new realm. Thanks to the feedback from the Tree of Evolution, his attributes didn’t stop at 3 points, but surged to around 3.2.

“Right, there’s also the Blood Plunder ability rune. I wonder if it’s been affected?” With this concern in mind, Zhang Ran activated the Blood Plunder rune within his sea of consciousness. As before, a scarlet thread appeared, and not only was its power undiminished, but it even seemed subtly enhanced. This discovery filled him with delight.

“Now that I’ve advanced to an Evolutionary, it’s time to return to Black Hawk Corporation, undergo the assessment and registration, and receive my employee credentials.”

With this thought, Zhang Ran tidied himself up, then left his room and headed for Supervisor Eugene’s office.

Becoming an official employee of Black Hawk Corporation would mean Zhang Ran had to begin fulfilling his contractual obligations, with half his earnings in Black Hawk credits being taken as repayment until his million-credit debt was cleared. Yet, without joining the corporation, he’d have no access to the precious resources and weapons essential for his future battles and growth.

As for leaving Black Hawk’s territory and seeking refuge with another faction to escape his debt, Zhang Ran had already determined this to be an even riskier option. In the wilderness, the nearest factions were two to three hundred kilometers away, and unlike the core zone of Black Hawk, these regions hadn’t been cleared by powerful evolutionaries. Instead, they were teeming with high-level mutant beasts. Not only would a Stage 1 Evolutionary like Zhang Ran be unable to cross such a distance, even a Stage 4 Evolutionary with two abilities would struggle to survive the journey.

For those who had climbed to Stage 4, most had already repaid the bulk of their debts and attained significant status within Black Hawk Corporation, making escape an unattractive option. It was precisely for this reason that the corporation invested so heavily in nurturing wilderness youths like Zhang Ran who displayed evolutionary potential.

“Supervisor Eugene, I have successfully advanced to Evolutionary status. I wish to return to Black Hawk Corporation headquarters for assessment and registration.”

Upon entering Eugene’s office, Zhang Ran stated his intent directly.

“Oh, of course! Congratulations, young man!” Eugene greeted him with a warm smile and words of congratulations. Soon after, Zhang Ran departed the Black Hawk Youth Training Camp and set out for the corporation’s headquarters.

—

Two hours later, after a swift journey, Zhang Ran arrived at Black Hawk City, the seat of Black Hawk Corporation’s headquarters.

Though called a city, it was in truth little more than a small town spanning five square kilometers. Yet compared to the wilderness, it bore a trace of modern civilization. The ambient radiation was much lower—still not at pre-cataclysm levels, but only a fraction of what one would encounter in the wild. For an ordinary person, living here could prolong their life by five to ten years.

At the center of Black Hawk City stood a towering building, thirty meters high, eleven stories in all, occupying more than ten thousand square meters. Embellished upon its façade was the fierce insignia of a black hawk, making it stand out starkly among the surrounding low-rise structures.

This was the headquarters of Black Hawk Corporation, the private domain of its five Hunter-level executives—the highest authority in the corporation.

Clustered around the headquarters were several smaller buildings: the trading center, the guild hall, the administrative office, the armory—each vital to the corporation’s operations.

Further out lay the residential quarters for evolutionaries and their families: elegant villas, each worth hundreds of thousands of Black Hawk credits, affordable only to high-ranking evolutionaries.

Beyond these were service establishments—supermarkets, restaurants, bars, red-light districts, casinos, arenas—providing entertainment and relaxation for the evolutionaries and livelihoods for a large population of ordinary non-evolved people.