As Lin Feng looked at Shen Jie, he caught a glimpse of faint crimson energy fluctuations emanating from him, distorting the very space around him.

It was the physical manifestation of the Slaughter Realm.

Just as Ling Yi had said, Shen Jie hadn’t completely mastered it yet, so he couldn’t control it at will. Anyone who got too close could be affected.

Lin Feng could only observe the Slaughter Realm’s phantom-like fluctuations when using his Identification Skill.

And the description of it provided by the Identification Skill made Lin Feng feel both worried and relieved.

He was worried about the fearsome nature of the Slaughter Realm. Although it could provide a direct 100% bonus to his Physique Attribute, the costs to activate and deactivate it were far too demanding.

It begins with slaughter, and it must end with slaughter.

After killing a single being of the same tier to activate the Slaughter Realm, Shen Jie’s Physique Attribute would receive a massive 200% bonus, reaching a terrifying value of over 2850. But the price for this wasn’t just a drop in his Spiritual Attribute. To escape the Slaughter Realm’s influence, he would then have to kill ten more beings of the same tier.

This meant that the Slaughter Realm could only be activated as a desperate, last-ditch effort when surrounded in a large-scale battle.

Things were manageable now, at Tier Two. While Tier Two Zerg weren’t as common as the Low Tier ones, each Swarm still contained hundreds, if not thousands, of them.

The Hai City Mother Empress, in particular, was at the Tier Three Middle Stage and could even mass-produce large numbers of low-cost Tier Two Samurai Hunter Zergs.

Shen Jie, having mastered the Slaughter Realm, was their natural predator and ultimate counter.

But Shen Jie couldn’t stay at Tier Two forever.

Once he killed a Zerg Race Mother Empress and entered Tier Three, trying to find ten more Tier Three Zerg to kill would be more difficult than challenging the King Spine Zerg from the Slaughter Realm.

Combined with his Assimilation Form, he could triple his Physique Attribute. This would allow him, while at the Tier Three Early Stage, to jump three minor stages and challenge a Tier Three Middle Stage being.

But the fundamental problem remained.

The higher the Tier, the fewer the individuals. Right now, there were only about a thousand Tier Three Mother Empresses on all of Blue Star. When he reached that level, every time he activated the Slaughter Realm, he would need to kill eleven Tier Three Zerg in total. Otherwise, Shen Jie would be consumed by the Slaughter Realm, continuously degenerating until he became a bloodthirsty beast.

’In comparison, the simplified version my Replication Skill copied from the Slaughter Realm, Bloodthirsty Frenzy, isn’t as insanely powerful as the original, but at least it has no additional costs or side effects.’

’Now that I think about it, back in the Source of Realm, when the Spine God gave me two choices, answering those three questions was definitely the smarter move.’

’After all, for someone who isn’t a Zerg, the cost of using a Zerg’s Mental Realm is still high, and its use would be heavily restricted.’

’This is also why chimeras of different races, despite being able to leverage the advantages of each race in the early stages, find that the price of their genetic splicing becomes fully apparent once they enter Tier Three or become a Cosmic Life.’

’They can’t properly master the genetically inherited Mental Realms, just like Shen Jie right now.’

’And if I had chosen the first option and obtained one of the Spine King’s three major Mental Realms, the rejection from a forced fusion without Zerg genes as a host would have probably been even more severe.’

Lin Feng quickly drew several conclusions from the information provided by his Identification Skill. Seeing that everyone had assembled, he cleared his throat and began to speak.

"The battle for the city’s north has ended in a complete success!"

"We achieved a resounding victory!"

"Although we were ambushed by the Hai City Mother Empress while salvaging the spoils, those losses are negligible compared to our incredible achievement and the increase in our forces’ overall strength..."

"For the soldiers who tragically fell in battle, we have recovered their bodies. After we record their identities, a cremation ceremony will be held tomorrow. In the future, as soon as we can find their families, the death benefits owed to them will be delivered in full."

"The sacrifice made by every soldier who died on the battlefield resisting the Zerg Race invasion, regardless of their rank or deeds, is something we must never forget!"

Led by Li Ran and the others, thunderous applause erupted from the crowd.

After rallying their spirits, Lin Feng continued.

"Our victory in Jiangbei County Town proves that our forces are fully capable of defeating a Zerg Race Mother Empress!"

"For our next step, our strategic objective must shift from merely repelling the Zerg Race’s invasion and containing their expansion to completely eradicating the Zerg Race from an entire region."

"In other words, we will annihilate the Swarm and kill the High-tier Mother Empress!"

"Only then can we truly destroy the Swarm!"

"This unprecedented, grand undertaking will require everyone’s complete and total cooperation."

"The Warriors defending the front lines must hold their ground, protect our main base, and pin down the Swarm. The main fleet will confront the Low Tier Swarm, keeping them locked on the battlefield. As for our most vital unit, the Tier Two Corps, your task is the most crucial and also the most dangerous..."

"You will follow me as we charge into the Underground Hive, purge the Tier Two Zerg, and destroy them at their very root! We will carve a path straight to the Nest and create an opening for our final battle with the Mother Empress!"

"This will be the final showdown in the defense of Wu City!"

"The Zerg Race Mother Empress from Hai City is even more desperate than we are. It’s resorting to any means necessary to build up its strength and expand its forces!"

"Therefore, in the coming days, we must all focus on this mission and train harder than ever before!"

"A few more days of hardship, and once the final battle is won, we will fall back to Jin City to rest and regroup."

"At that time, you’ll all be granted leave on a rotating basis!"

After this announcement, the applause was noticeably louder.