"So they were eliminated from the ocean?" Chang squinted at the shadow. "This thing isn't weak at all!"

"Of course it isn't weak. Even I can't subdue it easily." Liu Xin laughed. "But oceans take up a lot of s.p.a.ce on this planet, so it isn't a surprise that some monsters existed prior to the apocalypse. They simply just got stronger and bigger."

"How is it possible that they were just driven out like that? Are they really at the bottom level of the hierarchy in the ocean?"

"I would say they probably aren't at the bottom but the middle range. It's easier to survive in fresh water than in the ocean. One thing for sure, though, is that they are definitely not the superior ones," the juvenile amphibia a.s.serted. "The top predator won't easily migrate from their habitat since the their place supplies them with an abundance of food."

"I see how this works. Can you do me a favor, please? I need my handguns, I don't feel safe here. Without my weapons, any wild animals are potential threats to my fragile life," Chang said. "You have to guarantee the safety of your hostage, don't you?"

"Oh, safety shouldn't be something you need to worry about when you're with me. No one can hurt you. Plus, my dad is always around, you can shout his name when you feel unsafe." Liu Xin wasn't swayed.

"Alright... I forgot to ask just now, what is your father's name?" Chang asked, changing to a new topic.　

"Liu. It means flow. He only uses one character for his own name." Liu Xin said. "He said that he is the ancestor to all amphibias, and hence he only named himself with a single character. It is his surname and first name. And we, as his copies, inherited his surname."

"Seems Mr. Liu is highly aware of the importance of building a family tree for his species."

"Of course. In the forthcoming thousand years when amphibia establish its civilization, my father will become a figure like Adam or Eve to mankind. We are far more intelligent and physically more capable than humans, how could that not happen?" Liu Xin‘s face softened. "Compared to humans, we're more superior as a species. The fittest survive, amphibias should rule the world.

"So far the humanity's advantage is the acc.u.mulation of knowledge and wisdom. But those are what we can study and learn. As long as we develop a population base, eliminating humans will be as easy as flipping my palm."

"Ambitious." Chang was unperturbed. "So you're almost two years old, how much time did you need to grow as mature as your father?"

"I don't know. Four or five years, perhaps. There is also the possibility that I will never be as strong as him. Papa is allocating all his abilities toward evolving reproduction. If he gains the reproduction ability in the future, I think he'll be improved in every aspect. Reproduction is all he cares about now, by solving this problem, he'll have time to evolve in other aspects."

"I see. Hey, have you ever dived down in the river?" Chang pointed at the Yellow River.

"Of course, that's part of my everyday routine," Lin Xin replied.

"Can you show me what's underneath the water?"

"Are you thinking about diving?"

"I am." Chang didn't hide his intention. "Will diving worsen your injuries?"

"Not a big deal. Unlike to humans, water won't cause infection to our wounds as we grew up in it," Liu Xin said. "What about you? I thought humans can't breathe underwater. You are the most important chip to papa, you can't die."

"I can hold my breath for quite some time." Chang grinned.

"Okay... then sure, I'll need to stay close to you when we are under the water for your own safety." The amphibia's last word was lost as he jumped into the river. The current was swift but that didn't discourage Chang. He followed suit, swimming toward the center.

"Now, let's dive." Few meters away, Liu Xin was floating in th

e river.

"Okay."

Chang took and a deep breath, diving into the water. He opened his eyes wide, and for the first time, the world underwater removed its camouflage.

The water condition of the Yellow River had been greatly improved, it was less muddy and clearer since the apocalypse. The main reason for the improvement was due to the reclaiming of the upstream forest; soil erosion was significantly reduced when the roots solidified the land. That's why when the source of soil and sand to the Yellow River was cut down, the river gradually unclouded. The water could have been even more clear if silt hadn't acc.u.mulated in the river bed over time.

Chang was astonished by the scenery under the water.

The red fog was lightly dissolved in the river and tinted the water a pale red. His vision became clearer compared to when he was at the sh.o.r.e.

He could now see as far as seventy meters, and he quickly lost count of the variety of aquatic animals and water plants that entered his vision.

"I didn't know that crabs are this big already." Chang gesticulated to Liu Xin to show his amazement, but the latter apparently didn't understand his gesture.

Liu Xin thought Chang wanted that crab for a meal, so he accelerated toward the gigantic creature.

Liu Xin was even faster here than when he was on the land. The stout tail helped his balance and the webbing between his toes provided enough surface to allow better acceleration. He weaved his whole torso along with the muscular legs, and the motion brought him forward. He was like an arrow leaving its bow.

The amphibia landed on the crab's sh.e.l.l and ripped its claws off before the crab could catch him. He then punched through the great sh.e.l.l to paralyze it.

Liu Xin returned to Chang with this crab the size of a human.

Liu Xin wasn't able to speak in the human language under the water either, he could only gesture, cueing that the crab was tasty by pointing at the crab and his own mouth.

"Shall we try it at the sh.o.r.e?" Chang gestured out his invitation too, then the two swam upward.

"If I was given proper weapons and there were two of me, I probably could kill you on land." Water dripped from Chang's clothes, initially streaming, then slowing down to drops. "But upon witnessing you hunting underwater, I don't think I could ever be your opponent even if there were tens of me.

"Didn't you encounter a great resistance underwater?" Chang asked. "I noticed that you were just as fast and flexible underwater as on land."

"You see, my skin is extremely smooth and moist, my muscular composition and bone structures are also different from human. We aren't bad even compared to fish." Liu Xin dragged up the crab sh.e.l.l. "This thing tastes really good and it's one of my favorites. I know you can beat me for sure if I was to confront you in bare hands.

"In fact..."—Liu Xin stared at Chang—"although I'm not human, I still know how to use weapons."

Liu Xin raised his hand while he spoke. It looked pretty much like a frog's hand, but the webs between the fingers started to shrink then wrapped itself around them as Liu Xin waved the fingers.

"My fingers are agiler than yours." Liu Xin wiggled his fingers as if he was playing piano. "Papa stole weapons from your kind, and we remade them to fit our hands."

"..." Chang nodded to those long, thin fingers. He quickly lost himself in his thoughts.

Previously, he had known that Liu Xin was an intelligent species, but he had never considered that any other species other than humans could use firearms as well.

It wasn't because he was naive, just that he never allowed himself to think about it, or he didn't dare to think of it. Four years ago, the gene-altered soldier had traumatized him, and now the amphibia would soon become his worst nightmare if they turned their backs on humans.

In terms of speed, even juveniles like Liu Xin were much faster than the gene-altered soldiers.

In terms of force and strength, Liu Xin alone must be at least ten times stronger than the gene-altered soldiers.

In terms of toughness, Liu Xin had been hit straight on, but it hadn't left much impact even though the bullet was from the modified handgun.

Given these observations, the amphibia was a species that the gene-altered soldiers couldn't be compared to.

Plus, this species was more intelligent than humans, and they could use weapons.

Four years ago, the gene-altered soldiers could only understand the simplest commands, and they didn't even know how to use a weapon. Thanks to that, Chang had been able to survive through his predicament.

Today, the chance of overcoming the threat from amphibia was nearly non-existent.

Besides the things mentioned, the amphibias also had sensitive perception and vision; Chang hadn't realized how negligible humans were until he met Liu Xin, even though the other was still a kid.

Four years, it had only been four years. A species that surpa.s.sed humans was born on this planet, except for the fact that it couldn't reproduce itself rapidly. Chang was saddened, he felt depressed for the future of the humanity. At the same time, another great species popped in his mind.

"Do you think amphibia is the most powerful species on earth?" he asked.

"That's for certain. Humans used to rule the world, and whoever rules the world is the best species alive. But we are more outstanding than humans in many aspects, so naturally, we are the most powerful species."

"Then, do you know about the Willow?"

"I don't. What willow?" the amphibia inquired with interest.

"A willow tree that is much bigger than the whole city of Zhengzhou. To it, destroying a city is as easy as blinking eyes. It gathered millions of human brains and utilizes their power for itself," Chang explained to Liu Xin. "You acquire knowledge through studying books, but still I don't think you guys are as smart as Qing Shui. However, the way the Willow acquires knowledge is a completely different story. It robs brains and keeps them hidden on its branches. It's like a computer, its power increases when it has more boards and chips."

"Really?" the amphibia exclaimed.

"I think it's actually more capable than I describe. Qing Shui told me that the Willow has taken a permanent residence in the city of Wuhan, and it seems like it's planning to expand from Wuhan to the whole Earth."