As the instrument's energy continued to amplify, the caged animals began to undergo disturbing transformations. Their fur grew thicker, its color shifting to a bizarre and vibrant flowing pink, shimmering as if alive. The look in their eyes was no longer innocent; instead, they gleamed with an eerie, bewitching light, filled with frenzy and ferocity.
"Not good! He's trying to control these animals!" Lin Xiaoqiang realized the mysterious man's true intention with alarm.
"We have to stop him!" Wang Meili once again gathered the pink energy within her body and forcefully shot out a beam of light.
But this time, the mysterious man was clearly prepared. He quickly grabbed a metal remote control from the lab table and pressed a button. A transparent energy barrier instantly unfolded, blocking his front. Wang Meili's beam struck it and immediately bounced back, as if hitting an indestructible wall.
"Hahaha, useless!" the mysterious man laughed. "This is my 'energy shield,' capable of withstanding all forms of superpower attacks! Once my 'pink mutated army' completes its evolution, the entire Barbie City will bow down at my feet!"
"'Pink mutated army'?!" Lin Xiaoqiang's scalp tingled. He looked at the mutating animals. Their bodies were constantly expanding, and their appearances were gradually becoming grotesque and terrifying, completely different from their original adorable forms.
Ah Zhai frantically held up his camera, filming the scene. "This... this is like a scene from a doomsday movie!"
Just as the mysterious man was lost in his triumph, Lin Xiaoqiang suddenly sensed that although the animals' appearances had become ferocious and terrifying, their inner voices were still wailing in pain and struggle:
"...save us... it hurts so much..."
"...don't want this anymore..."
"...stop it quickly... the pink... make it leave us..."
These fragmented heart-words pierced Lin Xiaoqiang's heart like needles. He knew that these animals had not willingly become monsters; they were being forcibly manipulated and twisted.
"Meili! Ah Zhai! We can't let this madman succeed!" he shouted loudly. "These animals need our help!"
"But his shield..." Wang Meili looked anxiously at the seemingly impenetrable energy barrier, at a loss for what to do.
At this moment, a glint suddenly appeared in Ah Zhai's eyes. He remembered his seemingly insignificant but potentially crucial ability—to pause time for three seconds!
"I'll try!" he whispered, taking a deep breath and concentrating.
In the next moment, time seemed to stretch into a frozen canvas—the air solidified, sounds ceased, and the entire laboratory fell into a deathly silence. The mysterious man remained frozen in his triumphant pose, and the mutated animals were as if someone had pressed a pause button, stiffly stuck in place.
Without hesitation, Ah Zhai rushed towards the mysterious man, his target the remote control in his hand. However, three seconds was too short—his fingers had just touched the edge of the remote when time resumed its flow.
The mysterious man instantly sensed the anomaly, his face changing drastically. He sneered, "Petty trick! Did you think such a weak ability could deal with me?"
Just as he was about to press the remote control again, Wang Meili suddenly raised her hands, concentrating all the pink energy in her body into a dazzling ball of light, and then hurled it violently towards the laboratory ceiling!
"Boom!"
The light ball exploded against the ceiling, causing a violent tremor and showering them with debris. Dust filled the air, the lights flickered wildly, and in the chaos, the mysterious man instinctively looked up to avoid being hit.
That was the instant!
Lin Xiaoqiang lunged forward suddenly, like a shadow piercing through the dust and smoke, directly towards the mysterious man!
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