Was he planning to keep an eye on me, afraid I’d do something to Jiang Shuijue in the middle of the night?
Su Li found it both amusing and exasperating, a helpless look on his face.
“So there really is no pure friendship between men and women. No wonder Gu Mingfeng is so good to Jiang Shuijue, like a lovesick puppy. Every time she’s in danger, he steps in to protect her. That guy’s got a crush on her.”
Su Li felt a bit slow on the uptake.
“Forget it, I’ll just sleep first.” Not wanting to kick Gu Mingfeng and Ling Yi out, Su Li simply closed the bedroom door and went to sleep, deciding to deal with everything after waking up.
By midnight, the rain outside had finally stopped completely, and the howling wind had ceased. The world fell into utter silence, even the restless spirit-source beasts seemed to have vanished, leaving only the shattered rafts outside the building and the bloodstains on them as testament to the brutal battle that night.
When Su Li woke up, daylight was breaking outside. A new day had finally arrived.
After a night’s rest, Su Li felt full of energy. With a thought, the Purple Pattern Belt, Seven Star Wristguard, and Death God Gloves materialized one after another.
He gently stroked the Death God Gloves and Seven Star Wristguard on his right hand with his left. The gloves and wristguard had fused perfectly together.
“These spirit-source armors don’t let in water or get damp, and they fit together seamlessly. If I had a full set of these, I’d never have to worry about soaking wet clothes when entering water again.”
Every time he went into the water, his clothes, shoes, and socks got completely drenched. Though he’d grown somewhat used to it over the past few days, it was still uncomfortable.
Now that he knew such spirit-source armors existed, not only did they provide powerful attributes, but they could also completely replace ordinary clothes—a two-for-one deal.
“But to get spirit-source equipment, I’ll need to hunt rare beasts. Those rare beasts are probably hiding deep underwater. I’ll have to discuss it carefully with Jiang Shuijue and see if we can organize a small team dedicated to hunting them.”
With another thought, Su Li retracted the three pieces of equipment and walked out of the room. Qi Mengyu had already prepared everything for him—toiletries and a steaming, hearty breakfast.
As for Jiang Shuijue, Ling Yi, and Gu Mingfeng, who had moved in last night, they were nowhere to be seen. Qi Mengyu told him they had left early in the morning, returning to Building A. They were probably busy organizing the relocation of everyone and all supplies from Building A.
“Mm.” Su Li nodded.
“By the way, how’s Brother Ding doing? What’s his mental state?” Su Li thought of Zhong Rongrong’s tragic death last night and worried that Ding Longyun might be grieving too much.
Qi Mengyu snorted lightly. “He’s doing just fine. After just one night, I don’t see any sadness in him. He was even humming a tune this morning.”
She had been close to Zhong Rongrong, and her death still weighed on Qi Mengyu’s heart. Seeing Ding Longyun show no sign of grief after just one night left her feeling resentful.
Su Li was taken aback. He knew Ding Longyun was a bit of a flirt and had only been with Zhong Rongrong for a few days. There probably wasn’t deep affection between them, but since they were together, there should have been some mutual fondness. He found it hard to believe Ding Longyun felt no sadness at all over her sudden death.
“Brother Ding isn’t like that. Maybe he just doesn’t want to show his grief.”
Qi Mengyu said, “He looked pretty pleased with himself. I bet he’s glad it happened, so he can find someone new.”
Su Li snapped, “Mengyu, don’t talk about Brother Ding like that.”
It was the first time Qi Mengyu had seen Su Li scold her. Startled, she let out an “oh” and fell silent, lowering her head. Soon, tears began to fall, dripping onto the back of her hand.
Su Li noticed and felt a headache coming on. He thought, *How do women’s tears come so easily, like turning on a faucet?*
“I was out of line just now. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. Don’t cry. Wipe your tears—people might think I’m bullying you.” Su Li picked up a tissue from the table and handed it to Qi Mengyu.
She took it, finally stopping her tears, and whispered with her head down, “It was my fault. I shouldn’t have said that about Brother Ding.”
Su Li shook his head and walked out. He noticed the bloodstains left in the hallway from last night had been cleaned up. Downstairs, many people were busy—some clearing corpses, others repairing damaged rafts.
The body of the crocodile-toothed giant turtle he had slain was still floating nearby, yet to be dealt with.
Soon, a long line of rafts appeared in the distance. It was Jiang Shuijue’s group moving over from Building A.
This time, besides the remaining 17 people from Building A, all of its supplies were also being relocated.
Building A of Golden Eagle No. 1 was now empty, completely stripped bare.
Su Li went downstairs, called over Xu Haishui, and told him to coordinate with Jiang Shuijue on the specific arrangements, including housing for the 17 newcomers.
Jiang Shuijue, Gu Mingfeng, and Ling Yi also moved to the 44th floor, but Jiang Shuijue didn’t actually move into Su Li’s place. She chose another apartment instead.
Gu Mingfeng breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
The morning passed quickly. Ding Longyun found Su Li and suggested hosting a welcome banquet for Jiang Shuijue and the other two.
Seeing Ding Longyun’s demeanor, he seemed to have moved past last night’s sorrow. Though not exactly beaming, he showed no signs of grief.
Thinking about the events of last night and the heavy mood everyone was in, Su Li thought Ding Longyun’s idea was good—a gathering could lighten the atmosphere—so he agreed.
The living room in Su Li’s current apartment was spacious, with a round table that could seat ten. The lunch banquet was set up there.
Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, Xu Xuehui, Jiang Shuijue, Gu Mingfeng, and Ling Yi all came. Su Li had Qi Mengyu join them too, and called over Xu Haishui and Luo Jun, making a full table of ten.
Though the dishes weren’t elaborate, the drinks were good—white liquor, red wine, beer, and soft drinks were all available for everyone to choose from.
After days of continuous fighting and witnessing the deaths of many comrades, everyone’s spirits were low. This rare gathering saw everyone except Xu Xuehui drinking a bit. Even Jiang Shuijue, Gong Xiao, and Qi Mengyu opened a bottle of red wine. Surprisingly, Qi Mengyu had a decent tolerance, downing several glasses.
Jiang Shuijue wasn’t much of a drinker; after just one glass, her cheeks were flushed.
Gong Xiao finished one glass without changing expression but didn’t drink any more.
Ding Longyun, though a heavy drinker, got thoroughly drunk. Su Li could tell that despite his outward indifference, Zhong Rongrong’s death had hit him hard. He was deliberately seeking oblivion today.
After the meal, Su Li and Xu Haishui helped the completely drunk Ding Longyun back to his room and laid him on the bed. Soon, his snores were like thunder, and the two left, relieved.
“Brother Ding’s really hurting inside. He was trying to drown his sorrows today.” Xu Haishui sighed.
Su Li hummed in agreement. “Zhong Rongrong’s death hit him hard. I hope after this binge, he’ll pull himself together.”
As he spoke, he walked to the corridor and looked down at the water below.
The body of the crocodile-toothed giant turtle, which he had partially split open, was still floating there, untouched. Everyone was considering the giant shell—it might have other uses.
“Huh?” Su Li’s gaze caught something. He let out a soft exclamation, as if an idea had struck him, and immediately ran toward the stairs.
“Brother Su, what’s wrong?” Xu Haishui asked, also looking down. From a distance, he saw several dark shapes appear near the floating giant turtle corpse—new spirit-source beasts emerging.
“Maybe something good. Come take a look.” Su Li said as he hurried down the stairs.
Gong Xiao and Jiang Shuijue, who were helping clear the table, heard this and grew curious. They put down their tasks and came over.
Suili descended the stairs. He had just noticed some dark shapes in the water near the floating crocodile-toothed giant turtle corpse.
These shapes were also turtles, but far smaller than the giant one—not even half its size. Their shells were about three to four meters long, huge by normal turtle standards, but dwarfed by the giant.
Reaching the 31st floor, Su Li observed up close and saw that these surfaced turtles looked almost identical to the giant one, just much smaller. Activating his Peep Rune, he quickly captured their data.
“Name: Crocodile-Toothed Turtle. Level: 8. Type: Common spirit-source beast. Possesses a hard shell, swims fast in water, moves slowly on land. Often uses its hard shell to ram enemies in water. Has sharp teeth with strong bite force. High intelligence, remarkable endurance, high obedience, easy to tame. Suitable as a water mount. Once bonded, remains loyal for life. Has a certain probability of evolving into an elite-class Crocodile-Toothed Giant Turtle.”
Su Li’s heart leaped with joy upon seeing this data.
These Crocodile-Toothed Turtles, like the giant one, could be tamed as water mounts. At least seven or eight had appeared, and the number was still growing, clearly attracted by the giant turtle’s flesh and blood.
“If I can tame them, riding them would be way more convenient than rafts.” Su Li looked at the turtles circling the giant turtle’s corpse, suddenly realizing he didn’t know how to tame them.
Gong Xiao, Jiang Shuijue, and Ling Yi also came down.
“Brother Su Li, what’s this good thing you mentioned? Is it this group of turtles?” Jiang Shuijue’s eyes, moist and sparkling, looked at Su Li with curiosity.
Su Li glanced at her and explained to everyone, “These are called Crocodile-Toothed Turtles. They can be tamed like horses and stay loyal to one master for life. They can serve as water mounts. If we tame them, things will be much easier from now on.”
Everyone’s eyes lit up at this, and they looked at the turtles in the water. In just a short time, the number had exceeded ten. They showed no fear of the people, not leaving even when they noticed Su Li and the others observing from the 31st floor.