The journey was uneventful, and soon Crocodile-Toothed Turtle No. 1 carried Su Li to the Jinhui Center Building.
This building was originally where Jiang Shuiyu, Ling Yi, and others lived. Later, they merged into Su Li's Zifeng Building and collectively moved to Building B of Jinyi No. 1.
Su Li initially thought the Jinhui Center Building would be empty and deserted, with no one around. Unexpectedly, as he approached, he suddenly noticed monsters climbing on the building's balcony.
It wasn't just one monster—there were traces of a large number of monsters moving about.
"Could this building have turned into a monster nest?"
Su Li sighed as he observed from a distance. These were all common monsters of level five or six that he had seen before.
Su Li wasn't interested in this. He just wanted to find Huating Residential Area as soon as possible, so he patted the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle, signaling it to bypass Jinhui Center and swim northeast.
According to Liu Jiande's directions, Huating Residential Area was three kilometers northeast of Jinhui Center Building.
Of course, Huating Residential Area covered a large area, and Liu Jiande's directions were only approximate. To find it precisely, he would need to dive underwater and observe.
Although Su Li had never been to Wang Lan's home himself, he had picked her up from Huating Residential Area many times, and she had pointed out her specific location. He was quite familiar with the area.
With the general location, finding Huating Residential Area wouldn't be difficult.
Soon, the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle swam to a spot three kilometers northeast of Jinhui Center Building and stopped at Su Li's reminder.
"If Liu Jiande is right, I'm now above Huating Residential Area. I'll need to dive down to check. Keep the movements as quiet as possible."
Su Li knew that diving deep into the water alone carried risks. Fortunately, he wasn't here to hunt monsters underwater, nor would he easily kill them. As long as he didn't disturb a large number of monsters, it should be relatively safe. Otherwise, he wouldn't dare enter the deep water alone.
Su Li looked around and spotted two towering buildings to the east. Though they were far away and looked blurry, he couldn't estimate their distance. They were likely at least five kilometers away from him and even farther from Jinhui Center—over eight kilometers.
Although he couldn't determine the exact distance, judging by their height, Su Li guessed both buildings were over forty stories, with more than ten stories above the water—similar to his own Jinyi No. 1 Building B.
But what truly caught his attention wasn't these two buildings to the east, but another tall building slightly to the southeast.
This building was even farther away and looked blurrier, but its height above the water was astonishing—over forty stories visible above the surface.
"That's right, it's the Oriental Building," Su Li suddenly recalled.
He had no memory of the two buildings over forty stories to the east, but he remembered the one to the southeast.
This was the Oriental Building, with 72 stories and a height reportedly exceeding 300 meters.
It was the tallest building in the New Development Zone of Nanjiang City and the second tallest in the city, quite famous. Su Li remembered it instantly.
"The 72-story Oriental Building—even if the water reaches the thirtieth floor, there are still forty-two stories above water. I wonder how many survivors are gathered there now."
Su Li gazed into the distance, realizing the Oriental Building to the southeast was quite far from him—at least five or six kilometers away. From the Golden Eagle Alliance, it was even farther, with a straight-line distance exceeding fifteen kilometers.
Apart from these three prominent buildings in the distance, there were scattered structures emerging from the water, mostly between thirty and thirty-five stories, dotting the vast water surface like stars. Most of these buildings were now uninhabited, and any survivors would have been absorbed into other high-rises.
Su Li patted Crocodile-Toothed Turtle No. 1, signaling it to dive. Though the Oriental Building impressed him, he had a more important task now: finding Huating Residential Area.
The Crocodile-Toothed Turtle was intelligent, almost as if it understood his words. It immediately began descending into the water with Su Li on its back.
Man and turtle sank into the water, disappearing, leaving only ripples spreading on the surface.
Su Li remained on the turtle's back, holding the rope on its left side to steady himself, silently observing below.
Perhaps because it was daytime, he didn't see any spirit-source beasts upon entering the water. However, visibility was limited underwater; Su Li could barely see about ten meters ahead, and beyond that, it was dark.
The Crocodile-Toothed Turtle took him down quickly, soon reaching a depth of about ten meters. Su Li finally saw a rooftop below. Based on the descent distance, this rooftop was about twenty meters from the surface, suggesting the building was around twenty-one or twenty-two stories.
The Crocodile-Toothed Turtle stopped on the rooftop with Su Li.
Su Li silently observed the surroundings below, noticing another fully submerged building nearby, similar in height to the one he was on.
"I remember Huating Residential Area has several buildings that are twenty-two stories. This could be it, but visibility is poor, and it gets darker the deeper you go. I can't see far."
Su Li pondered, then pointed to one side, wanting the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle to take him further down along the building's outer wall.
He recalled that building exteriors in residential areas usually had markings indicating the community name and building number. Finding that would confirm whether this was Huating Residential Area.
Once he confirmed it was Huating Residential Area and the building number, finding Building 12, where Wang Lan lived, wouldn't be hard.
Unfortunately, underwater, the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle couldn't quite grasp Su Li's gesture and started to take him toward another building.
Su Li quickly patted its back to stop it, then pointed back to the rooftop, signaling it to wait there. He slid off the turtle's back.
This time, the turtle understood and stayed put.
Su Li swam to the edge of the rooftop and then descended along the building's outer wall, searching for markings.
He didn't detect any spirit-source beasts in the building, which reassured him. It seemed relatively safe here, so he didn't need to worry about making too much noise and attracting them.
Still, for safety, he drew the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword from his chest and held it in his hand, feeling much safer.
He continued descending along the outer wall, mentally calculating the approximate distance.
The deeper he went, the darker and dimmer the water became, and the narrower his field of vision. Finally, he stopped.
He saw the markings on the building's outer wall: large characters reading "Building 7" with "Huating Residential Area" below.
Gently touching the characters with his left hand, Su Li suppressed his excitement.
He hadn't been wrong—this was indeed Huating Residential Area.
This was Building 7. Where was Building 12?
Su Li had a poor sense of direction. Though he had visited this area many times, it was now completely submerged. Finding Building 12 quickly under these conditions wasn't easy.
But he had a simple method: search building by building until he found it.
Pushing off the wall with both feet, he shot forward toward another nearby building.
Soon, he found the markings on that building, confirming it was Building 6.
"This is Building 6, and that's Building 7, so it should be in that direction." With these two buildings identified, deducing the approximate location of Building 12 was straightforward.
Su Li finally had a mental image of the area's layout and knew which direction to search.
"It should be this way. This row has Buildings 5, 6, 7, and 8. The opposite row has Buildings 9, 10, 11, and 12. Building 12 faces Building 8. That's right."
Su Li fully recalled the layout and immediately swam toward the building opposite Building 8, moving as fast as a fish.
After several underwater battles, his swimming skills had improved significantly.
Just as he was about to reach what he believed was Building 12, he suddenly saw two figures emerge from the darkness below, blocking his path.
He was very close to the bottom now, and the water was extremely dark. The two figures appeared so suddenly that he only noticed them when they were within five or six meters.
His heart tensed, but Su Li didn't panic. After countless life-and-death experiences, he could stay calm even in the gravest danger.
His first move was to activate "Peeking Rune." He raised the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword in his right hand and used "Spider Walk" to create distance, wary of any unexpected special abilities the opponents might use.
"Name: Spitter, Level: 8, Race: Undead. An advanced undead evolved from common undead with a special name. It has a dark green organ near its sternum that absorbs surrounding gas, builds up pressure, and expels it through its mouth to form powerful wind blades for long-range attacks. Close combat is weak because spitting wind blades requires preparation time, making it easy to kill up close. However, it has another terrifying ability: it can spray a dark green liquid from its special organ onto its kind. Any undead touched by this liquid will have reddened eyes and continuously enhanced combat power. So, the Spitter's true danger isn't its combat strength but its ability to boost nearby undead's power in a short time."
As this information appeared in his mind, Su Li quickly widened the distance. Only then did he realize the two figures emerging from below were familiar advanced undead.
On the left was the gaunt Spitter; on the right, the massive Corruptor.
These were two advanced undead with special names. Two nights ago, the Golden Eagle Alliance had been attacked by them, suffering heavy casualties. He hadn't expected to encounter another Spitter and Corruptor here in the deep water.
The Corruptor moved much faster in water than on land. Its chest organ opened, ready to spray corrosive liquid at Su Li.
Even in water, the corrosive liquid was dangerous if it touched him.
Su Li activated "Spider Walk" again. Illusions appeared around his feet, creating eight legs that pushed against the water, sending up bursts of foam. This gave him powerful momentum, and he shot forward like a torpedo, instantly reaching the side of the Spitter and Corruptor before they could react. He swung the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword horizontally, slicing off half the Corruptor's head.
Brain matter and black liquid sprayed out. A white light orb entered Su Li's forehead, and a message appeared in his mind.
"Level 8 Spirit Source User: Spirit Source 85/130"
This Corruptor yielded three effective spirit sources.
Just as he was about to kill the Spitter, he noticed shadows surging below—a large number of undead appeared.
"Is this an undead nest?" Su Li was startled.
The Corruptor or Spitter weren't the real threat. The true danger was the Assassin, which could blend into its surroundings and was hard to detect until it struck.
As for the Reaper, it was a rare undead and should be uncommon. He had killed one two nights ago and probably wouldn't encounter another soon.
Su Li kept "Peeking Rune" active, constantly scanning his surroundings to prevent an Assassin from sneaking up on him. The rune could capture enemy information and served as an early warning.
Seeing the figures emerging below—all advanced undead, including more Spitters, Corruptors, and Throwers that hurled pus bombs—he also spotted one he had never seen before. It hadn't appeared in the Golden Eagle Alliance battle two nights ago.
This advanced undead was the fastest among the group below, rising toward him. Su Li saw its body seemed covered in armor, emitting a faint green glow in the darkness. Its yellowish-brown eyes locked onto him like a venomous snake, giving him an uneasy feeling.
He instinctively sensed this new undead was dangerous.
At the same time, information about this new undead appeared in his mind.
"Name: Bloodthirster, Level: 9, Race: Undead. An advanced undead evolved from common undead with a special name. As its name suggests, the Bloodthirster is naturally cruel and bloodthirsty, even killing its own kind without hesitation. Its skin is covered in a bony layer like armor, protecting its body. The Bloodthirster prefers not to use weapons, instead fighting with its bony fists, which can crush anything. Its special ability is 'Hyperthermic Frenzy.' When facing a truly tough opponent, it activates this mode for a desperate fight. Under 'Hyperthermic Frenzy,' its bony layer heats up, becoming scorching hot like red-hot steel. Its strength and speed increase by a tier, but the frenzy only lasts five minutes, followed by a three-day weakness period. Thus, it only uses this ability when forced."
Processing the information, Su Li knew this Bloodthirster would be troublesome. He immediately activated "Spider Walk" again, heading upward without engaging.
He had a growing suspicion that this might be an undead nest. Staying would be dangerous.
The level 9 Bloodthirster was no pushover, and if an Assassin appeared, things would get even messier.
"Spider Walk" let Su Li accelerate suddenly in the water, shooting upward.
The Bloodthirster pursued closely, much faster than the Spitters and Corruptors, staying right behind Su Li.
Behind it, a swarm of Spitters, Throwers, and Corruptors rose in a dark mass, chasing upward.
Some Throwers tore off their flesh tumors and hurled pus bombs at Su Li above.
But underwater, the pus bombs slowed down and lost accuracy. Su Li didn't fight back, relying on "Spider Walk" to dart through the water, dodging all the incoming bombs.
The bombs exploded around him, and Su Li weaved through the continuous blasts, as slippery as a fish.
The flying pus bombs didn't stop Su Li's escape; instead, their chain explosions hindered the pursuing Bloodthirster.
Its eyes bulged in rage. Suddenly, it turned around, abandoning Su Li to attack a Thrower behind it.
The Thrower was stunned and couldn't react before the Bloodthirster's iron fists smashed into its temples.
The Thrower's head exploded.
After killing the Thrower, the Bloodthirster turned back and resumed chasing Su Li above.
The other Throwers shuddered and dared not throw any more pus bombs recklessly.
Su Li used this chance to widen the gap. He quickly reached the rooftop where the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle was waiting and pointed upward.
The turtle understood and began ascending.
Su Li grabbed the rope on its back and climbed on.
The Crocodile-Toothed Turtle moved quickly, bringing him to the surface.
Below, in the water, he could see numerous dark shadows rising steadily.
"These guys," Su Li muttered, noticing a thirty-story building about seven or eight hundred meters to the east, with only half a story above water. He patted the turtle and pointed toward it, signaling it to head there.
Deep underwater, he didn't know how many undead were hidden, and with poor visibility, he feared lurking Assassins. So he avoided fighting. But once above water and on a building, he wouldn't fear these undead.
Even if an Assassin had chameleon-like abilities, it needed an environment to blend into—like dark water or a stormy night. Under the bright daylight, it would be hard to hide completely.
"I'm just 45 spirit sources short of level 9. Each of these advanced undead yields three when killed."