“It seems the next step is to find a temporary place to stay and figure out how to make the raft bigger. It’s still too small now to carry much supplies.”
Su Li pondered briefly. In fact, he had already thought of a potential temporary spot—another building protruding from the water about two to three hundred meters away.
From here, it looked like a three-story building with a large footprint. In reality, it was a 32-story high-rise, with the lower twenty-nine floors submerged. Only three floors remained above the water, making it appear like a massive three-story structure from a distance.
As the water level rose higher, it had gradually reached the thirtieth floor, making it uninhabitable. So neither the building Su Li had previously stayed in nor this one was suitable for temporary shelter.
Su Li’s true target was that 32-story building. Even if the thirtieth floor couldn’t be lived in, there were still two floors above it for temporary refuge. And even if the water kept rising, based on the current rate, it would take some time to fully submerge the thirtieth floor. That made it the most suitable temporary living spot.
Su Li decided to head there with Xu Xuehui.
“If we’re lucky and there are survivors there too, that’d be even better.”
Su Li had Xu Xuehui sit on the storage box.
“Hold on tight. We’re moving.” Su Li picked up the wooden oar and casually tossed the hammer he’d been using to Xu Xuehui.
Now that he had a more lethal iron rod, the hammer was no longer useful. Giving it to Xu Xuehui was the best choice.
He pushed the oar against the wall, and the raft gently drifted away. Su Li gazed at the three-story building protruding from the water about two to three hundred meters away. Though he appeared calm, his heart felt heavy.
Nearly three hundred meters—it didn’t seem far, but in Su Li’s eyes, it was fraught with danger. What they might encounter along the way was anyone’s guess.
“Remember what I’m telling you now,” Su Li said as he steered the raft toward the distance, speaking to Xu Xuehui. “To survive, you have to be strong. And you have to make yourself stronger. This world is completely different now. Don’t be afraid when you see monsters. Face them bravely.”
“Those bodies you saw in the hallway earlier are called corpse beasts. They look scary, but they’re not actually tough. They move slowly and aren’t smart. If you run into one, just smash its head with the hammer, and you’ll kill it. And after you kill it, you’ll get stronger.”
Xu Xuehui sat obediently on the storage box, listening quietly to Su Li. Then she looked down at the hammer in her hands.
The hammer’s handle was wooden, but stained dark black from all the blood, faintly giving off a bloody smell. Su Li had used it to smash countless corpse beast heads before, and now he was passing it to Xu Xuehui.
Su Li shared some of the early lessons he’d learned with Xu Xuehui as he paddled, steering the raft toward the distant 32-story building. His eyes and ears were on high alert—he was watching in all directions and listening for any sound. He was more tense than ever.
After all, they were on the water now. No one knew if it was safe beneath the surface or what might be hiding there. Any carelessness could cost them their lives.
“This constant tension is no fun,” Su Li muttered. Soon, fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. The raft had only moved forty or fifty meters, yet Su Li felt as stressed as if he’d been through a major battle. This made him even more eager to find a real place to settle down and rest for a while.
Xu Xuehui didn’t share Su Li’s feelings. She just listened quietly to his instructions, though it was unclear if she was really paying attention. Instead, she reached out her small hand toward Su Li.
Su Li was a bit surprised. He looked at her hand and saw a handful of raisins in her open palm.
She was offering him some raisins.
Su Li suddenly felt a bit envious of her. Kids truly were fearless in their ignorance, he thought. She had no idea how dangerous the water was—how one misstep could lead to disaster—and she was still in the mood for a snack. He shook his head. “I don’t want any. You eat them.”
When Su Li said no, Xu Xuehui pulled her hand back, took out a single raisin, and slowly put it in her mouth.
She ate very slowly. Su Li guessed that handful of raisins would last her a long time. As he thought this, he dipped the oar into the water and pushed backward, creating a small ripple. Just then, from the corner of his eye, he noticed a long, narrow shadow streak past the submerged oar.
“Huh?” His heart tightened. Su Li instantly went on alert, every muscle in his body tensing. He quickly pulled the oar back and grabbed the iron rod he’d kept by his side.
The atmosphere suddenly grew tense.
Xu Xuehui saw Su Li’s reaction and seemed to sense something was wrong. She opened her mouth slightly, as if to ask him something.
Su Li raised his left hand slightly, signaling her to stay quiet, while his eyes scanned the area around the raft intently.
In almost an instant, just as Su Li turned around, water splashed behind him. A wet, dark shape shot out from beneath the surface, hugging the edge of the raft, moving like lightning. It lunged forward and sank its teeth into his calf.
Pain shot through his calf. Before Su Li could react, he felt a force pulling at him. The raft rocked violently, and he lost his balance, sliding into the water.
After days of life-and-death struggles, Su Li had gradually learned to stay calm in a crisis. Even though he’d been caught off guard and dragged into the water, he kept his cool, eyes wide open. His left hand immediately grabbed the raft’s edge to steady himself, and in the same moment, he saw what had bitten his calf.
It was a giant gray rat with a short tail, over a meter long. Its limbs were long, its feet huge with webbing between the toes, and its mouth was wide, sporting four fangs. Those fangs were now buried deep in the muscle of Su Li’s calf.
Its limbs paddled in the water as it bit down, pulling him downward, clearly trying to drag him into the depths.
Su Li took a deep breath. “Strong Lungs Type 1” and “Muscle Enhancement Type 1” were already activated. In this state, he could unleash up to seven hundred pounds of force and hold his breath for an astonishing four minutes.
He let go of the raft with his left hand and plunged into the water deliberately. Using his core strength, he curled his body, legs up and torso down, and swung his left fist, clenched tight, at the giant rat’s head that was still clamped onto his calf.