Facing the broken-legged spider kicked toward her by Fang Li, Xu Xuehui hurled the iron hammer in her hand. She had gained some experience by now, at least no longer panicking when confronting these monsters.
She was only Level 2. Killing a Level 3 Sea Spider would yield two Spirit Sources per kill.
After that, Su Li, Gong Xiao, and Ding Longyun all helped Xu Xuehui together, only severely wounding the monsters, leaving the final blow for Xu Xuehui.
Xu Xuehui still needed fourteen Spirit Sources. With the help of the three, she ultimately killed six Sea Spiders and two Advanced Corpse Beasts, successfully breaking through and advancing to Level 3.
Then, she chose to enhance her eyes again.
"Comprehended Eagle Eye Type 3."
A message echoed in her mind.
She had given up on Enhanced Muscles, which could boost strength, and also on Enhanced Lungs, which could improve survival in water, because she felt that enhancing her eyes would be more necessary.
"Tonight should be about enough," Su Li said with a soft sigh as Xu Xuehui successfully reached Level 3. Gong Xiao killed the last Sea Spider crawling up and stopped as well.
"Let's go rest; I'm really a bit tired," Ding Longyun said, slightly out of breath.
Su Li was even more exhausted than him. Although "Spider Walk" was useful, it consumed a lot of stamina. Su Li felt that after enhancing his muscles four times, while he had gained considerable strength, his stamina seemed to be getting worse.
Su Li understood that his stamina wasn't actually declining—in fact, as he advanced to Level 4, his stamina had increased. But the increase couldn't keep up with the explosive power of his enhanced muscles. The stronger his strength, the faster his stamina drained, making it seem like his endurance was deteriorating.
It was like a car: the fuel tank's capacity didn't increase much, but the power doubled, and fuel consumption doubled, so the time and distance that tank could sustain naturally shortened.
"It seems I can't just keep enhancing muscles blindly, or stamina and endurance will become a problem. Otherwise, I'll end up being a 'three-second man' next time."
Feeling his heart pounding a bit violently, Su Li realized that focusing solely on muscle enhancement wasn't the best choice.
"I hope next time there's an option to enhance the heart," Su Li thought silently. Of course, if there was no better choice, he would still prioritize muscle enhancement, since in the short term, it offered the greatest benefits. He didn't want to waste precious enhancement opportunities on things like the lungs or stomach.
The four of them went downstairs. Su Li and Ding Longyun changed into clean underwear and collapsed into bed to sleep, but Gong Xiao couldn't. Though it was late, she locked her door and began to wash herself with water.
In the room, several large storage bins were filled with water. After sitting for a day, much of the sediment and impurities had settled to the bottom.
On the other side, there were several layers of stretched gauze, with an empty storage bin placed underneath.
Gong Xiao lifted a bin full of water and carefully poured it through the gauze into the bin below.
Using these layers of gauze for another filtration, she obtained relatively clean water.
Before Su Li arrived, Ding Longyun had been using this method to produce clean water. But Su Li had brought a box of boiled water, which they now used for drinking and eating, while the filtered water was used for washing.
Even though it was cold water, Gong Xiao felt that having water to wash with was already satisfying. Taking a hot bath was a distant luxury.
There was a canister of liquefied gas, but using it bit by bit meant it wouldn't last long.
Once the gas ran out, even drinking hot water would become a problem.
Lying in bed, Su Li and Ding Longyun heard the sound of water from the other room and found it hard to fall asleep.
"Hey, she's taking a bath," Ding Longyun whispered.
Su Li hummed in acknowledgment and said, "I know. Got any ideas?"
Ding Longyun turned over and said, "Not ideas, just that the sound makes me restless."
Su Li felt the same. Hearing the water, he thought of Gong Xiao bathing, and his mind wandered.
As a young man full of energy, after holding back for a few days, it was hard not to feel some urges.
"Brother Ding, you're almost forty, but you still seem pretty energetic," Su Li said, teasingly glancing at Ding Longyun, though he too had to suppress his impulses.
Hearing this, Ding Longyun perked up, turned over, and said excitedly, "I'm not bragging. I really am full of energy. You know what they called me when I was your age? 'Electric Little Motor,' 'Human Pile Driver'—I didn't earn those nicknames for nothing."
Su Li blinked, thinking Ding Longyun was exaggerating a bit, but he praised him with a "Brother Ding, impressive."
Ding Longyun puffed up with pride, then seemed to think of something and said, "By the way, I think Gong Xiao has a thing for you. If you put in some effort, you've got a good chance. Ah, I envy you. Maybe soon you won't have to lie here daydreaming like me, with only my left and right 'consorts' for company."
Su Li replied, "Brother Ding, you're overthinking it. Gong Xiao is a bit self-righteous and aloof deep down. Winning her over won't be easy. Besides, I already have a girlfriend. I can't betray her."
Ding Longyun snorted with laughter: "Girlfriend? Do you think she's still around?"
Hearing this, Su Li fell silent.
Yeah, in the face of this disaster, where was Wang Lan? Was she still alive? Would he ever see her again?
The thought that she might be dead, or even turned into one of the Corpse Beasts, made Su Li's heart clench with pain.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Ding Longyun knew he'd said something wrong. He coughed awkwardly and said, "Su Li, I didn't mean it that way. I was just rambling. Don't take it to heart."
"I know," Su Li said with a bitter smile. "But you're right. I really don't know how she is now—whether she's alive or dead. And my parents too—I don't know if their place got flooded."
Su Li's parents weren't in this city but in a small third-tier town on higher ground. All Su Li could do now was pray that the town hadn't been submerged by the flood.
Ding Longyun was affected by his low mood and murmured, "Yeah, I don't know where Ding Han is either..."
Ding Han was his daughter, the same age as Xu Xuehui.
Too tired, Su Li fell asleep soon after lying down.
When he woke up, the sun was high, and soft light streamed in.
Su Li felt fully rested, brimming with energy, and intensely hungry.
As his strength grew and his muscles were enhanced four times, he gained immense power, but the continuous enhancements consumed an astonishing amount of energy, leaving him ravenous and in need of ample food.
It wasn't just him—Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Xu Xuehui had all unknowingly increased their appetites. Though there were only four of them, they now ate the equivalent of at least seven or eight people's portions each day.