Chapter 12: Spiritual Source Wielder

Before he could think further, he was slammed in the head and face by a transformed monster, instantly causing a gush of nosebleed and a loud ringing in his head. The back of his left hand, holding the cleaver, suddenly shot with sharp pain. The cleaver slipped from his grasp and fell to the floor—another transformed monster had bitten him on the back of his hand.

Everything happened in an instant. Ignoring the pain in his face and the back of his hand, Su Li lifted his foot and kicked the abdomen of the monster that had rammed his head, intending to shove it away. However, the moment he lifted his foot, yet another charging monster grabbed his leg.

Knowing he was in trouble, the monster held his leg and gave a fierce tug.

Su Li lost his footing and was pulled down, falling backward onto the floor and crashing into the sofa nearby with a tremendous “bang.”

The impact sent the sofa tumbling away until it hit the wall.

Su Li didn’t have time to struggle to his feet. Two transformed monsters rushed up and pinned him down. Their faces were twisted in frenzy. One immediately used both hands to choke his neck, while the other opened its mouth and lunged at his face, seemingly trying to bite him in a mad frenzy.

Su Li was horrified and instantly couldn’t breathe. A feeling of unwillingness and despair welled up in his heart.

All of this transpired in the blink of an eye. From the moment he used the hammer to crack the head of the first charging monster to the moment he was knocked down and pinned by three subsequent monsters, only two or three seconds passed. As his throat was being choked, he suddenly felt a burst of heat on his forehead, and a current of warmth surged into his body.

Su Li understood. The first monster he had struck with the iron hammer, a blow he delivered with all his strength, had been instantly shattered, and the Spiritual Source within it had finally poured into his forehead. In that split second, his whole body felt as though it had fallen into a fiery furnace, and he no longer felt the pain of his neck being choked.

A flood of information immediately appeared in his mind.

“Spiritual Source: 5/5”

“Advancement Successful”

“Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder”

“Spiritual Source: 0/10”

“Stomach, Lungs, you can choose to enhance one of them”

These messages suddenly appeared in Su Li’s mind. His body was intensely hot, and a new, extremely powerful force surged within him. This power was so immense that Su Li managed to violently flip over, simultaneously throwing off the two transformed monsters that were pinning him down.

According to the information in his mind, he was now a Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder. The change from this advancement was enormous; his strength had increased significantly compared to before.

Having tossed off the two monsters, Su Li quickly scrambled to his feet. He let out a roar, swung the iron hammer in his right hand, and with a “thud,” smashed another monster that had just lunged at him.

Although the blow didn’t hit the monster’s head, the immense force accompanying the swinging hammer struck the creature’s chest, directly caving in its ribcage and leaving a huge hole. Its ribs snapped continuously. The monster was hurled backward by the powerful impact, blocking another monster that was currently climbing in from the balcony.

Having no time to retrieve the cleaver on the floor, Su Li turned and sprinted toward the bedroom.

Although he had become a Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder with greatly increased strength and speed, being surrounded by a group of transformed monsters was still extremely dangerous. He planned to retreat into the bedroom.

He dashed into the bedroom and forcefully slammed the door shut, locking it securely.

Only one or two seconds later, the other monsters swarmed the door, violently slamming into it.

Su Li used his body to firmly brace the door, letting the monsters outside continue their assault, while he digested the information he had just received in his mind.

The piece of information that caught his attention the most was undoubtedly: “Stomach, Lungs, you can choose to enhance one of them.”

According to this prompt, he could choose to enhance either his stomach or his lungs.

But which one should he choose, the stomach or the lungs?

The stomach governs digestion, and the lungs govern breathing. Su Li immediately recalled the painful experience of being choked and unable to breathe by the monster earlier. He chose to enhance his Lungs without hesitation.

New messages instantly appeared in his mind.

“Lung Enhancement Initiated”

“Acquired: Enhanced Lung Type I”

Soon, Su Li felt a warm current originating in the area of his lungs. He felt a mysterious and powerful sensation as his lungs transformed. Then, new information flooded his mind, explaining the function of “Enhanced Lung Type I.”

His lung capacity had doubled. He could hold his breath for at least three minutes after one inhale.

This enhancement effect was so clear that Su Li was both surprised and delighted. He thought of the city being submerged in water. The increased lung capacity meant he could hold his breath much longer underwater, greatly enhancing his ability to survive in the water.

“It’s a good thing I chose to enhance the lungs. I wonder what ability I would have gained if I chose the stomach. It couldn’t be a doubling of digestive capacity, could it? Food is already scarce; if I digest faster, wouldn’t I just get hungry sooner?”

While his mind raced with wild thoughts, he felt the sound of impact on the door outside growing louder. The wooden door couldn’t withstand the assault and gradually began to crack. The door lock on one side was starting to warp and lift; it would soon be kicked open.

Su Li kept bracing the door with his body while calculating. Seeing that the door lock was about to be completely torn off, he suddenly darted aside.

With a “boom,” the door lock instantly flew off, and the wooden door was also thrown inward and slanted. A transformed monster, unable to stop its momentum, stumbled and fell inside.

Su Li had anticipated this. Darting to the side, he brought the iron hammer in his hand down on the back of the falling monster’s head.

With Su Li having become a Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder and his strength greatly increased, this hammer blow delivered at least 400 to 500 jin (approx. 440 to 550 pounds) of force. The moment it hit the back of the monster’s head, the monster’s head completely burst open. Shattered skull, brain matter, and flesh splattered everywhere, like a watermelon being smashed by a hammer.

The monster, whose head had exploded, crashed heavily into the bedroom. A white fuzzy ball shot toward Su Li’s forehead, and a new message emerged in his mind.

“Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder: Spiritual Source 1/10”

This message made Su Li realize that advancing from Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder to the next level required a total of ten Spiritual Sources. He still needed to kill nine more transformed monsters.

A subtle sense of excitement rose in his heart. If he broke through again, what kind of ability would he gain?

After smashing the monster’s head, Su Li stepped forward to block the doorway. Advancing to a Level 1 Spiritual Source Wielder was not just a simple increase in strength but an evolution of comprehensive abilities: his strength, speed, reaction time, vision, hearing, and the sensitivity of all five senses had received a certain degree of enhancement.

The doorway was narrow, preventing all the monsters in the living room from surging in at once. Su Li blocked the doorway to prevent being surrounded. Now, he only needed to deal with a maximum of two transformed monsters simultaneously.