Chapter 198: Forming the Squad

Wu Feng’s eyes lit up when he learned the taming method was so simple. He looked at Su Li and smiled, “Boss Su, can I stay in the B-Building for a while today?”

Since the flesh and blood of the Croc-Tooth Giant Turtle attracted more Croc-Tooth Turtles, staying in the B-Building meant he might get a chance to tame one.

Su Li nodded in agreement.

Jiang Shuijue laughed. “Wu Feng, if only one shows up, you have to let me have it first.”

Wu Feng nodded readily. “Yes, yes. I agree. Hearing what Boss Su said, I estimate there will be more than one coming.”

The group returned to the Gold Eagle One B-Building. The Croc-Tooth Turtles could be kept in the 30th floor, where the water was over half a meter deep, and fed the corpses of Spiritual Source Beasts at regular intervals.

Many Spiritual Source Beast corpses had various side effects for humans, but the Croc-Tooth Turtles were immune.

Spiritual Source Beasts were the most numerous life form in this world, making it very simple to feed the Croc-Tooth Turtles.

Returning to the 44th floor, Su Li called Jiang Shuijue and proposed forming a hunting squad.

Relying solely on the nightly collective hunt was no longer enough to meet Su Li’s leveling needs. Furthermore, acquiring Spiritual Source equipment required diving into the deep water.

In terms of combat power, he and Gong Xiao alone were already formidable enough to handle even a Level 9 Rare Beast. However, they lacked a reliable emergency escape ability.

Since no one knew if a monster exceeding their current capabilities lurked in the deep water, Jiang Shuijue’s “Mist Maze” was essential.

“That sounds great! I’ll go ask Mingfeng and Ling Yi later. We can all form a team together.” Jiang Shuijue was very happy with Su Li’s suggestion.

Su Li frowned slightly when he heard her reply.

In his ideal scenario, the hunting squad would consist only of himself, Gong Xiao, and Jiang Shuijue—three people. At most, he would include Xu Xuehui, who could use her eyes to scout.

The more people there are, the more complicated the equipment allocation becomes, and the lower the probability of each person acquiring gear.

If he included Gu Mingfeng and Ling Yi, he would also have to include Ding Longyun. That would make the squad seven people.

On average, they would need to hunt seven Rare Beasts before each person could acquire one piece of equipment.

Although Su Li was the strongest and could claim the kill, if he took the equipment every time, the others would naturally resent him. This would inevitably cause friction and affect the unity of the entire Golden Eagle Alliance.

Su Li had only intended to form a squad of three or four people. This would allow them to rotate equipment allocation, ensuring he would acquire one piece of equipment for every three or four Rare Beasts they hunted. If there were enough Rare Beasts in the deep water, he could complete a full set of Spiritual Source equipment in no time.

But a team of six or seven people would significantly slow down the process.

This made Su Li hesitant. However, he realized that Jiang Shuijue, Ling Yi, and Gu Mingfeng always hunted together. They were a close-knit trio. It would be impossible for Jiang Shuijue to abandon them and join his team alone.

If he asked her to join him and Gong Xiao alone, she would be put in an awkward position.

“Brother Su, what’s wrong?” Jiang Shuijue asked, seeing Su Li’s hesitation.

“It’s nothing. It’s getting late. This matter isn’t urgent; we can discuss the specifics tomorrow. We still have the nightly hunt to prepare for. Let’s rest first.”

Seeing Su Li’s response, Jiang Shuijue simply acknowledged him. She was intelligent and likely guessed the reason for his hesitation was related to Gu Mingfeng and Ling Yi.

Jiang Shuijue thought silently: Brother Su doesn’t want Mingfeng and Ling Yi in the hunting team? But… She felt conflicted.

She was happy that Su Li had asked her to form a team with him, but she couldn’t abandon Gu Mingfeng and Ling Yi.

They had supported her throughout her growth. Gu Mingfeng had saved her life several times. She couldn’t be ungrateful and cast them aside now that she didn’t need them.

Su Li saw Jiang Shuijue standing there, paused, and waved his hand in front of her. “Why are you spacing out? I said this is just a preliminary idea, and I haven’t finalized the decision. There’s no need to rush into a decision today or tomorrow.”

Jiang Shuijue acknowledged this, but she still felt a sense of unspoken disappointment.

In the evening, large numbers of monsters gathered early on the distant floating island. The people of the B-Building assembled, boarded the rafts, and headed toward the island. The nightly hunt began again.

The overall level of the monsters had increased once more.

Monsters below Level 5 were almost extinct, accounting for less than 5% of the population. Level 5 monsters were also scarce, making up only about 10% of the total.

Level 6 monsters had become the new mainstream, accounting for about 60% of the total.

Clearly, the overall strength of the Spiritual Source Beasts was continuously rising. The majority of monsters had surpassed Level 5.

The large proportion of Level 6 monsters meant that a massive surge of Level 7 Spiritual Source Wielders would emerge tonight.

Su Li guessed that Level 7 Wielders would soon become the new mainstream among human survivors.

This was verifiable by observing the monsters’ levels.

The number of Level 7 monsters had also increased, now accounting for about 20% of the total.

However, the Level 8 monster population was still scarce, less than 5% of the total. This meant that, on average, no more than five Level 8 monsters appeared for every hundred monsters.

This made it extremely difficult for Level 8 Su Li to advance.

There were only two paths available to him: either form a team, risk the danger, and dive into the deep water to hunt high-level monsters—a gamble that could end his life at any moment.

Or, he could wait. Every day, the monsters’ levels and strength increased. Since Level 8 monsters accounted for less than 5% tonight, the proportion might reach 10% tomorrow night, and even higher the day after.

With the A-Building and B-Building merged, the Gold Eagle One B-Building now housed 66 people. A total of 41 people voluntarily participated in the hunt tonight. Ding Longyun, who had finally sobered up by dinner time, also joined the hunt.

After tonight’s hunt, Level 5 Wielders were virtually eliminated. Those remaining in the B-Building had either completely given up hunting and focused on logistics, meaning their strength would not increase, or they had all advanced to at least Level 6.

Just as Su Li had guessed, after tonight, the vast majority of Level 6 Wielders advanced to Level 7. Three people advanced from Level 7 to Level 8: Gong Xiao, Ling Yi, and Wu Feng, the leader of the Shimao Center.

As for Su Li, he harvested 42 effective Spiritual Sources. His total Spiritual Source count was now 82. Barring any accidents, he would break through to a Level 9 Spiritual Source Wielder during tomorrow night’s hunt.

Su Li estimated that Level 7 was the current mainstream among the city’s human survivors. The number of Level 8 Wielders was still among the elite few. The Golden Eagle Alliance now had four Level 8 Wielders: Su Li, Gong Xiao, Ling Yi, and Wu Feng.

Ling Yi, initially reserved, was proving to be surprisingly adept. His performance, from taming the Croc-Tooth Turtle to breaking through to Level 8 tonight, was astonishing, nearly matching Gong Xiao’s.

As for the existence of Level 9 Wielders, Su Li couldn’t confirm, but he was certain that any Level 9 Wielder must have encountered some miracle or actively dove into the deep water to hunt. Otherwise, the current limit for safe advancement was Level 8.

He had worked hard. He had reached Level 8 today. To reach Level 9, he needed to wait for tomorrow night’s hunt.

After tomorrow night’s hunt, he would be a true Level 9 Spiritual Source Wielder.

He believed that at that level, he would be the equal of anyone.

His greatest anticipation was that after reaching Level 9, “Demon Muscles” would receive another massive boost, entering the much stronger Third Form. The leap from Level 8 to Level 9 would be a qualitative leap.

The next day, the weather was sunny, and the temperature had risen slightly.

Su Li was in a good mood. He got up early. He only told Qi Mengyu that he would be temporarily leaving the B-Building. If anyone asked, she should say he was busy and would return before evening.

Qi Mengyu nodded obediently. She didn’t dare ask where Su Li was going.

Su Li didn’t tell Gong Xiao or Xu Xuehui, fearing they would insist on joining him.

He had decided to head to the Huating Residential Area again to search for Wang Lan’s home. He didn’t want to bring too many people. Since he had memorized the route from Liu Jiande’s guidance, he could find the place alone.

He packed some food, summoned his Croc-Tooth Turtle, Yī Hào, climbed onto its back, and gripped the ropes.

“Let’s go.” Su Li lightly patted the turtle. Yī Hào quickly propelled itself across the water.

Its speed was astonishing, and its endurance was formidable. It could swim for a long time without tiring.

Su Li rode the turtle, which sped east from the Gold Eagle One B-Building.

He needed to head to the Golden Convergence Center Building, located due east of the Gold Eagle One B-Building, about five kilometers away.

Riding the Croc-Tooth Turtle, his clothes and shoes remained dry. The wind blew against his face. He looked up at the rising sun. The feeling was comfortable.

It was only about 8:00 AM. Su Li had woken up and departed early.

(End of Chapter)

You can support the translator and get advanced chapter by join his patreon at https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair