Chapter 28: Giant Rat

“It looks like the next step is to find a temporary place to settle and find a way to make the raft bigger. It’s still too small to carry many supplies.”

Su Li mused for a moment. In fact, he already had a place in mind for a temporary base: another building exposed above the water about 200 to 300 meters away.

From his vantage point, it looked like a large, three-story building. In reality, it was a 32-story tower. The water had submerged the bottom 29 floors, leaving three floors above the water. From a distance, it resembled a sprawling three-story structure.

Since the water level was rising and slowly submerging the 30th floor, neither his previous building nor the one they were currently on was suitable for a long stay.

Su Li’s true target was that 32-story building. Even if the 30th floor became uninhabitable, there were two floors above it where they could stay temporarily. Furthermore, based on the current rate of water rise, it would still take some time for the 30th floor to be completely submerged. Therefore, it would be the most suitable temporary residence.

Su Li decided to take Xu Xuehui there.

“If we’re lucky, maybe there will be survivors there too; that would be even better.”

Su Li instructed Xu Xuehui to sit on the storage box.

“Hold on tight, we’re leaving.” Su Li picked up the wooden paddle and tossed the hammer he had been using to Xu Xuehui.

He now had the iron rod, which had greater killing power, so the hammer was obsolete for him. It was most suitable for Xu Xuehui to use.

He pushed the paddle against the wall, and the raft gently drifted away. Su Li looked toward the three-story building exposed above the water, some 200 to 300 meters away. Although he appeared calm, his heart was heavy.

A distance of nearly 300 meters might not seem far, but in Su Li’s eyes, it was fraught with danger. No one could predict what they might encounter along the way.

“Listen to what I’m telling you now,” Su Li said to Xu Xuehui, controlling the raft and paddling into the distance. “If you want to survive, you need to be strong, and you need to become powerful. This world is completely different now. Don’t be afraid when you see a monster; you must bravely fight them.”

“Those corpses you saw in the corridor earlier are called Corpse Beasts. They only look scary but aren’t actually very strong. Their movements are slow, and they aren’t smart. If you encounter one, you can kill it just by smashing its head with the hammer. And after you kill them, you will become stronger.”

Xu Xuehui sat quietly on the storage box, listening attentively to Su Li’s instruction. She then lowered her head and looked at the hammer in her hand.

The handle of the iron hammer was wooden, but it had turned dark black from being stained with so much blood, and it subtly gave off a bloody scent.

Su Li had smashed countless Corpse Beast heads with this hammer, and now he had passed it on to Xu Xuehui.

Su Li shared some of the experience he had accumulated in the early stages. He paddled and controlled the raft toward the 32-story building in the distance. He kept his eyes and ears busy, watching and listening in all directions. He was more stressed than ever before.

After all, they were currently on water. No one knew if the water beneath was safe or what might be hiding there. Any carelessness could cost them their lives.

“This constant tension is unbearable.” Su Li quickly broke out in a fine cold sweat. The raft had only traveled 40 or 50 meters on the water, but Su Li was as stressed as if he had been through a major battle. This made him even more desperate to find a suitable place to settle down and rest properly for a while.

Xu Xuehui, however, didn’t seem to share Su Li’s anxiety. She listened quietly to Su Li’s lecture, though it was unclear if she was fully absorbing it. She then stretched out her small hand toward Su Li.

Su Li was a little puzzled. He looked at her hand and saw she was holding a handful of raisins.

She was signaling to Su Li to see if he wanted to eat some raisins.

Su Li suddenly felt a touch of envy for her. He thought, Ignorance really is bliss for a child. She didn’t realize the perils lurking in the water, where a slight mistake could lead to disaster, yet she still had the presence of mind to eat snacks. He could only shake his head and say, “No, thank you. You eat them.”

Hearing Su Li refuse, Xu Xuehui retracted her hand, took a raisin, and slowly put it into her mouth.

She ate very slowly. Su Li estimated that the handful of raisins would last her for a long time. As he watched her, he plunged the wooden paddle into the water and pushed backward, creating a small wake. Just then, Su Li’s peripheral vision caught sight of a narrow dark shadow cutting across the water near the paddle.

“Huh?” His heart tightened. Su Li instantly became alert, his entire body’s muscles immediately tensed. He quickly pulled the paddle out of the water and grabbed the iron rod that was placed beside him.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Xu Xuehui saw Su Li’s reaction and seemed to sense something. She slightly opened her mouth, as if to ask Su Li a question.

Su Li waved his left hand slightly at her, signaling her to keep quiet. His eyes, meanwhile, intensely scanned the waters around the raft.

In an instant, just as Su Li turned around, a splash erupted on the water behind him. A soaking wet dark shadow shot out of the water along the edge of the raft, moving with lightning speed. It lunged forward and bit down on his calf.

A sharp pain shot through his calf. Su Li had no time to react before he felt a tugging force. The raft shook violently. Unable to keep his balance, he slipped off the raft and into the water.

Having endured several life-or-death struggles over the past few days, Su Li had gradually learned to keep his wits about him in danger. Despite the sudden accident and being dragged into the water, he remained calm. He immediately opened his eyes, and his left hand instinctively grabbed the edge of the raft to stabilize himself. In that same moment, he clearly saw what had bitten his calf.

It was a giant gray rat, over one meter long, with a short tail. Its limbs were long, and its feet were huge, with webbing between the toes. It had a large mouth with four fangs, and those four fangs were now clamped tightly onto Su Li’s calf muscle.

It paddled its four limbs in the water, biting Su Li’s calf and constantly pulling downward. Clearly, it wanted to drag Su Li into the deep water.

Su Li took a deep breath. “Enhanced Lung Type I” and “Muscle Augmentation Type I” were already active. In this enhanced state, the strength he could unleash reached 700 jin, and his breath-holding time was an astonishing four minutes.

He released the raft with his left hand and deliberately plunged into the water. Using his core strength, he pulled his legs up and his upper body down, curling into a ball. He clenched his left hand into a fist and smashed it down toward the head of the giant rat that was biting his calf.

(End of Chapter)