Chapter 35: The Hunt

“Heh heh, I don’t care for beer. I prefer baijiu [white liquor],” Ding Longyun said, retrieving a bottle of liquor and a bottle of soda from the room piled with supplies. He handed the soda to Xu Xuehui and placed the liquor on the table.

Su Li saw that it was a bottle of Feitian Maotai.

Ding Longyun said, “Don’t laugh, but I’ve only ever had Maotai once in my whole life. That was the year my uncle came to my house for the New Year. He brought a bottle, and that was the only time I ever tasted Maotai.”

“My uncle is quite rich. He used to own a company and a factory, but he shut it down later. I didn’t get any benefits from him, though, heh heh.” Ding Longyun laughed as he opened the bottle. He then took out a shot glass and asked, “How about we have a little bit together?”

Su Li smiled. “You’ve at least tasted it; I truly haven’t. By the way, was this bottle of liquor also found in one of the apartments? That family must have been quite wealthy.” As he spoke, he set the beer aside, preparing to sample the taste of Maotai.

Ding Longyun replied, “This isn’t a high-end residential area. Most people living here aren’t particularly wealthy.”

Su Li knew this area was far from the city center. In the past, it was considered the urban outskirts, and although it had developed in recent years, it was still a distance from the genuinely affluent commercial districts.

“But there are exceptions,” Ding Longyun said. He poured two glasses, handed one to Su Li, and raised his own glass, taking a sip and smacking his lips, seemingly savoring the taste of the liquor.

Su Li also took a small sip but frowned slightly. He actually didn’t care for the strong, savory jiangxiang flavor of the liquor. He preferred milder baijiu with a slightly lower alcohol content.

“In one unit, right on this 30th floor, the apartment decoration was very ordinary, and it seemed like no one even lived there. But do you know what? There were over a hundred cases of this Maotai stored there, along with gold, jade artifacts, famous paintings and calligraphy, and huge bundles of cash. When I saw it, it was truly eye-opening. I guess those things might have been acquired illegally, and the apartment was just borrowed or rented as a warehouse to store them. As for who they belonged to or how they were acquired, I have no idea.”

At this point, Ding Longyun let out a long sigh. He said, “In the past, these were the things I dreamt of my whole life, but now they are piled in front of me, and I don’t feel any interest at all. In my eyes, that gold isn’t even as valuable as the food right here.”

Su Li considered this and said, “Brother Ding, didn’t you think that if the flood recedes and everything returns to normal order, these things would become valuable again?”

Ding Longyun downed the baijiu in his cup. Setting the cup down, he sneered, “Do you really believe everything will return to how it was? Su Li, don’t be naive, and stop deceiving yourself. A flood that can submerge an entire city couldn’t possibly happen only here. If only we suffered the flood, we would have seen rescue personnel by now—rescue planes, boats. They should have come, but in fact? Have you seen any?”

Su Li fell silent. He then poured the liquor in his cup into his mouth. It burned unpleasantly, but there was also an indescribable feeling of exhilaration and stimulation.

“The people who drowned in the flood have turned into ‘zombies’ and come back to life. This world has changed, seriously.” Ding Longyun smiled faintly, then poured another cup for both Su Li and himself.

“You should control yourself. We can’t get drunk.” Su Li stopped Ding Longyun. He had already noticed that Corpse Beasts were intermittently appearing outside, and danger could strike at any moment. It would be a disaster if both he and Ding Longyun got drunk.

“Don’t worry, I know my limit. And in general, the danger is low during the day. As long as we don’t randomly dump corpses, there won’t be any major trouble. But the night is different,” Ding Longyun said. “So let’s have a little drink, then quickly get some rest. The night is when we hunt.”

As Ding Longyun said this, his eyes shone brightly.

Su Li’s fingers tightened around his glass. “Hunt?”

“That’s right, hunt. We use bait to lure these monsters and hunt them for Spiritual Sources. Only by getting stronger can we survive.”

Su Li looked at Ding Longyun. Although Su Li had killed many Spiritual Source Beasts, he had always been on the defensive, only fighting back when they attacked him.

Now, looking at Ding Longyun, he finally understood that this man was proactively choosing to hunt these Spiritual Source Beasts to become stronger. He suddenly realized why Ding Longyun had been able to evolve so quickly.

“Active hunting? And what is the bait?”

Ding Longyun explained, “The bait is the corpses of these monsters. Push the corpses into the water, and they will quickly attract other monsters. The more corpses you use, the stronger the monsters you’ll attract. So, we need to be very careful. We absolutely cannot attract monsters that we can’t handle. Otherwise, we’ll be playing with fire, and the trouble will be massive.”

Su Li nodded slightly. “I see.” He had previously piled the corpses in the corridor or on the roof and refrained from tossing them into the water for fear of attracting monsters. He hadn’t realized that his caution was correct, and there was a real method behind it.

If he had blindly thrown the corpses into the water, he didn’t know what terrifying monsters he might have attracted. Thinking about it now still sent a chill down his spine.

After finishing his second cup, Ding Longyun offered Su Li another, but Su Li waved it off.

Although he could hold his liquor and wouldn’t pass out after three drinks, in this dangerous and unfamiliar environment, he needed to maintain absolute clarity and didn’t want alcohol to cloud his judgment.

Seeing Su Li refuse, Ding Longyun didn’t insist but poured a third cup for himself.

Xu Xuehui sat quietly on the side, listening to their conversation. She ate slowly and occasionally took a small sip of her soda, showing great interest in the drink.

In the current environment, having soda was a luxury.

“Finally, we’re well-fed and rested.” Ding Longyun finished his three cups of baijiu, inverted his glass to show he was done drinking, and put on a serious expression. “After we clean up, let’s get some good rest. Tonight is the main event.”

Seeing Ding Longyun’s serious demeanor, Su Li felt a surge of tension. Actively hunting Spiritual Source Beasts for Spiritual Sources was a first for him. He was a little nervous, but also excited.

After the meal, the three of them quickly tidied up the dishes. Ding Longyun then led them to the adjacent apartment.

It was a three-bedroom, one-living-room unit. The large living room was cleared of furniture, and four beds were lined up in a row inside.

(End of Chapter)