As they walked, Jiang Cheng pulled out a piece of roast meat and shared it with Tong Xiaorou and Yaya to keep themselves energized. They had to be discreet about it though, not wanting to attract any unnecessary attention.
Suddenly, a message flashed across the interface in his mind.
[HP +0.1]
Jiang Cheng was stunned. He found that his HP had increased by 0.1 points, reaching 2.6 points.
However, he did not feel any significant difference since it was a subtle improvement after he had unlocked his path of evolution.
Jiang Cheng kept walking, quietly contemplating his next move. He wondered if gathering more items during their nightly rests could help boost his level.
'Even if it's just enough to unlock the level limit. And I'm going hit bottlenecks eventually when my energy can't keep up with my growth. But if I can increase my upper limit, each subsequent training should be more efficient,' he thought, 'Plus, leveling up even just once gives us an HP boost. It might not seem like much, but it adds up over time.'
However, leveling up had become increasingly difficult for Jiang Cheng since reaching Level 10, as the required experience had doubled each time. He also had to prioritize the search for food and water, making it difficult to spend too much time in any one place.
The Wildlings were a tough bunch, their physical strength or rather, their tenacity was remarkable. No one lagged behind during their travels; or perhaps those who fell behind, they were left behind for good.
Jiang Cheng was a little tired already, but those people still followed the Terrawheeler with no expression. Even a weak girl like Tong Xiaorou was the same. Such a long journey seemed to be a common occurrence for them.
Along the way, they would occasionally see some trees or weeds that had not withered. Some would rush up to snatch the bark and dig up the roots. Except for those at the front, most of the people at the back got involved in the race. It even escalated to physical altercations. Thousands of people were fighting for it together.
The scene was nothing short of chaotic. Wherever the group of people went, it was like a swarm of locusts had passed through, depleting every bit of vegetation and leaving behind countless holes in the ground as they dug with their bare hands.
The tall and thin man's family of three also joined in. They dug the grass roots with their bare hands or wooden spears very skillfully. Their hands seemed to have evolved. They had thick calluses and sharp nails. They dug very quickly.
Jiang Cheng couldn't help but look at Yaya and Tong Xiaorou's hands. Sure enough, he found that the two girls' palms also had a thick layer of calluses. Their nails were also thicker and sharper than those of ordinary people in his previous life. It was obvious that they had gone through the same thing in the past.
But now that Jiang Cheng was here, they did not need to join the fight. He still had about twenty pounds of roasted wolf meat in his Item Box. If he was frugal, it would be enough to last him for about ten days. What he really lacked now was water.
Tong Xiaorou looked at those people fighting for the tree bark and grass roots in a sorry state. She then remembered that she had eaten extremely fragrant roast meat for the last two meals. A sense of satisfaction and superiority immediately rose in her heart. She could not help but get closer to Jiang Cheng.
Sensing the change in Tong Xiaorou's emotions, Jiang Cheng smiled at her, instantly making her feel more at ease.
Finally, after traveling for about seven to eight kilometers, the sun had completely set and the sky had darkened. Only then did the Terrawheeler stop on flat land.
From afar, Jiang Cheng saw two power armors cutting the surrounding vines around the Terrawheeler, as if they were setting up a temporary camp.
Those who walked in front went over to help. They rolled up the vines that were cut out and sent them to the Terrawheeler.
"What are they doing?" Tong Xiaorou asked, feeling puzzled.
Jiang Cheng had some guesses, but he was not sure.
At this moment, the tall and thin man walked over and said, "I heard that those people want to use plants to extract some atoms. The excess elements can be used to synthesize food and water. That's how the food and water on the Terrawheeler come from."
He then looked at Jiang Cheng. "My son and I want to go over to work. Do you want to come with us? If you join us, my wife can stay with your family. That way, they will have company."
His wife was that skinny woman. She was probably not in good health and could not do too much work.
'Did he say extracting atoms?' Jiang Cheng was at a loss. 'Are there any precious elements in plants?'
However, after some thought, he turned down the invitation. He could not let Tong Xiaorou and Yaya to stay alone with a stranger, even if it was a woman.
"I'll take a look at the situation first. If there's no problem, let's talk about it tomorrow." Jiang Cheng replied.
"Alright then." The tall and thin man did not pester her and left.
There were also people who were hesitant like Jiang Cheng. As they did not lack food for the time being, they wanted to see the situation first, worried that they would be swindled. After all, this was the first time they had met someone from the shelter. Unless they had no choice, they would not trust them easily.
At this moment, some people had already started climbing the trees. They were very skilled and prepared to spend the night on the trees.
Jiang Cheng brought Tong Xiaorou and Yaya to a stop under an old tree with a diameter of nearly four meters about three hundred meters away from the Terrawheeler. He looked around and made sure that no one was approaching. Then he put Yaya down and said, "Wait for me here. I'll go up and dig a hole before taking you up."
"I'll stay put. Be careful." Tong Xiaorou said.
"Brother-in-law, be careful," said Yaya.
Jiang Cheng smiled and rubbed Yaya's head. "Don't worry."
After saying that, he stabbed his Tang Dynasty Sword into the dried bark and slowly climbed up. However, he was worried that it would be inconvenient for him to come down tomorrow, so he did not climb too high. It was only three meters. This height was enough to prevent sneak attacks and broaden their vision.
Moreover, it was also to prevent what happened last night from happening. The two monsters seemed to have been fighting in the sky last night. The tree crown exploded, but the trunk was not destroyed.
When he reached a height of three meters, Jiang Cheng stabbed the Tang Dynasty Sword deep into a tree trunk that would not be affected to stabilize his body. Then, he placed his palm on it and used the gathering skill to collect it in a targeted manner.
[Small Log +2]
[Small Log +2]
[Small Log +2]
A number of small logs were collected, and the giant tree was soon covered in fine cracks.
In just ten minutes, the bark and trunk inside the tree disintegrated, turning into a pile of wood chips that scattered everywhere. Most of the chips accumulated at the bottom of the one-meter-wide and three-meter-deep hole, similar to the one he dug the previous night. But this time, Jiang Cheng didn't stop.
Jiang Cheng first checked his surroundings. After making sure that no one was approaching, he climbed in and placed his hand on the cave wall above his head to perform Directional Collect.
After around twenty minutes, the hole had expanded to a depth of three meters, width of 1.5 meters, and a height of two meters. Hence, he could now stand in it instead of always lying down. The only drawback was that the hole was only one meter in diameter. He would have dug it wider; however, he was worried that the giant tree would break.
After doing all this, he climbed out of the tree hole and said to Tong Xiaorou and Yaya, "Move aside, I'll jump down."
Tong Xiaorou and Yaya quickly dodged.
Jiang Cheng landed lightly and carried Yaya up first. After sending Yaya into the tree hole, he came down again and carried Tong Xiaorou on his back.
"Wow, are we spending the night here? It's so spacious and safe," exclaimed Tong Xiaorou in amazement.
Yaya was even more excited as she rolled around on the fine and soft wood shavings. This was so comfortable.
However, since they were still hungry, the two girls did not get excited for long before they stopped and subconsciously preserved their strength.
"Go to sleep first. I have something to take care of. Remember not to come out," Jiang Cheng reminded them.
"Sure thing, we won't leave," Tong Xiaorou replied. "Just be careful and don't overwork yourself," she added.
"Brother-in-law, come back early and rest," Yaya said with concern.
"Okay." Jiang Cheng smiled and came to the entrance of the cave.
He then peered through the thick branches and withered vines at the Terrawheeler, which was over three hundred meters away.
The place was brightly lit. There were three to four thousand people busy cutting down trees and moving wood and withered vines. The huge Terrawheeler was like a bottomless pit. Large amounts of materials were transported in, but it never seems to fill up.
Jiang Cheng was starting to believe that there might really be a high-tech assembly line for extracting elements and synthesizing food in the Terrawheeler.
He didn't look at it for long. He leaped down from the tree hole again, planning to gather resources on a large scale. 'Gotta level up tonight, no matter what. I need to increase my upper limit before slowly working on building my strength,' he thought to himself.