Just as Jiang Cheng landed on the ground, a man suddenly came from behind the tree. When he saw that man, his expression changed slightly.
Jiang Cheng's face darkened as he pointed his sword at the stranger and said, "What are you doing here?"
The man hurriedly pointed the tip of the wooden spear at the ground to show that he had no ill intentions and said, "I'm just searching for a spot to rest. It's a huge tree, so I thought it might be suitable..."
"This is my turf now. Please leave before I misconstrue your intentions," Jiang Cheng said coldly.
"Okay, okay." The man was frightened by Jiang Cheng's sword and started to retreat slowly. He then turned around and ran off into the darkness.
Jiang Cheng stood there for a moment before circling the massive tree. Once he confirmed that no one was coming, he returned to the side where the tree hole was.
Squatting ten meters away from the tree trunk, he used his sword to clear the decaying leaves before placing his palm on the ground to use his gathering skill.
[Dirt Block +2]
[Dirt Block +2]
...
Jiang Cheng continued to collect the soil blocks until a pit was formed. This time, his goal was not to find water, so he did not focus on one area. Instead, he went around the giant tree to collect soil and dug a trap while he was at it.
The trap was neither big nor small. It was only two meters wide and one meter deep. Falling in wouldn't cause any injuries, but it would definitely make some noise.
After ten minutes, then twenty, and then half an hour, Jiang Cheng glanced at his Item Box—it was almost full. But when he looked at his experience bar, he realized he'd only made ten percent progress.
"The experience points required to level up after Level 10 is really a lot," he muttered to himself.
Jiang Cheng did not stop but continued to use his gathering skill.
Soon, when he had dug out a two-meter-wide trap around the giant tree, he continued to collect more soil.
When his Item Box was full, he threw the soil out to clear the Item Box slots. After all, the trap was dug conveniently. He did not know what to do with this soil material for the time being.
[Dirt Block +2]
[Dirt Block +2]
As time passed, the experience bar was increasing with difficulty. His Item Box was full several times. The experience bar had only reached fifty percent by midnight.
"Looks like I really overestimated myself!"
Jiang Cheng frowned slightly as he noticed the cold aura's presence everywhere and the people three hundred meters away resting, so he climbed back into the tree hole.
Those night monsters would appear after midnight. He had experienced it himself the previous night and did not want to encounter them again.
No one was lighting a fire. Even the temporary camp three hundred meters away had turned off most of the lights, leaving only a few dim lights. Therefore, he did not dare to use his campfire. He did not want to stand out and draw unnecessary attention unless he encountered a special situation like last night.
"Jiang Cheng, is that you?" Tong Xiaorou asked softly. It was pitch black inside the tree hole, so she couldn't see anything.
"It's me," Jiang Cheng replied, then leaned against the tree hole and looked at the temporary camp three hundred meters away. He saw thousands of people surrounding the huge Terrawheeler. They seemed to be very tired and didn't want to move.
However, with the current hot climate, the temperature was very high even at night, so he was not worried about catching a cold.
There were no signs of night monsters or cries of a woman like the previous night. He began to wonder if the monsters weren't everywhere, or if it was because the area was densely populated that they didn't approach there.
Jiang Cheng watched for a while before returning to the tree hole and lying down.
Tong Xiaorou, who was beside him, slowly approached him. It seemed like she wanted to get closer but didn't dare to get too close. She was probably fearing his temper. Jiang Cheng smiled and pulled her closer. Although he was not in the mood to do anything because both of them were dirty, her body was soft and comfortable to hug.
Now that the weather was dry and everywhere lacked water, the Wildlings had not bathed for a long time. Perhaps it was because the nose of this body had long adapted to this situation, he did not feel unpleasant. Anyway, the two of them were almost equally dirty, so neither of them should dislike the other.
Tong Xiaorou's delicate body stiffened slightly when Jiang Cheng hugged her. She then relaxed and lay on his chest like a kitten.
In his past life, Jiang Cheng was a twenty-nine-year-old man without a girlfriend. Now, he suddenly had a cute and obedient eighteen-year-old fiancee. He was very happy. If it wasn't for the fact that the current environment really didn't allow it, he would have spoiled her more.
An uneventful night passed with no strange cries outside.
Jiang Cheng slept for a couple of hours and woke up to a slightly bright sky. Sensing that the cold aura was beginning to recede, he was about to get up to gain more experience points, but Tong Xiaorou woke up the moment he moved.
The Wildlings slept very lightly, and Tong Xiaorou, who had been feeling insecure for a long time, was even more so. Even if she was completely asleep, she would be awakened by the slightest movement of grass.
"Boo hoo!"
Suddenly, Yaya's cries came from the side.
Jiang Cheng and Tong Xiaorou were both shocked and hurriedly sat up.
"Yaya…" Tong Xiaorou woke Yaya up by shaking the little girl vigorously.
Yaya opened her eyes blankly. "Sis… Oh, brother-in-law is still here…" Immediately, she looked surprised and said, "That's great. I thought you didn't want us anymore ..."
Tong Xiaorou was overcome with emotion and hugged her little sister tightly. Tears streamed down her face as she held Yaya close.
Jiang Cheng felt a lump form in his throat. In his previous life, a six-year-old girl like Yaya should have been carefree, playing in kindergarten and enjoying lollipops at the amusement park.
At this moment, Jiang Cheng even had the urge to do something for the refugees of this world. However, when he thought of his own situation, he immediately calmed down. The current him was still far from being able to help everyone.
"Don't worry," he assured the little girl beside him, gently rubbing her head. "I'll always be here, and nobody will ever bully you again."
"I believe in you!" Yaya beamed with happiness and tearfully exclaimed. She had never experienced such a feeling of peace of mind since being born.
Tong Xiaorou also looked at Jiang Cheng gratefully.
"Hey, stop crying already. Let's grab a bite," Jiang Cheng grinned, "We need to fill our stomachs before we hit the road again."
The two girls' eyes lit up, their faces lit with excitement. "Are we going to eat again?" they asked. In the past, they only had a little to eat every few days, and it was usually just tree bark or grass roots. But now, they could enjoy two meals a day, and both were this delicious roasted meat. It was almost too good to be true.
Jiang Cheng took out two pieces of roast meat and gave one to the two girls while he ate another. One piece weighed a pound, enough for two girls to eat.
"It's really this kind of roast meat. Why is it still hot?" Tong Xiaorou said in surprise.
The food in the Item Box could be kept warm and fresh. It looked the same when it was put in and taken out. There was almost no change.
"I just heated it up. I'm an Evolver now and have special abilities. Don't be surprised if you see anything strange happening to me in the future," said Jiang Cheng with a smile, "But you can't tell anyone about this. It's a secret."
"Roger. I won't say anything, " The little girl promised with a serious expression.
"I won't say it either." Tong Xiaorou said seriously.
Jiang Cheng smiled and nodded.
In fact, after learning about the existence of Evolvers in this world, Jiang Cheng was not particularly nervous about his ability being discovered. Though his ability might be unique, other Evolvers likely possessed special abilities of different domains and specialties. For now, he just wanted to lay low as he did not feel strong enough. To put it bluntly, he lacked a sense of security because of his weakness.
After eating a few mouthfuls of roast meat, Jiang Cheng was ready to continue his experience point gathering. However, just as he was about to set off, he noticed a slight vibration.
It sounded like thousands of troops were running.
Moooooo-ve, moooooo-ve...
The sounds of bison echoed from afar, and they seemed to be many in number.
RAT-TAT-TAT
Suddenly, gunshots erupted from three hundred meters away.
BOOM
The sound of artillery fire came.