"Dead! Safe!" Number 3 raised his hand high and shouted.
Tom finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The power provided by the red crystal was stronger, allowing the big knife to cut into the mouse's hard teeth. However, the knife broke as a result, rendering it unusable. This big knife, which had fought alongside him since it became smaller, was also considered scrapped.
Li Qiang also had one on his back. Tom took over the big knife and cut open the big mouse's belly, letting the blood flow for a while. Then he stripped naked and began to dig. Finally, he dug out a large crystal from the mouse's heart.
This crystal was as big as a backpack, very heavy. Only with Tom's activated strength could he drag it out with one hand.
Another big crystal was dug out from the abdomen of the other mouse. Tom grabbed one in each hand and went to the bathroom in the bedroom. He threw a thin rope onto the faucet, turned on the faucet, and washed the blood stains off himself and the crystals thoroughly.
Two crystals, each as big as a backpack, made Number 3 ecstatic. According to the agreement, both of these large crystals belonged to them. Such a big gain from this trip would surely earn them praise when they returned.
Excited, Number 3 immediately said that Tom could keep the red and green crystals he used. They only wanted those two large crystals.
Li Qiang had some objections to this. He argued that Tom was the one who found the mice and incited them to fight each other. Without Tom, they wouldn't have been able to kill the two mice, so it was unfair for them to swallow the two large crystals. As for those two red and green crystals, they might get used up soon, perhaps by mosquitoes or ants on the balcony later. In the end, Tom wouldn't get anything.
Tom could tell from his expression what Li Qiang was thinking, but he just waved his hand, indicating for him not to speak.
There was still food in Wu Zun's refrigerator, but it was impossible to open the double-opening door fridge because the handle was too high and the door was too heavy. So they had to find some dry biscuits, supplementing their food supply. Tom also found a plate of mosquito coils and a large piece of cloth. Seeing that it was already 3:45, they started heading to the rooftop.
Wu Zun and Chen Geng carried the two big crystals on their backs. Chen Geng was not too happy about it, suggesting that since Tom could enhance his strength, why didn't he carry them himself? However, Number 3 directly asked him if he wanted to board the plane. If he didn't carry them, he wouldn't be able to board, so he had no choice but to carry them obediently.
The energy of the ruby was used up less with each use, so saving it was naturally a priority. The big red crystal was equivalent to the weight of about 30 kilograms, which was not difficult for a middle-aged man. Besides, this time, Chen Geng hadn't even exerted any strength. Since Wu Zun didn't mind, why would he?
The six of them climbed to the rooftop. Tom asked Li Qiang to put down the mosquito coil on his back, immediately lit it, and walked out holding it.
Sure enough, there were still mosquitoes on the rooftop, although only a few, they were indeed troublesome. They were immediately driven away by Tom's mosquito coil.
The balcony railing of Wu Zun's house was made of stainless steel, unlike the concrete wall railing of the building Tom rented, so they could see the surrounding situation through the wide gaps.
According to the prior agreement, when the Phoenix flew nearby, it would release an illumination flare in the high sky to remind them that it was there.
At this time, Number 3 would also throw out an illumination flare and a smoke bomb from their side to indicate their position, so that the Phoenix could land and pick them up.
They found a direction closest to the shelter on the square, where they set up their temporary camp. At this time, the shelter's lights had descended underground, leaving the entire square pitch dark. With the dim moonlight in the sky, Number 3 and Number 4 put down their respective bags and started to organize their equipment and count ammunition.
After obtaining permission from Number 3, Tom touched the big red crystal to test how much power this big thing could provide him.
After testing, the ruby could increase his strength threefold. With the red crystal, it was about 4.5 times, although the increase was not very obvious, the crystal was twice the size of the big ruby.
With this big crystal, the increase in strength was fivefold. Compared to the small crystal, there was not much difference in power, but the difference in size was even greater.
Tom speculated that the difference in crystal volume might not be the key to the increase in power, but perhaps it was related to the duration of use. However, such a big crystal couldn't be carried except by taking off his shirt and carrying it on his back. It was simply impractical, and the effect it provided was no different from the small crystal. In
battle, it would even affect his agility. It was really not worth it.
After placing the crystals, Tom remembered the "Crystal Energy Conduction Material Manufacturing Process" for exchange.
The process required using a control crystal to shatter an exhausted blank crystal. Perhaps now was a good time to try it out.
Tom took out the green crystal promised to him by Number 3. He held it in one hand and placed it on the blank gem he took out with the other hand. Then he tried to imagine shattering the blank gem.
After silently reciting for a while, Li Qiang suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Tom, what did you do?"
Tom's head throbbed painfully. He quickly let go of his hand and found that the blank gem had cracked into four pieces.
"It worked!" Tom was overjoyed, but he realized that this method consumed a lot of mental energy. He decided to temporarily stop experimenting with it because he needed to conserve his mental energy to deal with potential dangers at any time. He would research everything once they reached the shelter.
However, in the shelter, it would definitely be under military control, and he didn't know if these crystals would still be in his hands by then. Thinking of this, Tom suddenly had an impulse, "Why should I go to their shelter and accept their control? Maybe I can explore outside, freer, just like before!"
But Tom immediately shook his head and vetoed this idea. Survival was the most important thing. A few crystals might not guarantee his safety, and the dangers outside were too great.
When Number 3 and Number 4 were on alert and didn't notice anything unusual, Tom quietly explained to Li Qiang about a technology he had obtained through the shelter. Li Qiang didn't understand much of it, but he assured Tom that he would keep the secret for him.
In the cool breeze of the late night, surrounded by silence, perhaps thinking about the imminent rescue after days of anxiety, Li Qiang's mood relaxed. He began to talk about his past with Tom.
Li Qiang was from the southern region, born in a poor rural family. He was bullied since childhood and later realized that to avoid being bullied, he had to bully others first. He then joined a group of delinquent youths in school and engaged in various acts of bullying against his classmates.
Afterward, he went to work and ended up in a factory in Senchuan City, only to be fired later. Then he followed his seventh uncle.
According to him, this Seventh Uncle was quite a prominent figure in the area. He was generous and loyal to his subordinates, usually adhering to principles of righteousness. However, some of his subordinates had twisted minds, which he couldn't suppress too much. After all, those who went out to mix weren't saints.
Li Qiang unconsciously talked a lot, and then he fell asleep. Tom was quite impressed; even he, the listener, hadn't fallen asleep, but the storyteller did.
It seemed that he was still very nervous lately, probably not sleeping well.
Tom didn't disturb him. He got up and walked to the side where Wu Zun was sitting alone, gazing at the square across.
"Uncle, what are you looking at?"
"I'm looking at the square. Sigh... I played here from childhood to adulthood. When I was young, I used to play around with my wife on this square. Once, I even accidentally injured her head. There was so much blood. I was terrified. Now, more than fifty years have passed, and suddenly I don't recognize this square anymore."
"Uncle..." Thinking of the memories he saw in the rat's mind earlier, Tom hesitated for a long time. Taking this opportunity, he asked, "Your wife went up to feed the rats, creating an escape opportunity for you... right?"
Wu Zun immediately covered his face, tears silently streaming down. This man in his fifties answered Tom's question with his grief-stricken actions. He sighed and sat down without saying a word.
When disaster strikes, it tests human nature the most. Some people, in order to survive, spare no means and use others as stepping stones to escape.
Some people think that righteousness has no place, and they release their desires and emotions on others.
And some people are willing to sacrifice themselves for their loved ones.
The names Zhang Meng, Zhang Jiaqi, Luo Jun, Chen Jianbin, and Zheng Shiyi flashed through Tom's mind. They each wrote their own answers in this disaster, questioning Tom and making him think about how to respond when faced with difficulties in the future.
In fact, he had written many answers already, from initially suppressing Li Qiang, reluctantly organizing a group of survivors, to later escaping from the ant queen's nest room. Then it was the integration of the supermarket, successfully establishing the large shelter with everyone, and finally sending away Liu Lian and the others, they were also about to embark on a new journey.
It seemed that this exam was coming to an end.
"What's there to cry about? At least we're all alive! If your wife is dead, find another one." Chen Geng's cold words interrupted Tom's thoughts.
"Chen Geng!" Wu Zun stood up abruptly, but Tom held him back.
"Let it go, Uncle. Some people will never understand the bond between people."
Wu Zun angrily cursed in their local Hakka dialect, and Tom, having been here for a while, understood: "Chen Geng, you bastard! Your wife worked herself to sickness for you, and you're out there having an affair. I'm ashamed to be associated with a scoundrel like you. You better stay far away from me!"
"Fool cares about women's feelings. I'm not interested in hanging out with idiots like you. Don't worry, when we get to the shelter, we won't see each other for eternity."
"Quiet!" Number 3 shouted loudly, "There's movement downstairs in the hallway!"
Tom hurried over to look downstairs.
He vaguely saw some tiny shadows flickering. Number 3 couldn't discern what it was, but Tom was extremely familiar with it.
"It's ants, ants are coming up, probably quite a lot! Uncle, wake up Li Qiang quickly, and prepare for battle!"
"Ants? Are you sure?" Number 4 asked.
Tom nodded, "Sure, I've dealt with ants several times before. Absolutely no mistake!"