Roger also thought this method was good. It’s better than searching for a needle in a haystack*.

  “My lord, what items are we going to trade with these shelters with? Supplies or equipment?”


  “Equipment.” Tang Yu contemplated, “There are some materials we cannot produce right now; it’s better to stock them first. As for the equipment used for trading, choose ordinary firearms, including pistols, rifles, light machine guns. For these sniper rifles, rocket launchers, and other mass-killing weapons, don’t trade them for now.”


  “When trading, prioritize the trade of special materials. Not just the one in these photos. Especially the special minerals. In short, get everything necessary, including spirit stones.”


  He didn’t lack spirit stones anyway.

  “Oh, right.” Tang Yu thought, “Let’s bring along a rocket launcher or two, as well as a crafted longsword. They can be used as bait to see what good things those shelters can come up with.”


  Roger wrote these down, and as if remembering something, he took out a small wooden box from his back. He opened the wooden box, and what was inside seemed to be some kind of herb, “My Lord, this is what the patrol members found. It looks a bit like one of the medicinal herbs you were looking for. Please check it out.”


  Tang Yu took the wooden box. This herb was about the size of a palm, the leaves were dark green, but there was a slightly brownish red in the rhizome. He leaned close to the wooden box and sniffed it, a faint fishy smell entered his nose.

  These days, not only blueprints can be bought from the market. Some medicinal recipes, such as a body hardening potion formula that Tang Yu valued very much, were also found. He was now stuck on the fifth awakening level. On the one hand, it was difficult to break through the bottleneck from the fifth to the sixth stage. On the other hand, he hadn’t fully tapped his potential yet, as he wasn’t suitable yet for a breakthrough.

  But tapping his potential was not as fast as refining and upgrading the spirit power. It took time to rely on oneself to exercise little by little, or to cultivate. This potential lay mainly in physical quality. The body hardening potion was good enough to tap into his own physical quality in a short period.

  Tang Yu had found most of the herb in the recipe, and now he had found the rarest one, Fishy Herb.

  “It’s true. This is Fishy Herb, where did you find it?” Tang Yu asked.

  Roger thought, “It’s said that it was found by the stream where the survivors usually fetch water. Our team member also happened to find it while on patrol today, would you like to go over there and take a look?”


  “Alright.”


  ……………….

  The two patrol members who found Fishy Herb were very excited. Tonight happened to be their turn to patrol so they couldn’t go to the training camp. When they heard Leader Tang had brought new weapons to the training camp to test it, they were frustrated because they couldn’t see it. But now, they didn’t expect that Leader Tang wanted them to lead the way. They suddenly felt a great honor.

  “Leader, this is where I found it.”


  Tang Yu looked at it. It was a rock by the stream, about the size of a basketball.

  The patrol member who found the fishy herb said, “I found it behind this rock. It’s quite hidden. I found it tonight when my flashlight accidentally flashed it.”


  Tang Yu went to the area behind the rock and saw the dirt was different from the rest of the area, it was maroon.

  “Is this blood? It seems that the environment in which fishy herbs grow needs to be nourished with demonic beasts’ blood.”


  Having studied pharmacy, he had some knowledge of the environment in which the herbs grew. He was able to determine it at once. In particular, the edge of the stream was rather damp, and so was the soil condition. It should all be related to the herb’s growth.

  “Alright, let’s go down this stream. We might be able to find more fishy herbs upstream.”


  “Leader…” Roger suggested, “We should probably call the others. The night is treacherous, it would be better if we look for it with more people.”


  Tang Yu nodded.

  Roger quickly returned with the other patrol members. Soon, the group walked down the riverbed. As they walked along the riverbed, the width of this stream gradually grew wider. The water collided with the rocks, making a loud splashing sound. Each patrol member swiped their flashlight around the area. Suddenly, a patrol member exclaimed, “Over there!”


  In the distance, illuminated by the flashlight, a few palm-sized plants looked very similar to the fishy herb. The person was about to approach the herb when Roger suddenly spoke, “Watch out! Something is moving!”


  Tang Yu raised his eyebrows and gazed into the darkness ahead.

  Splash!

  A shadow stepped on the water surface, quickly moving towards the group. The flashlight spotted the shadows, revealing the shadow’s full appearance. Its gray scaly armor and huge mouth opened, revealing the sharp teeth inside.

  It was a crocodile! An alienated crocodile!

  It moved so fast, flicking its tail and rushed ashore, splashing debris and waters towards the crowd. The patrol members who were holding rifles instinctively shot the coming beast. The bullets hit the scaly armor with a metal clang, completely repelled the bullets. The crocodile was coming closer, ordinary guns weren’t effective! In fact, it only enraged the crocodile.

  Suddenly, the crocodile stared at Tang Yu, dashing on all four limbs. Its entire body leaped forward, mouth wide open, revealing its sharp and fierce teeth.

  “My lord! Watch out!” Roger took out his claymore and guarded Tang Yu. He didn’t say anything, just focused his gaze on the coming beast. His hands quickly reached the twin swift revolvers on his waist.

  Bang!

  Bang!

  Both guns fired, the bullets entered the crocodile’s mouth. For a split second, blood blossomed inside its mouth, and the crocodile’s body flew forward under the effect of inertia.

  However, after firing two shots, Tang Yu casually swayed to his side. The crocodile’s huge body flew past him and rolled heavily to the ground with a loud bam. After a slight twitching, the crocodile was silent, lifeless.

  Bull’s eye!

  “It’s those revolvers!”


  “Ahhhh, I’d spend all of my fortunes for a revolver like that!”


  “Did you notice how marvelous Leader Tang was? When facing that enormous alienated crocodile, after firing two shots, he turned to the side without even looking! Do you know what that means? It’s confidence! He’s confident that the two shots will be enough to kill that crocodile!”


  “That’s right! Besides, it’s night, and the crocodile moved very fast! Even when illuminated by the flashlight, it’s hard to see it clearly. And this isn’t the fantasy shooting range, it’s the real world! There are no red marks for the vital point, no one-hit-kill setting. But even so, Leader Tang could instantly finish the alienated crocodile!”


  “Haven’t you noticed that Leader Tang is particularly amazing! Faced with the deadly bite of an alienated crocodile, the dying man, after firing two shots, turns to the side without looking, why? That’s confidence! Confident that those two shots will be enough to kill the alien crocodile!”


  Tang Yu was embarrassed when he heard those compliments. The fact that he could finish the crocodile lay in the difference in level. No matter what, he was a master of the fifth awakening level. For others, the movement speed of this crocodile was fast. However, in his eyes, it was slow.

  Even he needed two shots to kill it.

  He felt embarrassed even more. Tang Yu was deeply aware of his mediocre marksmanship.

  Note

  *The phrase is usually ‘like looking for a needle in a haystack’. It describes a virtually impossible task because you would have to search for a huge area, or look through a huge number of things, to find the item or person you want. (Imagine searching through a large haystack to find a sewing needle lost or hidden somewhere in it.)