Volume One: The Arrival Chapter Nineteen: Camping

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Through the system prompt, Meng Xingchen learned that this strange bird was called a Horned Eagle, a second-tier magical beast.

“Defeat the second-tier magical beast Horned Eagle to gain 300 biological energy points and 2 points of human faction contribution.”

After finding the magical beast core on the Horned Eagle’s corpse, Meng Xingchen cut off both eagle legs and its breast meat, also digging out the two horns on its head.

Zhai Yao, with Meng Xingchen’s consent, plucked the eagle’s wings and the long feathers on its tail, saying these were high-quality materials for making arrow fletching.

Once Meng Xingchen finished, Tongtong approached him again and handed over the aviation meal she’d been holding, saying, “Thank you, Brother Meng, you saved Tongtong once again.”

Meng Xingchen took the meal box, smiling as he patted her head, then handed her the magical beast core from the Horned Eagle. “This is for you.”

Tongtong took the core, her expression briefly stunned before she looked at Meng Xingchen. Clearly, she had received a system notification.

Meng Xingchen nodded at her. “Absorb it.”

Tongtong hesitated. “But...”

Meng Xingchen gently flicked her forehead, cutting her off. “Tongtong, you need to grow quickly so you can help Brother Meng better.”

Tongtong nodded firmly. “Okay!”

The Horned Eagle’s magical beast core gradually lost its glow in her hand, finally turning into a pile of powder.

Meng Xingchen asked, “How much biological energy did you gain?”

Tongtong checked and replied, “700 points.”

Meng Xingchen calculated that this experience was enough for Tongtong to level up four times straight. Then he asked, “What’s your mental attribute?”

“Eight points,” Tongtong answered, then lowered her head somewhat dejectedly. “Am I useless? My constitution is only two points, agility just three, and the highest is mental at eight.”

Meng Xingchen’s expression stiffened for a fraction of a second, then flicked her forehead again, thinking, “Could this little girl be secretly cunning?”

He shook his head and said, “Level up. Put three points of free attribute into constitution, and one point into mental.”

Raising her constitution to five points should restore Tongtong’s health and turn her into a strong girl.

Since her mental attribute was naturally eight points, future upgrades would prioritize mental. When mental reaches ten points, her metal control ability should improve significantly.

Watching nearby, He Qingwan saw her daughter’s cheeks flush with a healthy color never seen before and could no longer contain her excitement. She ran over and held Tongtong in her arms. “Tongtong, how do you feel now?”

Tongtong clenched her tiny fists and flexed her biceps exaggeratedly. “I feel like my whole body is full of strength!”

At that moment, Ye Feng approached Meng Xingchen with a flattering grin, gesturing with his hands. “Boss Meng, that thing just now was a magical beast core, right? It can convert into biological energy?”

Meng Xingchen nodded. “A second-tier core like that gives enough biological energy to level you up from zero to four.”

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“Level four!” Ye Feng swallowed nervously, licking his lips. “Boss Meng, how about giving me one too?”

Meng Xingchen shook his head. “Early levels are easy to gain. Killing five of the lowest-level monsters is enough to level up once. I don’t recommend using magical beast cores to level up.”

“Tongtong got one only because she’s too young and physically weak. She’ll have to earn biological energy through killing monsters in the future.”

“This world is dangerous. We must improve through real combat and discovery, not by stacking resources to gain high levels. Having a high level without real ability will cause problems in battle.”

Ye Feng gave a thumbs-up in admiration. “Wise words. Truly wise!”

Meng Xingchen smiled and nudged him gently. “Go call Xiao Yun and the other three who awakened fire control abilities.”

Meng Xingchen then found three others who had awakened earth control abilities. Together, they found Tongtong and her mother whispering closely.

Meng Xingchen instructed the three earth controllers to create ten clay pots about the size of an adult fist, then asked He Qingwan to pour aviation fuel into them. The earth controllers sealed these pots tightly.

Ye Feng, Xiao Yun, and three others with fire control each received two pots filled with aviation fuel.

Ye Feng and Xiao Yun had tested already: although fire control could generate flames from nothing, it consumed much more mental energy than manipulating existing flames to attack. With these fuel-filled clay pots, the five fire controllers’ attack power and endurance would increase greatly.

After nearly an hour’s rest, the team set off again. Having just survived the Horned Eagle attack, everyone felt the jungle’s dangers more keenly and tried to keep formation while moving.

Though their speed remained slow, they endured nearly five to six hours of travel until late afternoon, stopping in a flat forest clearing.

Since they would camp overnight, Meng Xingchen spent time clearing about a hundred square meters of open ground.

Everyone became busy preparing.

The three earth controllers erected earthen walls over two meters high surrounding the camp.

Others used trees felled during Meng Xingchen’s clearing to build ten woodpiles. He Qingwan sprinkled aviation fuel on the woodpiles, which fire controllers then ignited.

Tongtong fashioned ten large pots from metal carried by the group, and four water controllers filled them with fresh water.

Yuan Jinglong took a potato from the foam box he’d been hugging, and with a multifunction folding knife borrowed from Meng Xingchen, cut it into small pieces.

He buried the potato pieces in the soil and used his ability to accelerate their growth. Green sprouts broke through the earth and grew rapidly, while nearby soil dried and hardened. Within a minute or two, the potatoes matured.

After digging up dozens of fist-sized potatoes, Yuan Jinglong repeated the process twice more in different spots, harvesting over two hundred large potatoes—enough staple food for dinner.

They roasted more than ten potatoes at each fire, added several potatoes to each big pot as the main ingredient, and supplemented them with meat and dried fruits brought from the plane’s cargo. Soon, the camp was filled with a rich aroma.

By then, the earth controllers had finished the earthen walls around the camp.

Learning that their mental attributes were still above two points, Meng Xingchen asked them to reinforce one section of the wall to nearly five meters high and thicker than the rest.

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Focusing his energy and lightening his body, Meng Xingchen vaulted up to the highest point of the earthen wall, like a green onion sprouting from dry ground. In the fading sunset, he scanned the surroundings, confirming no dangerous creatures were near.

With everything arranged, Meng Xingchen finally relaxed and joined the group by a fire.

Gathered there were Tongtong and her mother He Qingwan, along with Ye Feng, Xiao Yun, Zhai Yao, Yuan Jinglong, and crew members Li Changfeng and Xu Jingya.

Meng Xingchen cut the Horned Eagle breast meat into small pieces and dropped them into the big pot. He cleaned two eagle legs, each thicker than an adult’s arm, and placed them by the fire to roast.

Ye Feng, watching the sizzling eagle legs, drooled. “I wonder if eating magical beast meat really strengthens the body.”

Ignoring Ye Feng’s teasing, Li Changfeng discussed the night watch schedule with Meng Xingchen.

Meng Xingchen looked at Ye Feng and Xiao Yun. “I’ll keep watch overnight. For the first half, Ye Feng and I will pair up; for the second, Xiao Yun and I will. Is that okay?”

Ye Feng puffed up with pride. “No problem!”

Xiao Yun nodded in agreement.

Li Changfeng hesitated, “You won’t rest at all tonight...”

Meng Xingchen waved him off. “For me, missing one or two nights’ sleep has little effect. We moved too slowly today; tonight, everyone should rest well. Tomorrow, we speed up and try to reach Lijia Village before dusk.”

After dinner, they moved all fires to the camp center, laid blankets on the dry earth once heated by the fire, and everyone slept in their clothes.

Meng Xingchen sat cross-legged atop the highest earthen wall, while Ye Feng stayed by the central fire, adding wood to keep it burning.

At intervals along the wall’s base, pots filled with aviation fuel were placed. If the camp was attacked, the fire controllers could instantly raise a wall of flames inside the earthen barrier.

Thanks to his night vision, Meng Xingchen spotted occasional animal shadows flickering through the distant trees. Behind him, watchful eyes lingered from time to time.

Soon, Meng Xingchen stopped paying attention to these and entered a cultivation state. He sat so high partly for a broad view of the camp, and partly to serve as bait.

If predators tried to attack, they would spot him first. Their hostile gaze would awaken him from cultivation.

The first half of the night passed quietly. Meng Xingchen estimated the time, flicked a copper coin, and tapped Ye Feng’s head, waking him gradually.

Meng Xingchen signaled it was time to switch shifts. Ye Feng sighed in relief, woke Xiao Yun who was nearby, and immediately fell asleep.

Xiao Yun rose, circled the camp, checked the aviation fuel pots at the corners, then returned to sit by the fire.

At that moment, Meng Xingchen felt a chill down his spine, an unprecedented malice enveloping him.

Slowly turning his head, he saw a pair of gray-yellow eyes faintly glowing in the darkness, coldly watching him from the forest about twenty to thirty meters away.