Chapter Four: Repairing the Temporal Ant

After a fierce struggle, Lu Sheng ultimately managed to kill the goblin, relying on his wit, physical strength, and a blow to his abdomen. Of course, his intellect and courage were the most crucial factors—not at all because the goblin left his head exposed when attacking his stomach, allowing Lu Sheng to seize the opportunity.

Looking at the newly acquired goblin card in his card space, his stomach no longer hurt. At last, he possessed a monster card with real combat capability.

[Goblin]
Quality: White
Level: Early Stage, First Tier
Skill: Powerful Strike

The goblin depicted on the card was identical to the one Lu Sheng had just slain, even wielding the same iron-like spiked wooden club.

At this point, the battle was nearly over. Lu Sheng’s fight with the goblin lasted no more than five minutes. Normally, such a conflict shouldn’t have ended so quickly, especially with four or five hundred goblins present. Yet, among the crowd, one man’s strength far outstripped that of the goblins—he slaughtered them effortlessly.

The leader, Li Kuang, as Wei Liang had informed him, had reached the peak of the second tier. With his Wind Wolf card, he dispatched these first-tier goblins as if they were children. One blast of wind breath wiped out swathes of goblins before him.

In the face of absolute power, numbers were meaningless. The goblins blown about by the storm were not all dead; some were gravely injured, others dazed and unable to recover. No one would let such an opportunity slip by—some killed a goblin on the spot and immediately summoned their personal cards to absorb the monster’s essence.

Monsters that couldn’t be eaten were used as nourishment for their personal cards, allowing the cards to absorb blood essence and level up. Once drained, the corpses were reduced to husks.

Lu Sheng had no further part to play; the entire Wind Gathering camp numbered a thousand, with more than five hundred fighters. The only reason he managed to claim a goblin was that he acted decisively.

Luck played its role, but the most important factor was seeing Wei Liang rush forward without hesitation, easily slaying a goblin. This led Lu Sheng to mistakenly believe the goblins were weak.

Upon reflection, Wei Liang’s ease was due entirely to his mastery of combat details. With immense experience, he detected flaws in the goblin’s attack the moment it struck.

Lu Sheng understood the reason for Wei Liang's achievements. After being taken in by the Wind Gathering camp, Wei Liang sought strength, always charging ahead whenever possible, as long as it wasn’t life-threatening. He was driven by a determination never to be oppressed again.

After the battle, the field was quickly cleaned thanks to clear division of labor. Lu Sheng saw several cards floating above monster corpses. In this world, slain monsters could drop cards of all kinds: skills, equipment, functional cards...

Lu Sheng coveted them, but knew they weren’t his, so he turned his attention to disposing of the bodies. This place was to become their new camp, so the corpses had to be dealt with thoroughly. Some dug pits in the distance, others carried bodies, while others tidied up the village.

It took an hour of hard labor to finish the task, even more exhausting than the battle itself. By then, dusk had yielded to full darkness.

Under the night sky, bonfires were lit and the aroma of roasting meat wafted through the air.

Lu Sheng had been hungry for a long time, but as a newcomer, he dared not complain. At last, mealtime arrived. In this world, nothing mattered more than filling one’s stomach.

The cleaning team gathered around a fire, ten people sitting in a circle.

"Today we found a Fangboar on the road, so there’s more meat than usual. Everyone’s worked hard; you can eat your fill tonight," Wei Liang announced, distributing a large slab of meat to each person.

Food was strictly managed in the apocalypse; Wei Liang lacked authority to control supplies. Normally, all food collected had to be handed in, then distributed according to higher orders.

Lu Sheng gazed at the two palm-sized pieces of pork, pondering. They looked sizable, but thickness-wise, not much better than Blue State noodles...

When the meat was cooked, Lu Sheng could no longer restrain himself and devoured it ravenously.

A strange thing happened: despite no seasoning, he tasted a hint of sweetness and freshness, finding it not at all difficult to swallow. Most importantly... he was full! Such a small piece of meat left him stuffed.

Clearly, in a monster world, past experience was useless.

After the meal, everyone sat around the bonfire chatting—a rare form of entertainment in the apocalypse. Lu Sheng took the opportunity to interact with the group.

"Brother Liang, you haven’t awakened your personal card, so why are you so fierce in battle?"

"Awakening your personal card is one way to increase strength. Regular fighting and training also boost your power; don’t overlook that. Look at the captains and leaders—their own abilities are formidable."

"But, Brother Liang, at least they have personal cards and aren’t as exposed to danger. Aren’t you afraid of dying?"

"Of course I’m afraid. Who isn’t? But I’m more afraid of a fate worse than death..."

Their conversation soon ended. The bonfire was extinguished, and everyone prepared to sleep.

Five people squeezed into one room; Wei Liang arranged for Lu Sheng to share his quarters.

Before bed, Lu Sheng excused himself, claiming he needed the restroom. In a hidden spot, he summoned the Fangboar and had it use the Piglet skill.

Seven robust piglets appeared before him.

With swift strokes of his blade, he dispatched them—after all, he was only out for a quick break and had little time.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to take a longer break, but that required someone to stand guard to prevent accidents.

He placed the corpses into his storage space—they were all meat, after all.

With a sense of excitement, Lu Sheng returned to camp.

Wei Liang waited at the door, clearly uneasy.

He looked at Lu Sheng’s excitement in surprise. "Why are you so thrilled after a bathroom break? You were only gone two or three minutes."

"How could that be? Just relieved myself, that’s all."

"You’re strange—taking a knife just to pee."

"Just for self-defense... self-defense..."

Back in the room, Lu Sheng lay down and eagerly checked his spoils.

Seven early-stage Fangboar piglet cards. They weren’t as useful in battle or eating as an adult Fangboar, but what Lu Sheng wanted was the card.

There was another matter: after using the Piglet skill and summoning seven piglets, Lu Sheng learned that to use the skill again, he’d have to wait twenty-four hours.

But that was trivial. Now came the real decision: should he repair the Space-Time Ant, or upgrade his only combat-ready card, the Goblin?

He had his answer in the next moment.

Repair the Space-Time Ant!

It wasn’t hard to choose between a red-quality Space-Time Ant and a lowly Goblin. The Space-Time Ant had once been red-quality and was now on the brink of collapse; if he didn’t repair it now, he might lose it forever.

He used his mind to activate the personal evolution ability and was transported to a special space.

His personal card automatically became the main card, and he needed to place a subordinate card.

He inserted the seven piglet cards, and a progress bar appeared above the Space-Time Ant.

Seventy percent.

Not enough?

He added two skill-less Fangboar cards.

Ninety percent.

Still insufficient.

Did he have to add the Goblin card as well? That was his only combat card—should he wait a day?

As soon as this thought arose, a sense of foreboding gripped him; it was as if choosing to wait would cost him something vital.

This feeling was conveyed by his personal card—the Space-Time Ant was issuing its final warning.

With things as they were, there was nothing left to say. The Goblin’s combat power was mediocre; there was no cause for regret. He wasn’t in urgent need of a battle card.

He placed the Goblin card into the subordinate slot.

One hundred percent.

Fusion!