Chapter 21: Little Tricks

"Come on, guys, do me a favor and stop arguing. Besides... this isn't the place for a fight." Liu Feng patted Han Ning and Chen Yan on the shoulders, playing the role of peacemaker.

"Heh, I was just making a suggestion," Chen Yan said, shrugging nonchalantly.

To be honest, if it weren't for Liu Feng, Han Ning would have whipped a vine straight across Chen Yan's face by now. But considering they still needed to cooperate as a team, he suppressed his displeasure and walked to the side without another word.

Over the next few days, their hunting operations continued.

With the help of Han Ning's vines, the team's hunting efficiency skyrocketed. The five-person squad cleared out numerous solitary Crocodile Lizards near the apartment building. On average, they managed to kill one or two Crocodile Lizards measuring about 1.5 meters in length each day.

It wasn't that they never encountered larger ones, but thanks to Zhou Wan's exceptional observation skills, they were able to avoid them in advance.

As the number of battles accumulated, Han Ning's control over his vines became increasingly exquisite. His Skill Level gradually rose to [Intermediate Vine Technique, 182/200]. His Druid Cultivation progress also reached [Basic Druid, Current 162/300].

It was worth noting that the Energy distributed after a Crocodile Lizard's death didn't provide a fixed amount of Druid Cultivation progress. Instead, it was calculated based on the creature's size, which roughly correlated with its strength. On average, Han Ning harvested anywhere from ten to fifteen points per kill.

The squad's exploration radius gradually expanded from the interior of the residential compound to a small commercial district outside. In terms of supplies, Han Ning systematically searched through all the rooms on the eighth floor. The vast majority of the apartments were either empty, severely lacking in supplies, or occupied by survivors who hid inside and kept completely silent. Some of the loot had also been snatched up earlier by Liu Feng's men. He never again experienced a massive haul like the one from the prepper on the eighth floor.

Altogether, however, he had gathered about fifty pounds of food and water, including instant noodles, rice, canned goods, vacuum-sealed cooked food, and various snacks. He also found many useful supplies like alcohol lamps, batteries, candles, toilet paper, and potting soil.

On the fifth day, the squad decided to explore a large, half-submerged, abandoned shopping mall located at the compound's entrance in the direction of Bailu Port. According to Liu Feng's intelligence, there might be a supply warehouse inside that hadn't been completely destroyed by the floodwaters.

The interior of the mall was dim and damp, with knee-deep stagnant water floating with all sorts of garbage and rotting debris. A heavy stench of mold and fishy blood filled the air.

Relying on her excellent eyesight, Zhou Wan scouted ahead. Chen Yan and Lu Minghu kept watch on the left and right, Han Ning stayed in the center to coordinate support, and Liu Feng brought up the rear.

"Be careful. This is a completely unexplored area. There could be quite a few Crocodile Lizards around," Liu Feng warned his teammates as he cautiously observed their surroundings.

"I just feel like something's wrong. It's too quiet here. It's impossible for there not to be a single Crocodile Lizard," Zhou Wan said, suddenly stopping in her tracks and frowning.

"Then let's fall back. I trust your instincts," Liu Feng replied.

Just as Liu Feng passed a collapsed shelf and moved close to Zhou Wan, a deafening, tyrannical roar suddenly echoed from above.

"ROAR!"

Immediately following, a massive black silhouette smashed through the second-floor ceiling. Wrapped in a shower of brick and stone fragments, it crashed down in front of them like a falling meteorite.

SPLASH!

Water flew in all directions, and the ground seemed to tremble.

What appeared before their eyes was a terrifying giant lizard the likes of which they had never seen. It was nearly 3.5 meters long, its entire body covered in grayish-white, bluish Scale Armor. The jagged bone spikes on its back stood erect like halberds. Unlike the other Crocodile Lizards, its vertical pupils were a deep crimson.

"HISS..."

Unlike a typical Crocodile Lizard, this giant beast didn't immediately rush to tear its prey apart. Instead, it locked its gaze onto the intruders as if observing something, exuding a suffocating aura of destruction.

"It's this big?!" Liu Feng's expression changed drastically, his normally calm voice cracking slightly. He had never felt such a terrifying sense of oppression.

"Scatter! Hurry and scatter!" Zhou Wan shrieked a warning. At the same time, an arrow flew from her bowstring, shooting straight toward the giant lizard's eye.

However, the arrow struck the thick scales of the beast's eyelid, sparking briefly before bouncing off. The giant lizard's attention was completely drawn to Chen Yan and Lu Minghu, who were closest to it!

"Damn it!" Chen Yan roared. His muscles bulged, and his skin took on a rich, stony luster. Instead of retreating, he lunged forward, raising his fire axe and hacking forcefully at the giant lizard's reaching front claw.

Lu Minghu flashed to the side, attempting to flank the beast and attack its relatively vulnerable underbelly.

"Vine Technique!" Han Ning didn't hesitate for a second, pushing his Spiritual Power to the absolute limit.

Over a dozen dark green vines, covered in sharp Wooden Thorns, wildly burst from the cracks in the floor, walls, and ceiling. Layer by layer, they entangled the giant lizard's limbs, its neck, and that terrifying, sweeping tail.

SCRATCH SCRATCH SCRATCH.

The vines fiercely scraped against the Scale Armor. The giant lizard's strength was beyond imagination. The entangled vines instantly pulled taut to their limits, groaning under the unbearable strain. A large number of the vines were brutally snapped in the very first moment by the beast's berserk power.

However, Han Ning's all-out effort still played a crucial role—the giant lizard's movements were delayed for a split second. Chen Yan's axe continuously chopped at the scales on its front claw.

CLANG! CLANG!

Despite his astonishing strength, he only managed to leave behind a series of white scratches; there was no way to break through the monster's defenses.

Lu Minghu's attack was thwarted even more easily. A casual flick of the giant lizard's tail forced him back, leaving him fraught with danger.

"ROAR!" Completely enraged, the giant lizard's crimson vertical pupils snapped toward Han Ning. It was smart enough to know who posed the biggest threat.

The beast's thick front limbs violently kicked off the ground. Its massive body pivoted somewhat clumsily as it opened its giant, jagged maw, biting toward Han Ning with a foul-smelling gust of wind.

"Han Ning!" Seeing this, Liu Feng couldn't help but shout a warning.

In an instant, the short hair on his head stood on end. The surrounding floodwater continuously rippled as scattered metal shelves and concrete blocks levitated, hurtling violently toward the giant lizard's head.

Right at that moment, Chen Yan—who should have been covering Han Ning's flank to help share the pressure—suddenly stumbled for some unknown reason and fell backward into the water. Lu Minghu was also half a beat too slow, failing to rush up at the first opportunity.

It was this half-step retreat and momentary hesitation that plunged Han Ning into an extremely perilous situation. With the front line breached and no one to provide cover, the giant lizard's bloody maw was already at close quarters, blasting foul, hot breath right into his face.

"That bastard!" Han Ning thought. He had seen Chen Yan's little trick clear as day.

The situation was critical, leaving him no time to settle the score. In his haste, he could only weave a few relatively weak vine nets in front of himself before silently chanting in his mind.

"Tree Skin Technique!"

Green light flowed rapidly across Han Ning's body, condensing into a layer of brownish-green, wrinkled bark.

BANG! CRACK!

The vine blockade was effortlessly shredded to pieces.

Using that brief fraction of a second, Han Ning only had enough time to pull his head out of the range of the giant lizard's bite. However, a hideous bone spike on the edge of the beast's lower jaw—shaped like a Short Spear—still grazed past his left arm.

RIP!

The wrinkled bark was torn apart, and fresh blood instantly sprayed out.

Han Ning felt an agonizing, heart-tearing pain shoot through his left arm; it felt as if the bone had been dislocated. The tremendous impact sent his entire body flying backward. He crashed heavily into a half-tilted shelf behind him and was firmly buried by the cascading goods.

"Stop it!" Liu Feng bellowed, pouring all his strength into controlling every available piece of debris and smashing them wildly into the giant lizard's head and eyes.

Zhou Wan's arrows rained down on the beast's relatively vulnerable eyelids and the inside of its mouth.

Only then did Chen Yan and Lu Minghu snap back to reality, bracing themselves as they charged forward.

Their offensive maneuvers worked. Distracted by the harassment from the other four, the giant lizard temporarily spared the buried Han Ning and turned its head to face the new threats.