Chapter 28: Survivors

After a brief rest, feeling his Spiritual Power recover to about 12 points, Han Ning patted Snow Cake's cold head. "Let's go. We'll head north to take a look."

"HOWL!"

The man and the lizard dove back into the murky, freezing water. With Han Ning on its back, Snow Cake swam swiftly toward the northern part of Blue Bay Park.

Gradually, the silhouette of a half-submerged building emerged through the curtain of rain. Only a small part of the roof was exposed, looking like a lonely island. On this "island," several moving dots faintly appeared.

"People?!" Han Ning frowned slightly and signaled Snow Cake to speed up.

As they drew closer to the convenience store, agonizing cries mixed with the terrifying roars of Crocodile Lizards pierced through the dense rain, reaching his ears clearly.

"Help!"

"Hurry up! Climb up here!"

"Forget the supplies! Old Li!!"

Han Ning's heart skipped a beat. He swam behind the floating wreckage of a billboard, cautiously poked his head out, and stared intently.

On the exposed roof of the convenience store, four people huddled together. They wore raincoats of various colors. Gaunt and malnourished, their faces were etched with extreme fear and despair. The two on the left were desperately tugging at another person's arm, trying to haul their companion up from the edge of the roof. One more person had already fallen into the water and was thrashing about wildly.

Beneath the water surrounding the convenience store, four hideous, grayish-white heads poked out. These Crocodile Lizards weren't large—even smaller than the ones he had hunted before—but they were still beyond what ordinary people could fend off. One of them clamped its jaws onto the waist of the unfortunate soul in the water, violently thrashing its grotesque head to drag the victim into the depths.

"Ah, ah!!"

The murky water was dyed dark red by a massive bloom of blood. The person who fell in let out only a few brief, miserable shrieks before falling completely silent. All that remained was the horrifying sound of the Crocodile Lizard tearing flesh and crunching bones.

On the roof, the person being pulled by his companions still had his lower body submerged in the water. A slightly smaller Crocodile Lizard was clawing at the roof's edge, trying to bite his leg. The other two Crocodile Lizards were using their hind legs to kick against the wall, attempting to leap up to the relative safety of the roof. The survivors above wielded a chaotic assortment of makeshift weapons, frantically batting at the beasts' heads to keep them at bay.

"Old Zhang, hold on! Don't let go!" A burly, bearded man who seemed to be the leader gritted his teeth. Veins bulged on his arms as he kept a tight grip on his companion's arm.

Being dragged up, Old Zhang's face was as pale as paper. His legs had already been slashed open by the Crocodile Lizard's sharp claws, leaving several deep, bone-exposing gashes that bled profusely.

"I can't... I can't hold on... My arm is going to break..." Old Zhang's voice carried a sob, his rain-drenched face twitching and contorting uncontrollably.

In the nick of time, just as the Crocodile Lizard clinging to the roof opened its maw full of dense, razor-sharp teeth, about to bite into Old Zhang's calf...

ROAR!!

A deep beastly roar of a completely different pitch drowned out every other sound like a sudden clap of thunder. Immediately after, a grayish-white shadow tore through the curtain of rain, darting out from behind the billboard at astonishing speed. Its sturdy hind legs kicked off a piece of floating trash, launching its body like an arrow straight at the attacking Crocodile Lizard.

SQUELCH!

Snow Cake's tooth-filled jaws expertly clamped down on the side of the target Crocodile Lizard's neck.

SCREECH!!

The powerful impact knocked the beast right off the edge of the roof, sending it tumbling into the murky water with a massive SPLASH.

At the same time, twelve dark green vines shot out from all directions, whistling through the air. They accurately coiled tightly around the bodies of the other three Crocodile Lizards.

The survivors on the roof were stunned by this split-second turn of events. They stared blankly at the vines that had appeared out of nowhere and the incredibly ferocious Crocodile Lizard, their minds going completely blank.

"Hurry! Pull him up!" Han Ning shouted at the bearded man who was still spacing out on the roof.

Controlling three Crocodile Lizards at once was quite strenuous for him. He wasn't saving these people because he had a bleeding heart; rather, if he wanted to get into the convenience store, he had to kill these monsters. Furthermore, his Druid Cultivation progress was just one step away from a breakthrough, and these beasts weren't particularly strong.

The burly man jolted back to his senses. Together with his companion, he burst forth with the last bit of his strength, finally dragging the half-dead Old Zhang onto the relative safety of the roof.

HOWL! Snow Cake released its bite, allowing the heavily injured Crocodile Lizard to sink to the bottom. Its yellow, slit-like pupils coldly locked onto the other three Crocodile Lizards ensnared by the vines. A low growl rumbled from its throat, exuding absolute deterrence.

"Stay on the roof and don't move!" Han Ning ordered again as he channeled his Spiritual Power with all his might.

[Vine Technique Skill Level +2, Current 199/200]

[Spiritual Power: 7/20]

Under his control, the vines suddenly tightened, suffocatingly constricting the bodies of the three Crocodile Lizards.

"ROAR!" "HOWL!" "HISS..."

The Crocodile Lizards' scales began to deform under the strangulation of the tough vines and sharp Wooden Thorns.

"Snow Cake, finish them off!"

ROAR!

Receiving the command, Snow Cake didn't hesitate in the slightest, lunging forward as a gray blur once more. It first pounced on the smallest Crocodile Lizard.

CRACK!

The sound of shattering bone rang out. Then, without a moment's rest, Snow Cake whipped its thick tail, smacking another Crocodile Lizard on the head and leaving it dizzy and disoriented, before immediately pouncing on it to deliver a fatal strike!

HISS! HISS!

Seeing its two companions die one after another, the last Crocodile Lizard struggled even more frantically.

"Stay put!" Han Ning's eyes turned fierce as the Spiritual Power within him surged into the vines.

[Vine Technique Skill Level +6, Current 205/200. Skill Level Increased!]

[Vine Technique (Middle Level) → Vine Technique (High Level)]

The moment the Vine Technique broke through, the remaining vines suddenly burst with a deep, dark green light. They grew thicker and tougher, with mysterious, eerie green patterns faintly surfacing on them. The binding force surged dramatically!

HISS—

The final Crocodile Lizard was firmly immobilized on the spot by the Advanced Vine Technique, unable to move a muscle. Snow Cake seized this perfect opportunity, continuing to swing its tail and whipping it viciously against the back of the Crocodile Lizard's neck.

SNAP!

The last Crocodile Lizard went completely limp.

The battle ended exceptionally fast. In just a dozen breaths, all four vicious Crocodile Lizards were dead. The muddy water was littered with their floating corpses, and the thick stench of blood filled the air, mingling with the freezing rain. On the roof, the survivors who had narrowly escaped death collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. The gazes they directed at Han Ning and Snow Cake were filled with an indescribable awe.

Four pure blue orbs of light drifted up from the four Crocodile Lizard corpses and sank into Han Ning's chest.

"Urgh..." Han Ning's body stiffened as if pierced by a high-voltage current.

An abundant, warm current exploded within him. His muscles all over his body felt as though they were soaking in a hot spring, accompanied by a faint, tearing and swelling ache. These Crocodile Lizards were quite small, so the total Energy he obtained wasn't much. But it was enough to help Han Ning break through that barrier!

[Druid Growth Progress +53]

[Druid Level Increased, Level 3 → Level 4, Current 1/600]

[Spiritual Power Cap Increased, 20 → 25]

[Current Spiritual Power: 15/25]

[Awakened New Skills: Natural Blessing, Fish Gills Technique]