Chapter 16: The storm
"Liu Xiao, how hungry can you possibly be?"
Zhou Yuk, having finished his meal and looking thoroughly satisfied, stood up only to see Liu Xiao still stuffing roasted meat into his mouth without pause.
Liu Xiao ignored him, continuing his single-minded feast. He had already consumed an entire lizardman arm, gaining 2 points in Strength through his [Pearl Within] ability - a cultivation method the others couldn't begin to comprehend.
"Help me up!"
Only when he physically couldn't eat another bite did Liu Xiao stop his voracious consumption, at which point he realized he could barely stand from sheer fullness.
There was another reason for his pause:
He had noticed that while his spirit body was absorbing nutrients, his spiritual energy was being continuously depleted. By his estimates, gaining about 2.8 points in Strength had cost him over 20% of his spiritual energy reserves, which combined with his earlier uses of [Camouflage], left him with only about half remaining.
He needed to be mindful of both his stomach capacity and his spiritual energy levels. After all, the spirit core required spiritual energy to function, and he had no idea what might happen if he completely exhausted his reserves. Moreover, the natural recovery rate of spiritual energy seemed painfully slow, making conservation crucial.
Not wanting to waste any of the precious meat, Liu Xiao stored the remaining lizardman carcasses in his [Subpar Storage], including the complete body of the dark-red lizardman.
Looking purely at material gains from this unexpected battle, the rewards were rather meager. Aside from the equipment on its body, the dark-red lizardman had carried almost nothing of value, disappointing everyone's expectations.
However, the creature had at least contributed its living spirit energy, allowing Li Tianjia to undergo spiritual evolution - no small gain in Liu Xiao's eyes.
Supported by Zhou Yuk, the group slowly made their way toward the forest's edge at a leisurely pace.
...
"By the way, Liu Xiao, how did that lizardman suddenly appear out of nowhere?"
This question had been troubling Li Tianjia for some time, but he couldn't figure out the answer. "It seemed to materialize in the same way you did when you returned."
"If I had to guess, that stone egg serves as a spatial anchor," Liu Xiao speculated. "Creatures returning to Origin Point likely use it as a reference point. But I suspect the stone egg has other functions too - though I can't even begin to imagine what they might be."
He had actually tried asking the system about this, but it demanded a whopping 1,000 merit points for the answer, forcing him to abandon the inquiry.
"That explanation makes sense, but why did the lizardman return the instant you took out the egg?" Li Tianjia pressed.
"That's more complicated," Liu Xiao said after some thought. "We need to consider several rules together. First, leaving Origin Point has a time limit - you must return within one cycle or your spirit will be erased. Second, when the stone egg was inside my storage space, that extradimensional space likely blocked the return transmission."
"Imagine preparing to return to Origin Point but finding the transmission blocked as the deadline approaches. You'd keep trying repeatedly. The moment I took out the stone egg, the transmission could finally complete. That's my theory anyway."
"Put that way, it does make sense," Li Tianjia nodded thoughtfully. "So if we put an enemy's stone egg into your storage space and keep it there for 14 days, even a god would die?"
"That's right!" Liu Xiao's eyes lit up at Li Tianjia's deduction. This opened up all sorts of devious possibilities for dealing with powerful enemies.
"After evolving, my system permissions upgraded, but now every piece of knowledge costs Galactic Order merit points."
"Same here," Liu Xiao confirmed. "And the system won't give you any information proactively - only reacting to events that have already occurred."
"It seems the system wants us to either discover answers ourselves or earn enough merit points," Li Tianjia mused.
"Sometimes, asking the right question is more important than getting the answer," Liu Xiao observed. "Before seeking answers, we first need to identify the right questions to ask."
"The system and the central intelligence both feel incredibly irresponsible," Li Tianjia said with a helpless laugh.
"Alternatively, maybe the central intelligence itself doesn't know much about Origin Point," Liu Xiao offered his own perspective. "Like Earth's cloud computing systems that rely on accumulated data rather than innate knowledge. Why else would it constantly push us to explore the unknown here?"
"Maybe. But it's interesting in its own way - at least everyone starts on equal footing."
"Not necessarily. When you say 'everyone,' you can only mean our current batch of people."
"What do you mean?"
"Literally what I said. Earth has existed for billions of years. Do you really think the Galactic Order has only brought humans here once?"
"Damn..." Li Tianjia looked unsettled. "Does that mean we might encounter ancient humans?"
"Who knows? Maybe those old-timers all died out long ago." Even as he said it, Liu Xiao didn't believe his own words. "Let's talk about your spiritual evolution. From what I saw, you didn't do anything special - how did it succeed?"
"You're asking me? I should be asking you!" Li Tianjia said indignantly. "You told me to take out the creature's brain and eat it, but when I reached in, my hand touched this hollow cavity, and then I got a prompt asking if I wanted to energize. That was it - simple as that."
"A cavity? Inside its head?" Liu Xiao pressed.
"Exactly. That area was completely empty, like someone had carved out a perfect spherical hole in the middle of its brain." Li Tianjia recalled. "Oh, and when the spirit energizing started, I got several reward notifications: First Kill, Cross-Tier Kill, Cross-Domain Kill - totaling 1 free attribute point and 100 merit points, plus rewards for my first kill of an evolved creature."
"I see. So it really is winner-takes-all for kill rewards," Liu Xiao finally understood the system's distribution rules.
"You didn't get anything?" Li Tianjia frowned.
"Winner-takes-all means whoever lands the killing blow gets all the rewards," Liu Xiao explained.
"So I took rewards that should have been yours!" Li Tianjia looked distressed. "No way - you killed that lizardman, these rewards belong to you!"
"Don't be ridiculous," Liu Xiao shook his head. "Not only should you keep this lizardman's rewards, but going forward, we should deliberately let others get killing blows when possible - especially for first kills. Those rewards are most valuable when claimed early. Besides, if you guys hadn't bought me time by fighting desperately, we'd be the ones being roasted and eaten right now. The system may operate on cold, hard rules, but we're human beings - we have brains and loyalty. We don't need to think like machines."
Yang Zhe cut in: "Liu Xiao's right. We need to maximize our efficiency within the system's rules if we want to grow stronger quickly. That was my first real battle in Origin Point, and honestly, it left me feeling utterly useless. I'm sure the others feel the same. On Earth, with our physiques, we could walk around with our chests puffed out, but here? We're barely better than cannon fodder. If we don't get stronger fast, how can we protect our classmates, let alone ourselves?"
"Brother, I've never heard you speak so passionately, but this time I agree completely!" Yang Zhao gave his brother a thumbs up. "I want to get stronger too, and I've decided - after our leader, I'll be the next to evolve! Anyway, even if I don't go back, my brother can. Hey bro, the honor of taking care of our parents falls to you!"
"Shut up! We stay or go together. Since you've decided to stay, I'm not leaving either!" Yang Zhe smacked his brother on the back.
"If you're all saying this, then I can't be left behind either," Zhou Yuk declared. "So it's settled - after Yang Zhe, it's my turn to evolve! After all, we're family, right?"
"Get lost!" the others shouted in unison.
Though the battle had begun abruptly, it revealed the true character of Liu Xiao's companions - their courage in the face of overwhelming enemies and willingness to sacrifice themselves for their friends earned his deepest respect. Having observed the entire fight, Liu Xiao had seen everyone's performance clearly. Some emotions can be hidden in daily life, but when death looms, all facades crumble. From start to finish, not one of them had trembled in fear or hesitated to stand their ground.
Liu Xiao asked himself quietly: in the same situation, could he have done any better?
The group continued their slow journey out of the forest, chatting and joking along the way.
As they neared the forest's edge, they began encountering other small teams and lone individuals - clearly, they weren't the only ones interested in exploring these woods.
Emerging from the tree line, they were greeted by a sea of adults - a sight that felt strangely jarring to Liu Xiao after his recent return from Earth.
Every group seemed to be building their own wooden shelters. The sounds of trees being felled and sawed into lumber filled the air as people transported materials back to their camps. Some had even set up construction sites right at the forest's edge for easier access to materials, making the perimeter area bustling with activity.
When they reached their student group's designated area, Liu Xiao was immediately surrounded by classmates eager for news about their physical bodies and families back on Earth. He patiently answered each query in detail. During this process, Ye Shan and the other three girls were quietly taken aside by Li Tianjia into one of the wooden shelters.
Soon, the sound of crying came from inside, but it gradually subsided. Ye Shan and Li Tianjia eventually emerged.
Despite learning about her physical death on Earth, Ye Shan showed remarkable composure - a reaction that made Liu Xiao view this academic standout in a new light.
"Give them some space and time to process this," Ye Shan instructed the others before pulling Li Tianjia aside for a private conversation.
After Liu Xiao reassured everyone about their physical safety and shared his observations about Earth's deteriorating conditions, many faces showed conflicted expressions. Some had already decided to return to Earth by ending their lives in Origin Point, but the chaotic state Liu Xiao described gave them pause.
Would the world they returned to still be the same? No one could say for certain.
By presenting the facts without sugarcoating, Liu Xiao placed the choice firmly in their hands. He had no intention of dictating others' fates, even though he easily could have.
"Liu Xiao, we have some developments to share with you." Ye Shan and Li Tianjia called him over from a short distance away.
"What's up?" Liu Xiao asked as he joined them.
"Here's the situation," Ye Shan began with her characteristic pragmatism. "Qiantang's garrison forces have consolidated police, military reserves, veterans, armed police, and military academy students to implement temporary martial law here. While you were gone, military representatives have been contacting various groups to coordinate efforts. I think this is a positive development, but we wanted your input."
"What are the military's specific plans? What would martial law entail for us?" While Liu Xiao agreed military coordination was beneficial, he wondered how they intended to manage hundreds of thousands of people.
"First, they want at least half the people - especially those with Physical stats below 20 - to return to Earth as soon as possible. Second, they're compiling a list of those truly unable to return and asking everyone to refrain from rash actions until it's complete. Third, all lethal weapons are to be handed over to military control. Fourth, they're recruiting individuals with special abilities, items, or skills into their ranks. That's the information I've gathered."
"So the military must have ways of monitoring Earth's situation," Liu Xiao mused. "Their priorities make sense - getting most people back would stabilize things there since that's ultimately our home. But compiling that list will take time. They'll probably prioritize returning essential personnel first - doctors, firefighters, utility workers - otherwise the chaos will only worsen and more people will become stranded."
"Li Tianjia told me about your next steps and what happened in the woods," Ye Shan continued. "You can proceed with your plans - I'll manage things here with the others. With military involvement, we should be..."
Before she could finish, a growing commotion in the distance drew their attention.
People were running toward the river in droves, while others shouted warnings. At the same time, those already at the riverbank were desperately trying to push their way back out through the crowd. Even from a distance, Liu Xiao could see the terror on their faces.
"Something's seriously wrong!" Liu Xiao exclaimed as he broke into a sprint toward the growing chaos.