Chapter 3: Fetching Water

At this moment, apart from the ants under his command possessing some combat abilities, Huang Mang's transformation into a cement-like body first required contact with cement material. Then, there was a process of transformation that took nearly a dozen seconds, and at this stage, the transformation could only be maintained for a maximum of ten minutes.

As for Wang Lingling's pair of light and shadow wings, they merely allowed her to lift off the ground, reaching a height of about one person, and the duration of their flight was short. It couldn't truly be considered as 'flying'.

The flames on Dong Xuan's fingertips and the ice shards on Zheng Haiyu's fingernails had very little power.

Just a moment ago, as they sat together, Ji Chang had observed that the flames flickering from Dong Xuan's fingers were about the same as a candle's flame, albeit scaled down proportionally.

The ice shards on Zheng Haiyu's fingernails were only sharp enough to scrape something off.

It wouldn't be accurate to say they were completely useless. At the very least, if one were to pick up and throw the ice shards, it would hurt if they hit someone. If they encountered the ants again, there would be no need to bend over to pick up stones...

Captain Chen Lingxue's palm emitted a green mist, but its current effect was still unclear.

Zhou Jun and Xiao Feng didn't know whether they had awakened extraordinary powers or not.

In any case, they were still quite weak at the moment.

Therefore, after Ji Chang proposed a suggestion, the group quickly reached a unanimous agreement.

However, when the topic of food and water came up, all eyes turned to Zhou Jun.

They had chosen this rural courtyard as their base because it was Zhou Jun's grandfather's house.

"Don't look at me like that. My grandfather hasn't lived here for a long time! Even if there's food, it would have gone bad by now!"

Zhou Jun shrugged helplessly.

"What do we do then? Are we going to die of thirst and hunger here?"

"I'm already hungry. I rushed out this morning without eating breakfast!"

"I'm thirsty too. I really want water! My throat feels like it's on fire!"

...

"Compared to food, the most pressing issue right now is water. I remember the water tap in the courtyard used to drip water constantly. We can go there to fetch water."

Chen Lingxue pondered for a moment and spoke.

But then she looked helpless again, "However, how do we go about getting water now? And how do we carry it back? We can't all go out together to drink water, right?"

"The water tap isn't too far. I saw it when I came back."

Ji Chang, who was considering fetching water from the courtyard's water tap, nodded in response to Chen Lingxue's words, then continued, "It's not realistic for all of us to go drink water together. I can go fetch water with Mangzi. As for how to carry it... I think we can use leaves. After all, in our current situation, a few drops of water should be enough for us to drink for a while."

"Ji Chang, I can go with you too. Although I can't fly high or fast, I should be able to help!"

Just as Ji Chang finished speaking, Wang Lingling quickly chimed in.

Seeing the flickering and elusive light and shadow wings behind Wang Lingling, Ji Chang shook his head, "The courtyard's environment is different from being indoors. If you fly around randomly... you'll be too conspicuous. If sparrows or other birds spot you, it could be dangerous!"

Flying around in the room might not be much of an issue, but it was different in the courtyard. If one were to fly randomly, there was a chance that at any moment, a colossal primordial beast of a sparrow might swoop down from the sky, or perhaps attract the attention of other 'flying and walking creatures', and if they were seen as food, things would go downhill.

Hearing Ji Chang mention sparrows, Wang Lingling looked down at her own body, her small face turning pale with fright.

"Wait a moment, you're saying if the ice shards on my fingernails melt Dong Xuan's flames... can we drink it?"

Just as Ji Chang was planning to take Huang Mang to fetch water, Zheng Haiyu suddenly spoke up, "After all, going out to fetch water is too~ too dangerous!"

"Ugh~! Forget it, I'd rather drink my own urine when thirsty than drink whatever water your thing turns into. Besides, whether it's water or not isn't certain!"

Seeing this, Huang Mang rolled his eyes.

"Alright, it does indeed not look drinkable. These ice shards look blue..."

Zheng Haiyu raised an eyebrow, plucked a piece of ice shard from her fingernail, and held it up to carefully examine.

"In that case, you all be careful on your way. I'll stay here and find a safe place for everyone. We'll meet up here later."

As Ji Chang and Huang Mang left, Chen Lingxue spoke.

Soon after, they split into two groups and began to act.

"Mangzi, pick up a piece of cement!"

As Ji Chang, followed by the ants and Huang Mang, reached the gap between the door and the ground, he reminded them.

"Ji-ge, don't worry, I'm prepared!"

Saying that, Huang Mang opened his hand, revealing a cement chunk he had already prepared.

If this were before, it would have been at best an inconspicuous piece of cement debris, with little utility.

But now, it was the key to Huang Mang transforming into his cement body, and the medium through which he exerted his extraordinary power.

Seeing this, Ji Chang nodded and then mounted the ant, pulling Huang Mang up as well.

Huang Mang had ridden horses before, but riding an ant was a first for him.

Feeling the rushing wind beside his ears, he couldn't believe ants could run so fast.

Compared to Huang Mang's excitement behind him, Ji Chang appeared quite steady.

As the ant's body trembled with its movement, Ji Chang's body swayed along.

The two of them, along with the ant, rushed towards the water tap's location.

The ant's movement speed wasn't particularly fast, but it was much quicker than the pace at which the two were running. After half an hour's effort, they finally laid eyes on the water tap, towering like a colossal pillar.

To be precise, given their current condition, when they looked up at the water tap, it seemed a bit blurry. And the droplets occasionally falling from the tap resembled bombs as they struck the ground, creating splashes that swept in all directions like a water dragon.

The two who arrived near the water tap hadn't anticipated such a spectacular sight. Previously, when Ji Chang was eager to return to the room, he barely noticed the water tap as he passed by, paying it little attention. Moreover, he was quite far from the water tap at the time.

But now, their hearts trembled in rhythm with the falling droplets. "Um... Ji-ge, are you sure we can get water here? We won't be splattered to death in this massive puddle by the droplets, will we?"

Descending from the ant, Huang Mang looked at the droplets falling from the sky with a pale face. The scale of the spectacle shocked him, and he couldn't stop swallowing nervously. It was as if, at that moment, he no longer felt thirsty despite having been parched for so long...

Of course, the "massive puddle" Huang Mang mentioned would likely have been small enough to hold in one finger if considered in their regular scale.

Ji Chang felt a similar sense of awe. Although he understood that, after shrinking, they couldn't think about things in their normal terms, the scene before him still caught him off guard.