Potential Crisis

Tom had performed the process of turning blank crystals into powder through resonance and then mixing them into metal to create energy-conducting materials hundreds of times. Now, he was just changing the object to a grade one control energy crystal, which made no significant difference in the process.

He found a small iron piece and applied the powder to it, then used the blending method to mix it into the iron piece. With that, the job was done.

"And then?" Lin Meiqi blinked her blue eyes, scrutinizing Tom.

Tom slowly opened his eyes. "That's it."

"That's it?" Lin Meiqi looked disappointed. "You spent 20 points on this thing, and that's it? It looks the same on the outside, and then you just say that's it?"

Tom nodded. He attempted to infuse the iron piece with ideation using the green crystal, but there was no response. He had no idea what he could do by controlling a piece of iron. Did he expect it to float in the air like in the movies?

"Have you tried making it change shape?" Lin Meiqi persisted.

Change shape? Wasn't that the ability to shape metal? But since Lin Meiqi brought it up, he decided to give it a try.

Under the green light's envelopment, the iron piece actually bent on its own.

"Yes! That's it! Metal shaping!" Lin Meiqi exclaimed.

Tom felt a bit disappointed. "But blue crystals can do this too. This just consumes a blank crystal and a green crystal, and the result is the same."

"It's definitely different!" Lin Meiqi insisted confidently. "Didn't you see? The effect of this metal shaping is much faster than your shaping ability, and the shape of repeatedly bending and straightening the iron piece hasn't changed, right?"

Tom thought about it. There was indeed a difference.

Metal shaping required envisioning the desired shape in the mind first, and then the metal would gradually transform into that shape as if it had a life of its own.

But with this shaping, he simply gave a simple thought of "bend" and "restore," and it automatically did it. If it was shaping, there would be no response to this thought because he hadn't told the iron piece what shape to bend into.

Understanding this, he nodded and explained his discovery.

Lin Meiqi snapped her fingers. "Shaping, metal shaping. What did you think of?"

Tom thought for a moment. "Like the Zero Cannon on the Old Street No. 0 Armor. Normally it hangs vertically on the back, but I have to detach it if I want to use it."

"Now, you can remove that rotating mechanism. So when you have a thought, it will rotate down automatically."

Tom smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Switching between power and speed mode still takes three seconds. It's the same even if I switch to a green crystal. After three seconds... I might as well do it myself."

Lin Meiqi sighed. "Well, it's still a bit of a letdown."

"Not entirely. I can improve the armor's fasteners. That way, in three seconds, I can make all the fasteners pop open automatically and quickly get out of the armor. It's just that I can't do the modification for now; I'll have to wait until we get back to the camp."

"Useless," Lin Meiqi muttered, turning around. "I thought I could stay up all night busy with this. Whatever, I'll go back to sleep and get my beauty sleep."

As Lin Meiqi left, Tom felt a bit at a loss momentarily and decided to abandon the plan to continue pondering. After packing up, he also left.

In the hall, he saw Feng Hanyun sitting up on the sofa, looking at him with panda eyes, as if the main wife had caught the husband cheating with a mistress.

Tom glanced at Zhao Xifeng leaning against her sofa, but she turned her head with a pout. Tom knew she was expressing her dissatisfaction with a "hmph."

He shook his head and returned to his seat, resting against the wall with his eyes closed.

At 6 a.m., Tom got up on time. Many people were still asleep, except for Feng Hanyun, who sat on the sofa with sleepy eyes.

He greeted her with a wave of his hand and then went to the Old Street No. 0 Armor to start dressing. Feng Hanyun hurried over, wanting to help him dress, but Tom refused.

After what happened last night, to avoid misunderstandings, he decided to keep his distance from this woman.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I'm going out to scout the situation. I'm a bit worried about the water pipe on the river. I need to confirm it. You guys stay here."

"I'll go with you!" Feng Hanyun insisted firmly.

"No." Tom refused decisively.

"If you think it's Zhao Xifeng's problem... I'll, I'll talk to him..."

Tom raised his hand to stop her from continuing, "I don't want to consider male-female issues right now. At least until we return to camp, I need to focus my attention on the present."

"Hmph, what about you and Lin Meiqi? I saw you last night," Feng Hanyun said, turning her head with dissatisfaction. "What naughty things were you doing with her in the cabin? Don't think I don't know."

Tom shook his head. "We were studying improvements for the armor."

Obviously, Feng Hanyun didn't believe Tom's explanation. "Studying? That's just how you men are, pretending. I'm not jealous of you being with her; I'm jealous that since you want her, why not me?"

"Shut up!" Tom was starting to dislike her. "I said last night, if I want to pursue Lin Meiqi or you or any other woman, I'll do it openly and honestly, not sneak around or coerce. You accuse Zhao Xifeng of overthinking, but you're doing the same with me and Lin Meiqi. You're really a perfect match in this matter!"

Tom continued to adjust his armor, ignoring her, leaving Feng Hanyun standing there looking at him pitifully.

However, she wasn't the only one watching Tom; another pair of eyes were secretly watching her from the corner. The owner of those eyes was another woman, Liu Liqing, who had an antagonistic relationship with her. The hall was quiet, but Liu Liqing had overheard Feng Hanyun's conversation with Tom just now. So, this ugly woman glanced at Zhao Xifeng, who was still leaning against the sofa armrest, with a mocking smile on her lips.

"Your queen's sofa still retains her warmth, yet her warmth is willingly offered to another man. Pitiful man, detestable woman, hmph."

Some people really lacked perspective. In this dangerous world where death could come at any moment, focusing on how to deal with difficulties was more important than getting entangled in these confusing male-female relationships.

In Tom's view, whether it was Feng Hanyun or Zhao Xifeng, they hadn't grasped reality. What he needed to do now was ensure everyone's retreat route. After more than a day, he wasn't sure if the rickety water pipe rack could withstand the weight of so many people walking back and forth.

Tom, dressed in the Old Street No. 0 Armor, stepped out of the shelter. Along the way, he passed through thickets, taking a deliberate detour, taking more than an hour to reach the temporary water supply pipe by the river. On the way, he noticed faintly that there were ants following behind him, confirming one of his guesses.

He pushed with six times his strength a few times. The metal frame loosened a bit, but with over twenty people plus his armor, walking back and forth a few times should be fine. He thought about reinforcing it with metal shaping, but considering any possible need later on, he decided to leave it as it was for now. Anything was possible, and reinforcement could be done at any time. Tom decided to keep the current situation unchanged.

He looked up at the sky and felt a sense of oppression in the air, with the weather being hot and humid. Looking down at the river from the railing, he saw many dragonflies flying low over the water, occasionally dipping down.

"It's going to rain," Tom could tell. Although there was no wind at the moment, given the local climate, when the wind started, the heavy rain would arrive.

He decided to set off early, so he turned back towards the shelter.

Although he hurried, the time it took to return was not much different.

When the shelter door opened, a cool breeze rushed in, refreshing everyone inside.

"It's so cool! Haha!"

"So comfortable."

They were happy, but Tom couldn't share their joy.

He wanted to announce that everyone should leave immediately, but before he could, large raindrops began to fall, pouring rain.

The raindrops fell like magical meteor showers in an RPG game, wildly and densely. Tom stood at the door, looking at the grand scene in front of him with some concern. If this rain lasted too long, it would affect their travel. The heavy rain and strong winds made walking in the neighborhood barely manageable, but it was extremely dangerous on the river. The water pipes were slippery, and the wind was stronger on the river.

If the shelter's protection time ended and the river was still unsuitable for walking, they would need to find a nearby building to take shelter in. Which building would be safer and more secure? After all, there were now over twenty people, and they were sure to attract ants, cockroaches, and other pests along the way.

Just as Tom was standing at the door, considering his options, everyone inside began to shout in terror.

What? Tom snapped out of his thoughts, only to hear them say ants. He immediately turned around and saw a large mutant soldier ant charging towards the door with a swarm of medium-sized ants.

It seemed that the imminent rain had made the lurking ants impatient, confirming Tom's judgment just now. He calmly crouched down, at the same time pressing down the barrel of the Zero Cannon, and calmly aimed at the charging mutant soldier ant.

"Fire now!" the survivors shouted anxiously. They saw the mutant soldier ant had already reached the door, just a dozen steps away from rushing in. If that huge thing got in before Tom took care of it, someone might be unlucky enough to be split in half by its bloody sharp pincers.

But Tom remained unmoved. He waited until the soldier ant reached the doorway, its pincers almost about to hit him, before firing the Zero Cannon.

The 1.6mm caliber bullet pierced through the mutant soldier ant's head all the way to its tail, tearing its body apart. The corpse shattered, with most of the remains splattering in front of the door.

"Close the door!" With his command, Wang Zixiong patted Liang Pingchuan's shoulder, and Liang Pingchuan pressed the switch. The shelter's door closed slowly, while Tom lightly stood up, raising the cannon barrel back to its original position. He watched as the medium-sized mutant ants rushed to the door with all their might, only for the door to close at the last moment, trapping them outside.

The leader of the ant nest was likely to have noticed this place, as several waves of people had entered and exited from here, which they must have noticed. Tom deliberately stood outside despite knowing it was going to rain, just to test those surveilling ants.

Either they would retreat with the coming rain or charge in.

The simple mutant soldier ants didn't consider so much; they just rushed over, attempting to seize the last chance. However, this also exposed their intentions, which made Tom even more worried.