Chapter 18: Lin Yue's Thoughts

You want me to die? Then nobody gets to live!

Feng Ge's roar echoed in the empty Building Materials City.

Feng Ge, don't!

The only subordinate left beside him, the man who had been holding a hand crossbow, saw the color drain from his face with a whoosh.

Others might not know, but after following Feng Ge for so long, he was all too aware.

These two incendiary bombs were what Feng Ge had risked his life to obtain from an abandoned military outpost; they were the trump card that let their gang run roughshod.

Once these things explode, not even a person—within a fifty‑meter radius, not even an intact stone can be found!

He didn't even glance at Lin Yue, summoning his last strength to hurl the two incendiary bombs hard at Black Tortoise's massive body!

Little Lin! Dodge! Those are white phosphorus incendiary bombs!

In the distance, Wang Gongtou, who had been hiding in the concrete pipe, nearly popped his eyes out.

He never imagined this person would have such a deadly weapon.

Before the apocalypse, he had been fortunate to participate in a military project and had personally seen the test footage of this thing.

Instant high temperature, over six thousand degrees!

At this temperature, flesh and blood can't withstand it—even steel would be vaporized on the spot!

That giant turtle's defense is impressive, but could it possibly stand up to modern military weapons?

Yet Lin Yue, at the eye of the storm, was unnervingly calm.

Black Tortoise, Energy Shield.

Roar——!

Black Tortoise's hill-like head jerked up, its low bellow shaking the ruins.

Hum——!

In the next instant, a semi-transparent spherical light shield appeared out of nowhere, enveloping its twenty‑meter‑long massive body and Lin Yue beside it.

Almost as the shield formed, the two white phosphorus incendiary bombs arrived.

One second.

Two seconds.

Ha…haha…haha! Useless! In the face of my white phosphorus incendiary bombs, any defense is just crap! Wait to turn to ash, kid!

Feng Ge stared at the strange shield for a moment, then burst into hysterical laughter.

Boom——!!!!!!!!

A miniature sun suddenly rose before their eyes!

The blinding white light seemed poised to swallow everything in the world!

The pale blue Energy Shield twisted slightly under the white light's scorching—just a slight twist!

No……impossible……

Feng Ge's manic grin froze completely, leaving only shock on his face.

Even the 6000‑degree heat was powerless against that blue light curtain.

This…this fucking…what monster is this……

These were Feng Ge's last words in this world.

The next second, he, his already terror‑paralyzed subordinate beside him, and the ground beneath them were all swallowed by the terrifying heat.

Their bodies instantly turned to ash, leaving no trace of their existence.

The explosion's aftershocks lasted several seconds.

When the dazzling white light finally faded, the pale blue Energy Shield still stood, its surface flickering with faint arcs, though its glow had dimmed considerably—clearly, Black Tortoise's energy reserves had taken a big hit against that terrifying heat.

Outside the shield, centered on Black Tortoise, the ground within a fifty‑meter radius had turned into a still‑smoking vitreous crater, a horrifying sight!

The air reeked of a pungent mix of sulfur and metal.

Lin Yue stood beside Black Tortoise, unharmed.

He gazed at the scorched earth before him, as if struck by a meteorite, his heart equally tumultuous.

He knew a level‑2 Energy Shield was strong, but he hadn't imagined it could be this strong—withstanding two military‑grade incendiary bombs unscathed!

Cough…cough…did…did we survive?

In the distance, Wang Gongtou poked his head out of the concrete pipe, staring at the vitrified ground and the unharmed Lin Yue and Black Tortoise, and he was utterly dumbfounded.

He pinched himself hard; the sharp pain reminded him this wasn't a dream.

Just surviving is enough, just surviving is enough! But how is this possible? Those were two military‑grade incendiary bombs—how did you manage to survive?!

He came running, stumbling and crawling, carefully detouring around the still‑smoking crater of terrifying heat, rushed up to Lin Yue, and, overcome with emotion, sputtered incoherently as two streams of hot tears rolled from his cloudy old eyes.

Lin Yue was a bit speechless.

Hearing that, it sounds like me and Black Tortoise being blown up would have been the normal outcome?

He ignored Wang Gongtou, turned his head to look at the corpse of the Steel Bone Vulture, dead as a doornail.

Absorb.

A gleam far brighter than any level‑1 Energy Crystal suddenly flared!

【Detected deceased lifeform (2nd‑tier leader·Steel Bone Vulture), detected 2nd‑tier leader Energy Crystal, absorb?】

Yes!

【Absorbed 2nd‑tier leader Energy Crystal, gained 100 energy!】

As expected, it's 100 points.

Lin Yue was certain; this result matched his expectations exactly.

At this rate, a level‑3 Energy Crystal would be worth 1000 points. But the apocalypse has only been half a year, so level‑3 Mutant Beasts probably haven't appeared yet.

He shook off these thoughts,

Forget it, let's first get Black Tortoise to level 3 before saying anything else.

His gaze turned again toward the direction where the Pillar Stone Security squad and Feng Ge's group had died miserably.

"Absorb."

【Absorb scattered energy, gain 1 energy point.】

【Detected dead lifeform (human), no energy crystal detected, absorb scattered energy, gain 1 energy point.】

……

A series of alert tones sounded consecutively in his mind.

The well-equipped Pillar Stone Security did not disappoint him; over a dozen members yielded a full 45 first‑level energy crystals, and Feng Ge's few people also contributed 10.

When he had scavenged all the energy on the battlefield, the numbers on the system panel underwent a dramatic change.

【Host: Lin Yue】

【Pet: Black Tortoise (Level 2)】

【Species: Great Earth Xuan Armor Turtle】

……

【Promotion to Level 3 requires: 764/1000 energy points.】

"Seven hundred sixty‑four points..."

Lin Yue stared at that number, his breathing grew a little hurried.

The old saying sure wasn't wrong: killing and looting brings a golden belt!

At this rate, after a few more rounds we'll almost have enough energy for Black Tortoise to reach level 4!

However, this time we could kill the Steel Bone Vulture largely thanks to luck; doing it again, the outcome is truly uncertain.

It seems we still need to prioritize raising Black Tortoise's level.

"Old Wang."

Lin Yue spoke up, cutting off the still‑excited old man.

"Huh? Little Lin, what's wrong?"

"Let's put the house‑building matter aside for now."

"What? Not building?"

Wang Gongtou's expression froze instantly; he stared at Lin Yue, utterly baffled.

"Little Lin, what do you mean? We risked our lives for these materials, didn't we? Now the whole Building Materials City is ours! Steel, equipment, tools—we have everything!"

"Give me just a few days and I promise—I'll build you the sturdiest core shelter on the turtle's back!"

He couldn't fathom it—everything was ready, so why did Lin Yue change his mind at this critical moment?

"Old Wang, do you really think we're safe now?"

Lin Yue didn't directly rebut; he simply asked calmly.

He reached out and pointed to the huge corpse bound by steel cables on the ground.

"This thing is a level‑2 mutant beast. Black Tortoise is also level‑2, but we barely managed to defeat it after great effort. What if a level‑3 monster shows up? Or if two or three more Steel Bone Vultures come?"

Lin Yue's tone was very calm.

Wang Gongtou opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word.

Yeah, they won, but the victory was incredibly perilous.

Without those huge steel cables, it would likely have been them who fell.

"So‑called safety is far too fragile."

Lin Yue looked at Wang Gongtou, his eyes utterly serious,

"Today, a level‑2 Black Tortoise barely managed to kill a same‑level Steel Bone Vulture. Next time? What if we encounter a stronger monster? Wang Gongtou, you should know: in this world, monsters are also constantly evolving."

He paused, then his tone turned firm and resolute:

"So, only by making Black Tortoise stronger will we become safer!"

Wang Gongtou fell silent; he wasn't stupid, and he understood Lin Yue's words.

Just now he'd been caught up in excitement and hadn't thought this deeply.

Next, Lin Yue shifted the conversation:

"Besides, I've thought of a question: Black Tortoise's Earth Control isn't limited to forming a defensive layer of soil and stone on its back—it can also be used elsewhere!"

"So…"

Wang Gongtou felt a bit bitter; he vaguely guessed Lin Yue's idea, and if that were true, what use would he still have for Lin Yue?

"What do you mean?"

Lin Yue nodded:

"Exactly as you thought. Why not simply let Black Tortoise use Earth Control to build a house on its own back?"

Lin Yue has said all this; what reason does he have to object?

Moreover, a level‑3 Black Tortoise will not only be stronger but also larger……that would undoubtedly increase safety a hundredfold.

"I understand."

Wang Gongtou let out a long breath,

"Little Lin, you're right! I'm an old fool with short‑sighted vision! Speak up—what should we do next?!"

"It couldn't be better if you agree."

Lin Yue nodded satisfactorily.

He could have proceeded without consulting Wang Gongtou, but since he'd only invited the man to join a few days ago, going ahead alone would feel somewhat improper.