Chapter 15: Beginning to Grow Stronger (Please Vote, Please Bookmark)

Chapter 15: Starting to Get Stronger (Please Vote and Bookmark)

“Ding, after consuming mountain rat, the hardness of your nails has increased.”

After taking a bite of the mountain rat meat, Xu Yi heard a notification sound in his mind.

System?

The hardness of my nails increased?

Are you kidding me?

Is this how I get stronger—just by eating?

Xu Yi was speechless. He had been eagerly anticipating how he might grow stronger, only to receive a message about stronger nails. Could he really fight animals hand-to-hand using just his nails?

[Number One, did you overcook the meat? You look stiff.]

[Definitely. Poor Keke had to pretend it tasted good.]

[So understanding, trying not to let her old father feel bad, she acted like she liked it.]

Reading the messages from the viewers, Xu Yi couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

“Although there’s no salt, this meat is tender and smooth, with an excellent texture. This is the best mountain rat I’ve ever eaten.”

“If only there were some seasoning, it could easily beat any grilled meat from any stall.”

Beside him, Su Keke nodded vigorously. “Dad, the meat you grilled is so delicious. I’ve never eaten anything this good.”

Hearing his daughter’s approval, Xu Yi smiled with satisfaction.

Then he picked up the snake meat.

What kind of notification would come from eating that?

He bit into it directly.

“Ding, after consuming the yellow-banded snake, strength has increased.”

Strength?

Now that’s something! System, you’re reliable after all.

Xu Yi’s mood instantly brightened, even though he didn’t know by how much his strength had improved. The system didn’t provide any specific numbers, and he had no personal stats to check. But since the system said he was stronger, it had to be true.

Putting his thoughts aside, Xu Yi focused on eating. Although there was no salt added, the meat still tasted very good—perhaps because they were quite hungry.

They didn’t leave a single scrap of meat on the bones.

---

“Finally full. Feels good.”

The hunger had been unbearable.

Su Keke was still chewing on a small bone, nodding with some reluctance. She was about ninety percent full. If there had been more meat, she could have eaten more.

“Keke, you stay by the fire. I’ll go gather some dry grass.”

Su Keke took the axe Xu Yi handed her and nodded seriously.

Xu Yi turned on the flashlight on his tablet and stepped into the darkness.

Although he had X-ray vision, it couldn’t be used continuously. Even if it could, Xu Yi didn’t want to reveal himself.

There was some dry grass around, and after collecting for a while, he returned carrying a small bundle.

He then burned the grass separately.

The ash could be used to tan the inside of the snake skin, which would help remove some of the fishy smell. However, it was impossible to eliminate it completely using just wood ash.

“Dad, I saw the village chief making leather backpacks by smoking them. After smoking, the bad smell disappears,” Su Keke reminded him as she watched him turn over the snake skin and rub it vigorously with the ash.

“Smoking method?”

Xu Yi nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll try that after rubbing for a while.”

More attempts were always better.

After rubbing for more than twenty minutes, Xu Yi noticed the snake skin, which had been somewhat stiff, beginning to soften. The ash was indeed effective.

He then shook off the ash from the skin, stretched it over a branch, and began trying to smoke it.

While Xu Yi was treating the snake skin with ash, Su Keke busily gathered leaves.

She spread thick layers of leaves on the ground to make a bed to lie on.

“Alright, Keke, you go to sleep now. We’ve been walking all day; you must be exhausted.”

Seeing that it was nearly nine o’clock, Xu Yi hurried to send Su Keke to bed.

“Dad, you should sleep first. I’ll stay up half the night. If anything happens, I’ll wake you.”

???

A six-year-old child knows to do this now?

“I was once trapped on the road with grandma. We slept in a pavilion and took turns staying awake,” Su Keke explained.

Xu Yi ruffled her hair, at a loss for words.

Their village was indeed very remote, with some pavilions built along the road to shield travelers from the wind and rain. Many people did spend nights there.

---

“You go to sleep. I’ll rest until dawn, then we’ll set off again.”

Xu Yi wasn’t comfortable leaving Su Keke alone. What if danger came?

He had X-ray vision and could detect movement nearby, but Su Keke was only six years old and couldn’t fend off wild animal attacks even if she grew up in the mountains.

“Dad, just sleep for a few hours.”

Su Keke said kindly.

[Number One, I think you really should get some rest now. Even one hour is better than staying awake all night.]

[Although I worry about Keke, I think she makes sense.]

Many viewers were urging Xu Yi to get some sleep.

He had carried Su Keke over a long distance today and was indeed quite tired. The audience could see his exhaustion.

“Then I’ll sleep until midnight. I’ll set an alarm. If anything unusual happens, wake me up. Otherwise, we’ll all be in danger.”

Xu Yi was truly tired. Sleeping until midnight would give him three hours. Then he could make up with a nap tomorrow afternoon and not be overly fatigued.

After all, he was young and could recover energy quickly.

“Mhm, Keke knows. Don’t worry, Dad. If I hear anything close, I’ll wake you up.”

Su Keke had spent several nights in the forest before, but always with a dozen or so herbal collectors from her village. They had hunting bows and dogs, so it was relatively safe.

She wasn’t sure if she should tell Xu Yi this. After some thought, she decided not to.

What if Xu Yi refused to sleep after hearing that? He was already very tired and needed rest.

“Dad trusts us, Keke. If you get scared, you can wake me up, too.”

Xu Yi patted Su Keke’s head. Having such a sensible daughter was a true blessing.

After setting the alarm, Xu Yi lay down.

The sky was dotted with a few stars.

Within minutes, his breathing grew steady and deep.

Sensing this, Su Keke gripped her spear tightly like a little warrior, watching the pitch-black forest.

Thanks to the readers: Endless Zephyr and others for their support!

(End of Chapter)