Cataclysm: The Enhancement Warlock's Rebirth

Day six of the catastrophe.

"Dinner is ready."

Lu Wanwan served scrambled eggs with tomatoes and stir-fried beef with green peppers to the table, then cowered to one side.

Ever since she witnessed Song Yu fall from the building that day, she has become like this—fearing him like a tiger.

Jiang Xiao was happy with this arrangement, at least it gave him some peace and quiet.

He was eating his meal slowly when suddenly the sound of a man and woman arguing came from the hallway.

Then came the woman's discontented complaint: "Song Jie, wait a minute! We agreed to split it 50/50, you can't..."

"Can't what?"

A male voice interrupted her, lowering his voice and saying viciously, "I killed him with my own hands, otherwise where would we get our share? You think you can just take half with your mouth?"

"If I don't knock on the door myself, will he open it?" the woman said anxiously, her voice rising several decibels. "Song Jie, we're neighbors, you can't just abandon us after you've served your purpose!"

Inside the room, Lu Wanwan was eavesdropping.

Both she and Lu Xiao were players, and after their physical abilities were enhanced, they could still make out most of each other's voices, even though they were soft.

Upon hearing the word "murder," she widened her eyes, covered her mouth, and looked at Jiang Xiao in horror.

Jiang Xiao didn't even lift her eyelids and continued eating.

In the corridor.

A woman in her thirties gripped the man's sleeve tightly.

She was beautiful, with a mature woman's charm in her eyes and brows, which was quite captivating.

His face was filled with anger and resentment.

"I don't want any more," she said softly, biting her lip. "Give me that carton of milk, and we'll be even."

Song Jie brandished the blood-stained kitchen knife in his hand, his face fierce: "If you utter another word, you can forget about your share of rice!"

The woman was so frightened that she took two steps back, but she was unwilling to give up.

She lowered her eyes, her shoulders trembled slightly, and her tone softened:

"Song Jie, you know Xiaomin is only nine years old and needs nutrition to grow. Please, out of kindness and for the sake of our cooperation, give her a little more."

Song Jie sneered: "What does your child have to do with me?"

He paused, his gaze sliding from the other person's face to their chest, his tone suddenly changing: "However..."

"What do you want to do?" The woman slapped away the hand that was groping her buttocks.

"Sister Zhao, didn't you want an extra ten percent?" Song Jie leaned closer, his smile lewd. "As long as you're willing to help your little brother, what's another twenty percent?"

As a married woman, Zhao Qingqing naturally understood the ambiguity in the other person's words.

"Get out of the way!"

A flash of anger crossed her face, and she raised her hand to push the other person away.

Song Jie took the initiative, grabbing her wrist and pulling her into his arms.

He leaned close to the other person's ear and coaxed them gently:

"Sister Zhao, there are bugs everywhere outside. Your husband definitely won't be coming back; he might already be dead. Even if we give you half the share this time, what will you do after you finish it in two days?"

The woman's struggles slowed, as if all her strength had been drained.

Seeing this, Song Jie released her grip and asked a question that struck at her weak spot: "Sister Zhao, do you want Xiaomin to go hungry with you in the future?"

silence.

A long silence.

The woman had her head down, so her expression was not visible.

Only the slight undulation of her shoulders revealed her inner struggle and pain.

a long time.

She looked up, her eyes red-rimmed, but her gaze had changed.

"Sixty percent," the woman said, her voice hoarse. "Besides that carton of milk, I'll take an extra sixty percent!"

Song Jie's eyes lit up, and he grinned, "Sure! No problem!"

Although Zhao Qingqing is a wife and mother, and is ten years older than her, she maintains her figure and appearance very well and is very charming.

Just now, she pretended to be pitiful, and the old man downstairs immediately opened the door and invited her in.

A carton of milk and two bags of steamed buns were exchanged for a night of passion with her.

In the past, he would only dare to dream about it.

now……

Song Jie put his arm around her waist: "Come on, let's go to your place."

Zhao Qingqing hurriedly dodged, glancing instinctively at her front door: "No, Xiaomin is already awake."

"You can come to my place too," the man said casually.

"No." The woman shook her head again.

Having witnessed the other party's brutality, she feared that once she went in, she would never come out again.

Song Jie's face darkened: "This won't work, that won't work, are you kidding me?"

Zhao Qingqing bit her lower lip and glanced hesitantly toward the stairwell.

She lowered her voice, almost inaudibly, and said, "Keep your voice down, there seems to be someone in this house. Let's go...to the stairwell."

The man paused for a second, then a smile of excitement spread across his face.

"Oh, right, so Sister Zhao likes this kind of thing?"

The footsteps faded into the distance.

Soon, suppressed, heavy breathing came from the stairwell.

……

Jiang Xiao put down her chopsticks, having just finished eating.

Without the sounds of chewing food, the room became eerily quiet, making the sounds in the hallway even clearer.

"Lu Wanwan." He looked over.

bang-

Lu Wanwan smashed the porcelain cup beside her, grabbed a shard, held it to her neck, and said in a trembling voice, "Don't force me, or I'd rather die!"

Jiang Xiao looked completely bewildered.

Then, he frowned and asked, "Let me ask how much food is left at home, and what's wrong with you?"

Lu Wanwan made a sound of surprise, at a loss for what to do.

The two stared at each other for three seconds.

Lu Wanwan blushed with embarrassment.

She slowly put down the porcelain shards and mumbled, "There's enough staple food to last a while. As for vegetables and meat, we'll have one more meal tonight and then it'll be gone."

Jiang Xiao nodded and fell into deep thought.

On the sixth day of the disaster, everyone's food reserves should be almost depleted.

The most chaotic period is about to begin.

To fill their stomachs, they had no choice but to go out and search for supplies. During this time, they not only had to fight off insects, but also had to be wary of their own companions.

After all, the human heart is often more terrifying than monsters.

Jiang Xiao looked up at Lu Wanwan: "Your skill cooldown is over, right? Cast your Luck-Changing spell on me again."

Lu Wanwan responded and, not daring to delay, quickly began to cast the spell.

The golden light fell on Jiang Xiao, and he received a powerful luck buff once again.

He got up and went back to his room.

As usual, Jiang Xiao first strengthened himself.

You have consumed 1 potential point...

You have enhanced the player (Jiang Xiao)...

[Gained Trait: "Iron Heart Lv8"]

[Gained skill: "Shadow Spirit Lv8"]

You have been promoted to the lower tier of the second level!

[Iron Viscera: Improves the resilience of internal organs, enhancing their ability to withstand blows.]

[Shadow Spirit: Active Skill - When activated, significantly increases player movement speed; the effect is doubled at night or in shadow environments.]

Jiang Xiao's lips curled up slightly.

Lu Wanwan really made the right choice in tying him up!

With her good fortune, she surpassed her previous life's month-long effort in just six days.

Looking back at the attributes that were enhanced a few days ago:

"Erudition Lv5" increases knowledge of all sorts of strange things; "Speech Lv8" allows for quick mastery of language, writing, and codes; "Insight Lv4" enables the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood, lies from traps.

"Life Restoration Lv3" continuously restores stamina; and "Great Strength Lv4" increases strength.

Of these characteristics, only the latter two are somewhat helpful in improving combat power, but their levels are relatively low, so the increase is limited.

The enhanced version borrowed from Lu Wanwan is still better.

"Give me another skill."

Jiang Xiao took out a Tang sword and lightly touched the blade.

You have consumed 1 potential point...

You have enhanced the "Tang Sword"...

[Trait: "Sharpness" upgraded to level 13!]

[Gained skill: "Bloodthirst Lv7"]

……

【Name: Tang Sword】

Grade: Excellent (Green)

Star Rating: ★★

[Durability: 90/90]

【Characteristics: Sharpness lv13, Frost lv6, Lacerate lv6, Fortitude lv5】

[Skill: Bloodthirst Lv7 (Passive) - When dealing damage to a target unit, drain the target's life force to restore your own stamina and heal minor injuries.]

[Note: A truly exceptional sword, capable of cutting through iron like mud!]

……

Jiang Xiao stared at the blade, his eyes filled with joy.

A good weapon is essential for dealing with red beetles.

Therefore, he spent all the remaining enhancement points he had accumulated on this Tang sword that he had purchased in advance.

Now, not only has the quality been successfully improved, but the "Blood Drinking" skill is also very practical.

In his previous life, he relied on the effect of this skill to fight his way in and out of the insect swarm seven times.

He was pondering whether he should go downstairs to get rid of the bugs and improve his talent level.

There was a knock on the door.

……