The whole nation is trying to survive on the cable car; I'm choosing one of three options at ea

Su Mu's consciousness followed those golden specks of light, tracing them from his stomach to his heart, and from his heart to his limbs. He "saw" those specks of light become brighter as they passed his heart, as if some force within his heart was amplifying them.

But the changes were too subtle.

It was so subtle that he could barely distinguish whether the golden specks were from the medicinal wine or something that was inherent in his golden bloodline.

He opened his eyes and glanced at the panel.

[Golden Bloodline - Mature Form (Evolving)]

The status bar did indeed display those three words. Not "Slight Evolution," not "Stable," but "Evolving." Although there were no numerical changes, the very presence of those three words was a signal... his golden bloodline was indeed undergoing some kind of change.

"It works, but very slowly."

Su Mu put the bottle of medicinal wine aside and mentally estimated that at this rate, he might need to drink a dozen or twenty bottles to see a noticeable improvement in his attributes. However, he only had one Blood Ginseng, and the previous attack had already consumed a small section of its roots; he would have to wait for it to regrow before he could harvest it again.

"At least it proves this path is viable." He tightened the cap on the medicinal liquor bottle and placed it on the top shelf of the supply rack. "I'll get more herbs and liquor base when I have the chance, and make another batch."

He glanced at the time again... there were still almost two hours left until the three-hour mark. He had nothing to do during this time, so he leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes to rest.

This time he didn't fall asleep; he just waited quietly.

Two hours later, the system notification sounded again.

[Medicinal wine brewing complete: "Egg Liquid Golden Essence Wine (Lower Grade)"]

Su Mu opened his eyes, stood up, and walked to the second bottle of wine. The wine in the bottle, soaked in egg liquid, had a more vibrant golden color... not the warm, smooth texture of amber, but a bright luster closer to liquid gold. A few tiny grains of egg liquid, resembling incompletely dissolved residue, floated in the bottle, reflecting slightly under the light.

He unscrewed the cap, and the aroma was even stronger than the one from the blood ginseng bottle. It had an eggy smell... but not the unpleasant smell of raw eggs, rather a richer, more mellow aroma, like that of a baked cake.

Su Mu held the bottle up to his eyes, observing his physical condition through internal vision. The golden spots in his blood vessels were still there, a few more than before, but still very faint. He took a sip.

The moment the drink went down his throat, a much stronger surge of heat exploded in his stomach. It wasn't warm water; it was scalding hot, like burnt metal, which traveled down his esophagus, churned in his stomach, and then spread throughout his body like ignited gasoline.

Su Mu frowned slightly. He could feel his blood vessels swelling, his heart racing, and a faint golden halo appearing on his skin... It was the stress response produced when his golden bloodline was infused with a large amount of energy.

He could "see" those golden specks spreading wildly in his blood, as if someone had poured a whole bottle of fluorescent liquid into a pond, and the gold was rapidly spreading, intertwining, and converging in his veins.

This time he was able to clearly distinguish the changes.

Those golden specks were no longer just tiny specks of stardust, but began to condense, elongate, and form more complete shapes... like fine golden threads, slowly flowing through the blood. Their number was at least three to four times greater than before, and their brightness had also noticeably increased.

But at the same time, he also felt a distinct sense of fatigue rising from deep within his body. It wasn't the fatigue of weakness, but rather a feeling of "overdraft"... as if his body had processed too much external energy in a short period of time and needed time to digest it.

Su Mu put down the wine bottle, leaned against the wall, and closed his eyes. He could feel the golden threads merging with his blood; the process wasn't fast, but it was definitely happening. The words "Evolving" on the panel became brighter, as if they had been infused with new energy.

"The effect of egg-infused wine is much stronger than that of blood ginseng," he thought to himself, comparing the two medicinal wines. "But it's more potent, leaving a noticeable feeling of depletion after drinking it. The one infused with blood ginseng, on the other hand, is milder, suitable for daily consumption, and blood ginseng has regenerative properties."

With that in mind, Su Mu fed the remaining egg liquid to the blood ginseng.

The blood ginseng, which had previously had one of its roots cut off, was somewhat listless, but it instantly became cheerful again after being nourished by the egg liquid. Moreover, Su Mu clearly felt that its golden transformation had increased significantly.

"Wait until it's completely digested before soaking it in medicinal wine..."

Look away.

Su Mu glanced out the window. The cable car was slowly moving along the steel cable, and the outline of Ash City's outer perimeter was becoming clearer. Those wriggling things along the city wall's edge... those densely packed monsters clinging to the city wall... were still there, maintaining their posture from the siege, like a scene frozen in time.

"We're about to leave the city, but at this speed and trajectory, we should be out in the daytime, so we might not have to confront those things directly..." Su Mu's gaze fell on the hazy horizon. "But those strange creatures... they'll probably find us very soon."

He looked away, glanced at the words "Evolving" on the panel, then at the half-empty bottle of egg liquid medicinal wine in the corner, and then sat back down against the wall.

He needed to hurry and process the surge of energy within him. The monsters outside the city wouldn't wait for him to finish purifying his bloodline before attacking, and that monster dressed in a Peking Opera costume... the one that had reduced his cable car's durability by 53% in one strike... was still waiting for him somewhere.

Su Mu closed his eyes, and his consciousness sank back into his body.

Those fine golden threads were slowly seeping into his blood, like strands of gold woven into red silk, the two colors merging and combining at an extremely slow pace. He could feel his golden bloodline becoming denser... not a quantitative change, but a qualitative one.

"Soon."

He said something in a low voice.

Then he calmed down, letting his consciousness flow with those golden threads, feeling them slowly spread, permeate, and merge in his veins.

The cable car glided at a steady speed on the steel cable, and the ruins of Ash City outside the window grew farther and farther away. The strange creatures that were clinging to the city walls, the things that were attacking the city, and the strange creature dressed in a Peking Opera costume... seemed to sense something and began to slowly turn their heads.

......