Chapter 33: The Wolf Spider

With their goal in mind, no one had the inclination to rest. Riding the wave of energy after a satisfying meal, they began their prodigious efforts. Of course, it wasn't reckless squandering; instead, they set to work on perfecting their living space.

This endeavor not only consumed a substantial amount of their mental energy but also enhanced and fortified their living environment. Watching the enthusiastic group, Ji Chang took Chen Lingxue to the kitchen to retrieve millet.

Half an hour later, as they returned, they found the others just as fervent. Quickly, Ji Chang and Chen Lingxue joined in. By evening, their house had been transformed through tireless efforts. The rooms now featured everything from beds to cabinets, complete with a four-piece bed set.

Ji Chang personally selected the materials for the bed set from the bedroom's closet... no beating around the bush. Their house now bore the aura of a well-furnished two-bedroom apartment.

Even Ji Chang, who possessed the strongest mental energy, was feeling a bit drained after the busy afternoon. His mental energy had been depleted twice. Currently, including Ji Chang, everyone stood there, sustained by the verdant mist emitted by Chen Lingxue, which could restore their mental energy.

However, at this moment, Chen Lingxue's green mist had shifted from its original deep green to a lighter shade of green, indicating a less effective recovery than before. Evidently, Chen Lingxue had also reached her limit.

Before long, the group gathered together, had a simple dinner, and then retreated to their rooms for much-needed sleep.

...

In the early morning hours, with the first rays of sunlight illuminating the writing desk, Ji Chang rose from his bed. Glancing at the trio sprawled across the big sleeping area, covered with blankets and hugging pillows as they snored, Ji Chang couldn't help but roll his eyes.

He had been tormented quite a bit by the trio's snoring symphony throughout the night...

This even led Ji Chang to consider building another house.

Stretching his body, Ji Chang got dressed and stepped outside, feeling the gentle warmth of the sun. A contented expression graced his face. As Ji Chang emerged, the nearby horse bees and ants approached with rapid steps, their antennae affectionately brushing against him.

Ji Chang closed his eyes slightly, sensing the greetings from his two spirit beasts, as well as the changes in his mental energy. After a few breaths, he opened his eyes again.

In the next moment, the horse bees took to the air with buzzing wings. Observing their state and flight speed, a hint of surprise appeared on Ji Chang's face. He had discovered that just as he had issued the command for the horse bees to fly, he hadn't felt the slightest depletion of his mental energy.

It was noteworthy that, as of yesterday, using mental energy to command the horse bees did consume his reserves. Ji Chang then lightly waved his hand, guiding a thread of mental energy into the body of a horse bee.

The horse bee, having received the mental energy, trembled for an instant and swiftly vanished from Ji Chang's line of sight with a flick of its wings. The speed of their flight was now more than twice as fast as yesterday!

And yet, Ji Chang had only used a tiny fraction of his mental energy to test its effect. He hadn't anticipated such a formidable outcome.

After recalling the horse bee, Ji Chang fell into contemplation. This time, he could clearly sense a significant improvement in his mental energy. With a slight thought, he brought up the virtual window on the screen.

Gazing at the unchanged column for the function he had yet to unlock, Ji Chang couldn't help but curl his lips. From the initial conception to the present, if he set the first instance of commanding ants as the base layer, followed by the breakthrough in mental energy through commanding horse bees, and now the further enhancement in mental energy, Ji Chang felt that his mental energy should now be considered the third layer!

However, these three layers of mental energy still seemed insufficient to unlock the function column...

...

Before long, Chen Lingxue, Huang Mang, and others also began to wake up one after another. They washed up, attended to their needs, and performed their morning routines.

Ji Chang scooped a ladle of water from a nearby bucket and poured it into the food bowls of both the horse bees and ants. These food bowls had been specially crafted by Chen Lingxue the previous day.

Squatting down, Ji Chang quietly accompanied his two spirit beasts as they drank water, relishing this rare moment of leisure. However, this peaceful moment didn't last more than two minutes before Ji Chang's brows furrowed involuntarily. He noticed that both the horse bees and ants had simultaneously stopped drinking and their antennae were trembling restlessly.

This behavior indicated a warning of danger! Not only that, at this moment, Ji Chang sensed a feeling of fear emanating from the two spirit beasts. What was happening?

Ji Chang's heart skipped a beat. In the past, his horse bees hadn't exhibited such behavior even when faced with a rooster. Now... Could this unknown danger be even greater and more menacing than a rooster?

Ji Chang didn't have time to dwell on this thought. He quickly scanned his surroundings, but after a few breaths, he didn't spot anything amiss. Confusion started to fill his mind.

However, despite his confusion, Ji Chang remained intensely focused. The behavior of his spirit beasts couldn't deceive him; their emotions couldn't deceive him. Although he hadn't detected any danger, that also meant that the threat surpassed his imagination!

Could it be rats?

In a split second, Ji Chang suddenly thought of something and his heart tightened. However, he quickly dismissed this conjecture because he realized that both the horse bees and ants were pointing their antennae towards the upper corner of their house.

Following the direction indicated by the antennae of the two spirit beasts, Ji Chang looked in that direction. Due to the height, he couldn't see clearly at first.

But after a short while of intense staring, Ji Chang was taken aback and almost gasped. The presence in the corner wasn't anything else—it was a gigantic spider!

Gigantic to the extent that it was several times larger than the sparrows Ji Chang had seen before. According to Ji Chang's estimate, the massive spider was at least as big as two sparrows combined!

Ji Chang's unusual behavior quickly attracted the attention of the others who were sensing the changes in their mental energy. Chen Lingxue and Huang Mang approached, but just as they were about to inquire, they saw Ji Chang gesturing for silence and repeatedly pointing towards the upper corner of their room.

Observing this, Chen Lingxue and Huang Mang followed Ji Chang's gaze.

Once they had a clear view of what was in the corner, both of them were so astonished that they nearly cried out. Fortunately, Ji Chang promptly covered their mouths with his hands.

"Damn it! How can there be a spider this huge?" Zheng Haiyu looked up at the corner, lowering his voice as he spoke. He felt the hairs on his body stand on end.

Wang Lingling and Dong Xuan were so frightened that they didn't dare to move.

And at this moment, when Zhou Jun took a closer look at the object in the corner, he couldn't help but exclaim in shock, "My god, th-this... this is a wolf spider!"

"A wolf spider? Is it a cross between a wolf and a spider?" Huang Mang raised an eyebrow and asked.

His comment earned him an eye roll from Wang Lingling.

"I've never heard that we have such massive spiders here! Aren't spiders this big usually found in tropical rainforests and the like?" Zheng Haiyu whispered.

Clearly, Zheng Haiyu's question mirrored the doubts of everyone present.