Facing the Abyss as a Demon Cultivator

On his way up, Chu Xiu quickly reached the thirty-second floor.
As soon as he walked out of the stairwell, he heard faint sounds of laughter and conversation from a room further down the corridor.

Passing by, Chu Xiu glanced inside and was slightly surprised.

The room had changed significantly from when he first arrived. The rubble, dust, and wooden boards in the living room had been cleared away, replaced by a set of complete tables and chairs. These were stacked together, with clean porcelain bowls on top, forming a simple dining table.

Not far from the dining table were ten mattresses, matching the number of team members. Chu Xiu remembered these mattresses were moldy before, but now they were covered with new sheets, hiding the dirty pads underneath, clearly Xu Hang's handiwork.

The balcony was also covered with waterproof covers, so at least they wouldn't have to endure cold winds at night.

Song Ziping, the slightly effeminate perfumer, had somehow found two pots of slightly yellowing green plants and was carefully tending to them.

Shen Zhuo and his group had already returned and were eating and chatting in a room, with Yun Lu in the middle, smiling happily.

This sight gave Chu Xiu a moment of emotion.

The simple, dilapidated room, in contrast to the outside world, gave him a feeling of "home" warmth.

"Humans are indeed social animals. Although I made the best decision rationally, I still feel a bit of longing."

Of course, Chu Xiu was not a sentimental person. This fleeting emotion quickly passed, and he never regretted his decision. The concept that you can't have your cake and eat it too was a simple truth.

Compared to this insignificant warmth, greater strength was his pursuit.

"Ah! Chu Xiu!"

Just as he was about to leave, a voice called out to him.

Yun Lu, from inside the room, noticed him and excitedly got up, holding her bowl as she ran over.

She held the bowl up to Chu Xiu. Inside were finely sliced pieces of fresh red meat.

"Guess what we found today while out? A living deer! This ghost place actually has deer! We were lucky to hunt it, so we don't have to worry about food for the next two days!"

"Come and try it, it's much better than rat meat!"

Looking at the fresh meat in front of him, Chu Xiu's eyes narrowed slightly. Before he could speak, a dissatisfied voice came from inside the room: "He's not part of our team. Why should he get to eat the meat we worked hard to hunt?"

Chu Xiu looked over. It was a short-haired girl named Wu Xinyi, a member of Shen Zhuo's combat team.

She had a plain appearance but a straightforward, reliable demeanor, giving off a very trustworthy vibe.

Obviously, she was very displeased with Chu Xiu freeloading.

Many others also cast sidelong glances at him, as if to say: "Weren't you so great before? If you're so strong, don't eat our food!"

Yun Lu looked at Shen Zhuo, who indifferently said, "Although Chu is not one of us, he is a collaborator. He can have food as long as he pays for it."

Hearing this, Yun Lu breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, I'll use my share to pay for it first."

This made Shen Zhuo visibly unhappy, and the others were even more displeased.

Chu Xiu, however, didn't mind and accepted the bowl: "Thank you, how much for this meat?"

"1 Karma Point per pound," Shen Zhuo said.

Yun Lu quietly said, "No need, you took care of me before. This meat is nothing."

Chu Xiu nodded and took the plate.

"Scoff." A disdainful snort came from inside the room.

Chu Xiu ignored it and walked away.

Yun Lu watched his back, looking a bit disappointed, before finally turning her gaze back.

"Xiao Yun, why are you so nice to that guy? Don't tell me you like him?" Wu Xinyi said disapprovingly.
"Ah! No, I'm just grateful," Yun Lu waved her hands frantically.

Wu Xinyi sighed, "He may look decent, but he's not that handsome. Plus, his personality is terrible—selfish and unsociable. Why bother with him?"

Xu Hang agreed, "Exactly. In these times, lone wolves, especially those with support roles, won't get far."

Yun Lu awkwardly smiled, "Chu Xiu isn't that bad."

Wang Long snorted, "Did you forget he never gave us our share from our previous cooperation? He took at least dozens of Karma Points worth of benefits!"

"Yeah," Li Shan added, "he's so selfish, he won't share a thing with us."

These two clearly had a lot of resentment towards Chu Xiu.

Then Guan Ke, who had been silent, spoke up: "Is it possible he's actually a high-level professional hiding his true class?"

This comment made everyone thoughtful.

Indeed, Chu Xiu's actions resembled those of a high-level professional. If so, his behavior would make sense.

"Probably not," Li Shan said, "I was his classmate. His energy level was only 0.8 before we set off."

"I see," Guan Ke shook her head in disappointment. "So he really is short-sighted."

Wu Xinyi added, "Xiao Yun, I'm not targeting him. If he were truly strong, it would be fine, but he's just taking advantage of his unique class early on. He lacks combat skills, and as time goes on, his weaknesses will show."

"He should use his advantage period to make friends with combat professionals instead of acting all high and mighty. Isn't that stupid?"

Yun Lu said nothing, but she looked clearly unhappy.

Guan Ke tried to ease the tension: "Alright, Xiao Yun said she didn't mean it that way."

Shen Zhuo nodded: "Right, let's just take care of ourselves. What others do is their business."

With Shen Zhuo's words, the group stopped discussing the topic and resumed their lively chatter.

Unbeknownst to them, their conversation reached Chu Xiu's ears.

He wasn't eavesdropping intentionally, but his mental and physical attributes were too high.

Both spirit and constitution, two of the three basic attributes, could influence reaction speed and perception to some extent.

Chu Xiu's spirit had always been high, and after several level-ups, his perception far exceeded the others.

Hearing them speak ill of him behind his back, he felt no emotional fluctuation. Frankly, given his style, it would be strange if no one bad-mouthed him.

If roles were reversed, Chu Xiu would curse himself harsher than they did. Compared to him, they were quite polite.

So he calmly ate the meat to restore his strength.

But then, he heard Guan Ke, who rarely spoke, say: "Our harvest seems to be decreasing."

This statement silenced the lively atmosphere.

After a while, Shen Zhuo said, "Today was indeed unlucky, but leaving the apartment building wasn't too bad. We hunted a deer and got a piece of equipment."

"It might not just be bad luck," Guan Ke said seriously. "I suspect those creatures have a decent level of intelligence. They realize they're being hunted and are becoming more cautious. Future hunts might be harder and require venturing further from the apartment building!"

Listening to Guan Ke's serious analysis, Chu Xiu's lips twitched.

There's no intelligence at work here, just that I've killed most of the ghouls, and the bodies were absorbed, so they couldn't detect them. However, this girl being able to sense this shows she's sharper than the others.

"So, what do you suggest?" Shen Zhuo asked.

"I'm saying that if we want to explore further, we need better equipment. Otherwise, it's too risky."

Guan Ke paused, "It's time to talk to Chu Xiu about making bone equipment."

(End of Chapter)