The apocalypse struck, and I became a druid.

Page 23

In this world, survival is the only thing that matters.

In the following period, Han Ning stayed at home to improve his proficiency in other skills.

The wound on his left arm was his primary concern.

Practicing the Rejuvenation Technique is nothing special; it's just about constantly casting spells on wounds, consuming spiritual energy, and increasing proficiency.

Then there was the Tree Skin Technique; he came up with a plan.

First, it casts Tree Skin spell, covering its entire body with tree bark. Then, it commands Snowcake to use its sharp claws to tear at the bark like a cat scratching a cat scratching board.

As long as the bark breaks, he continues to repair it, simulating the situation during battle.

Finally, there's rapid growth, which means continuously releasing nutrients into the crop.

Previously, due to a shortage of spiritual energy, I hadn't been able to take good enough care of the plants.

Now that I no longer practice vine techniques, my overall spiritual power limit has doubled, and my proficiency in rapid growth has improved extremely quickly.

Time flew by as we practiced diligently...

Chapter 24 Underwater Exploration

At midnight.

The incessant sound of the downpour outside the window was a constant background noise, masking all other subtle sounds.

The entire apartment building was deathly silent, with only the occasional pale flash of lightning outside the window bringing brief moments of light.

Han Ning opened the security door, and Xuebing followed behind.

"Walk."

A man and a lizard arrived silently at the entrance on the first floor.

Compared to the first time I went out, the water had now spread up several steps.

"Go down." Han Ning squatted down and touched the scales on the snow cake.

"Ow~"

"Pfft."

Upon seeing the puddles, Xuebing seemed to have an instinctive affinity for them and eagerly slid into them.

First, it curiously sniffed the surface of the water, then submerged its entire head in the murky water. A few seconds later, it suddenly lifted its head, shaking its water-covered head and making an excited "gurgling" sound in its throat.

"Dive down and swim to the outside."

Han Ning pointed in the direction outside the apartment building and issued a command using his mind.

At the same time, it uses animal companion skills to simultaneously perceive the status of the snow cake.

In an instant, a strange sensation replaced his vision, flooding into Han Ning's mind like a tidal wave.

It's not a clear image, but more like a radar map woven from touch and emotion.

The slight resistance as the water flows over the scales of the snow cake, the viscous feeling of the silt being stirred up at the bottom of the water, and the faint vibrations transmitted from the distant water ripples.

All the information that Xuebing's body could collect was transmitted back to Han Ning's brain through the mental link.

As the rice cracker entered the puddles, it was like a dragon entering the sea or a tiger entering the deep forest, displaying amazing agility in the murky water.

It moves forward silently, propelling its streamlined body in a more serpentine manner.

"Keep swimming forward."

Under Han Ning's command, Xuebing swam faster toward the apartment building's entrance.

It easily passes through the entrance to the first-floor lobby and blends into the wider world outside.

More information flooded into Han Ning's mind.

A huge billboard floated halfway up the wall, and from inside an overturned bus, a hollow echo of flowing water could be heard…

All the clutter was shrouded in a depressing stillness, with only the surging of the water and the muffled sound of rain in the distance serving as the eternal background noise.

[Animal Companion (Beginner) Proficiency +1, currently 30/100]

Meanwhile, Han Ning discovered that he was gathering information by sensing and directing the movement of the snow cakes through mental links.

Animal companion skills improve faster.

"So that's how it's used..."

Regularly interacting with Snowcake will increase your familiarity with your animal companions, but it's a very slow process.

Now it's increasing by a little bit almost every minute.

...

After the snow cake swam about two or three hundred meters away.

"Hiss..."

A sense of alertness suddenly came from Xuebing's side.

Han Ning's heart tightened.

In my perception, three relatively large, unfamiliar creatures, brimming with a strong life force, are rapidly swimming in a triangular formation from the murky waters not far away.

There are three crocodile lizards!

"Get away from them." Fearing an accident, Han Ning subconsciously ordered Xuebing to avoid them.

But just as the three crocodile lizards approached the snow cake, nothing happened.

The three crocodile lizards only glanced briefly in the direction of the snow cake.

In Han Ning's perception, it was more like a method belonging to the crocodile lizard population, transmitting information through water vibrations or scents.

This seems to confirm that snow cakes are of the same kind.

Three crocodile lizards swam straight across the water a few meters to the left of the snow cake, stirring up the water so much that it tilted the small snow cake slightly.

Their target is clearly somewhere much further away; the snow cakes pose no threat to them whatsoever.

"Snowcake, be vigilant next time you encounter these guys," Han Ning reminded him.

He believes that snow cakes and wild crocodile lizards are no longer considered to belong to the same species.

Those crocodile lizards were filled with a ferocious desire to attack and were impossible to communicate with. If we were to draw an analogy with humans, they would be more like human zombies infected with a zombie virus.

Snow cakes can be compared to normal humans.

Normal people and zombies are completely different.

Furthermore, even among their own kind, they will kill each other.

Han Ning had personally witnessed crocodile lizards devouring the corpses of their own kind, which shows that they would still kill each other even when hungry, so it can only be said that those few crocodile lizards were not hungry.

"Ow~"

Xuebing continued to follow Han Ning's instructions, exploring further afield.

It moves nimbly underwater, sometimes skimming along the walls, conveying the rough texture of touching concrete.

Sometimes they would slip through open windows into flooded houses and walk through floating furniture.

As Han Ning delved deeper into the snow cake business, the "radar map" in his brain continued to expand and become more detailed.

He heard a faint noise as the water flowed through the narrow pipe.

Touching the cold outer shell of the metal trash can that had sunk to the bottom of the water.

I could smell the stench of a huge animal carcass slowly rotting in the water in the distance.

This city ruin, swallowed by the flood, assaulted Han Ning's senses in a more primal and direct way, as perceived by Xuebing.

It wasn't until Xuebing swam past a church-like building with a pointed roof that Han Ning clearly felt the soul connection between him and Xuebing suddenly tremble.

Like a rubber band stretched to its limit, it suddenly becomes thin and fragile.

What was once a clear perception became blurred, and the information transmitted back began to come in fits and starts. Xuebing's emotions were also like being covered by a layer of snowflakes, appearing intermittently.

"The church is about 500 meters from the residential area, and a total of 600 meters from my home."

"This indicates that the sensory limit of primary animal companions is about 600 meters..."

Han Ning, who lived nearby, naturally knew how far the church was from his home, since he often passed by there.

“That’s the limit…” Han Ning quickly issued the command, “Come back, Xuebing.”

"Hiss~"

A lingering sense of satisfaction came from the other end of the link.

Snowcake seemed to be taking a keen interest in something in some underwater corner.

But under Han Ning's command, it did not hesitate for a moment, decisively changed direction, and returned to its dwelling.

After a while.

Wow!

The water broke open, and a grayish-white head covered in murky water droplets suddenly emerged.

Snowcake shook its head, splashing water everywhere, its yellow vertical pupils gleaming with excitement.

It stretched its front paws out of the water, clawed at the slippery edge of the steps, and climbed up.

As soon as the "little guy" landed, he couldn't help but shake his body vigorously again, splashing the cold, smelly water everywhere.

It made a satisfied "gurgling" sound in its throat, then nuzzled its head affectionately against Han Ning's calf, constantly conveying its happy mood.

"Snowflake can definitely be used as an underwater drone, and with its crocodile lizard-like appearance, it can easily deceive other wild crocodile lizards and lower their guard..."

After realizing the tactical value of the snow cake underwater, a series of plans emerged in Han Ning's mind.

Chapter 25: Recovery Ends

three days later.

Early in the morning, as usual, Han Ning stood next to the small planting area near the balcony in the living room.