Soon, the group returned to Xu Xinâs treehouse, and the Chang Yin Family felt like their stone-like eyes were about to pop out upon seeing Xu Xinâs treehouse.
"You... live up there?" Chang Yin pointed at the massive banyan tree, somewhat incredulous. "Can people live on trees like this?"
Xu Xin smiled at him, grabbed one of the aerial roots, and controlled the banyanâs roots to wrap around the waists of the four statues. He brought Keke, Silver King, and the leopard directly to the third floor of the treehouse.
Since there were no seats available, Xu Xin immediately crafted a few wooden chairs.
Xue Lan and the maid were exploring the treehouse with Xiaohong, while Chang Yin leaned by the window, looking outside.
"How is it? Itâs pretty nice here, right?"
"More than just nice." Chang Yinâs eyes never left the view outside. "Itâs been so long since Iâve seen such a vast world. Itâs really comfortable here!"
"Every survivor has a treehouse like this, except mine is larger than most peopleâs."
"Didnât you say we could live here? Donât you go back on your word! Once we handle our business, weâll come and crash at your treehouse!" Reluctantly, Chang Yin withdrew his gaze and plopped down on the wooden chair.
"Of course you can, but..." Xu Xin took out a [Mutation Beast Contract]. "I remember someone saying below that theyâd help me make as many of these contracts as I wanted?"
"Wow, so youâre eyeing my contracts all along."
Chang Yin conjured a piece of paper out of thin air, along with a very special-looking pen he had used before. He began scribbling and drawing on the paper, while saying, "But I canât help you make too many; the ink in this pen is running out. At most, I can make five more for you."
Ink running out? Xu Xin scrutinized the pen in Chang Yinâs hand. It was a fountain pen with a dark red body, somewhat transparent, and it was clear that there wasnât much red ink left inside.
"This ink..."
"Itâs made from the blood of high-level mutant beasts, which is why it can bond with lower-level beasts. The bracelet, ring, windmill, and broom in your hand are all more or less related to what comes from high-level mutant beasts," Chang Yin explained.
High-level mutant beasts?
Xu Xin knew that the beasts summoned from the altar were mid-level mutant beasts, yet even the power of a mid-level mutant beast couldnât be underestimated. Facing them head-on was almost impossible without a smart strategy; and the prowess of even stronger high-level mutant beasts was not something he could handle now.
Soon, Chang Yin had finished writing five [Mutation Beast Contracts], and the pen in his hand ran out of its last ink.
"I wonder when weâll get high-level mutant materials again," Chang Yin shook his head and put away the pen.
In the dungeon, Xu Xin got six contracts, used two, and now with these five, he had nine contracts left, enough for some time.
Xue Lan and the others had finished exploring the treehouse and returned, and at this moment, the sky was glowing with red clouds, it was past 5 PM, and there were less than half an hour left until the event ended.
"We should get going too." Chang Yin stood up, stretching lazily under the sunset. Even though the statue didnât need to stretch, he did it anyway, maybe to feel more human.
"Take care. Once things are settled, feel free to come back to me."
"Alright."
He sent the statue family off from the treehouse, standing by the window, watching their silhouettes growing smaller, Xu Xin felt a sense of disbelief. He thought the events of these past few days were a bit too surreal.
Then, a mysterious voice echoed in his ear.
[Dungeon treasure hunting event ends, congratulations to the survivors returning fully loaded. You must have unimaginable resources and wealth now.]
[After the event, there will be a day of adjustment. Make good use of this day, utilize your resources to build and renovate your treehouse!]
[This event has no rankings. Letâs congratulate all survivors who returned from the dungeon. You are all winners! We will give every returnee a grand gift.]
[Survivors who havenât found the dungeon entrance, you still have the last 10 minutes to bid farewell to the world.]
This time, thereâs only one day to adjust after the event.
He must use this day effectively; thereâs still so much to deal with. The defenses outside the treehouse, renovations inside, and above all, the piranhas in the lake outside need to be dealt with quickly.
Passing by the Black Bear Cave entrance earlier, with Chang Yin and the others in tow, Xu Xin feared the crocodile at the bottom of the stream might not be as friendly to them as it was to him and might attack, so he refrained from disturbing it.
Tomorrow he must ask it to see if he can enlist its help to deal with the piranhas in the heart of the lake.
But now, itâs time to eat!
Nothing is more important than eating!
"Yay!"
Seeing Xu Xin sit by the grill, Keke, who was lying nearby, suddenly perked up, jumped into Xu Xinâs arms, eyes fixed on the grill before him, tail wagging incessantly.
Since the event started, they hadnât had a complete meal, no wonder Keke was so eager to eat.
"Alright, you wonât miss out." Xu Xin first handed Keke an apple to whet its appetite, then took out regular beast meat, sprinkled some salt, and began roasting. Once this meal was consumed, heâd spruce up the interior to finally set up a kitchen; it had been too long since he had stir-fried dishes.
The aroma of roasted meat attracted Silver King and the leopard.
Xu Xin released the bat from his bracelet, tossed each of them a few pieces of meat, and only when they were all eating did he begin carefully roasting the meat on the grill.
Stroking the fluffy fur of Keke nestled in his arms, Xu Xin opened the regional channel to see what others had obtained.
The regional channel now only had 3948 people. Over a thousand perished in this event, even though both Xu Xin and Ji Chaoyang shared strategies, the beasts and traps inside the dungeon were not something everyone could handle.
I wonder how many will be left in the end.
"Brothers, I got several pieces of wood of blue grade, itâs insane! Blue grade!"
"What is that? I picked up a blue grade backpack for free, with some blue grade weapons inside. I feel invincible!"
"Have you seen blue grade leather armor? None of you have, but Iâm wearing it now!"
"I wonder if these blue grade fruits have spoiled, can they still be eaten, oh how long have they been underground..."
"You all managed to get blue grade supplies? I thought I was the only one..."
"You guys actually dared enter the dungeon... I turned back at the entrance, too scared to go in."
"Finally, someone who didnât enter. I thought I was the only one afraid..."
"Those who didnât dare speak shouldnât, huh."
"Boss Xu provided the entrance-finding strategies, Boss Ji gave dungeon strategies, with walkthroughs in hand, can you still be this cowardly?"
"What? This is already the nth event, are there people who still donât dare to act? How have you survived till now?"
Xu Xin looked around the regional channel, discovering that almost all survivors from the dungeon gained blue-grade resources, yet they were basic, with nothing new or special, leading to some disappointment.
He then checked the trading platform.
"Hmm?" Xu Xinâs eyes were drawn to something. "Is this polluted mutant beast meat? Someone acquired this?"
Xu Xin immediately messaged the person, hoping to purchase the polluted beast meat, as it would be most useful in his hands.