Evolution Begins with Elemental Domination

"Let me."

Su Chen didn’t just stand by; he grabbed a war axe himself. A violent ripple of Wind Blade energy pulsed from it, compressing the surrounding air into a sharp hum. After signaling for everyone to stay clear of the tree’s path, he unleashed a series of Wind Blades, striking the gash in the massive trunk.

In the blink of an eye.

The base of the massive tree gave way, and it crashed to the left under its own immense weight.

"A Wind Blade weapon! Nice. It’s a cutting-type, just like my Thunder-Cut Rune. Enchanted onto the axe blade, too," Ji Xiaolin chuckled.

"Sir, another one, please! It’s about to rain; we’re running out of time!"

Before they could continue their conversation, a uniformed member of the security staff shouted urgently.

"No problem."

Su Chen agreed at once. He had no reason to refuse matters concerning the base’s public safety, especially since reinforcing the defensive fortifications was a good thing for everyone.

Besides, he couldn’t, with a clear conscience, simply enjoy the fruits of the group’s labor.

"Young man, cut along here. You need to make a wedge cut first," a professional lumberjack from the base came over to instruct him.

There’s a trick to felling trees. It’s an extremely dangerous job; if you don’t control the direction of the fall, you can easily be crushed to death. In fact, logging is recognized worldwide as one of the most hazardous professions.

"You’ll need to be patient. Even if your Wind Blade is sharp, it’ll take at least a dozen strikes," Ji Xiaolin commented, drawing from her own experience.

"That won’t be necessary. All of you, just stand back," Su Chen said nonchalantly.

He casually plunged his war axe into the ground. Instantly, a torrent of fire erupted in his hand.

Compared to a Lv1 Wind Blade, his Lv5 Flame Burst Rune was far more efficient.

"This..."

At first, everyone was skeptical. But when he threw a fist of fire that casually obliterated the base of a massive tree, they were all stunned.

"Is that Flame Burst?"

Its power was so far beyond their expectations that they found it hard to believe it was the same Rune from the Damage Attachment Stream so popular among Archers.

Was that the power of a Lv3? Or even a Lv4!

Ji Xiaolin stood frozen for two full seconds before finally forcing out two words: "Holy shit!"

"Sir, how about three more... no, just one more, please," the security officer said. Shaking off his astonishment, he hadn’t forgotten his duty, but he lowered his request, afraid of seeming like he was pushing his luck.

It was a small effort for Su Chen, so he obliged.

Another pillar of flame shot up, sending splinters and scorched bits of wood flying.

One thick, ancient tree after another snapped at its base from a single strike.

To make transport easier, Su Chen not only used the Wind Blade War Axe to help them trim the branches, but also broke the trunks into multiple sections.

As time passed, the sky began to darken, and everyone quickened their pace. They brought in a tow truck, and by coordinating several SUVs with tow hooks to pull in unison, they were finally able to slowly, painstakingly drag the scattered sections of the trunks.

Fortunately, the riverbank was close to the edge of the forest. Even at a snail’s pace, the twenty-meter journey was manageable. Had there been even a slight incline or uneven terrain, all they could have done was stare helplessly.

Besides preparing to erect a tall palisade wall along the riverbank, they had also piled up a low barricade of abandoned vehicles behind it, serving as a temporary second line of defense.

"Hey there, we meet again."

Just then, a voice called out. A middle-aged man was jogging toward him, looking very excited.

Su Chen glanced over and recognized him as the man he had met once before. When the transmigration began yesterday, the man had been trying to lead his family under a bridge, but Su Chen had persuaded him to turn back.

"What are you doing here? Where’s your family?"

Su Chen hadn’t expected that the man, with a family in tow, would have the guts to be on the front lines.

Still, it was understandable. It was hard to abandon an RV in an apocalyptic environment like this. If they tossed all their luggage and supplies and gave up their ample power supply to risk returning to a town, it wasn’t guaranteed they’d be any safer.

"They’re fine."

Yang Hongyu let out a long sigh. His eyes subconsciously darted around; to keep others from getting any ideas, he didn’t dare mention the RV.

In fact, to establish his presence at the campground and prove his worth, he had volunteered to help Manager Shao design the base’s defensive fortifications.

It was simply his area of expertise.

It was a perfect match for his profession.

"My regular job is designing ancient architecture, so I was perfectly suited to figure out a plan for the walls."

Yang Hongyu patted his chest, mentioning several well-known ancient city restoration projects he’d worked on.

He pointed to an already erected section of the wooden wall and said, "The base of the wall’s exterior will be reinforced with packed earth and stone. The interior will be filled with rammed earth. The timbers are initially secured with iron nails, but they’re also secondarily reinforced with mortise and tenon joints."

The construction of wooden structures also involves structural calculations; the intricacies are difficult to explain simply.

"Of course, we also have to make use of what’s locally available."

Yang Hongyu pointed to some thorny bushes they had collected nearby. Their surfaces were covered in dense spikes that glinted with a metallic luster.

As Yang Hongyu continued his explanation, Su Chen learned that the authorities had just released a Wood Element Rune Formula to the public.

Water + Wood + Light = Growth.

This Rune had an extremely potent stimulating effect on plants. Not only did it accelerate their growth cycle, but at a higher Rune Level, it could even break a species’ original genetic constraints.

Its effect was far more dramatic than any chemical fertilizer.

But Yang Hongyu had his eye on another application.

"These thorny bushes are like natural barbed wire. They can pierce the hide of a tiger or leopard with just a poke. If we make them grow like crazy, it’ll be like wrapping the wooden walls in a layer of thorny Exoskeleton."

It was indeed an ingenious idea.

Getting into his area of expertise, he spoke at length about preventing rot and fire, and about his idea to use Earth Element essences for reinforcement.

"Impressive."

A genuine smile spread across Su Chen’s face. Not only had he learned something new, he had also gained a valuable piece of intelligence.

’As for the Growth Rune, his thoughts immediately turned to its combat applications. It would be a perfect match for an Entangling Rune.’

Activated together, it would be a case of 1+1 being greater than 2.

’Just imagine: roots bursting from the earth, stimulated into a mad growth spurt, combined with the natural advantage of a forest environment... it would be a godly crowd-control ability.’

’There it is. A way to round out my control abilities is finally clear.’

’Luckily, both were publicly released formulas, so he wouldn’t have to waste time with trial and error,’ Su Chen thought to himself.

Considering the limit on his Magic Slots, he could always forge an enchanted weapon, like a scepter, to hold more.

"Alright, thanks for the information. I need to get back to my vehicle," Su Chen said, cutting the small talk short. He still needed to get back to his RV and unload his supplies.

"Take care."

Yang Hongyu resisted the urge to walk him out. Overdoing it would seem clumsy and desperate.

He’d been worried that his lecture on fortifications had been too long-winded, but seeing Su Chen’s smile, he figured he hadn’t bored him.

Sigh...

Watching the young man’s departing figure, the middle-aged architect couldn’t help but reflect on how hard the apocalypse was. To secure a future for himself and his family, he had to constantly exert his influence and make sure people saw his value.

He actively offered his counsel to the leaders of the campground.

And when it came to a powerful ’lone wolf’ like Su Chen, he couldn’t help but want to get on his good side.

Besides...

There was something else he’d done to earn favor that he hadn’t mentioned to Su Chen: his own RV was parked in the same temporarily designated area.

During the day, some shady characters had been loitering around the area, peeking in windows and testing door locks. If they confirmed an owner was dead or missing, they’d naturally move in to claim the vehicle. Because of this, he had not only told his wife and daughter to keep watch, but had also helped chase away suspicious individuals from the young man’s RV.

Bringing it up himself would have seemed like a deliberate attempt to curry favor.

It would mean more if Su Chen found out on his own.

"Sigh... just trying to get by in the apocalypse is so damn hard."

This was the survival philosophy of an ordinary, out-of-shape, middle-aged man, quietly putting it into practice in the apocalypse.