HBWnovel Chapter 22 The Strongest Human
Chapter 22 The Strongest Human
"Brother Su, please don't take such risks next time, okay? People will be very worried about you..."
A soft, slightly trembling voice came from behind Su Jin, warming his heart.
As an orphan, he had few people who cared about him growing up. Even the volunteers at the welfare home were just there to get a meal and put on a show.
He never felt warmth from them until he grew up and went out to work, where he met some coworkers who could share his joys and sorrows.
But it was just a fleeting encounter; everyone has their own life to live.
Just like how he made money and developed a hobby of wilderness survival, we had less interaction.
He usually enjoys spending time alone in the wilderness, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, perhaps to fill the emptiness in his heart.
Now, there's another person who cares about him, and he feels... pretty good.
Behind him, Li Yuanyuan was blushing and looked a little flustered.
For some reason, she inexplicably hugged him and said those things.
She didn't know what she was thinking. Was she afraid of losing this hard-won support, or did she not want her savior to be in danger, or was it something she didn't want to admit?
Just then, she heard the man speak to her in a gentle tone, a rare occurrence for her.
"Okay, I'll be more cautious from now on and try to do fewer dangerous things."
After saying this, Su Jin also did some self-reflection.
Indeed, this time it's a bit risky.
One stroke of luck doesn't mean luck will smile upon him a second time.
He was a little overwhelmed by the intense sense of accomplishment, and even his speech in front of Li Yuanyuan sounded somewhat pretentious.
It was the words of this adorable girl that reminded him.
Upon hearing his words, Li Yuanyuan's lips curled up slightly, and she slowly released her grip.
Then, as if remembering something, the girl quickly said:
"Ah, the soup is still simmering, it'll dry up in no time, Brother Su, come and sit down."
She reached out and took the seafood from Su Jin's hand, then pulled Su Jin's hand and sat down by the fire.
She used a freshly opened coconut shell to serve a bowl of fresh mushroom soup, and added a few more softened dragon mushrooms to it.
She didn't put too much in this pot of soup, only 4 Dragon Power Mushrooms in total, and she put 3 of them into the soup for Su Jin.
On the one hand, the quantity of Dragon Power Mushrooms was really limited, and she wanted Su Jin to eat more, since he had used up a lot of energy working.
On the other hand, this stuff is actually a tonic, even a yang-tonifying one, so eating too much of it isn't good for a girl like her.
She didn't want her body to become imbalanced, because then she wouldn't be able to tolerate any nourishment.
Su Jin didn't stand on ceremony with her, picked up the bowl and started eating, drinking the mushrooms and soup together.
After being simmered for a long time, the Dragon Power Mushroom melts in your mouth, and its delicious flavor bursts forth.
This tastes amazing!
It's hard to imagine that the mushrooms are even more delicious than yesterday's fish soup, and in a way that doesn't have a fishy smell.
Su Jin had eaten quite a few mushrooms before, but he had never tasted mushrooms this delicious. It truly lived up to its reputation as a Tier 2 rare ingredient.
After consuming the Dragon Power Mushroom, his body reacted quickly; he began to sweat on his back and his energy returned.
The next second, he received a system notification.
【Strength +1.7】
[Temporary Strength +1, Temporary Stamina Recovery Speed Increased by 200%]
Su Jin felt his muscles swell slightly at that moment, not in the kind of insubstantial expansion that comes with air, but rather a solid increase in size and hardness.
His previous strength was 9.1, and now with this 1.7 added, his actual strength has broken through the limits of humanity, reaching an astonishing 10.8.
This means that at this moment he has become the strongest human being, and even the world weightlifting champion would have to take two hits from him.
With the added temporary power boost, his terrifying strength of 11.8 was enough to make even a black bear tremble, because one punch from him would send a black bear sprawling on its back.
Su Jin clenched his fist, felt his own power, and couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
However, even as he was excited, he still felt a burning heat in his body that lingered for a long time, and some parts of his body, such as his fists, became hard.
Suddenly, he felt a heat in his nasal cavity, and a stream of heat gushed out.
He instinctively wiped his nose and discovered that he was bleeding.
He looked up at Li Yuanyuan and found that the girl's face was just red, but she was fine.
However, the more he looked at this pink-haired girl, the more attractive she seemed, and he couldn't help but want to go over and devour her on the spot.
Li Yuanyuan also noticed that Su Jin was acting strangely, and secretly thought to herself that it was bad news; it seemed that three Dragon Power Mushrooms were still too many.
She was about to explain when Su Jin suddenly stood up, revealing the scene that had been hidden by his legs.
Oh no!
She subconsciously turned her head away; this wasn't something she should be looking at, but for some reason, she really wanted to turn her head back to look.
At that moment, her mind went blank, and she didn't know what to say.
In fact, although she only ate one Dragon Power Marrow Mushroom, due to the expansion of her own spiritual chef talent, coupled with the fact that she was not very resistant to nourishment to begin with, she was still somewhat affected.
However, her condition wasn't as severe as Su Jin's; she was just a little feverish, not to the point of a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey.
She didn't know if Su Jin could control himself; if he couldn't, she would be the one to suffer.
But if that's the case, she'll suffer terribly, and it's uncertain whether she'll be able to walk tomorrow.
Just as she was lost in thought, she heard Su Jin's deep voice.
"Your energy buff is too strong. I'm going to chop up all the trees into firewood to use up my energy... Also, could you grill the fish and shellfish? I'm still not full."
After Su Jin finished speaking, he didn't care what the girl thought, and picked up the short-handled stone axe and walked towards the pile of fallen trees.
After the giant crystal crab caused a ruckus last night, this grove of trees is almost completely bare, with only a few trees still standing.
This saved him a lot of effort, sparing him the trouble of cutting down trees himself.
However, some trees are quite old and large, with some having over 100 annual rings and trunks so large that even Su Jin couldn't wrap his arms around them.
He definitely couldn't carry those trees, nor could his small boat.
Faced with such massive creatures, all he could do was chop them into firewood and then transport them to the ship.
With a little effort today, he should be able to upgrade his small fishing boat to level 3.
With this in mind, Su Jin gained a lot of motivation and started working with his axe.
As he chopped wood, he even found a large tree stump to use as a base for chopping wood, which sped up the chopping process.
He got hungry while chopping, so he went back to Li Yuanyuan to ask for something to eat.
The adorable girl saw him holding an axe, fed him grilled fish, and even made him a bowl of royal jelly.
The sweet flavor paired with the fragrant fish, and the adorable pink-haired girl tiptoeing to feed him, made him eat to his heart's content.
Later, seeing that he liked sweets, Li Yuanyuan used royal jelly as a seasoning and spread it on the fish to make it more flavorful.
Royal jelly is, after all, a rare Tier 1 ingredient. When he had consumed almost all of it, the system gave him another notification.
【Spirit +0.5】
Su Jin felt a sudden clarity in his mind and became more energetic.
He picked up his axe, intending to continue chopping down trees, but as his gaze swept over Li Yuanyuan, a good idea popped into his head.