Chapter 1128: Chapter 457 Blacky Awakening_2 Chapter 1128: Chapter 457 Blacky Awakening_2 Encountering a large number of frozen zombies and giant eagles seemed like a severe issue, yet it was largely a matter of luck. More importantly, there was no way to resolve these issues right now. These weren’t matters that could be solved by mere thought; this was a gap in real combat power…

Thus, the real problem to resolve was actually just one–keeping warm!

Or more precisely, how to effectively keep warm while still maintaining a significant portion of combat capabilities. It was also very cold inside the cave…

As long as this issue was resolved, sending people out wouldn’t pose a problem. Unless they were incredibly unlucky and encountered a large number of frozen zombies or giant eagles as soon as they stepped outside…

As for how to solve this issue… it actually wasn’t difficult.

For example, the simplest solution was to wear powered armor.

Not only was it convenient and able to keep one warm, but it could also greatly enhance combat power!

But there was a fatal flaw–cost!

The cost of manufacturing powered armor, as well as the energy source–Crystal Core costs were not low. It wasn’t a big deal if the quantity was small, but with a large quantity, even City Hall couldn’t bear the expense.

Besides powered armor, mechanical exoskeletons seemed feasible too; their cost was much less than that of powered armor. Although exoskeletons didn’t provide warmth, they could offer some flexibility for those wearing thick clothes…

However, exoskeletons also had their downsides. No matter how much they increased flexibility, they were never as comfortable as one’s own body, and their strength had an upper limit. For ordinary people, mechanical exoskeletons definitely offered improvement. But for skilled Ability Users, this gear could bring substantial enhancement–unless the quality of the mechanical exoskeletons was exceptional, but then we returned to the previous issue–high cost.

While these committee members were pondering, Shi Chuanfu turned to Wang Tao and said:
“Thank you, Principal Wang, for your explanations! You all should go back and rest well; you’ve worked hard these days! Regarding the cave matter, we still need to have a discussion…”

Clearly, the committee members were about to have a meeting.

“Sure.”

Wang Tao nodded.

Qu Shilin had already returned to the institute earlier, and Gu Yun personally escorted Wang Tao and his group downstairs.

After descending, Wang Tao encountered Jiang Hui, who was just about to ascend the stairs.

“Oh? Mr. Wang! You’re back!”

Seeing Wang Tao, Jiang Hui immediately showed a delighted expression.

He knew Wang Tao had gone out and had been somewhat worried about him. Seeing that Wang Tao had returned safely, he was genuinely relieved.

“Officer Jiang, oh no, Director Jiang!”

Wang Tao greeted him with a smile.

Jiang Hui had already become the director by then.

“That’s all thanks to Mr. Wang! Without Mr. Wang, where would I, Jiang Hui, be today!”

Jiang Hui quickly responded.

If not for Wang Tao leading the way and taking down the Dusk Church and capturing a committee-level criminal, thereby earning a major merit, he would never have become the director.

“It was all your own effort!” Wang Tao said with a smile and shook his head, then added, “By the way, have there been any more incidents regarding the Dusk Church inside the base these past few days?”

“Thanks to Mr. Wang, all is well in the base now. The Dusk Church has probably been completely uprooted!”

“That’s good.”

Wang Tao nodded his head.

As long as there was no trouble from the Dusk Church inside the base, the external threats from the Dusk Church were not too serious for the time being.

After chatting for a bit more, Jiang Hui took the initiative to end the conversation.

“Mr. Wang, you just got back, right? I won’t keep you any longer! Take care!”

Jiang Hui knew Wang Tao had just returned and probably needed to rest. A brief appearance and a few words were enough; it wouldn’t do to keep Wang Tao talking, as that might become annoying.

“Okay.”

Wang Tao didn’t have anything else to do, so he got in the car and directly went home.

After spending over ten days outside, other than the snow accumulating a bit more, there weren’t many changes at home.

Inside the house, several Black Snakes lazily sprawled in front of the fireplace, basking in the warmth. If not for the significantly reduced amount of firewood, it felt just like the moment before he had left.

“Chirp chirp–”
Little Bing crawled out of Wang Tao’s pocket and immediately ran curiously toward the Black Snakes. They got startled; after all, Little Bing was a legitimate Level 4, Lord, while they were only Fourth Order Elites; there was a level gap.

“We’re all on the same side.”

Wang Tao said with a smile.

“Hiss–”
The new member of the family seemed to be somewhat unsettling for the few Black Snakes, always feeling as if they had encountered their natural predator.

Wang Tao could sense Blacky’s status and felt somewhat puzzled. Would pythons be afraid of ferrets? If he disregarded levels, the difference in size was huge…

However, after some research, Wang Tao figured out the reason–Blacky had sensed the ice attribute in Little Bing’s body. Being cold-blooded, they became drowsy when cold, severely reducing their combat effectiveness… So, in a way, the ice attribute really restrained them.

Having understood this, Wang Tao became somewhat speechless. Would these five Black Snakes just be idling away the entire winter?

But then again, their current strength was only that of Fourth Order Elite… In some aspects, Fourth Order Elites were stronger than Level 3 Lords, but in other aspects, they were inferior. Overall, they could be considered as Level 3 Lords.

This kind of strength, unless it was for healing or something, was not much help to Wang Tao and the others…

“Good thing we brought back a lot of Snake Fruits this time. Let’s feed them more and see if an awakening can happen.”

Wang Tao took out some Snake Fruits. The few Black Snakes smelled them and immediately slithered over.

He petted Blacky’s head and gave them the Snake Fruits.

“Eat more, there’s plenty of Snake Fruit. But you guys also need to put in some effort. It’s been so long and there’s been no improvement in strength at all, you’re too dumb!”

Hearing Wang Tao’s words, Blacky flicked its tongue, and those little eyes seemed somewhat aggrieved.

The rate at which these mutant beasts increased in strength was not comparable to zombies and even depended on luck. Not improving was the norm, and constant improvement would be abnormal…

However, as it ate the Snake Fruit, it suddenly felt a warmth throughout its body as if a power was about to awaken inside.

“Ah?” Wang Tao instantly noticed the difference in Blacky. “Is this…are you about to awaken?”

“Hiss–”
As soon as Wang Tao had confirmation from Blacky, he immediately grinned.

“I take back what I said; you’re not dumb at all!”

Wang Tao petted Blacky’s head. It licked the palm of his hand and then immediately coiled around in front of him, and then it fell asleep.

“Is Blacky…awakening?”

The others finally noticed Blacky’s changes.

“Yeah, it’s about to awaken.”

“That’s great!”

An awakening meant an additional Level 4 Lord combatant, a nice enhancement for their little team.

Wei Zhenguo looked at Er Hei and Sanhei, the other Black Snakes.

“Blacky has awakened, you guys need to work hard!”

“Hiss–”
The few Black Snakes couldn’t speak, but their owner clearly felt their envy towards Blacky.

“Blacky is about to awaken; what do you guys say?”

At this moment, Wang Tao said with a smile:
“Darn! I want to awaken!”

Wei Zhenguo promptly said.

“We want to as well! Right now!”

Ding Yuqin and the others spoke at the same time.

Due to the rift, they might have to go out again shortly. So it would be best if they could enhance their strength quickly.

“Alright! You guys try first, and after you are done, it’ll be my turn.”

Wang Tao immediately took out a bunch of physical awakening keys.

He kept 300 keys for himself, and then took out the remaining 82.

There were still six people who hadn’t awakened, but Chen Zhuang and Li Qiuyu weren’t in a hurry, so they started with Ding Yuqin, Han Rui, Yang Changhong, and Wei Zhenguo.

They were all undergoing their Second Awakening, and it would consume 2 keys this time. If they failed, the next attempt to awaken would require 3 keys…

Assuming they kept failing, those eighty-plus keys could allow them four to attempt awakening five times!

This number might seem quite a lot, but if it dragged on to that point, their success rate each time would only be 10%… So how many of them could actually awaken, Wang Tao couldn’t say, but trying would show!