A little sweetness

Bai Yaoyao tossed the two newly earned level-three Crystal Cores to Chenxuan and Keke. Almost everyone else had reached level three, though a few people with dual abilities still had one ability left to level up.

Fat Brother's metal ability and Stone's Skin Hardening, for instance.

Bai Yaoyao shared a tent with Lulu.

"Are you going into your space to sleep tonight?" Lulu asked.

"Yep. Going in to cultivate," Bai Yaoyao replied.

"Haven't all three of your abilities reached level three already? Take a break sometimes. Don't put so much pressure on yourself." While Bai Yaoyao wasn't paying attention, Lulu stroked her soft hair again.

"I know. Mostly, it's because the temperature stays constant in there. Even cultivating is more comfortable than sleeping out here," Bai Yaoyao said frankly.

After a moment's thought, she added, "If you're scared to sleep alone, I can leave Doggie with you. Haha."

Lulu crawled under the covers and rolled her eyes. "Hurry up and take your dog with you. I'm going to sleep. Go on, get going!"

Bai Yaoyao: (๑•́ ₃ •̀๑)

The moment she entered her space, Little Crook came running over excitedly with a splay-footed gait, tugging insistently at Bai Yaoyao's clothes and leading her over to the spring.

Bai Yaoyao studied it for a long time but couldn't spot any changes.

Little Crook fashioned a small vine bowl out of branches, filled it, and held it up to Bai Yaoyao's lips. She happened to be thirsty after eating such salty food, so she drained it in one gulp.

Only afterward did she notice-uh...

Nongfu Spring tastes a little sweet?

This Spring Water actually tasted a little sweet?

Since she didn't know whether it had any other effects, she waited patiently for a while. In the end, apart from letting out a full-bellied burp, nothing happened.

"Be good, Little Crook. Drink it yourself..."

Bai Yaoyao had intended to cultivate in her space, but suddenly felt sleepy. Remembering that she had a mission tomorrow, she simply went to the little wooden cabin to sleep instead.

In the middle of the night, she felt as though she were swimming in a mud pit. The stench was so bad she could barely breathe, and her entire body felt sticky.

When she woke and looked, she found the entire bed covered in filthy black secretions. She let out a furious curse and hurriedly leaped off the bed.

She stood there blankly for a moment before realizing it must have been an effect of drinking the Spring Water. Otherwise, she would never have slept so deeply.

Enduring the stench, she carefully checked her body. Although there were no overly dramatic changes, she could clearly feel a warmth throughout her body.

It was especially noticeable in her lower back and knees. Having trained since childhood, she had inevitably suffered injuries, but she had long since grown used to them. Now that the faint, stabbing aches had suddenly vanished, she actually found it a little hard to adjust.

Bai Yaoyao hurried into the bathroom and took a thorough shower, washing away all the grime. Only when she stood before the mirror to apply toner did she notice-uh...

Her skin was rosy and fair, almost ridiculously flawless.

She hadn't been dark-skinned before, but her complexion had never been this clear. After all, she had spent her teenage years constantly out in the mountains, exposed to the wind and sun. Now, though, it was as if every impurity in her body had been purged.

Naturally, Bai Yaoyao was delighted. What girl didn't want to be a little prettier? Even putting her improved looks aside, healing her old internal injuries alone was wonderful.

Suddenly remembering something, Bai Yaoyao rushed outside to check. Little Crook was sprawled crookedly beside the spring, looking for all the world like a tree that had drunk too much.

Doggie was even worse, lying with all four paws in the air and drool spilling everywhere. Just like her, Doggie had leaked black liquid all over the ground. Well, it smelled even worse than hers...

Those two had drunk the entire pool of Spring Water!

With a look of disgust, Bai Yaoyao took out a bathtub and filled it with some clean water. Holding Doggie with two fingers, she tossed the dog into the tub, squeezed in half a bottle of orange-scented shower gel, put on latex gloves, and began scrubbing hard.

Not only did Doggie stay asleep, but the dog even let out a few contented whines. Bai Yaoyao fought back the urge to pour the bathwater into Doggie's mouth. It took five changes of water to finally get the dog clean.

She tossed Doggie back into the dog bed and checked the time. It was already past four in the morning. After that skull-piercing stench, she wasn't sleepy anymore.

She decided to resume cultivating instead. To her delight, Bai Yaoyao discovered that her abilities flowed more smoothly, and her cultivation had become much more effective. The improvement was most noticeable with her mental ability.

Her mental power seemed stronger too. Although she hadn't leveled up, if she encountered the Mutant Ant from earlier that day again, Mental Piercing would at least make its head hurt a little longer.

As for her strength ability, well, she felt as though one punch from her could knock even herself flat. It wasn't convenient to test it now, though. She would try it on some zombies tomorrow.

"Rustle, rustle, rustle!"

Seeing that Little Crook had woken up, Bai Yaoyao went over specifically to check. Little Crook had grown considerably, and more importantly, was no longer nearly as crooked. The whole tree looked better.

After telling Little Crook to save the day's Spring Water rather than drink it, Bai Yaoyao left her space. She wondered whether a full day would be enough to collect one cup.

Once she had enough, she could give it to Xiaomi. He pushed himself ruthlessly every day and refused to rest until he had finished all his training. Bai Yaoyao was always worried something would happen to him.

By the time she left her space, Lulu was awake. Seeing Bai Yaoyao emerge, she stared for a long moment before saying, "Yaoyao, what did you do last night? Go for a beauty treatment? How did your face get so soft? I feel like I could pinch water out of it!"

"Hahaha, after my spatial ability leveled up, the Spring Water mutated. It seems to purge impurities from the body. After drinking it, not only did my old injuries heal, but my skin improved too." Admiring herself, Bai Yaoyao glanced in the mirror again.

"Holy crap! That's awesome! I want some too!" Lulu immediately lunged over and wrapped her arms around Bai Yaoyao.

"That depends on how you behave, little lady." Bai Yaoyao lightly tipped up Lulu's chin and smiled in satisfaction. Little Lulu really was pretty.

"Hahaha, now you're getting into it!" Lulu swatted Bai Yaoyao's hand away.

"Give it to Xiaomi first. The rest of us aren't in a hurry. That idiot is the most stubborn of the lot," Lulu added after some thought.

"Mm, that's what I was thinking too. Don't worry. I'll check tonight and see whether there's a cupful," Bai Yaoyao replied.

When they came out, they happened to run into someone delivering breakfast: one packet of compressed biscuits, one little French-style bread roll, and one carton of strawberry-flavored yogurt drink per person. Bai Yaoyao thanked them and accepted the food.

Although Meng Qilin knew Dark Night certainly wasn't short of such food, whether they needed it and whether he offered it were two different matters. There was no reason not to send any just because they had enough. It was a matter of showing goodwill.

Although Bai Yaoyao accepted it, she still wanted something hot for breakfast. They had a mission today, and who knew when they would get their next meal?