Watching

Lu Heng spent the entire afternoon in the Shelter working on the materials he had.

A carefully selected straight wooden stick and a pile of cleaned soft animal hair were shaped, grooved, and compacted bit by bit using Bronze Hunting Blade. Without any tools, it all depended on steady hands and patient grinding, repeatedly adjusting the tightness of the animal hair, for fear that it would fall off and fall apart when used.

After most of the day had passed, a simple toothbrush was finally complete.

The appearance is very rough, without any sense of neatness. There are even fine sanding marks on the edge of the wooden handle, and the brush head is uneven. It is completely incomparable to the exquisite finished products before the apocalypse. It is just the most basic handmade cobbled-together item.

Lu Heng took it and tried it, then lightly brushed it in his mouth a few times.

It works.

Those two words are enough.

For some time now, he had been cleaning his mouth with a mixture of wood ash and charcoal, barely managing to keep it clean, but the experience was consistently poor. Now, with his homemade toothbrush, even with the most basic conditions, it's much better than his previous rudimentary methods.

He breathed a sigh of relief and put the toothbrush aside to dry.

After finishing the chores, I finally had some free time.

Lu Heng stepped onto the second-floor balcony and stood quietly against the railing.

Since arriving in these mountains to survive, he has hardly ever stopped to rest. Every day, he either goes out to search for resources and hunt strange beasts, or stays in the Shelter to fortify defenses, cultivate plants, and organize supplies, his nerves constantly on edge.

Hailstorms blocked the mountain pass today, so I can't go out and there's no urgent work to do.

Suddenly stopping all the busy work, I was able to relax for a rare moment.

The hail and rain outside haven't stopped.

Hailstones of varying sizes continued to fall, pelting the rooftops, woodlands, and rocks with a continuous, resounding sound. The entire mountain forest was a vast expanse of white, branches and leaves swayed, and the ground was littered with broken ice and twigs; the landscape was a scene of utter chaos after the devastation of the natural disaster.

A cool breeze swept through the mountains and onto the balcony; it wasn't biting, but rather made my mind exceptionally clear.

Lu Heng quietly observed the scene outside, enjoying this rare moment of peace.

No need for fighting, no need to be wary of surprise attacks, no need to calculate resource reserves, just simply empty the air.

Such brief moments of leisure are especially precious in a world rife with crises.

The calm did not last long.

The screen of the Wristband on my wrist suddenly lit up with a glaring red warning light.

The pop-up notification suddenly appeared, instantly shattering the tranquility of the room.

It involves external monitoring and early warning.

The Silk-Peeping Bug deployed around the perimeter of the entire fence captured a wide range of unusual live movements.

Lu Heng, who had been relaxing against the railing, suddenly tensed up, sat up straight, and his eyes darkened.

Something's not right.

He immediately opened the real-time monitoring footage, his gaze quickly sweeping over each of the surrounding monitoring points.

Several dark figures appeared sporadically in the clearings of the woods Shelter.

Lu Heng saw it clearly.

There were Red Cliff Jackal crouching low at the edge of the forest, watching intently. Wild wolves paced back and forth slowly, their eyes fixed on the direction of the Shelter. A few wild dogs mingled at the edge, sniffing the ground for any scent.

Jackals, wolves, and wild dogs—three completely different mythical beasts.

These are three species with completely conflicting habits, territories, and hunting practices.

Under normal circumstances, they are hostile to each other, compete for prey, and exclude each other's territories. It is impossible for them to appear in the same area at the same time, let alone coexist peacefully and roam together.

But now, they are unusually gathering around the Shelter.

There was no fighting, no strife; everyone kept a safe distance, wandering aimlessly, observing, and probing.

Lu Heng's brows furrowed tightly.

He patiently stared at the Silk-Peeping Bug, calmly observing the movements of the strange beasts for a long time.

The hail continued to fall, obscuring visibility and masking sound, serving as a natural cover.

Under the cover of the hail and rain, the group lingered, slowly circling the Shelter, repeatedly probing the boundaries, advancing and retreating with a clear purpose.

It wasn't a chance encounter.

It was a deliberate gathering, a deliberate test.

Lu Heng instantly had a guess in his mind.

They set their sights on this Cliffside Shelter.

It's unclear whether it was because he had hunted too many jackals and wolves recently, attracting the collective probing and retaliation of the pack, or whether this stable, dry, and safe cliffside outpost had been regarded as an excellent nest by the strange beasts during the natural disaster.

Regardless of the reason, the result is the same.

The beasts have noticed this place and are taking advantage of the bad weather to probe the Shelter's defenses and whether there are any living creatures there.

If we let them continue to probe, it won't be long before these beasts gather and launch an attack.

We cannot stand idly by.

Lu Heng didn't linger, turned around and quickly walked down the second floor.

He walked straight to the workbench inside, spread out the materials, remained calm, and acted swiftly, beginning an emergency replenishment of supplies.

The arrow stockpile needs to be maximized.

He skillfully added the materials and began processing. One by one, the standard arrows were quickly formed. In a short time, all thirty brand-new arrows were completed and neatly stacked to the side.

After finishing making the arrows, he turned around and organized the weapon rack.

Place the Bronze Hunting Blade on it to allow the blade to regain its sharpness as much as possible.

The main weapon, the Giant-Feather Crossbow, was always fixed in the center of the weapon rack, in perfect condition, and ready to be used at any time without any additional adjustments.

The entire combat readiness system was instantly restored to full operational status.

After completing all the preparations, Lu Heng returned to the second-floor balcony and sat quietly to observe.

The hail continued to rumble outside, and the wind howled through the mountains and forests.

Just as he was intently observing the movements of the beast shadows on the outside, several low, mournful howls of strange beasts suddenly echoed from the depths of the forest.

The sound was intermittent, carrying a sense of painful struggle, and it pierced through the layers of hail and rain, reaching my ears clearly.

Lu Heng's mind stirred, and he instantly realized what was happening.

The animal traps that were previously set up on the outskirts of the forest have proven effective.

It seems that some strange beast, eager to approach this area, sneaked in and accidentally stepped into the trap, becoming trapped and crying out in agony within the forest.

This mournful cry was both the desperate scream of the prey and a warning.

The probing in the woods had already begun.

He had already made all the necessary preparations for the battle.