Cannon fodder in the Interstellar

“Sister-in-law got caught in the rain in the afternoon and developed a high fever at night,” Ruo Manni explained, placing Li Ziyan into Lin Ruihai’s hands. “I gave her medicine on the way back, and her fever has gone down. She just needs proper rest now.”

Lin Ruihai quickly took his wife into his arms, relieved to find her breathing steady and her expression calm and peaceful.

He glanced at his sister, his throat tightening with emotion, unable to say a word.

Ruo Manni spoke softly, “To avoid letting sister-in-law and her friend notice anything unusual, I made them lose consciousness for now. They’ll remain unconscious for at least four days. Make sure to feed sister-in-law the nutrient solution every day, and when she wakes up, come up with an explanation for how she and her friend suddenly traveled from the north to the south.”

With that, Ruo Manni swiftly left, dodging any further questioning from Mother Lin, who might scold her and Lin Kexin for acting on their own without permission.

Lin Kexin, however, wasn’t so lucky. She still had Su Luoxue in her arms and could only watch helplessly as her sister abandoned her. Turning around, she found Mother Lin staring at her with a sharp gaze.

Back in her RV, Ruo Manni noticed her companions were nowhere to be found. She quickly sent a message to Hebrew Adam.

Hebrew Adam replied instantly, informing her that everyone was at the mountaintop.

It turned out that late the previous night, Ruo Manni had asked Mina-Olli to test the rainwater’s composition. Dean Atchison, who had been nearby with Mina and Hua Deli, saw the message and enthusiastically volunteered to investigate.

The process wasn’t difficult, as each of them had the necessary equipment. The results showed that the rainwater contained faint traces of energy. For some reason, Dean had a sudden inspiration to remove his protective gear and practice physical techniques in the rain.

To his surprise, he discovered incredible results: training under this rainwater accelerated advancement at dozens of times the usual speed.

The elite squad wasn’t about to let such an opportunity slip away. Since there wasn’t a suitable spot in the base for uninterrupted practice, they all headed to the mountaintop to train in the rain.

It was said that the heavy rain would only last a few days. Upon learning about the situation, Ruo Manni couldn’t bear to waste any time. She quickly changed into regular non-waterproof clothing, sent the information to her brother and Lin Kexin, and then rushed out.

From last night until this morning, the rain hadn’t stopped, and the temperature had already dropped to about 3 or 4 degrees Celsius. The moment Ruo Manni ran out into the rain, the downpour drenched her entirely, leaving her cold to the core. Even with her enhanced physical condition, she could feel the chill of the rainwater.

However, as she began running, her body gradually warmed up. That’s when she started sensing the faint energy within the rain, slowly seeping into her body.

While running, Ruo Manni also used her mental abilities to gather rainwater. Following the coordinates provided by Hebrew Adam, she reached the mountaintop and found that all 11 other members of the elite squad were there, training their physical techniques under the rain while using various creative methods to collect the rainwater.

Realizing the incredible effect of training under the rain, Ruo Manni immediately sent another message to Lin Ruihai and Lin Kexin.

Since the elite squad knew the rain wouldn’t last long, they decided to temporarily camp on the mountaintop. Apart from resting in capsule apartments when they were utterly exhausted, all twelve members spent their time training in the storm.

When Lin Ruihai and Song Changlong received Ruo Manni’s message and learned about the rain’s properties, they immediately went out into the cold rain to practice physical techniques. They quickly confirmed that what Ruo Manni had said was true—the rain contained energy, and the training results were remarkably effective.

Their cultivation levels weren’t as high as those of the elite squad, so the benefits of training in the rain were even more apparent for them. They not only trained themselves but also quickly brought their subordinates out into the rain for training.

Additionally, they arranged for ordinary people to collect rainwater and announced this discovery through the base’s loudspeakers. As a result, the entire B City base became enthusiastic about improving their physical strength. Those with decent physical conditions braved the cold to train in the rain, following the military’s example.

Meanwhile, the elderly, women, and children, who were too frail to endure the freezing rain, cleverly collected rainwater and heated it up for bathing.

Originally, life had been tough for everyone, and the heavy rain only made things more inconvenient. But to their surprise, the rainwater had such miraculous effects.

The ability users who trained in the rain quickly noticed its benefits. Even ordinary people who dared to try running in the rain or soaking in rainwater baths experienced significant improvements. Although some caught colds or fevers, most found their physical fitness greatly enhanced the next day, with increased strength and stamina.

Remarkably, some of those who developed fevers after being drenched in the rain unexpectedly awakened supernatural abilities once their fevers subsided.

By the third day of the heavy rain, word had spread, and the survivors at B City Base were in a frenzy. Despite the temperature outside dropping to near freezing, no one was deterred. More and more people dared to train in the rain.

Ruo Manni used her mental powers to “observe” the scene and couldn’t help but admire these people as true warriors.

Ruo Manni and her group descended from the mountain on the afternoon of the fourth day. Their keen senses alerted them that the energy content in the rainwater had suddenly diminished drastically.

While the faint energy might still have some effect on ordinary people, it was no longer useful to them. Consequently, the elite squad lost interest in training in the rain.

Ruo Manni also learned that Lin Kexin, who had stubbornly continued training in the rain, had developed a fever after the first day. However, after her fever subsided, she advanced directly to the late stage of a second-level warrior—jumping a major level in one go, which was truly a cause for celebration.

Lin Ruihai and Song Changlong had also made significant progress, both reaching the early stage of fourth-level warriors. With their current abilities, they were now capable of slaying fourth-level mutant beasts, provided they had the right weapons.

The elite squad also made commendable gains. While their advancements weren’t as dramatic as Lin Kexin’s, every member had improved by a minor level.

Among them, Dean Atchison had advanced to the early stage of a seventh-level warrior on the very first day of the rain, while Hua Deli advanced to the mid-stage of the same level.

However, it was Hebrew Adam who stood out the most, successfully breaking through to become an eighth-level warrior.

An eighth-level warrior at just 22 years old! If they were in Gus Empire, the media would have gone wild, swarming to report the news. Here, however, Hebrew Adam merely received envious, jealous, and admiring looks from his companions.

Now that the rainwater was no longer beneficial, Dean Atchison enthusiastically tested the rainwater they had collected. Unfortunately, to his disappointment, the energy within it had completely dissipated after just one day.

This shattered their plans to continue training using the stored rainwater. Dean Atchison sighed in disappointment, saying, “These three days of training were equivalent to three months of effort. What kind of rainwater was this? To think it could only be used for three days—what a pity! I wonder if future rainwater will have the same effect.”

“It’s unlikely,” Ruo Manni responded, dashing Dean Atchison’s hopes. “The energy in the rainwater this afternoon was nearly gone. By tomorrow, it will likely disappear entirely. This suggests that the energy wasn’t naturally occurring in the environment.”