The Strongest Brain in the Interstellar

I must say, Zhou Xiuwen is truly a master of the “survival at all costs” approach; he always finds a way to survive.

After dealing with the scattered enemies they encountered, Jiang Hui and Huan Xian were led by him to a hidden charging point, and fortunately, there was no one nearby. It was unclear whether few people had discovered it or if those who had found it had already fully charged and left.

Either way, it was convenient for them.

Jiang Hui soon realized why Zhou Xuiwen referred to it as a hidden charging point and why it wasn’t surrounded by a large group of people like the other one. From the outside, they couldn’t see the main energy block at all, and they had to lean their bodies against an uneven wall to connect.

If it weren’t for the message saying, “Beep beep, the main energy block A2 has been found…” they wouldn’t have dared to confirm that this was a charging point.

Unlike the previous one, where the main energy block was situated on a flat surface, this one seemed to be embedded in the wall. No… it should be said that it was located in an invisible space on the other side of the wall. This meant that there might be a similar space to the chamber they first emerged from on the other side of the wall.

The reason they couldn’t approach and connect to it was probably that they were already at the very edge of the charging range.

A new space also meant new clues. Naturally, they wondered if the other side might hold the supply energy they had been searching for all along. Jiang Hui, at least, didn’t believe that such a large charging point would only have a charging area without any resources. There must be something they had overlooked or hadn’t been able to find.

However, she ultimately quelled her restless heart. It was better to conserve energy for now and tackle things one at a time. Regardless of whether they could find a way over there, who could say if it would be good or bad? It was more practical to focus on fully charging her energy vest with the convenience at hand.

Compared to taking risks, Jiang Hui personally preferred a more stable approach.

When Jiang Hui came over from that side, her simulated vest still had 38% energy left. However, there had been some loss along the way, and after a struggle with an opponent earlier, she now had less than 30% energy remaining.

If she could charge it to the 60% limit here, even if it didn’t reach 100%, it could still get to 70% or 80%, which would last for a considerable amount of time. Even if she were thrown out now, she wouldn’t have to worry about running out of energy halfway through the competition.

Huan Xian was in a similar situation, but he actually had a bit more energy than Jiang Hui.

Surprisingly, Zhou Xiuwen, who had originally charged the most, now had the least. Because each main energy block could only be connected to once by each person, Zhou Xiuwen couldn’t connect to the energy block again after having already charged here. They tried several times, but eventually had to confirm this point.

Now, the group was in a bit of a dilemma. Having discovered a potentially unexplored charging chamber nearby, they certainly wanted to search it.

However, the team situation was somewhat unbalanced. Zhou Xiuwen had led them here, which gave them the opportunity to increase the energy in their simulated vests to a relatively high level. They should help each other and take the others to the A3 chamber to charge their energy, as that would be fair. After all, no one knew when the supply point would end.

So, which direction should they go first?

Unexpectedly, Huan Xian was quite open-minded about it. He casually told Jiang Hui, “It’s fine, you can go wherever you want, and I’ll just follow you. It’s been like that all along, right? If there’s a chance to charge, then do it. If not, then let it be.” He felt that just being able to stay in the competition for this long was a win for him, and he didn’t have much of a strategy for the competition anyway.

Jiang Hui was taken aback: ‘?? Bro, can’t you have some aspirations? Although I know you tend to be pretty laid-back, there’s no need to go to this extent. This attitude of just wanting to enjoy the scenery is very out of place among everyone else.’

This was Huan Xian’s first time witnessing the attitude of his new teammate. He looked at her with a hint of curiosity and subtly glanced at Zhou Xiuwen, who seemed to be pressing his forehead as if he had a headache. There was a flicker of inquiry in his eyes, but probably because they weren’t familiar with each other yet, he ultimately didn’t express any opinions on the matter.

“Alright, once we finish charging here, we’ll explore the area. If we really can’t find anything, we’ll head back. But, honestly, it might not even be possible to find our way back; this place is built like a maze, and we’ll just be wandering around like headless flies. Speaking of which… if there’s A3 and A2, shouldn’t there be an A1 as well?” Jiang Hui mused aimlessly.

After a brief conversation, they fell into an unintentional silence. The atmosphere seemed relaxed, but it couldn’t hide the increasingly tense feeling in the air. This tension didn’t stem from the emotions of the three of them; apart from Jiang Hui, the other two behaved like tight-lipped mutes, only responding to her occasional questions.

The unsettling atmosphere originated from their unnaturally quiet surroundings. It was much quieter than when they had been scrambling through the tunnels just before.

It wasn’t that silence was bad; at this crucial moment of charging, they would prefer not to be disturbed at all. However, this eerie stillness easily evoked the feeling of calm before a storm, as if something was about to happen, even though they themselves didn’t know what it might be.

‘Did you hear any strange sounds?’

‘It sounds like… water.’

The two voices reached her mind almost simultaneously, overlapping each other. It took Jiang Hui a while to realize they belonged to different people.

The mental communication was fine, but there was no need for such a mysterious tone. In such a quiet environment, having sounds suddenly pop up in your head was a bit creepy. And… did you guys forget something?

“I heard it too,” Jiang Hui said flatly, her expression unchanged. “You’re all impressive with your mental communication, but I can’t do that! What’s the point of sharing if I can’t hear it?!”

Realizing this, the expressions of the two grew somewhat awkward.

“How much have you charged?” Jiang Hui glanced down at the electronic display on her right shoulder; the progress bar had reached 76%, with only 10% left to charge.

Huan Xian had already reached 80%, and his remaining charging capacity was the same as Jiang Hui’s.

However, the group was starting to feel increasingly uneasy as the surrounding environment became even stranger.

First, the noise had been absent, then suddenly, some peculiar sounds emerged while they were charging, seemingly coming from the other side of the wall. It sounded like water gathering together, starting as a gentle trickle. As more liquid accumulated, it produced a “puffing” sound like water being squeezed in a bottle, and then there were more and more sounds, accompanied by a series of high and low screams that grew louder and closer.

Jiang Hui immediately abandoned the remaining charging capacity, her expression darkening as she rummaged through her backpack. “Does anyone here not know how to swim?”