Lin Feng remembered that in many games' challenge modes, players would farm points by defeating minor enemies before tackling significant levels, thereby enhancing their equipment's damage levels.
This "bug-exploiting" mindset was precisely what Lin Feng intended to apply now.
With a system in place, he needed to maximize point farming.
Ever since he saw a red armored beetle he had injured rapidly recover its health by consuming human flesh, Lin Feng had conceived this plan.
He aimed to safely and efficiently farm upgrade points.
Additionally, Lin Feng had a lingering question that required using a live beetle for experimentation.
The lv4 red armored beetle, currently incapacitated, had only 12 health points remaining. With five out of six legs severed and its mandibles cut off, it posed no threat.
Lin Feng picked up the severed limbs. The bullet-shattered limb had a mangled flesh surface, whereas the hind leg severed with a long knife had full, gel-like flesh.
He placed the two different limbs near the beetle's mouth, akin to feeding grasshopper legs to a grasshopper in his childhood.
The result was clear: the weakened beetle only consumed the limb cut with the long knife, ignoring the bullet-shattered limb.
Earlier, when Lin Feng picked up the severed limb at the doorway and examined it from the sofa, he had been puzzled.
On the surface, acquiring upgrade points with the handgun seemed tied to the damage it caused. For instance, the lv2 handgun had an average damage of 4, so dealing 4 points of damage would accrue 1 upgrade point...
This reasoning seemed logical.
However, this only explained the handgun's upgrade points. When an item was bound as equipment, Lin Feng also leveled up, but the source of this upgrade power was unclear.
Lin Feng understood that this aspect was the true strength of the system. While others remained clueless about how to grow stronger, he could achieve mutual growth solely through equipment-based point farming.
The beetle's selective consumption answered Lin Feng's question.
It turned out that damage inflicted by equipment generated an additional hidden effect: limbs or corpses damaged by bullets lost their reusable value.
This lost value was the source of Lin Feng's upgrades.
Though seemingly insignificant now, Lin Feng sensed that this unlisted ability on the system panel would play a crucial role in the future.
For the moment, it made no impact. The legless beetle still had other food options.
After feeding it two legs and a pair of mandibles, the beetle's health increased from 12 to 20, a gain of 8 points.
Its feeding and recovery speed were much faster than the lv3 beetle, likely due to the level difference.
The wounds on its severed limbs had healed, and short legs had begun to regrow, akin to the regrowth seen in crabs and lobsters.
With ample food, the beetle's self-healing was swift, and Lin Feng planned to exploit this for extensive point farming.
With 20 health points, the beetle was too healthy. Lin Feng shot its remaining leg and a newly grown limb, dealing eight points of damage and earning 2 upgrade points, finally accumulating enough for an upgrade.
Having fired five rounds, seven bullets remained.
Lin Feng upgraded his handgun and tossed the legless beetle onto the nearby woman's corpse.
The weakened beetle, smelling blood, eagerly devoured the flesh.
This operation baffled the two women. Just as Lin Feng was about to offer an explanation, he heard movement on the stairs.
The trio looked up to see the remaining survivors of Building 6, including the talkative middle-aged woman and another young woman. Hearing the gunshots, they had come to investigate, peeking from the landing.
Seeing Lin Feng kick the beetle onto the deceased woman's body, allowing it to feed, they trembled, too frightened to speak.
No one expected the handsome young man from downstairs to handle the corpse in such a brutal manner.
Lin Feng glanced at them, then ignored them, explaining to the women:
"Letting it dispose of the body will eliminate the blood scent, prompting the beetles at the entrance to leave."
"It also gives us practice with using weapons and overcoming our fear of the bugs."
With that, Lin Feng handed the long knife to Chen Yanyan, encouraging her to try.
Eagerly, Chen Yanyan accepted the knife, waiting for the beetle's legs to regrow.
Lin Feng was also curious about the changes following the long knife's upgrade.
With the handgun gaining a bullet recovery attribute, perhaps the long knife would gain a similar function.
Possibly due to its near-death state, the lv4 beetle fed rapidly, visibly consuming the woman's body.
Its health surged from 12 to over 20. Lin Feng tested whether he could continue shooting during the upgrade.
A bullet pierced its newly grown mandibles, which were tough enough that Chen Yanyan couldn't cut through them.
Confirming he could shoot, Lin Feng holstered his gun, allowing the women to take turns chopping, ensuring the beetle remained legless.
Soon, the long knife accumulated three upgrade points. Lin Feng took it and initiated the upgrade.
A white glow visible only to him emanated from the blade as it upgraded.
The long knife upgraded quickly, within seconds:
"Ordinary Long Knife lv2/9, White Quality"
"Upgrade Points: 0/10, Damage: 10, Good Condition"
"Evaluation: A quality melee weapon, capable of penetrating most defenses. Be cautious not to injure yourself. Strike targets to gain upgrade points."
Lin Feng paused, gripping the knife, and couldn't help but utter a low exclamation.
The long knife's upgrade was astonishing, increasing damage by 6 points. With the Red Armored Shield, it could easily kill a red beetle.
Notably, both its damage and sharpness improved significantly, and its natural weight even decreased!
Previously weighing five or six pounds, it now weighed less than four, feeling light and maneuverable.
A lighter weapon meant longer combat endurance. Indeed, melee weapons had advantages, with attack power increasing faster than with firearms.
However, as subsequent upgrades required ten points of damage each, Lin Feng decided not to waste them here. He fetched another long knife from upstairs for the women to continue upgrading.
Meanwhile, the handgun's upgrade completed, granting Lin Feng his lv3 firearm:
"Premium Handgun lv3/9, White Quality"
"Upgrade Points: 0/10, Damage: 6, Effective Range: 60 meters, Remaining Bullets: 12/12, Extra Attribute Upgrade: Bullet Recovery 1/1min"
"Evaluation: A finely crafted handgun, boasting rapid bullet recovery. Hit targets to gain upgrade points."
Lin Feng took a deep breath, noting that while the damage boost wasn't substantial, the extra attribute upgrade was invaluable. Previously, he had calculated that over the remaining 20 hours, he could replenish only 20 bullets, limiting his usage...
Now, with a bullet replenishment rate of one per minute, he could recover 60 bullets an hour, essentially ensuring an infinite supply, providing more tactical options.
He promptly ejected ten rounds from the magazine, pocketing them, then reloaded the magazine, allowing the bullets to auto-replenish.
By emptying the magazine every ten minutes, Lin Feng could resolve his bullet anxiety completely.
Lin Feng's series of unusual actions piqued the women's curiosity and confusion.
After a moment's hesitation, Lin Feng began to explain: