James Lone was astonished. "Wow, this stuff is nearly as strong as steel rods!"

Though he wasn't sure what the grass roots could be used for, they were definitely sturdy enough to serve as rope. He casually collected a large bundle and stored it in his personal space for future use.

As for the stamina it consumed...

James carefully assessed his stamina usage and estimated that he could accelerate the growth of 40 to 50 weeds in one go.

After evaluating his recent battle with the TV station base, James realized the significant gains he had made.

He had acquired four new abilities: Plant Acceleration, Gravity Distortion, Willpower Weapon, and Light of the Mind.

He had also obtained crucial intelligence: Washington, DC was completely out of contact, the possibility of extraterrestrial life on the moon, Isaac Murphy's nearby military forces, and the physical toll of having multiple abilities.

Not to mention, he had also gained two new women—Sofie Barnes and Tailsa Evans—bonus prizes from the battle.

James began to notice that as time passed, there were fewer and fewer survivors outside. Women, especially beautiful ones, were even rarer.

Any beautiful woman who survived outside either had abilities themselves or had become tools for more powerful individuals.

Only in places like the TV station base, an old-world survivor settlement, could some semblance of order be maintained, leading to a higher likelihood of encountering beautiful women.

"To deal with the aliens hiding in the shadows, I need to keep getting stronger. And to grow stronger, I need to go to large survivor settlements! Only there will I find enough women," James thought to himself.

Isaac Murphy's military unit seemed promising.

Perhaps he could find a way to lure Isaac Murphy into the city and have him consolidate the scattered survivors.

As for how the military would enter the city and gather survivors, that was their problem.

Judging by Isaac Murphy's communication records with Geshi Stone, it seemed the military was confident in their plans.

Once all the survivors were gathered in one place, James could swoop in and reap the rewards from the military settlement...

James pondered this strategy.

It was too tedious to hunt for scattered survivors himself. Large settlements were the way to go!

With his decision made, James planned to first check on the New York Film Academy to see how the tentacle monster infestation had developed there.

Before leaving, James accelerated the growth of a few more weeds, collecting additional roots.

Returning home, he found that the women had already prepared breakfast.

Tailsa Evans was awake as well, standing awkwardly in the corner, shy and unsure of what to do.

Yesterday she had been an enemy, and today she was her enemy's woman? She felt like a traitor.

Sofie Barnes also looked uncomfortable.

Shirley Inr Won, taking on the role of the lead wife, reassured them with authority, "Take a seat, Sofie and Tailsa. As per our master's orders, since you're the last ones to join us, you'll sit last. From now on, you're the youngest sisters among us."

Both women blushed deeply and quietly shrank into the corner seats.

James Lone picked up a skewer of mutant frog meat and began eating.

No matter what the day's food was, mutant frog meat and enlightenment fruits were his daily staples.

He also required each woman to eat at least one skewer of mutant frog meat every day—the more, the better.

For women like Lily Green and Shirley Inr Won, who had consumed physique-enhancing fruits, this wasn't a problem, as their appetites were larger.

The others, however, found it a bit challenging. They spent most of their time indoors with little physical activity, so their appetites were smaller.

A few days ago, James had made a special trip outside to bring back exercise equipment like treadmills and rowing machines.

He insisted the women exercise daily to burn energy and maintain their figures.

At first, the women were reluctant to exercise, but Shirley Inr Won quietly reminded each of them, "Over time, if other women keep their perfect figures and you let yourself go, who would want a fat woman?"

This sobered them up quickly.

In the apocalypse, being abandoned by James Lone meant certain death!

The women began exercising on their own initiative and soon their appetites increased as well.

James ate breakfast with the women, feeling content.

Suddenly, Lydia Johnson accidentally knocked over a plate. Crash!

The room fell silent as everyone turned to her.

Lydia, startled, stammered nervously, "S-sorry! My strength... it suddenly increased."

As she spoke, small amounts of black impurities appeared on her skin, emitting a foul odor.

The women pinched their noses in disgust. "So smelly."

Only Shirley Inr Won and Lily Green looked at Lydia Johnson with envy.

Lydia's face turned crimson with embarrassment as she asked, "W-what's happening to me?"

James Lone chuckled, "It's nothing. That's the effect of eating mutant frog meat. Eat enough of it, and your physique will improve."

Lydia's eyes lit up with joy. "Really?"

The other women finally understood, and envy spread across their faces.

"Master, I want to improve my physique too!" they exclaimed.

In the apocalypse, a stronger body meant a higher chance of survival—this truth was self-evident.

James smiled, "Then eat more mutant frog meat!"

The women's eyes sparkled as they looked at their meat skewers and began devouring them enthusiastically.

Even Sofie Barnes and Tailsa Evans, the newcomers, didn't hold back.

Who would want to miss out on such a valuable opportunity?

[Ding! Elsa Thomas consumed one skewer of mutant frog meat, returning 1,300 skewers! Stored in personal space.]

[Ding! April Jones consumed one skewer of mutant frog meat, returning 1,300 skewers! Stored in personal space.]

[Ding! Lulia Smith consumed one skewer of mutant frog meat, returning 1,300 skewers! Stored in personal space.]

Near the New York Film Academy, at the Little Bear Pet Grooming Shop.

A white fox with glowing blue eyes squeezed through a crack in the door.

It was covered in blood, with its right thigh stripped of fur, exposing raw, red flesh.

The white fox limped through the grooming shop, exiting through the back door into a courtyard. After panting painfully for a while, it slowly made its way toward a building.

Its thigh wound dripped blood along the way, staining its entire body.

A journey that would normally take a minute stretched to an hour before the white fox finally reached the staircase.

The metal door at the base of the stairs clicked open.

A girl rushed out, scooping up the white fox with a sob, "Snow Fox, Snow Fox, what happened to you? Don't scare me like this!"