Chapter 52

"Huh? Thirty reward points already?"

Players have been quite diligent lately.

Chu Guang, who had just turned off his computer and was about to go to bed, suddenly noticed that his reward points had reached thirty when he checked his administrator allowance before sleeping. Without a second thought, he allocated twenty points to a medium blind box and the remaining ten points to a beginner blind box.

However, the rewards were not ideal.

At least, not what he wanted.

"A box of oral antibiotic capsules, about twelve capsules. A box of bandages, containing two packs, usable twice... Unfortunately, no muscle enhancement injections."

"Even a treatment injection would be nice."

Picking up the supplies from the conveyor belt, Chu Guang sighed.

It wasn't completely useless.

Just mediocre.

As for the ten beginner blind boxes, apart from a bunch of colorful lollipops, the only useful items were a 500ml bottle of soy sauce and a 500g bag of salt.

But the bag of salt was quite interesting.

"... Consuming more than 10g at once can boost immunity and metabolism by 1-5%. Wow, did I just get a legendary item?"

What if he consumed the whole bag?

The thought of stacking buffs quickly crossed Chu Guang's mind, but he soon realized how stupid that idea was.

Consuming the whole bag of salt.

He'd probably be pickled.

"Anyway, I'll put it on the shelf tomorrow."

The 500g bag could be divided into five 100g packets. Selling each for 3-5 silver coins wouldn't be too much, right?

In good conscience, it really wasn't! After all, it was pure salt, free of sulfur, sulfate ions, and organic impurities, and it even had a buff.

It could be considered a benefit for the players.

The soy sauce was harder to divide, and 100ml sealed containers were hard to find, so he decided to put it on the shelf for 20 silver coins.

After all, it wasn't like any player planning to open a restaurant would buy it.

"Alright, time to sleep... Xiao Qi, wake me up at six tomorrow morning."

Xiao Qi, who was idling in the corner, flashed a signal light.

"Sure thing, Master."

Chu Guang soon fell asleep.

However, Xia Yan, who was squatting in the corner of the next room, couldn't fall asleep.

It wasn't because of someone's snoring; the room's soundproofing was quite good, and closing the door blocked out most sounds.

What kept her tossing and turning was that tomorrow was her first day on the job.

Was this "weapon shop owner" job legitimate?

Chu Guang had been treating her well, but she felt uneasy.

After all, captives usually received meager rations, if not just sawdust and bark, or some other odd things.

Forget meat and porridge; even normal food was a blessing.

But over the past two days, she felt like she was gaining weight...

Lost in thought, Xia Yan eventually fell asleep with her script in hand. When she was woken up groggily, it was already eight in the morning.

"Get up."

Seeing the man standing at the door, Xia Yan rubbed her eyes and tried to stand up, only to find two crutches in front of her.

"Are these... for me?"

Chu Guang laughed.

"Who else would need them here?"

He planned to get her a bionic prosthetic when conditions allowed; she looked too pitiful.

"..."

This guy!

Why is he so infuriating!

Xia Yan gritted her teeth, used her arms to support herself, and with the crutches under her armpits, struggled to stand up.

Watching her complete the entire process, Chu Guang nodded in approval, satisfied with her resilience.

"Good, looks like they suit you."

Xia Yan, with a cold face, said stiffly.

"Whatever you say... I'm your captive, after all, so if you want me to—"

"Alright, stop talking," Chu Guang cut her off, not wanting to hear her thoughts. He cleared his throat and continued, "I'll assign you work later. For now, follow me outside."

The last time she breathed fresh air was three days ago.

Following Chu Guang onto the elevator, they reached the surface.

Seeing the sunlight on the sanatorium's doorstep, Xia Yan instinctively raised her left arm, which held the crutch, and squinted, finding the light blinding.

"Did you build the walls outside?"

Chu Guang asked casually.

"Give me your opinion."

Xia Yan pouted.

"Average, maybe enough to fend off a few rural raiders. But against mutants, they'd probably just step over it, let alone in a wave."

Hearing unfamiliar terms, Chu Guang glanced at her.

"Wave?"

Xia Yan explained casually.

"Common along the Third Ring Road, you probably haven't experienced it. Hordes of feeders migrate from the Second Ring Road to the Third Ring Road, mixed with crawlers and even stronger mutants... Even if I say this, you probably can't imagine it."

Due to the massive size of Boulder City, any mutants migrating north would inevitably pass through this survivor fortress.

The war between humans and mutants was inevitable.

Although Xia Yan's mercenary squad was a minor one, they had participated in several wave response missions.

Acting with the main force reduced the danger, and such missions were generally well-paid.

To restore trade and production, the city's leaders often spent heavily to hire them, providing ample ammunition.

Many poor people in the slums became mercenaries during waves.

"Indeed," Chu Guang nodded, "I've only seen a few feeders... they seem to fear light?"

That was when he first arrived in the wasteland.

It was a close call...

Xia Yan nodded.

"Yes, not only do they fear light, but mutated hyenas, jackals, moles, and bats also avoid them, and might even hunt them when hungry... so they often hide in subways or sewers."

"Generally, if you see one, you see a group, and encountering them in narrow spaces is dangerous."

Chu Guang silently noted this information, deciding to update the "wave" entry in the official database later.

But now wasn't the time for that.

"From now on, this house is your workshop. I'll have someone build you a new one when conditions allow."

"For now, make do with it."

Bringing Xia Yan to the weapon shop, Chu Guang hung the wooden sign on the hook next to the door.

"I've carved the prices on the sign and taught you the sales pitch. If you have any questions, ask Xiao Qi... though it's on the third floor, so it's not easy to get there. My players are friendly, so if you don't understand them, just stare at them expressionlessly."

For a socially awkward shut-in, an expressionless stare was enough to be intimidating.

"Players?"

Since Chu Guang used Chinese, Xia Yan didn't understand the term.

"Translated, it means 'shelter residents,'" Chu Guang explained, "You don't need to remember their names or deeply understand the term; just call them that."

Calling shelter residents "shelter residents" didn't seem very polite...

But since Chu Guang said it, Xia Yan had no objections.

Her status was just a slave, and having a decent job was the greatest kindness for her.

"Remember, record every sale, and I'll check the ledger and inventory daily. The cheapest iron pipe rifle costs over a hundred silver coins, so the 'players' can't afford it for now, so your work shouldn't be too busy. When you have free time, help me repair the assault rifle and make bullets and weapons within your capabilities."

Xia Yan looked at the empty room, which contained only a table, a chair, and a wooden board with nails.

The nails held some low-quality iron pipe weapons, with wooden tags indicating prices.

Staring blankly, Xia Yan asked Chu Guang.

"Do you expect me to make a gun with my fingernails?"

Chu Guang: "Can you?"

Xia Yan: "Are you kidding me! Even without electric lathes, at least give me a manual workbench!"

Mercenaries often had to use DIY weapons, and when they couldn't find the right bullets or parts in stores, they would rent workbenches from small to medium-sized workshops to make their own.

Due to poverty, Xia Yan had made weapons and bullets herself, though she couldn't afford high-end smart automatic machines. Using affordable electric tools, it wasn't hard and didn't take much time.

But the current situation was beyond her imagination.

There were no electric tools, no power, no bed, and not even basic tools like turning, boring, or milling cutters.

How could she make any weapons?

Chu Guang, unperturbed by her complaints, continued.

"So, tell me what you need, don't make me guess."

"Now, list what you need, draw them if possible. If I can find them, I'll have the players help. If not, I'll try to buy them... remember to write the prices, I don't want to waste money."

Xia Yan: "Turning, boring, and milling cutters, pliers, and hammers are the basics. I also need a slotted gauge with threads and scales... forget it, I'll draw them."

"Drawings are best. Try to be as detailed as possible; maybe my players can make them."

Chu Guang handed her paper, a pen, and a wooden ruler.

She took them, frowned, and began drawing from memory.

Chu Guang didn't rush her.

Drawing these items so others could understand wasn't easy, especially for a non-professional mercenary.

But everything starts with the first attempt, right?

After Xia Yan finished, Chu Guang added a few lines to the drawing and went to the warehouse, where a player was on duty at a wooden table.

Handing him the paper, Chu Guang said succinctly.

"I need these items."

"If someone brings them, tell them to look out for them while scavenging."

"When you have free time, copy the drawings, make more, and post them at the entrance and the steel furnace."

The warehouse manager also handled task assignments, as assigning tasks individually was too cumbersome.

The player's eyes widened at the paper.

[Task: Forge or collect a turning cutter (with drawing)]

[Reward: 10 silver coins, 100 contribution points]

10 silver coins!

Wow!

Equivalent to a day's wage for burning cement!

If he could find one, he'd be rich!

There were more tasks, like boring and milling cutters.

Regardless of the warehouse manager's envy, Chu Guang left after giving the instructions.

Although the task said "forge or collect," he didn't have high hopes for players finding such items in the wasteland.

It was 211 years into the wasteland era, and pre-war society might not have used such "primitive" tools, possibly having more advanced methods.

Like 3D printing.

While 21st-century Earth wasn't advanced enough, who knew about the future?

Chu Guang truly hoped his players could solve the problem with their limited tools and materials.

Like the metallurgy enthusiasts on the forum, many of whom were in the third batch of beta testers, with more added in the fourth batch.

Besides armchair experts, he believed some players could truly solve the problem.