Chapter 65

Official Website:

【Wasteland OL Alpha 0.4 Version Update Announcement】

【Major Updates:

1. The number of closed beta players has increased to 90.

2. The "Nighttime" system is now officially live.

】

【Optimizations:

1. Enhanced NPC facial expressions.

2. Improved snow texture details.

3. Fixed a few bugs.

...

】

Old rules.

After posting the announcement, Chugwang, in his role as a planner, clicked to send the edited post.

《Developer's Log: Alpha 0.4 Version》

"Hello everyone, I'm your beloved planner! After sacrificing a programmer, we have finally completed the development of the alpha 0.4 version!"

"Previously, some of you complained that you could only enter the game after 6 PM, and during the day, you could only post on the official website."

"Now, this 'bug' has finally been fixed. Even during the day, everyone can log in normally. Surprised? Unexpected? Happy?"

"If you're happy, then I must congratulate you for being happy too early!"

"Because in the setting of Wasteland OL, the characters controlled by players not only have physiological needs like eating, drinking, and using the bathroom, but also have a hidden fatigue value. In other words, your character in the game needs to sleep!"

"High fatigue can result in a 1-33% reduction in attributes. Excessive fatigue can lead to mental confusion, hallucinations, or even unconsciousness, triggering a forced logout. If you want to enter the wasteland in the best condition, please ensure you have at least 8 hours of offline rest time to spend with your family and friends."

"This setting is not only for hardcore elements but also out of concern for players' health. You can consider it as an anti-addiction system."

"The nighttime login function will be available from 12:00 PM today, which is 00:00 in the wasteland. By the way, since the wasteland is full of dangers at night, you can only move around within the base. Please be cautious."

"Let me reiterate, we are a serious company, and Wasteland OL is a game that emphasizes a relaxed and leisurely experience."

"We do not encourage grinding or competition."

"Enjoy in moderation, maintain a good sleep schedule, and manage your game time reasonably. Wishing you a pleasant life!"

The post was released, and the comment section predictably exploded.

Makabazi: "Wait, leisurely?!"

Construction Worker and Brick: "No grinding?!"

Yaya: "Hey, is this false advertising?!"

Trash Collector Level 99: "??? Wait, now everyone can work night shifts? Damn! What advantage do the lizardmen have now?!"

Spare the Axe: "Hahaha, Trash Brother has been epically nerfed! Newbie status confirmed!"

Trash Collector Level 99: "I'm crying!"

Quit Smoking: "Damn, that's too much! You can all log in 24/7, and I haven't even gotten a beta test slot yet! T.T"

Irena: "I just checked, and the number of reservations has already exceeded 600. This time, 40 slots are being released, which means... your chances of being selected are less than 6%. (Rofl)"

Quit Smoking: "凸(艹皿艹)!"

Proud and Unbothered: "Ha, only fools make reservations!"

Chugwang found this line hilarious and almost couldn't resist giving him a beta test slot.

Luckily, he held back.

He must resist!

The early slots are precious and can't be wasted on forum pets. The selection must be done carefully, and it's not time to start slacking yet.

After sending internal messages to the selected players, Chugwang closed the forum, got up from his chair, and walked to the corner to nudge Xia Yan's arm.

"Hey, wake up."

Perhaps the past few days were too comfortable, and he let his guard down, so he fell asleep while reciting lines.

Not only that, but he was also mumbling in his sleep about "chocolate," "alcohol," and "can't eat anymore."

Xia Yan, whose dream was disturbed, opened her eyes groggily.

When she saw Chugwang clearly, she was startled like a frightened hamster, her sleepiness gone, and she tensely clamped her knees and arms.

"What do you want?"

Chugwang pointed to the next room with his chin.

"Reminding you to go back to your room. Don't sleep here."

Xia Yan sighed in relief, mumbled to herself, and leaned on her crutch to wobble back to her room.

Clearly, she was still half-asleep.

Thinking that she wouldn't be much help anyway, Chugwang didn't bother with her and turned to Xiao Qi, instructing him.

"Xiao Qi, I'm going to take a nap. Wake me up at 23:55."

The camera on the ceiling nodded, and Xiao Qi said energetically.

"Sure thing, master!"

...

Wasteland time, 00:00.

In the real world, it should be noon 12:00.

As Chugwang lifted the login restrictions through the system, 27 players logged into the game.

To be honest, Chugwang was quite surprised.

He didn't expect so many freeloaders to be available during the day?

Of course, it could also be a coincidence that there were this many today.

Facing the players whose faces were filled with excitement and eagerness to go out and look at the stars and the moon, Chugwang used a stern gaze to signal them to quiet down.

Then, he recited the lines he had come up with in his sleep.

"Winter is coming, and danger is approaching."

"Days of exploration and hunting have already alerted our neighbors. For us, this is both an opportunity and a danger."

"Now, I need 8 brave warriors to step forward—"

Before Chugwang could finish, a rustling sound was heard, and 27 pairs of legs moved forward in unison, leaving him speechless.

"Cough, wait for me to finish."

Chugwang cleared his throat, readjusted his state, and, facing the expectant gazes, quickened his speech.

"I need 8 brave warriors to shoulder the heavy responsibility of night duty, serving as the guards of the forward base."

"During your duty, your equipment will be provided by the shelter, and you will receive 15 copper coins and 10 contribution points per hour as a reward."

"The maximum duty time per night is 8 hours, with a rotation after 6 hours. If you die on duty, all death penalties except the resurrection cooldown will be waived, and you will receive 1-10 silver coins as compensation, depending on the situation."

Chugwang paused and continued.

"You have 20 seconds to consider whether you really need this job..."

"Now, those who need it, please raise your hands."

The last sentence was clearly unnecessary.

For the grindaholics who want to be online 24/7, this job was too tempting!

From midnight to 6 AM, there are 6 hours. 1.5 silver and 10 contribution points per hour, which adds up to 9 silver and 60 contribution points!

Apart from the slightly lower contribution for night shifts, the monetary gain for 6 hours was almost as much as the freeloaders' income for a whole day!

Almost the moment Chugwang finished speaking, 27 pairs of hands were raised in the residents' hall, as if they were surrendering.

Chugwang should have explained more clearly; raising one hand or two hands made no difference.

However, such minor details were not important.

Chugwang had Xiao Qi register the first 8 players to raise their hands, then went to the storage cabinet in the buffer room to retrieve the weapons locked inside and distributed them.

8 people shared 4 7mm revolver rifles, forming 4 two-person teams. Each team was responsible for one side of the base, with one person holding the gun and the other holding the bullets.

In addition, each person carried a wooden bow, 9 arrows, a Molotov cocktail, and a homemade grenade made from black powder and a soda can.

Chugwang especially instructed them that if any mutants approached, they should use the bow and arrow to kill or drive them away. They should not fire the gun or throw incendiary or explosive devices unless they approached the wall.

If an unknown survivor approached, they should use the bow and arrow to drive them away from 30 meters away. If the other party continued to approach or showed hostile behavior, they were allowed to fire freely.

If it was a mutant, they should fire without hesitation.

After all, they would do the same...

...

Under the envious gazes of the other players, the 8 guards stood tall and proud as they boarded the elevator, the first to return to the surface.

As the four teams took their positions on the walls, the other players followed Chugwang to the surface.

Outside the sanatorium, the starry sky was as brilliant as fire.

Never having seen such a clear night sky, the players opened their eyes wide, trying to imprint the scene in their minds forever.

"Too beautiful..."

"Is this really the wasteland?"

"Turns out you can see the sky at night!"

"Are you taking the game effects seriously?"

"If we could live in this world forever, it would be nice."

"Ha, keep dreaming. If you really crossed over to this place, would you survive more than two episodes?"

"Uh, maybe not."

"..."

The ban on using cement kilns, blast furnaces, and other open flames at night was lifted.

With the players' activity range expanding, hiding was no longer necessary. Hiding would only be self-deception.

Moreover, the base had over a dozen guns, not just for show.

Chugwang needed all the production facilities to run, preferably 24/7, to maximize production and produce weapons, armor, tools, parts, and construction materials for the forward base.

Besides, these grindaholics had finally gotten the chance to log in at night; they couldn't just let them play with mud, right?

For them, not having a task to do was worse than doing a task!

On the three-meter-high concrete wall.

【Elven King Fugui】 and 【Irena】 were responsible for the southern section of the wall.

According to the distribution of forces around the shelter, the south and west should be the safest, with the south near the scavenger settlement and the west near the lake, so there was no need to be too tense.

If any mutants, raiders, or looters attacked, they would come from the east or north.

Unless they strategically flanked.

But was it really necessary?

The two players stood behind the makeshift cover made from old car doors, looking at the dark forest 20 meters away, passing the time with idle chatter.

Irena: "It would be great if the game had a built-in browser. At least we could watch anime, but having to stay in the game for AFK tasks is ridiculous!"

Elven King Fugui: "Built-in browser? Ha, I'd be happy with a visible attribute panel before the beta test! But to be fair, Mole Lord's prediction was right again. The alpha 0.4 version introduced the defense concept, but I wonder when those green-skinned muscle guys will attack."

Irena: "How do you know it wasn't the planner who saw the post and made a last-minute change? (Rofl)"

Elven King Fugui: "How could it be a last-minute change? Do you have any idea what it takes to make a game, man? Do you think a project worth billions can be changed with an eraser? Didn't the planner say they had a three-day meeting just to solve the currency system?"

Irena: "I know, they even sacrificed a programmer to let us log in at night. But you're taking it too seriously, which makes you look silly—"

"Shh!" Elven King Fugui suddenly became alert, making a gesture to be quiet. "Don't make a sound... there's something outside."

"Damn... really?!"

Here already?

The two players hid behind the cover, carefully observing the outside while their hands firmly gripped the bowstrings, with arrows already nocked.

Human?

Or mutant?

The feeling of unease lingered in their hearts.

But outside, it was pitch black, and they couldn't see anything.

Elven King Fugui's eyes almost turned red from straining, his 【Thermal Vision】 scanning the edge of the forest. However, this was the first time he used this skill, and he wasn't familiar with it, so he found nothing.

Irena couldn't help but urge him.

"Did you see anything, bro?"

"See a ghost? Do you think my eyes are a telescope?" Elven King Fugui grumbled, wishing he had a perception attribute.

Unfortunately, he was agility.

This talent was wasted.

Irena consoled herself that at least the scrap metal provided cover, so the other side couldn't see them.

In fact, his judgment was correct.

The other side couldn't see them, so they didn't make a move.

In the forest, a pair of sharp eyes stared intently at the wall, moving along its outline, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.

Inside the wall, the sound of metal forging and the noise of people could be heard faintly.

Ten people?

No, at least a settlement of 20 or 30 people.

The conversation on the wall suddenly stopped, as if they had noticed something.

This showed that the people guarding here were quite alert!

The eyes showed a hint of caution, then silently disappeared into the darkness, ending this round of reconnaissance...

The task was just to escort the tribute back, so it was best not to cause any unnecessary trouble.